Centre for Independent Studies

On Liberty ep.54 | Chris Merritt | Has ICAC gone too far?

With their sensationalist public questioning of Premier Gladys Berejiklian's private life the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has attracted renewed attention.
Some may argue that ICAC must break a few eggs in order to obtain the proverbial, corruption-busting omelet. But has ICAC gone too far? Is the rule of law being undermined in NSW?
Join us with Chris Merritt. Chris is vice-president of the Rule of Law Institute of Australia and commentator, who writes regularly for The Australian and appears on Sky News. Chris has been one of the loudest critics of ICAC's show trials and a brilliant defender for the rule of law in Australia.
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On Liberty Ep.53 | Dr Bella D’Abrera | Australians Reject Identity Politics

On the show this Wednesday, we welcome Institute of Public Affairs’ Dr Bella d’Abrera. Speaking with The Australian recently, Bella reveals that new polling proves parents are concerned schooling has become overly politicised and out of step with mainstream values.
Bella argues that, as a fundamentally egalitarian society, divisive ideologies like critical race theory, have no place in Australian schools. She cites proposed changes to the national curriculum as evidence of a radical turn toward politically correct, and educationally flawed, schooling. Beyond the curriculum, she also warns that education bureaucracies are increasingly stepping on the toes of parents when it comes to values on which children are raised.
Join us on YouTube at 12.30pm Wednesday 2 June, when guest host, Glenn Fahey asks how our schools have become hostage to harmful ideology. Have curriculum writers gone too far in encouraging political correctness at the expense of historical facts? Has academic rigour been displaced by virtue signalling? Have parents been asleep at the wheel while schools have supplanted their role in shaping their children's values? How can schooling better reflect the values and aspirations of mainstream Australians?
Dr Bella d’Abrera is Director of the Foundations of Western Civilisation Program at the Institute of Public Affairs. She is author of multiple reports investigating the role of identity politics and politicisation of Australian education.

On Liberty Ep.52 | David M Jones | Have Postmodern Politics Launched Us On A Ship Of Fools?

Did the fall of the Soviet Union usher in the end of history for everyone, or only for a small class of comfortably well-off professionals in a few rich countries? How did big ideas replace practical politics, and what does it mean for our future now that politics have come roaring back? Was the presidency of Donald Trump an aberration, or a sign of things to come? And perhaps most importantly: is sin really such a bad thing, after all?
This week, Wednesday 26 May 2021, we talk to Prof David Martin Jones about his new book History's Fools: The Pursuit of Idealism and the Revenge of Politics. It explores the consequences of what he calls the "liberal hubris" of the progressive professional class. We'll be asking him what effective diplomacy really means, how politics should work in our post-political age, and whether the "West" really stands a chance in the brave new multicultural world of the twenty-first century?
David Martin Jones is Visiting Professor in War Studies at King’s College, London. He emerged from a British post-war grammar school the first child in his family to go to university, earning a PhD at the London School of Economics under the supervision of the Australian-British philosopher Kenneth Minogue. Jones' book History's Fools: The Pursuit of Idealism and the Revenge of Politics was published by Hurst in 2020.

On Liberty Ep.51 | Dr John Humphreys | Federal Budget 2021 Recap

From childcare subsidies to jobseeker increases and big infrastructure spending this years' 2021 Federal Budget is being touted as one of the largest in our nation's history. While elevated iron ore prices will help to offset its impact we are staring down multiyear deficits and debt. Join guest host, Simon Cowan and CIS research associate, John Humphreys as they cover what the mainstream media has missed.

50. On Liberty | Peter Khalil MP | Democracy Under Threat In Myanmar And Throughout The Region

As Myanmar's military takeover risks spinning into civil war, what can Australia do to help? Do "middle powers" matter? How secure is our region, and what can we do to improve it? If democracy really is threatened in Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific, what can Australia do to help preserve it?
Join us for our 50th episode this week as we ask Mr Peter Khalil MP what Australia can do to promote democracy in an increasingly benighted region. Khalil is the Member for Wills in Victoria and Deputy Chair of the Joint Standing Committee on Treaties. He has a background in international law and has been a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC. He was awarded the Australian Overseas Humanitarian Services Medal for his service in Iraq.
Khalil worries that authoritarianism is on the rise globally, and argues that liberal democracies can and should defend their ways of life. He has called for Australia to take a stand on China's persecution of Uyghurs and pushed for the country to pursue a more moral foreign policy. But can a mid-sized country like Australia really make a difference in international affairs? And do the generals in Myanmar really care what we think?

