If Twitter Can Deny Service to a Customer, Why Not Christian Bakeries, Florists and NGOs?
The lessons provided this week by the unjustified social media ban of Donald Trump, along with the industry-wide cancellation of Parler are dangerous precedents.
No Referendum, No Change to the National Anthem
Earlier this month, Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison announced that his Government had made the surprise unilateral decision to adjust the Australian national anthem by replacing the phrase “for we are young and free,” with “for we are one and free.”
Where Civil Rights Are Exalted Over Civil Liberties, Hell on Earth Is Sure to Follow
Salvatore Babiones’ 2018 book ‘The New Authoritarianism’ is an exposition on how tyranny and fascism are spawned by the exaltation of civil rights over against civil liberties.
Lyle Shelton Sued for $20,000 in Damages After Criticizing Drag Queen Storytime
According to a list of grievances filed by the complainants, Shelton allegedly made a series of insulting slurs that “inferred” falsehoods, “incited hate,” and “implied” misrepresentations of the individuals involved.
Mark Latham Takes on the Thought Police: “Activists Are Using the Legal System to Try to Destroy Their Opponents Financially”
NSW One Nation leader, Mark Latham, is taking on the ‘thought police’ with a bill to protect free speech online. Mr Latham’s amendment seeks to (1) Empower/Make further provision for the President of the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board to decline certain complaints; and (2) Remove the requirement for the President to refer declined complaints to NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal. According to a post on Facebook: “The bill also exempts interstate residents making their public comments interstate and ensures complaints cannot be accepted against people who have exemptions in other parts of the Act.” Bernard Gaynor, a former Major in the…
The Story of the Trump Impeachment: A Tale of Two Bureaucracies
Democracy is a very old word. It comes from the Greek words demos meaning ‘the people’ and kratos meaning ‘power’. The opposite of democracy is aristocracy, the power of aristos, your ‘betters’ or, in other words, the nobility. History has repeatedly been shaped by the endless struggle between the strong who abuse power and the weak who resent it. In the 1800s, for instance, France had a people’s revolution. The commoners rioted. They killed a whole bunch of nobles. They burnt things. Overall they successfully de-fanged their aristos, thus ushering in a new era where the government would be for,…
Scott Morrison can’t save the election, but he can save politics.
The problem with Australian politics is the paradox of a lack of clear choices and a context of unprecedented polarisation. If I can even be so naive as to suggest there is only one problem, or even only one main problem, optimism about political debate and futures could be greatly improved simply by the major parties clearly distinguishing themselves from each other. There’s a common frustration about both parties being nearly indistinguishable. MPs in the parties often feel this is unfair, especially those further from the centre, and their feelings are not without merit. But neither are the comparisons. For…