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Opinion

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Roosters prop Spencer Leniu will make his first appearance in Brisbane since the racism incident involving Ezra Mam.
Opinion
NRL 2024

Stay classy, BrisVegas: Roosters’ fears for Spencer Leniu at Magic Round

The Samoan international will play before a Brisbane crowd for the first time since the round-one incident involving Broncos star Ezra Mam.

  • by Andrew Webster

Latest

Being passed over for a promotion you expected to get can feel like a death knell, but there might be a hidden reason why it happened.

I was overlooked for the perfect internal role. Should I move on?

Being passed over for a promotion you expected to get can feel like a death knell, but there might be a hidden reason why it happened.

  • by Jonathan Rivett
Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the country is facing its fourth economic transformation.
Opinion
Jobs

Budget’s unspoken message: Maybe we’ll pull off the softest of soft landings

The rate of inflation will likely continue falling and should be back into the target range by this December.

  • by Ross Gittins
David McBride

David McBride is not a whistleblower or a hero. He is a man convinced of his own opinion

One person’s whistleblower can be another person’s thief, or even traitor. And so it is with the McBride case.

  • by Rodger Shanahan
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan is hoping the state’s hospitals problems will go away. They won’t.
Opinion
Hospitals

Labor is trying to stuff its hospitals problem back in the bag. It’s too late

Mergers might be a good thing for Victoria’s cash-strapped hospitals, even if Jacinta Allan and the health minister won’t talk about their plans.

  • by Annika Smethurst
Understanding even the basics of EVs can feel daunting.

I really want an electric car. But they shouldn’t be this confusing

If we’re going to save the planet with these things, we need to be able to buy one without a literal PhD in computer science to understand how they work.

  • by Jenny Sinclair
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Letters
Letters

Pandering to vested interests risks undermining society’s cohesion

Readers comment on how governments beholden to vested interests threaten the fabric of society when the budget pie favours the powerful over the needy.

A promotional video from Hancock Prospecting shows Opposition Leader Peter Dutton with Gina Rinehart and Roy Hill CEO Gerhard Veldsman last year.

Peter Dutton is more than happy to help billionaires, except one

The Coalition, when in power, spent taxpayers’ money propping up billionaires’ operations, but now it’s Labor’s idea … and nuclear power critic Andrew Forrest stands to benefit.

  • by David Crowe

Why house prices will stay stronger for longer

The government alone cannot solve the imbalance in supply and demand in the housing market.

  • by Elizabeth Knight
Shame about the “pile-on”: Donald Trump with Scott Morrison at the former president’s penthouse apartment in Trump Tower.

God help us! Morrison cosying up to Trump is weird, but it could soon get weirder

Forgiveness has always been an article of Christian faith, but is our former PM stretching the friendship?

  • by Nick Bryant
A series of stable measures of the job market are all pointing in the same direction.
Analysis
Jobs

The trend is pointing in one direction – the job market is slowing

The evidence is smacking observers in the face. The job market is responding to the Reserve Bank’s 4.25 percentage points worth of rate rises.

  • by Shane Wright
Wall Street bounced to record highs on the back of the inflation data.
Opinion
Inflation

Why this glimmer of hope has Wall Street very excited

At last there’s some good news on US inflation that raises hopes of interest rate cuts. But the excitement might be premature.

  • by Stephen Bartholomeusz
Donald Trump and Joe Biden will appear in two presidential debates in 2024.

Why Biden wanted to debate Trump early, and why Trump said yes

Joe Biden’s advisers have long believed that the dawning realisation of a Trump-Biden rematch will be a balm for the president’s droopy approval ratings.

  • by Reid Epstein and Shane Goldmacher
Carlton captain Patrick Cripps had a word with the umpire earlier this season.
Opinion
AFL 2024

The stats that show why the AFL should undo Hocking’s rule changes

The AFL’s implementation of the six-six-six rule and other recent changes have failed to deliver on the promises of enhanced scoring and improving the game’s look. Instead, we have confusion.

  • by Kane Cornes
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was re-elected in 2023 after resigning from office in 2018.

Slovak PM shot five times in assassination attempt has controversial past

A populist who has courted both sides of politics, he has been compared to Donald Trump and staged a shock political comeback after stepping down in 2018.

  • by Rob Harris
Matildas superstar Sam Kerr is learning a tough lesson some of her male counterparts have long understood.

Matildas’ encore on home soil cause for excitement for fans and FA alike

The buzz of the Women’s World Cup has been and gone, but another dose is coming, with official confirmation that the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup will be played in Australia.

