Why does hair feature so much in Queensland elections? First there was Pauline, the incendiary red-head from Ipswich, torching the political landscape. Now we have the blonde Doctor Flegg being stalked for style tips on the campaign trail by journalists. Controversy and couture briefly worked for Pauline. They’re not […] Continue Reading…
August 27, 2006 | Graham
Beattie gives Coalition a haircut
Posted by Graham at 9:51 pm |
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August 25, 2006 | Ronda Jambe
ACT in hands of the White Coat Brigade
When I first moved to Canberra, in the early 1980s, the city was a gem. From the first spring, when the pretty blossoms on the plum tree miraculously turned into an abundance of fruit, I was hooked. What a wonderful place to bring up children (although that didn’t turn […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Ronda Jambe at 2:35 pm |
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August 20, 2006 | Graham
Queensland Wrestlemania
A slightly edited version of this article appeared in today’s Sunday Mail.
Before this election campaign started Queensland voters were interested in changing government. But that was before the Liberals changed leaders and State Governor Quentin Bryce rang the opening bell. Now I’m not sure that is still the case.
On […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 10:02 pm |
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August 17, 2006 | Graham
Opposition ‘duumbirate’ becomes ‘triumbirate’
Bruce Flegg’s “gaffe” about who would lead a Coalition government is not accidental – believe it or not it appears to be part of the coalition’s strategy. What wasn’t part of the coalition’s strategy was that “Would-be Caesar”, Michael Caltabiano, would use the opportunity it presented to undermine his […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 5:31 am |
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August 15, 2006 | Graham
Howard didn’t believe in immigration bill
John Howard didn’t believe in the immigration bill that he’s just withdrawn from the Senate. That’s a possible interpretation of his behaviour. Back in June I predicted that he was preparing to step back from the legislation. In the end, he pushed it far enough to convince everyone, including […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 11:53 pm |
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August 15, 2006 | Graham
Planning and performing
The Queensland election campaign is on, and it’s not much of a contest.
Peter Beattie has a plan for the future which involves providing enough water by 2011 to meet the needs of south-east Queensland in 2006. At the same time he has a plan for population growth which will […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 11:11 pm |
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August 08, 2006 | Graham
Gender-bending fish does Quinn, will it do Springborg?
Ultimately it was Queensland’s drought that did for ex-Queensland Liberal Leader, Bob Quinn, using the agency of a mythical “gender-bending” fish. If it wasn’t for the drought, Toowoomba would most likely not have been voting on whether to drink recycled sewage as a solution to its water problem. And […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 9:28 am |
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August 03, 2006 | Ronda Jambe
We are all Road Warriors
As it happens, we had just seen Mad Max 1 when the brou ha ha broke out over Mel Gibson’s various forms of intemperance. The wonderful ANU Film Group had scheduled MM2, and it was a good chance to revisit the MM troika. How very Australian it is, the […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Ronda Jambe at 12:40 pm |
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August 02, 2006 | Graham
The outer boundaries of publishing, Presbyterians and Mel Gibson.
On Line Opinion publishes a lot of material that is nonsense- respectable, but nonsense. That’s our function. We’re a Socratic space. Our role is not to tell you what to think but to provide space where advocates of different views can attempt to persuade you for themselves.
It’s not always […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 10:42 pm |
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August 02, 2006 | Graham
Biofuels to cause starvation
The biofuel madness is gathering steam, and it’s not good news for the world’s poor and hungry. Corn prices in the US have been firming on the basis of the demand for ethanol. Corn isn’t the only grain that can be used for ethanol. The federal government’s favourite ethanol […] Continue Reading…
Posted by Graham at 1:06 pm |
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