tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22213046667765009942024-02-07T16:02:21.447-08:00in deniall - The blog of Niall FarrellThe blog of Niall Farrell, Journalism student.Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-17654662625348698692010-08-23T05:42:00.000-07:002010-08-23T05:45:44.573-07:00Thanks for readingI've decided to completely stop blogging here. Mainly because I just can't keep it up. I will continue blogging on sports over at <a href="http://nfsport.wordpress.com">nfsport.wordpress.com</a> and reporting for <a href="http://www.extratime.ie">extratime.ie</a>. I can also be found over at <a href="http://www.dublinobserver.com">DublinObserver.com</a>, where I'm co-editor.<br /><br />Thanks for reading, anyway. Do keep an eye out for me.Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-52980553127323720792010-04-30T09:05:00.000-07:002010-04-30T09:19:22.905-07:00Bank bailout protestI deem very few press releases worthy of publication, however one that was sent to me today caught my eye. <div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:medium;">Enough is Enough, a protest at bank bailouts, takes place next Tuesday May 11, assembling at the Garden of Remembrance at 7.30pm. Organised by the Right to Work movement and the UNITE trade union, protesters will march to the Dail. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:medium;">Speakers at the protest will include Fintan O'Toole, John Kidd (SIPTU Firefighters), Janette Byrne (Patients Together), Walter Cullen (Unite trade union), John Bissett (Canal Communities Project), Professor Kathleen Lynch (UCD) and Siobhan O 'Donoghue (Community Workers Co-op). </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:medium;">Aaaaaaaaaand now for the press release:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:'Times New Roman';font-size:medium;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:100%;"><br /><i></i></span><blockquote><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:100%;"><i>WHY WE ARE MARCHING<br />* EUR33 billion of OUR money has already been put into the banks.<br />* This government is destroying our public services to pay for the bill.<br />* Instead of pouring vast sums into these banks, we should take them into public control and make the wealthy pay for their economic crimes.<br />* We need to change economic policy to help the half a million people who are unemployed.<br />* We should set up a public works programme to provide jobs and build up our public services.<br />* We should resist wage cuts. Wage cuts mean less spending in our economy - and more jobs losses.<br /><br />ENOUGH IS ENOUGH<br />Don't just sit at home and get angry. People power is the only way to bring real change. So come out on the streets and make your voice heard. This government needs to receive one big message: GET OUT OF OFFICE.<br /><br />GET INVOLVED:<br />The Right to Work Campaign brings together trade unionists, community activists and the unemployed to say: BAIL OUT JOBS AND SERVICES NOT BANKS<br /><br />We won't let this government divide us between public sector and private sector workers; migrant and non-migrant. We want solidarity - not divide and rule tactics.<br />After the March to the Dail, we invite you to the Right to Work National Conference on Saturday May 22nd in the UNITE Hall 55-56 Middle Abbey Street, Dublin 1, starting at 12pm.<br />This is a conference of Resistance and Solidarity and we want to hear your suggestions for how to step up our campaign<br />If you want to know more about our conference or get involved with the Right to Work Campaign,<br /><br />* You can text JOIN to 087 2604143<br />* E Mail: </i></span><a href="http://mc/compose?to=Righttowork@live.com" target="_blank"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:85%;"><i>Righttowork@live.com</i></span></a><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:85%;"><i><br />* Or write to Right to Work Campaign 42 Woodavens, Clondalkin, Dublin 22</i></span></blockquote><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:85%;"><i></i></span></span></div>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-23025786641357466432010-04-04T15:12:00.000-07:002010-04-04T15:25:36.167-07:00Goings-on in GlasnevinI'm not an avid follower of Student's Union politics in DCU. However I tend to perk up a bit around election time. This year is possibly the most controversial election yet though.<br /><br />Something happened. What happened, not many are sure of yet.<br /><br />The jist of it is (from what I've learned so far) a high profile election candidate was proposed by someone in DCU who was not an enrolled student. Yet had been lying about it all along.<br /><br />It wouldn't be a huge thing, except that the SU have decided to tell a small group of people around them Class Representatives were sent <a href="http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=65250438&postcount=263">this</a> email, yet noone else was sent it. The class reps have, in their wisdom, decided not to send it to their constituents.<br /><br />Nice to see the future FF/FG/Labour hacks starting early anyway. Cover-up training 101 going on over in The Hub.<br /><br /><br />Following on from <a href="http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055856309">a discussion</a> over on boards.ie.Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-71985791341903534682010-03-30T02:54:00.000-07:002010-03-30T02:56:10.060-07:00Why the lag? Irish interactivity<div class="storycontent"> <div class="snap_preview"><p>Why are Irish newspapers so behind in their online interactivity?</p> <p><span id="more-37"></span></p> <p>Many point to <a href="http://www.irishtimes.com/">The Irish Times</a> as a model for newspapers to move online. However the overwhelming majority of their online reporting is simply copied from the newspaper itself.</p> <p>A better model is the <a href="http://www.mayonews.ie/index.php">Mayo News</a>. The Mayo News is the only local newspaper in Ireland to offer <a href="http://www.mayonews.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=13&Itemid=100162">regular podcasts</a>. It pioneered the <a href="http://www.mayonews.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4552&Itemid=117">digital edition</a>, for which a small fee is charged. The “contact us” page is fairly comprehensive as it allows people to email in stories directly.</p> <p>The Mayo News also pioneers “hyper local” news through the many <a href="http://www.mayonews.ie/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7445&Itemid=1">twitter accounts</a> of the newspaper. The national titles (Indo and Examiner, I’m looking at you) should learn from the Mayo News.</p><p><br /></p><span style="font-style: italic;">Cross-posted from my <a href="http://indeniall.wordpress.com/">other blog</a>, where I post semi-regularly for my Online Journalism class.</span> </div> </div>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-77714190919128152432010-03-15T12:06:00.000-07:002010-03-15T12:25:48.184-07:00Monday Round-Up 15 March 2010Lots of interesting reports have come out of the South by Southwest Interactive (SXSWi) conference held over the last few days. One which caught my sports-loving eye was how cricket's <a href="http://www.watblog.com/2010/03/14/ipl-the-buzzword-in-social-media-kkr-leads-the-pack-once-again/">Indian Premier League is the new buzzword in social networking</a>. A model for sport, particularly now revenue streams are down.<br /><br />The shocking news broke that the <a href="http://www.independent.ie/national-news/hse-left-boy-16-in-internet-cafe-overnight-2096902.html">HSE left a 16 year old in an Internet Cafe overnight</a> because of a lack of beds. Remember that it came after the Tracey Fay scandal and that makes for an even more astonishing blunder.