The defeat Morrison hopes will save him
“Morrison is understood to be the architect of his own political strategy. His friend, former Howard adviser turned lobbyist David Gazard, confirmed the prime minister is choosing to see the medivac legislation as a gift.”
News
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Matt Canavan hijacks native title fight on Adani
“Those provisions present Indigenous people with Hobson’s choice. They can either agree to a land use agreement, in which case the mine goes ahead and they get something out of it, or they can refuse, in which case the mine almost certainly goes ahead anyway, and they get nothing.”
While Resources Minister Matt Canavan insists Adani has the full support of the Wangan and Jagalingou people, the legitimacy of a land agreement with the mining giant is the subject of a Federal Court appeal.
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Life in Chicago for former Manus detainee
In the six months since the author, a Rohingya refugee and Manus Island detainee, began his new life in Chicago, he has been studying hard and relishing his freedom. He has also remained committed to giving hope to those still trapped in offshore detention.
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Refugee footballer back in Australia
Turkey condemns mass detention of Uygur people in China, as video is released of missing singer. Soccer player Hakeem al-Araibi returns from Thailand. Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orbán exempts tax for women bearing four or more children. Germany plans end to all coal-power generation.
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Doubts over Huang ban and foreign influence
“Instead of allowing Huang the opportunity to comply with new legislation, he has in effect been labelled a likely recidivist without ever having been convicted.”
The government’s revoking of Huang Xiangmo’s Australian residency has been presented as a tough act against foreign influence, but may have set a precedent endangering thousands of Chinese Australians.
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Inside the franking credits debate
As a Tim Wilson-led inquiry stirs up discontent over Labor’s proposed changes to franking credits, different groups are invested in the policy proposal for different reasons.
Opinion
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Kerryn Phelps
A bill of human rights
“The evidence to date does not establish that moving people to Australia temporarily for medical treatment results in a flood of boats. According to Minister Dutton, 810 people from offshore detention are already in Australia for medical treatment with the government’s approval, and they have not been returned to Nauru and Manus – yet the boats have not restarted. Similarly, the headlines last year that the government was going to move all children to Australia by Christmas also have not resulted in an influx of boats.”
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Paul Bongiorno
Morrison doubles down on security
“What a week for the Morrison minority government. It started with the prime minister promising to keep Australians safe and secure. It ended with him and his government looking less assured they will be around long enough to deliver. Tuesday’s historic defeat on the floor of the parliament was a direct legacy of the same turmoil that led to the demolition of Malcolm Turnbull’s leadership. In its wake, the prospect of the government’s recovery is looking more remote by the day.”
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In a week of political panic stations it was touching to see news of Michael Kirby’s marriage to Johan van Vloten, 50 years after their first meeting on Tuesday, February 11, 1969, at the Bottoms Up Bar of the Rex Hotel in Kings Cross. It’s been onwards ever since, with Kirby’s vaulting career as a lawyer and a judge and Johan moving for a time into the newsagency business. On AIDS, discrimination, equality and a fair go even if you don’t have a go, Kirby was unbending, which brought him into conflict with some pretty grisly fossils on the bench.
Letters, Poem & Editorial
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Maxine Beneba Clarke
Frankly Speaking
oh come on
geoff wilson’s not my cousin cousin
he’s my grandfather’s cousin’s
grandson unremoved
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Scott Morrison says he will protect our women. Inherent in his choice of words is the paternalism of a prime minister who doesn’t think his party has a “women problem”, even as it sheds female MPs at record speed. Of a man who starts sentences that describe his concern about the harassment and abuse women face with the caveat, “As a father…”
Culture
The reinvention of Christine and the Queens
Like her idol Madonna, French pop musician Héloïse Letissier is interested in transformation and reinvention. Her latest album finds her performing in a new persona as Chris, a celebration of her “macho-femininity”. She is, however, aware of the “danger of mainstreaming ‘queerness’… [that] it could invalidate the thing that ‘queer’ is important for. Queer is questioning a norm, questioning the system, subverting it, so if it’s digested and branded and [covered in] glossy plastic to appeal, then the essence of queer is lost.”
On the latest Methyl Ethel album, Triage, Jake Webb’s extraordinary songwriting is on full display in pop music of unusual complexity.
“Stand-up comic Mimi Shaheen lights a cigarette under a sphinx that overlooks the eponymously named hotel in Geelong. ‘It’s been a big week and my vape fluid has run out,’ she says, taking a drag. I have joined Mimi on the hour-long drive from Melbourne to watch her perform in the ironically titled collaboration show The United Nations Comedy Gala. It features three Italians, a Greek, a Spaniard and her. ‘Basically I cover the whole Middle East,’ she says flicking her black hair theatrically.”
Life
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Online abuse of women in the media
For female journalists in Australia, the rate of online threats and trolling has increased to such a level that many are questioning their choice of career and, in some cases, are living in constant fear.
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‘I want us girls to learn self-defence’
For 11-year-old black belt Evie Cassel, taekwondo has provided an education in life as well as sport.
Books
The Quiz
1. What word is the collective noun for peacocks and means to assemble?
2. Who links the film characters Doralee Rhodes, Truvy Jones and Mona Stangley?
3. The ruins of Babylon lie near to which modern-day capital city?
4. Sternutation relates to which physical action?
5. What are the colours of the Romanian flag? (Bonus point for naming the capital of Romania.)
6. What does the acronym Eftpos stand for?
7. What part of the body is the axilla?
8. Which slalom skiing champion of the 1990s has said she’ll run for election in the federal seat of Warringah?
9. Traditionally, fetta is made with the milk of what animal?
10. Which team won Super Bowl 53?
Quotes
BOATS
“If you lose control of your borders, ultimately, sooner or later, you lose control of the country.”
The former prime minister on the risk of offering medical care to sick refugees. Similarly, if you lose control of your party, ultimately, sooner or later, you lose control of your mind.
DESIGN
“We are introducing the changes gradually as stationery is exhausted and other materials are replaced.”
The corporate affairs boss at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission defends spending $100,000 on a new font and branding. As soon as the letterhead arrives, but not too soon, it is expected they will start regulating the financial markets.
MUSIC
“If people knew they would say I was like R Kelley lol.”
The singer asks an under-age girl to show him her ID in “the hottest way that has ever been done”. We are happy to report that the hottest way is in a New York Times article outlining his mistreatment of women.
POLITICS
“Whilst I do not recall the incident of blood on the door, I now have come to the conclusion that it was myself and I sincerely apologise for that action.”
The former One Nation senator confesses to smearing blood on Pauline Hanson’s office after fighting with one of her staffers. They’re right, though: Muslim immigration is the problem.
PRECEDENT
“I will simply ignore it and we’ll get on with the business.”
The prime minister explains his strategy after losing a vote on the floor of the house. It joins matching strategies on climate change, Indigenous recognition and looking terrible in hats.
DONATIONS
“The history of Australia has determined the innate characteristics of a giant baby. This is an objective fact and it does not mean Australia has to feel inferior.”
The Chinese billionaire reflects on the “simple folk customs” of Australian politics. There is no folk custom more simple than making political donations in the hope of influence and residency.
