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Inheritance tax
A hated tax but a fair one
Inheritance tax: Could it be the answer to the housing crisis?
We need more inheritance tax, not less
Is it time to tax "old money"?
Inheritance tax: Combining the two certainties of life
Female athletes
Sport’s gender pay gap: why are women still paid less than men?
Why are female athletes still paid less than males?
Should women athletes earn the same as men? The science says they work as hard
Australia’s female rugby players are going to be paid the same as men
Cricket pay deal huge for women as Australia's female cricketers get massive windfall
Horse racing
Horse Racing and Animal Rights
Are opponents of Melbourne Cup fun-hating whingers or worried animal activists with a point?
There are no winners: horse racing is unethical
Melbourne Cup reignites whipping debate as top three jockeys cited
Government access
Australia data encryption laws explained
No more WhatsApp? How the proposed encrypted message access laws will affect you
Government’s world-first encryption laws set to pass
The government’s encryption laws finally passed despite concerns over security
Artificial intelligence
Is Artificial Intelligence Dangerous? 6 AI Risks Everyone Should Know About
Benefits and Risks of Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence: a danger to mankind, or the key to a better world?
The case for taking AI seriously as a threat to humanity
Social media
Does Social Media Make People Less Social?: A Research Note
Your smartphone is making you less social. But did you realise how big the problem is?
Social media makes us more social
Aged care
I don’t want my children to feel they must care for me when I’m old
Why family care isn’t always the best care for the elderly
What Aging Parents Want From Their Kids
Caring for Aging Parents: Should There Be a Law?
Roblin: Why adult children will soon shoulder more responsibility for aging parents
Netflix vs Youtube
YouTube’s multi-million dollar plan to become more like Netflix sounds like a longshot
Netflix’s biggest competition isn’t sleep — It’s YouTube
Netflix and YouTube combine for over 70% of the time teens spend watching video, as cable TV slumps
Senior citizens and driving
Should the Elderly Be Allowed to Drive? 15 Points to Consider in the Debate
Is licence testing for older drivers a good idea?
Should seniors be driving?
Should the elderly be stopped from driving?
Zoos
Hot topic: Is it time for zoos to be banned?
All the Reasons Why Zoos Should Be Banned
Should zoos be banned?
Arguments for and Against Zoos
Should animals be kept in zoos?
Space exploration
Space Exploration Is a Waste of Money
Of course space exploration is worth the money
Is It Worth It? The Costs and Benefits of Space Exploration
Is NASA Worth The Money We Spend On It?
Apollo Engineer: Space Exploration Is Worth The Cost
Professional athletes
Are Pro Athletes Overpaid?
Professional athletes make too much money
On the Bench: Overpaid Athletes
Voice Up: Are athletes overpaid?
Australia's top sports earners revealed
Rich sport stars prove poor role models
Smart watches
Smartwatch ban: schools crack down on students with wearable tech in class
Eight reasons why schools ban kid-friendly smart watches
Smart watches: the new classroom nuisance
Smartwatches are a bigger distraction to drivers than mobile phones
The 7 Main Benefits Of Smartwatches For Kids
Why Your Kids Should Have A Smartwatch
Free wifi
Free public Wi-Fi in Melbourne: what’s in it for the providers?
Public wi-fi in Australian cities: are there lessons for ‘smart city’ government?
Should cities offer free public WIFI access to their citizens despite its high cost?
Why the government should provide internet access
Sports and human rights
China’s human rights record made Winter Olympics ‘irresponsible’, says Swedish athlete
Human Rights Abuses Will Taint the Olympics and the World Cup. It’s Time to End ‘Sportswashing’ Now.
Human Rights and International Sporting Events
Sport and human rights
Towards a Human Rights Legacy for Sporting Events
COVID vaccination
The simple numbers every government should use to fight anti-vaccine misinformation
Leading economist proposes Medicare hike for the unvaccinated
Pandemic advisers warn against long-term exclusion of the unvaccinated
It’s a Terrible Idea to Deny Medical Care to Unvaccinated People
People who choose not to get vaccinated shouldn’t have to pay for COVID care in hospital
These Charts Show That COVID-19 is Still the Pandemic of the Unvaccinated
Sports and gambling
Sponsorship shakeup as gambling industry sees deals halve
How the betting industry has become inextricably linked to football
Sports betting in Australia
Basketball teams join push to scrap ‘insidious’ betting sponsorships from Australian sports
Hidden in plain sight: How professional football wins twice from Australia's gambling obsession
‘This is important to us’: Wanderers to shun gambling sponsorships, bucking global trend
Artist accountability
Here’s Who Could Be Held Legally Liable for the Astroworld Tragedy
Astroworld: deaths of 10 people at Houston concert ruled accidental
Before Astroworld: Concert Disasters in History
After Texas concert deaths, Travis Scott faces multiple lawsuits. Is the performer liable?
Child vaccination
The case for mandatory vaccination
Should vaccination be mandatory?
Making the Vaccine Decision: Addressing Common Concerns
Debating matters: childhood vaccinations should be compulsory
Why childhood immunizations are important
Should Vaccines Be Required for Children?
Childhood vaccines: Tough questions, straight answers
The vaccine debate
Animal testing
Arguments against animal testing
Five reasons to end animal testing
Why do humans still experiment on animals?
Pro and Con: animal testing
Why animal research?
Why animals are used
Experimenting on animals
Four day work week
The four-day working week: is it possible?
Is the Greens’ proposal for a four-day working week a good idea?
Why billionaire Richard Branson believes everyone could benefit from a shorter workweek
No, You Don’t Want a Four-Day Workweek
Why the four-day week isn't all it's cracked up to be
Emojis and communication
Are Emoticons And Emojis Destroying Our Language?