  • by Vince Rugari
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Pat Cummins poses with a replica Ashes urn after the final Test at the Oval.

Sport off free TV? Tell ’em they’re streaming

The free-to-air TV broadcast stations are in a battle with pay television companies for sporting rights.

  • by Peter FitzSimons
Kezie Apps celebrates after NSW win State of Origin in 2022.

The NSW women’s Origin team wants to travel down Caxton Street – and get pelted with XXXX

The women’s Origin series starts a new chapter on Thursday night with three matches being contested for the first time.

  • by Andrew Webster
A change in deeming rates would alter pension payments for retirees.
Opinion
Pension

Deeming freeze a plus for pensioners, but rates can’t stagnate forever

The freezing of deeming rates has provided some certainty in an environment of rising interest rates. But at some point they will need to rise.

  • by Noel Whittaker
Amid rising costs and inflationary pressures, did women win in this week’s federal budget?

Did women get what they want from this week’s budget?

The federal budget rolled out a number of measures directed at women, but how much of an impact will they have?

  • by Nicole Pedersen-McKinnon
Unhealthier food is often cheaper and easier for families.

For younger Australians, this budget falls woefully short

In the lead-up to the budget, younger Australians were hopeful for real cost-of-living relief. Instead, we’ve been left with little to celebrate.

  • by Ryan Bourke
Getting annoyed over your tax bill is unlikely to make much change.

Manifestation: Can you think your way to untold riches?

Is manifestation the hidden secret to the life you truly desire? Probably not, but some aspects can help how we think about money.

  • by Paridhi Jain
Nathan Cleary will miss the entire State of Origin series.
Opinion
NRL 2024

300,000 kicks over 12 years: Cleary’s will to win is breaking his body

His greatest asset is now turning into one of his biggest weaknesses. Rugby league’s No.1 star should consider changing the way he trains.

  • by Andrew Johns
Protests about Facebook’s influence have not slowed its growth.

I’ve seen what a Facebook news ban looks like – more Clive Palmer and Peta Credlin

The Canadian experience offers lessons on the consequences of Facebook’s coming news ban in Australia. Reputable media are blocked but “news-ish” content and “media personalities” are thriving.

  • by Elise Thomas

I gave an Airbnb home just four stars. Apparently that’s a fail

It’s bad enough that every service we use, every restaurant, plumber, grocer or app, demands praise like a needy toddler, but it has to be five stars or death.

  • by Jo Stanley
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Letters
Letters

These budget crumbs are not enough for daily survival

Readers comment on Jim Chalmers’ balancing act federal budget.

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The budget’s Future Made in Australia policy included billions to fast-track a local renewable energy-powered hydrogen industry.

Australia’s $22.7 billion bet on the $US1.4 trillion fight with China

A Future Made in Australia is really about a global battle, led by the United States, against a rising China and a destabilising Russia.

  • by Shane Wright
 Treasurer Jim Chalmers

Five things Jim Chalmers didn’t tell you in his budget speech

We pick apart an abridged version of Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ third budget speech – and explain five key points.

  • by Shane Wright and Natassia Chrysanthos
Netball still scares me a little.
Opinion
City life

I’m returning to the game of my youth and I’m hoping not to break a leg. Or maybe I am

I love my team and, good news, I don’t have to play centre or wear one of those short pleated skirts. But I am a bit scared of players who try to gain an advantage by slapping their opponents.

  • by Carolyn Webb
Part of solving the current housing crisis needs to be removing financial barriers for people who want to downsize.
Opinion
Pension

Want to help the housing crisis? Bring back the pensioner savings account

Part of solving the current housing crisis needs to be removing financial barriers for people who want to downsize. Pensioners are a good place to start.

  • by Rachel Lane
Andrew Forrest is delighted with the federal budget

Coalition slams the billionaires’ budget as miners cheer

The likes of Andrew Forrest and Gina Rinehart’s companies will receive an indirect boost to mine and process critical minerals or develop green hydrogen.

  • by Elizabeth Knight
Cracking into your super to top up your income later in life can be a valid strategy.

If I drop to part-time, can I use super to top up my income?

Managing an income while drawing down from your super can be a delicate balance, but there are plenty of ways to make it work.

  • by Noel Whittaker
Duncan Wanblad, chief executive of Anglo American, announced “radical changes”.

Diamonds for sale: Inside the plan to crash BHP’s $64 billion party

Anglo American chief Duncan Wanblad has shown his hand as the company tries to fight off BHP. His Plan B looks a lot like BHP’s Plan A.

