Jude Collins

TOMORROW,there will be a vote of confidence in the Dail. A couple of the Independent TDs are making noises about not voting with the government. Will the likely of Danny Healy-Rae stand by the working man and woman? IN  Hungary, Victor Orban has got the boot – he’s out, Magyar is in. But is Magyar […]

Is Donald Trump suffering from a softness in  his brain, or does he see himself as God’s appointed and anointed on Earth? “Pope Leo is WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social late on Sunday. EH? Has there been a series of heists in the Vatican […]

This wasn’t strategy; it was impulse dressed up as strength. One week, the message was domination—targets “obliterated,” enemies supposedly on their knees. The next, whispers of deals, ceasefires, or sudden exits. Even as bombs fell, the narrative lurched between victory laps and vague promises of negotiation. It’s not just incoherent—it’s dangerous. The result? A conflict […]

So – the roads of the South(aka Free State) are being blocked by the vehicles of farmers and hauliers. Taoiseach Micheál Martin says he’ll meet IFA representatives, Hauliers official spokespeople, but not the protestors who are accused of breaking the law; Minister of Justice Jim O’Callaghan has talked of sending in the gardaí or even […]

The problem with Donald Trump’s posture on Iran is not just inconsistency—it’s the uneasy blend of bravado and retreat that leaves allies guessing and adversaries calculating. What some critics shorthand as “TACO” politics—tough talk followed by abrupt climbdowns—creates a pattern that erodes credibility faster than any single misstep. On Iran, the rhetoric has often arrived […]

    Should we laugh or cry? That Truth Social( who says the Donald doesn’t do irony?)  posting is less like a presidential annoucement and more like a very naughty child throwing a tantrum. That’s Trump abroad. When he’s sorted this Middle East matter, he’ll surely recover his popularity at home. Or maybe not. You […]

So is Good Friday your favourite day of the year? Or so depressing you can’t wait for Saturday? And is it good or bad that it’s now treated pretty much like any day? Donald Trump is critical of the many countries who refused to join him in his unilateral aerial bombardment of Iran. Is the […]

      It’s at times like these I think of my ancestors. My rhythm nation and my voicings. Who I choose to be, you see? Northern Europeans, Vikings Crossing the seas of wonder. Up and over and under Who you think I am If you merely reduce my label  To Brit.   Have you […]

There are two kinds of people in this debate: those who think recording ethnicity in crime data is a triumph of modern evidence-based policing, and those who hear it and immediately reach for the phrase “this will end well” in the tone usually reserved for sinking ships. On paper, it’s all very sensible. Gather more […]

I am one branc on one tree.Your roots and sap sustain me.I am one leaf on one branch.What were the chancesThat you would meet me?The seeds that I spinWill grow within the moss and the greenBetween the rock and stoneFor we all start alone.In the basket bellyOf our mother’s homeThat one true sound.From deep within […]