Ireland has a lot of skin in the game of international politics
A strange aspect of British politics these days is the reaction of the Tory controlled media to the emergence of Nigel Farage and his Reform party. Since he is peddling hard right and populist positions and stances, the Tory right finds it difficult to withhold sneaking regarder respect for his dominant opinion poll position. Tory […]
Irish people fail to understand how fragile our electricity supply is
When we read about Putin’s onslaught on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure designed, apparently, to freeze the Ukrainians into submission in the context of Trump-sponsored peace talks, we can only imagine what it is like to live in a world of blackouts amid ambient temperatures of -15 or -20 degrees centigrade. Interestingly both Sinn Fein and our […]
Is the Wood Quay monstrosity finally going to be demolished?
Dublin City Council is reported to be about to buy into the semi-developed Camden Yard building site on Upper Kevin Street in Dublin. Other reports suggest it could relocate there from its ghastly campus on Wood Quay, and that new civic offices would be built on the Camden Yard site, along with 300 public homes. This news might […]
Should the super rich get to opt out of paying taxes in the country that enriched them?
Every so often, we read reports concerning the distribution of wealth among private individuals, nationally and globally. These reports often show that a tiny proportion of the population appears to own and control a massively disproportionate fraction of the wealth of our State, and sometimes it appears that this imbalance is worsening at the expense of […]
Sinn Féin should study its own political history before demanding Herzog Park be renamed
On January 5th, 1976, members of an active service unit of the IRA stopped a minibus at Kingsmill, near Whitecross in South Armagh. They sorted out the occupants, all textile workers, by religion on the roadside. They let the sole Catholic, Richard Hughes, walk away, and they cut down the 11 Protestants in a hail of automatic gunfire. […]
Should we re-roof the Rock of Cashel?
During the summer, I had occasion to travel to Portumna to collect some boating equipment with a family member. Our business done, I suggested that we should call into Portumna Castle. It would be my first visit for more than 20 years. The castle was a fortified residence of Richard Burke, Fourth Earl of Clanrickard and Lord […]