Oh yes, kindergartens, those incubators of hate. Imagine if the same approach was considered to address all forms of bigotry, or violence against women, or any of the issues that are genuinely rampant among the population.

Every word of Shaun Carney's piece about the Coalition's blatant politicisation, but especially these ones:

Maybe we should try giving teens access to social media? Somewhere they can hang out and talk without trashing supermarkets www.smh.com.au/national/vic...

genuinely. like, this picture says it all. that lovely little girl was an australian jew of ukranian descent. why are there israeli flags up.

If the Coalition had done everything in the Segal report to equate antisemitism with antizionism/suppress criticism of Israel, and this attack still happened, as odds are it would have, since the attackers weren't radicalised at Sydney Uni... Would conservatives be blaming the Coalition for it?

Ah yes, the *checks notes* tens of thousands of Australian families who marched for peace, and the *checks notes* two gunmen who perpetrated a massacre. The same "they"...

When the Libs blame the Albanese government for Bondi, they are, by extension, blaming Australians who just voted overwhelmingly to re-elect it. Liberals spent a year claiming Labor wasn't doing enough to suppress criticism of Israel, blaming it for rising antisemitism. The people disagreed.

The vast majority of Australians, everyone I've spoken to, my Jewish friends, my Muslim friends, want to just be good to one another in this moment, and avoid inflaming the endless blame cycle. A loud minority want otherwise. Unfortunately they're among the loudest in the nation

What I find so infuriating about all this is that those who want to pretend to act on antisemitism just to deteriorate the rights of those who have long stood against ALL fascist violence are the ones doing the most damage since they end up doing nothing to combat real antisemitism.

"What is the point of intelligence that can identify environmental protesters but cannot link a cache of guns to a known extremist connection?" Strong piece on #ASIO #bondibeach #auspol by @UrbanWronski (repub) michaelwest.com.au/bondi-attack...

Two men. My @smh cartoon.

Yeah, er, maybe don't "hand-pick" someone who is clearly going to make recommendations primarily about silencing criticism of Israel? Or remove her from the role when you find out her husband's company donated $50k to Advance?

Ah yes, that's where a recently unemployed 24-year-old bricklayer, who spent years hanging around Australia's pro-IS network, and his 50-year-old migrant father were radicalised: university anti-genocide protests 🙄 Be fucking serious for a moment.

It's Anti Corruption Day and to celebrate here is the schedule for the hearing into the NACC on Thursday

Some thoughts on One Nation, middle-aged men, and Barnaby, that only had to be *slightly* reviewed by legal:

Australian government genuinely just did the meme

What the everloving fuck is this They wonder why people think government is a sick joke Nah, we won't stop funding fossil fuels, or stop gambling ads, or regulate AI. We'll do an unworkable and idiotic social media ban for kids... Oh and here's a pile of cash for private equity because Tim Tams.

🚨Antisemitism Envoy has misled the Senate over her response to last month's neo-Nazi rally. Segal says she denounced it to the media that "did contact my office". That is false. We have the receipts... theklaxon.com.au/xoqo

Bit late sharing, but the fact someone can win an election this way is both blood boiling and chilling. Daniel volunteers were shouted at, spat on and stalked. They were told by police to travel in groups. I couldn't get it all in here. And Wilson shows no remorse www.crikey.com.au/2025/12/04/a...

The devastating, lyrical "One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This" is as good a book about our current moment as I've read, and @jessielilley.bsky.social @rachelwithers.bsky.social and I are so lucky to have Omar El Akkad on Spin Cycle tonight. Join us from 7pm on @3rrrfm.bsky.social

Tonight on Spin Cycle on @3rrrfm.bsky.social we are talking to Omar El Akkad about his incredible book, One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This. Tune in 7pm with @rachelwithers.bsky.social and @theshufflediary.bsky.social - on air, on the app, online or on catch up rrr.org.au

Here's the thing, the whole point of 'sponsoring' these things is you don't have to directly lobby or strong-arm, the appeasement becomes tacit - see also the National Press Club quietly slurping cash from multiple weapons companies and fossil fuel climate crims

Imagine kicking the former national rugby captain out of your sports club instead of the gambling lobby. To paraphrase Groucho Marx, who'd want to belong to a club that would accept Responsible Wagering Australia as one of its sponsors?

I don’t know about you, but I’m a bit scared of any new ‘environment laws’ that Labor can get Matt Canavan and Andrew Hastie to vote for…I think they will be better described as ‘ how to build more mines faster laws’ www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10...

