James Denis Kenny (1906-1967), glassworker and trade union official, was born on 27 November 1906 at Waterloo, Sydney, fourth child of native-born parents James Kenny, wagon driver, and his wife Margaret, née Rowley.
John Archibald McCallum (1892-1973), politician and schoolteacher, was born on 31 July 1892 at Mittagong, New South Wales, second child of Archibald Duncan McCallum, a coach-builder from Scotland, and his Welsh-born wife Catherine Margaret, née Protheroe.
Usually nice things are said at farewells. Apart from the notably ungracious comments by Peter Reith, Bill Kelty’s departure announcement mostly received warm and generous praise from friends, allies and foes. Privately, views are more mixed. Over time a more considered assessment can be distilled.
The Investment-Linked Sub-Class 131 visa requires successful applicants to make a “Designated Investment” of between $750,000 and $2,000,000 for three years with an approved issuing authority. This investment is intended to serve as a tangible sign of the migrants’ commitment to Australia in the short term and they are expected to engage in business in the longer term.
After the devastating drubbing that Labor received at the 1996 election, few expected it would bounce back so close to government so soon. Consequently, within the ALP there is a satisfied, warm inner glow about recent events (matched by the cooling white fury of Mark Latham over the editing of his education policy).
Albert Shanker, union leader, intellectual, social democrat and raconteur was one of the greatest American labour leaders of his time. As President of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) from 1974 until his death, he was at times both militant unionist and adviser to US Presidents ranging from Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan and George Bush.
This rambling, indiscrete, self-centred, intermittently hilarious and frequently tedious, 600 plus page book lives up to its sub-title: ‘Night Thoughts of a Labor Outsider’. This is so in two respects.
From an economic development view, the ACT has marked strengths in a highly educated labour force, government purchasing volume and the region’s quality of life. Its perceived drawbacks, however, relate to its relatively small non-government economy, distance from major markets and relatively uncompetitive business costs.
It is unlikely that The Fixer will be on display at ALP fundraising stalls. This is a different work to Graham Freudenberg’s A Certain Grandeur, the masterful, unashamed hagiography to Gough Whitlam. As a portrait of a major player in the ALP over the last decade, Marion Wilkinson’s book is a fierce critique. But is it accurate and fair?
It is interesting to reflect on why the 1996 federal election campaign is so boring relative to the high passion of past elections. A high number of undecided voters in the opinion polls, especially in the marginal seats, indicate that there is a fair swag of the electorate still to make up their minds. This means that Labor is still in with a chance of winning.