Kim Jong-un might be a rational leader
“The leader of North Korea must be hyper-rational and conduct cost–benefit calculations every day to maintain his dictatorship.”
With concern growing over Kim Jong-un’s threats of nuclear attack, analysts are keen to contradict the view he is a madman.
News
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Windsor seeking special count on Joyce
“There is an argument that if you’re going to re-run an election, you can’t re-run it on the same basis as the one where he was an illegitimate candidate.”
In joining the High Court case examining Barnaby Joyce’s eligibility for office, Tony Windsor will argue for a countback that could see him win the seat.
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Threats to core domestic violence services
Government-led changes to the operation of a domestic violence hotline are placing vulnerable women at even greater risk.
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“All too often we start from the premise of ‘You’ve got some really bad ideas that have to change’, and we think that’s persuasive. It isn’t.”
The ‘Yes’ campaign is refusing to get sidetracked by bitter personal fights with those opposed to same-sex marriage, focusing instead on inclusion.
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A lack of government investment and a managerial culture among non-government organisations may be failing the homeless, says Sydney’s de facto mayor of the streets.
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Rohingya tragedy; Kenya back to polls; Submarine corruption arrests in Israel; Timor Sea breakthrough.
Opinion
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Richard Cooke
Australia chases America’s decline
“Now the once-mighty bald eagle of American power is barely hanging onto its perch. You might think this de-soaring would provoke some quietude, or at least acknowledgement that building schools in Kabul instead of Kansas hasn’t turned out very well. Instead, Australian conservatives are doubling down, slating the yawning inequalities and teetering infrastructure in the United States to the usual suspects: Obama, regulation, taxes. These clichés have become the litany of a suicide cult.”
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Paul Bongiorno
Coalition tensions fuel energy debate
“Many Liberal backbenchers are furious with the Nationals. One says Joyce’s unwillingness to forgo his ministerial salary is being put ahead of the government’s best interests. A minister says it has more to do with him not wanting to let a Liberal get their hands on the resources, water or agriculture portfolios. These Coalition tensions and jealousies aren’t far below the surface at the best of times. Turnbull fears they are about to erupt spectacularly as he confronts the need to come up with a credible energy policy. ”
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Gadfly
Liberté, fraternité, fraternité
One interesting morsel that emerged from the discussion at the book launch was that at the time Thomas Paine wrote his Rights of Man in support of the French Revolution, Olympe de Gouges was publishing her Declaration of the Rights of the Woman and of the Female Citizen (1791). For her troubles de Gouges was accused and convicted of treason and promptly executed at the guillotine.
An insider’s outside view
A new podcast from Schwartz Media
Join Richard Denniss, The Australia Institute’s chief economist, as he tackles Australia’s most important political and economic issues in a new weekly podcast.
Find The Lucky Country on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.
Letters & Editorial
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Editorial
Masters of the true perverse
Macquarie Bank is a delinquent organisation. On the evidence of this week, it is a company absent of moral decency, a company whose success is matched only by its perversion. It is as if the greed there feeds on the worst misogyny.
Culture
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Alice Chipkin and Jessica Tavassoli find comic relief
Alice Chipkin and Jessica Tavassoli’s graphic memoir takes an insightful look at big issues such as clinical depression and sexuality – but at its heart it’s also just an intimate portrait of long-time friends.
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With their new show Get Krack!n, Kate McLennan and Kate McCartney have expanded their satirical universe from food culture to the dumb decline of the knowledge class.
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“People with dogs, or parents with young children, are dragged out into the street no matter the weather: windy days where the pink-trunked angophoras throw gumnuts, 40-degree days itchy with dust and pollen, or in the grey of a misting winter. These neighbours become as familiar to me as the house facades.”
Food
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Cotechino sausage with braised lentils
“Cotechino is not hard to make, if you have a mincer and a sausage filler and a good butcher. This sausage requires a much larger casing than you would use for your humble snag, but is an easy one to master if you’re a beginner. Having said that, there are still plenty of good Italian butchers around who sell a damn fine cotechino.”
Life
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Visiting the UNESCO-listed Sigiriya rock fortress in Sri Lanka becomes as much an exercise in people watching as it is a lesson in ancient history.
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Long theorised and disputed, ‘quantum entanglement’ could transform technology as much as the digital revolution did – and its implications may even reshape our understanding of reality.
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The long road: Mathew Hayman, 39, cyclist
Orica-Scott GreenEDGE’s Mathew Hayman on riding for teammates, scoring unexpected wins and the sweet feeling of his first, long-awaited Tour de France.
Books
The Quiz
1. The city of Kinshasa is situated on the banks of which river?
2. In the nursery rhyme Baa, Baa, Black Sheep, who are the three bags of wool for?
3. How many Australian prime ministers have there been during the Queen’s reign?
4. Who voiced the character Genie in the 1992 Disney film Aladdin?
5. Which Gabriel García Márquez novel focuses on members of the Buendía family?
6. True or false: Germany invaded Norway during World War II.
7. Lady Day was the nickname of which singer?
8. What is the name of a Turkish empire and a piece of furniture?
9. What describes a word that mimics the noise it makes?
10. Last month a bar in which city allegedly refused entry to Danish Crown Prince Frederik? (Bonus point for naming the Sydney bar in which he met his future wife during the Sydney 2000 Olympics.)
Quotes
RHETORIC
“I can confirm Malcolm Turnbull has used the ‘C’ word. He once said ‘Hey Cory!’ ”
The conservative senator weighs in on a story about Malcolm Turnbull getting drunk and calling Tony Abbott a “cunt” on a plane. He does so by suggesting his name is literally a synonym for “cunt” now.
MARRIAGE I
“Now that the court has said no, it’s the community’s chance to say yes.”
The independent MP sees his challenge to the non-binding, entirely pointless postal survey on marriage equality shot down in the High Court. Political courage is now in the same territory as Bunnings catalogues and flyers for discount pizza deliveries.
ENVIRONMENT
“They’re charities, apparently. A charity whose job it is to completely destroy the economic base of Australia.”
The deputy prime minister tells the Minerals Council of Australia how terrible are environmental charities. It is unsurprising to find a New Zealander has such contempt for this country and its health.
MARRIAGE II
“I will respect the people’s vote on SSM and, if ‘yes’, facilitate the passage of a bill. 1/3.”
The former prime minister responds on Twitter to news that the postal survey on same-sex marriage will carry. He also appears to give the truthfulness of his statement a rating out of three.
WEATHER
“This is something without precedent.”
The governor of Puerto Rico describes hurricane Irma, a storm that destroyed entire islands in the Caribbean. For a man with a comb-over, Donald Trump is still not taking this terribly seriously.
DEATHS
“Saddened beyond measure to report the death last night of Peter Luck. My dear friend, and great journalist and writer.”
The writer and broadcaster mourns the death of journalist Peter Luck. The former This Day Tonight reporter was 73.
