(Image: AAP/Lukas Coch)

INVESTIGATIONS AND ASSESSMENTS

Defence Minister Peter Dutton has called for a proper investigation into “serious allegations” of bullying towards the late Labor senator Kimberley Kitching who he has described as a “dear friend”, The Australian ($) reports. It comes as Deputy Labor Leader Richard Marles confirmed the party will assess its internal culture in an ongoing way, Guardian Australia adds.

The latest revelations are that Kitching reportedly lodged an informal bullying complaint with Marles in June, and then complained again to PWC consultants in November, the ABC reports, during a workplace training sparked by Brittany Higgins’ rape allegation. Kitching reportedly told colleagues she openly asked the trainer what they would do about “the fact that I am being bullied”, not naming names. But the night prior to the training, Kitching reportedly sent a text message to a friend that named Senator Penny Wong as being “bad”, the Oz ($) reports. But Marles says it’s too soon — he called probing reporter questions about the allegations of bullying “offensive”, asking the press scrum to have a little respect.

Speaking of journalists behaving badly, Fox Sports journalist Tom Morris has been suspended after a video circulated of him allegedly making “misogynistic” comments about a female colleague, ABC reports, though it didn’t publish the comments. If he sounds familiar, it’s probably because Morris was also in the headlines this week for copping a spectacular spray from Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge, who later apologised and admitted he “overstepped the mark”. Morris had asked a question when Beveridge retorted Morris’s “gutter journalism” and “conflict of interest” made him “an embarrassment” to his profession. Yikes.

[free_worm]

WORK HARD, PAY HARD

Australian unemployment has fallen to 4%, the equal-lowest figure in 48 years — and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg reckons we’ll see lower welfare payments and higher tax revenues do some good for our $99 billion deficit, AFR reports. Frydenberg continues that we can expect more help for families to reduce the cost of living and no more large-scale emergency support in the budget and beyond, as The Conversation’s Michelle Grattan reports. Frydenberg also says our fiscal policy will shift towards stabilising and reducing debt, though he’ll stress it doesn’t mean cuts. He’ll confirm the Coalition will stay the course with the long-term policy of capping the tax-to-GDP ratio at 23.9%, The Australian ($) adds. These are all sneak previews of a speech he is delivering today at the Australian Chamber of Commerce and ­Industry.

It comes as Prime Minister Scott Morrison continues his work out west, dining with Perth’s elite business identities on Wednesday with tickets costing $14,000, The West ($) reports. Premier Mark McGowan and Morrison were snapped looking chummy yesterday as Morrison hopes to win the hearts of the high-flying premier’s sizable fan base — McGowan is coasting on a 60% approval rating. Morrison has talked up his WA credentials, but also played down public name-calling — including labelling WA “cave people” for their COVID-19 approach — which went ’round the world, as The Washington Post ($) reported.

RED LIGHT GREEN LIGHT

Defence personnel are not allowed to talk about climate change without getting prior approval from Defence Minister Peter Dutton’s office, according to former chief of the defence force Chris Barrie. Barrie says many defence personnel who came to his talk at defence headquarters want to be “out there speaking”, and called it a disgrace that climate change has become a left-right issue, Guardian Australia reports. The Australian Defence Association boss says most consider climate change a big problem but also believe in keeping “politics out of the gun”. Dutton’s spokesperson denied Barrie’s claim was true.

In some more positive climate action news, ABC has a cracking story this morning about what each state and territory is doing to make buying an electric vehicle easier. There are loads of incentives, including tax exemptions and rebates, to encourage uptake of the vehicles — and it’s working. About 2% of our cars are electric, after we tripled sales of EVs from 2020-2021, Guardian Australia says. And with petrol now costing Sydneysiders $15 more each week, the momentum could further — mind the pun — accelerate. And the SMH has a lovely story about keen gardener Nev Sweeny, who runs Under the Choko Tree — it’s a great resource for those who want to grow their own veggies and live more sustainably. It’s catching on, too — a survey from Greener Spaces Better Places in 2021 found that two out of three Australians grow something to eat, the paper says.

ON A LIGHTER NOTE

Scrolling through social media can leave you with a bit of whiplash these days — posts about your pal’s cheerful kids or your cousin’s wedding can be interspersed with war, pandemic, climate, or any other crises that the algorithm serves up. If you’d like to inject a little more positivity and reduce the “doomscrolling”, might I suggest you peruse this list from The Guardian? It’s the 50 cheeriest social media accounts — from dancing academics to seal pups — to “dilute your feeds with goodness”. Among the suggestions are the Good News Network and Goodable, both Twitter account that only post happy, fun news stories. Or check out Dr Radha on Instagram, who posts useful affirmations and lists for the heart and mind.

