Last Updated: December 22, 2013

Weather: Melbourne 17°C - 29°C . A few showers.

Beat your chests and feel proud

Beat your chests and feel proud

IT'S good that we've won the Ashes, but it's better that we've done it with aggression, intimidation and swagger. It's not PC, but it's beautiful.

So easy to fall for social media

So easy to fall for social media

THE story of the tourist who fell off St Kilda pier while checking Facebook may seem funny but it resonated with those who live through social media.

Rock of ages still on a roll

Rock of ages still on a roll

JUST because the Rolling Stones look like something Indiana Jones might have dug up doesn't mean they can't rock - and there are lots more like them.

More speech, debate and voices

More speech, debate and voices

IT'S time to reassert the importance of human rights as universal, consistently-applied principles, not increasingly diluted worthy aspirations.

If politics trumps policy, we lose

If politics trumps policy, we lose

IN the week before Christmas last year, Wayne Swan announced the Labor government was abandoning its promise to produce a surplus in the 2013 budget.

Older pets are the cat's whiskers

Older pets are the cat's w...

FOUR years ago, not long before Christmas, Molly came into our lives. Molly was not a baby but a 10-year-old nondescript smoky tabby moggy.

Today's Knight

Mark Knight 2013 - December

Mark Knight cartoons for December 2013.

Editorials

Bikies top of cops' hit list

CHIEF Commissioner Ken Lay has made breaking down Victoria's bikie menace a key order of business during his first two years in charge.

A special time of year

THE lead-up to Christmas often feels like it's all about the rush. There's the last-minute scramble to organise presents, prepare meals and tie up loose ends at work.

Latest from the Blogs

No more big resources projects

No more big resources projects

WOODSIDE Petroleum might just have "announced" the real end of the resources boom by stating there will never be another LNG plant built onshore here.

Unravelling a puzzling tale

Unravelling a puzzling tale

THOSE investigating the mysterious alleged bashing of Bill Vlahos have to eliminate the possibility he deliberately injured himself.

Mandela was master of the smart move

Mandela was master of the smart move

SINCE his death Nelson Mandela has been criticised for his dealings with tyrants such as Muammar Gaddafi. But Mandela was never outsmarted by them.

Ron's back and he's staying classy

Ron's back and he's s...

FLICK PICKS: The comedy sequel you've been wanting for years is finally here. Find out what movies to watch this weekend, with Leigh Paatsch.

Baby steps toward responsibility

Baby steps toward responsibility

AROUND seven months and three weeks ago my wife and I were informed that our first child was due to hit earth TODAY.

Christmas exchange rate backs cash

Christmas exchange rate backs cash

ECONOMISTS hate Christmas; and not just because of the plunge in personal productivity that occurs this time each year (hello couch!).

Ugly politics are still in vogue

Ugly politics are still in vogue

THE Government is not guilty of driving General Motors out of Australia but it is guilty of handling the issue with heavy hands and little clarity.

So easy to fall for social media

So easy to fall for social media

THE story of the tourist who fell off St Kilda pier while checking Facebook may seem funny but it resonated with those who live through social media.

Soft reports failing our children

Soft reports failing our children

SCHOOL reports used to give parents a true indication of how their children were doing at school. But now they have become generic gibberish.

Labor mess is Hockey's chalice

Labor mess is Hockey's c...

IT has taken Joe Hockey 101 days since the election to tell us the full extent of the Budget horror he says the Coalition inherited.

Let's plan to avoid China's mistakes

Let's plan to avoid China...

THE speed of China's development has astonished the world but it hasn't been trouble free - and Melbourne can learn from its planning mistakes.

Beat your chests and feel proud

Beat your chests and feel proud

IT'S good that we've won the Ashes, but it's better that we've done it with aggression, intimidation and swagger. It's not PC, but it's beautiful.

Inspired by so many women

Inspired by so many women

AS the year ends I want to recognise the wonderful energy released into the world by a huge number of dynamic, compassionate and brave women.

Swann retires mid-Ashes series

Swann retires mid-Ashes series

ENGLAND'S Test side has plunged into further disarray with spinner Graeme Swann's immediate retirement from all cricket.

Politician sent staff video of oral sex

Politician sent staff video of oral sex

THIS politician has been married for 37 years but it didn't stop him allegedly bombarding good looking female staffers with sexually explicit suggestions and lewd videos.

Aussies stunned by Swann retirement

Aussies stunned by Swann retirement

GRAEME Swann's sudden retirement caught everyone off guard - none more so than his Australian counterpart Nathan Lyon.

Why do so many rockers die at 27?

Why do so many rockers die at 27?

IT'S the ultimate club you don't want to join - the 27 Club, made up rockers who died when they were just 27.

AFL

St Kilda's best 22

St Kilda's b...

HERALD Sun football experts go deep inside each AFL club to predict how each team's best line up could look next year.

How to get a surfer's body in just six steps

How to get a surfer's body in just ...

THE hottest Aussie bods aren't made in the gym. They're made on the beach. Here are the six exercises you need to master for a ripped surfer's physique.