What's the Big Idea?
Voters deserve fresh ideas, not just soothing slogans
Peter Fray FEDERAL elections should be about the challenges facing Australia and the opportunities that lie before us. They should be about ideas, not just slogans.
What should this election be about?
Glyn Davis ELECTIONS are a celebration of democracy - a chance to choose between competing visions for the nation.
Do we really want Charles as king?
Greg Barns THERE is a saying about putting the cart before the horse, and it is particularly apt when one thinks about Julia Gillard's recent remarks about an Australian republic.
Is it our future to be China's quarry?
Ross Gittins WHAT our economy needs in the 2010s is success in balancing supply and demand. Does that sound obvious and not very hard? It's neither.
Is there time to spare in the fight against climate change?
Samantha Mostyn SO much heat, so much wasted time and energy.
Should elections be less frequent?
PHILLIP COOREY Three-year terms result in bad policy and poor reforms. They force governments to rush, increasingly so in this age of rapid news cycles fuelled by the voracious demands of the internet, Twitter and 24-hour television news.
Why has our indigenous policy failed?
Tania Major TO answer this question, it would be easy to list the usual suspects, such as fluctuating political will and commitment; dependence on the political cycle; the lack of consultation; inadequate, mismanaged or misdirected service delivery; failure to address root causes; and a focus on symptoms.
Can we afford to keep people alive?
Merrilyn Walton WHEN my 79-year-old mother died peacefully in St Vincent's Hospice, we were thankful we were with her. At home until just a few days earlier, she remained in control as much as anyone dying from cancer could.
Should we expect more from our leaders?
PETER HARTCHER In this election, Australia turns out to have two candidates for the prime ministership but no leaders. In a time of pandering, whatever happened to leadership?
Can politicians develop policy before engaging their mouths?
Lenore Taylor The lead up to this election campaign did not follow the usual script. Sure, everything that came out of Julia Gillard's and Tony Abbott's mouths was scripted and, most likely, focus group-tested as well.
Is there an Australian culture in a Facebook world?
Julianne Schultz CULTURE and creativity are central to life in the 21st century. The global stakes have never been higher; never before have we been surrounded by so much information or so much art - high and popular, visual and aural, original and reproduced, amusing and challenging, bland and exciting.
Is the education system too dumb to create a smart nation?
Steven Schwartz KEIR Hardie, the first leader of the British Labour Party, was preparing for the 1913 election when he received some campaign advice from the famous suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst.
Does the lucky country need migrants?
Bob Birrell UNLESS there is a sharp change in immigration policy, Australia's population is likely to exceed the latest Treasury projection of 35.9 million by 2050. This is the ''big Australia'' vision. The projection's core assumption was that net migration will average about 180,000 a year. By 2008-09, however, it was estimated to be 298,000.
Should Australia give up on the bush?
Tim Flannery AS the 2010 election looms, the fate of rural Australia seems all but politically irrelevant. It's been decades since the bush had a strong political voice and neither major party really understands or is committed to the country.
How to deal with a strong China?
James Fallows AUSTRALIA has three big advantages in dealing with an ever more powerful China. The trick for the next government, and its successors, will be to use the leverage these natural and induced advantages provide, while avoiding a significant pitfall Australia may be creating for itself.
Does the tax system make any sense?
Nicholas Gruen FIRST-TERM governments can't help themselves. Bob Hawke, John Howard and Kevin Rudd all made big tax reform announcements in their first term - or in Rudd's case, his only term. This cruelled Hawke's and Rudd's honeymoon popularity and nearly lost Howard what should have been a ''honeymoon'' election.
