National Observer - Australia and World Affairs articles from June 2005

National Observer - Australia and World Affairs archives from June 2005

Now is the time for tax reform.(Editorial Comment)
June 22, 2005... In the last two issues of National Observer articles by Professor Geoffrey Walker have been published which discuss the disturbing state of the Australian taxation system. The tax legislation is virtually incomprehensible, with more than 13,500...

Abortion and Australia's socio-economic health.
June 22, 2005... This article examines some of the main ways in which the high incidence of abortion is harming the social and economic wellbeing of our nation. A central issue discussed is the extent to which abortion has contributed to the progressive...

The U.S.-Australia Free Trade Agreement.
June 22, 2005... In "How to Kill a Country: Australia's Devastating Trade Deal with the United States", (1) Professors Linda Weiss and John Mathews, with Elizabeth Thurbon, present matters of grave concern in regard to the recently-negotiated U.S.-Australia...

India's 2004 elections: implications for the future.
June 22, 2005... Sonia Gandhi's Congress Party defeated the Vajpayee's Bharatiya Janata Party (B.J.P.)-dominated National Democratic Alliance (N.D.A.) in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. The results announced on 13 May 2004 have been said to be one of the biggest...

United States foreign policy: does Europe matter?
June 22, 2005... For many years the Americans have been receiving a continuous stream of unsolicited advice from friends and enemies as to what kind of foreign and military policies and dispositions they should be conducting, and making; what kind of political...

Do the courts regard fathers as redundant?(divorce law)
June 22, 2005... English divorce law is in many respects similar to that of Australia, and for Australians the English position in regard to divorced fathers and their children provides a valuable lesson. Over the last thirty-five years we have witnessed an...

What Mr. Howard's Government needs to do.
June 22, 2005... Writing here three months ago during the federal election campaign, I said that, despite its imperfections, I nevertheless proposed to vote for the Coalition in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. In the end, 52.7 per cent of the...

The supremacists.(Legal Notes)(legislative and judicial functions)
June 22, 2005... Perhaps the most controversial recent development in judicial decision-making has been a blurring of legislative and judicial functions. This development began in the United States, where it was partly attributable to a Bill of Rights that lays...

Herzl's Nightmare: One Land, Two People.(Book Review)
June 22, 2005... HERZL'S NIGHTMARE: One Land, Two People by Peter Rodgers Melbourne: Scribe Publications, 2004, pages 130 Peter Rodgers is a former Australian ambassador to Israel and is a frequent commentator on Middle Eastern affairs. His book...

Reluctant Saviour: Australia, Indonesia and the Independence of East Timor.(Book Review)
June 22, 2005... RELUCTANT SAVIOUR: Australia, Indonesia and the Independence of East Timor By Clinton Fernandes Melbourne, Scribe Publications, 2004, pages 138. Reluctant Saviour is written by Clinton Fernandes, who is described as "a historian based in...

The Trouble With Islam.(Book Review)
June 22, 2005... THE TROUBLE WITH ISLAM by Irshad Manji Sydney, Random House, 2004, 239 pages, $32.95 A subheading for this book tells us that it is "A Muslim's call for reform in her faith". While one might well doubt that Ms. Manji will ever qualify for...