Voice loses its timbre

THE VOICE, TRY AND UNDERSTAND IT

We’re about to learn more details of the Voice to Parliament, Guardian Australia reports. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the referendum working group meets on February 2, so we’ll probably hear after then. Albo has reiterated that the proposed Voice to Parliament would not be a funding body. “It will not run programs,” he continued. “It will simply be a source of advice to government.” But we are becoming less convinced, if you trust polls, that is. The SMH reports our support for the Voice has fallen from 53% to 47%, a result that would mean a referendum defeat. Just 13% of respondents say they understand the plan for constitutional change. Don’t look to SA’s model for inspiration — the National Indigenous Times reports more than 28 native title organisation leaders have written to the state government about its proposed First Nations Voice to Parliament. “The proposed model would establish a regional or local Voice with no defined representation, linkages or accountability back to native title groups — to First Nations,” they wrote. “How is this a First Nations’ Voice?”

Meanwhile, 11 Indigenous Australians died in custody in 12 weeks leading up to September last year, the highest quarterly figure in more than five years. That’s according to the Australian Institute of Criminology, which added that there were 29 Indigenous deaths in custody in 2022, as The Age reports. The dismal figures come ahead of the findings of the inquest into Victorian woman Veronica Nelson’s death — coroner Simon McGregor reportedly concluded that cruel and inhumane treatment caused her preventable death. It might shock you to learn that all the 1991 findings of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody still haven’t been rolled out, as the paper continues, and McGregor’s report recommends they be revisited ASAP. Nelson, 37, buzzed for help 40 times before she died. She was held on shoplifting and bail breach suspicions.

[free_worm]

PROMISES, PROMISES

NSW Labor has promised to double funding to the state’s 20 women’s health centres in the next five years, the SMH reports, in a move the Women’s Health NSW boss declared would “save lives”. Women get physical and mental health services, as well as domestic, family, and sexual violence support at the centres, and about 70% of those who do are on a low income. Meanwhile, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet has vowed to quadruple the number of electronic ankle bracelets in NSW (currently 45) to better track domestic violence offenders, promising 200 extra devices. The NSW government has also vowed to roll out a DV disclosure scheme called “Right to Ask”, Guardian Australia reports, where you can apply to the police to see if your partner has a violent conviction (based on Clare’s Law in the UK). It comes as Perrottet said people who have a DV charge should be banned from dating apps, news.com.au, reports, though said that would need a national approach.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister David Elliott says he doesn’t regret giving Perrottet the skinny about the premier’s Nazi costume coming to light, the ABC reports. But he wouldn’t say whether he’d seen this mystery photo of Perrottet at his 21st bash that may or may not exist. Perrottet’s admission of guilt over the costume and his apology has gone down pretty well — Opposition Leader Chris Minns called the apology “sincere” and said that his opponent shouldn’t resign, while Jewish leaders called the saga a “lesson for all”. Speaking of Minns, anonymous Labor sources told Crikey the party has no plan if he loses his seat in March. Kogarah is held by Labor on a 0.1% margin — meaning it would take only 60 voters to swing the seat.

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS

One of the world’s richest men, Bill Gates, is in Australia and he’s got some things to say. First, we have “no chance” of limiting global heating to below 1.5C, Guardian Australia reports — indeed we were be lucky to avoid 2.5C, Gates said. Australia was a climate “outlier” until Labor took the reins, and we’ll have to sit out the next 15 years of progress on nuclear power as South Korea, the UK, China, the US and France delve into the energy source, the AFR reports. Gates said we should focus on being a pioneer for green hydrogen instead (I’m sure Andrew Forrest’s ears perked up), naming ammonia and methanol as minerals we are “lucky” to have in our earth. Even if nuclear works, Gates said, we still need “60-70% renewables”.

