Abbott is convinced he is on a winner. His thinks his line that Labor’s Emissions Trading Scheme is a “big new tax on everything” has struck a chord.

On Wednesday March 3, 150 people packed a community hall in Tennant Creek for a protest meeting against the imposition of a nuclear waste dump on the Muckaty Aboriginal Land Trust, 100 kilometres north of the town.

The campaign to stop new coal power stations is shaping up as one of the key issues for the climate movement—both in NSW and nationally.

Australia could cut emissions from electricity generation to zero in ten years for $40 billion a year, according to a preview of Beyond Zero Emissions’ first Zero Carbon Australia plan.

A carbon tax, proposed by The Greens as an alternative to Rudd’s CPRS, would increase power prices for ordinary people, and be just as ineffective in encouraging renewables as carbon trading

On January 31, residents at Ilpeye Ilpeye town camp in Alice Springs became the only Aboriginal land owners in Australia’s history to hand their land back to the Federal Government.

According to Minister Jenny Macklin, the new Intervention legislation would restore the Racial Discrimination Act (RDA), fulfilling a key Labor’s election promise. It’s a lie.

The attack on Community Development Employment Projects (CDEP) that has gone along with the NT Intervention has cost thousands of Aboriginal jobs. People still on CDEP—some working up to 40 hours a week—are now mostly being paid only their Centrelink entitlements, but 50 per cent of this is quarantined on a “BasicsCard’’. 

Rudd came to office promising to be an “economic conservative”. His government is crafting a similar image as it prepares to fight this year’s election. Contrary to the received wisdom in the media, this is neither a popular nor a smart idea.

Last month, Queensland’s parliament decriminalised altruistic surrogacy. The reforms will allow same-sex couples to adopt children born to surrogate mothers. The laws passed 48 votes to 40 (two Labor MPs crossed the floor on the issue). 

Tony Abbott is taking the Liberals back to the refugee bashing policies of the Howard era, saying he will re-impose temporary protection visas and turn boats around at sea. Abbott claims that Howard’s policies stopped the boats. Not surprisingly the truth is different.

In every economic crisis, the central question is who shall bear the cost—the bosses or the working class? In Greece, that question is being fought out on the streets, with workers backing waves of mass strikes.

Americans are losing faith in Barack Obama. His election promises to sweep aside the Republican legacy of financial deregulation and privatisation with social reforms and market controls have come to nothing.  Life on “Main Street” is harder now under Obama than it ever was under George Bush.

When the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979 they thought they were in for an easy victory. But they underestimated the power of the resistance, writes Dave Crouch

NATO began a massive new offensive in Afghanistan in February when 15,000 troops began an assault on the southern provincial town of Marjah. Operation Moshtarak is the biggest offensive since the 2001 and after two weeks of heavy fighting NATO commanders were claiming victory.

We can’t trust the future of our planet to big business, argues Amy Thomas

Gandhi’s celebrated strategy of non-violent protest was not responsible for winning Indian independence, and actually held back the struggle, explains Lucy Honan

Workers at Sigma’s Herron pharmaceutical plant in Tennyson, Brisbane walked out on a week-long strike in February over their employer’s unfair redundancy offer.

A planned 24-hour strike at Sydney’s Star City Casino during Chinese New Year was banned by a decision of Fair Work Australia. This is one of the busiest times of the year at the Casino and would have caused serious disruption.

The eight-day strike over motelling at Woodside in Western Australia has ended in a draw. But the industrial battle isn’t over by a long shot—not for Woodside, and not for the workers and unions hit by massive fines by Fair Work Australia.

“The best union meeting I’ve attended in years.” That was the response of many NSW TAFE teachers after a 3000-strong mass meeting filled and electrified the inside of Sydney Town Hall on 11 February.

Precious
Directed by Lee Daniels, In cinemas now

Review: In the Loop
Directed by Armando Iannucci, In cinemas now

Review: The Road
Directed by John Hillcoat, In cinemas now

Review: Storms of my grandchildren
By James Hansen, Bloomsbury, $35

A Freens bill to overturn the ban on same-sex marriage was predictably defeated in the Senate last month. Rudd Labor maintained its commitment to the shameful ban.