Friday, 9 January - Feeling hot hot hot

January 09, 2026

Good morning, it’s Friday, 9 January. In your Squiz Today…

  • A Royal Commission with a double-pike backflip

  • Anger over a deadly immigration operation in Minneapolis

  • And cold noodles for a hot day

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

“You’ve saved my life.”

Said a 74yo man to 2 young Tassie blokes who came to his rescue after they found him floating in the Bass Strait. Alec Newton and Callum Hodge managed to get the man onto their boat, and he’s now stable in hospital. A couple of deadset legends…

Caving on a Royal Commission

The Squiz

PM Anthony Albanese has announced a federal Royal Commission on antisemitism and social cohesion, with former High Court justice Virginia Bell as its commissioner. That’s a 180 after earlier refusing to establish a federal-level inquiry - he previously said his government would support the NSW one. But following weeks of pressure - from Jewish community leaders, the Coalition, some Labor MPs, business groups, sports stars and others - he relented yesterday… Albanese said after speaking with Jewish leaders and families of the Bondi terror attack victims, “we’ve concluded that where we have landed today is an appropriate way forward for national unity”.

So he got there - but what’s it going to do?

Albanese says the Royal Commission will examine 4 key areas: the “nature and prevalence of antisemitism” in Australia, how to tackle it, what led to last month’s terror attack at Bondi, and how to bolster social cohesion/counter ideological and religious extremism. The review of federal intelligence and law enforcement agencies that Albanese announced last month will be folded into the Royal Commission. And another thing to note - NSW Premier Chris Minns says that the state Royal Commission won’t go ahead now that a federal one has been established. Both the Executive Council of Australian Jewry and our national antisemitism envoy Jillian Segal welcomed the Royal Commission news. 

Tell me about Virginia Bell…  

Good shout because there’s been pushback about her appointment… To give you some background, she was appointed to the High Court by the Rudd Government in 2009 as the fourth woman to serve, and she retired in 2021. In his last term, Albanese appointed her to probe former PM Scott Morrison’s secret multiple ministeries, and she returned a scathing report. Former Coalition frontbencher Josh Frydenberg is one who’s raised concerns about her appointment - he and some others say the issue is that she could be associated with the political left. For his part, Albanese says Bell is “widely respected” and will run the inquiry in a way that won’t prejudice any current or future criminal proceedings. She doesn’t have a lot of time to much around - Bell has been given a 14 December deadline to hand in her report. 

Sweet dreams are made of this

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Squiz the Rest

Propaganda claims in Minneapolis

Protests have broken out across the US after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot dead Renee Good, a 37yo mother and award-winning poet, in Minneapolis. Good was in her car when the shooting occurred - state leaders say she was there as a legal observer, monitoring the ICE operation that was part of Trump's immigration crackdown. Federal authorities say Good tried to run over one of the agents, and President Donald Trump called her a "professional agitator". But American media outlets are reporting that the footage shows that while the car appeared to make contact with the officer, he had stepped out of its path before firing 2 more shots. State Governor Tim Walz called the federal response "propaganda", while Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey demanded ICE "get the f*** out".

Alert and alarmed…

The ongoing heatwave is causing a stack of fire danger warnings across the country today, but particularly in Victoria, where the state’s emergency services are warning of the worst conditions “since black summer in 2019-20”. Authorities are especially worried about the Longwood area of the state, which has been dealing with a volatile fire for the last 24 hours. Late last night, Premier Jacinta Allan told Victorians that “if the forecasts are right, tomorrow will be catastrophic” and told Victorians to take action immediately. While Melbourne’s 43C is the highest forecast max of the capital cities today, it’ll be Sydney’s turn tomorrow, with extreme fire danger projected across New South Wales and the ACT. Stay safe/hydrated… 

Grok's 'spicy mode' lands X in hot water

Australia's eSafety Commissioner is investigating reports that Grok - Elon Musk's AI chatbot on X - is generating fake sexualised images of women and children. eSafety Australia yesterday said the images of children did not, at this point, cross the line, but it’s on their radar... It's the latest clash between Commissioner Julie Inman Grant and Musk after high-profile legal battles and personal vitriol centred on the limits of global content regulation and free speech. The UK's media watchdog Ofcom has also received complaints about Grok, with victims including the mother of one of Musk's children who said she felt "horrified" and "violated". The EU's digital affairs spokesman was blunt about Grok's so-called "spicy mode": "This is not spicy. This is illegal. This is appalling."

