A Melbourne father who stormed his son’s high school and punched a 16-year-old student in the face before tracking down another alleged bully’s father and knocking him unconscious has avoided jail, after a court heard months of distress over his son’s bullying culminated in an explosive “angry outburst”. Bobby Backman, 39, was convicted in the … Read more
PART 2 The mark was just below the baby’s left shoulder blade. At first glance, it looked like an ordinary birthmark. A dark red crescent, no larger than a coin, curved around three tiny brown dots. Through the center ran a thin, pale streak, almost like a line drawn through the skin. There was nothing … Read more
The photograph on my phone had been taken less than five minutes earlier. **Someone was standing outside Garrett Corbin’s bedroom, watching us.** My fingers tightened around the phone. Garrett studied my face. “What happened?” I turned the screen toward him. Christopher’s messages glowed beneath the photograph. **Rebecca, I know where you’re working. Leave that house … Read more
Noah was three. His small hand was sticky from the red hard candy he had found in the vestibule. He gripped my dark wool trousers, pulling hard enough to pop a stitch in the hem of my suit. “Grandpa,” he said. I reached down to hoist him up, but he resisted, his small frame rigid. … Read more
One Nation has refused demands to remove footage of students at an anti-Pauline Hanson protest after the party said lawyers representing parents threatened legal action over a viral video filmed at the public rally. The dispute has opened a new front in the increasingly bitter argument over the nationwide student walkouts held earlier this month, … Read more
Barnaby Joyce has blamed Australia’s migration surge for intensifying the housing crisis, declaring the Albanese government’s handling of population growth “completely botched” as One Nation doubles down on its controversial plan to slash net overseas migration. The former Nationals leader, now a One Nation MP, says Australia cannot solve housing affordability simply by building more … Read more
Australia’s $4 trillion-plus superannuation system has become the centre of an increasingly bitter political fight over a deceptively simple question: once 12 per cent of a worker’s salary is compulsorily directed into super, who should control what happens to that money? Labor and some of Australia’s largest unions have launched a major campaign defending compulsory … Read more
For nearly a year, 3-year-old Jade and her mother, Amber, navigated a rigorous treatment regimen following a diagnosis of orbital rhabdomyosarcoma—a rare, highly aggressive pediatric soft-tissue sarcoma originating behind her left eye. Because orbital rhabdomyosarcomas develop in close proximity to critical ocular structures, the optic nerve, and the skull base, standard treatment requires a multi-modal protocol … Read more
At just 3 years old, when early childhood is typically defined by outdoor play and learning, young “Mae Mae” is confronting an arduous medical challenge following a diagnosis of Stage 4 High-Risk Neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma is a rare pediatric cancer originating from neuroblasts—immature nerve cells of the sympathetic nervous system—most commonly arising in the adrenal glands or … Read more
The older boy lowered his head. The toddler ate slowly, clutching the food as if it might disappear. Around them, people continued walking. Most never looked twice. Then a woman carrying grocery bags stopped. She had heard the boy’s whispered plea. Just one word. “Please.” She looked at the two children. Really looked. The dirty … Read more