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The trawl of today’s papers yielded one other nugget, a call in the backroom column of the Post for clearer debate in the new year; less sniping and populism and a more concerted effort to educate voters on the policies of particular parties. Such a call is hard to say no to, and for the [...]
Amidst the plethora of “2006-in-review” articles populating today’s papers, there is one very interesting piece in the Tribune. The way our electoral system works makes polls slightly unhelpful—ignoring particularity within constituencies and also the nature of transfers—but the Tribune have taken a look across the most contested constituencies to attempt to predict the likely election [...]
All has been quiet here for the last few days; the Christmas period taking its toll on our contributors. But the countdown to the election continues nonetheless and issues remain. It seems again the government’s shortsightedness over electricity generation in this country is going to come back and bite us in the ass: IDA warns [...]
Fianna Fail’s Measures for Childern
We will work to end Child Poverty, with, at a minimum, a reduction of the rate to below 2% within five years.
The relative poverty child rate in Ireland is 15.7% according to UNICEF. But I don’t particular like relative measurements.(until some one can say to me why 60% of median [...]
Sorry for the delay in getting back to the manifesto checking but better late then never. I would also like to thank the reader who sent me on the Fianna Fail manifesto. The Fianna Fail manifesto had the by line A lot done More to do. So how much more is left to be done.
Wagger is surprised that no one has written on IrishElection.com yet about Charles Haughey’s theft and embezzlement of at least €11m (accounted as €45m in modern terms by the Moriarty Tribunal).
The man famous for telling the Irish people to “tighten belts” during the economic and fiscal crises of the 1970s and 1980s—almost all created by [...]
The Indo has details of a survey about Muslim attitudes in Ireland. Some details:
73% believe they are fully integrated into Irish society, with 77% saying they feel accepted here.
More than a third—36%—would prefer Ireland to be ruled under Sharia law, while 37% would like Ireland to be governed as an Islamic state.
According to a report in this Saturday’s Irish Times, Bertie Ahern is considering a switch to the Liberal grouping in the European Parliament in time for the next European elections. Currently aligned with a group of right, reactionary, far-right and conservative parties in the ‘mishmash’ that is the UEN, it would appear that the desire [...]
Sorry for not updating the local news for a while but it takes time, something I am short of at the moment. I do hope to get back to it as there are great stories in the regional papers. From the Nationalist (South Tipperary):
Fianna Fail general election candidate Cllr. Siobhan Ambrose has been attacked by [...]
I see that in the wake of the Nally trial, the PDs have come out with legislation on protecting home-owners who “confront” burglars. Funny how they can bring this out fast but not gay marriage legislation. Anyway, it appears they are trying to spin it in favour of their candidate Tom Morrissey by referring to [...]
Labour have launched their new site. They seem to be really taking the blog thing to heart with the whole site running as a blog. However it does not at the moment allow you to post comments. They just seem to disappear into cyberspace. It will be interesting to see will they allow trackbacks (let’s [...]
Simon McGarr is running the VoteTube experiment and looking for people to use YouTube as a political tool. Here is his own video:
View This Video on You Tube
Crime statistics aside, much of the current crime is being committed by gangs—gangs formed in the absence of alternatives in the infrastructure and jobs. Note also the glamorization of drugs and alcohol and the easy life. All these things are the results of neglect ten, fifteen and twenty years ago of community infrastructures and youth [...]
Considering the news on Castro I thought I would bump this.
[Originally posted at Dan Sullivan]
Part of the basic problem with risk equalisation as the government have chosen to implement it is that the vast block of older people with health insurance who simply didn’t move. Why was that?
Could it be that many people are actually members of group schemes rather than individual members and it [...]
Originally posted at Plain of Pillars
The killing of John Ward has dominated conversation in Mayo for sometime. Yesterday, Padraig Nally, the confessed killer of John “Frog” Murphy walked free from court, having been acquitted of manslaughter.
At first glance, the verdict seems repugnant. Pavee Point has already decided that the verdict reflects the prejudiced nature of [...]
A second Irish referendum? Eurocrats have a better idea
Dan Hannan at the Telegraph reckons the plan in Brussles is not for a second referendum but instead to parachute in sections of the Lisbon Treaty via legislation.
"Are Americans and Europeans simply more compassionate than Asians?" asks Ian Buruma. Asking why it is that Chinese and Malaysian warships are not sitting of the Burmese coast with food. Thought provoking? Or a bit prejudiced?
Jurge Habermas once argued that the EU could provide a model for a new constellation of democratic politics allowing for transcendence of national partisanship. Now he is not so sure - the EU response to Lisbon is tending towards authoritarianism
Did the Commission Lie About its Own Poll?
Openeurope asks whether the commission engaged in a little bit of number fudging in the run up to its poll being released. If it didn’t I am thinking that political leaking took place from elsewhere in the system.
but it will smell awful
