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Opinion

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Australian cricketer Usman Khawaja has criticised Opposition Leader Peter Dutton over remarks he made in reference to Fatima Payman’s resignation from the Labor Party.
Opinion
Racism

Batter to boat-rocker … and neither Khawaja nor Dutton will back down

As a breed, Australian cricketers are generally on the conservative side of things, but the softly spoken opener has shattered the convention.

  • by Peter FitzSimons

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Nathan Cleary and Jarome Luai celebrate victory in last year’s grand final, their third straight premiership win together.
Opinion
NRL 2024

The first team to stem the tide of tries will emerge victorious

NRL coaches can be forgiven for feeling like King Canute when it comes to repelling attack.

  • by Roy Masters
Newly elected UK PM Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria on election day in London.
Analysis
UK politics

Celebrations will be short-lived for Starmer, staring down Britain’s monumental challenges

Britain’s new prime minister faces perhaps the most monumental challenges of any incoming UK leader since Clement Attlee’s Labour Party won in a landslide in 1945.

  • by Rob Harris

When I met Starmer, he’d have won my ‘least likely PM’ vote. Look at him now

He’s cautious, a bit bland and with no big vision, but he’s ousted the crooked Conservatives in this chaos-weary country.

  • by Kathy Lette
There’s a simple way for men to get in the good books with their partners.
Opinion
Marriage

What makes for a good husband? It’s the small things

At a time when almost half of Australian marriages end in divorce, TV presenter Richard Hammond has some smart advice for men. And it’s got nothing to do with a sexy hotel stay or a Zamel’s catalogue.

  • by Kate Halfpenny
Joe Schmidt with Laurie Fisher.
Analysis
Wallabies

The currency of hard graft: Deciphering Joe Schmidt’s first Wallabies team

Rugby Australia bosses would sell their grannies for a win over Wales on Saturday but Schmidt appears focused on the long game.

  • by Iain Payten
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SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - JULY 04:  Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt looks on during a Wallabies training session at David Phillips Sports Complex on July 04, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
Opinion
Wallabies

Rugby union is not about to collapse, despite what the NRL keeps telling us

A new era starts under new Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt on Saturday against Wales.

  • by Andrew Webster
Self-portrait with the Yellow Christ, 1890–91.
Opinion
Review

Master or monster: The artist equally loathed and revered

Call it charisma, presence or personal magnetism. Paul Gauguin had it in abundance.

  • by John McDonald
Workers should always read their contracts carefully, as once signed, there can be little you can do to change it.

Did my workplace trick me into signing away my bonuses?

Workers should always read their contracts carefully, as once signed, there can be little you can do to change it.

  • by Jonathan Rivett

If you care about your offspring, you should support ‘nature positive’

So much has been lost, and with such serious consequences, a consensus has emerged that we must now commit to nature repair.

  • by Ross Gittins
If a mortgage is out of reach, it is a lot easier to skip jobs, notwithstanding eye-watering rents.
Opinion
Jobs

Why do young people hate their jobs? I’ll give you a clue

Why should young workers slave away at a job they hate when the traditional rewards of hard work, such as owning a house, are so far out of reach?

  • by Jim Bright
The abduction and murder of 13-year-old Karmein Chan in 1991 changed Melbourne forever.
Analysis
Naked City

A new profile of Mr Cruel, who may have been a burglar before he was a killer

A US crime profile says Mr Cruel was a burglar who escalated to abducting girls. “It is an addiction. You build a tolerance and have to up the game to get the thrill.”

  • by John Silvester
Masculinity is in crisis, and young men need support to find their way.
Opinion
Sexism

Gen Z men have a problem with feminism. We need to talk about why

Earlier this year, a global study found one generation of men more than any other thinks feminism has gone too far. That generation, I’m uncomfortable to say, is mine.

  • by Daniel Cash

Payman’s exit tells a different story

Senator Fatima Payman’s resignation from the Labor Party is a symptom of the Middle East’s capacity to impose itself on Australian politics, no matter how distant it is.

  • by Rodger Shanahan
Victoria’s gas connection ban will apply to granny flats, but now new homes without planning permits.
Analysis
Gas

Yes, we really are dumb enough to import our own gas. Here’s why

There’s plenty of blame to go around for the current mess we’re in.

  • by Mike Foley
Donald Trump

Forcing Biden out would have only one beneficiary

By building a case for Joe Biden’s incapacity, Democrats risk increasing the probability of the thing they most desperately seek to avoid.

  • by Charles M Blow
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Senator Fatima Payman during a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday.

Fatima Payman has hurt Labor badly. And she isn’t done yet

Senator Fatima Payman’s defection to the crossbench has caused major damage to the government. And she isn’t done yet, either.

