United States
Does Australia Need a Bill of Rights?
Does Australia need a Bill of Rights? After all, Australia is, it surprises many to learn, the only Western democracy with neither a constitutional nor legislated Bill of Rights. Various attempts over the years to legislate one have failed. The closest Australia ever got to a Constitutional free speech right was in 1992, when the High Court ruled that the...
The Art of the Deal
US Libertarians met for their National Convention in Washington DC late last month, where they heard from a range of speakers and selected their presidential candidate. However, this was unlike any other Libertarian National Convention – in fact, it was unlike any prior political party convention in US history. MAKE AMERICA LIBERTARIAN AGAIN The headline speaker for the Libertarian National Convention...
Raw Deal
A local rag (The Geelong Advertiser) reported* last month that some sort of strange secretive trade was taking place in the quiet backstreets of affluent Highton. The article heavily implied that this was an illegal distribution of ‘raw’ (unpasteurized) milk - a product that is banned for human consumption in Australia and banned entirely for sale in Victoria. I found...
A Digital Dark Age
Step into my parlour, said the spider to the fly,'Tis the prettiest little parlour, that ever you did spy,Oh no, no! then said the fly, to ask me is in vain,For who goes up to your winding stair, Can ne'er come down again. Mary Howitt’s old poem could well be describing another web, the one that ensnares us all – the...
Pro-Natalist Policies – The Jury is Out
“By 2050, over three-quarters (155 of 204) of countries will not have high enough fertility rates to sustain population size over time; this will increase to 97% of countries (198 of 204) by 2100.” Global fertility in 204 countries and territories, 1950–2021, with forecasts to 2100: a comprehensive demographic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021, Lancet. Fertility rates...
The Mask Is Off, Now
Reproduced with permission from The BFD https://thebfd.co.nz/2024/04/06/the-mask-is-off-now/ It must be such a relief for him. Finally, Anthony Albanese doesn’t even have to bother pretending any more: he’s finally got the excuse he’s been itching for, to rip the mask off and show what he really thinks. Or, more correctly, what he knows will win precious votes in Western Sydney. Perhaps Albo isn’t...
God and Government
“No gods, no masters” has been a popular anarchist phrase for over 500 years. Yet as society and culture becomes increasingly secular, authoritarianism has grown alongside it. The atheist utopia of a world dedicated to logic and reason seems further away now than it ever has been, despite more people choosing not to affiliate with religion. STATE WORSHIP Religion, in some...
Geopolitics and The Non-Aggression Principle
For an example of how libertarians philosophically wrestle, behold this exchange between the Arizona Libertarians and Australian Brett Lombardi: It is eloquent in its brevity: realpolitik confronting Rothbardian idealism. One of the foundational concepts of libertarianism is the Non-Aggression Principle. Put simply, this is the idea that violence and coercion between parties should be avoided, and that people should act cooperatively...
Exciting times ahead for uranium mining in Western Australia
During the 2017 WA election, McGowan’s Labor opposition campaigned hard to reinstate the ban on uranium mining. They followed through on this after winning the state election that year. Both Labor and the Greens ran scare mongering campaigns conflating uranium mining with the public’s historic nervousness regarding nuclear energy. Prior scare mongering has led to uranium mining projects being distrusted...
Assange’s Last Appeal
Last week, Australian journalist Julian Assange's legal team sought permission from the High Court of the United Kingdom to appeal his extradition to the United States, where he could potentially face severe penalties. This appeal represents Assange's final opportunity to challenge his extradition within the UK's legal system. Assange has become a symbol of injustice, political persecution, and the fight...