<br /><br />Reuters started <a href="http://technorati.com/blogging/article/reuters-discourages-breaking-news-on-twitter/">telling their reporters not to break news on twitter</a>. As <a href="http://twitter.com/marklittlenews">Mark Little</a> says, <span class="status-body"><span class="entry-content">"if Reuters have to tell their reporters not to break news on Twitter they are losing</span></span>."<br /><br />In <a href="http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/437659/michael_moore_interview_capitalism_barack_obama_and_his_future_plans.html">an interview</a> about his <a href="http://michaelmoore.com/books-films/capitalism-love-story">new film</a>; <a href="http://michaelmoore.com/">Michael Moore</a>, a supporter of US President Obama, said "<span class="bodycontents">our enthusiasm for President Obama has been taken to a level of extreme disappointment. The fact that he and the Democrats have not come in with guns blazing and done the job that we elected them to do is very disappointing."<br /><br />I also saw a fantastic video on <a href="http://www.ted.com">TED</a> about how <a href="http://tomfelle.com/Site/Home/Entries/2010/2/27_Designs_that_can_save_newspapers.html">innovation in design can save newspapers</a>. Jacek Utko details his experience of redesigning Eastern European newspapers and how their sales rocketed following redesign.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">AND FINALLY...</span></span><br /><br /></span><a href="http://www.stumbleupon.com">StumbleUpon</a> is fantastic for some things, such as alerting me to stories like how the "<a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/7410896/Bank-of-America-apologises-for-repossessing-parrot.html/r:t">Bank of America apologises for repossessing parrot</a>". Need I say more?<br /><br />I also <a href="http://twitpic.com/183v3e">found </a>some Zombie Hunters in Glasnevin.Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-82442738597576046662010-03-15T11:41:00.000-07:002010-03-15T11:58:29.207-07:00WikiLeaks was investigated by US government<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.bigsound.org/portnoy/weblog/2009/11/11/wikileaks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 263px; height: 350px;" src="http://www.bigsound.org/portnoy/weblog/2009/11/11/wikileaks.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Today I <a href="http://twitter.com/thusspakeblixa">tweeted</a> about the news that US intelligence planned to destroy <a href="http://www.wikileaks.org/">WikiLeaks</a>. A 2008 <a href="http://file.wikileaks.org/files/us-intel-wikileaks.pdf">report</a> from the US <a href="http://www.thefreelibrary.com/U.S.+Army+Counterintelligence+Center+support+to+Homeland+Security-a089646688">Army Counterintelligence Centre</a>, entitled "<span style="font-style: italic;">Wikileaks.org—An Online Reference to Foreign</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> Intelligence Services, Insurgents, or Terrorist Groups?</span>" was launched to investigate the threat posed to the US Army by WikiLeaks.<br /><br />In the key judgements of the document, it concludes that "The possibility that current employees or moles within DoD or elsewhere in the US government are providing sensitive or classified information to Wikileaks.org cannot be ruled out. The claim made by Wikileaks.org that former US government employees leaked sensitive and classified information is highly suspect, however, since Wikileaks.org states that the anonymity of the whistleblowers or leakers is one of its primary goals."<br /><br />WikiLeaks has long been a tool for people to view documents that would otherwise not be obtainable. As The Guardian says; <span class="quotetext">"[WikiLeaks] ... serves as an uncensorable and untraceable depository for the truth, able to publish documents that the courts may prevent newspapers and broadcasters from being able to touch."<br /><br />The key judgements conclude, "Web sites such as Wikileaks.org use trust as a center of gravity by protectingthe anonymity and identity of the insiders, leakers, or whistleblowers. The identification, exposure, termination of employment, criminal prosecution, legal action against current or former insiders, leakers, or whistleblowers could potentially damage or destroy this<br />center of gravity and deter others considering similar actions from using the Wikileaks.org Web site."<br /></span>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-19198958335822507452010-03-10T00:24:00.000-08:002010-03-10T00:33:36.941-08:00Harney's boo-booI listened with interest this morning as Mary Harney went on Morning Ireland to discuss the role she played in <a href="http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0309/tallaght.html">the controversy</a> around the non-review of 57,000 X-rays at Tallaght hospital.<br /><br />Harney said that the protocol for dealing with a situation of malpractice follows;<br />1.Ensure that the practice has stopped<br />2.Ensure a speedy review takes place<br />3.Inform patients of the malpractice<br />4.Inform the public<br /><br />With RTE News (Radio 1, 8am) saying that up to 15,000 of the 57,000 patients had not been informed, what has Harney been doing? She had the time to inform all patients, given that <a href="http://breakingnews.ie/ireland/tallaght-chief-was-aware-of-x-ray-problems-last-summer-449393.html">the top brass in Tallaght knew all about this last summer</a>.<br /><br />One person has died already and another is seriously ill partly due to misdiagnosis.<br /><br />Is this the smell of another political casualty in the air?Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-7525262327273063972010-03-09T11:44:00.000-08:002010-03-09T12:02:05.672-08:00'There's going to be a change. Things are going to catch up.'<a href="http://marklittlenews.posterous.com/">Mark Little</a> spoke at the <a href="http://www.journosoc.com/">DCU Journalism Society</a> last night about Online Journalism.<br /><br />One of the many questions he answered was "how do you make money from sharing [news on the web]"<br /><br />His answer:<br /><br />"A hard question, because ultimately from my point of view there's no point in having a social use for journalism unless there's a sustainable model behind it... Advertising can't be relied upon at the moment, but if you look at the advertising statistics they show that about 10% of advertising goes online. And yet we as people spend 20% of our time online in the Western World. You can see that there's going to be a change. Things are going to catch up. More advertising will go online. The problem is advertisers are scared silly of sharing on social networks because they can't trust the content on it.<br />What will happen I think, and what I'm trying to do, is we have to create new channels of distribution of ProAm content- professional and amateur put together.<br />Selling raw content isn't going to work anymore- it doesn't make money on a community. What you make money from is the community."<br /><br />More will be posted on my <a href="http://www.indeniall.wordpress.com/">other blog</a> in the coming daysNiall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-1566525078984180402010-02-21T13:43:00.000-08:002010-02-21T14:00:49.093-08:00Sunday Round-up 21 Feb 2010Hopefully every Sunday I'll get to do a round up of all that is good on the web in the week gone by.