Islamophobic charges dismissed – again
To no fanfare – unlike his arrest in Sydney in July 2017 – weapons charges against Khaled Merhi have been dropped. NSW Police sought no penalty, conviction or costs. This is a very useful reminder of the bigger picture of extremely well-publicised raids on Muslims on trumped-up charges tha...CONTINUE READING
Record budget bonuses for police in New South Wales and Victoria
New South Wales Police has been granted a $220 million bonus in the upcoming Berejiklian state budget, but commissioner Mick Fuller is still not satisfied. Fuller continues to lobby the government for an additional 2,500 officers. According to the NSW Police Association, without the new of...CONTINUE READING
The problem with the Fair Work Act
The Fair Work Act that is the target of the ACTU’s Change the Rules campaign undermines wages and conditions and hamstrings trade unions. Passed by the Rudd Labor government in 2009, it is a particularly ugly piece of legislation, with many obvious problems. The Howard government’s WorkCho...CONTINUE READING
Daniel Andrews is no left winger
Going by the coverage in the Murdoch press, you’d think Victoria under Daniel “Red Dan” Andrews is socialism in one state. On the left too, Andrews is regarded as an outlier among recent Labor leaders. In a 2016 Guardian article, Gay Alcorn claimed, “Daniel Andrews’ government is unashamed...CONTINUE READING
Victorian Socialists vow to take on Hanson
“You have every right to be angry with a system that has let you down. But don’t blame migrants. Don’t blame Muslims. Blame the people who are actually responsible: the big corporations and the politicians who are in their pockets.” That is the message from Victorian Socialists candidate S...CONTINUE READING
Even Andrew Bolt can see the Liberals are waging class war for the rich
Were you to come up with a list of commentators likely to savage the Liberal government’s hypocrisy for going after innocent union officials while covering up for its criminal mates in the big banks, Andrew Bolt probably wouldn’t be your first choice. But there he was on the Bolt Report la...CONTINUE READING
Prison sentences won’t protect paramedics
Commercial media worked themselves into a frenzy after Victorian County Court judge Barbara Cotterell overturned the prison sentences of Amanda Warren, 33, and Carris Underwood, 20, on 15 May. In 2016, Warren and Underwood attacked paramedics Paul Judd and Chenaye Bentley in the Melbourne...CONTINUE READING
Left wing Green scores upset victory in NSW preselection contest
Running an explicitly left wing campaign, Greens MLC David Shoebridge has won preselection for the top spot on the Greens upper house ticket for the 2019 NSW state election. With 65 percent turnout of 4,000 NSW Greens members, Shoebridge received 1,161 votes, ahead of two sitting MLCs from...CONTINUE READING
WA Labor to hike utility fees
Working class Western Australians are being told to foot the bill for the state deficit once again. The 2018 state budget, announced on 10 May by the McGowan Labor government, included big hikes to utility bills and to fees for state services, and cuts to education funding. The price of el...CONTINUE READING