Anti-alcohol law contains some utterly ridiculous legal provisions
The HSE is supposed to be dealing with the Covid emergency on our behalf. But that does not mean that other health issues have gone away or do not need the attention of the political system, of the health system, and of citizens at large. When the Oireachtas was debating recent legislation on alcohol, it […]
Quidditch falls to earth with a show of intolerance
It being the festive season and goodwill abounding, I have decided to skate out on thin ice and to raise the alarming news that the powers that be in the sport of Quidditch have apparently decided to consider re-naming their game in an attempt to distance themselves from what they consider to be transphobic utterances […]
We cannot afford to drift into another lockdown
The United Kingdom has given 14 million of its population a booster jab. It isn’t at all clear how many Irish people have received a booster jab at this point. Anecdotal evidence suggests that a considerable number of older people have not received their boosters. By the same token, I have heard of people who […]
Parliamentary oversight needed if Covid powers to be extended
I think I am not alone in experiencing a good deal of Covid news fatigue. The problem is that we feel collectively helpless as the infection rates defy predictions made 6 weeks ago by our experts. The present spike in daily projections will have hospitalisation consequences, ICU consequences, and, sadly mortality and long-Covid consequences. The […]
With challenges of conflict, climate and Covid, these are dangerous times
As someone who is firmly of the opinion that it would be a catastrophe if, by any chance, Donald Trump were to be re-elected in three years’ time, I feel that the current trend of US politics gives one the horrible sense of watching a proverbial car-crash in slow motion. Trump appears to retain a […]
Adams lets the mask slip
Buoyed up by greatly increased opinion poll support, the Sinn Féin hierarchy has let the mask slip a little. Gerry Adams recorded a video Christmas card which was simply revolting. It wasn’t satirical. It wasn’t funny – even by the lowest standard of wit – the kind that features an elected Sinn Féin MLA posing […]