menu_open Columnists

Brisbane Times

We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

Not celebrating Australia Day shouldn’t mean discounting our good fortune

While older Australians could learn from my generation’s compassion, it’s clear that Gen Z-ers could learn from them, too. Namely, about...

26.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Daniel Cash

No job? No worries. This insurance gives peace of mind if you can no longer work

The prospect of finding yourself out of work through illness or injury is frightening. There’s an insurance for that − but many don’t have it.

26.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Dominic Powell

How Trump’s win has fired up Dutton’s culture war, starting with Australia Day

Donald Trump’s re-election has been called a “vibe shift”. Peter Dutton prefers to think of it as a “near revolution”.

26.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Jacqueline Maley

Trump is showing us the true cost of liberalism

Now that Donald Trump is dismantling so many government programs, we might find out their ultimate cost.

26.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Parnell Palme Mcguinness

Playing hard or being ‘reckless’? Dutton ramps up attack

The opposition leader’s rhetoric has prompted opponents to accuse him of “grotesque”, trumped-up politics. But do the times suit him?

26.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Paul Sakkal

This year, think twice when it comes to setting career goals

We tend to see the headlines on goals and career success and conclude the most useful thing to do is to set many goals or advise others to do the...

26.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Jim Bright

The Australian Open is deeply compromised. It has to be to survive

Hosting one of the four grand slams is a fragile privilege. It’s under ever-growing threat from ambitious and cashed-up rivals.

latest 8

Brisbane Times

Malcolm Knox

Should we really go forth and multiply?

A drop in migration and a global slide in birth rates won’t stop Australia’s population growth. That will come with its challenges.

latest 10

Brisbane Times

Millie Muroi

Sam Konstas must play in Sri Lanka. Cooper Connolly should not

With the World Test Championship five months away and the Ashes defence back home next summer, the Australian Test team needs Konstas to get as...

latest 6

Brisbane Times

Geoff Lawson

Why are we so obsessed with taking the high road?

Based on all available evidence, the low road is more satisfying and equally successful at achieving your goals.

latest 2

Brisbane Times

Thomas Mitchell

Learning my own family history ended my indifference to Australia Day

Learning my own family history ended my indifference to Australia Day

In the 80s, when I swapped school for a job, I went into shock when I could no longer hang out at the beach from Christmas ’til February. I would...

latest 7

Brisbane Times

Jo Pybus

With God and tech bros on his side, Trump’s ‘golden age’ has just begun

With God and tech bros on his side, Trump’s ‘golden age’ has just begun

According to Washington folklore, it was Ronald Reagan, that one-time master of political stagecraft, who altered the location of the inaugural...

latest 7

Brisbane Times

Nick Bryant

Three sharp jabs and one blunt question: Albanese fights to win you back

Three sharp jabs and one blunt question: Albanese fights to win you back

Anthony Albanese heads to the election with a new sense of confidence that he can win voters back, despite months of polling that suggests millions...

latest 8

Brisbane Times

David Crowe

Could mandatory annuities solve our retirement woes?

Could mandatory annuities solve our retirement woes?

The Grattan Institute has dropped a report this week that’s got everyone talking. It tackles a familiar issue: Australians are nervous about...

latest 8

Brisbane Times

Bec Wilson

How to make the most of Qantas’ new points overhaul

How to make the most of Qantas’ new points overhaul

Regular readers of this column will know my penchant – nay, passion – for Qantas frequent flyer points. Indeed, in just a few weeks I will take my...

latest 7

Brisbane Times

Nicole Pedersen-Mckinnon

The MAGA movement is out to get Elon Musk – and so is China

The MAGA movement is out to get Elon Musk – and so is China

If it were possible to short a public figure with maximum leverage, Elon Musk would surely be the top target. The political and enterprise value of...

yesterday 10

Brisbane Times

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

Should I pretend to worship my boss so I can keep my job?

Should I pretend to worship my boss so I can keep my job?

I work in an area where a manager has developed a cult of personality. They are bombastic, aggressive and delight in attention and adulation. Many...

yesterday 10

Brisbane Times

Jonathan Rivett

When violence becomes a commodity, there’s no telling where it will end

When violence becomes a commodity, there’s no telling where it will end

There is so much that is so self-evidently awful about the current spate of antisemitic attacks in Sydney that one feels trite even pointing it...

yesterday 8

Brisbane Times

Waleed Aly

Michael Clarke is in the Hall of Fame. It should never have been in doubt

Michael Clarke is in the Hall of Fame. It should never have been in doubt

The inevitable grumblers grumbling about Michael Clarke’s induction to the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame are looking at the wrong hall and the...

