• America

    Opening the Epstein files


    Lindsey Blumell |  February 11, 2026


    “I know this is a lot to take in. The violence. The neglect. The bad decisions. The self-harm. Imagine if a trauma reel like this played in your head all the time, as it does mine … but please don’t stop reading.”


  • Society

    Crisis? What crisis? Another brick in the wall


    Bernard Paul Corden |  February 11, 2026


    The rapid expansion of science and technology in the new millennium has radically transformed our social landscape with a foreboding trajectory and corrosive impact on democracy.


  • Society

    The typing’s on the wall


    Hayley Butler |  February 11, 2026


    Young children starting school are increasingly using computers as well as the traditional pens and pencils so educators should teach them to use both.


Latest Story

  • The Times They Are a-Changin’

    Panizza Allmark     |      February 10, 2026

    Protest singers like Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan drew popular attention to social issues and civil rights in the United States through their songs, so will a new generation of artists carry the torch against the appalling excesses of Donald Trump?

  • Crisis? What crisis? Aristocratic terrorism

    Bernard Paul Corden     |      February 10, 2026

    In a new 3-part series, Bernard Cordon argues the Chicago school of monetarist economics in the 1970s and the neo-liberal political movement which followed in the 1980s set the scene for Donald Trump’s thuggish dismantling of the USA today.

  • The track through the scribbly gums

    Roger Chao     |      February 10, 2026

    Your local track through the scribbly gums reminded us that a good society does not only build things that make money. It preserves things that make life bearable.

  • Scrapping VicHealth makes no sense

    Vicki Brown     |      February 9, 2026

    Despite the proven potential for prevention initiatives to improve health and save money, Australian governments have consistently under-invested in them and the proposed scrapping of VicHealth is another blow to sensible policy making.

  • Slaves to the machine

    Lukasz Swiatek     |      February 9, 2026

    The head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, has warned young people will suffer the most as an AI “tsunami” wipes out many entry-level roles in coming years. Unfortunately, she’s probably right, so what can young people do faced with the prospect of a worthless degree and no career opportunities?

  • The day my Medicare card saved my life

    Roger Chao     |      February 9, 2026

    It doesn’t matter how young and fit you are – anyone can have an accident which lands them in a public emergency room and make them realise just how precious the health system is despite its many problems.

  • Standing in front of a painting I didn’t understand

    Roger Chao     |      February 8, 2026

    Public art galleries offer a rare forum in which contemplation and ‘slow thinking’ are encouraged. Encounters with art, no matter how new or strange or challenging, remain a precious opportunity to engage with ourselves, our nation and each other.

  • Could the madness of Donald Trump revitalise the rules-based order?

    Jolyon Ford     |      February 8, 2026

    America’s withdrawal from international bodies and agreements might compel democratic powers to strengthen their commitments in response, given the collective threat they face from countries like China, Russia and – apparently – the USA interested only in conquest and power.

  • Six of the best

    Caitlin Macdonald     |      February 8, 2026

    Six Australian podcasts approach the world of books in very different forms but all contribute to audio has ironically become such an important medium for contemporary reading.

  • Stand with Ukraine

    Bernie O'Kane     |      February 7, 2026

    As a new book on the war by Serhii Plokhy makes clear, Ukraine’s fight against the Russian invasion remains the most important issue of our time. It is the fight of freedom against tyranny, the future against the past and hope verses resignation and despair. As President Trump seems more interested in becoming an imperialist autocrat rather than opposing them, we must all stand with Ukraine.

  • The day the slide broke

    Roger Chao     |      February 7, 2026

    Our cities’ precious parks are always under threat from neglect, misuse and housing development, but they remain a precious green oasis in the urban sprawl where children of all ages can play and learn together.

  • The sole of the matter

    Yenny Vandalita     |      February 7, 2026

    Your dad always said you should have good tyres on your car and your mum told you to wear proper shoes on your feet and, as usual, they were both right.