This graph shows how dysfunctional the Australian federation is. In a forthcoming IPA report, Morgan Begg exposes the overreliance of Australia’s states on federal grants compared to other federal countries:
Do you share Gillian Triggs’ assessment that the Australian Human Rights Commission’s handling of the QUT case was “excellent”? Simon Breheny didn’t. Check out his debate with Triggs on Q&A on Monday:
And here’s Simon shocking the other panellists with the controversial notion that living in a free society sometimes means hearing things you don’t agree with.
Few people have done more for integrity in climate science in this country than Professor Peter Ridd and the IPA’s Dr Jennifer Marohasy. Listen to their excellent hour-long address to the Sydney Institute on ‘Climate Change-2017’ last week here.
Two weeks ago we told you about Canadian grad student Lindsay Shepherd who was reprimanded by her university for showing a Jordan Peterson video to her class. Lindsay’s defence of academic freedom in National Post on Monday, and in this interview on The Rubin Report last week, will restore your faith in young people.
But there’s still work to do. 74% of people aged 16-24 think the term “snowflake” could have a negative effect on young people’s mental health, The Telegraph reported yesterday.
Last week, we told you about the IPA report on industry super directors’ fees funding the trade union movement. On Thursday we released our video on it, which has already had 24,000 views. Both have received plenty of attention, the pick of which was this video from Australian Council of Trade Unions president Ged Kearney, describing the IPA as a “shadowy” organisation.
We’re so shadowy that we’ve been publishing publicly available research, magazines and annual reports since 1943, making the IPA Australia’s oldest and loudest free market think tank. To help us continue our work please make a donation to the 2017 IPA Christmas Appeal here.
Article of the week:
The great Matt Ridley correctly calls out bogeyman thinking from people who’ve never been hungry when he criticises Greenpeace and European environmentalists for persuading African governments to ban genetically modified crops in The Times last week.
IPA Staff Pick:
Each week an IPA staff member shares what they have enjoyed recently. Today: Scott Hargreaves
Everyone knows that identity politics eschews the liberalism and universalism of the Enlightenment. Former IPA guest Frank Furedi details exactly how the modern left came to take up the conservative counter-Enlightenment condemnation of human universality in the 18th century in this magnificent 3,200 word piece in last month’s Spiked Review.
Here’s what else the IPA said this week:
- Dr Bella d’Abrera, How our teachers score top Marx – The Spectator Australia
- Gideon Rozner, The Turnbull government is punishing the poor – The Spectator Australia
- Dr Bella d’Abrera, The British heritage of our freedoms and the rule of law – Speech to the Mannkal Economic Education Foundation
- Matthew Lesh, The attack on the Enlightenment and campus free speech – Speech to the Mannkal Economic Education Foundation
- James Bolt & Peter Gregory, Episode 39 with Mary Kissel and Simon Breheny – The Young IPA Podcast