yesterday 10

Brisbane Times

Malcolm Knox

In reinventing themselves, Harry and Meghan are losing their special sauce

In reinventing themselves, Harry and Meghan are losing their special sauce

Meet Steve Irwin off his plane in Sydney, I was told. Easy. At the gate, a few passengers appeared. Not Steve. Not Steve. Ah. Was that Steve? I...

yesterday 9

Brisbane Times

Kate Halfpenny

A brave bishop stumped Trump. You could call it a Bible bashing

A brave bishop stumped Trump. You could call it a Bible bashing

Well, that was awkward. In front of a man claiming to have been appointed by God, saved by God, a man to whom conservative evangelicals have...

yesterday 10

Brisbane Times

Julia Baird

No 25th, and no guarantees for Novak

No 25th, and no guarantees for Novak

For once, maybe for the first time, Novak Djokovic didn’t have all the answers. Neither he nor we can truly know if he ever will again. After...

yesterday 8

Brisbane Times

Greg Baum

Test cricket thrived like never before in 2024. But can it survive 2025’s reckoning?

Test cricket thrived like never before in 2024. But can it survive 2025’s reckoning?

With Brian Lara clinking bottles of champagne together in the bowels of the Gabba watching a triumphant West Indian press conference and itching to...

yesterday 7

Brisbane Times

Dan Walsh

China’s audacious plot to rule the skies

China’s audacious plot to rule the skies

New Year’s Eve celebrations were on course to be a largely calm affair in Beijing. Yet while thousands of worshippers visited the Yonghe Temple...

yesterday 8

Brisbane Times

Ben Marlow

Albanese’s greatest election threat isn’t Dutton. It’s the woke left

Albanese’s greatest election threat isn’t Dutton. It’s the woke left

The severed feet of Captain Cook’s bronze statue in St Kilda made for a sorry sight on Australia Day eve last year. This year, Australia Day falls...

yesterday 10

Brisbane Times

Gary Newman

How bad is Sydney’s housing crisis? It’s an early sign of economic decline

How bad is Sydney’s housing crisis? It’s an early sign of economic decline

The housing affordability issue isn’t just about intergenerational inequity: it is a warning sign of a brewing economic and social catastrophe. If...

yesterday 8

Brisbane Times

Robert Pradolin

The dark truth about Trump’s bid to save TikTok

The dark truth about Trump’s bid to save TikTok

In his first day in office, Donald Trump signed an executive order that defies a US law and encourages others to breach it. Trump’s order directed...

previous day 10

Brisbane Times

Stephen Bartholomeusz

Albanese now realises he’s on a rescue mission to save the sinking ship

Albanese now realises he’s on a rescue mission to save the sinking ship

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has recently established a new rescue service. Its mission is to save his government, his party and his place in...

previous day 2

Brisbane Times

Shaun Carney

Shelton thinks players are being disrespected? We’re shocked

Shelton thinks players are being disrespected? We’re shocked

Ben Shelton thinks broadcasters are disrespecting players at the Australian Open. He went out of his way to say so after blazing his way past...

previous day 7

Brisbane Times

Greg Baum

The rise of Trump sets a new test for Albanese, and Dutton

The rise of Trump sets a new test for Albanese, and Dutton

One of Donald Trump’s biggest supporters, Steve Bannon, had some advice for Australians during this week’s effusive ceremonies to welcome the...

previous day 10

Brisbane Times

David Crowe

Why this Aussie billionaire welcomes Trump’s China tariff threat

Why this Aussie billionaire welcomes Trump’s China tariff threat

It was a big week for retail billionaire Solomon Lew. He has spent decades in the Myer wilderness after being ousted from the Coles Myers board in...

previous day 9

Brisbane Times

Elizabeth Knight

What is Stargate? Trump’s $800b AI investment explained

What is Stargate? Trump’s $800b AI investment explained

One of President Donald Trump’s first announcements has been Stargate, a new joint venture designed to unlock up to $US500 billion ($800 billion)...

previous day 10

Brisbane Times

David Swan

Why we shouldn’t give up on de Minaur being more than ‘a quarter-final guy’

Why we shouldn’t give up on de Minaur being more than ‘a quarter-final guy’

Two years ago Alex de Minaur was on the wrong end of a Novak Djokovic masterclass. He finds himself in a very similar position now. On Wednesday...

previous day 10

Brisbane Times

Marc Mcgowan

How uninvited attendees are plaguing our virtual meetings

How uninvited attendees are plaguing our virtual meetings

The next time you’re in an online meeting, I want you to take a closer look at the list of attendees. In addition to Steve from marketing and...

previous day 10

Brisbane Times

Tim Duggan

The terrifying experience that made me a fierce supporter of vaccines

The terrifying experience that made me a fierce supporter of vaccines

In 1988, when I was 34 weeks pregnant with my first child, my waters broke in a Thai restaurant. Yeah, I know, embarrassing. I found myself in...

