September 19 – 25, 2020  |  No. 319

News

Confidential document reveals healthcare outbreaks

“Hospitals have become a key risk area in this phase of the pandemic. Staff at some of these hospitals have not been told about the transmissions happening in their workplaces and are not being offered extra protection.”

Osman Faruqi Exclusive: A leaked government database shows hospital transmission is key to Victoria’s recent Covid-19 cases, as new concerns are raised about access to protective equipment.

News

News

Gas plan locks in decades of high emissions, experts warn

“In his much-hyped national energy address on Tuesday, Scott Morrison studiously avoided mention of the elephant in the room. The words ‘climate change’ never passed his lips.”

Mike Seccombe While the prime minister’s newly announced gas funding is politically useful – soothing the Coalition backbench and wedging Labor – it will imperil Australia’s climate targets.

News

Australians stranded overseas

Karen Middleton As more than 25,000 Australians wait for the chance to return home, at least one legal expert says the travel restrictions may breach the constitutional rights of citizens.

News

Moves to build economic security

Margaret Simons With imports restricted as international borders closed, the coronavirus pandemic exposed Australia’s inability to manufacture what it needs, prompting an urgent debate about how the country can improve its economic security.

News

The collapse of aged care (part two)

Rick Morton The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted two decades of aged-care mismanagement, but at the heart of the sector is a pyramid scheme that exposes the taxpayer to billions in liability.

World

Trump denies link between climate change and wildfires

Jonathan Pearlman Joe Biden ramps up climate policies as fires ravage US west coast. Australia offers another loan to PNG over Covid-19. Hotel manager depicted in Hotel Rwanda facing terrorism charge. Abraham Accords signed by Israel, Bahrain and United Arab Emirates.

Opinion

Opinion

Marcia Langton
The destruction of the Juukan Gorge caves

“Here is a fact about life in Australia in 2020: the material and geographical manifestations of Aboriginal cultures developed over more than 65,000 years are being rapidly destroyed by mining companies, urban settlement, road and infrastructure development, and vandalism. This destruction is authorised by state and federal governments.”

Opinion

Paul Bongiorno
The case against winding back JobKeeper

“Two weeks ago, during the last sitting of the federal parliament before the budget early next month, Anthony Albanese decided it was time to take up the fight against the government on the economy. The Labor leader sensed the prime minister and his treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, were embarking on a course of action that would see jobs and economic management become the key issue at the next election. Rather than it being the Coalition’s strong point though, Albanese saw what could be its fatal weakness.”

Diary

Gadfly
What a pity

Richard Ackland An emotional nation has been moved by Schmo Morrison’s humanity as he fights for the freedom of citizens to cross state borders to attend funerals. Funerals and their role in salving grief over the loss of a loved one is something dear to the Coalition. Government Finance Minister and Turnbull quisling Mathias Cormann announced gutturally that Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is “so cold-hearted and so harsh and so nasty”.

Letters, Cartoon & Editorial

Cartoon

Read

Editorial
This man must be freed

We cannot print his name. We know he has been in immigration detention for seven years. We know his weight has dropped to 45 kilograms. He could die within weeks. The government’s medical contractors say his condition is critical. Their assessment is plain: “at risk of death from sudden cardiac death, organ failure, overwhelming infection or other effects of prolonged starvation”.

Letters

Getting back to quality care

Rick Morton’s article “The collapse of aged care (part one)” (September 12-18) identifies the late 1990s as when the system started to go pear-shaped. One major failing is when the ratio …

News Corp destroying a free press

I have just finished reading Mike Seccombe’s article “Murdoch grab: The other story behind AAP’s sale” (September 12-18). I have followed with interest the demise of …

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Culture

Life

Food

Fish and chips

David Moyle

Media

The decline of women’s media

Jane Caro and Polly Dunning Until recently, women had a sizeable platform through which to share their views and concerns in the mainstream media. Now, with dwindling revenue exacerbated by the coronavirus downturn, is the voice of modern feminism has being silenced?

Books

Elena Ferrante
The Lying Life of Adults

Laura Elvery
Ordinary Matter

Eula Biss
Having and Being Had

Puzzles

The Cryptic

Crossword No. 319

The Quiz

1. True or false: George W. Bush is the only living former Republican president of the United States?
2. What part of the body does a chiropodist treat?
3. Walloons are an ethnic group native to which country?
4. “Oh, Mr Hart, what a mess!” was used in a TV advertising campaign for: (a) Scotchguard; (b) Stainmaster Carpet; or (c) Godfreys?
5. What is the Duchess of Cambridge’s maiden name?
6. Who was Novak Djokovic playing when he was defaulted from the 2020 US Open?
7. George Orwell’s first full-length work was Down and Out in …? (Bonus point for naming his final book.)
8. In computing, what does http stand for?
9. Australian Chris Ellison recently became a billionaire after making his fortune in what industry?
10. Which Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle wears a blue mask?

Click through for answers.

Quotes

Advice

“Leave the politics out of sport.”

Tim SmithThe Liberal MP chides ABC journalist Patricia Karvelas for reminiscing about Cathy Freeman celebrating her 2000 Olympic gold medal win draped in the Aboriginal flag. Smith also advocates leaving the sagacity out of politics.

Careers

“Something clearly needs to be done.”

Anne RustonThe federal minister for Social Services laments that young people are lazing on JobSeeker while jobs go unfilled. ABS figures show there are about 200 applicants for every advertised job.

Infrastructure

“Later some others may be the second to open it. That is quaint, nice, but let’s face it, also second.”

Barnaby JoyceThe former Nationals leader sparks furore in his New England electorate after announcing on Facebook he’d unofficially opened a bridge he just found. Locals should be assured that Joyce will let them cross the bridge, if they are able to answer three riddles.

Mining

“We cannot get this wrong and we are committed to doing anything we can to achieve that.”

Libby FerrariBHP’s head of Indigenous engagement tells a senate inquiry that Rio Tinto’s destruction of the Juukan Gorge caves prompted a rethink of its own mining operations. In a gesture of incredible generosity, BHP will now only destroy 30 of the 40 significant Aboriginal sites it is permitted to blast.

Arena

“They have tried to abolish it and now they are trying to emasculate it.”

Anthony AlbaneseThe Labor leader bemoans the government’s announced overhaul of the Australian Renewable Energy Agency. Apparently, a renewable energy agency that doesn’t support renewable energy is “feminised”.

Accountability

“For deliberate and blatant breaches when people refuse to wear a face covering, Victoria Police has no hesitation in issuing $200 fines.”

Victoria PoliceA Victoria Police spokesperson says without details it cannot investigate images showing three police officers taking selfies with a female member of the public in locked-down Melbourne, even though the officers were not wearing masks.