Social issues

George Bush's dog, Barney, is honoured with an obituary-like article. This reminded me of the obituary I wrote for my beloved labrador, Kirner, who was named in honour of Joan. When I submitted Kirner's obituary to The Age in 2006, I was told that obituaries are for people, not dogs.…

We should all be alarmed by the preference deals for Senate seats (''Abbott faces chaos in Senate'', The Sunday Age, 1/9). Small parties with no track record are likely to hold the balance of power in the next Senate. We've seen this before with Brian Harradine during the Howard era. Harradine…

On my ballot, I am considering changing Liberals to Coles, Labor to Woolworths, Greens to the Farmers Markets, and the rest to Crazy Johns. I will then contact the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to complain about the duopoly and the collusion by Coles/Liberals and Woolworths/Labor in their attempt to…

Are mobile phones the new cigarettes? Will we discover that the telecommunication industry, like the tobacco industry, has dismissed evidence that their product can kill us? Most Australians own a mobile phone. As we increasingly use our mobiles, evidence is trickling in about their potential for negative physical, psychological and…

Today is Mother’s day. Many women will spend the morning in bed with their kids balancing toast and cups of tea, tearing at wrappings, admiring new fluffy slippers, complimenting the artistry of their home made card and pretending that a necklace made of pasta was just what they always wanted.…

Lesley Canold argues that the use of shame and humiliation in the hoax on Keith Windshuttle was justifiable. I disagree. At one level, I am enjoying seeing an opponent in the culture/history wars “hoisted on his own petard”. Sarcasm, ridicule, satire and irony are effective weapons of mass amusement. However,…