Two decades of super profits not enough

I DON’T know whether to laugh or cry when I hear Tatts claim that it has been treated ”unconscionably” by the Victorian government (”$1bn hinges on one word”, The Age, 17/8). Tatts and Tabcorp raked in billions over the 20 years of the duopoly they held in Victoria. Most of this came from the pockets of vulnerable people, leaving a trail of crime, broken homes and mental illness in its wake.

Further, the killing they made was far more than the government ever expected they would make. A National Competition Policy review in 2000 found that both companies were extracting …

Why supporters of ANZUS should support an Australian Inquiry into Iraq

Going to war is the most serious decision a government can make. War is not “politics carried on by other means” as German statesman Von Clausewitz once asserted.

It is a form of organised, pre-meditated mass killing – deliberate for combatants, inevitable for non-combatants. Saying that does not make me a pacifist (which I am not). But it does emphasise that we need extraordinarily good reasons to go to war. Those good reasons abounded in the World War II when the US alliance was forged. The UN Charter, ANZUS and other treaties which the US and Australia promoted recognise that …

Fraser calls for Iraq war inquiry

FORMER prime minister Malcolm Fraser says Australia’s “truly archaic” process for going to war needs to be overhauled.

Mr Fraser spoke on Thursday at the launch of a campaign by a group of eminent Australians calling for an independent inquiry into the decisions that led to Australia joining the invasion of Iraq in March, 2003.

The Iraq War Inquiry Group comprises respected academics, former high-ranking bureaucrats and retired military leaders.

A booklet – Why Did We Go To War In Iraq? A Call For An Australian Inquiry – has been compiled by the group outlining the need for such an …

Why did we go to war in Iraq?

Taking a country to war is the single most solemn international responsibility of any government. It requires our soldiers to kill complete strangers solely on the authority of the government. It puts their lives on the line. Death and serious injury to the soldiers can mean broken dreams and shattered futures for their families. It can leave families and entire villages traumatised in countries where the fighting takes place. It may sow bitter hatred among peoples and create foreign enemies for generations. It can inspire acts of terror against Australian people and symbols. This is why war must always be …