Notes from Down Under: Caravan explosives, the federal election and koala behaviour
The latest antisemitic attack marks an increased escalation in Australia
Happy Saturday. You’re reading Notes from Down Under, a weekly newsletter that takes a glance at some of the key stories in Australia from the perspective of a British journalist.
Another antisemitic attack: ‘What on earth is happening in Australia?’
The story dominated headlines across all Australian publications this week.
NSW police were called to a caravan at Dural in Sydney's north-west on 19 January where they discovered explosives believed to create a 40-metre blast zone.
Deputy commissioner David Hudson said there was some indication that the explosives "might be used in an antisemitic attack", ABC reports.
NSW’s Premier Chris Minns addressed the investigation with ABC:
"This would strike terror into the community, particularly the Jewish community, and it must be met with the full resources of the government."
It is the latest incident in a slew of antisemitic attacks across Australia, including schools spray-painted with slurs and synagogues that have been firebombed or defaced with swastikas.
The attacks tarnish Australia's reputation in the eyes of the world, according to Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin.
"People are asking me what on earth is happening in Australia," he told ABC radio.
"We have a hard-earned reputation as being a harmonious and peaceful, multicultural society but that reputation is now shredded."
Amid all of this, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) has said the terror threat level will remain at "probable" despite the “disturbing escalation in the targeting of Jewish interests”.
The organisation’s director-general Mike Burgess released a statement explaining the decision:
"One of the key reasons we raised the threat level in August 2024 was because we anticipated spikes in politically motivated violence. Unfortunately, the security environment has evolved almost exactly as we expected.
The caravan incident remains under investigation and NSW police doubled patrols in Sydney earlier today. ASIO does not believe there is an ongoing threat to public safety.
This newsletter usually covers two or three big stories in Australia but, more often than not, significantly more things are happening. As a result, please welcome a new, mini-segment.
Random read of the week - during which I will share an Australian view on a story talked about across the globe.
To start things off, I would recommend reading this piece in Crikey: DeepSeek unleashes the China hysterics — but are they too late?
If you missed it, Chinese artificial intelligence company DeepSeek shook US markets after unveiling its new chatbot, which was allegedly cheaper and less resource-intensive than those made in the US. This piece asks the question we should all be considering when looking at DeepSeek AI (and perhaps platforms like TikTok):
“Is your information safer with Mark Zuckerberg (Cambridge Analytica, anyone?), Reichsleiter Musk, and Trump donor and doomsday prepper Sam Altman?”
It’s time to start talking about the federal election
Yep, that’s right, Australians are expected to head to the polls by May, at the latest.
Parliament returns from summer break on Tuesday but we are well into the polls and pre-election campaigns which are already taking up columns of news space.
A national Newspoll, conducted January 20–24 from a sample of 1,259, gave the Coalition a 51–49 lead, a one-point gain for the Opposition since the previous study in early December.
AAP reports that, despite the result, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is still confident Labor will get a second term in government.
Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce said the Coalition won’t take the poll for granted - though he noted the incumbent government has been losing support.
The broad view
According to The Conversation, there were five polls in January looking at leaders’ ratings (from Freshwater, YouGov, Resolve, Essential and Newspoll).
It notes that, on average, Albanese is at -15 net approval and Dutton at -3.2.
N.B. If not for a net zero approval from Essential, Albanese’s ratings would be worse.
There will be much to come on policies and campaign antics over the next few months and both Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and Albanese have already been touring the country to set out some battlegrounds.
But for now, it is fascinating to read that bookies are opening markets on the next sworn-in government, the type of government formed and several key electorates.
Crikey breaks the numbers down and the key takeaway is that, at the time of writing, Sportsbet’s markets favour the Coalition to form the next government.
Psephologist Dr Kevin Bonham told the publication that betting odds were “overrated”.
“They’re not that reliable, but they are interesting to keep an eye on, particularly for things where you don’t have anything else concrete.”
It’s not a barometer or crystal ball given Bonham points to the 2019 election where Scott Morrison’s Liberals “won against the odds”, but it might prove a partially entertaining tangent during what will be an onslaught of policy and grandstanding.
Animal story of the week:
Adult koalas are normally solitary but a new research paper has found that male koalas are engaging in affectionate behaviours.
Threatened species biologist Darcy Watchorn writes in The Conversation that when male koalas physically interact, “it is usually a violent affair”.
But, during the study, he observed three male koalas socialising: grooming each other, vocalising to each other in soft, high-pitched calls and playing by gently biting one another.
Why does this matter? Watchorn says this social interaction between koalas has only been observed once before, more than 30 years ago.
A view from here:
Taylor Swift music bingo…
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Until next week!
Enlightening and entertaining blend of words and images. Great writing!