September, 2015

Periscope interview with John O’Dowd

It always interesting going up to Stormont.  I find myself impressed by the building on the hill, as I’m intended to be. Mussolini did the same thing when Milan railway station was built – big and brutal and in your face. Ditto  Stormont: the mile-long avenue and the big architecture says ‘We’re boss and we’re […]

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ALL SPACED-OUT

“Good morning Mr Magpie …and how is your wife today?” Show the old beggar a bit of respect. That’s the ticket. Keep him sweet and mention the wife too. One for sorrow ,but two for joy .Just hope that he and the wife are still together and all will be well.Magpies are birds of magic […]

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Letters in the Indo and change in the GAA

Picture by Kelli Harris                                  Picture by Edward Dullard I’ve got two things on my mind this morning, both of which demand attention, so I’ll try and squeeze both into one blog. The first is the Letters page of this […]

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Does the GAA need flags and anthems?

Picture by St Paul’s High School ­­As I sit here typing, I’m waiting for a call from the Nolan Show on BBC Raidio Uladh/Radio Ulster. The topic for discussion – if it comes off – is a recommendation by Jarlath Burns that the flying of the Irish tricolor and the playing of the Irish national […]

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Pete and Jeremy and being certain

I was listening to Professor Peter Shirlow, late of this parish, on THE VIEW (BBC ONE) the other night. He was talking about the possible replacement of Dr Alasdair McDonnell by Colum Eastwood come November, and he tossed in something that I thought deserved to be challenged but wasn’t. He was stressing the importance of […]

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THE DEVIL’S DISPLEASURE

No , I don’t like to laugh at the dead …and I’m not laughing, but there is some crazy cosmic synchronicity going on ,when at the Hajj religious pilgrimage to stone pillars representing what is called “the devil” or possibly “the Devil” hundreds of people have died .The ritual involves throwing stones at three stone […]

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Three questions about Dr Alasdair

Question 1: Was Alasdair right to say what he said? Yes and no. He was right in terms of content: a blindfolded sightless man on a galloping stallion could tell inside five seconds that the great majority of unionist politicians detest having to share power with nationalist and especially republicans. And Alasdair isn’t the first […]

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Wind power and Broughderg: backs against the wall

Picture by Irishman47 It’s sometimes irritating the way the world tends to offer up contradictory visions. Take for example wind power. On the fact of it, wind power is a Good Thing. It harks back to the simpler days of windmills. It harnesses natural energy and involves, one would think, zero carbon emissions. And some […]

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‘By The Bog of Cats – Abbey Theatre’ by John Patton

  The Irish bog is a cultural as well as a natural landscape; it covers about 15% of the surface area and for many it has been an inescapable force in their lives. Joyce ends   ‘The Dead ‘ with images of the bog, suggesting immortality and Heaney frequently from ‘Digging’ to ‘Bogland’ turned to its […]

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THE BITER BIT

Maybe not quite “the biter bit”…but close enough. There are so many scandals breaking that there’s a lot of effort required to really make your mark these days and rise above the clamour .We’ve had Cameron’s “Pig Gate”, The IRA Hasn’t Really Gone Away You Know, Edward Heath’s Abuse Scandal , the newest Volkswagen Expose […]

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