John Heard 
Aisle of plenty
For many years I wrote in defence of the traditional and religious definition of marriage. I spoke to and wrote for conservative and religious audiences in Australia and overseas. I… Read more
Aisle of plenty
For many years I wrote in defence of the traditional and religious definition of marriage. I spoke to and wrote for conservative and religious audiences in Australia and overseas. I… Read more
Human dimensions
The Happy Life: The Search For Contentment In The Modern World, Quarterly Essay 41 By David Malouf Black Inc, $35, pp. 320 ISBN 9781863955195 For some people, poor souls, freedom… Read more
The emperor’s new book
The major problem here is reasonably straightforward — apparently George Negus cannot write. The World from Down Under: a Chat with Recent History By George Negus HarperCollins, $35, pp 320… Read more
Statutory senility is clearly a demented policy
Whatever it is that we do when we do well, we know it and we long to hold onto the feeling. We have complex ways of referring to the fact.… Read more
Requisite variety
Quarterly Essay 37: What’s Right? The Future Of Conservatism In Australia by Waleed Aly Black Inc, $19.95, pp. 144, ISBN 9781863954662 Waleed Aly is an unlikely pick for an essay… Read more
Got civilization?
In Search of Civilization: Remaking a Tarnished Idea, by John Armstrong Allen Lane, $35, pp. 210, ISBN 9781846140037 People worry about ‘getting’ philosophy. ‘I still don’t get Kant,’ students will… Read more
A civilising circle?
In The Symposium, Plato has one of Socrates’ interlocutors claim that love is among ‘the most ancient’ of the gods, with ‘no parents and none ascribed to him by prose… Read more
Without a safety net
Conservatives should give Mr Rudd’s ‘earn or learn’ proposals a fair hearing, says John Heard There is a tremor thrilling through the ranks of young Australians. Recalled from their generational… Read more
Conservative principles and green concerns can form a natural fit
The response of conservatives worldwide to new forms of environmentalism has been, for the most part, less than intelligent. Con-servatives have tended to treat those interested in environmental issues as… Read more
Conservatives can make Melbourne a model – by starting with graffiti
Victoria’s most senior Liberal officeholder, Lord Mayor Robert Doyle, must balance beauty with common sense and rejuvenate the city, says John Heard A curious tinkling noise overwhelms the carriage. There… Read more
Refit the ship of state
Yare is an old term, taken from sailing. Very fine vessels are said to be yare. In The Philadelphia Story, where it has a particular narrative role to play, Katharine… Read more
‘When will I get my money?’
Neither libertarians nor social democrats, Australians will welcome Kevin Rudd’s handout, says John Heard Beginning in March, Kevin Rudd will lavish taxpayer cash on those who have stopped working (including… Read more
To spurn the Mass is to violate the Catholic chronicle of history
Father Peter Kennedy’s dismissal highlights a growing belief in the archival importance of the pre-Vatican II Mass, says John Heard Imagine someone sat down to write a record of all… Read more
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