Editorial

History lessons It seems only yesterday that we were told of the end of history: that for better or worse, things were the way they were and no more could be hoped for. We'd arrived. This message, universally proclaimed by government and media,

Tax the rich We've had the recession that we had to have and now, just when we thought it was safe to go out, Treasurer Willis, Prime Minister Keating and Reserve Bank governor Fraser are concurring with business economists on the tax increases

Medicare under attack A newly formed lobby group, the General Practice Forum, has called for the end of bulk-billing, free consultations and the free at-point-of-service provision of such items as vaccines and bandages. This is the opening shot

Dealing in death In September, the federal parliament's Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade reported on the implications of Australian arms exports. While the majority opinion somewhat predictably emphasised

Editorial: Racism: education, not legislation The federal government's controversial Racial Hatred Bill will amend the Crimes Act to make it a criminal offence to incite racial hatred "against a person or a group of persons on the ground

Editorial: Money rules In these times of growing antipathy to the major political parties, some emergency measures are being taken by those with an interest in keeping power where it presently resides. After intense lobbying from Labor, the

The seesaw system The federal Liberal Party is marking a half century since its founding. "Celebrating" would be far too strong a term to describe the party's attitude towards its birthday. Their mood suggests that the Liberal leaders have

A look into privatisation A glimpse of the wonders of privatisation was provided on October 17 when a report tabled in the NSW parliament by the auditor-general, Tony Harris, dredged up the scandal of the Sydney Harbour Tunnel and similar

The drought and the market From November 1, the drought which has been crippling much of rural Australia will come to the city. The NSW minister for planning has announced mild water restrictions for all households in Sydney.

Agent Orange It is past time that the deadly effects of the herbicide Agent Orange, used as a defoliant in the Vietnam War, are officially recognised. The legal decision last week to grant compensation to Australian Vietnam War veterans

Crumbs The federal Industrial Relations Commission decision on September 21 has been hailed by the ACTU as a victory for the Accord process. The decision, which awarded a paltry $24 wage rise for workers in three stages, has been

Criminals and criminals "He was a genius at extracting money out of people. He would understand the psychology of people — bankers, brokers, analysts — and give them exactly what they wanted to hear ... Skase's trappings oozed