Opinion | Comment & Analysis | The Sydney Morning Herald

We’re sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. We’re working to restore it. Please try again later.

Opinion

Advertisement
Putin

Money crisis: Vladimir Putin’s moment of truth has arrived

The long-awaited currency crisis has finally hit Russia, eating away at Vladimir Putin’s war chest and the country’s economic foundations.

  • by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

Latest

Sam Kerr was the target of some rough tackling early on against England.

England embraced the dark arts to crush the Matildas in their own backyard

The Lionesses inflicted pain and hurt on the Matildas long before they beat them. This is what all the best villains do; they pull it off with flair and panache.

  • by Luke Edwards
Coach Tony Gustavsson and captain Sam Kerr react to the Matildas’ loss.

‘We get it, like we never did before’: Matildas spirit not dented by defeat

Australia were bowed, but definitely not broken, on a night when the world game stunned Australia once again.

  • by Peter FitzSimons

Dutton is banking on twin calamities to unseat Albanese, but it’s not enough

The prime minister is already crafting a post-referendum Plan B, while the Liberals seem to be banking on chaos and instability of the past to see them through.

  • by Niki Savva
Chris Minns meets with teachers on the campaign trail in March.
Opinion
Pay

Minns’ dilemma: honour the deal or deal with dishonour

Chris Minns slammed NSW teacher shortages from opposition. That problem is now his to fix, and the education union is already off-side.

  • by Alexandra Smith
Sam Kerr is devastated after the final whistle in the World Cup semi-final between Australia and England.

Gifts the Matildas gave us will linger

There were tears. There were always going to be tears. But once the hurt subsides for the Matildas and the nation, and it will, the prevailing sentiment ought to be not disappointment, but pride in getting so close.

  • by Greg Baum
Advertisement
Sam Kerr is devastated after the final whistle in the World Cup semi-final between Australia and England.
Analysis
Matildas

Dreams dashed as Lionesses silence a raucous nation

Things don’t always turn out as we want. Sometimes, even the best efforts of one of our national icons isn’t enough.

  • by Emma Kemp
Column 8 granny dinkus
Opinion
Column 8

The owl and the ex-pussycat

Hoo knew it was breeding season?

Cathy Freeman inspired the Matildas.

Win or lose, the Matildas have captured the nation’s heart

Irrespective of the result of the semi-final, the Matildas will always shine.

Pm at national cabinet

Albanese goes back to the future for housing reform

Giving the states a kick up the bum while offering them cash to really put more housing stock into the market is one step to repairing the damage caused by decades of poor policy.

  • by Shane Wright
In some parts of the city including Horsley Park and Silverwater, the average household is spending up to $2000 a year in tolls,

Transurban knows for whom the tolls bell

With toll revenues surging by an eye-watering 26 per cent last financial year, Transurban, the behemoth controlling Sydney’s toll roads, must surely be crying all the way to the bank. For motorists, there can be only tears of rage.

  • The Herald's View
Transurban CEO-elect Michelle Jablko

Why appointing a female CEO to run a big company doesn’t feel like progress

What passes for success – or even progress – is still a low bar.

  • by Elizabeth Knight
Robbie Farah and the mural dedicated to him at the Sackville Hotel in Rozelle.
Opinion
NRL 2023

Wests Tigers’ next big call: Is Robbie Farah ready to become the general manager?

On the surface it seems ambitious to catapult a recently retired player into the role, but there are very few that have the street smarts and nous that Farah possesses.

  • by Michael Chammas
The Olympic rings graced the Harbour Bridge for the period of the Sydney Olympics.

This World Cup’s been a huge success, but for one Olympic-sized fail

The Sydney Olympics set the standard for promoting Australia to the world. This Women’s World Cup is a reminder of how to get it all wrong.

  • by Anthony Dennis
Xi Jinping has so far resisted unleashing major stimulus to revive China’s faltering economy.

Xi Jinping under pressure as China’s troubles deepen

The Chinese president has so far resisted pulling the trigger on a major move to revive the world’s second-biggest economy. But the push is on.

  • by Jill Disis
This year’s AFL retirees include Richmond’s Jack Riewoldt, North Melbourne pair Ben Cunnington and Jack Ziebell, West Coast’s Nic Naitanui, and former Hawthorn teammates Isaac Smith and Lance Franklin, who finished their respective careers at Geelong and Sydney.
Opinion
AFL 2023

Buddy, Riewoldt top the class: Ranking the AFL’s retirees

The first XI of this year’s AFL retirees have a host of premierships and honours to their name, but as is often the case, it’s the key forwards who stand out above the rest.

