No Crap App: w/b 23 Jul 2012

The week that was…

It started with the defeat of the Greens in Melbourne, featured fancy footwork midweek by the States on NDIS, and ended with the not-entirely-unexpected resignation of Twitter’s favourite parliamentary speaker, Harry Jenkins. There’s links on all of that here, plus continuing examination of the leadership entrails, and some very good pieces on the media.

NDIS

• Peter van Onselen: Dinner idea proved too rich for Julia Gillard and There are no votes in playing politics with the NDIS
• Michelle Grattan: Disability scheming trips up premiers who should know better

Greens

• George Megalogenis: Partisan politics rules, except when it comes to the Greens
• Shaun Carney: Same old political garbage
• Henry Ergas: Electorate right about PM’s left turn
• Peter Brent: A Liberal in Melbourne?

Labor leadership

• Paul Kelly: Labor’s choice is Rudd or oblivion
• Laura Tingle: Leadership – past tense about the future
• Paul Toohey: The world belongs to Kevin. It always will.

Abbott

• Michelle Grattan: Subtle is not Abbott’s style – home or away

Media

• Jonathan Green: They defend press freedom in pursuit of the gory detail
• Matthew Knott: ABC to unleash citizens’ agenda at 2013 election
• Alan Sunderland: Can we walk and chew gum at the same time?

Harry Jenkins

• The Punch: Farewell Harry Jenkins

No Crap App: w/b 16 Jul 2012

Pat Campbell, Canberra Times 18 Jul 2012

The week that was…

Like clockwork, leadership speculation emerged this week just as Newspoll prepared to conduct its fortnightly audit of voter views. Most #leadershit pieces are not included here, but there are a couple to illustrate the divergence in media views.

Meanwhile, the focus was on the Melbourne by-election: there’s a link from Mumble on the numbers, and one from Elizabeth Hymphrys on the direction the Greens are taking.

By week’s end the Mega-Tingle-Grattan triumvirate delivered considered pieces on policy, while Andrew Catsaras tackled the chimera called leadership. Finally, there’s a interesting piece from Jonathan Green on the value and cost of reader engagement.

Melbourne by-election

• Peter Brent: Melbourne by-election
• Elizabeth Humphrys: Neoliberals on bikes

Policy

• George Megalogenis: Reform blues stem from parliament’s monochrome demography
• Laura Tingle: You’ve got to accentuate the differences
• Michelle Grattan: Tough times ahead over IR and media
• Andrew Catsaras: Take me to your follower – into the leadership void

#Leadershit

• Jack Waterford: Labor zombies seek a new logo
• Dennis Atkins: PM safe until she has to face electors
• Shaun Carney: More leadership rumbles as hopes of a party deflate
• Peter van Onselen: Backbench push for survival fuels leadership noise

Media

• Jonathan Green: No talking back – the value and cost of commenting

No Crap App: w/b 9 Jul 2012

Leak, Australian 14 Jul 2012

The week that was…

There seems to be no way to avoid this week’s main political story – the hows and whys of Labor’s assault on the Greens. First the blogosphere exploded with comment and analysis, followed by the mainstream media. A selection of those pieces can be found here.

Also collected are links to interesting pieces on the economy, future of the media and pursuit of good policy.

Labor v Greens

MSM

• Peter van Onselen: The end of the affair?
• Peter Brent: Greens can thank Libs
• Michelle Grattan: Labor playing with fire in its rush to burn the Green witch
• Geoff Kitney: Gillard faces a fraction too much fiction
• Tim Watts: Left won’t lead the party to rebuild

Blogosphere / new media

• Drag0nista*: Don’t be surprised, Greens are not Labor’s natural ally
• Piping Shrike: The day the Gillard government died
• Alex White: Putting the Greens Party last a mistake
• Guido Tresoldi: Labor-Green skirmish. A view from inner suburban caffelatte land
• Ben Eltham: ALP tears won’t bring voters back
• Jeff Sparrow: Labor’s spectacular own goal

Economics

• Ross Gittins: Farmers good, big retailers bad – could that really be true?
• John Black: Traditional ‘working families’ are hardest hit
• AFR interactive maps: Mortgage stress across Australia
• George Megalogenis: Howard, Rudd and Gillard all let opposition damn bright ideas
• Video: What the luck! George Megalogenis, Paul Cleary and Peter Hartcher

Media

• Tim Dunlop: Why commercial media should learn their ABCs and The real lesson of The Global Mail
• Peter van Onselen: Politicians prove hate media got it right

Policy

• Miriam Lyons: Ideas worth playing for

*I don’t normally include my own posts, but this one is directly relevant to the blogosphere discussion.

No Crap App: w/b 2 Jul 2012

Leunig, SMH 4 Jul 2012

The week that was…

This week’s best political pieces focussed on the commencement of the carbon price (Kelly & Kitney) and fallout from last week’s asylum seeker debate (Mega, Farr and Brent).

The natural extension of the latter was further examination of the Greens. Grog provided an interesting profile on the new Greens Senator, Peter Whish-Wilson, PVO had a scoop on the ALP’s preference deals, and Katharine Murphy talked to Christine Milne.

Also included are two great longer reads: one on the nature of democracy in Australia today, and one on the future of journalism.

Carbon price

• Paul Kelly: Bad timing, wrong price – carbon tax risks failure
• Geoff Kitney: Abbott, the politician who cried wolf

Asylum seekers

• George Megalogenis: No place for petty politicking
• Malcolm Farr: A long-term focus in a short-term political world
• Peter Brent: Triumph of Lemmings

The Greens

• GrogsGamut / Greg Jericho: Greens newcomer takes up the fight for the middle
• Peter van Onselen: Labor boss takes aim at Greens
• Katharine Murphy: Political marriage in stormy waters

Longer read

• Amanda Lohrey: Australian democracy and the right to party
• Jane Gilmore: Journalism is not dead