  • by James Massola
England captain Ben Stokes.
Opinion
England

The Bazball reality: England entertain, but their opponents win

England’s lofty Bazball rhetoric is divorced from the reality that Ben Stokes’ team faces. They entertain; their opponents win.

  • by Daniel Brettig
Booktopia co-founder Tony Nash returned to the company after being ousted by the board
Opinion
Insolvency

A series of unfortunate events: Demise of Booktopia is a page turner

A blindingly bright-coloured flag appeared only a month ago when the listed company told the market that directors’ fees for the year would be paid by issuing shares, rather than in cash.

  • by Elizabeth Knight
French champagne cork France bubbly generic sparkling wines celebrating celebrations parties party. SMH GOOD WEEKEND Picture by iSTOCK GW110528
Opinion
NACC

Amid champagne gifts and shameless rorting, one institution is fighting back

The national audit office has released a series of scandalous reports that show our public bureaucracy falling apart, at a cost to us all.

  • by Shane Wright
Our obsession with endless meetings must stop somewhere.

We need to get out of ‘meeting hell’. Here’s how

There are several ways to break our addiction to meetings, ranging from large measures to small tweaks.

  • by Tim Duggan
A debate watch party at the Nite Owl Drive-In theater in Miami, Florida.

How the Trump-Biden debate increased the chance of a rate rise in Australia

A rise in Australian bond yields this week shows how a showdown between two elderly and less-than-impressive politicians could send ripples of unease throughout the global system.

  • by Stephen Bartholomeusz
AFL football manager Laura Kane (centre) and coaches: (left, top to bottom) Damien Hardwick (Gold Coast), Ross Lyon (St Kilda), Chris Scott (Geelong) and (right) Luke Beveridge (Western Bulldogs), Adam Simpson (West Coast) and Michael Voss (Carlton).
Opinion
AFL 2024

Too many whingers: Why the footy sook-fest has to stop

The constant complaining in the AFL has gone too far and threatens to tarnish the code’s reputation as Australia’s premier sport.

  • by Kane Cornes
Opinion
Wildlife

Fun gal seeks fungi … because mushrooms have had such a bad rap

I won’t settle for any old fungus when I’m out foraging. I’m going for the holy grail.

  • by Jo Stubbings
Great Britain players Jasmine Joyce, Celia Quansah and Ellie Boatman pose for the ‘Strong Is Beautiful’ campaign for London lingerie brand Bluebella.
Opinion
Paris 2024

Sorry, but rugby players posing in lingerie in 2024 is not ‘regressive’

Just as female athletes are transcending stereotypes, their agency is being stripped by former female athletes applying the very paternalistic lens they themselves sought to escape.

  • by Emma Kemp
Wests Tigers captain Api Koroisau is sent to the sin-bin.
Opinion
NRL 2024

The bunker is getting it all wrong. These are the changes it needs

The way we use video review technology is driving me crazy. But there are ways to improve it for the fans.

  • by Andrew Johns
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Labor believes Fatima Payman’s rebellion was plotted for a month

The young senator’s decision to cross the floor and to later speak out against her party bears all the hallmarks of a carefully co-ordinated plan, according to Labor figures.

  • by Niki Savva
Andrew Dyson
LETTERS
Letters

A ruling to be seen as supremely ‘un-American’

Age readers react to the Supreme Court ruling in the US.

Liberal senator Andrew Bragg says ASIC has failed.
Opinion
Regulation

More dog than watchdog: How to fix our broken corporate regulator

ASIC has failed in its sole mandate to enforce the country’s corporate laws and is in a “dire” state with an unenviable prosecutorial rate.

  • by Elizabeth Knight
Pies skipper Darcy Moore.
Opinion
AFL 2024

Is Darcy Moore really playing ‘awful’ footy? Cornes and McClure go head-to-head

The two footy media heavyweights who don’t shirk the big issues are refusing to back down on Collingwood captain Darcy Moore. Here, they both make their case.

  • by Sam McClure and Kane Cornes
Clint Gutherson, Trent Barrett, Mitchell Moses.
Exclusive
NRL 2024

‘No one is going to help us’: Frustration at Eels as Moses launches dressing room tirade

A seething Mitchell Moses vented his frustration in an impassioned address to senior staff and players.

  • by Michael Chammas
In Kupiansk at the front with the town under heavy artillery shelling. Locals Antonly and Luba, James Baillieu and Ukrainian-Australian journalist Julian Krysh.

Why I left comfortable Melbourne and went into a war zone

A Ukraine local staying put despite the bombing told me, “I want to live my life so as not to be ashamed of myself to my ancestors in heaven when I die.” His words sum up why I went to Ukraine and did what I did.

  • by James Baillieu
Trump's trade war rhetoric has been shaping markets for months.

