Keywords: Warrior Culture
-
AUSTRALIA
- Sabine Wolff
- 30 October 2015
37 Comments
Just when the ringing of the words 'I stopped the boats' had finally subsided and you were getting used to the idea of business agility and economic innovation as the key battlegrounds, who should pop back up but former Prime Minister and Culture Warrior in Chief, Tony Abbott. Abbott's Margaret Thatcher memorial speech — in which the words 'a hint of Thatcher about my government' were used with apparently no irony whatsoever — was a stunning example of revisionism, hubris, and confused ideology.
READ MORE 
-
RELIGION
- Michael McVeigh
- 15 October 2015
11 Comments
Many in the Church would echo Tony Abbott's feelings on the dangers a theological environment 'at war with itself' presents to its moral authority. Similarly, there are many conservative politicians and members of the press who look at the current political commentary — marked by discussion rather than authority — and wonder what a government can accomplish in such an environment. Not surprisingly, Cardinal George Pell — described by Abbott as a 'fine human being and a great churchman' — is among those pushing back against the dialogue at the current Synod on the Family.
READ MORE
-
INTERNATIONAL
- Dorothy Horsfield
- 26 August 2015
1 Comment
For almost twenty years, across the settlements and subsistence farms of Central Africa the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has preyed upon civilian populations with exceptional cruelty, emerging from the bush in small units to commit unspeakable atrocities. These days there is a common assumption that the LRA has been decimated and scattered and that its leader Joseph Kony is in hiding and probably ineffectual. But visiting activist Sister Angelique Namaika insists this optimistic assessment is misguided.
READ MORE
-
ARTS AND CULTURE
- Barry Gittins and Jen Vuk
- 13 March 2015
5 Comments
A new book by counter-cultural warrior and Christian God Squad motorbike club founder Rev John Smith says that feeling good about yourself may not actually be that good for you in the long run. It's not that he wants you to be depressed, but rather let your discomfort prompt self-reflection.
READ MORE
-
MEDIA
- Andrew Hamilton
- 26 September 2013
64 Comments
The limitations of Marr's account are the obverse of its virtues. It sifts Pell's motives and words but not those of his critics, and simplifies complexities. The details are designed to imply character. Churches are empty or full depending on the needs of the plot; Pell does not speak but booms. If a cock crows in a distant farmyard it crows for the Cardinal alone. This makes for engaging reading, but demands careful judgment.
READ MORE
-
ARTS AND CULTURE
- William Gourlay
- 26 April 2012
3 Comments
Sabre rattling, both by the Iranian leadership and by Western politicians and pundits, dominates the headlines and steers public discourse about Iran. A recent film, and a current art exhibition, remind us of the country's 'rich and ancient culture that has been hidden under the heavy dust of politics'.
READ MORE
-
MEDIA
Listening to the Defence Force top brass talk about the 'female' cadet scandal is like taking a trip back to the 1940s. The stoic military 'warrior culture' can be tempered by encouraging men to develop appropriate self-disclosure and empathy against the dehumanising effects of training.
READ MORE
-
MEDIA
Defence has the same problem as society in relation to young people's attitudes to sex, alcohol and social media. I wonder if we handle it better than most. The firestorm of ignorant criticism of the ADF and its 'culture' and leadership was mostly undeserved and could be counterproductive.
READ MORE
-
EUREKA STREET TV
- Peter Kirkwood
- 24 February 2011
2 Comments
READ MORE
-
EUREKA STREET TV
- Peter Kirkwood
- 24 February 2011
Renowned immigration lawyer Kerry Murphy explains how changes in government refugee policy are strongly coloured by community fears about migrants and refugees.
READ MORE
-
EUREKA STREET/ READER'S FEAST AWARD
- Nigel Pearn
- 18 August 2010
3 Comments
The book was banned after parents complained about its anti-authoritarian attitude: 'Wanja [the dog] loved to chase the [police] van ... to bark at the van ... to bite at the wheel. The police van would drive away.' Like Jewish humour, Aboriginal humour is a response to a history of oppression.
READ MORE
-
ARTS AND CULTURE
- Brian Matthews
- 17 April 2008
'Geo-politically astute' astrologer Jessica Murray believes revelations about China's violations against Tibet were prompted by astrological activity. For all their glib outlandishness and pseudo-scientific jargon, contemporary astrologers still fascinate.
READ MORE