<br /><br />Starting with something close to my heart, <a href="http://blurredkeys.com/2010/02/press-ombudsman-says-some-complainants-are-unreasonable-should-grow-up-a-bit/">Blurred Keys</a> wrote about the visit of Press Ombudsman to DCU, but they took a different angle than I did <a href="http://indeniall.blogspot.com/2010/02/press-ombudsman-professor-john-horgan.html">here</a>. BK focused on the role the Press Ombudsman has as a mediator and how seriously he takes some complaints.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.irishelection.com/2010/02/last-week-two-minors-bite-the-dust-this-week-a-major-minor-next-week/">Irish Election</a> is one blog I always keep an eye on, and they have an excellent post on the fallout from the Willie O'Dea resignation (as do <a href="http://thestory.ie/2010/02/19/from-green-to-red-in-less-than-48-hours/">The Story</a>).<br /><br />The Story also had a copy of WOD's <a href="http://thestory.ie/2010/02/18/willie-odeas-resignation-letter/">resignation letter</a>.<br /><br />The DCU Journalism Society (I'll admit it, I am on the committee) <a href="http://www.journosoc.com/?p=227">announced </a>that they will award Mark Little with honorary membership after he gives a talk on journalism in the digital age.<br /><br />Journosoc will host BBC Journalist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Johnston">Alan Johnston</a> tomorrow (expect a blog post on here afterwards).<br /><br />And finally, I remembered what the first CD I ever bought was;<br /><br /><br /><object width="445" height="364"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/WCevP9DJtIY&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&border=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/WCevP9DJtIY&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="445" height="364"></embed></object>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-75288782745927938802010-02-19T12:01:00.000-08:002010-02-21T07:48:59.115-08:00Irish newspapers in 5 years: The Press Ombudsman<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.businessandleadership.com/fs/img/news/200903/378x/newspaper-pile.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 217px; height: 206px;" src="http://www.businessandleadership.com/fs/img/news/200903/378x/newspaper-pile.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:100%;">
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<br /><a href="http://www.pressombudsman.ie/v2/pressombudsman/portal.php?content=_includes/about.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Press Ombudsman</span></a></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> Professor John Horgan addressed the </span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.journosoc.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">DCU Journalism Society</span></a></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> last night. In his address to the inaugural meeting of the society, Professor Horgan had some interesting thoughts on new media and the internet.</span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">
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<br /></span></span><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5Cdcu%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:GA;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">"Their business model is in serious trouble" said Professor Horgan of the Irish newspaper industry.
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<br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Asked where he sees Irish media being in five years time, Professor Horgan stated; "I think newspapers will probably continue. They’ve [gone through] all sorts of threats to their existence [before]. They will probably be smaller and more expensive. The web will have mushroomed but it will also have taken some kind of shape. Just as the 18th and 19th century; newspapers were pretty chaotic. Anybody could have their say and they pretty well did.
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<br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I have a strong view on the web actually. It is not a medium of mass communication in the way that a newspaper, radio or TV station is; it is a place where lots of people go to talk to other people on a one-to-one basis. There are things developing. You have a very interesting thing in Holland; where there are two web-based publications that are regular publications. They have applied to join to Dutch Press Council although they don’t appear on paper at all.
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<br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">There will be a climate of regulation, perhaps self-regulation, simply because whatever you publish you do want to be read and the best way of being read is if people trust what you’re saying.
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<br /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">We will have lost a few provincial papers I suspect. I think the national papers will survive but they will probably look quite different, have a greater web presence and a more integrated business model between the web side of things and the print side of things." </span></span></p>
<br />Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-19624753951440922022010-01-22T08:47:00.000-08:002010-01-22T08:57:24.152-08:00"Irish Muslims need to be more politically involved"<span style="font-style: italic;"></span>British Muslim speaker and blogger <a href="http://adamdeen.blogspot.com/">Adam Deen </a>came to DCU before Christmas to give talks on miracles in the Qu'ran and on The God Delusion. I caught up with him in DCU's Helix Cafe and in a lengthy discussion, I asked what Irish Muslims could do to better integrate themselves in to Irish society: <br /><br />“Irish Muslims need to be more politically involved. They need to have their hands in all the institutions because what happened with Britain, for example, is that they were too complacent and they were too interested in having their day-to-day lives and just carrying on. When a tragic event like 7/7 happened, they were not prepared to defend themselves against claims made by people. Now they’re putting out fires, where before they could have painted a more positive picture of Islam. All that we’re doing now is defending, defending, defending and we’re not doing a very good job of that either. What Muslims can Ireland can learn from the UK is to keep politically involved. They’ve got to learn from our mistakes. "<br /><br />Mr Deen also spoke of the need for Muslims to distinguish themselves from the more radical elements of their faith;<br /><br />"We also have idiots going out and putting fuel on the fire. Muslims need to ostracise these people."<br /><br />Finally, I asked Mr Deen about the distinct lack of Irish Muslims in politics. He quickly interjected, saying;<br /><br />"I’m very against this idea of people being just being a “Muslim candidate”. Muslims need to pull in votes from outside their own community."<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Many thanks to Ms. Khaula Bhutta and the </span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.redbrick.dcu.ie/%7Eisoc/">DCU Islamic Society</a><span style="font-style: italic;"> for allowing me the time to interview Adam Deen.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-51372042024607044582009-11-25T16:20:00.000-08:002009-11-25T16:27:17.968-08:00Public Sector Protest PhotosClick on images for full size on my photoblog (<a href="http://pix.ie/thusspakeblixa">here</a>).