There needs to be more to work than money
Ross Gittins 9:00 PM Has it ever occurred to you that, in all our economic striving, most of us – almost all our business people, economists and politicians, but also many normal people – are missing the point?
Latest Comment
Too many kids are barely enough
Alan Stokes 9:00 PM Selfless or selfish? Big families bring enormous joy, but do the costs to parents and society outweigh the benefits?
Cut wasteful spending on infrastructure
Marion Terrill 5:36 PM What we really need is a regime that minimises wasteful spending.
Our problem with innocent until proven guilty
George Williams 6:25 PM Australia has a problem with the presumption of innocence. It is being displaced by a rush to judgement. The reasons for this are understandable, but problematic.
Anti-protest laws are an attack on democracy
Naomi Hodgson 10:59 PM Peaceful protests have made the world a better place. Any attack on them, such as the Baird government's proposed protest laws, is an attack on our civil society.
The rotten truth about our children's teeth
Koraly Dimitriadis 2:07 PM My child is nine and she's already had four fillings. Four. She exists in a world where reminders of sugar are blasted at her from every angle: at the supermarket, on television, on billboards and even her Smiggle stationery has macaroons and gumballs on it.
The US media can learn from Sarah Ferguson
Josephine Tovey 10:57 PM Desperate for ratings, the US cable channels don't challenge politicians' inflammatory remarks, encouraging more of the same.
Economists out of touch with climate change
Noah Smith 2:50 PM If economists are to help us deal with global warming, they need to start studying science.
Europe will be better after Merkel departs
Matthew Lynn 11:00 AM The Germany chancellor has very little to show for 11 years in power.
Curtailing of freedoms in Turkey out of step
9:00 PM The situation in and around Turkey is increasingly problematic. But in 2013, when Kurdish-led moderate political parties began to gain in popularity, Turkey changed the tune.
MARCH 16
Letters to the Editor
10:53 PM As both an ordinary member of the community and a mother, I am appalled that David Levine has such a low opinion of me ("'Doing what any mother would do': Levine tells inquiry",March 15).
Column 8
9:00 PM "In an Oxford to Cambridge boat race," writes Geoffrey Toon, of Wagstaffe (Column 8, since Saturday), "I will be backing the crew that takes the inland canal route, Oxford Canal, Grand Union, River Nane and then onto the Cam."
In the Herald: March 16, 1954
Lyn Maccallum 12:00 AM "As the Queen descended the gangway from the plane, she almost trod on a lizard basking in the sun on one of the steps," the Herald reported on this day in 1954.
Democracy flounders amid voter discontent
Luca Belgiorno-Nettis Political sailors are adept at weathering events, but no event in living memory is likely to be as unforgiving as the voters' declining trust in the crew and the ships themselves.
Let's rezone Point Piper to fit Big Australia
Bob Carr Bumping up our population by adding a million every 3½ leaves most Australians cold. They have nagging doubts about what is the world's biggest immigration program, the developed world's highest population growth.
Doctors need to speak out on alternatives
Adrian Pokorny In a world awash with alternatives, patients deserve a better understanding of the science behind our modern medicines.
Save trees: skip soy, make-up and macaroni
Allie Goldstein Choosing products that have not contributed to deforestation is difficult, but every little bit helps.
Five myths about the Ku Klux Klan
David Cunningham While the KKK's white hoods, flowing robes and fiery crosses remain resonant symbols of racial terror and white supremacy, misconceptions abound.
In suicide prevention, we can do better
We are spending more on suicide prevention than ever before yet suicide rates are their highest in ten years. Why?
MARCH 15
Letters to the Editor
Like traffic volume predictions that were used to justify the Cross City Tunnel, we seem always to be able to drum up "reputable" analyses that happen to support our views ("'A massive waste of time and money"', March 14).
Column 8
"Saturday's question," writes Steven Maher, of Failford (Which is longer, the Melbourne Cup or the Oxford Cambridge Boat Race?), reminded me of another: Which is shorter? Driving around Australia clockwise or anti-clockwise?"
In the Herald: March 15, 1994
Lyn Maccallum Timber jobs are under threat in NSW while a favourite actor is bid a fond farewell.
Can't sleep? Blame the weather
Jenna Price The impact of sleeplessness from heat is more than just a feeling of a terrible hangover; it's turning us into the zombie dead.
Islam needs to invest in people, not mosques
Hussain Nadim The discourse on Islam as we know it today has been hijacked by Islamist militants.
PM will be judged on substance not soundbites
Amanda Vanstone Forget in-your-face politics, it’s policy that counts.
