The Looking Forward Podcast

17 December 2020

After two years on air that’s a wrap for the IPA’s Looking Forward Podcast, as least as a weekly panel show. The biggest issues over the journey have been Trump and the populist insurrection on the centre-right, and of course coronavirus and how populations and Governments have responded. Co-hosts Scott Hargreaves and Chris Berg reflect on what they said and

10 December 2020

Will history’s verdict be that Trump trashed the legacy of Reagan – as some of his supporters delightedly claim – or that there are stronger continuities between the two, sharing records of lower taxes, regulatory reform and a strong military, all built on votes from mainstream Americans. Where has the Trump insurrection left the Republican Party, and what are the

3 December 2020

[trx_video url=”https://youtu.be/twbIGA1NfLs” ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”off” top=”inherit” bottom=”inherit” left=”inherit” right=”inherit”] All through the western world Museum Directors have set themselves the task of “decolonising” their collections and exhibits, but what could this become and what does it mean anyway? Do they know, or are they just going woke to protect their own jobs? Is it about appropriately recognising indigenous cultures, or something

26 November 2020

The allegations of serious war crimes by Australian special forces contained within the Brereton Inquiry report mean some change is necessary even as justice takes its course. But should Parliamentarians involve themselves more in Defence and military oversight, as Andrew Hastie MP suggests, or could this politicise the military and cast it into the culture wars? Could adverse findings about

19 November 2020

Now it’s South Australia’s turn for lockdown hell for at least six days, and Daniel Wild joins the panel live from Adelaide to report on the chaotic decision making behind the Government’s draconian measures. Apparently the coronavirus spread by failure in Hotel Quarantine – who would have expected THAT! Seriously, are our Governments incapable of learning and preparing, and delivering

12 November 2020

It’s a global High Vis vest frenzy, because whether or not he’s President going forward the global legacy of Trump is a realignment of politics, with heartland conservatives switched on and centre-right parties around the world looking for blue collar voters. To what extent can this be said about Australia and can it explain what’s happened this week in the

5 November 2020

There’s some grieving from Gideon on the Podcast as indications are that Joe Biden will be sworn in as President, though his fabled ‘blue wave’ failed to eventuate. Trump confounded the polls and energised a mass base of Americans in a way that suggests his political legacy will live on. Is this at the expense of the right’s traditional free

29 October 2020

Scott Morrison’s mid-year plan for a COVIDSafe economy is back on track having been derailed by Victorian bungling, but with vaccines uncertain and international borders closed, what is the outlook for Australia’s coronavirus Endgame?  Can services like education and tourism ever rejoin king coal and iron ore as the foundations of our prosperity, at least any time soon? Why would

21 October 2020

Gideon Rozner joins the panel to compare world leaders’ various responses to coronavirus and how this links to politically polarised ideals of “leadership”. If leadership for progressives just means technocracy and more lockdowns, is that why Gideon’s labelling of Jancinda Adern as “incompetent” saw much frothing and outrage across domestic and global media? We highlight the various leadership styles of

14 October 2020

We may look back on this as the week when the global wave of coronavirus lockdown hysteria recedes, as more sensible voices and experts come to the fore, including a key WHO adviser condemning the use of lockdowns as a primary means of control for the coronavirus. The historic Great Barrington Declaration led by Professor Sunetra Gupta (Oxford) and Jay