<br /><br /><a href="http://pix.ie/thusspakeblixa/1364606" title="DSC_0086 by thusspakeblixa"><img src="http://photos2.pix.ie/96/A7/96A7F705603844AEA82ACDB3913BEA63-800.jpg" alt="DSC_0086" width="531" height="800" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://pix.ie/thusspakeblixa/1364605" title="DSC_0088 by thusspakeblixa"><img src="http://photos5.pix.ie/F8/50/F85008F5B81244C0973DBDF9610B7596-800.jpg" alt="DSC_0088" width="800" height="531" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://pix.ie/thusspakeblixa/1364607" title="DSC_0085 by thusspakeblixa"><img src="http://photos5.pix.ie/74/FC/74FC22D2D4A84156B6DDFA43D1A5126A-800.jpg" alt="DSC_0085" width="800" height="531" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://pix.ie/thusspakeblixa/1364609" title="DSC_0081 by thusspakeblixa"><img src="http://photos2.pix.ie/62/19/6219BE3DED314EA595D5329F5A086D82-800.jpg" alt="DSC_0081" width="800" height="531" /></a>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-74223180460735124292009-09-29T02:07:00.000-07:002009-09-29T02:12:52.106-07:00The Lisbon Treaty: The Socialist Party ViewHere follows an interview with Stephen Rigney of the Socialist Party, Parliamentary Assistant to Joe Higgins MEP<br /><b><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br />Sum up for us, in 30 words or less (or as brief as possible), why the Socialist Party is opposed to the Lisbon Treaty.<br /><br /></b>We believe that the Lisbon Treaty enshrines the concept of the free market, the privatisation of healthcare and education and the "race to the bottom" in wages and conditions, while giving a huge impetus to the militarisation of Europe. It is a continuation of the same failed policies that have resulted in this economic crisis.<br /><b><br />Why do you think unions like SIPTU are in favour of the treaty?<br /><br /></b>Well, we'd draw a very sharp line between the rank-and-file membership of unions like SIPTU and the leadership who support the Lisbon Treaty. The leadership's support for Lisbon is directly related to the fact that they have no faith or confidence in<b> </b>their membership to get active and to organise against attacks on wages and conditions.<b> </b>They are committed to the idea of Social Partnership, where workers should not rely on their own strength and ability to demand decent pay and conditions but that they should seek agreements with the bosses to be given a few scraps off the table, while big business dines on a five course meal. Despite the fact that Social Parternship has been blown apart by this recession, they are still hoping that they can cobble together some sort of deal on the basis of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which will come info force if Lisbon is passed. They hope that somehow the rights in the Charter will give legal protection to workers in pay and conditions and this will prevent employers from introducing pay cuts and job losses and force them back to negotiations. On a superficial level, the CFR contains many fine phrases and articles about workers' rights but in practice, the European Court of Justice has ruled on a number of occassions that the rights in the CFR are subordinate to the rights of the market and the rights of big business to make profits. The Charter itself, along with its official explanations are very specific and clear about the limitations of fundamental rights, when they interfere with the running of the market. In fact, by enshring the Charter of Fundamental Rights, it will actually only re-inforce the limitations on workers rights and the vicious anti-worker rulings of the ECJ. Despite the conservatism of the union leaderships and their wishful thinking, the only road that will be left open to workers to defend pay and conditions will be to take industrial action and get organised.<br /><b><br /><br />Joe Higgins MEP made a great point the other day when he said that part of the treaty (which says that alcoholics and drug addicts should be involuntarily 'confined') goes against the Mental Health Act 2001. Why has no-one else, even on the No side, picked up on this?<br /><br /></b>There are a lot of important points in this debate which unfortunately have not really featured in the discussion or in the media. The No side has had an uphill battle throughout the campaign in trying to fight their corner and put forward their ideas. The blatant bias of the mainstream media has meant that the Yes side has received a lot more coverage and it's made it very difficult for the No side to get all their points across, particularly when those issues are outside of the "key" issues of workers' rights, militarisation, the democratic deficit and public services. it's just unfortunate that more important issues like this one do not coverage.<br /><b><br /><br />We're all hearing a lot about the minimum wage and that it could be altered; what, if anything, in the Treaty could change our minimum wage?<br /><br /></b>The Treaty itself will make no direct change to the minimum wage. Claims by Cóir that it will do so and reduce the legal minimum wage to €1.84 not only confuse and muddle the real debate on the content of the Lisbon Treaty and what it means but also provides ammunition to the establishment to paint the No side as liars.<b> </b> These claims are an absolute distraction.<b><br /></b><br />There has been an ongoing attempt by big business throughout Europe to lower wages and conditions by forcing workers into competition against each other through a "race to the bottom". The rulings of the ECJ in the Viking, Ruffert and Laval cases are a very significant confirmation that the EU elite are in favour of these policies. The ECJ rulings effectively said that trade unions have no right to take industrial action against companies "posting" cheaper labour from abroad if it interferes or makes it more difficult for a foreign company to set-up in another state. The Court also ruled that employers "posting" workers abroad are not obliged to meet industry agreements or norms but are only required to meet the minimum employment conditions in that country. Even more significantly, the ruling against the state of Luxembourg means that national states cannot impose legislation on foreign companies over and above the minimum legal requirements, if it has any detrimental impact on the company establishing a base in that state. This is a very clear sign that the rights of workers to decent pay and conditions is subordinate to the right to make profit. By setting the minimum wage and not industry standards and agreements as the only bar that has to be reached by multinationals, the minimum wage is quickly becoming the maximum. Lisbon and the Charter will do absolutely nothing to prevent this as the rights contained in the Charter are limited and based upon the rights contained in the other European Treaties. These are the same Treaties that the ECJ based its judgements on!<br /><b><br />What does the Socialist Party make of some of the more right-wing elements of the No campaign like Coir and Libertas? Is this an uneasy alliance, or do they raise some valid points?<br /><br /></b>As I said above, the outlandish claims of groups like Cóir are an actual distraction from the real debate. These groups all have their own axe to grind around issues that have no real impact on the lives or ordinary working people and in certain cases, around non-issues that the Lisbon Treaty does not even concern. They've attempted to turn this debate towards a narrow nationalist outlook on Europe and in the case of UKIP, this is an attempt to whip up racist ideas. Unfortunately, the media and establishment have tried to elevate these groups as the leaders of the No campaign in an attempt to dismiss the entire No side as extremist or anti-European groups. By responding to their strawmen arguments and elevating them as real issues, they can easily knock them down and attempt to portray all the No arguments equally as strawmen.