Washington as well as Asian capitals such as Tokyo, Jakarta, Singapore and Hanoi has been busily courting New Delhi with impressive results. But the weakest link in New Delhi’s growing network with centers of influence in the region is with Canberra. If Australia wants to remain an active, relevant and influential ‘middle power’ in Asia, then spending the next half decade improving our bilateral relationship with countries such as India is much more important and a better use of finite time, resources and energy than the nice-sounding but premature idea of an Asian Pacific Community (APC).
University of Western Sydney academic Steve Keen made a name for himself with forecasts of economic doom, predicting a 40% decline in Australian house prices. Keen put his money where his mouth is, selling his unit in Surry Hills in October last year for $526,000. In November last year, Macquarie Bank’s Rory Robertson raised the stakes, proposing the following wager: