Thanks.

A wonderful
Analysis and piece of writing

‘Narcissus’s self-love eventually kills him, leaving only Echo’s empty voice. Centuries on, political systems still struggle to know how to manage someone so detached from the reality of others.’

@juliannes.bsky.social 🔥🔥🔥

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Trump’s rhetoric has become less grounded in reality – Albanese can no longer tiptoe around the madness | Julianne Schultz The PM’s political antennae finally twitched this week when he felt safe to criticise the US president’s ‘extraordinary’ threat

I gave up finding a robust geopolitical or economic rationale for the war - so I turned to pop culture. As Top
Gun advises: “don’t think, just do it.” www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

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I’m Director of #PathwaysToPolitics #UniCBR in 2026. Applications open now: pathwaystopolitics.org.au

Yep…loaded with meaning & packed with punishment unfortunately. Could be something really positive, but that would take hard work.

Anxiety about national security is surging among ordinary Australians. And it starts at their front door | Julianne Schultz Patriotism can be inclusive and respectful, it need not exclude and demean. Trust can vanquish extremism

National security is more than subs & intelligence. It starts with safe, inclusive communities. The people know this, Canberra not sure how this fits the risk matrix, so the impulse is to blame & punish. Working with would be better. A fault line: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Social cohesion has lost its feelgood vibe. What will it take to offer a fair go for all? The phrase should evoke optimism, positive expectations about the future, trust and belonging. That seems almost out of reach in a chaotic world

‘The data is unequivocal: the economically marginalised are least likely to feel that they belong.’

A must read @juliannes.bsky.social.

www.theguardian.com/society/ng-i...

Australia should be generous, not punitive, when it comes to those seeking to escape war | Julianne Schultz | The Australian immigration system has long punished people who felt they had no option but to flee their homeland

"For years Australia’s immigration and refugee system has been punishing people who felt they had no option but to flee their homeland
...some are viewed as more deserving of asylum than others." @juliannes.bsky.social on the Australian govt's hypocrisy. #auspol
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Yes Qld did vacate the law for that legislation. But even having to do that draws attention to the fact of the rights. Same as Howard & the NT intervention overriding Racial discrimination law. But conservative govts in Qld & Vic haven’t revoked the core rights legislation.

The evidence seems to be to the contrary-no sign of the Vic or Qld judiciaries being politicised by their human rights acts. If rights are actually defined surely that strengthens democracy.remember it took the high court decades to “discover” the implied right to freedom of political communication.

The ‘pleasant fiction’ of a rules-based order has been blown apart. It’s time for Australia to codify a bill of rights | Julianne Schultz What’s happening on American streets makes clear that a charter of rights does not prevent state overreach. But human rights must be more than a debating point

Is a bill of rights a good way to build social capital and social cohesion as @juliannes.bsky.social suggests?

That would be great but consider Ted Mack’s concerns that a bill of rights will politicise the judiciary and weaken democracy…

#AusPol #CommEnd

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The ‘pleasant fiction’ of a rules-based order has been blown apart. It’s time for Australia to codify a bill of rights | Julianne Schultz What’s happening on American streets makes clear that a charter of rights does not prevent state overreach. But human rights must be more than a debating point

"changing the terms of the political debate to a positive assertion of rights could do more to build social capital and enhance social cohesion than punitive laws." @juliannes.bsky.social #HumanRights #auspol
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Important reading from @juliannes.bsky.social on the sensitivity to human rights and “human intervention” that we cannot risk losing:

"Given that the consensus is that Australian constitutional change is just too hard, a statutory bill of rights could have symbolic as well as practical impact. It would also strengthen Australian advocacy in a world where #humanrights are increasingly derided." @juliannes.bsky.social #auspol

At the Bondi vigil, Pauline and Barnaby turned tragedy into opportunism. It is inexcusable | Julianne Schultz Hanson has done more than any other politician to foster division in Australia. Her words to mourners after the horrific attack ring hollow

OPINION @juliannes.bsky.social “There, standing at the front of the crowd, surrounded by besuited security personnel & journalists, were two of the most egregious opportunists ever to be elected to the Australian parliament – Pauline Hanson & Barnaby Joyce.” #Bondi #auspol shorturl.at/7xrVN

‘It’s not your turn,’ the board's selection committee chair said. Instantly I felt as though I was back in the school yard | Julianne Schultz While the tension between meritocracy and ‘jobs for mates’ is always there, the best boards are more than the sum of their parts