<br /><br />We cannot choose who is part of the No side but we will continue to run our own campaign, independent of these groups.<br /><b><br />Finally, why is Joe Higgins the only MEP opposing the Treaty?<br /><br /></b>Ultimately, all the other MEPs and their parties are proponents of the status quo in Europe, one where the rights of the market and the rights of profit and big business are king. They offer no alternative to this kind of Europe and the capitalist system that it's based around and so inevitably they have to row behind the Treaty.<br /><br />The Socialist Party stands for a different kind of European Union, one that's based on the rights of workers and young people to a decent job, decent pay and decent conditions. We support a Europe that's based on democratic socialism, where industry and production is run on the basis of providing goods and services to people, not on providing exploitation and profit to big business.Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-20131749048376067372009-09-28T01:47:00.000-07:002009-09-28T01:54:07.798-07:00The Lisbon Treaty: The OSF View<div><span style="font-style: italic;">This is an interview with Marcas O' Mhaoldomhnaigh, Ógra Shinn Féin National PRO.</span><strong><br /><br />Can you sum up, in 30 words or less, why OSF are opposed to the Lisbon Treaty?</strong></div> <div><strong></strong> </div> <div>Ógra Shinn Féin are opposed to the Lisbon Treaty because if passed it would result in a</div> <div>further militarized EU where smaller states have less say. While further undermining workers rights it</div> <div>also contains a Revision Procedure which would allow heads of state remove vetoes in particular areas in the future.<br /><br /></div> <div> </div> <div><strong>We've all seen the Sinn Fein posters about increased militarisation in the EU if the Treaty is passed. </strong></div> <div><strong>Explain briefly how the Treaty will enshrine militarisation if it is passed.</strong> </div> <div> </div> <div>If passed the Lisbon Treaty would require member states to increase their military capacities.</div> <div>The treaty also states that in the event of "armed aggression" being directed at a member state then all</div> <div>other members states are required to intervene or provide assistance (Art.188R). This undermines Irish neutrality.</div> <div> </div> <div>However this is not all, the Treaty also talks about "assisting third countries in combating terrorism in their territories".(Art.28)</div> <div>This part is particularly disturbing as it could justify the use of troops in places like Afghanistan.<br /><br /></div> <div> </div> <div><strong>Would OSF be in favour of a new Treaty? If so, what would O</strong><strong>SF like to see in a new treaty?</strong></div> <div> </div> <div>ÓSF are pro-Europe and if a new treaty which protected Workers Rights, Irish neutrality and many of the other issues we have highlighted</div> <div>were to be put forward then I believe we would support it. (Please note I can't say for definite we would as it would have to be put before the SF Ard Comhairle,</div> <div>however assuming everything we had outlined was protected etc. then I would see no reason why we would oppose it).<br /><br /></div> <div> </div> <div><strong>A group called Generation Yes has been targeting young people out and telling them to vote Yes. Does the Treaty have anything in it that may specifically concern Youth voters? </strong> </div> <div> </div> <div>First off I would like to say something about Generation Yes. This group has consistently criticized opposition groups by stating that we have not been dealing with the text of the treaty ( <a href="http://www.generationyes.ie/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/sfblinkers" target="_blank">http://www.generationyes.ie/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/sfblinkers</a> ) while saying that they have. This is untrue, SF and many of the other groups have consistently dealt with the text of the treaty while groups like GY have resorted to laughable scaremongering such as saying that <em>"Some people think Ireland will have to leave the EU, others think there isn’t a legal way to do this. No one knows for certain what will happen if we vote ‘no’." ( </em><a href="http://www.generationyes.ie/lisbon-treaty-guide/" target="_blank"><em>http://www.generationyes.ie/lisbon-treaty-guide/</em></a><em> ). </em>Well perhaps if GY knew anything about how the EU works they would realize that no country can be marginalised under the current EU, nor can we leave unless we actually vote to remove ourselves from the EU. However if the LT is passed then, in the future, a situation where countries may be forced out could arise.</div> <div> </div> <div>I would also question the alleged "independence" of a group whos first meeting was held at IBEC headquarters in Dublin.<br /><br /></div> <div> </div> <div><strong>Does the Treaty have anything in it that may specifically concern Youth voters? Why should Youth voters vote No?</strong> </div> <div> </div> <div>The EU certainly concerns youth voters. It is about the future direction of the European Union.</div> <div> </div> <div>If young people want to see Europe where workers rights are protected, where Irish neutrality is not undermined and where we have a</div> <div>strong voice in Europe they should vote no. The government had a strong mandate to go back to Europe and demand a renegotiated treaty.</div> <div>They failed the Irish people in this regard and are forcing them to vote again on the same treaty. Young people should vote no, to allow a better treaty to be negotiated which does not give more power to larger states or facilitate a "race to the bottom" in terms of </div> <div>publuic services.</div> <div> </div> <div>For a more democratic and de-militarised Europe, people should vote No.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Many thanks to Marcas O' Mhaoldomhnaigh for his time and patience.</span><br /></div>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-18544169229894326922009-09-25T08:51:00.000-07:002009-09-25T15:45:04.798-07:00The Lisbon Treaty: The CYM ViewI'm starting a series of articles which are interviews with people opposed to the Lisbon Treaty.<br /><br />First up is Gareth Murphy, General Secretary of the Connolly Youth Movement (CYM).<br /><br /><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-IE">NF: Sum up for us, in 30 words or less, why the CYM is opposed to the Lisbon Treaty?</span></b></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-IE"> </span></b><span style="" lang="EN-IE">GM: The Lisbon Treaty further erodes the sovereignty of member-states and gives further power and policy control over to unelected bureaucrats. This Treaty actually rewards those that have driven the economic crisis that is putting ordinary workers and their families out of work. <span style="font-style: italic;">(Not quite 30 words but that's concise enough.)</span><br /></span></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-IE"><br />A lot of people have a lot to say about the provisions made or not made in the Treaty regarding Worker's Rights. Sum up for us briefly the situation regarding Worker's Rights in the Treaty.</span></b></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-IE">The Charter of Fundamental Rights is subject to non-interference with the ‘general interest’ of the EU that is the common market. These rights are therefore not fundamental but marketised –made subject to the market. The unelected European Court of Justice will decide where and when these rights are applicable and when not. We have seen several cases over the last number of years where the ECJ has came down firmly on the side of big business and against workers rights and trade union rights.