Opinion: In terms of doom and gloom, we're being bombarded at the moment with bad news.
Opinion: In terms of doom and gloom, we're being bombarded at the moment with bad news.
War in the Middle East. Skyrocketing fuel prices. Bowsers running dry. Inflation and interest rates soaring.
In such uncertain times, we crave certainty, but it feels like we're being let down badly by our leaders.
When Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced he was delivering an address to the nation, expectations were high. Prime-time speeches from our leaders are rare.
The last one was from Scott Morrison in 2020 during Covid. Before that, Kevin Rudd spoke to Australians in 2009 about the impact of the global financial crisis. John Howard announced Australia's involvement in the Iraq war in 2003.
Given the gravity of a national address from our leader, there was also a degree of anxiety about what Anthony Albanese might reveal, but it turned out to be a major let-down.
No new announcements. Nothing that hadn't already been flagged in press conferences or media releases. Just an urging for Australians to stay calm, do what we can to reduce our fuel use, and enjoy Easter.
No details or plans on how the country will cope if the war in Iran drags on, and what we'll do to keep the country moving after the planned fuel shipments to Australia arrive and the Strait of Hormuz stays shut, stopping new supplies from getting through.
After that disappointment, the world then watched on as US President Donald Trump walked up to the lectern in the Oval Office of the White House to deliver a prime-time address to the American people.
Again expectations were high that big news was coming. Financial markets rallied on the hope the Commander in Chief would be announcing an end to the conflict.
Instead, another dud.
Donald Trump simply reiterated the boasts he'd already posted on Truth Social that the US was winning hard, delivered more justification for bombing Iran in the first place, and in his usual style had mixed messages on what's coming next.
He claimed the war would be over in two-to-three weeks, but vowed to bomb Iran back into the dark ages, where he said they belonged.
The financial markets tanked on the back of his aggressive tone, reflecting the uneasy feeling that comes with even more uncertainty.
The gloom also deepened for the rest of the world being impacted by a war we had no say in from President Trump's lack of concern about oil shipments being blocked. Just buy more oil from America he said - or allies should just 'take' the strait of Hormuz themselves.
At least we got something to smile about. The launch of the first crewed mission to the Moon in more than 50 years with the Artemis II is a rare bright spot. Let's hope the entire 10-day journey continues in the same way it started - an overwhelming success.
We need all the good news we can get.
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