Reminder: Australia's only emissions reduction legislation - the safeguard mechanism - allows for unlimited use of offsets instead of requiring genuine cuts from polluters

David Pocock asks Don Farrell some serious questions about why the govt has not implemented an important recommendation from the #RobodebtRC. Farrell caught playing on his phone, not even paying attention.🙄 Pocock hasn’t the patience to try again & moves on. #Estimates

"I wish I had told you, before our dinners grew cold, that one day I would speak loudly. Not to wound, but because not speaking would betray everything I was taught... I have spoken not in spite of my Jewishness but because of it – in solidarity with Palestinians, but also out of love for you."

A letter to those who taught me my Jewishness, and who now sit on the other side of a deep chasm. When you first heard me speak against this genocide, you heard my words as betrayal. But they were meant as love www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The fact Wong thinks she can just snark her way out of this is a sign of how normalised the relationships between politicians and lobbyists have become. Like, of course the PM shouldn't be president of a registered lobby group that sells corporate members access to politicians? No shit??

Tonight 7pm on Spin Cycle @3rrrfm.bsky.social we wrap up Radiothon. The rad @nataliesqrl.bsky.social joins us to look at the last week, and hasn't it shown us how vital independent news media is? So pls throw us your coin. With @rachelwithers.bsky.social @theshufflediary.bsky.social SUBSCRIBE!

A good little chart from the Parliamentary Library showing how almost all social spending by the Commonwealth is already means-tested #auspol

Something weird about these early 40s white men insisting we ditch net zero and fuck the consequences. The pig-headed, nihilistic disregard almost made sense for Abbott (67), Joyce (58), Morrison (57). But Hastie/Duniam are 42. Millennials who might've led the Coalition into the 21st century...

"Kirk represented everything we should be pushing back against. And if you are worried that saying so will trigger more violence, and a further slide into authoritarianism, then you have already ceded the space." @amyremeikis.bsky.social bang on as always: amyremeikis.substack.com/p/charlie-ki...

Following today's rally, we are going on Spin Cycle by the wonderful @evelynaraluen.bsky.social to discuss the closure of Meanjin, Australia's shrinking public square and much more after a monstrous week of news. Join @jessielilley.bsky.social @rachelwithers.bsky.social and I on RRR from 7pm!

Feels like only a matter of time before the word "Palestinian" is deemed antisemitic by the people who put together this list www.deepcutnews.com/p/watermelon...

Sounds like she should be calling for her own funding to be cut

Weirdly specific denial in this Guardian article that Melbourne Uni’s board didn’t play any role in killing Meanjin

The little Meanjin collection that I helped bring into the world as editor. Just a fragment of its 85-year catalogue. What an act of bone-stupid arrogance to kill it.

Meanjin has (had 😭) two - TWO - part time staff members. I'd be willing to bet my dinner that the cost of supporting Meanjin is less than what a single top 15 executive at Uni Melb makes in a year

What’s the real reason it’s being shut down? It sure ain’t a couple of hundred thousand dollars. Did the university council not like what it had been publishing, per chance? This was one of the handful of publications in Aus that published Randa Abdel-Fattah or Max Kaiser.

Meanwhile...

Meanjin Journal is 85 years old; older than the Sydney Opera House. Closing it down is cultural vandalism of the highest order, roughly equivalent to demolishing the above mentioned opera house. I am disgusted @meanjin.bsky.social

Appalling news about a historic and beloved publication, one which has run such powerful work on Palestine and our national debate under the stewardship of Esther Anatolitis and Eli McLean. A disturbing time for our creative and literary landscape. www.crikey.com.au/2025/09/04/m...

I’m sure this point has been made elsewhere but not only did they openly lie about how many recommendations were in the robodebt final report, the one they erased was to reform FOI and now they’re heading in the opposite direction. Surprise is not a feature of my reaction.

If two’s company and three’s a crowd, then new Melbourne MP Sarah Witty’s rental portfolio is looking a bit cramped... www.crikey.com.au/2025/09/02/l...

"For all the talk of the need to return to 'aspiration', high-profile moderates like Falinski, Wilson and Sharma seem far more interested in protecting the wealth of the rich, at the expense of those for whom aspiration is now a furphy." @rachelwithers.bsky.social www.crikey.com.au/2025/05/30/l...

Opinion | If Jason Falinski is the best the "moderate" wing of the Liberal Party has to offer, it's in very serious trouble, writes Rachel Withers.