#auspol on Bluesky: Tuesday 10 November 2026

1. TOP TRENDING TOPICS

• US–AUKUS and Hegseth/Marles scrutiny: Posts calling for an inquiry into Australia's US defence alliance, with Richard Marles's ties to Pete Hegseth, drew the highest engagement of the window.
• Albanese's appointment of Peter Dutton to the Australian War Memorial: Criticism focused on Dutton's record and the Frontier Wars exhibition, with many posts framing it as a symbolic failure.
• Victorian and Queensland state politics: Posts about the Victorian election, the Coalition's treaty-related stance, and Queensland policing and premier conduct were common, often tagged #vicpol or #springst.
• Climate, COP31 and fossil fuels: Mentions of COP31, fossil fuel exports, nuclear energy and renewables recurred, typically critical of government policy.
• Inflation, rates and energy costs: Discussion of rate rises, spending cuts, electricity rebates and the Tasmanian MP pay rise reflected cost-of-living concerns.

2. NOTABLE POSTS

• @simonrosenberg.bsky.social (133 likes, 55 reposts): "If Hegseth is to be impeached, the very least the Australian parliament needs to do is to hold an inquiry into all aspects our defence 'alliance' with the US…" This was the most-engaged post in the set and typifies the dominant AUKUS critique.
• @twangmaker.bsky.social (98 likes, 43 reposts): "Albo's decision to appoint racist Peter Dutton as head of the War Memorial was a dog act." It is the second-highest engagement and shows how the Dutton appointment became a flashpoint, particularly among Indigenous-rights advocates.
• @opax.com.au: This automated post on Richard Marles's speech record, with topic-label shares, is one of the few data-driven posts. It is a bot-style account, which matters when judging how representative the volume is.

3. OVERALL SENTIMENT

The mood is predominantly critical and frustrated, with government (both Labor federally and the LNP and state governments) attacked from left-leaning and progressive positions. Much of the discussion centres on perceived betrayal by Labor, including defence alignment with the US, the War Memorial appointment and climate policy. Right-leaning voices appear less often, and the tone is frequently sardonic, with hashtags and insults aimed at figures like Abbott, Dutton and Trump. Overall engagement is low for most posts, and several accounts are automated or aggregator feeds, so the sample likely overstates the intensity of a broader public mood.

Most active: @winkypop.bsky.social (7 posts) · Most engaged: @simonrosenberg.bsky.social (133 likes, 55 reposts, 4 replies)

1. TOP TRENDING TOPICS

• AJA and social media "special access": The highest-engagement thread, after AJA CEO Robert Gregory reportedly admitted the group has special access to senior social media staff to reinstate banned accounts, with critics calling it unequal treatment of "ordinary Australians."
• Robodebt-style automation and AI job losses: Posts on algorithmic decision-making in aged care and NDIS, Qantas cutting ~850–1,000 jobs and outsourcing roles, and AI-driven job anxiety.
• Climate, fossil fuels and COP31: Criticism of fossil fuel subsidies, the Beetaloo pipeline, the proposed WA carve-out from the gas reservation scheme, and a UN human rights case brought by ten Australians.
• Victorian election (28 November): Greens' $50 concert ticket lottery, Family First petitions, One Nation and immigration debate, and Greens recruitment messaging.
• Police conduct and racism: Outrage over the video of an Indigenous woman being tasered and dragged off a bench by seven officers, plus data showing Aboriginal children are less likely to receive police cautions.

2. NOTABLE POSTS

• [strangerous.bsky.social] (70 likes, 49 reposts): On the AJA's claimed access to social media companies: "ordinary Australians have no ability to do this." This was the most-engaged post in the set and drove the day's most significant thread, showing how a single admission can dominate discussion.
• [rainbowregionmyles.bsky.social] (45 likes, 26 reposts): "Funny how battery rebates & EV incentives suddenly become 'unaffordable'... while billions in fossil fuel tax breaks just quietly carry on." It is the top-engaging policy critique and captures a widely shared frame of inconsistent energy subsidies.
• [qldaah.bsky.social] (25 likes, 10 reposts): Reporting that Network 10 has begun bankruptcy proceedings against Bruce Lehrmann after he failed to pay a $2m costs order. It is a high-engagement item that reflects a lighter, almost schadenfreude-driven strand of the feed.

3. OVERALL SENTIMENT

The tone is predominantly critical and frustrated, with most posts targeting governments of both major parties, corporations, and institutions. Discontent focuses on perceived hypocrisy (climate commitments versus fossil fuel support), unaccountable power (AJA access, police conduct, billionaire influence over AI markets), and economic insecurity (job cuts, housing, cost of living). Engagement is modest for most posts, with a few high-performing outliers. Supportive or celebratory content is rare, appearing mainly in Greens campaign promotion and a few small climate wins. Many posts are minimal hashtag-only or cross-posted news links, indicating a feed dominated by sharing rather than in-depth debate. Partisan tension is visible, with some users pressing Labor from the left and others attacking the Coalition and One Nation, though the overall mood is one of disillusionment rather than optimism.

