Former Labor Party Prime Minister Paul Keating is Australia’s foremost public intellectual. Love him or loathe him, when he speaks on the ABC, the national broadcaster, people stop eating or talking, and listen. Keating commands such public attention: he doesn’t ask for it, we give it to him with the same respect we gave Prime…
The curtain has come down on Act 1 of The Great American Melodrama. US President Joe Biden is finally leaving the White House. As a result, the whole world is breathing a sigh of relief. There is renewed hope that things will return to “normal”. But they won’t. We still have Act 2 and Act…
Jeffrey Bernard Mitchell, my youngest brother, has died from a heart attack. It followed the recent deaths of my oldest brother, James Gilbert Mitchell, and Anthony John Mitchell. Jimmy, Tony and Jeff were three of the four sons of Lucy and Jim Mitchell, who lived in Brisbane, Townsville, Southport and Koala Park, Tallebudgera. Once there…
A remarkable array of talent from every section of society has joined the “YES” campaign. Some are white, while others are black, brown or yellow. Joining the campaign has been a revelation for me: I’ve met people of every background, but they are united in giving First Nations People a voice in Canberra’s Federal Parliament….
On Saturday, 27 May, 1967, Australians voted by an overwhelming majority to alter the Constitution to give Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders the right to be counted in all future censuses by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). The vote was a huge victory for the “YES” camp: it won 90.77% of votes cast in…
Di Morrissey’s local newspaper ‘The Manning Community News’ has published the first review of my new book ‘Idi Amin: The Man Who Stole Uganda’. The review, by John Watts, is reproduced below. Order the book HERE. FROM ‘THE MANNING COMMUNITY NEWS’ 16 September 2023 Alex Mitchell has worked in the media for 50 years as…
How Australia helped install an African dictator in Uganda In 50 years of journalism I never met a more unforgettable monster than Idi Amin, widely known as the Butcher of Uganda. He ruled the East African State from January 25, 1971, until 1979 when he was dumped by those who had been his original supporters,…
England bowler Ollie Robinson called Australian Test hero Usman Khawaja a “fucking prick” after bowling him out in the First Test at Edgbaston. Robinson refused to apologise after yelling “fuck off, you fucking prick” after dismissing the Pakistani-born batsman who scored a Test-saving 141 runs. This is not Robinson’s first racist outburst. And he was…
OBITUARY James Gilbert Mitchell, my eldest brother, died at 2.15 am on Saturday, March 25, 2023. His death followed a long battle with bowel and prostate cancer. He was 84 years old. He grew up in Townsville, North Queensland, and made his living selling cars, prospecting for gold, silver, tin and opals and repairing musical…
Below is a passage from R.S. Whitington, first-class cricketer and journalist. It’s highly relevant today after some graceless commentators rubbished the award this year of a fourth Allan Border medal to the outstanding batsman Steve Smith. By R.S. Whitington Victor Trumper [above], whose name stands as high in Australian cricket as Jack Crawford’s stands in tennis,…
