Maybe we’re all missing the point. Maybe we’re not supposed to judge Edwin and Paul as Leader and First Minister-in-waiting – that is, not solely as politicians. Maybe we’re supposed to see them as essentlly a two-man comedy duo, so to criticise them for their lack of policies is to ask the wrong question. Impossible, […]
June, 2021
POOT and JEFF in ‘The DUEL in/for THE DUP CORONA – by Perkin Warbeck
1 1, The shutters is down, Joxer. / Tá na..comhlaí..dúnta, Joxer. But the mind’s open / Ach tá an meon ar oscailt . An ag magadh atá tú? ? Is this a wind up? / Fan bomaite, a char, / Wait a mo, bro.. 2 2. Roamer ? / Romhánach? Is this a Tiber Attack ?/ […]
Can you hear those Screeching U Turns? – by Michael Lagan
There’s something to be said for a female member of the DUP, let alone the Deputy leader who is willing to stick her head above the parapet in an attempt to make the DUP seem like a more modern and more middle of the road kind of party. After all, this very type of move […]
TO THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD, GREETINGS? – by Donal Kennedy
Bunreacht na hEireann, the Constitution of Ireland, came into force on December 29 1937, following a plebiscite in July that year. It is the oldest republican constitution within the states that today are members of the EU. I am one day less than four years younger than it. The Constitution declared that the name of the […]
Say Hello to Naftali Bennett, Israel’s proposed new leader – by Fra Hughes
B With Benjamin Netanyahu’s reign as Israeli leader under further threat and the country and the opposition not wanting to go for another election, a collection of opposition parties and individuals have come together to form a national coalition unity government. This coalition comprises the far right Yamina party headed by Bennett and what calls […]
PAT +JUDE TALK ABOUT POOTSY’S VISIT TO DUBLIN, SIMON COVENEY, AN IRISIH LANGUAGE ACT- AND MEN CRYING
Yesterday the DUP’s new leader, Edwin Poots went down to Dublin and had a meeting with An Taoiseach. They seem to have got on well, although Pootsy made a clear distinction between Micheál Martin (yes, Virginia, Pootsy spoke an Irish word) and Leo Varadkar and Simon Coveney. Will such visits help solve the Protocol problem? […]
SIR ANDREW GILCHRIST – THE ULTIMATE GODFATHER OF SPIN – by Donal Kennedy
When THE IRISH TIMES publishes editorials portentously and pretentiously introduced as “The Irish Times view on” it toes a line helpful to British interests. It is governed by the secretive oathbound IRISH TIMES TRUST established by Harold Wilson’s crooked “fixer” Arnold Goodman. Goodman, a member of the British House of Lords, managed the financial affairs of […]
We are the Forgotten – by Michael Lagan
People clapped for heroes. I remember diving down a street in Carrickfergus one night in the course of my work during the pandemic with people standing at their front doors clapping, gesturing to me with clapping hands and waving at me. I waved back, just being polite. I’m no hero, am I? I’m sure if […]
Belfast City Council calls for the expulsion of the Israeli Ambassadors to Britain and Ireland. – by Fra Hughes
In a historic move, Belfast City Councillors have voted to call on the Irish and British governments to expel the Israeli Ambassadors. The motion was passed by 31 volts to 28 on 01/06/2021, showing a seismic shift from previous votes and debates on the Israel- Palestine conflict. Previous debates and deflections have implied the conflict […]
Edwin Poots: a glum man
If you were to tie me up in a chair and demand to know the word that automatically popped into my mind at the name ‘Edwin Poots’, it would be glum. Even with the serious make-over he’s had, glumness radiates like lumpy porridge from Edwin’s features. But be fair: Pootsy has a lot to be […]