Thursday, 19 June - Don't call it a comeback

June 19, 2025

Good morning, it’s Thursday, 19 June. In your Squiz Today…

  • The US weighs its options as Israel and Iran edge closer to all-out war

  • Tax changes are on the table

  • And the Maroons level things up in State of Origin…

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

“This is not about the charts. This is about Bruce Springsteen. And these are the songs he wants to work on right now.”

Said Jon Landau, Springsteen’s manager, played by Jeremy Strong in the upcoming biopic about The Boss, Deliver Me from Nowhere… It stars The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White as Springsteen, and there’s already Oscar buzz just from the trailer - that’s quite a trailer…

Closing in on a new war

The Squiz

The conflict between Israel and Iran has no end in sight, with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei saying in a national address that Iran has no intention of surrendering, and that any military intervention by the US would “result in irreparable damage”. That came after US President Donald Trump called for its “unconditional surrender” yesterday. Overnight, the President said his patience with Iran has “already run out”, but he wouldn’t be drawn on whether the US would join in Israeli strikes, saying “I may do it, I may not do it. Nobody knows what I want to do. But I can say this: Iran's got a lot of trouble and they want to negotiate.” 

So what’s going to happen?

Well, there are a few indications that the US is preparing for the situation to escalate… After yesterday’s National Security Council meeting, Trump made several posts online using the language “we” - which those in the know reckon could be a sign that the US is thinking about joining Israel’s campaign. Reports say that’s something Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is after, with speculation he’s asked for the US’s “bunker busting” bombs to be used on Iran’s Fordow nuclear site. Israeli officials have said that eliminating the facility is part of their goal to end Iran’s missile and nuclear program, and, given that Fordow is deep underground, they’ll need help to target it. There’s a big but… The bombs in question can only be dropped from US military aircraft, and that would pull the US directly into the conflict.

Is that likely?

It’s hard to say… For now, the US has been moving military assets to the region, with Middle East analysts saying it gives Trump “options”. There’s also the question about whether Iran even has a nuclear weapon - something Iranian officials have denied. Trump yesterday brushed off a report from his Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, that Iran hasn’t launched a nuclear weapons program. It goes against Israel’s claims that Iran was racing to build a nuclear weapon, prompting it to strike first… As that conflict unfolds, the Israel-Hamas war continues, with health authorities in Gaza saying 59 people were killed and 200 injured by Israeli gunfire on Tuesday as they tried to reach food distribution sites. The UN is calling for Israel’s new US-backed aid distribution scheme “to be stopped” before more people are killed.

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Squiz the Rest

NSW Police have charged 4 teenagers…

…over the alleged “sickening” gang rape of a 17yo girl in the Sydney suburb of Liverpool in the lead up to Christmas last year. Two men aged 18 and 19 were refused bail when they faced court yesterday on multiple sexual assault charges, while 2 boys aged 16 and 14 have been in police custody since December. Police say the girl was subjected to a “horrific” ordeal in her car which was filmed by the accused teens over a period of 6 hours on 15 December last year. Detective Superintendent Jayne Doherty praised “the strength” of the alleged victim and said her detailed statement allowed police to gather enough evidence to charge the teenagers. She said the alleged offenders were young, but they “should know that this is not the way you can treat another human being.” 

Tax changes are on the table

Treasurer Jim Chalmers was at the National Press Club yesterday talking about the Albanese government’s economic plans for its second term - and whether Labor romping home in the election might encourage it to go above and beyond its campaign promises. Chalmers did note those pledges were “a foundation, not a destination” and said a big reform to our tax system was probably in the works, mainly because our national balance sheet leans pretty heavily on income tax - with less cash flowing in via things like the GST. But as for what kind of changes - dunno yet… While the Libs have floated tax breaks for mothers to support “modern families”, Chalmers pointed to the government’s upcoming productivity roundtable (mark your calendars for 19-21 August) as the time to come up with any bold new moves. 

Optus might be coughing up some cash…

…to the tune of $100 million for selling vulnerable customers phone plans and products that they couldn’t afford - or couldn’t even use. One example involved staff outside an Optus store pressuring a First Nations customer to come inside and then selling them a phone, even though they had no Optus coverage where they lived. Similar stories came from 3 other Optus stores around Darwin and Mt Isa, and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) took the telco to task over it back in October last year. The ACCC has agreed to the fine along with Optus themselves, but that won’t be the end of it - the Federal Court still has to tick it off. As for where that amount ranks, it’s double what Telstra had to pay in 2021 over similar behaviour. 