Julianne Schultz @juliannes.bsky.social in the Guardian on “jobs for mates”.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The opposition has been allowed to set the agenda. It’s an absurd situation that is debasing national politics | Julianne Schultz The emerging ‘debate’ about immigration is a cruel example. It’s distracting us from addressing the issues that would improve lives

🔥🔥🔥’Allowing the opposition to set the national agenda has provoked an absurd situation that is debasing national politics, stymying important decisions and distracting us from the issues that really need to be addressed…’

@juliannes.bsky.social

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The PM Australia elected “avoids conflict, postpones it indefinitely. As long as he does so, he inevitably helps those who benefit from things hewing close to their current condition.” - Sean Kelly

As @juliannes.bsky.social concludes:

Telling authentically Australian stories on screen takes more than just a content quota | Julianne Schultz How do you create a powerful local cultural moment in the streamers’ age of algorithmic digital colonisation?

‘…the bigger, existential question is how do you create an authentic local cultural moment in an age of algorithmic digital colonisation? Decolonisation was hard a century ago and will be again.’ @juliannes.bsky.social

Sigh…

www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...

"does dressing up Melbourne to make it look like Chicago, and showcasing the most outstanding film star of her generation, make this an authentic Australian story?" @juliannes.bsky.social #auspol

Telling authentically Australian stories on screen takes more than just a content quota | Julianne Schultz How do you create a powerful local cultural moment in the streamers’ age of algorithmic digital colonisation?

“Digital colonisation takes many forms but one of the most powerful is its algorithmic ability to distract us to death…” Stop scrolling for a moment to read @juliannes.bsky.social’s valuable take on safeguarding Australian culture: www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...

Meet the author - Julianne Schultz Get tickets on Humanitix - Meet the author - Julianne Schultz. Kambri Cinema (Lowitja O'Donoghue Cultural Centre), Tangney Rd, Acton ACT 2601, Australia. Monday 10th November 2025. Find event informat...

What is the ‘idea of Australia’? What defines the soul of our nation? @juliannes.bsky.social set out to answer these questions and more in her recent book, ‘The Idea of Australia: A search for the soul of the nation’.

See you there!
 
6pm 10 Nov 2025 Kambri ANU events.humanitix.com/meet-the-aut...

Australia for sale? Albanese isn’t the first PM to offer our resources up to an ally | Julianne Schultz In echoes of the past, the critical minerals deal with the US comes with the promise that more will be left behind than just holes in the ground

‘The aim now is to ensure that these settings are such that they benefit us all, not just the chosen few members of the team sitting beside the political negotiators.’

🔥🔥🔥 @juliannes.bsky.social

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... #auspol

Adopting a ‘she’ll be right’ attitude to Australian politics may be seductive, but it certainly isn’t guaranteed | Julianne Schultz Australians are rightfully proud of their robust election process, yet surveys suggest very few fully understand it

Is Labor ‘wrapping complex issues in…slow and cumbersome bureaucratic processes, closing options before they are fully ventilated, reducing access to information, banning protests and responding to constituents’ letters with AI-generated gobbledegook’?

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... #auspol

Adopting a ‘she’ll be right’ attitude to Australian politics may be seductive, but it certainly isn’t guaranteed Australians are rightfully proud of their robust election process, yet surveys suggest very few fully understand it

2/2 A timely article on the status quo spruikers [like Albo] from @juliannes.bsky.social who was on #SundayShot last week. #auspol
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Adopting a ‘she’ll be right’ attitude to Australian politics may be seductive, but it certainly isn’t guaranteed Australians are rightfully proud of their robust election process, yet surveys suggest very few fully understand it

“In her snappy little book When Australia Became a Republic, Esther Anatolitis documents the long, slow history of political change…” Big thanks to the always brilliant @juliannes.bsky.social for including When Australia Became a Republic in her column today: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

"Beware of political leaders encouraging apathy, patting your hand and assuring you that the status quo is all hunky dory...
For decades conservative political leaders have fostered this in Australia." @juliannes.bsky.social

Albanese is in the same dodgy tradition: more Howard than Hawke. #auspol

‘Why have we forgotten this?’: Story of gay bushrangers revealed in documentary Two very different portraits of Australia are revealed by Rachel Griffiths in two new series on the ABC and SBS.

Its been a great experience working with Rachel Griffiths & the Blackfella Films team to make thus. www.smh.com.au/culture/tv-a...

Starts on #SBS Wednesday 15.10 @730pm