Politics
The Quest for a Definition of Life
By Steve Davis In 1943 the eminent physicist Erwin Schrodinger gave a series of lectures in Dublin that were later published in book form under the title What Is Life? Its success was considerable as […]
Politics
Trump to America… “No dough for the Commons. I need it for my criminal wars”
By Walt Zlotow President Trump has a bizarre way of demonstrating his claim of being the Peace President deserving the Nobel Peace Prize. He spent his first term raining down tens of thousands of bombs […]
AIM Extra
The Autumn of Things
By James Moore “I was born in the autumn of things.” (Richard Flanagan, Australian author). Our carburetors had to be opened up for the engines to get us up the Front Range. We had just […]
Politics
A strange honour
The shooting that disrupted the White House Correspondents’ Dinner was a stark reminder of how quickly public life can turn volatile – gunfire, confusion, and the swift evacuation of Donald Trump and other officials. […]
Environment
The Minilateralist Incentive: A Climate Change Conference in Colombia
Not much good comes from war. Qualifying exceptions, however, can be found. The United Nations, tarnished, libelled and mocked for being simultaneously ineffectual and intrusive, was the mediating entity for international relations that grew from […]
Satire
The PM Explains Gas
“This piece is intended as a modest tribute to the genius of John Clarke and Bryan Dawe, who together created something that Australian public life has not recovered from losing: a weekly two minutes of […]
Health
Whose Cradle? Whose Grave?
How AUKUS is Becoming the Largest Wealth Transfer in Australian History – and Why the Government Won’t Tell You the Cost Dedicated to my wife, who sees through the secrecy and still chooses to fight […]
Politics
Is President Trump mentally unstable? (Part 2)
Continued from Part 1 In 2017, The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump, a book edited by Dr Bandy X. Lee, presented the assessments of 27 psychiatrists, psychologists, and other mental health professionals, argued that Trump’s […]
Politics
THE RECEIPT: The Tab
Part Two: Who Else is Picking up the Tab? In Part One of The Receipt, a bloke in a Collingwood jumper stood at the Ararat servo staring at a $255 diesel bill and uttered one […]
Politics
From Welfare to War: Following the 2007 Money Trail
Many social media articles lately push a familiar argument: as defence spending rises, government services fall behind. The more we allocate to the military, the more strain we place on the systems people rely on […]
Your Say
The System Sought to Eliminate Variation in Judgement – Instead it Standardised Unpredictability
By Carey Civis How aged care reform standardised unpredictability: this is a story about forced decision-making, constrained clinical judgement, and administrative systems that multiply faster than their ability to deliver coherent care. Experienced assessors are […]
Politics
Legitimacy, Inequality and the Reclassification of Dissent: Political Violence Narratives and the Crisis of Representation in Australia
Trust-Fall – The Crisis of Representation, Dissent and State Legitimacy. By Nick Chugg Abstract This article develops a political sociology critique of contemporary Australian claims that increased protections for politicians are justified by a […]
Politics
THE RECEIPT Part One: Where Does the Money Go?
At the Ararat servo last Tuesday, a bloke in a Collingwood jumper ahead of me in the queue stares at the bowser as if it had just insulted Jock McHale. Two hundred and fifty-five dollars […]
Politics
Is President Trump mentally unstable?
This article asks: Do the President’s recent conduct and statements indicate mental instability that affects his job performance? By examining his actions, considering mental health expert assessments, and consistent behaviours, the article argues these factors […]
Politics
Why Australia Defence Spending Priorities Matter
By Denis Hay Description Australia defence spending priorities reveal trade-offs between military budgets and essential public services. Introduction Australia defence spending priorities are increasingly raising concerns about whether public money is being directed toward national […]