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Good Weekend letters to the editor, April 18
Want to chat? We'd love to hear from you. Send your letters to goodweekend@goodweekend.com.au.
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The Good Weekend Quiz: April 18
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The Great Lockdown is a sledgehammer busting dreams that won't bounce back
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It wasn't planned but Australia is on the verge of an exciting possibility
Scott Morrison might not like to admit it, but we are accidentally within sight of eliminating COVID-19.
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Company 'knew' virus was running rampant on Ruby Princess, court told
In a series of explosive allegations, Princess Cruises has been accused of recklessly endangering lives.
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A man got COVID-19 three times. Should we be worried about reinfection?
The 68-year-old Chinese man was in a bad way. He had COVID-19, and his heart was failing.
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'Unfair': Flight Centre draws fire over $300 charge for COVID cancellations
A Victorian family whose dream holiday to the US was cancelled because of coronavirus has accused Flight Centre of "robbery" for refusing to refund the full cost of a Disneyland pass.
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Hunt rules out trans inquiry, wants nationally consistent care
The federal health minister has shot down calls for an inquiry into gender dysphoria, in recognition of the "further harm" it could cause.
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Economic lockdown causes big reduction in air pollution globally
Researchers believe the reduction in air pollution from a one-year lockdown could prevent 780,000 premature deaths globally.
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Snow resorts plough on for bumper ski season despite instructors' doubts
Snow resorts are preparing to open, but the coronavirus pandemic has cast doubt on this year's ski season.
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The new elites: are you in or out?
If you have a full-time permanent job you are amongst the privileged. If it is a public sector job, even better.
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Meet the Sydney-born virologist who became Greece's coronavirus 'hero'
Sotiris Tsiodras has been rated the most popular person in Greece for helping the country avoid disaster.
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Don't touch the flags! Golfers find a fairway to beat coronavirus handicap
Sydney golf clubs have never been more booked up as players flock to the greens for a dose of the outdoors.
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A city of homebodies? How coronavirus will change Sydney
From washing hands to working from home, the coronavirus has dramatically altered city life. But will these changes last?
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Pandemic dashes Anzac Day plans - but not spirits - for WWII hero
"It is quite possible to think back to those days," says Guy Griffiths. "I don't have to go to a memorial to think about the loss of the Repulse."
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Sign up to sex abuse redress scheme or lose funding, government warns
Victorian private schools, religious entities and other organisations who don't sign up to a redress scheme for child sex abuse survivors may lose funding, the state government has warned.
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Seven in 10 suspended kindergarten kids have a disability, new figures show
Advocacy groups say children are being sent home for behaviour they cannot control; staff say other students are being put at risk.
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The former PM's words that left us shocked
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Neither Sweden nor NZ: Australia must steer its own COVID-19 course
With some modifications, Australia must keep its social-distancing restrictions in place until after winter.
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As the day unfolded: Australia's COVID-19 deaths rise to 71, WHO defends China's revised death toll
If you suspect you or a family member has coronavirus you should call (not visit) your GP or ring the national Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.
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World slowly waking from pandemic lockdown
The scaling back of lockdowns in hot-bed nations, many still fighting wholesale death, may offer Australians glimmers of hope.
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What did we learn, or miss, from the Spanish flu?
Listen to Fenella Souter's story marking 100 years on from the Spanish flu, followed by a discussion with expert virologist Professor Kanta Subbarao from the WHO and the Doherty Institute.
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$5000 spitting and coughing penalty expanded to protect all workers
One customer deliberately coughed in the face of a checkout operator when they were refused a refund they were not entitled to.
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Mike Bowden: Defined by decency, not strength
Michael J Bowden, OAM, was a unique man who lived a full Australian life; physically strong and intellectually determined, he was defined not by strength but by decency.
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Liberal Party conservatives want 'immediate' expulsion of Turnbull
Malcolm Turnbull's memoir has yet to be released, but that hasn't stopped an outbreak of Liberal Party infighting over the weekend.
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Mystery surrounding woman on ghost street in Pyrmont
The image from a glass plate negative was taken in 1900-1901 or thereabouts, not long before the road was bulldozed clean off the map with the march of gentrification.
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A week is a long time in politics of COVID-19
Surely we owe it to ourselves to see more of what Morrison’s got before judging his performance as the national leader.
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Lessons we can learn for whatever crisis strikes next
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'We are in a war': Why the construction industry is too big to fail
Construction sites, large and small, remain open even as other industries have been shut down or curtailed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
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Former Spice Girl in trademarks battle with Australian skincare company
Fashion designer Victoria Beckham has taken a Sydney-based skincare company to court over two trademarks using the letters "VB".
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'Unprecedented and very concerning': Concerns raised about COVID-19 powers given to mayors
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We need Ghebreyesus to lead WHO through this crisis
We blame the captain when we find our modest paddle-steamer unable to weather a hurricane. But this UN agency's failings are by design.
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Nurse moved serenely between generals and beggars in the street
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Please Explain podcast: how Australia bypassed WHO's China problem
Anthony Galloway joins Tory Maguire to discuss China's relationship with the WHO and why Australia has stepped away from the organisations messaging.
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Empty shelves and clogged sewers as shortages hit regional NSW
Supermarkets that service people across hundreds of kilometres of NSW are still struggling to get the basics.
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Indigenous women face particularly high risks in this crisis
Recent cuts to critical Aboriginal family violence services mean support for Aboriginal women and children was already going backwards before COVID-19.
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Time stands still at Sydney Observatory due to virus lockdown
The yellow and black cast-iron Time Ball has sat atop Sydney Observatory since June 1858.
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Children paying the price of library shutdowns
During lockdown children are doubtless spending plenty of time staring at their devices, but are they reading books on them?
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If we want world-class universities we need to find a way to pay for them
Governments and taxpayers asked universities to generate their own funds - and they did - but now the music has stopped.
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Locked-down lives drive emergency department numbers to record lows
Numbers of patients visiting hospital emergency departments have dropped to record lows across Australia amid fears people are delaying life-saving treatment.
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How local outbreaks of COVID-19 occurred across Sydney
The suburbs which recorded NSW's first cases of local transmission of COVID-19 have been revealed, as health experts warn that this is the measure Australia needs to watch.
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It pains me to say this, but when it comes to the virus app Barnaby Joyce has a point
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Xi and Trump: insecure 'strongmen' who had nothing to offer in a crisis but vanity
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Students to spend one day a week in class under back-to-school plan
Students would return to school for one day a week under a plan to gradually resume lessons
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Full time schooling to resume term three, beginning with one day a week in May
NSW students will go back to school one day a week from mid-May, with temperature checks and priority COVID testing for teachers
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Meteor next backyard project as the heavens put on 'an isolation show'
The Lyrid meteor shower is set to peak on Wednesday night, so grab a blanket, head outdoors and add 'amateur astronomer' to your list of isolation pursuits.
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'Warning light': Coronavirus can last longer in air than first thought
Virus behind the world's COVID-19 pandemic can stay infectious in the air for more than 12 hours, research out of four major US laboratories has found.
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COVID-19 medical trial to treat thousands with HIV, malaria drugs
A clinical study led by Melbourne’s Doherty Institute aims to treat every patient hospitalised with coronavirus infection over the next 18 months, in a bid to keep them out of intensive care.
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CBD Melbourne: Taylor bids farewell to the ranch
Energy Minister Angus Taylor’s long, and at times politically painful, involvement with rural sector has run its course.