A little compassion goes a long way,and the lesson is clear for all:the time for politicking and petty point-scoring is over.
As we move further into our second year of living with COVID-19,it seems increasingly likely that many of the changes that happened so rapidly in 2020 are here to stay. But there is cause for optimism.
Tokyo and the International Olympic Committee have a huge feat to pull off. Should they succeed,they will give us a powerful symbol of our own determination to keep going in a transformed world.
For one thing,the Coalition should re-examine its policy of deporting criminals who,while born in New Zealand,have no real connection to that country.
Honouring the sacrifice of those lost in war and remembering the grief of those left behind must be central to how we commemorate ANZAC Day..
If Australia's former finance minister,Mathias Cormann,is to have any chance of becoming the next head of the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development,he is going to need some friends in very high places.
The bushfire royal commission report shows that the time has come for the Prime Minister Scott Morrison to address global warming.
The latest easing of restrictions is welcome,but the state government must tell us its plans for Christmas and the summer beyond.
Governments need to show that they are sensitive to the needs of those for whom lockdowns involve genuine privation.
The consumer watchdog's proposals are a welcome endorsement of the central role of mainstream media in our democracy.
A healthy return to work for workers should be the basic measure of success for schemes and their regulators.