<b><br /><br />What does the CYM make of the intrusion of big businesses like Intel and Ryanair into the debate on the Yes side?<br /></b></span></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-IE"><b> </b>Our NO vote rocked the establishment. Big business and their bureaucrats in Brussels were not at all happy with the expressed wish of the Irish people (just like that of the French and Dutch before us). This time around the YES side is taking no chances so they have pulled out the celebrities and the big bucks to bully citizens into voting a certain way. This is EU democracy at work. Today, as we speak, there are thousands of unregistered and unfiltered lobbyists wining and dining the authors of legislating that increasingly impacts every part of our lives. This is how Europe works and we oppose it. </span></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-IE"><br />Similarly, what does the CYM make of the intrusion of the UK Independence Party into the debate on the No side?</span></b></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-IE"> </span></b><span style="" lang="EN-IE">There are many different voices on the No side. In Ireland we have trade unionists and peoples voices, we also have a catholic part of the No side and also in Libertas and Declan Ganley a business group against Lisbon.</span></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-IE">There are complex reasons as to why people on the right are opposed to the Treaty and UKIP are most certainly on the right. They see some of the anti-trust and monopoly regulation of the EU as intereference in the market and in business and so oppose.</span></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-IE">However UKIP and Libertas are correct in identifying the loss of sovereignty that will occur post-Lisbon. UKIP and their allies have also done enormous research into the waste of money and the cost of EU membership to ordinary citizens. This research is useful for all of us to use. </span></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-IE"><br />Does the CYM see a future for Ireland in Europe?</span></b></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-IE">Europe</span><span style="" lang="EN-IE"> is a geographic entity. Whether we like it or not Ireland is part of Europe. We also share many commonalities with the people of the continent and it makes perfect geographic sense that Europe should forge trading and economic links. However the EU is a political project. From day one, and one must only read Monnet and Schumman etc to see, this has been a project to build a federal state without ever telling the people so. It has been about manipulation and abuse.</span></p><p class="ecxMsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-IE">The CYM are very much opposed to this imperialist (for it cant be anything but that given the federalisation of the large capitalist powers in Europe) state.</span></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-IE">There are living and developing examples of alternative means of trading within geographic speheres. Where states come together and agree upon cooperation for mutual benefit. ALBA (Bolivarian Alternative for Latin America) is a fine example of this.</span></p> <p class="ecxMsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-IE">People of Europe must fight to reclaim sovereignty, reclaim control and step by step build alliances and an alternative means of cooperation based upon the needs of people and not big business. </span></p><span style="font-style: italic;">Many thanks to Gareth Murphy, General Secretary of the Connolly Youth Movement for his time and patience. </span>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-34248408657868332322009-09-23T15:48:00.000-07:002009-09-23T16:00:29.697-07:0054.5 million for Polish Dell plant<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://dynimg.rte.ie/0002291f10dr.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 269px; height: 202px;" src="http://dynimg.rte.ie/0002291f10dr.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />The EU, in its wisdom, has decided that now would be a good time to grant Poland a 54.5 million euro aid package to help launch the Dell plant that recently moved to Poland from Limerick (See <a href="http://www.rte.ie/business/2009/0923/dell.html">here</a>).<br /><br />RTE say; "After an in-depth investigation, the EU competition authority said the aid was compatible with the bloc's rules, despite protests from Ireland, where Dell is closing its factory in Limerick...The Commission said its investigation had shown that job losses in Ireland would not be a consequence of the aid granted by the Polish authorities to the Lodz factory."<br /><br />Patricia McKenna of the People's Movement says (and I agree with her); “this decision by the European Commission is a slap in the face to Irish workers and exposes the EU’s hypocrisy and disregard for Irish jobs. It is truly ironic that the EU Commission is here in Ireland urging Irish voters to vote ‘Yes’ to the Lisbon Treaty under the guise of jobs and the economy, while it is<br />allowing new member states like Poland to provide massive financial bribes to companies to move their operations out of Ireland.”<br /><br />See the full press release by Patricia McKenna <a href="http://people.ie/press/090923.pdf">here</a>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-32570662365035825672009-09-23T14:57:00.000-07:002009-09-23T15:05:52.621-07:00Jim Corr on LisbonI thought I'd get back to blogging at last, after a long sojourn.<br /><br />Jim Corr on Lisbon. That would have been a strange sentence a while ago, not now though.<br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/fCPicGUQv4M&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/fCPicGUQv4M&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />The Yes side has Robbie Keane and Seamus Heaney... the No side has Jim Corr.<br /><br />In fairness though, he makes more sense than most who speak about the Lisbon Treaty. Who's starting a "Jim Corr for Ireland East MEP" campaign?Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-61557328011442813462009-08-10T05:58:00.000-07:002009-08-10T06:04:41.472-07:00Tabula Rasa for Sinn Féin?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.sinnfeinassembly.com/photos/SinnFeinLogoHiRez_hirez.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 210px; height: 114px;" src="http://www.sinnfeinassembly.com/photos/SinnFeinLogoHiRez_hirez.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>
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<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Today I will be watching the Sinn Féin “activist meeting” in Navan with much interest (see <a href="http://www.sinnfein.ie/contents/17105">here</a>).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Sinn Féin at the moment is in turmoil, left reeling after the local elections and European elections didn’t go to plan.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">People will sneer and make jibes towards Sinn Féin, but I have always found that at a local level, Sinn Féin councillors and TDs do work considerably harder than some of their counterparts.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">The potential is there for Sinn Féin to grow, although there seems to be a division between the more socialist- and republican- leaning elements in the party.
