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Opinion

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Albanese

12 big ideas and six sitting weeks: It’s crunch time for Albanese

With an election looming, the Albanese government is running out of time to get a raft of reforms through.

  • by David Crowe

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In the coffin of All Blacks rugby, the Bledisloe Cup is in play

The implosion of the once-invincible All Blacks has Wallabies fans passing the popcorn and dreaming of a Bledisloe upset.

  • by Paul Cully
Ron Coote is rugby league’s 14th Immortal.

Bravo to you, Ron Coote, but this Immortals-mania needs to slow down

Further trips back through rugby league’s history is an exercise that best be avoided.

  • by Peter FitzSimons
West Coast have endured years of on-field hardship.
Opinion
AFL 2024

Why so many people are rejecting the Eagles’ coaching job

At least four leading candidates have turned their backs on approaches from West Coast for their senior coaching job, and the reason why is a warning to the AFL.

  • by Caroline Wilson
Put your hand down, buddy. Please.
Opinion
Comedy

Are you sure there’s no such thing as a dumb question?

The world is full of questions that should never be asked.

  • by Richard Glover
Inside Out 2’s new emotions include Anxiety, Envy and Ennui (voiced by French star Adèle Exarchopoulos).
Opinion
WordPlay

What this Pixar film gets so right about the human condition

Is this boredom I’m feeling, or ennui?

  • by David Astle
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The gender pay gap may be improving, but women still earn nearly 12 per cent less than men.

Women work 50 days extra to equal men’s pay. Here’s a way to fix that

For every dollar an average man earns, the average woman makes just 89 cents. I don’t know about you, but that also makes me think: challenge accepted.

  • by Nicole Pedersen-McKinnon
Retirement is being redefined. It’s no longer about stopping work; it’s about managing and balancing your money, health and happiness in a way that suits you.
Opinion
Ageing

The truth about why we’re working for longer in retirement

Retirement is being redefined. It’s no longer about stopping work; it’s about managing and balancing your money, health and happiness in a way that suits you.

  • by Bec Wilson
Executive coach Mark Hodgson says he was grateful for the redundancy as it allowed him to re-think his career.
Analysis
Side hustle

Lost your job? Maybe it’s time to re-invent yourself

The jobs market can feel turbulent, so it might be time to turn a long-held passion job into a money-spinner.

  • by Emily Chantiri
When asked about reports that Peter Dutton was seeking legal advice, Zali Steggall said it was “part of the playbook”.

Is ‘rip him a new one!’ really necessary for robust democratic debate?

The teals are inviting us to see the cacophony as something else – stupid, harmful to social civility and, above all, unnecessary.

  • by Jacqueline Maley
Opinion
Censorship

Elon Musk saying civil war is inevitable is not inciting violence. Here’s why

Beware the online-harm brigade, or we’ll have police on our doorsteps as fast as we can say boo online.

  • by Josh Szeps

Trump out-Foxed: The most telling thing about Kamala’s pyjama party

Donald Trump phoned in to Fox to offer his critique of Harris’ acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention. They duly put him to air, initially ...

  • by Peter Hartcher
The consumer data right is intended to make it easier for customers to compare prices and switch banks or energy providers.
Opinion
Scams

Why Australian banks are better at stopping scammers than British banks

Winning the war against these international criminal gangs can only be achieved through a collective show of strength from all parts of the scams chain.

  • by Anna Bligh
Donald Trump and Kamala Harris

Donald Trump’s bluster fades as Kamala Harris shines

Apart from his alliterative name-calling and rhyming misogynistic twaddle, what is Donald Trump offering the good folk of the US?

Alexandra Smith and Jo Haylen go bar hopping on Sydney’s new metro
Analysis
Sydney Metro

My night out with the transport minister: 12km, three bars, one new metro line

Who said the metro was for only commuters? From North Sydney to the inner west, bar hopping just became easy. 

  • by Alexandra Smith
“Thank you, thank you”: Kamala Harris receives a rapturous welcome to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Jubilant Kamala Harris makes the choice clear: freedom or chaos

In accepting her nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate, the US vice president highlighted all the ways her rival Donald Trump would take the country backwards.

  • by Farrah Tomazin
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CFMEU national secretary Zach Smith has survived while other officials have been purged.

Any friends of Setka in CFMEU leadership need to be purged

The CFMEU goes into administration but the survival of one recalcitrant leader of the rogue union raises doubts about if he will help clean up the culture.

