April, 2020

You’ve probably noticed that there’s a life-and-death tug-of-war going on between economics and health. Those who are fearful of a recession like no other are anxious to get the machines activated, the trucks rolling, people back at work. Those who are fearful of more deaths from Covid-19 warn that too-hasty return to work will be […]

InboxIf some readers of that headline choke on their cornflakes I hope their companions hit them, very hard on the back. From the running dogs of Imperialism, masquerading asInternationalists, to the Exclusive Brethern fringes of Republicanism, De Valera is execrated. But in the wider world,where subject peoples struggled for freedom De Valera’sreputation was high in […]

On 28th October 1987, two Derry republicans, Paddy Deery, (aged 31, married to Colette with three young children) and Eddie McSheffrey, (aged 29, married to Mary with two young children), were killed when a bomb they were carrying in a car exploded prematurely.(There was some suspicion at the time that the bomb had been tampered with before being […]

Today marks   VE Day – that’s Victory In Europe Day, when the Allied forces defeated the forces of Germany. This evening Queen Elizabeth will appear on your TV screen. should you choose to watch. She will no doubt link the courage of the British armed forces with the people today fighting on the front against […]

This is my Monday chat with my Donegal friend Pat McArt, former editor of the Derry Journal (in the 1980s, when it wasn’t always popular or profitable to edit a Derry newspaper). We’re talking this week about books and what they can do for us. We’ve deliberately kept the time down to 20 minutes,  as we think some previous chats were too long for viewers. Do you agree? Or better still, disagree? Let me know on Facebook or by message or on email : judejcollins@gmail.com (note that extra ‘j’ in the middle).  Do make contact. We want to continue and develop these Zoom chats, and you can tell us how best to do that. Meanwhile, bainigi sult as – Enjoy. 

Between the years 1983 and 1987, twenty-five Republican funerals were attacked by the RUC and British troops. This was seen as a desecration of the most sacred ritual, the ritual of burying your dead with dignity. The attacks caused widespread anger in the Republican/ Nationalists communities. This was exacerbated by the double standards of the […]

One of the funniest, albeit unintentionally comedic, ways I have been passing my lock-down days here in the hills of Donegal  was to tune into the daily White House briefings with the Commander in Chief. Riveting television it was,  Monty Python with bells on. For almost a month Trump gave daily broadcasts from the White […]

I only recently became aware of THE DUBLIN REVIEW OF BOOKS, a periodical (weekly or monthly?) available free on the ON LINE.  It contains many excellent long reviews of interesting books on many subjects, which I may possibly read in full before either I or the lockdown expire.One essay entitled THE LONG ROAD TO PEACE, […]

“It’s a balancing act.” That’s what you’ll hear from the economists, health experts, scientists, polliticians. On the one hand, we need to preserve the health of the population, not expose people to Covid-19 that could make them very sick or even kill them. On the other hand, we need to go to work. The economies […]

Alumni of one Old School will recognise the motto which means constancy amid things that must change, if I remember correctly. On Sunday 19  April,for the first time in five weeks, I got hold of the “hard copy” of a newspaper. It was the Sunday Times, stablemate of THE TIMES of London. Its culture section […]