Flat White

In-depth analysis of the day’s news, plus stories and gossip from Australian politics.

What would Thomas Paine make of our government?

8 October 2024 3:33 pm

In 1776, Thomas Paine wrote: Some writers have so confounded society with government, as to leave little or no distinction…

Ned Kelly should not be depicted on Hezbollah-lite flags

8 October 2024 5:39 am

What happened to the Left’s ‘politically correct’ mantra of not causing cultural offense because ‘words are literally violence’? It is…

Labor’s assumption is a miscalculation

8 October 2024 4:20 am

‘It’s worrying…’ is how Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expressed his concern at terrorist sympathisers marching in Melbourne and Sydney streets,…

John Pesutto should not go – yet

8 October 2024 4:06 am

It’s being reported in the Melbourne newspapers that the state Liberal leadership of embattled incumbent, John Pesutto, is likely to…

One year since October 7: Israel’s leadership defies the odds and puts the West to shame

7 October 2024 12:12 pm

Today marks one year since the largest loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust. The horrors of October 7 will…

QLD – time for good decisions on energy

7 October 2024 1:10 am

Imagine for a second it is the end of October 2024 and an incoming Queensland LNP Energy Minister is fronting…

Classical class action?

7 October 2024 1:05 am

Last week, it was reported that the pianist Jayson Gillham had, in light of what I term the Gillham Affair,…

This is an attack on free speech

7 October 2024 1:00 am

It is no exaggeration to describe the federal government’s Misinformation and Disinformation Bill as a reworking of George Orwell’s Ministry…

Making immigration controversial will be one of Trudeau’s greatest legacies

6 October 2024 6:13 pm

Immigration has finally become a topic of genuine debate in Canada, and that is a remarkable and sorely needed development…

Monopolies in the labour market

6 October 2024 7:56 am

See Saw Margery Daw, Jacky shall have a new master; Jacky shall earn but a penny a day, Because he…

Autopilot engaged on trade policy after Jim Chalmers’ trip to Beijing

5 October 2024 9:03 pm

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers flew back from Beijing last weekend keen to emphasise that our trade relationship with China has…

Contagiously enthusiastic! Come to Queensland

5 October 2024 1:31 am

Stuart Ballantyne is seeking the few remaining positive people for a coffee

The Queensland election: a contest in a mediocre democracy

5 October 2024 12:55 am

The much-anticipated Queensland election will be held on Saturday, October 26. The Queensland Opposition, under the leadership of David Crisafulli,…

Make motherhood great again

4 October 2024 9:07 am

This is how Australia raises fertility rates

Democracy demands choice, not the appearance of choice

4 October 2024 8:51 am

Most Australians think we have a real choice when it comes to the government we elect, but many of us…

Putting faith in fact-checkers is the road to censorship

4 October 2024 8:43 am

The federal government’s redrafted misinformation legislation is nothing more than a tool for elites, such as academics, journalists, and politicians,…

A truly toxic welcome

3 October 2024 2:06 am

‘Who’s Captain Cook?’ should not have been a surprising question coming from a six-year-old commencing Catholic school having left a…

Curses! China Syndrome again

3 October 2024 1:53 am

Israel’s recent very successful targeted attacks on Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon with exploding pagers and walkie-talkies have been praised or…

No stairs. Is this another example of the government trying to kill us?

3 October 2024 1:29 am

At a function a few weeks ago, a NSW bureaucrat told me that he had woken up early to catch…

We’re losing our streets

3 October 2024 1:12 am

Nobody knows what to do about Hezbollah supporters in Australia

Australia must do some of the heavy lifting against terrorism

2 October 2024 12:07 pm

With domestic politics seeming to pander to those in our country who wave Hezbollah flags, our foreign policy is an…

Ignorance is bliss – indeed, a prerequisite

2 October 2024 1:05 am

Every day is International Ignorance Day. It marks ignorance among the population as well as ignorance among the political, bureaucratic…

Counselling and psychotherapy: a lot less than you might have hoped?

2 October 2024 1:00 am

A review of Val Thomas, Editor, Cynical therapies: Perspectives on the antitherapeutic nature of Critical Social Justice. 2023, Ocean Reeve

If that was the audition, I’d hate to see the show

1 October 2024 9:29 pm

Steven Miles calls his time as Premier an audition

A government power grab disguised as protection

1 October 2024 2:56 pm

How much do you trust the government? If you trust Albanese and Chalmers, how much do you trust Peter Dutton…