  • by Jake Niall
Advertisement
Shows like the Teletubbies, The Ferals, Round the Twist and Lift Off were among the most popular children’s shows throughout the 90s.

Life is dark and absurd. No wonder kids shows celebrating this are winning awards

Bluey might be feel-good, but encouraging our kids to watch nonsensical thrillers is what will really benefit them in the long run.

  • by Cherie Gilmour
Trump has even turned on Rudy Giuliani, his personal attorney.

How Trump’s ‘Co-conspirator No. 1’ went from hero to crank

Legal experts on both sides say, given the allegations in the indictment, Rudi Giuliani is likely to be the subject of a formal prosecution in the matter at some point.

  • by Bill Wyman
Twice impeached, four-times criminally indicted: former president Donald Trump.
Analysis
US politics

Road back to the White House for Trump now passes through four different courtrooms

The charges in Georgia under anti-organised crime laws carry a penalty of between five and 20 years in prison. Crucially for Trump, they are also unpardonable.

  • by Farrah Tomazin
What Australia is feeling for the Matildas, England felt for the Lionesses last year.

I’m a Pom in Australia – and I’m supporting the Matildas against England

The nation is fast becoming a green-and-gold-tinged emotional mess, but it’s also creating an awkward dilemma for a million British expats living here.

  • by Lucie Morris-Marr
Owen Farrell tackle.

For the sake of rugby, England captain Owen Farrell must be banned

England captain Owen Farrell has been handed a remarkable reprieve and is free to play at the World Cup after his red card for a dangerous tackle against Wales was overturned.

  • by Oliver Brown
Yang Huiyan xxx Country Garden

The good, the bad and the very ugly: Chinese giant faces collapse

Once China’s biggest real estate developer, Country Garden is on the edge. And doubts are growing over whether its 41-year-old major shareholder will dip into her fortune to try to rescue it.

  • by Shuli Ren
After Tom Mundy become better informed about super, he switched to a slightly more aggressive investment option as it is very likely to see him retire with a higher balance.

The simple step that could seriously boost your super savings

Taking a little more investment risk can add tens of thousands of dollars to your super balance by retirement.

  • by John Collett
Apartments overlooking Central Park have fetched in excess of US$50 million.
Opinion
Renting

Lowe is right: New York’s soaring rents shows why freezes won’t work

In his final appearance before parliament as Reserve Bank governor, Philip Lowe voiced his opposition towards rent freezes or caps. He may have a point.

  • by William Bennett
Retirement calculators use different assumptions leading to very different estimates of how much money needs to be saved for a comfortable retirement and expectations of income in retirement

More retirement villages ditch capital gain sharing in contract revamp

Retirement village contracts are moving away from giving residents a share of the capital gain on their unit.

  • by Rachel Lane
Morningstar’s Michael Malseed says a big part of the reason for the outperformance of global shares is US-listed tech companies
Analysis
Investing

Australian shares beating out global peers over the very long run

An initial investment 30 years ago in the Australian sharemarket, without adding to it, would have grown more than 13 times.

  • by John Collett
Advertisement
How satisfied we feel with our financial lives isn’t just about how much money we have, it’s more to do with how we compare to others.

My friends all earn more than me, how do I not feel left behind?

Satisfaction with our financial lives isn’t just about how much money we have, it’s more to do with how we compare to others.

  • by Paridhi Jain
If you’ve moved into aged care and on the pension, delaying the sale of your home can affect the amount of money you receive.

How soon do we need to sell the house after entering aged care?

If you’re in aged care and on the pension, delaying the sale of your home can affect the amount of money you receive.

  • by Noel Whittaker
Illustration by Simon Letch

There are less painful tools to fix inflation, so why aren’t we using them?

Our politicians and their economic advisers need to find a better way to skin the cat.

  • by Ross Gittins
Matildas players and supporters celebrate Cortnee Vine’s winning penalty against France.
Editorial
Matildas

One game at a time: Go Matildas

No national team has fused hopes and dreams so magically as the Matildas.

  • The Herald's View
Column 8 granny dinkus
Opinion
Column 8

Thriller on the road

British engineering with the write stuff.

Matildas players and supporters celebrate Cortnee Vine’s winning penalty against France.

