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Nationals taken hostage by the Thin Blue Ribbon

Nationals taken hostage by the Thin Blue Ribbon

I watched a hostage video on Monday. With four Australian flags hanging in agony as a backdrop, Sussan Ley and David Littleproud gave the weirdest performance of their careers. Sussan Ley, clearly the dominant force, gritted her jaw. She then engaged in an elite-level of question avoidance, giving barely coherent replies to a room full of frustrated ...
We are more than a blue square

We are more than a blue square

On Sunday night, during the Super Bowl – one of the largest shared cultural moments on the planet – an advert about antisemitism reached tens of millions of homes. Funded by Robert Kraft, it set out to ‘stand up to Jewish hate’. That really matters. But moments like this are not neutral, they never are. They teach and they imprint. They tell young ...
PM&C confirms former secretary  James sacked

PM&C confirms former secretary James sacked

Former Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) secretary Natalie James was sacked, according to evidence in Senate estimates. James was terminated under section 59 of the Public Service Act — the same provision used to remove Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry secretary Adam Fennessy. Prime Minister and Cabinet
Are podcasts killing off nonfiction books?

Are podcasts killing off nonfiction books?

There is (isn’t there always?) a crisis in nonfiction publishing. But this time it really is a crisis, or at least, it seems more of a crisis than the previous ones. The problem is: not enough people are buying the stuff anymore. Last year’s nonfiction sales were down fully six per cent on the 2024 figures, and the long-term graph gives a picture of ...
Do we need another Gruffalo book?

Do we need another Gruffalo book?

Oh Lordy. Here we go. The Gruffalo is back – or rather, the Gruffalo Granny – a new take on the most famous children’s character of the last 30 years other than Harry Potter. So, we’re going multi-generational with the monster; the last one, published over 20 years ago, was The Gruffalo’s Child…now it’s the oldie coming on the scene like Grendel’s ...
The trouble with post-liberalism

The trouble with post-liberalism

For quite a while now, intellectual movements have been nebulous things. This started with postmodernism, which everyone was talking about in the 1980s, but no one could quite define. Or maybe it started a bit earlier, with the New Left, a mix of Marxism and any other trendy shiny thing. But at least that was decidedly left. You might suppose sensible ...

Nationals taken hostage by the Thin Blue Ribbon

Nationals taken hostage by the Thin Blue Ribbon
I watched a hostage video on Monday. With four Australian flags hanging in agony as a backdrop, Sussan Ley and David Littleproud gave the weirdest performance of their careers. Sussan Ley, clearly the dominant force, gritted her jaw. She then engaged in an elite-level of question avoidance, giving barely coherent replies to a room full of frustrated ...

We are more than a blue square

We are more than a blue square
On Sunday night, during the Super Bowl – one of the largest shared cultural moments on the planet – an advert about antisemitism reached tens of millions of homes. Funded by Robert Kraft, it set out to ‘stand up to Jewish hate’. That really matters. But moments like this are not neutral, they never are. They teach and they imprint. They tell young ...

PM&C confirms former secretary James sacked

PM&C confirms former secretary  James sacked
Former Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) secretary Natalie James was sacked, according to evidence in Senate estimates. James was terminated under section 59 of the Public Service Act — the same provision used to remove Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry secretary Adam Fennessy. Prime Minister and Cabinet

Are podcasts killing off nonfiction books?

Are podcasts killing off nonfiction books?
There is (isn’t there always?) a crisis in nonfiction publishing. But this time it really is a crisis, or at least, it seems more of a crisis than the previous ones. The problem is: not enough people are buying the stuff anymore. Last year’s nonfiction sales were down fully six per cent on the 2024 figures, and the long-term graph gives a picture of ...

Do we need another Gruffalo book?

Do we need another Gruffalo book?
Oh Lordy. Here we go. The Gruffalo is back – or rather, the Gruffalo Granny – a new take on the most famous children’s character of the last 30 years other than Harry Potter. So, we’re going multi-generational with the monster; the last one, published over 20 years ago, was The Gruffalo’s Child…now it’s the oldie coming on the scene like Grendel’s ...

The trouble with post-liberalism

The trouble with post-liberalism
For quite a while now, intellectual movements have been nebulous things. This started with postmodernism, which everyone was talking about in the 1980s, but no one could quite define. Or maybe it started a bit earlier, with the New Left, a mix of Marxism and any other trendy shiny thing. But at least that was decidedly left. You might suppose sensible ...