Meanwhile Shell begrudgingly has turned on the gas supply again, the SMH reports. The energy titan froze all new gas contracts for our retailers after the Albanese government introduced price caps of $12 a gigajoule in December. New modelling from Treasury at the weekend suggested we would save $230 on electricity bills in the next financial year due to wholesale price falls recorded after Labor’s market intervention, Guardian Australia reports. But our grocery prices continue to rise, the ABC reports. Food prices at Coles and Woolworths were up 9.2% from September to December, based on an analysis of more than 60,000 products. Woolies is more expensive than Coles, for the past six months anyway, the broadcaster added.

ON A LIGHTER NOTE

US woman Laura Carney, 44, unzipped a small suede pouch and was touched to discover her late father’s driver’s licence and his ring. Carney was in her mid-20s when her dad was struck and killed by a driver who ran a red light while using their phone. But she also found an aged piece of paper. In her dad’s familiar scrawl, she read, “Things I would like to do in my lifetime!”, dated 1978, and realised she had found his bucket list. Only a few of the items were ticked off, and 54 unfulfilled items stared back at her. So Carney set out to finish the list. Some were straightforward, like “Swim the width of a river” and “Grow a watermelon”, but some were a little more tricky, like “Talk with the president”. Carney worked out Jimmy Carter was the president in 1978, and upon learning he taught Sunday school in Georgia, flew to meet him and told him about her dad. Other items she ticked off over the next six years included “Go to the Super Bowl”, “Visit Europe”, “Drive a Corvette”, “Correspond with the pope” and “Be invited to a political convention”.

Carney’s husband said watching her work through the list was “like a butterfly emerging from a cocoon”, but it wasn’t always easy. It choked her up a bit to read “sing at my daughter’s wedding”, which she ticked off (using a little poetic licence) by enjoying a prized bottle of cabernet he’d labelled “Open on Laura’s wedding day”. Carney, who has fond memories of her dad singing to her and her brothers before bed, happily checked off “Have five songs recorded” by hiring a studio and singing her dad’s favourite hits, including from The Beatles. In that moment, she says, “it felt like I was singing with him again.” Carney says she really recommends people write their own bucket lists, to live more intentionally and get a sense of purpose. Don’t worry if some items are unchecked in your lifetime, she adds. Someone else might finish them for you.

Wishing you the courage of Carney today.

SAY WHAT?

You can literally save lives for US$1000 and there isn’t much around that should be as fulfilling as that.

Bill Gates

One of the richest men in the world — who has pledged at least half his fortune to charity and hasn’t gone to space in a rocket yet — says the power to change a life is within financial grasp for a lot of us.

CRIKEY RECAP

As Putin’s energy might ebbs, the world economy no longer needs Russia

Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Steven Tian, Foreign Policy

Jan 23, 2023

75

“Putin, on the other hand, has zero remaining leverage and no way to replace his erstwhile primary customer; he is finding out the hard way that it is much easier for consumers to replace unreliable commodity suppliers than it is for suppliers to find new markets. Already, Putin is drawing practically no profit from gas sales, as his prior 150 bcm sales of piped gas to Europe have been replaced by a measly 16 bcm to China and pocket change in global LNG sales, barely enough to cover expenses.

“There are no markets for Putin to replace anything close to that 150 bcm shortfall: China lacks the necessary pipeline capacity to take any more for at least a decade and prefers domestic and diversified sources of energy anyhow, while Russia’s laggard technology makes it impossible to scale LNG exports beyond a slow trickle.”

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Global climate action would be for nothing if China goes to war with Taiwan

Emma Elsworthy

Jan 23, 2023

26

“Australia’s zero emissions technology supplies almost completely depend on it staying in China’s good books. Australia imports 90% of its solar panels from China, slightly ahead of China’s 80% share of the world’s solar panels — set to strengthen to more than 95% in the coming years, according to a 2022 report from the IEA …

“China also holds a powerful monopoly over lithium-ion batteries, crucial for Australia’s surging electric vehicle uptake, controlling just shy of two-thirds (59%) of the world’s lithium production capacity. And yet there is a major opportunity to reduce this reliance — Australia is home to nearly half of the world’s lithium (47%), with exports contributing up to $9.4 billion to our bottom line this financial year.”

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What happens if Labor wins the NSW election but its leader loses his seat?

