In this postmodern world one human being’s lie is another’s truth. Knew it wouldn’t take some blow-hard long to claim that John Howard promised in the last election that interest rates would not rise under him. Of course, the claim was that interest rates would be higher […] Continue Reading…
February 09, 2005 | Graham
Difference between degree and direction
Posted by Graham at 9:40 am |
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February 07, 2005 | Graham
Sentencing and due process
They say that you should never forgive, and never forget. Ken Jarrett and Robert Lacey might be forgiven for adhering to that litany, and adding another of their own – never confess.
Who are Ken Jarrett and Robert Lacey? They are the members of a reasonably exclusive club […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 11:54 am |
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February 05, 2005 | Ronda Jambe
Lessons from the tsunami: a global intelligence test
The waters have receded, and the long term work of rebuilding lives and towns is underway. The willingness of the world to help in a sustained and unselfish way is a test of our common humanity. But the tsunami is also a test of our ability to set common […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Ronda Jambe at 2:21 pm |
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February 02, 2005 | Graham
Crikey, Beecher leaves us out in the surf alone
Eric Beecher, publisher of The Reader has skinned Stephen Mayne, publisher of www.crikey.com.au by buying effective control of the zine for $200,000 paid in instalments over the course of 2005. This would appear to bring to an end one of the chapters in independent online media in Australia, […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 4:09 pm |
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February 01, 2005 | Graham
‘Rotten Romans’ could teach ALP, and all of us, some lessons
My older daughter, Libby, has been reading Rotten Romans one book in a series of Horrible Histories. It explains that the Romans beat the Britons because while both the Romans and the Britons made military mistakes, the Romans learnt from their mistakes and tended to only make them […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 12:01 pm |
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January 31, 2005 | Graham
Good morning Iraq
Congratulations to the Iraqi nation. In the face of extreme intimidation Iraqis turned out in numbers that would have been considered to be satisfactory even in well-established democracies like the US. There was never any real doubt that voters would turn out, but there is nothing like confirmation. […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 10:06 am |
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January 30, 2005 | Graham
Worst of the worst
“Worst of the worst?” was the title of a Four Corners investigation into Mamdouh Habib on 20th July, 2004.
Anyone wanting to weigh into the debate about his detention and then lack of trial ought to read the transcript. In showing that he wasn’t the worst of the worst […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 6:20 pm |
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January 28, 2005 | Graham
Sophie’s choice the best
As I predicted soon after last election – Howard government control of the Senate is likely to lead to more intra-Liberal Party activism than in previous parliaments (certainly any in the ’90s). One sign of that is the newly formed Backbench Tax/Welfare reform group co-chaired by Victorians Sophie […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 1:16 pm |
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January 27, 2005 | Graham
Physician heal thyself.
Roman Catholicism has a problem – too many churches and not enough priests. In Australia this is normally put down to the presumed fact that a celibate lifestyle is no longer attractive, leading to a shortage of candidates for consecration to a celibate clergy. This was certainly the […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 5:06 pm |
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January 25, 2005 | Graham
Cleaning up the Labor house
The last fortnight’s shennanigans show just why Mark Latham won the Labor leadership in the first place, and why federal Labor is likely to continue to lose elections.
Mark Latham was a supporter of On Line Opinion from an early stage, and one of the few Members of Parliament with […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 2:11 pm |
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