Progressive culture since 1954
The Left in this country can learn from the example of Syriza’s rise and the difficulties it has encountered. Syriza did not come to power because of a few powerful individuals or a charismatic leader. They came to power because disparate groups within the Left in Greece were able to set aside their differences and organise together.
Since 2007, the Overland Judith Wright Poetry Prize has been Australia’s richest competition for new and emerging poets. This year again the competition attracted hundreds of high-calibre entries.
Now, Overland poetry editor Peter Minter has finished blind judging the competition and has selected a shortlist of six poems.
The Syriza government of Greece has submitted to the EU a draft agreement for economic management, as part of securing continued four-month funding to pay foreign debts coming due, and thus avoid a default.
In fact, looking around Australia today, it’s hard not to see how little has changed. Even as Faith Bandler is being remembered with a state funeral, the Redfern Aboriginal Tent Embassy is being threatened with removal – again! – so that housing developments can commence on the Block.
Both films, The Act of Killing and The Look of Silence, explore the suffering, violence and personal and social rupture caused by the 1965-66 genocide in Indonesia.
But is Twitter really a feminist tool? For Weiner, who has 106,000 followers, and although she seems to spend most of her time tweeting about The Bachelor, I am sure her 140 characters feel influential. For those of us who don’t have a bestseller behind us, it feels like just another shout into the internet abyss.
In marked contrast to Prime Minister Tony Abbott – who seemingly can no longer receive a break from even such an ideological organ as The Australian – Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has recently honed her public image to a fine point.