The Maroons have squared things up…

…in a cracker of a game in Perth, just holding off a Blues comeback to win State of Origin Game 2 by 26-24. There was a fiery leadup, to say the least - you can read about all that here - and the match was a bit testy too, with spot fires and fouls popping up all over the ground. Queensland raced out to a 26-6 lead after a dominant first half in wet and slippery conditions, but things got pretty dicey in the second half as NSW kept coming back at them. In a desperate last few minutes, the Maroons somehow managed to hold on, even in the face of a hat-trick from NSW’s Brian To’o. The series is now tied at 1-1, which means it all comes down to Game 3, so get your scarves and beanies ready for that one in Sydney on 9 July. 

Tom Cruise finally gets an Oscar

With one caveat… We found out yesterday that Cruise, actor/choreographer Debbie Allen and production designer Wynn Thomas will all get Honorary Oscars at a ceremony called the Governors Awards on November 16, and we can only hope he’ll sprint up to the stage to receive it. Fun fact: Cruise has never won an acting Oscar, though he has picked up a few noms along the way. At the same event, music legend Dolly Parton will be awarded the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for her charity work - that’s the same award British writer-director Richard Curtis was given last year, which gives us an excuse to link to this Hugh Grant speech presenting him with it. Not sure someone will get away with that sort of speech about Tom, though…

Apropos of Nothing

There’s an awkward park, and then there’s plonking your car on an iconic tourist destination and getting stuck. That’s what happened to a man in Italy, who ran into trouble while trying to drive his Mercedes down the Spanish Steps in Rome, for reasons known only to him… 

Fans of Miles Franklin’s classic Aussie novel My Brilliant Career will be pleased (or wary, maybe…) to find out that Netflix is making it into a TV series. Filming is underway in South Oz, and between the 1979 movie version and how beloved the novel is, it’s got a fair bit to live up to… 

Points to anyone who can come up with a fun portmanteau for a tornado and a rainbow - you would have been handy in Nebraska earlier this week when the 2 weather events crossed paths to make quite the sight. A tor-rainbow… A tornad-bow… We’ll keep working on it…

Squiz the Day

9.30am (AEST) - The Australian Transport Safety Bureau will release the final report on a fatal crash of a fire surveillance aircraft in Queensland in which 3 people were killed in 2023 - Canberra

10.00am (AEST) Bruce Lehrmann is due to reappear in Hobart Magistrates Court on charges of stealing a car - Hobart 

10.00am (AWST) - The WA Budget will be released - Perth

10.30am (AEST) - Lachlan Young will appear in court for a preliminary hearing. He’s accused of murdering his ex-girlfriend Hannah Maguire - Melbourne

11.30am (AEST) - Su McCluskey, Special Representative for Australian Agriculture, will address the Rural & National Press Clubs of Australia, moderated by Gabrielle Chan - Canberra

5.45pm (AEST) - NRL: Men's and Women's Under-19 State of Origin - Sunshine Coast, watch on 9Now

ABS data release - Microdata: Labour force survey, April 2025; Labour Force, May 2025; Net interstate migration review, Dec 2024; National, state and territory population, Dec 2024 

The UN Security Council will hold a high-level open debate on poverty, underdevelopment and conflict

Juneteenth public holiday in the US, marking the emancipation of enslaved African Americans

28 Years later is out in cinemas across Australia - squeamish folks be warned

Birthdays for Aung San Suu Kyi (1945), Salman Rushdie (1947), Boris Johnson (1964), and Paul Dano (1984)

Anniversary of:

  • the first celebration of Father’s Day in Washington state (1910)

  • the British Royal Family renouncing its German names and titles and adopting the name of Windsor (1917)

  • Operation Mosaic, a series of 2 British nuclear tests conducted in the Montebello Islands in WA (1956)

  • The Rocky Horror Picture Show musical debuting in London (1973)

  • Garfield, created by Jim Davis, first appearing as a comic strip (1978)

  • the International Criminal Court (ICC) issuing an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for the illegal deportation of hundreds of children from Ukraine (2023)