Society
“Sinn Féin in my opinion has been slowly sedated…”
In light of Mick’s post, and now Brian’s follow-up, it’s worth noting an Irish News report today of Ballymoney Councillor Anita Cavlan’s resignation from Sinn Féin ”over concerns it is failing prisoners”. From the Irish News report The Ballymoney councillor said she believed Sinn Féin had “lost direction” and “should be doing more to represent the prisoners”. “Sinn Féin [...] more »
Masterplan for Girdwood: “back to the sectarian drawing board…”
The Northern Ireland First and deputy First Minsters recently announced the second round of funding, £1.5million, available from the Executive and Atlantic Philanthropies’ ‘Contested Spaces’ Programme, although I’m still not entirely clear where the other £2.5million went… The announcement, in the absence of a “Cohesion, Sharing and Integration” strategy, rebranded, and “watered down” to the “lowest commmon denominator“, [...] more »
Euro crisis: “With that we buried the Maastricht Treaty, the legal basis for currency union”
A couple of interesting reports in the Irish Times with relevance to the ongoing euro crisis. First, from Derek Scally in Berlin …Mr Asmussen, a member of the ECB governing council, said growth measures – agreed without reopening the fiscal treaty – could help drive European integration. “The benefits of a currency union are so [...] more »
“I think it might be part of a wider fraud organised by certain political elements…”
The Irish Times reports from Ennis Circuit Court where a 33-year-old sub-contractor has been jailed for six years, with the final year suspended, after a jury convicted him of a €680,000 VAT fraud between January 2001 and October 2003. From the Irish Times report Retired Revenue official Michael Downey said yesterday an estimated €15 million went through [...] more »
Grammar schools and social mobility: a Northern Ireland contribution to the debate
Here’s something that won’t make relations between the Education and Finance ministers any easier.. An approving poll for a UK wide campaign to revive grammar schools has received a gushing review from Independent columnist Mary Anne Sieghart. It’s pegged to the general angst about stalled – even reversed – social mobility which all UK political [...] more »
Euro crisis: “the quadriga is a perfect symbol of how confused and contested that project has become”
Tim Garton Ash asked, “Who wishes to address the assembly?“. Will Self has a point of view on the euro crisis and the European Project’s democratic deficit. You can listen to his Radio 4 Point of View here. From the accompanying BBC Magazine article That these same politicians were afflicted by a strange sort of [...] more »
Aurora Borealis over Europe
Another wondrous view of the Aurora Borealis as captured by the crew of the International Space Station. This time as a backdrop to the equally wondrous sight of Ireland and the United Kingdom under night-time conditions [0-18s]. Video via NasaCrewEarthObs. This video was taken by the crew of Expedition 30 on board the International Space Station. The [...] more »
Euro crisis: “Tis agoreuein bouletai?”
At the Guardian’s Comment is Free, Tim Garton Ash is still a believer in the European Project but, probably, not an optimistic one. As well as mentioning a familiar quote from Luxembourg’s Prime Minister he makes an important point, as Greece faces a democratic choice, again, that applies to the wider euro crisis. From the Comment is Free article Greece’s untold, [...] more »
Hain ‘clarifies’ comments in contempt of court case
Sort of… After the bluster from various political and media sources over, the “statutorily independent” NI Attorney General, John Larkin’s decision to charge former Secretary of State for Wales, etc, Peter Hain, MP, and his publisher, with contempt of court over remarks in Mr Hain’s autobiography, the BBC has news from the High Court. Former NI [...] more »
“I do apologise for anyone who misunderstood the way I was using the metaphor…”
Two days after the DUP’s Jonathan Bell’s rapid apology for the Northern Ireland Junior Minsters’ two-handed assault on golf clubs. …speaking at the Community Relations Week conference, Mr Bell said: “Many communities may not paint their kerb stones or put out flags, but scratch the surface and you find the prejudice and the hate whispered [...] more »
Greece: “good luck for the next restructuring…”
As the euro crisis rumbles on, confirmation, if any were needed, that Greece is, indeed, heading back to the polls. You can follow further developments on the Guardian’s live-blog. Meanwhile, having cajoled the vast majority of their private sector creditors into taking part in a bond swap deal in March, the Greek government [who? - [...] more »
“I don’t think this generation is any different than the last…”
The Guardian’s Henry McDonald reports from anarchic Londonderry on the continuing activities of vigilante group, Republican Action Against Drugs (RAAD). Watch the accompanying video report here. From the Guardian report Some RAAD members are ex-Provisionals who back the peace process but still take up the gun against members of their own communities accused of antisocial activities. [...] more »
Euro crisis: “Hold your sides and laugh out loud, otherwise you’ll have to cry.”