49. On Liberty | Star Wars Day | Libertarian Edition

Science fiction is often seen as the domain of - the nerds. But, the genre has a long and inextricable link with libertarianism. This is the argument made by podcaster, writer, and teacher, Jordan Alexander Hill in his brilliant Quillette essay, "The Libertarian History of Science Fiction."
Jordan joins us to discuss his essay and we voyage from the early days of science fiction; the impact of the pulps; the influence of John Campbell; the Prometheus awards, and beyond.
May the force be with you.

On Liberty Ep.48 | Dr Fiona Mueller | Education Or Enstupidation? English In The Curriculum

How can students be expected to develop into intellectual adults if they are never exposed to the best reading that the English language has to offer?
The New South Wales curriculum acknowledges that English is the national language of Australia, but what is it actually doing to educate the state's children in its use?
Join us this week as we "talk English" with educationalist Dr Fiona Mueller, author of "From Education to Enstupidation -- Teaching English Language and Literature in Australia." Our regular host Salvatore Babones will be asking Dr Mueller about the proper role of English in school and university education, how reading improves writing, and the importance of great literature in the formation of young people's very identities.
Dr Mueller writes that "in Australia, the globalists and quackademics now advocate unsubstantiated approaches to teaching and learning that have no grounding in national identity, intellectual rigor, and a strong moral and ethical sense of character based on disciplined, wide reading." Is that just the age-old yearning for a lost golden age? Or are we really witnessing the hollowing-out of education, and with it the betrayal of our own children?
Fiona Mueller has a comprehensive background in schools, universities, and government bodies as well as a longstanding commitment to research and writing. Most recently, Fiona co-authored a policy paper on school education for the Page Research Centre. Fiona is an Adjunct Scholar with the CIS and previously held a national role as Director of Curriculum at the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).

47. On Liberty | Dr Zachary Gorman | Magna Carta; 800 Years Of Freedom.

The Magna Carta has become an enduring symbol of freedom, a triumph over power and tyranny. But would you be surprised to learn that, not only did the great charter have many lives it, "was completely misrepresented?"
This is the story, beautifully and methodical told, in historian Dr Zachary Gorman's latest book: Summoning Magna Carta: Freedom's Symbol over a Millennium.
Through impeccable research that takes the reader from Runnymede; through England's 17th century civil war and the Crusades; and everywhere in between, Gorman incisively depicts the many lives and impact of the Magna Carta.

46. On Liberty | Natasha Jha Bhaskar | India And Australia What Are The Opportunities?

India is on everyone's agenda here in Australia, but do we really understand the country -- and the opportunities it offers? We're joined this week by Natasha Jha Bhaskar, general manager of Newland Global Group (NGG) and a frequent commentator on Australia-India relations. With 12 years of experience working in the Indian Parliament, Natasha now helps Australian organizations understand the Indian business environment and build partnerships in India.
What are the opportunities for Australian exports to India? And for investment in India? What can the Australian government do to better facilitate Indian investment here in Australia? And what is India looking for from Australia?
Cross-cultural understanding can go a long way toward answering these questions. That gives Australia a massive (but largely untapped) strategic resource in its the 660,000 Indian-born citizens and residents. Australia's governments and businesses must be proactive and sincerely committed in order to leverage this resource to its full potential. As Natasha herself has written: "Curiosity and continuity are key."

Cancel Culture Crusades | Claire Lehmann | Conversations at CIS

Many cultural forces continue to weed out books, tear down statues and shame celebrities, who buck fashionable opinion. As a result, the cultural putsch in many western institutions strikes at liberal values. We are told these purges are necessary to “prevent harm.” In any case, society has “moved on” from the past.
But is cancel culture simply about fending off “harm”? Is it just about redressing past western sins? Or is what the critics say is a ferocious campaign of political conformity threatening the fabric of our liberal public discourse and civil society? Is it a proxy war on the Western liberal democratic tradition? Is anyone or anything safe from cancellation?