Paul Bongiorno
Meeting the coronavirus test
Extreme times demand extreme measures but it is not clear that many Australians appreciate the threat being posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
Coronavirus leaves fans nothing to cheer about
Last weekend gave Canberra’s footy fans plenty to cheer about with the Brumbies and the Raiders running out winners in front of enthusiastic, if diminished, home crowds.
But there was a chilling warning...
What about the workers?
The coronavirus is not just showing up vulnerabilities in people’s immune systems, but also inadequacies in how millions of Australian workers are paid.
Health crisis a real test
Australians should be really grateful for something called the Biodiversity Act. That gives the Chief Medical Officer independent discretionary power to take control when a health crisis is either with us or...
Call out family violence
Scott
Morrison spoke for the nation when he responded to the horrific murder suicide
of a family in Brisbane. The Prime Minister said that Australians were
“shocked, saddened and devastated” by the deaths of a...
Smoke clears but burning questions remain
Fire
Fight Australia, the spectacular 10-hour fundraising concert at the weekend,
was compelling evidence that Australians and indeed people worldwide care for
each other. The show was telecast internationally and many donations flowed in
from overseas,...
Forget the climate
The new chancellor of the Australian National University, Julie Bishop is proud of the fact the world leading academic institution has 300 climate scientists. The former foreign minister is also proud that...
McKenzie gone for the scandal
Is it any wonder that Australians are losing faith in the way our democracy works? The minister responsible for administering a $100 million sports grants program in a way to advantage the...
Choking on political incompetence
Canberrans
welcomed in the new year choking on acrid smoke in the worst air quality of any
major world city. Memories of the 2003 disaster that saw four people killed,
430 injured and 500 homes...
So this is Christmas
Not all that long ago – depending maybe on your age – the idea that we could mention Christmas in an end-of-year column that is also looking forward would not have been...
Whatever you can get away with
It’s nothing new that “history is always written by winners.” But rolled into this assessment is a disturbing new “morality” at work both in business and politics.
Winners are now those who can...
True recognition
In 2019, we, as a nation, struggle to acknowledge that this land was taken from the people who had been here for millennia, there is no true recognition.