  • The Herald's View
A happy team at Hawthorn.
Analysis
AFL 2024

Inside the ‘war room’ that sparked Hawthorn’s stunning rise

Hawthorn had just finished barely above the bottom four despite having one of the league’s oldest lists, so something had to give.

  • by Marc McGowan
Opinion
NRL 2024

Immortals heaven is filling up fast. When will the ‘Full House’ sign go up?

The game’s administrators are happy to kick these questions down the road until a future generation is forced to close the border.

  • by Malcolm Knox
What will happen to emergency call access in country areas when the 3G network is switched off?
Tony Wright’s Column
Regional Australia

Mobile phones, 3G and the coming sounds of silence in the bush

The approaching closure of the 3G telecommunications service means an unknown number of mobile users will no longer be able to connect with emergency services.

  • by Tony Wright
Doing business in China is becoming a less attractive proposition for foreign companies.

China can’t rescue the global economy this time

The global economy is sputtering and an “enormous error” in the US just ramped up the pressure. We can’t rely on China to fix things.

  • by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
Sam Walker, Jarome Luai and Luke Brooks.
Analysis
NRL 2024

Finals of fortune: The dollars, deals and reputations up for grabs in September

Several halves - from the biggest earners to unlikeliest match-winners - are stepping out of the shadows and into the NRL spotlight.

  • by Dan Walsh
Former first lady Michelle Obama speaks to Democrats in Chicago on Tuesday night (US time).

I jumped up and down when I heard Michelle Obama utter one amazing word

I am not getting dewy-eyed here, but I see signs that Americans – across the political divide – are reviving a graciousness that had lain dormant.

  • by Julia Baird
FILE - JULY 17: Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck reportedly obtained a marriage license on July 16 in Clark County, Nevada. VENICE, ITALY - SEPTEMBER 10: Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez attend the red carpet of the movie “The Last Duel” during the 78th Venice International Film Festival on September 10, 2021 in Venice, Italy. (Photo by Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty Images)
Opinion
Divorce

Whether you’re Jenny from the Block or a suburban matron, divorce is not a spectator sport

Sure, celebrities trade privacy for fame. But I’d rather revel in their clothes or babies or weddings, not the death of something they believed was forever.

  • by Kate Halfpenny
Opinion
AI

I asked AI to write this column. Trust me, I have nothing to fear

Satire and emotion were lost on that silicon scribe.

  • by Anson Cameron
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Opinion
AFL 2024

Sunday showdown: Blue heaven or hell for Carlton

On the final day of the 2024 AFL home and away season, Carlton will take the field against St Kilda with a straightforward equation: Win and they will play finals.

  • by Jake Niall
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Cameron Smith, Glenn Lazarus, Darren Lockyer and Billy Slater are the leading contenders to become the next Immortal.
Opinion
NRL 2024

When it comes to the Immortals, less is more

The more exclusive the club, the more that entry is prized. Which is why the red velvet rope should keep out all but rugby league’s very best.

  • by Adrian Proszenko
If we knew the results ahead of time, it’d be easy to pick the perfect career. But backing a winner with no experience is almost impossible.
Opinion
Careers

Our jobs aren’t a horse race, so stop trying to pick a winner

If we knew the results ahead of time, it’d be easy to pick the perfect career. But backing a winner with no experience is almost impossible.

  • by Jim Bright
Absenteeism, especially in public health roles, can result in extra workload for those who are still on deck.

My colleagues keep calling in sick and it’s wearing me out. What can I do?

Absenteeism, especially in public health roles, can result in extra workload for those who are still on deck.

  • by Jonathan Rivett
Donald Trump is struggling in the US election race as Kamala Harris leads in the polls.

You know Trump’s in trouble when he can’t settle on a nickname for his enemy

The fact Harris has been relatively anonymous, once the sign of an underwhelming VP, is now the very thing that enables her to appear new.

  • by Waleed Aly
A

How GPT (not that one) could be a painless fix for our inflation problem

I asked ChatGPT what its chances were of improving productivity in Australia – if it was a betting man. Here’s what it said.

  • by Millie Muroi
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Opinion
Column 8

It’s nice to be newsworthy

While you’re being eyeballed.

Independent member for North Sydney Kylea Tink will take a bullying complaint to the new watchdog if it passes into law.

Parliamentary code of conduct should attract good people, not deter them

Keith Pitt’s concern that an enforceable code of conduct would deter good people from entering politics is mystifying. It would appear that we have a different understanding of the term “quality”.

Anton Forte pictured outside his Le Foote restaurant in The Rocks.

