It’s code red for humanity, with the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report showing drastic action has to be taken to limit the impact of global warming.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison responded to the report with grace, understanding and the promise of action — well, not really, but Bernard Keane has written what Morrison would have said in an ideal world.

Meanwhile, the census proved a ripe field for conspiracy theorists, as Cam Wilson covered, while elsewhere we looked at the danger several key politicians are facing in the battles for their seats — from Pauline Hanson to Amanda Stoker, Christian Porter and Ben Wyatt. There was also a stellar analysis on what happened to Afghanistan’s military by Lynne O’Donnell of Foreign Policy.

Plus, check out the ramblings of a woman in captivity in this week’s edition of my lockdown diaries. Those stories, plus plenty more from the Crikey team, below.

MADONNA KING 3 minute read

Pauline Hanson, the Greens, Labor, the LNP's Amanda Stoker and Newman will all come out fighting for the two spots up for grabs. It won't be pretty.

LAWRENCE APPS 3 minute read

The Coalition has a tough battle ahead of the next federal election if it wants to stave off another electoral embarrassment in WA.

ADAM SCHWAB 3 minute read

In a classic under-promise and over-deliver move, the PM hopes his new vaccine rollout target is met a lot sooner than touted.

AMBER SCHULTZ 2 minute read

The diary of a recently single extrovert locked down, stuck inside and trying to not let the existential dread set in.

TOM RED 1 minute read

Times have changed. Moods have changed. Decorum has changed. But fear not: politics and politicians are as bad as ever.

CAM WILSON 3 minute read

Australia's anti-vaxxers and far-right groups are scrambling to work out how to use the census to further their goals.

LYNNE O'DONNELL 6 minute read

There should have been plenty of time for US-funded political and military leadership in Afghanistan to develop a strategy to defend the country. What went wrong?

CAM WILSON 3 minute read

Parliament's e-petition platform has become a major target for conspiracy theorists and anti-vaxxers pushing their agenda.

KISHOR NAPIER-RAMAN 4 minute read

On the conservative Christian fringe, the message about COVID-19 vaccination is mixed, and that's putting it charitably.

GUY RUNDLE 4 minute read

This government's failure of leadership during the pandemic is the result of the Coalition's indifference to its citizens' lives and health.

CAM WILSON 2 minute read

Global players used the messaging platform Telegram to spread the word around the world on 'rallies for freedom'.

KISHOR NAPIER-RAMAN 3 minute read

New players have entered the legal battle over Julian Assange, but the Kafkaesque fight still seems hopelessly tangled and stalled.