Nick Feik

The government will be scorched unless it acts soon

The American people elected a candidate who promised to upend their political system. As with Brexit, it was a political result that seemed to come out of nowhere. The politics of rage, of populism, of protest, are overwhelming Western nations. In the …

The election of the most powerful person in the world was always going to be dramatic, but the fascination and disgust generated by Donald Trump has led to democratic effects that few predicted. The campaign has been a circus, and no one, it seems, can …

“In 2016,” writes Alison Croggon in the new issue of the Monthly, “it became clear that Australian arts are facing the worst crisis since before the Australia Council was founded in 1967.” For several years, the Monthly’s …

What is the role of the ABC? This question has never been more important. As commercial newsrooms struggle amid collapsing revenue – as jobs are lost, desks are closed – and their very existence comes under threat, the public will look to the …

From the census debacle to the Don Dale scandal, politicians and the public have short memories

This month in a landmark essay, the great indigenous leader Galarrwuy Yunupingu writes about his history and culture, and sums up a lifetime of his thinking about relations between settler and Aboriginal cultures. “My father had to sacrifice much, …

As Australia emerges from its post-election stupor and parties begin to evaluate what went right and wrong, this month we focus on the Australian Greens. What did the party deliver in the recent election? It was the Greens’ deal with the government …

Three weeks into the eight-week election campaign, some things are clear. Bill Shorten’s confidence is up, and he seems to be having fun. His party, while vulnerable to the common Coalition attacks, and notwithstanding minor hiccups, has sharper messages …