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<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Sinn Féin has been left without a genuine leader in much of the South. After Mary Lou McDonald lost her MEP seat, senior party members like Aengus O’Snodaigh has failed to fill Mary Lou’s place in the Dublin publics’ eye. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Grassroots-level Sinn Féiners like Christy Burke and former Wexford councillor John Dwyer have expressed discontent<span style=""> </span>with the upper echelons of Sinn Féin, and this schism needs to be addressed if Sinn Féin is to progress.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <span style=";font-family:";font-size:85%;" lang="GA">Another topic up for discussion is the party position on Lisbon II. While I don’t think the “No” position is in doubt, it will still be interesting to see what the debate throws up</span>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-71453839589508529232009-08-04T09:27:00.000-07:002009-08-04T09:33:01.853-07:00Bertie a NOTW journalist?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:2Ssm871m52Ck3M:http://citizenjon.files.wordpress.com/2007/05/bertie.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 123px; height: 113px;" src="http://tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:2Ssm871m52Ck3M:http://citizenjon.files.wordpress.com/2007/05/bertie.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has agreed to become a sports journalist for the Irish News Of The World, writing a weekly column for the Sunday edition of the tabloid.<br /><br />Why?<br /><br />Because he’s a “fan” I’d say. A fan of English football. Really, could the NOTW not get someone decent?<br /><br />see <a href="http://www.businessandleadership.com/news/article/14834/marketing/bertie-ahern-turns-sports-columnist-for-irish-news-of-the-world">here</a><br /><br />and <a href="http://twitter.com/IrishTimesBiz">@IrishTimesBiz</a> on twitter who broke the storyNiall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-48753035750005458282009-08-04T08:55:00.000-07:002009-08-04T09:07:34.801-07:00My summer of Irish holidays<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">In 2006, there were 6,981,000 trips made by Irish people abroad. That means that the average Irish person made nearly two trips abroad that year.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">There are no statistics for this year available, but from asking people I found that many who would normally holiday abroad in a resort in Spain or Portugal in the summer were considering holidaying at home instead, as were those who may go abroad more than once per summer. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">The reasons for this decrease in overseas travel are fairly obvious, but the opportunity is there for Ireland to capitalise on increased domestic tourism. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">This summer I did not go abroad. I stayed and travelled in my own country. Here I offer my views on the various destinations I travelled to around Ireland.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Galway</span>
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<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5Cdcu%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:GA;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">I started out my summer early with a weekend in Galway city in late April. Staying in the lovely (and reasonably priced) Jury’s Hotel opposite the Spanish Arch and overlooking Galway Bay, this was my first ever trip to Galway. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Getting there wasn’t a problem, as the hotel is within 15 minutes of the train station and bus depot. Getting around Galway is easy, with most of the sights within walking distance of the city centre. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Walking along Galway Bay at sunset was a favourite pastime of mine and if you start at the hotel you can take in the Spanish Arch and wonderful views of both the bay an the city of the tribes. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Going out to Connemara is a must. Although many bus companies run buses from the city out to Connemara, I managed to swindle a lift out to Connemara from a relative. Driving out towards Inverin (Indreabhan) and Spiddle (Spideal) we took in great views of the Atlantic coast and the various picturesque villages we passed through.
<br /></span></p>
<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <span style="font-weight: bold;">Wexford</span>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos3.pix.ie/29/F6/29F69EE4D5E64907B638E254A43DA8B6-500.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 332px; height: 500px;" src="http://photos3.pix.ie/29/F6/29F69EE4D5E64907B638E254A43DA8B6-500.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>
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<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5Cdcu%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:GA;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span lang="GA"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Since I was a young boy, I, like many Dublin people, have holidayed in Wexford. This year I stayed in the lovely village of Blackwater (midway between Wexford town and Enniscorthy) which is easily accesible through the N11 from Dublin and is a long-time haunt of mine. Although the village suffered a big loss this year when the Blackwater Lodge Hotel shut down, it still retains a few Guesthouses, including the Innishladhru Guesthouse. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">The mid-Wexford area is ideal for walking and cycling, and Blackwater features a number of excellent routes. A short walk starting at the side entrance to Etchinghams will take you along the Blackwater river and through a small wood, leaving you on the road to Ballyconnigar Strand. From here you can head on to the beach or back to the village. Canoeing along the Blackwater and down to the sea at Ballyconnigar is also really worth a try.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Wexford is famous for the quality of the beaches in the county, and Blackwater possesses a number of beautiful beaches. Ballyconnigar is the nearest beach, although it is quite rocky. You can continue along the beach for miles, taking in the beaches at Ballyvalloo, Ballinesker (where the D-Day scene in <i style="">Saving Private Ryan </i>was filmed) and Curracloe. All of these beaches are brilliant for sunbathingn and swimming and all are easily accesible by turning off the main Blackwater – Wexford road. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Wexford town is a 20-minute drive and is a great place for a spot of shopping. The town features a number of sights worth taking in, not least the bridge (the longest bridge in Ireland) going in to the town from the Blackwater road, which goes across the sea. There is also the recently redeveloped Wexford Opera House, Bride St. And St. Iberius Churches, the Highlanes Art Gallery and Cafe, and the wonderful boardwalk along the harbour.
