“Handing over a vast raft of power to the Human Rights Commission” is not the way to protect religious freedom, John Roskam told Sky News on Tuesday. He said these “challenges are best faced by community sanction, by debate, by discussion, by argument, not by creating more laws”:
https://www.facebook.com/Inst.ofPublicAffairs/videos/2255018191495302/?v=2255018191495302
Yesterday the Minister for Indigenous Australians Ken Wyatt committed the government to holding a referendum on Indigenous Recognition within three years. In The Australian today, Morgan Begg argues “ Any proposal to establish a special voice for some people and not others is illiberal and a violation of all principles of racial equality.”
According to David Attenborough, too many people have access to air travel and it should be made more expensive to fight climate change. Gideon Rozner described the proposal as “just another example of the wealthy pushing for action on climate change , while working people suffer the financial cost.”
You might think that the answer to congestion would be more trains and improved punctuality. But you’re wrong and the Victorian Department of Transport is right – it’s handing out free soba noodles and kakiage. You can laugh, but when the NSW transport minister is raising the prospect of facial recognition instead of train tickets, lukewarm noodles isn’t the worst idea being floated this week.
The New Statesman on Monday apologised to conservative philosopher Roger Scruton for the stitch-up in April that led to him being fired from his government position, admitting that the offending article misrepresented him through truncated quotations. But as James Delingpole points out at Breitbart, a lot of people need to take responsibility and apologise to Scruton, including the Conservative politician James Brokenshire who fired him.
Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, has signed up to the African Continental Free Trade Area, which is going to revolutionise Africa’s economic development. The agreement will open up markets on the continent by cutting tariffs and creating a $3.4 trillion free trade bloc uniting 1.3 billion people.
Article of the week:
The recent decision by Nike to scrap a shoe design featuring the Betsy Ross flag under pressure from Colin Kaepernick is just the latest episode in a broader movement of denigrating the history of the United States. Nick Phillips addressed this movement at the American Conservative yesterday writing, “rather than redress a pre-existing wrong, it invents a new wrong for the sole purpose of demanding that it be redressed.” He further warns that society cannot be maintained on a “national narrative built on shame.”
IPA Staff Pick:
Each week an IPA staff member shares what they have enjoyed recently. Today: James Bolt
In 2013, the average member of the Democratic Socialists of America was 68. Today it’s 33, and the group is growing every day. If you thought socialism’s comeback peaked with Bernie Sanders in 2016, you’re wrong. Robby Soave in Reason explains why socialism is on such a roll and what it means for the Democrat Party. As he says, socialists have “every intention of shifting the ‘Overton window’ of American politics far to the left. And if we’re not careful, it might succeed.”
Here’s what else the IPA said this week:
- John Roskam, Folau has set a minefield for bosses – The Australian Financial Review
- Morgan Begg & Daniel Wild, Race has no place in the Constitution – Media Releases
- Daniel Wild, Red tape reduction a way to prosperity – The West Australian