previous day 1

Brisbane Times

Jane Caro

It was highly anticipated, but not unpredictable: Sinner was heavenly, the Demon exorcised

It was highly anticipated, but not unpredictable: Sinner was heavenly, the Demon exorcised

Early in the first set of this match, the crowd began to erupt as Alex de Minaur chased a ball to the net post and angled a winning backhand pass...

previous day 1

Brisbane Times

Greg Baum

Twenty facts about Australian history that everyone should know

Twenty facts about Australian history that everyone should know

Australia has a sandcastle culture, according to Jim Davidson, one-time editor of Meanjin. His point: we suffer from cultural amnesia. Every...

wednesday 2

Brisbane Times

Richard Glover

Handle with care: Flags can’t be won in January, but they can be lost

Handle with care: Flags can’t be won in January, but they can be lost

Collingwood’s delicate handling of their most precious on-field asset – Nick Daicos – was reflected in the non-appearance of the precocious...

wednesday 1

Brisbane Times

Jake Niall

Trump’s migrant deportations start as bishop pleads with him to have mercy

Trump’s migrant deportations start as bishop pleads with him to have mercy

Washington: The impact was swift and severe, just as Donald Trump had intended. No sooner had the newly inaugurated president signed his name on a...

wednesday 2

Brisbane Times

Farrah Tomazin

Banning G-strings at public pools is a bummer for some, but it’s the right move

Banning G-strings at public pools is a bummer for some, but it’s the right move

While strolling through sunny markets with my five-year-old daughter last week, we encountered a bare bum. Bare bums aren’t an anomaly in my...

wednesday 9

Brisbane Times

Cherie Gilmour

My family had to bury a relative in their courtyard. Their exhaustion is palpable

My family had to bury a relative in their courtyard. Their exhaustion is palpable

For more than 15 months, Gaza has endured relentless violence from Israel, its people living in unimaginable terror and grief. Now, as the...

wednesday 1

Brisbane Times

Ramia Abdo-Sultan

Salacious corporeal material rather than suited corporate failings ends Sayers tenure

Salacious corporeal material rather than suited corporate failings ends Sayers tenure

If some mystery remains about the turn of events that saw a lewd image posted on the X account of Luke Sayers, there is no question that Sayers has...

wednesday 3

Brisbane Times

Jake Niall

Trump’s green attack threatens the future of the US car industry

Trump’s green attack threatens the future of the US car industry

In the midst of Donald Trump’s executive orders dump on Tuesday were some that could undermine the American auto industry’s efforts to remain a...

wednesday 10

Brisbane Times

Stephen Bartholomeusz

How housing went from being a sellers’ market to a buyers’ market

How housing went from being a sellers’ market to a buyers’ market

As far as metrics go, it’s not scientific. But if you’ve noticed that more oversized headshots of slick-looking real estate agents appear to be...

wednesday 10

Brisbane Times

Elizabeth Knight

More laws won’t stop hate speech. But there’s something else we can do

More laws won’t stop hate speech. But there’s something else we can do

I couldn’t have been more than 10, maybe 12, years old when my parents walked with me to the local synagogue. They wanted to show me vile...

wednesday 3

Brisbane Times

Jenna Price

The tactical injury is Novak’s intellectual property. So’s the immaculate recovery

The tactical injury is Novak’s intellectual property. So’s the immaculate recovery

All hail Novak Djokovic, the greatest tennis player in all of history. (That was the po-faced bit. He is.) But where does a man go once he is the...

wednesday 10

Brisbane Times

Malcolm Knox

How your superannuation is becoming one of Australia’s biggest exports

How your superannuation is becoming one of Australia’s biggest exports

When we travel overseas, we regularly find ourselves taking note and appreciating those subtle reminders of home. Strolling past an RM Williams...

wednesday 1

Brisbane Times

Alex Joiner

As rival clubs circle, what price is right for Carlton to keep De Koning?

As rival clubs circle, what price is right for Carlton to keep De Koning?

On Tuesday, Carlton announced two new re-signings. But neither was the man who looms as one of the most talked-about free agents of 2025. Tom De...

wednesday 10

Brisbane Times

Peter Ryan

He didn’t just beat Alcaraz, he mastered him: Novak Djokovic stalls the march of time

He didn’t just beat Alcaraz, he mastered him: Novak Djokovic stalls the march of time

A generation gap will develop and grow between Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz, but it’s not discernible yet, and it may never show on the...

wednesday 9

Brisbane Times

Greg Baum

Falling fertility rates will hurt the economy. But a new baby boom is not the answer

Falling fertility rates will hurt the economy. But a new baby boom is not the answer

I was a youngish reporter at federal parliament when former Treasurer Peter Costello issued his famed appeal for Australians to have more babies....

wednesday 6

Brisbane Times

Matt Wade

Being shamed for spending money won’t help you. Here’s what will

Being shamed for spending money won’t help you. Here’s what will

Today, I yet again saw some personal finance guru advocating the same tired advice: if you don’t have money, why are you wasting it on coffees,...

wednesday 1

Brisbane Times

Paridhi Jain

I pay more tax than my husband. Will that affect our pension?

