Vol 35 No 1

13 January 2025

AUSTRALIA

When it comes to Australia Day, wattle stop the arguments?
- Stephen Alomes
- 25 January 2025
With debates around Australia Day continuing to divide, might shifting the national celebration to another day, rooted in resilience and renewal, offer a fresh start? By embracing a new unifying symbol, Australia could move beyond the pain of the past toward a national day that reflects unity, hope, and shared values.
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INTERNATIONAL

Trump inaugurated
- Peter Craven
- 24 January 2025
In a second presidency begun with a spate of brash decrees — annexing Greenland, scrapping birthright citizenship — and forging odd alliances with billionaires, Donald Trump is already defying expectations. How did we reach this unsettling moment, and can America endure it?
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ARTS AND CULTURE

An Australian tourist guide in New Orleans
- Arnold Zable
- 24 January 2025
Tour guides were recently added to Australia’s National Occupational Shortage list, inviting skilled overseas workers to step in. This shift brought to mind a similar journey Arnold Zable took decades ago, guiding visitors through the streets of New Orleans.
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AUSTRALIA

In search of Australia Day
- Andrew Hamilton
- 23 January 2025
Australia's national day remains a divisive symbol, rooted in colonial history. As the country grapples with issues of war, inequality, and climate change, the call for a more inclusive, meaningful celebration grows. How can a national day honour both the complexity of our history and the dignity of all Australians?
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EDUCATION

Are Australian universities sacrificing teaching quality for research prestige? Discuss.
- Erica Cervini
- 21 January 2025
Top Australian universities, including the Go8, are underperforming in teaching quality, with recent surveys revealing student dissatisfaction and disengagement. Despite their research reputation, top institutions are failing to meet student expectations, highlighting the need for urgent reform to improve teaching standards.
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ARTS AND CULTURE

To have and have yacht
- Barry Divola
- 21 January 2025
There’s no genre more sun-drenched or divisive than yacht rock, the smooth, sultry sounds of 70s and 80s soft rock. But as a new documentary shows, even its biggest architects, like Steely Dan’s Donald Fagen, aren’t always on board. So, what is yacht rock, and why can’t we all agree?
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ARTS AND CULTURE

Why did English departments abandon ideas for ideology?
- Liza Libes
- 17 January 2025
In universities worldwide, English departments teach theory rather than literature, using art to serve ideological ends. But how did this happen, and what is lost when we sacrifice moral and cultural depth to the demands of ideological conformity?
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CARTOON

Cabana wars
- Glen Le Lievre
- 16 January 2025
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ARTS AND CULTURE

T.S. Eliot and the weight of a world-ending whimper
- Warwick McFadyen
- 16 January 2025
As the world turns into 2025, echoes of 1925 linger: T.S. Eliot's The Hollow Men introduced us to a 'whimper' of despair, while Hitler's Mein Kampf foreshadowed catastrophe. What do these works from a century ago say about the fragility of human progress?
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INTERNATIONAL

When disaster becomes routine in L.A.
- Jim McDermott
- 16 January 2025
In Los Angeles, wildfires blur the line between disaster and daily life. Evacuation alerts, smoke-filled horizons, and neighborhoods turned to ash coexist with packed restaurants and holiday plans. As the fires rage on, one question persists: is this the new normal?
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ARTS AND CULTURE

The Lemon Squeezer and other holy marvels
- Gillian Bouras
- 16 January 2025
Sacred spaces reflect their times, from Baroque splendor to Brutalist minimalism. A visit to Warsaw’s Temple of Divine Providence highlights how churches, beyond their doctrines, become vessels of national identity, architectural evolution, and historical memory.
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Vol 35 No 1