Author Archives: Tom

39 – David Marr (Part One)

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Respected journalist and MORTAL ENEMY OF GERARD HENDERSON (not really), David Marr is a self-described “bourgeois do-gooder”. He’s written for Fairfax Media, The Monthly, The Saturday Paper and Guardian Australia, appeared on Q&A, The Drum and Insiders and is the author of multiple in-depth profiles for the Quarterly Essay.

In this first part of our conversation, David tells me about who Bill Shorten is, Labor and the unions, why Australia is so late to progress, drugs, conservatism and right-wing commentators. Hot dang!

A Very Canberra Comedy Festival Christmas

David’s writing for Guardian Australia

David’s writing for The Saturday Paper

David’s Faction Man: Bill Shorten’s Path To Power

Cause of the Week: Maternity Worldwide (maternityworldwide.org)

 

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38 – Peter Reith

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Peter Reith was a member of John Howard’s cabinet from 1996 to 2001. He served as Minister for Small Business, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations and the Minister for Defence. He’s perhaps best known for formulating the GST policy and his roles in the 1998 waterfront dispute and the “children overboard” scandal.

Peter’s just released The Reith Papers, an annotated collection of his diary entries during his time in government. Here we got to discuss (and occasionally lock horns over) the notion of humanising politicians, the recent Paris attacks, military action in the Middle East, Australia’s approach to processing refugees and the role of unions in today’s society.

Me in conversation with Darren Hanlon for MyTunes at Giant Dwarf Theatre

A Very Canberra Comedy Festival Christmas

peterreith.com.au

@peter_reith

The Reith Papers available from Melbourne University Press

Peter on The Verdict 

Peter on ABC News Breakfast with Virginia Trioli

Cause of the Week: Enterprise Victoria (enterprisevictoria.com.au), the French Red Cross (soutenir.croix-rouge.fr)

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Comedy Store Nov 19th, 20th & 21st

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I’m headlining the Store this week, HUUUUGE line-up featuring:

Mike Goldtstein (USA)
Rhys Nicholson (Fri & Sat Only)
El Jaguar (MEXICO)
Clint Paddison
Dilruk Jayasinha
Tommy Dassalo
Karl Chandler
Simon Taylor

Hot dang. You can book tickets to this chuckle bonanza here.

37 – Aamer Rahman

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Comedian, writer and activist Aamer Rahman jokes about race and detention centres and terrorism and hip-hop and comic books and cultural appropriation. Formerly of the comedy duo Fear Of A Brown Planet (with previous guest Nazeem Hussain), he now tours his stand-up internationally being very funny and very on-point.

Here Aamer articulates how the Adam Goodes controversy sums up the issues of Australia’s race problem, how he views the impact of his work, cultural appropriation, Iggy Azalea, ethnic faces on TV, Bill Maher, Cornel West and political correctness in comedy.

My gigs at the Comics’ Lounge this week

MyTunes with me and Darren Hanlon at Giant Dwarf Theatre

The A to Z of LGBT: my piece for SBS Sexuality

@aamer_rahman

Article: What Adam Goodes’ Invisible Spear Shows Us by Aamer Rahman

Aamer’s Reverse Racism routine

Buzzfeed article on Aamer and the Bollywood Industry Party

Aamer & Cornel West in Q&A

Cause of the Week: Refugees, Survivors & Ex-Detainees (riserefugee.org)

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The A to Z of LGBT

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I wrote a piece for SBS Sexuality on the LGBT alphabet soup.

…the slightly-less-exhilarating option that emerged around the same time is the acronym “LGBT” (“Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender”), or its now slightly unwieldy descendent, “LGBTQQIPAA” (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Questioning Intersex Pansexual Asexual Ally).

Heck, if you’re feeling particularly inclusive, why not whack a “2S” (“Two Spirits”) in there to acknowledge the tradition of some indigenous peoples that considers sexual minorities to possess both male and female spirits?

But then what about the Kink community? And Swingers? And Polyamorous People? And Bears? And Twinks? And Rice Queens? And Butches? And Femmes? And Nudists?

And Parents, who should really be in a completely different sexual class of their own so we don’t have to think about them touching each other?

I normally love a mouthful, but “LGBTQQIPAA2SKSPPBTRQBFNP” might be bordering on excessive.

Read the whole thing here.