Free Speech or Freedom from Racial Discrimination

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Asylum Seeker Debate Threatens to Scuttle Gillard Government

The divisive asylum seeker debate that swings like a wrecking ball through Australian politics looks like it has claimed another scalp, this time it may be the Gillard government itself.  The asylum seeker debate has taken another turn after yesterday’s ruling by the High Court. The landslide six to one ruling has put another nail in the coffin of the minority government.

In short, the judgment has found that Australia can’t send asylum seekers to Malaysia because of the absence of legal protection for asylum seekers within the laws of Malaysia thus contriving Australia’s own commitments under the 1951 U.N. Refugee Convention. Malaysia, unlike Australia, is not a signatory.

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How MasterChef is Skewering Australian Cuisine

It has become a bit of cultural phenomenon. Australian MasterChef over the past few years has been the runaway hit on Aussie television. A show where your average Joe can walk in off the street and become the newest, fandangle chef destined for a career on primetime television showing interested viewers their take on risotto.

Like any popular “reality” television, MasterChef’s clever premise bases itself on the sweat, blood and tears that goes into manipulating people with extreme tasks in a competitive environment under the glare of studio lighting and the focus of $120 thousand dollar high definition broadcast quality cameras.

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Chicken and Chips and Multiculturalism

I live a pretty exotic life. Over the years I have refined my tastes and have educated myself in the ways of art, music, cinema, literature and of course world cuisine. So the other day when I was in Red Rooster having just ordered a classic quarter with a rooster roll on the side I was contemplating the fact that the city I live in has made it so much easier for one to gain such knowledge when residing in a truly multicultural society. As a Melbournian I think it’s reasonable to say that I do indeed live in a resoundingly successful multicultural metropolis, a point that was just about to be reiterated as I dined on what I believed to be some sort of bird, most likely chicken with some chips that were almost undeniably made with real potato extract.

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Twelve Months of Julia Gillard as Prime Minister

The Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard has now been in office for 12 months, a year that can only be described as turbulent at best. After scraping back into government, with the help of Independent and Green Members of Parliament at November’s federal election that has forced Labor into minority government the Australian political landscape is almost unrecognisable.

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