If you’re looking for something more interesting than uplifting, the list has you covered too. Mr Forge’s Tiktok account is devoted to one simple question: can he cook food with superheated molten metal? Or Salvage Rebuilds UK, an Instagram account where two guys buy old cars and slowly fix them up. Miniaturist Tatsuya Tanaka has an Instagram where she uses everyday objects to make little worlds — like a sandwich-elevator. And if you’re looking for some classic uplifting animal content, check out Foxes in Love, a cartoon of two foxes that represent the artist and his partner, and Woof Woof TV, an Instagram where the owner just posts loads of cute, silly, big, tiny, and costumed dogs. Finally, if a little nostalgia is in order, check out Retronaut’s Twitter, which posts old-timey photos from a bygone era.

Hope you look after yourself today, folks, and have a restful weekend ahead.

SAY WHAT?

Those carrying coffins out of Ukraine churches are not focused on climate change, as the aggressor has never made it an item of negotiation of a ceasefire.

Barnaby Joyce

The deputy PM is the latest to link the invasion of Ukraine with so-called progressive movements, like the people who are keen to stop the irreversible destruction to our planet largely done during one human lifetime, for instance. Joyce made the comments in Brisbane, urging young people advocating for more climate action to think about how their liberties could be squashed if we were invaded.

CRIKEY RECAP

Anti-vaxxers say they raised $280,000 for flood support. People are asking how the money’s being spent

Mar 17, 2022

55

Unlocked

“More than anything, the group has shared dozens of screenshots and requests for help while calling for more donations. Crikey sent a number of questions about the group’s claims of spending to its email address. Someone operating the account repeatedly promised to respond but never did.

“It was only after Crikey asked about ways that people who wanted help from the group could make a request that the group added a ‘register to be helped’ section on its website. The group has fundraised off the back of allegations that charities such as the Red Cross are corrupt or incompetent.”

Barnaby’s dam not worth a damn with no $$s and no environmental approval

Mar 17, 2022

21

Unlocked

“The funding could reinforce the Coalition’s electoral dominance of a regional Queensland seat, directly benefiting the Nationals’ holdings of Flynn, Capricornia and Dawson. It would also send an explicit message to the fossil fuel industry that the government is not retreating from spending significant amounts backing coal production — a message it would also hope reaches voters in such electorates as Hunter.

“Coalmining would get a third of the water the private operator wants to collect by damming the Broken River, some 90km west of Mackay.”

Factional dramas and cynical point-scoring trail Kitching’s death

Mar 17, 2022

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“Then there’s the messy, arcane factional staff. Kitching belonged to the Victorian right, specifically a subgroup associated with Shorten and the Australian Workers Union (there are around six such subgroups).

“But the Adem Somyurek branch-stacking scandal led to a realignment within the party, where a rival right subfaction aligned with the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association won out. It also led to Labor’s national executive taking over control of the state branch, a move that could end up before the High Court.”

READ ALL ABOUT IT

Is a nuclear disaster likely in Ukraine? (Al Jazeera)

US adds ‘kamikaze drones’ as more weapons flow to Ukraine (The New York Times)

‘I await divine justice’: Rebels bring woes to Ethiopia’s Amhara (Al Jazeera)

4 ways China is quietly making life harder for Russia (CNN)

Respected Māori leader Sir Wira Gardiner dies aged 78 (NZ Herald)

Mariupol theatre: ‘We knew something terrible would happen’ (BBC)

Amazon closes deal to acquire MGM (The Wall Street Journal)

Russian court extends Brittney Griner’s detention (The New York Times)

This might be the end of sharing Netflix passwords (CNN)

Scientists claim hairy black holes explain Hawking paradox (BBC)

THE COMMENTARIAT

ALP leaders failed to support and protect Kitching — Nicolle Flint (The Australian) ($): “Since then, in numerous speeches to parliament I have highlighted that under Albanese Labor allegedly has failed to keep its female staff safe from abuse from current and former male MPs, it failed to support women or keep them safe in safe Labor seats for preselection, and Albanese has failed to condemn sexist and misogynist rants against me and other women by friendlyjordies and its supporters, despite my many speeches and two letters to him pleading with him to do so.

“We now know he also failed to support and protect one of his own, Kitching. He failed to support and protect her in her workplace and he failed to protect her preselection and thus her career. He has failed to condemn ‘inappropriate behaviour’ by her female and factional colleagues. So when Albanese has the gall to say he listens and acts for women, as he did on Tuesday, he is lying. Wong is no better.”

The 9 to 5 schedule should be the next pillar of work to fall — Emily Laber-Warren (The New York Times): “But in a truly flexible workplace, people would control not just where they work but also when. Southwest Airlines allows pilots to choose between morning and evening flight schedules. A few tech companies, including Automattic and DuckDuckGo, have work-anytime policies that enable employees to become nomadic and travel the world or simply run weekday errands. But such opportunities remain rare.

“Our bodies also would benefit from more flexibility. Each of us has a personalized rhythm known as a chronotype — an internal timer that governs when we naturally fall asleep and when we are most alert. For more than half of adults, biological bedtime falls after midnight, which means that a typical 9-to-5 work schedule throws many of us out of sync. Our early-bird-gets-the-worm ethic often gets applied to office workers who could do their work just as effectively on their own time.”

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