Assange is a hero to many, but even a hero must comply with the ordinary criminal law, whether it be that of Australia, Britain or Sweden. Important principles of freedom of speech and open government are at stake, but these should not blind us to the importance of the rule of law. No one should be above the law, not even Assange.
George Williams on the bail jumper
26 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of crime, law and economics, politics - Australia, politics - USA
The case for unilateral recognition
11 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in applied price theory, economics of information, economics of regulation, industrial organisation, international economic law, international economics, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, regulation
Bilateral, plurilateral, and multilateral are words that New Zealand’s civil service love. There is nothing that can’t be improved by doing it in concert with others. Sometimes there’s good reason for just doing stuff. New Zealand made the right decision when it unilaterally slashed all of its tariffs. It also progressed all the other trade agreements that helped…
The case for unilateral recognition
Populist political party folly
08 Sep 2026 Leave a comment
in Economics of international refugee law, International law, labour economics, labour supply, law and economics, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand Tags: British politics, France, Germany
I wonder whether the massive support for the (AFD) Alternatives for Germany party in the Saxony state election, along with the sight of hundreds of Brits trying to stop illegal migrants arriving by boat from France, while Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, out rates all the other parties, will finally get western elites to face the […]
Populist political party folly
Deliberately keeping people waiting
11 Aug 2026 Leave a comment
In May 2008, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd reportedly kept Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, then Chief of the Defence Force, and Michael L’Estrange, Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, waiting for several hours outside his office before a scheduled meeting. L’Estrange reportedly missed an engagement with the French ambassador as a result. It is not as if […]
Deliberately keeping people waiting
One Nation Party and Antisemitism
05 Aug 2026 Leave a comment
One Nation spokesmen such as Malcolm Roberts and Warren Pickering have expressed conspiracy theorist allegations about global ‘cabals’ and ‘parasites’ controlling the world’s finances. To what extent is this likely to be a euphemistic form of antisemitism? In Malcolm Roberts’s case, there is a strong basis for describing the rhetoric as a coded or euphemistic […]
One Nation Party and Antisemitism
Criminal “Villification”: Australia Court Upholds Conviction, Massive Fine, and Compelled Speech in Transgender Case
29 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economics of regulation, gender, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - Australia, politics - USA, property rights Tags: free speech, political correctness, regressive left, sex discrimination
We have followed the evisceration of free speech values in the United Kingdom and other Western nations. Australia has been…
Criminal “Villification”: Australia Court Upholds Conviction, Massive Fine, and Compelled Speech in Transgender Case
Entryism: The Subversion of Political Parties from Within
28 Jul 2026 1 Comment
in politics - Australia, politics - USA Tags: British politics
Entryism is objectionable not because it advances left-wing or right-wing ideas, but because it seeks political power under a partially false identity. Instead of openly forming a party, presenting a programme and asking voters to support it, entryists join a larger established party and attempt to redirect or capture it from within. Political parties must, […]
Entryism: The Subversion of Political Parties from Within
The Hollowing of the Political Centre
27 Jun 2026 1 Comment
in liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA Tags: voter demographics
Across the Western democracies, the political centre is under pressure. The populist right is rising, especially in Europe and the United States, while younger voters are showing renewed interest in socialism, or at least in much more interventionist economic policies. The result is not that the centre has vanished, but that it has lost much […]
The Hollowing of the Political Centre
Net Zero Just Cut Aussie Wheat Production by 50%
03 Jun 2026 1 Comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - Australia
Too bad all those Aussie oil refineries had to close. The post Net Zero Just Cut Aussie Wheat Production by 50% appeared first on Watts Up With That?.
Net Zero Just Cut Aussie Wheat Production by 50%
What do Muslim immigrants think?
31 May 2026 Leave a comment
in defence economics, economics of crime, economics of media and culture, economics of religion, law and economics, liberalism, politics, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA Tags: economics of immigration
Tomas Pueyo has collated a huge amount of public opinion data from Muslims in Western countries. He finds: Depending on the country of origin and destination:~10-40% of Muslims are moderate & well integrated~20-50% are conservative, religious, pious~25% are fundamentalists~Of which 15% (pp) are radical Islamists Some findings in the US: He concludes: In summary, the…
What do Muslim immigrants think?
NZ First’s foray into transgender issues might be ethically dubious, but politically it could be a winner
27 May 2026 Leave a comment
in discrimination, economics of regulation, gender, law and economics, liberalism, Marxist economics, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA, property rights Tags: 2024 presidential election, sex discrimination
One political advertisement stood out from the thousands that blitzed the US presidential campaign of 2024. It inflicted enormous damage on the Democratic Party’s flagbearer, Kamala Harris. The ad’s central tagline deployed just two sentences: “Kamala is for they/them. President Trump is for you.” Former President Bill Clinton urged the Harris Campaign to come back […]
NZ First’s foray into transgender issues might be ethically dubious, but politically it could be a winner
Dane Luo: Andy Burnham and the Constitution – The Conventions on the Appointment of the Prime Minister
20 May 2026 Leave a comment
in constitutional political economy, economic history, politics, politics - Australia Tags: British constitutional law, British politics, Canada, constitutional law
After disastrous local government election results for the Labour Party, speculation has been rife about an internal leadership challenge to Prime Minister Keir Starmer. On Thursday 14 May 2026, the Member of Makerfield, Josh Simons, announced he was resigning his Manchester-based seat (formally given effect by an appointment to an ‘office of profit under the […]
Dane Luo: Andy Burnham and the Constitution – The Conventions on the Appointment of the Prime Minister
Bigger than Ben Hur
16 May 2026 1 Comment
in Austrian economics, economics of regulation, health economics, industrial organisation, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand Tags: black markets, economics of smoking
Radio NZ reports: Deakin University associate criminology professor Dr James Martin told RNZ the Australian approach had relied on enforcement to suppress the black market. “This has been really ineffective,” he said. “We’ve got between 50-60 percent of all tobacco and nearly all vaping products in Australia now come from criminal suppliers, and it’s generated…
Bigger than Ben Hur
Net Zero Parties Annihilated By Trump Aligned Candidates in British and Australian Elections
11 May 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - Australia, Public Choice Tags: British politics, net zero
Turns out the public has higher priorities than ensuring their great grandkids enjoy 0.01ºC lower temperatures in 100 years. The post Net Zero Parties Annihilated By Trump Aligned Candidates in British and Australian Elections appeared first on Watts Up With That?.
Net Zero Parties Annihilated By Trump Aligned Candidates in British and Australian Elections
“Get Rid of the Department of Climate Change”: Aussie One Nation’s Condition for a Future Coalition Government Deal
05 May 2026 Leave a comment
in economics of climate change, energy economics, environmental economics, environmentalism, global warming, politics - Australia
One Nation, which is riding high in national polls, has laid out a hard condition for supporting any future right wing Aussie coalition government. The post “Get Rid of the Department of Climate Change”: Aussie One Nation’s Condition for a Future Coalition Government Deal appeared first on Watts Up With That?.
“Get Rid of the Department of Climate Change”: Aussie One Nation’s Condition for a Future Coalition Government Deal
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