How do emojis change our communication?
How emojis can help children learn and communicate
How emojis enrich nonverbal communication
Pill testing
Six claims about pill testing — and whether or not they're true
The pros and cons of pill testing
State of play: For and against pill testing
As we debate pill-testing in Australia, how many lives could we be saving?
Tasers vs guns
Taser vs. Gun: Why Police Choose Deadly Force Despite Non-Lethal Options
Police carrying stun guns ‘more likely to use force and face assault’
There's 'no evidence' Tasers reduce police use of firearms, new study shows
Shocked and Stunned: A Consideration of the Implications of Tasers in Australia
Carrying Tasers increases police use of force, study finds
Quotas for women
A plea for gender quotas in Australian politics: Time to give ‘a fair go’ to everyone
Labor sets ambitious new targets for women in Parliament, on public boards
Facts and figures: Leadership and political participation
Gender inequality in politics: Why quotas won't cut it
Electoral quotas for women: an international overview
Abolition of political parties
Party’s Over: Why We Need to Abolish Political Parties
How to avoid another hung parliament: ban all political parties
The dissolution of political parties: The problem of internal democracy
Junk food in schools
Debatewise: junk food should be banned
Should states ban junk food in schools?
Please don't ban junk food from school lunches
Should junk food be banned at school? Two mums go head to head.
Curtin University study shows WA school junk-food ban success
Random selection of politicians
Why not select politicians as randomly as jurists?
From the Ancient Greeks to the Decentralized Internet: How Random Selection Shaped Democracy
What is sortition?
Can “sortition” sort out the problem of political ignorance?
Streaming platforms
Will Streaming Kill the Art of Cinema or Grant It New Life?
Streaming TV’s Boom Is a Mixed Blessing for Some Hollywood Writers
Compare Australian streaming video providers
Opinion: The Disadvantages of Streaming
The downsides of cable cord-cutting
Car ownership
The future of car ownership
End of the car age: how cities are outgrowing the automobile
Canberrans are having their love affair with cars challenged
The pros and cons of being a one car family
Team sports
The Pros and Cons of Team and Individual Sports for Kids
Pros and Cons of Individual vs Team Sports
The Game Plan: Team Sports vs. Individual Sports
The Many Benefits of Individual Sports
Individual Sports versus Team Sports
Learning a language
Push to get more Victorian students to study a language at VCE level
Why study languages?
Why study languages when everybody speaks English?
ATARs to blame for fall in language study
VCE Modern Language Assessment To Be Made Fairer
Quick Links
Mandatory minimum sentences
Victorian Government to overhaul sentencing laws, promising more criminals will go to jail
Mandatory minimum sentences and populist criminal justice policy do not work – here’s why
Mandatory sentencing: does it reduce crime?
Why mandatory sentencing is stupid and unjust
Policy discussion paper on mandatory sentencing
Skip to page 8 of this government paper for arguments in favour of mandatory minimum sentences.
Violent toys and games
Do war toys and games make children violent and aggressive?
These toys won't hurt our kids
Toy Guns: Do They Fan Aggression?
This article from 1988 shows that the debate over violent toys has been going on for decades.
Do Violent Video Games Contribute to Youth Violence?
It’s time to end the debate about video games and violence
Sweatshops
Are your clothes made in sweatshops?
"Whoever Raises their Head Suffers the Most" Workers’ Rights in Bangladesh’s Garment Factories
The big issue: Sweat shops
How to Improve Working Conditions in the Developing World
Defending Sweatshops and Worker Choice
Driving age
Should Victoria's driving age be lowered?
Click "download audio" under the title.
There’s little to gain and much to lose from lowering the minimum driving age
Submission for the Inquiry into Lowering the Probationary Driving Age to 17 Years
Don't lower the driving age, warn doctors and road safety experts
Veganism
Is veganism the answer to climate change?
Vegans may be doing more harm than good to climate change movement
Avoiding meat and dairy is ‘single biggest way’ to reduce your impact on Earth
Change your diet to combat climate change in 2019
Compulsory sport
Sport should be compulsory in schools
Should Competitive Sports Be Compulsory For School Students?
Climate change denial
Climate change deniers are dangerous - they don’t deserve a place on our site
The Conversation’s ban on climate change ‘deniers’ fails basics of academic rigour
No more BBC platform for climate change deniers? It’d be about time
Climate change denial, freedom of speech and global justice
Do Not Feed The Climate Trolls
Must we choose between climate-change action and freedom of speech?
Climate change ‘sceptics’ abuse freedom of expression
Literature vs Science
Why Scientists Should Study Art And Literature
Why we still need to study humanities in a STEM world
Why science needs the humanities
Art vs science
Australia Day
Australia Day: Why we need to change the date
Australia Day: Change the date? Change the nation
Should we change the date of Australia Day?
Changing Australia Day is pointless – and there is much to celebrate
The arguments for and against Australia Day on January 26
The evolution of Australia Day controversy
Video games
The Impact Of Gaming: A Benefit To Society
Video game play may provide learning, health, social benefits, review finds
How video games affect the brain
Video games are transforming how we communicate with each other - and they could fix a range of other global issues too
Positive & Negative Effects of Gaming on Student Performance
Education
Australian schools are becoming more segregated. This threatens student outcomes
Eight big issues for vulnerable students highlighted by coronavirus crisis, charity says
How Would Later School Start Times Affect Sleep?
Maths should be compulsory at school: our future jobs depend on it
NSW to make maths mandatory for students in years 11 and 12
Australian Bureau of Statistics - education
Education in Australia
'No difference' between public and private schools after accounting for socio-economics
'Bespoke education': are Australia's private schools worth the price tag?
The Guardian: Australian education
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