Former UN ambassador Richard Woolcott will tonight launch an attack on the Howard government when his latest book is launched in Melbourne by former premier Steve Bracks, writes Barry Everingham.
Australia
Crikey Says: Crikey Says
There’s a wicked whiff of irony in all this sudden talk of reconciliation. You hear it ringing with shadow spokeswoman Jenny Macklin’s endorsement of the Prime Minister’s sudden epiphanous sympathy for black Australia.
Howard’s history 1: OMG, is this a win for the left?
According to reports, the much awaited new history curriculum will be pretty similar to the way we’ve been teaching history before, writes Guy Rundle.
10 new reasons to read that card with the brace position
The volume of persistent and troubling air safety incidents in Australia is without precedent. It cannot be explained by growth alone, writes Ben Sandlilands.
The Fed will fix it? We should be so lucky
Heaven help the world’s markets if the US Federal Reserve doesn’t cut interest rates again at its next meeting in four weeks’ time.
ALP vote at highest level under Rudd: Morgan
Labor’s primary vote has reached its highest level since Kevin Rudd took over the leadership last year – 54%, a rise of 4.5 points – according to the latest poll from Roy Morgan Research. Support for Coalition has dropped 3.5 points to 36%, writes Christian Kerr.
Drought assistance critics need to get some perspective
So much of the comment about farmers shows a serious lack of knowledge and understanding of the economics of agriculture. This on all sides, and nowhere worse than at the NFF and the National Party, writes Ted O’Brien.
How many problem home loans are there in Australia?
There is a view that there is some sort of problem with repossessions and foreclosures of homes in Sydney and by extrapolation, the rest of Australia. There isn’t, writes Glenn Dyer.
Hamilton: Alexander Downer’s climate change tango
There are two views on Alexander Downer’s speech to the UN on climate change — domestic and international. Here, Clive Hamilton looks at how the two compare.
When I grow up I want to be an industrial relations consultant…
How careers nights have changed! South Australia’s peak business lobby, Business SA, is now offering seminars for university students on the new workplace relations system. A flyer circulated by the Careers & Employer Liaison Centre at Flinders University in Adelaide’s south invites students to the session early next month.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: Comments, corrections, clarifications, and c*ckups
Akerman on the Heiner Affair … Adler not on Enough Rope … Brough’s takeaway grog rules … soft Labor votes … Australia’s official foreign reserves … let’s blame Grandma …
South Korea versus Australia – our pathetic savings record
Peter Costello has had plenty of ups and downs as Treasurer since March 1996, but when asked about his toughest single day in the job, he cites Christmas Day 1997 – the day South Korea ran out of foreign reserves.
The Tasmanian forest industry is carbon positive
The Tasmanian forest industry is carbon positive and the National Association of Forest Industries has pointed to credible science in order to back this claim, writes NAFI deputy CEO, Allan Hansard.
John Sanderson: is the NT intervention the army’s fight?
If the military has a role in helping Indigenous people to take control of their own destiny, it has to be in this spirit of reconciliation, standing alongside them and providing assistance in restoring their pride and self-esteem, writes John Sanderson.
‘Prison hulk’ shame: the deadly price of protecting fish
Catching Indonesian fishermen in the exclusive economic zone might play well with urban audiences, but the realities of the operation are somewhat shocking, writes Lionel Elmore.
State of the Planet
Climate Institute spends big on ad campaign … Big-Mac green drive crashes Japanese gov website … bigger the truck, better for the environment? … Oz faces permament dry.
Why the US media have got it easy, relatively speaking
It was a trip to the Land of the Free that really brought home to me how much Australian media’s access has been whittled away over the years.
Numerology psephology: advice for the PM
Crikey’s Numerologist Clive Marshall, puts a different spin on the month of September for our ever-illustrious leaders. Advice maybe, information definitely.
Extradition case puts our war crimes record back in the spotlight
The Simon Wiesenthal Centre has seen red over the High Court’s decision to hear case of Charles Zentai — an 85-year-old Hungarian migrant accused of war crimes during WW2 — pointing to Australia’s sorry track record when it comes to extradition of alleged war criminals.
Will the horsey crowd punish a Government?
With horse racing unlikely in NSW before next year the damages are bound to be enormous. And so is the potential backlash from voters. The maladministration at the government quarantine centre affects not just the thoroughbred racing industry but tens of thousands of recreational horse riders.
Windschuttle’s latest book? (It’s called Becoming an Australian Citizen)
The new 42-page citizenship guide says on pg 39 that the “citizenship test … is designed to assess whether you have a basic knowledge of the English language”. The booklet’s authors seem to have not much more of this basic knowledge. One of the Aussie values is clumsily referred to as “peacefulness”. It gets worse.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: Crikey Says – 28 August, 2007
20 questions. Really? Is that all there is to being an Australian? Surely providing 20 questions as a test of one’s worthiness for Australian citizenship simply invites others. Questions that is. We thought we’d suggest a few alternatives.
Costello steps in to keep Ten local
The Federal Government has cut off the option of the controlling Asper family and its Canwest company of Canada from selling the Ten Network to a private buyout group.
The Economy: She’ll be right, mates…for the moment
Two main interpretations have emerged from readers of the Reserve Bank’s quarterly economic statement, released yesterday.
Prime time TV advertising set to increase
The industry’s lobby group, Free TV Australia, has, very quietly, sought public comment on a plan to add an extra minute of advertising to prime time, from 6pm to midnight, seven days a week in the campaign.