Swillhouse blues are a warning sign for hospitality industry

A brutal and highly toxic male culture has crept into some Sydney nightclubs, where sexual assault and sleaze have come to be tolerated with almost callous nonchalance.

  • The Herald's View
Super Retail CEO Anthony Heraghty all smiles on results day.
Opinion
Governance

Sales success meets governance mess at Super Retail

When the sugar hit of a special dividend fades for Super Retail Group, chief Anthony Heraghty will still be fielding a raft of legal allegations.

  • by Elizabeth Knight
Gif showing how cameras monitor the self-service checkout at supermarkets

That unexpected item in bagging area is you doing all the work for your supermarket

From digital-trolley innovations to customer feedback machines, my grocers are becoming grosser by the day.

  • by Michelle Cazzulino
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Opposition Leader Peter Dutton

Dutton is placing all his bets on an issue not crucial to voters

The Middle East has become new and ugly territory for Australian politics, but the engaged minority’s focus is no guide to how it will play out for the disengaged majority at the ballot box.

  • by David Crowe
You can’t choose your family that you are born into, but you can – and should – choose the right workplace that works for you.

No, your work is not your family, so let’s stop pretending it is

You can’t choose your family that you are born into, but you can – and should – choose the right workplace that works for you.

  • by Tim Duggan
The Crows will be spectators in September again this year.
Opinion
AFL 2024

Scandals, a derailed rebuild and questionable drafting: Unpacking a seven-year AFL slide

The Crows have been in disarray since the 2017 grand final. After seven seasons of mediocrity, distractions, controversy and mishaps, patience at West Lakes must be wearing thin.

  • by Kane Cornes
Ron Coote gives the thumbs up after being named the 14th Immortal.
Opinion
NRL 2024

Albo’s early exit, Bennett snub couldn’t take shine from Ron Coote’s night

The naming of Ron Coote as the 14th Immortal was done in the middle of the show because the Prime Minister had to leave early.

  • by Andrew Webster
Men’s world No.1 Jannik Sinner.
Opinion
Doping

Sex, too many eggs, cocaine, and dodgy beef: ‘Contamination’ is doping’s get out of jail free card

It is the anti-doping equivalent of Monopoly’s get out of jail free card and Jannik Sinner became the latest athlete to play it and escape a drugs ban.

  • by Ben Rumsby
It’s a low bar that can still be tolerated in the hospitality industry.

My daughter was a bartender. Like me, she had to endure the gropers

Seriously, despite #MeToo, there remains a 1980s tolerance of bad behaviour in the hospitality industry.

  • by Tania Ewing
Xi

China has a ‘vicious’ problem and even Xi Jinping will struggle to fix it

Chinese companies continue to churn out more products than the world may need. Even Xi Jinping may be powerless to slow them down.

  • by Shuli Ren
 Tim Walz

‘Coach’ Walz has the runs – and lessons – on the board to stare down Trump and Co.

It’s a long way from Mankato West High School to maybe holding the second-highest office in the United States.

  • by Peter FitzSimons
Knights players during their golden point loss to the Sharks.
Opinion
NRL 2024

Sorry, Graham, but it was my job to kick field goals. This is why blockers are unavoidable

The NRL’s argument is good in theory, but it’s just not practical. We should never see a repeat of the fiasco at the end of the Sharks versus Knights game.

  • by Andrew Johns
Illustration: Dionne Gain

What Peter Dutton has in common with Australia’s most famous fly spray

Polls show Peter Dutton and Anthony Albanese are as unpopular as each other. For a first-term opposition leader, that is a historically good result.

  • by Shaun Carney
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Passengers on the first regular passenger metro service left Sydenham at 4.54am on Monday.

How ‘metro mania’ could derail the housing crisis

Chris Minns and his government cannot claim credit for building the metro, but he should capitalise on it.

  • by Alexandra Smith
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Opinion
Column 8

Faith can be a risky business

But we do like a short sermon.

Reports suggest Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez have tied the knot.
Opinion
Divorce

If only Ben and Jennifer had followed my divorcee’s guide to marriage

Divorce is always monumentally unpleasant. I’ve tried it, and I rate it zero stars. But there is an excellent way to avoid it.

  • by Kerri Sackville
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during Question Time at Parliament House in Canberra on Monday 19 August 2024. fedpol Photo: Alex Ellinghausen

Fines are a good start but we still have to suffer through question time

While the proposed workplace code for parliament will be a huge step forward in terms of punishing workplace breaches, we will still have to suffer the kindergarten behaviour, name-calling and misogyny.