Picture by itla4u People – including Enda Kenny – were talking yesterday about how ‘Ireland’ (that’d be the twenty-six counties) has proved itself a bold, splendid, equal…I can’t remember the exact words but I got the general drift for sure…’Ireland’ had proved itself a wonderful ‘country’. Is he right? Maybe. If we judge by the numbers […]
May, 2015
Handshakes, referenda and the power of example
People – including Enda Kenny – were talking yesterday about how ‘Ireland’ (that’d be the twenty-six counties) has proved itself a bold, splendid, equal…I can’t remember the exact words but I got the general drift …’Ireland’ had proved itself a wonderful ‘country’. Is he right? Maybe. If we judge by the numbers of people who […]
‘Lessons From Thatcher and Conor Cruise for the Home Secretary’ by John Patton
Theresa May has serious Tory leadership ambitions which were germinating long before Cameron intimated that this would be his final term as PM. Some saw the announcement as a clearing of the way for Boris and a shackle method of the London Mayor for the next few years. However, the Home Secretary is nursing her […]
Discrimination in death
Noel Whelan had a piece in yesterday’s Irish Times, warning us that in our admiration for the forgiving spirit of those close to the victims of the Mullaghmore explosion – Louis Mountbatten, young Paul Maxwell and Nicholas Knatchbull, 83-year-old Dorothy Brabourne – we must not forget the foul deed that was done that day, and the […]
TRAVEL AND STRANGE CUSTOMS IN THE REMOTE REGIONS OF THE KNOWN WORLD by Harry McAvinchey
Some like to call this green and magical land “The Sick Counties”. A few, with some irony ,still call the place “Norn Iron”, summoning up a vision of a realm, like something out of “Game of Thrones” or “the Lord of the Rings”.It conjures up visions of a wild and tough wee land of […]
Thoughts on a referendum
Picture by Lilyem Jewelry No less a person than gio has asked me to blog on the south’s referendum today, so naturally, even though I’m pressed for time for reasons too boring to elaborate on, I must obey. To put it in a nutshell, I think the referendum isn’t a total waste of time […]
Guests are like fish – even royal ones
“Guests are like fish, they begin to smell after three days” Benjamin Franklin said. I’m not sure you need to wait that long. It’s been good to see Charles shake hands and chat with Gerry Adams (something no one from the DUP has got round to doing yet). There are those who see it […]
Periscope interview with John McCallister MLA
IS SAME SEX “MARRIAGE” EVEN POSSIBLE? by Kieran Maxwell
As a Catholic, I’d like to highlight the Christian view on marriage, and tackle some of the misconceptions that persist against this viewpoint. The debate surrounding same sex “marriage” has received quite a lot of column inches and TV time of late and I think it’s fair to say the argument in favour centres on […]
BAKING CAKES AGAIN by Harry McAvinchey
I suppose the Ashers Bakery debacle has exposed something.It has shown that there are many out there who do not actually understand the law; why it is actually needed in this form and the very idea of what “equality” actually means and is. This case has finally laid it on the line . The […]