Sexed-up teens don't deserve a life sentence
Tim Dick If Romeo and Juliet had lived in modern Sydney, Romeo would be a sex offender.
A walk on the dark side of the internet
Clive Williams You have probably heard of "Silk Road", the first modern Darknet online cryptomarket. Here's what it means.
Democracy’s retreat behind walls
Mark Triffitt Nearly 30 years after the Berlin Wall came down, we are in an era of barricade democracy.
View from the Street
Andrew P Street Turnbull's threatening his way to victory! Your news of the weekend, reduced to a snarky rant.
MARCH 14
Letters to the Editor
In his considered report, Mark Kenny reminded readers that Windsor has been famously "vilified in conservative circles for his parliamentary support of the Gillard minority government".
Column 8
"Never mind reversing underwear," waves a dismissive Michael Robinson, of Cammeray (Column 8, for much of last week).
In the Herald: March 14, 1900
Lyn Maccallum A stunning stage performance and much debate on sanitation.
Previously in Comment
Highlights
With friends like Malcolm, equality is far away
What is the point of a gay-friendly prime minister if he can't slap down those keen on perpetuating teenage hate, angst and suicide?
Apology
In last Monday's paper, the Herald reported the details of an alleged sexual assault under the headline "The horrifying untold story of Louise".
Turnbull, stop dithering on tax reform
The Turnbull government has yet to explain why we need tax reform. Meanwhile, Labor is strangely coherent on tax policies.
Why you really should pay a sugar tax
We know we've got a problem when it comes to sugar and obesity.
Class clown Joyce has centre stage to prove himself
Barnaby Joyce's capacity for populist revolt made him famous and effective. But the new Nationals leader will have to control his bluster if he is to be taken seriously.
Great irony of Ruddock's human rights appointment
I've heard of being kicked upstairs but this is ridiculous. I know people get promoted to their point of incompetence, but the UN? The Vatican? These are not incompetence-friendly situations.
Nauru: How long can we keep lying to ourselves?
The history of asylum seeker policy in Australia will be remembered as a story of how successive governments legislated their lies to justify a world of make-believe borders and compliance.
Fine art of ignoring the UN
One key point of illumination from Julian Assange's announcement on Thursday is the rich impotence of the United Nations.
Banks are using us to hedge their bets
We only need a tiny part of the financial services industry – the rest is just speculation and it doesn't stand up to close scrutiny.
Raising the GST to 15% is fiscal folly
If Australia goes down the path of increasing the GST to 15 per cent, it will be on the way to joining that collection of West European countries which are the highest taxed countries in the world.
Why Tony Abbott should leave politics
... and a few other Liberal MPs such as Bronwyn Bishop and Philip Ruddock should stop being so selfish and move on.
Disgrace oddity - how I tried to help David Bowie
Thirty years ago the writer interviewed David Bowie - and blew it entirely.
From the desk of our chief comment moderator
Fairfax Media's chief comment moderator Rob Ashton discusses the most-commented stories of the year, and offers advice for those who get rejected.
15 of our best comment pieces of 2015
Highlights from the Herald's opinion pages in 2015 - our most-read, most-discussed, most-shared pieces (plus a few editors' favourites).
In defence of the hangover
The common or garden hangover is a terrible and wonderful thing, a device of startling ingenuity designed (one can only assume) by the bloodless Calvin himself.
Bystanders struggle to do the right thing
I boarded my flight from Paris, happy to be going home. Until I met the man in the seat next to mine.
Why New Year's Eve is the most hypocritical night
One of my starkest New Year's Eve memories comes from when I was at university in New Zealand. I was at a house of a friend of a friend, and in that house I saw a man demonstrating his talent at opening beer bottles using his mouth.
The Australian fair go is dead
Elizabeth Farrelly: Why are we OK with this? How did the fair go slip so seamlessly into tooth and claw? Or was it always thus?
Captain's speech doesn't represent the Ravenswood I know
Throughout my time at Ravenswood, I experienced an environment that encouraged hard work, equality of standing, humility, and gratitude – virtues that I believe are the very foundation of the school itself.
Where to now for a newly unseated PM
Peter Hartcher: The government may have moved on, but Tony Abbott is still adjusting to his new reality and coming to grips with life beyond the prime ministership.
Big karma hits big pharma
Paul Sheehan: When a venture capitalist bought the rights to a drug and increased its price by 5500 per cent, there was widespread outrage. Now comes corporate revenge against corporate evil.
Islamic State thrives as big boys squabble
Waleed Aly: Force will not wipe out Islamic State because it is a byproduct of a much bigger conflict that needs to be resolved first.
