Keywords: Parliamentary Debate
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AUSTRALIA
- John Warhurst
- 17 October 2011
10 Comments
Gillard's atheism puts her in stark contrast to her immediate predecessors Kevin Rudd and John Howard. We consider several implications of Gillard's position, including her relations with church-state issues and community attitudes towards gay marriage and euthanasia.
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RELIGION
- Frank Brennan
- 14 October 2011
Mary visited Rome as a young religious woman when she was being persecuted by local bishops for being too independent. She got a good hearing from the Pope and great assistance from Fr Anderledy who became the Superior General of the Jesuits. If only Bishop Bill Morris could have received the same sympathetic hearing.
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RELIGION
- Frank Brennan
- 02 August 2011
1 Comment
I am bemused that whenever I agitate questions of Aboriginal and refugee rights I am well received by liberals, who then question my clerical entitlement to speak when I buy into debates on issues like euthanasia and embryonic stem cell research. On same sex marriage, I am attacked from both sides.
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RELIGION
- Frank Brennan
- 18 July 2011
Speech given by Fr Frank Brennan SJ at the 'Law and Religion: Legal Regulation of Religious Groups, Organisations and Communities' Conference Dinner in Melbourne on 15 July 2011.
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RELIGION
- Frank Brennan
- 18 July 2011
5 Comments
When I appeared on Q&A with Christopher Hitchens, a young man asked whether we can 'ever hope to live in a truly secular society' while the religious continue to 'affect political discourse and decision making' on euthanasia, same-sex unions and abortion. Hitchens was simpaticao. I was dumbstruck.
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ENVIRONMENT
- Fatima Measham
- 08 July 2011
18 Comments
There is nothing radical about fixing a carbon price. While our politicians and pundits quibble, the rest of the world is already implementing its commitments. Gillard's greatest challenge in selling her carbon scheme is in normalising it in the public mind.
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MEDIA
- Ellena Savage
- 29 April 2011
47 Comments
Previously, monarchists and the ambivalent masses alike could argue that the British royal family was effectively benevolent and benign. The banning of The Chaser's royal wedding commentary is a jolt back to reality.
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MEDIA
- Tony Kevin
- 28 February 2011
32 Comments
At last, an Australian government has presented for public consideration an intelligently conceived framework for a national carbon emissions plan. Has Gillard broken her pre-election 'no carbon tax' promise? Does it matter?
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RELIGION
- Frank Brennan
- 04 November 2010
15 Comments
Cardinal Pell, with whom I have voiced disagreement, preached superbly at the mass of thanksgiving after the canonisation of Mary MacKillop. 'She does not deter us from struggling to follow her.' As we wrestle with the common good, let's make a place for all our fellow citizens.
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INTERNATIONAL
- Jan Forrester
- 22 October 2010
11 Comments
The situation in Afghanistan is far more complex than the Australian parliamentary debate seems to credit. The international community and the Afghan government should be starting a bigger conversation about how a more transparent and accountable political culture can be encouraged.
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AUSTRALIA
- John Warhurst
- 30 August 2010
10 Comments
Though the Independents are raising
expectations about a 'new politics', the forces behind the status quo are strong and the public is fickle. If
they fail to deliver they might eventually suffer a
backlash, like Kevin Rudd and the Democrats before them.
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AUSTRALIA
- Andrew Hamilton
- 20 August 2010
2 Comments
The public sphere is often spoken of as debate, conversation, market place, or theatre. The dominant image this election campaign suggests have been of monologue and static. There is not much point in a
public space if you can't hear yourself think there.
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