November 2019

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Nov162019

POLITICAL COMMENTARY Tony Abbott continues faithful to the broad Liberal church

POLITICSNovember 16, 2019

Astonishingly, after what the Liberal Party has done to him – his humiliating defenestration in 2015 followed by his non-selection for even the most junior ministry by two subsequent Liberal prime ministers – Tony Abbott is still cheering them on. Abbott, writing in The Australian on October 19 (“Two Halves of Solidarity”), attempts to make the case that the Liberal Party needs both its liberal and conservative wings to be working in harmony in order to prosper electorally, and that this can easily be achieved. Like his political mentor, the ultimate pragmatist with conservative trappings, J.W. Howard, Abbott seems now,…

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Nov162019

MILITARY HISTORY Timor-Leste a free nation 20 years after INTERFET

DEFENCE & SECURITYNovember 16, 2019

In Canberra on October 15, 2019, the Australian War Memorial (AWM) held a two-hour symposium to consider Australia’s contribution to the International Force for East Timor (INTERFET). This force was an initiative of the Australian government to bring together a peace-keeping force that, with the authorisation of the United Nations Security Council, entered East Timor on September 20, 1999, to bring under control the violence that had been unleashed by pro-Indonesian East Timorese militias, after the East Timorese had overwhelmingly voted for independence in the UN- supervised referendum held on August 30, 1999. Australia, which commanded the force, contributed 5,500…

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Nov162019

CLIMATE SCIENCE V XR Is a tipping point close or is the emergency contrived?

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGYNovember 16, 2019

The emergence of the Extinction Rebellion phenomenon over recent months has seen community disruption in many Western cities, heralded by a generally fawning and uncritical media. The tolerance of Western democracies has made it possible for a few determined protestors to close thoroughfares and, with their extraordinary claims of a global climate and ecological emergency, get broad media coverage. In their doomsday predictions, the activists confuse real environmental issues with issues that are largely imagined, or an exaggerated extrapolation from recent trends. For example, air pollution is a major contributor to ill health and death, but it will not be…

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Nov162019

RENEWABLE ENERGY Whatever happened to the World Solar Challenge?

ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTNovember 16, 2019

The World Solar Challenge – a 3,000-kilometre car race from Darwin to Adelaide to showcase the future of solar-powered vehicles – began with great fanfare and extensive national and international media coverage on October 13. The race, which is conducted every second year, attracts entrants from high-technology companies and universities from around the world, eager to showcase the advances in solar-powered vehicles. The event, supported by the South Australian Government through its Tourism Department, and sponsored by Bridgestone Tyres, has been held since 1987. With this level of support, it is entirely reasonable to expect that there would be a…

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