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This Conservative Party leaflet kills three birds with one stone and is a classic example of Lynton Crosby’s campaign strategy. UK Conservative Party/Buzzfeed

Decoding the Crosby campaign: how to find voters and finish first

The British Conservative government’s re-election is the latest and perhaps most startling electoral triumph for Australian political strategist Lynton Crosby. So how did he do it?
Zannoni’s 1771 Map of the British Isles shows the heart of the “civilised” world – at least according to Adam Smith when he was writing The Wealth of Nations. Wikimedia Commons/Geographicus Rare Antique Maps

Savage peoples: the racism of Adam Smith in Wealth of Nations

To burnish the virtues of “civilised” Europe, Adam Smith relies on a barrage of racial insults. Where did his information about the so-called “savage peoples” come from in the first place?
‘What’s in it for me?’ is a common question today, but not one that necessarily produces the best answers for collective wellbeing. Shutterstock/iQoncept

Explainer: the greater good and why it matters more than ever

The concept of the greater good has made a comeback in Europe in an era of budget austerity, but in Australia too few of us are alive to its meaning – and to its vulnerability.
Australian aid can make a difference to the lives of millions – but there are few votes and little media interest in it, so it’s an easy target for budget cuts. John Bransby/Department of Foreign Affairs

A fair budget? Not for the poor losing Australian aid in record cuts

Foreign aid will fall to close to 90 cents in every A$100 of federal government spending in the 2015 budget – its lowest level ever.
Social Services Minister Scott Morrison announces that a A$3.5 billion child-care subsidy will begin from July 1 2017 if the Senate passes previously rejected Family Tax Benefit savings. AAP/Paul Miller

Focus on working parents misses true value of universal early childhood services

Lost in the political debate about subsidising child care is the fact that universal free preschool care has been abandoned as a goal of good social policy.
Unlike other chronic diseases, targeted spending on mental health care keeps people in the prime of their lives in the workforce. Sebastian Gauert/Shutterstock

Mental health care spending saves money, and that’s worth investing in

There’s a growing disconnect between grassroots awareness of mental illness and decisive action towards providing the full spectrum of care for those in need.
No improvements have been made to Indigenous higher education participation or completion despite a major review. from www.shutterstock.com.au

Nothing has changed since Indigenous higher ed review

Three years after the Review of Higher Education Access and Outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People which aimed to increase university attendance for Indigenous Australians, not much has changed.
Onstage at the JC Williamson Theatre Royal in Sydney in 1935. Are we treating our playwrights any better than we did then? Wikimedia Commons

Australian plays: how to persuade a nation to question its own soul?

Playwriting occupies a weak position in Australian culture because its historical role is not to be “good”, but to be socially acceptable. We need now to take a modern attitude to drama.
Current research metrics only reward publishing in academic journals and effectively punish publishing in the popular press. Tobias von der Haar/Flickr

We need to stop punishing scientists for talking to the public

If we want scientists to spent time sharing their discoveries with the general public, then we need to change research metrics to reward them for their efforts.
Ed Miliband’s Labour Party gained a swing twice as big as the Conservatives did but lost seats, leading him to resign. EPA/Facundo Arrizabalaga

Voting system gives Tories a result most UK voters didn’t want

Labour, UKIP and the Greens all gained much bigger swings than the Conservatives, but were election losers. The first-past-the-post system let the Tories pick up a swag of seats with a 0.8% swing.
If your symptoms are above the neck, you’ll still be able to manage a lighter-than-normal workout. mimohe/Shutterstock

Health Check: can I exercise while getting over a bug?

As we move into winter, the cold mornings, dark evenings and rain tend to bring out the best excuses to miss a session at the gym or run around the park.
When Australians hear about Foreign Minister Julie Bishop’s dire warnings and counter-terrorism raids, they could lose historical perspective on the threat posed by Islamic State. AAP/Mal Fairclough

With jihadists among us, is IS more of a threat than communism was?

Dire government warnings and counter-terrorism raids in our suburbs paint a picture of the worst threat Western nations have ever faced. A little historical perspective is in order.
Without the contributions of its army of volunteers – six million of them in all – Australia would be a profoundly different place. AAP/David Crosling

Ten things you should know about volunteering’s immeasurable value

It’s National Volunteer Week, which celebrates the contributions of one in four Australians. Vounteering has 10 core features that should be considered to understand this integral part of our society.
The Lost Battalion, 2015. Acrylic, soil, charcoal and shellac on paper. Lev Vykopal. Fremantle Arts Centre

Lev Vykopal’s Gallipoli balances history against the legends

Tackling Gallipoli is an onerous challenge: it carries baggage that must be accommodated or unpacked with extreme care. Western Australian artist Lev Vykopal’s two exhibitions offer a mix of reverence, analysis, critique and poetry.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Social Services Minister Scott Morrison hope the government’s childcare policy will encourage more Australians to enter or re-enter the workforce. Paul Miller/AAP

Childcare package neither bold or sustainable

Making the case for subsidising childcare is not as simple as it might seem, and the government’s new childcare package may not pay for itself.