Ennui, apathy over Charles III; Vatican had vetoed agreed Calvary sale; Oxford and free speech; Australia at 1.5 over

Published: Sat, 05/20/23

RSA Daily

For atheists, rationalists and secular humanists in Australia

Sunday, May 21, 2023

Rationale, the magazine of the Rationalist Society of Australia

Good morning ,

I'm repeatedly surprised at how often people think that if we become a republic with our own head of state, Australia would no longer be a member of the Commonwealth. It's not true of course. There's lots of republics in the Commonwealth and only a minority that retain Charles III as their head of state.

In our lead story, even the Journal of the Commonwealth says they're bored with Charles ("ennui and apathy over the dawn of the new Carolean era".

Lead stories

The new Head of the Commonwealth's future difficulties

An editorial from the Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs: "Charles .. might have been hoping for much of the same acclaim and jubilation that his mother’s coronation had prompted in 1953 .. instead, for all the pomp and circumstance of his ceremony, he is the oldest monarch ever to be crowned in Britain and a discernible feeling of ennui and apathy hung over the dawn of the new Carolean era." Ouch.

John Warhurst: Canberran context matters in Calvary takeover case

Huh, this I didn't know. "One aspect of this is the long and convoluted history of ACT government efforts to buy Calvary hospital, which culminated 15 years ago with an agreed sale being vetoed by the Vatican."

Oxford students try to deplatform Kathleen Stock and punish the university group inviting her

A long-ish but informative recounting of how the Oxford Student Union (not the same thing as the Oxford Union) tried to deplatform lesbian academic Kathleen Stock. Forty Oxford dons have been fighting back, citing the risk to freedom of speech.

What Australia faces if and when we pass 1.5C of warming by 2027

"Australia faces ongoing Black Summer-level bushfire catastrophes, the decimation of coastal homes, and a dead Great Barrier Reef if the world becomes 1.5C hotter and stays there. And the first time we’ve ever surpassed this tipping point is likely to take place in the next four years."

Other stories of interest

New media's idiosyncratic survivor

For those who might be interested in the history of Crikey.

Greek election: Young voters turn backs on major parties

For those of you who, like me, have fond memories of living in Greece during sunnier times.

Demonized inventions: From railroads to AI

Fear and loathing of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is consistent with a history of fear and loathing of many new technologies...

The science of passion: Why do we kiss?

It all comes down to swapping spit (!)

Got a comment on any of these stories?

Write to me at president@rationalist.com.au