Reflections on Society: From Abortion Laws to Adorable Possums

After protests against strikes on Lebanon at the weekend included some people holding the Hezbollah flag, Peter Dutton suggested parliament should be recalled to enact new anti-terrorism laws that would cover such actions if it was not already illegal. Anthony Albanese and the Labor government accused the opposition leader of seeking to ‘raise the temperature’ of public debate over conflict in the Middle East. Then the debate turned to protests planned for 6 and 7 October after police in NSW tried to block the pro-Palestinian rallies from taking place.Nour Haydar speaks to deputy editor Patrick Keneally and deputy editor Gabrielle Jackson about how the opposition leader is dictating the terms of the political debate and the role of protests in our democracy