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  • australia

    Reading the entrails of an election

    • Andrew Hamilton
    • 21 November 2024

      As Australia watches the U.S. navigate its Trump-era transition, we wait in uncertainty. Any interregnum period is a time for rethinking, for wondering about our own nation, and not just for focusing on another. It is a time to rethink what we have taken granted about what is for the good of Australian society.

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  • religion

    Astute stewards: Implementing the Synod

    • Bill Uren
    • 20 November 2024

    Will the recommendations of the Synod on Synodality inspire lasting change or risk losing momentum? With bishops balancing tradition and reform, the coming year will determine whether this moment becomes one of true transformation.

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  • arts and culture

    Gladiator II: Are you not entertained?

    • Eddie Hampson
    • 20 November 2024

    Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II promises grandeur. Paul Mescal dazzles, Denzel Washington commands, and sharks make their sword-and-sandals debut. But spectacle overshadows story in a sequel that’s more baffling than breathtaking. Are we entertained? Sort of.

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  • australia

    The spirituality of KFC

    • Michael McGirr
    • 22 November 2024

    There’s this other place that is neither heaven nor earth but which you might find in the car park of the third busiest KFC in Melbourne, waiting for your son to finish his shift. A bin beside the car is overflowing with all the packaging that comes with fast food, not to mention the remains of poor dead chooks whose life it is hard to imagine. 

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  • international

    Don Watson's elegy for an imperfect union

    • Barry Gittins
    • 22 November 2024

    Before the U.S. election, Don Watson predicted the electoral victory of Trump in his essay High Noon, an exploration of a divided America teetering on the edge. Dissecting the economic, racial, and cultural forces that led to a Republican landslide reveals an imperfect union at its most vulnerable.

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  • arts and culture

    At the heart of the deal

    • Ken Haley
    • 15 November 2024

    Anyone possessed of the facts can write history. Few can express so well as Bob Woodward the heartbeat of his times and the heartbreak that history frequently brings in its wake. In War, Woodward dives into the three major geopolitical conflicts of our time.

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  • A guitar that sings to the universe

    • Warwick McFadyen
    • 21 November 2024

    David Gilmour’s latest album, Luck and Strange, emerges as a meditative masterpiece, steeped in themes of time, mortality, and the currents of life. With Gilmour’s unmistakable playing style, the album channels the introspection of an artist reflecting on paths taken and those left behind.

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  • Larrikins and lampoons have the last laugh

    • Ron Cerabona
    • 14 November 2024

    For decades, Australian political satire has taken aim at the powerful with wit and irreverence, forging a distinct comedic tradition that holds up a mirror to society, revealing truths in the face of national absurdities. Now after 25 years, the iconic Wharf Revue takes its final bow, closing a celebrated chapter in the story of Australian satire. 

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  • The Booker Prize and why it matters

    • Gillian Bouras
    • 12 November 2024

    As the Booker Prize winner is announced, the perennial questions resurface: What does winning truly mean for writers — and for readers? As public values shift, literary prizes ignite fierce debate about artistic merit, cultural relevance, and the commercial impact of awards. Can a prize still shape the future of fiction?

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  • The human cost of war

    • Michele Gierck
    • 21 November 2024

    The war reports we hear on the news often focus on statistics: casualties, destruction, and key figures lost. But the true cost of conflict lies in the long-term human suffering. For those living through war, the trauma endures long after the fighting stops.

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  • Is America ready for a tycoon President again?

    • David James
    • 18 November 2024

    Donald Trump's first term, marred by impeachments, bureaucratic resistance and a pandemic, offered few answers as to how a businessperson might navigate the complexities of Washington. Now, as he returns to office, Trump’s business instincts — and their implications for governance — are once again under scrutiny.

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  • With stars in their eyes, the Dems lost sight of America

    • Warwick McFadyen
    • 11 November 2024

    After a stunning defeat, Kamala Harris urged Americans not to despair even though as Trump returns to the White House, the Democrats face a harsh reckoning. Beyond the star-studded stages and celebrity endorsements, the real work lies in understanding the voters they overlooked and finding a way back to them. 

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  • Reshaping Remembrance

    • Stephen Alomes
    • 11 November 2024

    On Remembrance Day, we’re called to confront war’s real toll — not just on soldiers but on civilians, families, and especially children. From WWII’s devastated cities to today’s ravaged Gaza, can we reframe our commemorations to reflect the universal, harrowing cost of war beyond national myths?

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  • Long-term detention, curfews and ankle bracelets for asylum seekers under the rule of law

    • Frank Brennan
    • 08 November 2024

    Last week, Australia’s High Court blocked government restrictions on non-citizens with criminal records. As Parliament scrambles to impose new restrictions, Chief Justice Stephen Gageler’s court remains steadfast against policies deemed discriminatory and excessively punitive.

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  • What does a Trump victory mean for Australia?

    • James Massola
    • 07 November 2024

    The analysis of how Trump achieved a famous victory will continue for years to come. The more germane questions now are what does this result mean for Australia’s economic, defence, trade and foreign policy, and what lessons (if any) are there for Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton?

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  • Why don't we hear about violence against Christians?

    • Michael McVeigh
    • 18 November 2024

    Religious persecution often fades from public view unless it fits a political agenda. Yet Christians worldwide continue to face existential threats, from systemic repression in China to deadly violence in Nigeria. It’s worth reflecting on the cost of indifference and what it means to advocate for justice beyond our culture wars.

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  • The quiet revolution in women's roles in the Church

    • Joanna Thyer
    • 07 November 2024

    At the World Synod in Rome, four women joined to advocate for ordaining women as deacons. Though the topic remains off the table officially, the message highlights the Church’s internal conflict between traditional values and growing calls for inclusion and change.

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  • Progress on a hope and a prayer

    • John Warhurst
    • 07 November 2024

      The Catholic Church recently displayed two strikingly different faces. In Rome, the Synod on Synodality wrapped up with a facade of unity. But back in Melbourne, a Catholic University’s graduation became a battleground over church doctrine and free speech, exposing deep, unresolved fractures within the church.

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