Rise of the Matildas shows why women’s football is bigger than a game

If you think the Matildas’ success has been a helluva ride, you ain’t seen anything yet.

  • by Moya Dodd
"Australia’s climate is continuing to warm, and the frequency of extreme events such as bushfires, droughts, and marine heatwaves is growing”: Dr Jacj Brown, CSIRO.

How surging insurance bills could help us deal with climate change

Insurance increases – and some areas being declared uninsurable – are a price signal from a hotter, riskier planet. Will they end up driving our adaptation to the climate crisis?

  • by Liam Mannix
A night for the ages: The Matildas come together after the winning penalty.

Equal pay for the Matildas? They deserve so much more

Australia’s talented sportspeople so often prove their abilities without all the big-money backing of major players.

Is Joyce’s support helping Albanese with the Voice? That’s a whole different referendum.

Should companies have a Voice or mind their own business?

Appreciative as the prime minister might be of Qantas boss Alan Joyce’s support, it’s a risky strategy for the government.

  • by Elizabeth Knight

Anyone who jinxes the Matildas by declaring a public holiday too early is a bum

Albanese is clearly trying to follow the example of Bob Hawke back in 1983 when he proclaimed an informal public holiday after our America’s Cup win. But there’s a vital difference.

  • by Kerri Sackville
Advertisement
Grandparents are often
Opinion
Childcare

Should grandparents be paid for childcare or should Nanna do it for nada?

The best part of being a grandparent is getting to hand them back, right? Well, it doesn’t always work that way.

  • by Hannah Vanderheide
Threads has has a big debut with millions of sign-ups, but Meta has a lot of work to do.

Is Mark Zuckerberg’s Threads just a flash in the pan?

Dubbed as the “Twitter killer”, the Facebook billionaire’s latest venture burst on the scene. By week two, though, signups began to drop off.

  • by Barbara Ortutay
RMIT finance academic Angel Zhong says many Australians struggle with financial literacy.

‘Costing us a fortune’: Australians still failing basic financial literacy tests

Australians continue to be stumped by these basic finance questions. Can you answer them?

  • by John Collett
Jerome Powell is confident of being able to negotiate a “soft landing” but it is far from guaranteed.

Waiting game: US needs to stay patient to avoid disaster

The US Federal Reserve is playing a waiting game as it tries to make a “soft landing” from its inflation battle. If it trips up, it could lead America into a recession.

  • by Steve Matthews
Robotinho prediction

Robotinho predicts Women’s World Cup semi-final scores … and who will win the final

How far can the Matildas go? Who will lift the trophy? We asked our resident AI expert the tournament’s big questions.

  • by "Robotinho", James Lemon and Mark Stehle
For women in the workforce, the time is ripe to ask for a pay rise.
Opinion
Employment

Why the time is ripe for women to ask for a pay rise

Women’s participation in the workforce is growing, giving them the power to demand higher wages.

  • by Kris Grant
Opinion
Renting

Why freezing rents could make more people homeless

Only when housing is plentiful will it also be affordable. So we need to build more dwellings where people want to live.

  • by Brendan Coates and Joey Moloney
Nic Naitanui

Mesmerising to witness: How Nic Naitanui changed the game forever

Remember his first goal against Hawthorn in 2009, in a torrential downpour with the game on the line? We didn’t know then, but he was going to be a champion.

  • by Brendan Foster
Voice

Voice paradox starting to take political toll on Albanese

Labor has lost support at a time of huge division over its pledge to find a new way to end Indigenous disadvantage.

  • by David Crowe

Putin sent this critic to prison as a birthday present. I spoke to him from his cell

He’s been sentenced to 8½ years in jail for discussing the massacre of Ukrainian civilians. His lawyer conveyed my questions to him and returned with his handwritten responses.

  • by Peter Hartcher
Advertisement
Column 8 granny dinkus
Opinion
Column 8

Rudd’s wrong move

Former PM on the back rank.

Richmond are on the lookout for a new senior coach.
Analysis
AFL 2023

Revealed: What the Tigers are asking for in their next coach

The job description document that Richmond sent out to candidates for the senior coaching position contains words not traditionally associated with AFL coaches, nor with a combative macho game that has been a playground for Alpha males.

  • by Jake Niall
When gender isn't an issue ... but boys and girls are forced onto separate fields in their late teens.

A Matildas public holiday won’t fix football’s funding failures

A joyful Women’s World Cup should not blind us from the inequalities plaguing the world game in Australia.

  • by Millie Muroi