  • by Stephen Bartholomeusz
Ange Postecoglou during Tottenham’s loss.
Analysis
EPL

The Premier League has exposed Postecoglou as a purist in an impure world

The Australian is running Tottenham with principle. But English football is not always good and nourishing, and Postecoglou is not always patient with deviation.

  • by Emma Kemp
Former president Donald Trump walks to the courtroom following a break in his trial at Manhattan criminal court on May 9.

If the US election were held today, Trump would win

Trump’s many outrages are plain for all to see, yet thus far he is playing the winning hand against Joe Biden.

  • by Bruce Wolpe
Students and supporters attend a rally protesting Israel’s war in Gaza at an encampment at the University of Sydney earlier this month.

Students have a right to protest. Peacefully. On campus. Universities must be defended

Calls for “intifada” are antisemitic, but it is not clear that police should end an entire protest in response to isolated criminal offences.

  • by Alan Finkel
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David Fifita and Nick Politis.
Analysis
NRL 2024

Why the Roosters won’t lose any more sleep over Fifita flip

“No” is a word the Roosters have heard with unusual regularity in recent times. However, the club isn’t overly concerned about the David Fifita knockback.

  • by Adrian Proszenko
Sam Durham, Jake Kelly, Xavier Duursma, Jade Gresham and Ben McKay of the Bombers sing the song.
Money Talks
AFL 2024

The list-demographics sweet spot fuelling the high-flying Bombers in 2024

We should have seen Essendon’s uprising coming – and the reason why helps explain two other fringe Melbourne-based finals contenders not meeting external expectations.

  • by Marc McGowan
GPS

‘Red light and speed camera ahead’: The ambiguity of Google Maps

Are there two cameras, one for speeding and one for lights? Or just one camera? Voiced messages lack the punctuation to eliminate the doubt.

  • by David Astle
Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin last week.

Unwitting Australians are doing Putin’s dirty work for him

There is a creeping acceptance of views branding Australia and its allies as imperialists and using whataboutism to deflect moral arguments against tyrants. Much of it is home-grown.

  • by Matthew Sussex

This budget will make us better off now, worse off later

It seems the top priority of Anthony Albanese’s government is not to have any priorities.

  • by Ross Gittins
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Letters
Letters

Hospitals are already failing my family. What happened to Labor values?

Readers react to tightening hospitals budgets and the growing pressure resulting from Victoria’s state debt.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers.

Is this the budget we needed? Our experts deliver their verdicts

Jim Chalmers’ third budget sought to strike a balance between inflation and cost of living. Here’s what our experts thought.

  • by David Crowe, Shane Wright, Jacqueline Maley, Peter Hartcher and Ross Gittins
Federal Budget 2024: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers.

There might be balloons for everyone, but it’s no time to party

The treasurer sold this budget, his third, as flawless, with handouts galore and no negative impact on inflation. The Age has identified one obvious deficiency.

  • The Age's View
Cross-class friendships have a stronger impact on future incomes than school quality, family structure and job availability, the study has found.

The Albanese government doesn’t just like women, it needs them

Women voters are growing increasingly progressive which makes them appetising prey not just for Labor but for the Greens and the teals.

  • by Jacqueline Maley
Treasurer Jim Chalmers at Parliament House on Tuesday morning.

Don’t be fooled: this is an election budget with plenty of pork-barrelling

This budget taxes more, and spends more, than any of the others for at least a quarter-century, outside the pandemic years. And it conceals the pork better.

  • by Peter Hartcher
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (left) and Treasurer Jim Chalmers.

Labor’s promised subsidies for everyone. They’re not guaranteed votes in return

The political message in this budget is breathtakingly simple. The broader policy plan is fiendishly complex.

  • by David Crowe
Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers arrives at Parliament House in Canberra on budget day.

The budget handout that could cruel your next pay rise

Just spending money on handouts to bring down inflation is not Jim Chalmers’ main game.

  • by Shane Wright
Blue Light disco, 1993.
Opinion
Crime

The criminal reason we should bring back blue light discos

How to keep the minds of bored teenagers off pinching a Nissan Skyline or accosting strangers at a train station? The answer is clear to me.

  • by Simon Taylor
The re-emergence of Keith Gill sent GameStop shares soaring.

How a cartoon from ‘Roaring Kitty’ sparked a $6.1 billion Wall Street frenzy

The man who ignited the meme stock mania in 2021 has resurfaced after lying low for years, sending shares flying. We might need a sequel to the movie Dumb Money.

  • by Stephen Bartholomeusz