As mass surveillance by companies and government increases, digital privacy becomes more and more important. Information professionals have many skills that can contribute to educating and informing citizens about the importance of intellectual freedom.

Perhaps like Impressionism before it, political correctness will be a useful, neutral shorthand for a way of seeing the world. Until then, it’s a insult thrown across Xmas dinner tables and in the opinion pages of The Australian. ‘You’re just being politically correct’ pointedly suggests that a view is being parroted, that is it not honestly held. Why are attempts, no doubt in my case faltering and inexpertly argued, assumed to be disingenuous? What does this do except reinforce an underlying idea that bigotry, or the ugly aspects of the Id, are not only raw but somehow better for being honest?

My politics, formed in late high school, which views the world through a feminist, social justice and environmentalist lens has barely changed since I was 17 years old. Having children has made my feminism a bit more nuanced, thoughtful and even gentle in some ways, but otherwise I am unchanged. What does it take to change your opinion? And is change only possible with generational change, like we have seen with the huge support for marriage equality?

The underpinnings of our civilisation are based on an untenable premise.

Because this is bizarre!

I’ve found it hard to remember how to play after having my kids, and wonder why I ‘grew out’ of it. I’ve loved relearning it but it’s been hard. I think we’d probably be nicer to each other if we kept more of our sense of wonder and joy and curiosity.

Despite our better judgement we all seem to be attracted to someone who is so clearly not right for us at some point in our lives.

Not everyone is into sport. For some, their equivalent is the arts/culture or even the environment. Why are these things considered ‘features’ rather than staples of our news diet? I wonder how society would change if one or two newsrooms started this trend?

I always wonder!

We should all ask ourselves this question, and be spurred into passionately acting on the answer. Life on earth—and not just human life—depends on it. Literally your and our collective future is at stake.

Songwriters are lionised as geniuses, but hardly anyone buys or reads poetry. I don’t get it!

Society places great importance on good grades for a good future, but the reality after university looks bleak for so many students – especially Bachelor of Arts students. Even those graduating from top universities struggle to find work in their field. Why has university undergraduate degrees become obsolete? Why is my cohort filled with bitterness and disappointment at the end of their studies, rather than hope for the future?

Thoughts consume most of our lives and they don’t even exist.