Every few months, the same argument resurfaces - the Australian Broadcasting Corporation is biased. Critics on the right point to a segment, a tweet from a presenter, an op-ed commissioned from the wrong side of politics, and conclude that our national broadcaster has a partisan agenda. The ABC's defenders respond by pointing to audits and editorial charters, and the argument goes nowhere, as it always does. Both sides are arguing…
It is easy, perhaps emotionally satisfying, for the Liberal Party to blame the teal independents. They make convenient villains, ones who are affluent, inner-suburban, climate-conscious, professionally polished and effective at winning seats that once seemed permanently Liberal. Their campaigns have benefited from a sophisticated network of donors and organisers, most visibly through Climate 200. The teals are not apolitical neighbours who wandered innocently into Parliament House. Like any other political…
For decades, Western leaders have tried almost every possible approach to restrain the Islamic Republic of Iran. Sanctions, negotiations, inspections, diplomatic warnings and nuclear agreements have all been attempted, initially with great optimism but ultimately with even greater disappointment. By 2026, the central problem remains unresolved - Iran continues to expand its nuclear capabilities, strengthen its ballistic missile programme and empower violent proxy groups across the Middle East. The question…
'Make America Great Again' stands as one of the defining political slogans of the 21st-century, not because it is detailed, but because it condenses an entire political worldview into four simple words. Beyond merely advertising a candidate, a strong political slogan diagnoses a national condition and offers a remedy. MAGA does both at once. The slogan suggests that the United States was once great, that it has since declined and…
In theory, politics should reward the best argument. Citizens hear evidence, weigh principles, compare policies and decide. In practice, that is rarely how public opinion moves. A joke often lands harder than a briefing paper, not because they are more truthful or arguments do not matter, but because they have the unique capacity to compress a political judgment into a form that is memorable, social and emotionally charged. A good…
The newly-passed federal hate speech laws in Australia represent one of the most consequential shifts in the regulation of public discourse in our nation's history. These laws, enacted in response to the recent Bondi Beach shooting with the support of the Liberal Party, will supposedly serve as necessary tools to combat antisemitism and extremism. But a careful evaluation of the legislation reveals glaring problems of clarity, scope and political risk,…
Few political terms have strayed as far from their original meaning as 'liberal'. Once synonymous with individual liberty, limited government and antagonism towards concentrated power, this ideological label is now associated with a politics of regulation, redistribution and big government. This misleading semantic inversion did not occur overnight, nor by accident. Rather, it is the byproduct of significant ideological and semantic processes. Classical Liberalism The term 'liberal' traces its roots…
In an extraordinary and historic development, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, a dictator accused of rampant corruption, authoritarian rule and masterminding an international drug trafficking network, has been captured by the United States and transported to New York. The events of January 3 have rocked the geopolitical landscape of Latin America, striking at the heart of one of the region's most entrenched and destructive regimes. For over a decade, Venezuelans suffered…
The shooting at Bondi Beach last Sunday was a tragedy that brought our nation to a standstill. A place synonymous with leisure, freedom and Australia itself was instantaneously transformed into a scene of terror. Australians did not simply witness a heinous act of violence that day, but the complete collapse of an assumption that many of us may have quietly held: that such events "don't happen here anymore". The shooting…
While the recent election of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City has been a historic triumph for progressives, it should raise red flags about what the future may hold for the city. At just 34 years old, Mamdani will become the youngest mayor of the city in over a century and the first Muslim mayor. Although his charismatic personality and hyperactive social media campaign have gained international attention,…