Anton Nilsson

Jan 23, 2023

17

“NSW Labor faces the unusual risk of being without a leader even if it wins the March state election, insiders say, as Opposition Leader Chris Minns’ seat of Kogarah in Sydney’s south is the most marginal in the state. Kogarah is on the razor-thin margin of 0.1%, meaning it would only take about 60 of the electorate’s roughly 60,000 voters to swing the seat for the Coalition. That’s if the government can find a candidate. Liberals have told Crikey the party still hasn’t found anyone to run …

“Labor sources told Crikey the party had not planned for the scenario that it takes government while Minns loses his seat. One Labor source said Minns was dedicated to his electorate and there had been no discussions about finding him a safer seat … Minns suffered a swing against him at 2019 election, when he faced off against local Chinese-Australian entrepreneur and Liberal candidate Scott Yung.”

READ ALL ABOUT IT

France remains ‘very sexist’: watchdog sounds alarm (Al Jazeera)

Germany charges five with plot to kidnap minister, overthrow government (Reuters)

Protests after Israeli threats to remove Palestinian village (Al Jazeera)

Spotify to cut 6% of workforce in latest tech layoffs (The Wall Street Journal) ($)

Japan PM says country on the brink over falling birth rate (BBC)

NZ’s acid trip pioneer and why it has taken 50 years to restart his research (Stuff)

Lewis Hamilton reveals ‘traumatising’ racist abuse suffered at school (The Guardian)

Microsoft confirms it’s investing billions in ChatGPT creator OpenAI (CNN)

THE COMMENTARIAT

If AI has all the answers, universities must change the questions — Dan Dixon (The SMH): “Just as the internet changed the depth and complexity we expect of students’ writing and research, the increasing availability and sophistication of AI might similarly shift the goalposts. Yet the bulk of institutional energy is being directed towards preserving the system as it exists. As an academic who has marked thousands of assessments in disciplines across the humanities, I can confidently tell you that the system is not worth preserving. Rather than an obstacle to overcome, the flourishing of AI should be seen as an opportunity to ask what universities and assessments are for in the first place.

“As it stands in the classroom, emphasis is placed on assessment above all else, and learning suffers. Understandably, students want to know how whatever they are being taught can be effectively repurposed for the final exam or major essay. Course material is therefore understood primarily in terms of how it might best be transformed into grades, which in turn will be transformed into a qualification. This mercenary disposition is caused not by student laziness, but by the corporatisation of universities, their treatment of learning as a currency to be exchanged for a certificate. It is far more common, in my experience, for cheating to be the result of a student’s misguided lack of confidence in their own ability, rather than simple indolence.”

Voice, Australia Day not top of mind in Alice Springs — Anthony Dillon (The Australian) ($): “I cannot help but think opposition to Australia Day, along with the debate about the proposed enshrined Voice to Parliament, are convenient distractions to addressing the more serious problems facing Aboriginal Australians. I read in this newspaper on Monday about the dysfunction affecting the people of Alice Springs. This story is just the latest in several stories that have focused on crime waves in Alice Springs in the past couple of months. Back in November, there were media reports about how Alice Springs elders were pleading with the Northern Territory government to work with them on solutions to youth crime.

“For those Aboriginal Australians in Alice Springs impacted by crime, both as perpetrators and victims, I do not think protesting against Australia Day celebrations is top of mind. Their priorities are likely finding a safe place to dwell in and fresh food to eat. These should also be the priorities, along with jobs and education, of political leaders, proponents of the parliamentary voice and the government departments dedicated to closing the gap. So why aren’t they? First, I don’t believe it’s because Aboriginal Australians are without a voice. Federal member for Lingiari Marion Scrymgour, a strong Aboriginal woman, was reported in Monday’s article as saying that she is seeing a level of violence she had never encountered …”

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WHAT’S ON TODAY

Kulin Nation Country (also known as Melbourne)

• Kids can head along to Introducing Teddy, a live music and storytelling event at the Melbourne Recital Centre for the Wheeler Centre.