I pay more tax than my husband. Will that affect our pension?

My husband is 64, and I am 59. I work full-time with an income of $83,000, while my husband works part-time, earning $15,000–$20,000 per year. I...

wednesday 1

Brisbane Times

Noel Whittaker

Trump’s ‘Day One’ promise has been broken

Trump’s ‘Day One’ promise has been broken

Amid the blitz of executive orders Donald Trump foreshadowed at his inauguration there was a notable omission. There were no new tariffs – at...

21.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Stephen Bartholomeusz

The key moments from Trump’s first day back in power

The key moments from Trump’s first day back in power

The frosty Washington weather may have forced Donald Trump’s inauguration indoors, but his first day back in the White House was never going to be...

21.01.2025 2

Brisbane Times

Matthew Knott

Trump returns bolder than ever with a speech that sets the tone for his second term

Trump returns bolder than ever with a speech that sets the tone for his second term

Washington: It was an inauguration that set the tone for a second-term presidency more emboldened and unchecked than the first. Six months after he...

21.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Farrah Tomazin

The $230m experiment that Wesfarmers would rather forget

The $230m experiment that Wesfarmers would rather forget

It’s taken five years but Wesfarmers boss Rob Scott has raised the white flag on the company’s expensive retail experiment which involved forking...

21.01.2025 2

Brisbane Times

Elizabeth Knight

Mars, you’ve been warned: Donald Trump launches second term like a rocket

Mars, you’ve been warned: Donald Trump launches second term like a rocket

Strap in. Day one of Donald Trump’s second term as president of the United States was by turns fascinating, funny and frightening: the 21st...

21.01.2025 1

Brisbane Times

The Herald&x27S View

There’ll be no Big Show in the Test team, but that’s a win for the Big Bash

There’ll be no Big Show in the Test team, but that’s a win for the Big Bash

Leaving Glenn Maxwell out of the Sri Lanka Test tour wasn’t the hardest call for Australia’s selectors. That unfortunate honour instead went to...

21.01.2025 2

Brisbane Times

Daniel Brettig

Looking back, my birth plan was delusional. I wouldn’t change a thing

Looking back, my birth plan was delusional. I wouldn’t change a thing

Birth stories take many forms. Some are joyous, some are tragic, many are traumatic and confusing. Mine was an overwhelming mix of all of the...

21.01.2025 1

Brisbane Times

Wendy Syfret

Penny Wong’s golden ticket to the Trump show signals Australia’s strength

Penny Wong’s golden ticket to the Trump show signals Australia’s strength

Penny Wong and Donald Trump: the cerebral, cautious champion of Labor’s left and the brash real estate tycoon turned Republican hero. It hardly...

21.01.2025 1

Brisbane Times

Matthew Knott

Trump 2.0 means what he says. His delirious base expects nothing else

Trump 2.0 means what he says. His delirious base expects nothing else

At 12.02pm in Washington DC, Donald Trump took the oath to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” and resumed...

21.01.2025 3

Brisbane Times

Bruce Wolpe

We saw four Donalds in one day, but there’s a fifth we need to watch

We saw four Donalds in one day, but there’s a fifth we need to watch

Washington: Donald Trump sat at the Resolute Desk signing executive orders for the cameras and taking questions from a small pool of journalists...

21.01.2025 1

Brisbane Times

Michael Koziol

Could a boarder help you pay your mortgage?

Could a boarder help you pay your mortgage?

The immediate solution to the housing shortage is fitting more people into existing houses, something that would also help with cost of living...

21.01.2025 1

Brisbane Times

Julia Hartman

‘Children of the elite’ send tech broligarchy to the right

‘Children of the elite’ send tech broligarchy to the right

Palo Alto, the small Californian town which spawned Stanford University, Silicon Valley and the so-called “broligarchy”, used to boast that it...

21.01.2025 1

Brisbane Times

Janine Perrett

Trump lines his pockets and leaves his supporters out in the cold

Trump lines his pockets and leaves his supporters out in the cold

Some of the best relationship advice I ever received was to begin the way you intend to carry through. That probably meant something like being...

21.01.2025 1

Brisbane Times

Cory Alpert