Australia wrap up the Ashes

Though the series result was never in doubt after the home team went 3-0 up after the third Test in Adelaide, they had some nervy moments on the final day of the SCG Test… Set 160 to win, the Aussies lost 5 wickets before wicketkeeper Alex Carey and all-rounder Cameron Green steered the team home yesterday to take the series 4-1. Retiring great Usman Khawaja received a guard of honour from the English, and Mitchell Starc was named Player of the Series for his 31 wickets. Despite some short Tests, the series was a big success - the third-most attended in Australian history - but it’ll leave some big questions to answer for the English - and their aggressive play style known as ‘Bazball’, on that long flight home… 

At least it’s a short trip for most of us… 

A couple of Oz locations have cracked the New York Times annual 52 places to go in 2026 list (paywall), and for very different reasons... Melbourne made the list for its food scene and its Formula One - the American media outlet said the addition of the Cadillac team to this year’s race made Melbourne “a must-attend event for speed demons around the globe”. And the Northern Territory’s Top End was the other Oz destination to make the grade, with the reopening of the Gunlom Falls and the Indigenous rock art in the area as major selling points. Number one on the list was the US itself, which is celebrating 250 years since the Declaration of Independence, followed by Warsaw in Poland and Bangkok in Thailand. And after a week back at work, we concur that it’s time to book a holiday…

Friday Lites - 3 things we liked this week

We’re big fans of the biz podcast Acquired, and we’re also big fans of Moneyball and The Big Short author Michael Lewis, so imagine what a pleasant surprise it was to see them combine to talk about a decade of the podcast. It’s a ripper listen. 

Over the break, we caught up with the entire first season of House of Guinness, the period drama written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight. It’s a rollicking good time about the Guinness family, and Knight is a name to watch - he’s writing the next Bond movie… 

For hot days/nights, a classic bachelor’s handbag and salad for dinner is a mainstay, but this week we mixed it up with Hetty McKinnon’s cold spicy noodles with smashed zucchini. If you’re peanut allergic, sub in cashews - and if no nuts is your thing, leave ‘em out altogether. Yum…

Squiz the Day

Friday
5.30pm (AEDT): Tennis - Australia v Poland in the quarter-finals of the United Cup with the winner to face the US in the semis - keep an eye on rising Oz tennis star Maya Joint in this one… Watch on Channel 9 and 9Now

Sentencing for 20yo Jermaine Vaivao, who is charged with the theft of a vehicle that was used in the arson attack on the Adass Israel Synagogue in December 2024

Season 3 of the drama series Tehran premieres on Apple TV - with House star Hugh Laurie joining the cast

A birthday for Catherine, Princess of Wales (1982)

Anniversary of:

• Steve Jobs introducing iTunes (2001) and the first iPhone (2007)

• the Sussexes making a shock announcement that they would “step back" as ‘senior’ members of the royal family (2020)

Saturday
3pm (AEDT): Horse racing - 2026 Magic Millions Raceday begins, Gold Coast, watch on 7Plus

The Lorne Pier to Pub is on - one of the largest ocean swims in the world - Lorne, Victoria

The Hobart International begins, which will feature Emma Raducanu and Venus Williams amongst the field - watch on Stan

Margaret Thatcher Day (Falkland Islands)

World Hindi Day

A birthday for singer Rod Stewart (1945) 

Anniversary of:

• the establishment of the frontrunner to the United Nations, the League of Nations, as the Treaty of Versailles took effect (1920)

• the deaths of Coco Chanel (1971) and David Bowie (2016)

Sunday

Birthdays for horse fan Daryl Braithwaite (1949) and singer/swimmer Cody Simpson (1997)

Anniversary of:

• the US Surgeon General Dr Luther Terry publishing a landmark report saying smoking caused lung cancer (1964)

• the death of New Zealand mountaineer Sir Edmund Hillary (2004)

• author JK Rowling completing the final Harry Potter book in an Edinburgh hotel room (2007)