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Behind the Lines

A good defence

Great coaches tell us that to succeed in sport you need a good blend of attack and defence.

In February the federal government delivered its plan for the future of the Royal Australian Navy's surface combatant fleet, including ships capable of being operated remotely, and in March the government revealed further details about the AUKUS defence pact.

ASIO spy chief Mike Burgess was also in the news several times this year. In February he reported that a retired politician had been recruited several years ago by a group of foreign spies referred to by ASIO as the 'A-Team', and later in the year he explained why Australia's terrorism threat level had been raised to 'probable'.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and a naval officer stand on a jetty, the officer operating a remote control. In the sea in front of them is a large ship labelled 'Defence Procurement' with Defence Minister Richard Marles riding the back of it like a jet ski. Marles says, 'Look Albo! No hands!'

Drone Ship

David Pope, The Canberra Times,

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and a naval officer re-enact the moment from Titanic where Jack stands behind Rose, on a large warship labelled '$11 billion warship upgrade'. Albanese says, 'Open your eyes,' and the naval officer says, 'I'm flying!'

Battleship Politics

David Rowe, The Australian Financial Review,

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and a naval officer re-enact the moment from Titanic where Jack stands behind Rose, on a large warship labelled '$11 billion warship upgrade'. Albanese says, 'Open your eyes,' and the naval officer says, 'I'm flying!'

The King of the World

Mark Knight, Herald Sun,

A woman watches her kids play from a small cottage made from a black submarine.

Sub-standard Housing

Glen Le Lievre, Patreon,

The beginnings of a scam email from 'Prince Rishi Sunak' reads 'Dear Beloved Sirs and Madam, Due to political instability in my home country of Brexitlandia, I have a Significant Defence Capability that I would like to transfer to you. Please send AUD$4.6 BILLION to clear the bottlenecks and I will repay your kindness by sending you...' Below, next to balloons labelled 'AUKUS,' UK politicians propose obvious scams to Australian politicians. Defence Minister Richard Marles gives away the security code to a g

AUKUS

Cathy Wilcox, Nine Papers,

The beginnings of a scam email from 'Prince Rishi Sunak' reads 'Dear Beloved Sirs and Madam, Due to political instability in my home country of Brexitlandia, I have a Significant Defence Capability that I would like to transfer to you. Please send AUD$4.6 BILLION to clear the bottlenecks and I will repay your kindness by sending you...' Below, next to balloons labelled 'AUKUS,' UK politicians propose obvious scams to Australian politicians. Defence Minister Richard Marles gives away the security code to a g

Investment Opportunities

David Pope, The Canberra Times,

Staff from ASIO stand around a watercooler. One says, 'Keep an eye on that one. Could be a member of the A-Team.' They look at Mr. T from the 1980s TV series 'the A-Team.'

The A-Team

Brett Lethbridge, The Courier-Mail,

A four-panel comic in which a person in military uniform sits in front of a computer and is on the phone joking about hacking someone's computer. Text at the top reads, 'China. We don't always see eye to eye but we're more or less friends, aren't we? Aren't we? How then can we make sense of all of these full-on, state backed cyberattacks?'

Cyber Attack

Andrew Weldon, The Big Issue,

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and ASIO chief Mike Burgess hold up the bar for a pole vaulting Grim Reaper with a bomb strapped to his back and a scythe labelled 'Terrorism.' The landing mat is labelled 'Terror threat'. Albanese says, 'Should we raise it Mike?'

Terror Threat

David Rowe, The Australian Financial Review,

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