Kennerley’s Racist Outburst: Demonising to Distract
Kerri-Anne Kennerley’s overtly racist blowout on Studio 10 last week is an example of the classic ad hominem technique of seeking to rebut an argument by attacking the group who are making it rather than focusing on the topic itself. The...
Ending Apartheid in Palestine: An Interview With BDS Australia’s Hilmi Dabbagh
Amnesty International has taken aim at online booking companies for “fuelling human rights violations against Palestinians” by listing hundreds of accommodation options, attractions and tours in Israeli settlements in Occupied Palestinian Territories. Released this week, the Destination: Occupation report calls on...
Getting Honest About MDMA: An Interview With NSW Greens MLC Cate Faehrmann
This music festival season has seen more drug-related deaths and hospitalisations in NSW than ever before. And at the same time, the police presence at these events has also been the heaviest in the state’s history. So, something isn’t adding up....
Beyond Pill Testing: Calls to Legalise and Regulate MDMA
As far as regularly used licit and illicit drugs go, pure MDMA is one of the least dangerous around. This is an idea that might take some by surprise considering the deaths of five young people – who at least thought they...
Government Continues Festival Crackdown and Ignores Pill Testing
Over the long weekend, 25 people aged between 16 and 25 were hospitalised after taking illicit drugs at music festivals around Sydney. This, of course, follows on the deaths of five young people in drug-related circumstances at festivals over the last five months....
NSW Jury Duty: What to Expect if Called Up
Many believe serving on a jury is an important part of their civic duty. But there are others who find it an unrealistic burden that can have severe financial and emotional consequences. Some of the more bizarre excuses prospective jurors...
QVB Rough Sleepers’ Camp Shines a Light on Sydney’s Homeless Crisis
Last Saturday, evidence of the homeless camp that had sprung up on George Street beside the Queen Victoria Building was all but gone. Where there had once been numerous makeshift beds and furniture earlier in the week, there was only...
Saving Aboriginal Mothers From Prison: An Interview With Free the People’s Debbie Kilroy
In Western Australia, the authorities still incarcerate people for unpaid fines. It’s the only jurisdiction in the country that continues to do so. If an individual can’t otherwise pay off their debt, this system sees it reduced by $250 each day...
Youths Demand Pill Testing to Stop Deaths: An Interview With SSDP’s Sofia Devetak
Decades ago, the Just Say No campaign was launched by Nancy Reagan, wife of then US president Ronald Reagan. Comprised of the simple idea that telling children to say no to illicit substances would somehow stop drug use, the campaign...
Peter Dutton Tops Hard-Right Hitlist
The fact that home affairs minister Peter Dutton was voted number one on a list of Coalition MPs the public would like to see ousted in the next federal election would be no surprise to much of the community. But,...