Despite some optimistic noises overnight, it still seems more likely than not that Limbo Greece will face new elections. As the Guardian live-blog noted earlier today The Democratic left party in Greece has said it will not back a pro-bailout government. That almost certainly means that Venizelos’s attempts to form a government coalition around agreement on the bailout [...] more »
In praise of… The Antikythera Mechanism
I have noted it before [with videos from Nature], but the Antikythera Mechanism is a pretty wondrous object. And, as the Guardian’s ‘in praise of’ editorial points out, ”A BBC4 programme on Thursday night retold the tale.” The Antikythera Mechanism Research Project is worth a look too. Here’s a shorter version of the story And, almost as [...] more »
Euro crisis: “Europe will be lucky if it ends up in stagnation like Japan for the next ten years”
Back in Limbo Greece, stage 2 in the 4-stage attempt to form a government with a parliamentary majority ends without agreement – as the BBC notes Mr Tsipras said he had failed to reach agreement with mainstream parties because of his insistence on rejecting austerity measures demanded by the EU and IMF as part of a [...] more »
“UK courts cannot force the handing over of journalistic material to foreign organizations…”
Just a quick note of the BBC reporting that Garda have failed in their attempt to force the BBC and UTV to hand over unbroadcast video footage of rioting in Dublin during Queen Elizabeth II’s visit last year. From the BBC report The request which was made through the Home Office failed after Senior Belfast Judge Tom [...] more »
Euro crisis: “Hollande is man of the moment, but Europe’s gaze is firmly fixed on Athens”
As the Irish Times’ Arthur Beesley notes All of this puts Hollande’s push to renegotiate the treaty in the shade. German chancellor Angela Merkel was quick to rebut her new French partner yesterday, but that can be read as the opening gambit. Her staunch ally Nicolas Sarkozy has been deposed. She has no choice but [...] more »
Greece: “Country in Limbo”
Gerry’s analysis notwithstanding, in Greece they’re trying to come to terms with those election results. As the BBC reports Greece’s centre-right leader, Antonis Samaras, has said he cannot form a coalition government, hours after he was given a mandate by the president. His New Democracy, which backed the last EU bailout, emerged as the biggest [...] more »
Hollande wins in France…
According to reported early estimates Socialist Francois Hollande has been elected as France’s new president, early estimates say. He got about 52% of votes in Sunday’s run-off, according to projections based on partial results, against 48% for centre-right incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy. The Guardian’s live-blog will have further updates. As for what it means for the fiscal [...] more »
“are you serious?” – redux
Having taken umbrage previously at the sight of the Union flag on a bit of turkey in his local Asda store, the now Sinn Féin councillor, Máirtín Ó Muilleoir, is bemoaning the lack of eggs “produced locally” in Sainsbury’s. Or so he claims… [He has photographic evidence! - Ed] Indeed. As he says in the Andersonstown News How [...] more »
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Total Politics: Top 20 NI Blogs…
Fair play to Iain, he managed to get over 2,200 people voting in his poll for the top Northern Irish blogs this year… We (just, I imagine) retained our top spot, with Splintered coming straight in at number 2, no doubt his pet subject du jour will have garnered him a lot of fans… I’ve [...] read our review »
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Debating the Churches’ Role in the Peace in Northern Ireland
This morning’s Sunday Sequence featured a substantial debate (about 35 minutes into the recorded programme) on a new book,Religion, Civil Society and Peace in Northern Ireland (Oxford University Press 2011), written by sociologists John Brewer, Gareth Higgins and Francis Teeney. The debate was framed in an opening vignette by presenter William Crawley in uncompromising terms, [...] read our review » -
“It was a trivial problem that… occurs every year”
Just your average family gathering at Christmas, with a bit of an argument about the seating cleaning arrangements… Scuffles have broken out between rival groups of Greek Orthodox and Armenian clerics over a turf war in Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity. Bemused tourists looked on as about 100 priests fought with brooms while cleaning the [...] read our review »
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