Australia’s hotbeds of cultural and political corruption are revealed in Overland 168: Ethics [schmethics]. IAN SYSON writes of the genteel corruption” infusing our literary culture. “The more one learns, the more one sees how many people are publishing, promoting and reviewing those with whom they have intimate physical, emotional or other kinds of personal relationships, despite all the lip-service to unenforceable codes of practice.” MARTIN FLANAGAN’s feature essay shines light on the Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes-style relationship of George Johnston and Charmian Clift, revealing what the pair’s lives say about the ethics of fiction writing and journalism. “When they were writing novels together, George Johnston said of his wife: ‘“She is the better writer, I’m the better journalist.’ But Clift stalled as a novelist; Johnston didn’t. Perhaps, in the end, she wasn’t selfish enough.” DAMIEN CAHILL, MARK DAVIS and TIM THORNTON examine the ways neoliberal interests are being funded and promoted through ‘independent’ think-tanks such as the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) and the Centre for Independent Studies (CIS). “The IPA provided extensive bogus anthropological research on the validity of Aboriginal land claims to the Liberals during their anti-Mabo and Wik campaigns. All of Australia’s major new right think-tanks have been heavily dependent on mining company funding.” KATHERINE WILSON writes about the ways in which commercial interests drive public health policy and information on vaccines, and the farce of “informed consent”. MISCHA MERZ gives a surprising argument for some forms of cultural censorship; FRANK BONGIORNO writes about the crisis in undergraduate education; and KERRY LEVES interviews XUAN DUONG about prejudice, stereotyping, and the refugees’ experience. Overland 168: Ethics [schmethics] also contains articles about the trend of using Darwinian theory to explain human behaviour and Overland’s regular selection of poetry, reviews, dialogue and fiction.