Donald Trump’s dangerous ideas have these ‘vigilantes’ worried

With Donald Trump favoured to regain the US presidency, a group of investors is starting to focus on the implications of his core economic policies. They’re concerned.

  • by Stephen Bartholomeusz
Opinion
Racism

I was heading off to study abroad, but now my phone is alive with alerts

I can’t help but envy the Anglo-Saxon students in my cohort going on exchange. For them, travel warnings take the form of earthquakes or avalanches.

  • by Satara Uthayakumaran
Anthony Albanese and Fatima Payman.

Payman v Albanese and the personal v the collective: Is Labor stuck in 1902?

The personal view of a young Muslim senator faces off with the oldest requirement of would-be ALP politicians, a written contract to observe the collective.

  • by Tony Wright
Paying a bit more for hospital cover can mean cover that is actually useful should you ever need to go to hospital.

Why you could be wasting a lot of money on basic health insurance

Those on basic hospital policies may not realise they could be getting a lot more cover by paying a few more dollars a month.

  • by John Collett
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In many cases, taxpayers are contributing more to support the self-supporting retiree’s lifestyle than the pensioner’s.
Opinion
Pension

How wealthy retirees cost taxpayers more than pensioners

In many cases, taxpayers are contributing more to support a self-supporting retiree’s lifestyle than a pensioner’s.

  • by Julia Hartman
Winning the lottery will wipe out your pension income, but you should still consider yourself fortunate.
Opinion
Pension

We won the lottery, but lost our pension. Could we have prevented this?

Once you start spending your windfall, you may start to regain some of your lost pension. But consider yourself extremely fortunate and just enjoy the money.

  • by Noel Whittaker
While you’re collecting points to get $50 off or scouring aisles for discounts, you’re probably not focused on problems that are worth more in the long run.

Pinch every penny? Not if you want to actually get ahead

While you’re collecting points to get $50 off or scouring aisles for discounts, you’re probably not focused on problems worth more in the long run.

  • by Paridhi Jain
More increases in interest rates and repayments could be on the cards for   variable rate mortgage holders.

Mortgage holders warned to brace for higher interest rates

Higher interest rates could be on the way if inflation does not soon show signs of slowing.

  • by John Collett
Senator Fatima Payman arrives for question time on Monday.

Payman saga highlights outdated policy Labor needs to ditch

Party rebels have stopped Coalition governments making mistakes. Labor MPs lack the same opportunity.

  • The Age's View
Opinion
Income tax

Despite what we’re led to believe, tax cuts are no free lunch

Politicians like to peddle illusions when it comes to tax and tax cuts. Meanwhile, we play our role by deluding ourselves.

  • by Ross Gittins
Letters
Letters

Trump wanted to be king – court has given him the crown

Readers react to the decision of the US Supreme Court to give presidents a degree of immunity from prosecution, and the split between Labor and Fatima Payman.

Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock and the rest of the board are unsure how the economy is performing.

The only certainty for your mortgage rate – Reserve Bank uncertainty

The Reserve Bank is supposed to have a handle on how the economy will perform over the next two years. Its minutes show it doesn’t.

  • by Shane Wright
Teenagers are biologically driven to break away from their parents.
Opinion
Parenting

I lie to my kids and they lie to me. Some secrets need keeping

When I lied to my parents, I genuinely thought they believed me. These days we laugh about it, but it was an important rite of passage.

  • by Nova Weetman
Brian Johnson - addresses the CBA valuation conundrum
Opinion
Big four

Why the CBA share price continues to defy gravity

A bunch of short-seller investors who last year placed expensive bets that CBA share price would fall are licking their financial wounds.

  • by Elizabeth Knight
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Tony Blair in 1997, Keir Starmer in 2024.

Fool Britannia: Brits hoping for a return to the Blair-era glory days are dreaming

Where Tony Blair arrived at a point of hope, Keir Starmer enters at a point of despair. The excitement and pride of 1997 have given way to deep cynicism and Brexit division.

  • by Gary Nunn
Xi Jinping is determined to make

Xi Jinping will be desperate not to repeat his mistake from a decade ago

A critical moment looms for China with a meeting this month to set out its plans for the future. Xi Jinping will be treading carefully.

  • by Stephen Bartholomeusz
 John McEnroe and Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon ahead of the 2024 tournament.
Opinion
Wimbledon

Nick Kyrgios stuns audience on his BBC debut – by being polite and thoughtful

This is a tennis player who simply could not shut up but the Aussie bad boy proved to be the opposite of his on-court demeanour.

  • by Jim White
Most new technologies have both benefits and costs, and sometimes the latter outweigh the former.
Analysis
AI

Would you trust AI to pick your investments? Here’s our verdict

A new investing tool that uses AI is a little underwhelming, but it could be of use for first-time investors looking for information.

  • by John Collett