Turning back asylum seeker boats can only be done legally and ethically, in my view, with the agreement of transitional countries, such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. Unfortunately the form of the decision made at the ALP conference makes clear that the ALP would seek to act without such agreement. Continue reading Turning back boats – only by agreement
All posts by Brian
Saturday salon 25/7
1. Leaders summit
On Wednesday, prior to COAG on Thursday, our political leaders held a summit or retreat to dicuss taxation and the future of the federation. By all accounts they enjoyed the talkfest – Jay Weatherall said it was “very positive” and that “in my sense and my operation in COAG over the last five years, this is probably the most constructive I have ever seen”.
Despite that there is no evidence they actually decided anything except lowering the threshold at which the GST applies to offshore online purchases. Continue reading Saturday salon 25/7
Pathologising unemployment
It can’t be true. In the UK unemployment is being redefined as a psychological disorder as part of an effort to cut the welfare bill by $12 billion. And, says an article in the New Scientist (can’t find the link), the UK
- joins nations such as Australia and the US in increasingly requiring claimants to comply with interventions intended to modify emotions, beliefs and personality.
They say “claimants must demonstrate characteristics deemed desirable in workplaces, like confidence and enthusiasm, in return for welfare.” Continue reading Pathologising unemployment
Pell knows better than Pope Francis on climate!
Cardinal George Pell has publicly criticised Pope Francis’ decision to place climate change at the top of the Catholic Church’s agenda. Continue reading Pell knows better than Pope Francis on climate!
Will Labor dump the Socialist Objective?
The ALP constitution states:
- “The Australian Labor Party is a democratic socialist party and has the objective of the democratic socialisation of industry, production, distribution and exchange, to the extent necessary to eliminate exploitation and other anti-social features in these fields.”
In practice Labor has been the party of privatisation. The last time they proposed nationalising anything was in 1947, when Chifley wanted to nationalise the banks. It was one reason he lost the election. Continue reading Will Labor dump the Socialist Objective?
Poll stuff 22/7
Back on July 13 Roy Morgan had Bill Shorten’s support ‘crumbling’ with Labor just ahead at 51-49 TPP. With the new Newspoll, Shorten’s support ‘sinks deeper’, but hey, who cares, Labor leads 53-47, up one from last time. Continue reading Poll stuff 22/7
Climate clippings 147
1. New beaut solar technology from UNSW
PERC technology developed by UNSW is likely to become standard in more than half of all solar cell production across the globe by 2020, ushering in new dramatic falls in the cost of solar technology. Continue reading Climate clippings 147
Deep origins: early Europe
Whatever wave of migration we look at, someone was already there. Colin Barras in the New Scientist (paywalled) takes a look at the three ancestral waves of migration that founded Western civilisation.
First were the hunter-gatherers. Then came the farmers. These were followed by the Yamnaya, originating from herders on the steppes north of the Black Sea, who brought the horse and the wagon, and the Indo-European language that predominates in Europe, except for Basque, Estonian, Finnish and Magyar (Hungarian). Continue reading Deep origins: early Europe
Saturday salon
1. Choptergate
Labor has written to the Australian Federal Police to ask them to look into Speaker Bronwyn Bishop’s decision to take a taxpayer-funded helicopter trip from Melbourne to Geelong to attend a fundraiser for Ron Nelson, a Liberal candidate in the Victorian state election.
The suggestion is that supporting a party fundraiser is not part of the duties of the speaker of the Australian parliament. Continue reading Saturday salon
Happiness is…
Happiest is a woman, living without a partner in a small town in Queensland, who is not poor and who exercises every day. Continue reading Happiness is…
Abbott’s war on wind
On the weekend it emerged that Treasurer Joe Hockey and Finance Minister Mathias Cormann had drafted a letter to the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, telling the $10 billion “green bank” to stop investing in wind power.
The Australian Conservation Foundation’s climate change program manager, Victoria McKenzie-McHarg writes:
- It’s hard to imagine a fledgling industry being attacked and undermined by a national government the way the renewables sector is by the Abbott Government.
Abbott sets up for a double-D poll
The Abbott government plans to give itself the option of calling a double-dissolution election based on trade union corruption when Parliament resumes in mid-August, according to Phillip Coorey and Patrick Durkin in the Fin Review. Abbott will try to reap the reward for his $80 million investment in the royal commission. Continue reading Abbott sets up for a double-D poll