Most active: @pandymonium.bsky.social (10 posts) · Most engaged: @strangerous.bsky.social (70 likes, 49 reposts, 10 replies)

1. TOP TRENDING TOPICS

• Victorian election and One Nation–LNP preferences: Posts urge voters to put One Nation last and criticise Jess Wilson's Liberal-National alliance, with claims of racist scapegoating and fossil-fuel-linked astroturfing.
• Qantas job cuts and outsourcing: Users condemn the reported 850 job losses, overseas call centres and AI-driven service, and link them to wider corporate outsourcing.
• Online safety and AI regulation: Discussion covers under-18 restrictions that could affect Gmail, church concerns about "digital duty of care" censorship, and an AI safety watchdog announced after an OpenAI-linked Medicare data breach.
• Israel, Gaza and arms sales: Posters attack the government over Jillian Segal, alleged Australian weapons sales to Israel, and the "genocide" framing, with some pushing back against accusations of antisemitism.
• Cost of living and the economy: Users respond to an RBA rate rise, Iran-war oil price effects, leaks against Treasurer Chalmers, and debates over budget savings and tax versus spending.

2. NOTABLE POSTS

• [australiainstitute.org.au] (49 likes, 24 reposts): Quotes economist Matt Grudnoff: "It doesn't matter how high the RBA puts up interest rates... That is going to do nothing to open the Strait of Hormuz." It is the most-engaged post in the set and frames inflation as a supply-side problem that monetary tightening cannot fix.

• [jeremywalker.bsky.social] (17 likes, 10 reposts): Describes the One Nation and LNP Victorian campaigns as "a fossil fuel driven disinfo and astroturfing operation utilising racist scapegoating," citing Atlas Network-linked groups. It is a sharp, accusatory claim about coordinated political influence, and it recurs across several posts.

• [qldaah.bsky.social] (20 likes, 14 reposts): Attacks Queensland's Special Commissioner Andrew Cripps as a "Barnaby Joyce drought envoy" type appointment costing $400k, speculating he will become an LNP Senate replacement. It typifies the wider anger at perceived political patronage.

3. OVERALL SENTIMENT

The mood is predominantly angry, cynical and combative, with frustration aimed at both major parties and particularly at the Liberal-National coalition and One Nation ahead of the Victorian election. Many posts express cost-of-living anxiety, anger over corporate job losses and public-service spending, and disillusionment with the Albanese government, which is criticised over Israel, economic management and tech regulation. Alongside this, there is a strong undercurrent of hope and mobilisation around the Greens, independents and minority-government scenarios, with users urging preference strategies to keep One Nation out. Humour and sarcasm appear frequently, but the dominant tone is one of distrust in institutions and corporations, with strong moral condemnation of political opponents.

Most active: @kimwingerei.bsky.social (12 posts) · Most engaged: @australiainstitute.org.au (49 likes, 24 reposts, 2 replies)

1. TOP TRENDING TOPICS

• Victorian election and One Nation preference deals: The dominant thread, with Liberals preferencing One Nation, Labor's Prahran preference stance, and a steady stream of criticism over One Nation candidates being dropped for Nazi or Hitler-related posts.
• One Nation candidate vetting and Pauline Hanson's party: Repeated attacks on One Nation's candidate selection, including Barnaby Joyce's defence of a party MP accused of a racial slur against an Indigenous journalist.
• Qantas job cuts and outsourcing: Criticism of the airline over cutting roughly 850–1,000 jobs and shifting roles offshore, with AI cited as a factor.
• AI regulation and the OpenAI/Medicare data breach: Discussion of an AI agent accessing Medicare data and the government's plan for a standalone "failure to prevent" offence and an AI regulator.
• Gaza, Israel and COP31: Recurring posts on genocide, antisemitism debates, and the Prime Minister's COP31 trip, which drew overseas travel criticism.

2. NOTABLE POSTS

• @kentparkskeet (32 likes, 8 reposts): "Just the tip of the Nazi. #AusPol" – The most-engaged post in the set, it captures the widespread frustration with One Nation's extremist candidates in a few words.
• @simonrosenberg (18 likes, 7 reposts): On the Albanese government and robodebt, "they've learned too much; how to refine the process of cruel, arbitrary, dehumanising treatment of 'clients' in the pursuit of short-term savings." It is a pointed, high-engagement critique from the left that shows Labor being attacked from its own base.
• @pupfiction (4 likes, 1 repost): A satirical Monty Python–style exchange mocking the Liberals' preference deal with the "Victorian People's Front," ("But they're not the Romans. That's the most important thing"). It is a witty example of humour used to skewer the coalition deal.

3. OVERALL SENTIMENT

The mood is overwhelmingly hostile and alarmed, with the Victorian election and One Nation's rise driving most of the anger. Posters are largely left-leaning and frustrated with both major parties, with Labor criticised for its welfare, climate and AI policies, and the Coalition attacked for its preference deals with One Nation. Many posts call for Greens and independents as an alternative, and the tone ranges from angry and sarcastic to despairing about the state of democracy. There is also a noticeable volume of automated or hashtag-spam posts, and much of the discussion is driven by a small set of highly active accounts, so the sample may over-represent a particular political community.

Most active: @coupdegraz7.bsky.social (11 posts) · Most engaged: @kentparkskeet.bsky.social (32 likes, 8 reposts, 2 replies)