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<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mayo</span>
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<br /><p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span lang="GA">
<br /><o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">After my trip to the South-East, I headed West again, where I had the fortune of staying in the beautiful village of Mulranny. Mulranny features perhaps the most uniquely beautiful beach I have ever seen. The village proves to be an ideal base for travelling to see Achill or Westport (the nearest train and bus station) which are both around 30 minutes away. The local Mulranny Park Inn once accomodated John Lennon and Yoko Ono, and features a lovely restauraunt and bar.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Achill is a famous destination for tourists, with highlights being the abandoned famine village up a mountain and the beaches and sea-views on the island. A trip to Broadhaven Bay is also recommended, to see the ongoing Shell To Sea protest camp and controversial Shell gas terminal (however the scenery in the bay is truly breathtaking, even if it is somewhat sullied by the sheer amount of security and heavy machinery in the area).<span style=""> </span>Westport is a town also worth a visit, with many of the local beaches ideal for surfing and wind-surfing.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Monaghan</span>
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<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">The very mention of “Monaghan” usually brings up memories of Patrick Kavanagh poems learned off in school, or else a different response- “Where?”. For a county so often bypassed on the way North or West, Monaghan has a lot to offer. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">I spent a weekend in Dartry wood, which is near the Cavan border (Rockcorry and Cootehill are the nearest towns.) I stayed in the Tanagh Outdoor Education Centre facilities (Tanagh OEC do activity weekends for groups in the area.) Tanagh OEC led us on forest hikes through Dartry wood, and a canoeing trip through the same forest (which also featured impromptu swimming.)</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><span style=""> </span>I didn’t manage to see much outside the forest, but the scenery was romantic and truly memorable both in the forest and on the bus home. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-47099063492130044302009-07-19T06:22:00.000-07:002009-07-19T10:48:04.368-07:00Indonesia Unite<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Indonesia_flag_300.png"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 217px; height: 121px;" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Indonesia_flag_300.png" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br />There's another example of how twitter is being used at the forefront of politics going on right now.<br /><br />"Indonesia Unite" is a movement which aims to show that the country is united against terrorism after the attacks on the JW Marriot and Ritz Carlton Hotels in Jakarta. See the below video for aerial footage of the scene where the attacks took place. <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/84ieXmDk1Nk&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/84ieXmDk1Nk&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />The movement is calling on people to use the tag #indonesiaunite at the end of their posts and use the Indonesian flag as their profile picture (see <a href="http://twitter.com/#search?q=%23indonesiaunite">here</a>). At the moment it is among the top trending topics on twitter.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.medanku.com/indonesiaunite/">Here</a> is an Indonesian website aiming to popularise the movement. Twitter never ceases to enthral me.Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-19011533649995090302009-07-12T10:33:00.000-07:002009-07-12T11:05:38.513-07:00Sitting on the gangland fence<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSoPMqWOnxRe7JgcXsO9kr1CyQg5uvr-rcPEYbC-M65TcFdQFYfuKk3ovOGR8bTqGzKLlSrEj37aSKHYYdjC2S5dHTP2n9WhOO6quiFRfRw65cDiDnnFMsg8DIoD2tCX-5uHtGXWvyoBs/s1600-h/Blood_Gun_Free.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 133px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSoPMqWOnxRe7JgcXsO9kr1CyQg5uvr-rcPEYbC-M65TcFdQFYfuKk3ovOGR8bTqGzKLlSrEj37aSKHYYdjC2S5dHTP2n9WhOO6quiFRfRw65cDiDnnFMsg8DIoD2tCX-5uHtGXWvyoBs/s200/Blood_Gun_Free.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5357632233464073266" border="0" /></a>
<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5Cdcu%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:GA;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">The recent criminal justice bill passed through the Dail left me on the fence. On one hand, it’s easy to see that action must be taken to combat gang crime, particularly (though not exclusively) in Dublin and Limerick. On the other hand, I can see how it may impinge on someone’s human rights- someone only needs to be suspected of being involved with a gang to be arrested and tried in the Special Criminal Court (SCC).</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">In my state of tandem, I looked to see how other countries have dealt with gangs in the past. The result seems to be the same across the board- they are either killed (in countries like China) or tried with no jury (as in Italy). I would look to Italy as one of the world leaders in dealing with gang crime, as their handling of the Mafia has been very effective. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">In may ways, the situation in ‘gangland’ Ireland is reminiscent of the situation in 1970s Mafia-ridden Italy. In Ireland, as in Italy, gangs are very much a family business. In Italy there was the Corleones, in Ireland we have the McCarthy-Dundons. Gangs do not simply ‘die out’ when they are family and community based. Action needs to be taken, and power needs to be given to Police forces to combat gangs.
<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Trial without jury does go against the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights – most notably Article 9 which states; “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile” but also Article 7; “All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.” As I heard on Karen Coleman’s <i style=""><a href="http://www.newstalk.ie/newstalk/programmes/17/the-wide-angle.html">The Wide Angle</a> </i>on Newstalk this morning, if this (arbitrary detention) happened elsewhere (for example Guantanamo Bay) there would be complete opposition in Ireland.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">The simple fact is, however, that this is not happening elsewhere. This is happening on our doorsteps, and as such, immediate action is needed. As I have already said, trial by jury is ‘best practice’ in this area. In times of crisis, there needs to be more power given to crime-fighting than the criminals have themselves.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">Another interesting option is taking the approach modelled in the USA in dealing with the infamous MS-13 (Mara Salvatrucha) gang. This gang is mainly baised in the Central American immigrant community, and is also quite family based. The US Joint Forces Command warned this January that Mexico could be on the verge of collapse, and in the Joint Operating Environment report, which contains projections of global threats and potential wars, puts Mexico on the same level as Pakistan (see <a href="http://www.theweek.com/article/index/92337/Mexicos_failed_state_threat">here</a>). This is due, largely, to the prevalence of gangs such as MS-13 and their activity in Mexico.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">A new FBI taskforce was established in 2005 to deal exclusively with MS-13 (see the <span style="font-style: italic;">USA Today </span>report <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-02-23-gang-salvador_x.htm">here</a>). Maybe there should be an elite unit of Gardai equipped to deal with gangs, with branches in Limerick and Dublin. This unit would receive special training, be independent and answerable directly to the Minister for Justice. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="GA">The entire issue is complicated, but it is crucial that we look at this as a single thread in a gang problem that reaches across the entire world.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
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<br /></span></p> Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-28011167061346524062009-07-11T16:05:00.000-07:002009-07-11T17:37:05.063-07:00Now here's something truly scary<a style="font-weight: bold;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.ntma.ie/ButtonGIF/2009/GIF/level_of_debt.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 365px; height: 400px;" src="http://www.ntma.ie/ButtonGIF/2009/GIF/level_of_debt.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Forget horror movies, the Irish Economy is where it's at if you want to b e scared these days. </div><div><br /></div>I came across <a href="http://www.financedublin.com/debtclock.php">this</a> in my boredom today. It's a real-time counter for Ireland's debt. I find it truly terrifying.<div><br /></div><div>Speaking of terrifying things- the <a href="http://www.ntma.ie/">NTMA</a> have a website which details excellently how buggered the country is. </div><div><br /></div><div>It even has a strange disclaimer before you enter the site, which reminded me of the health warnings that accompany cigarettes.</div><div><br /></div><div>The above chart- also courtesy of the NTMA (via politics.ie) - is similarly scary.</div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.ntma.ie/ButtonGIF/2009/GIF/level_of_debt.gif" style="text-decoration: none;"> <div style="text-align: center; text-decoration: underline;"><br /></div></a><br /><div>This Hallowe'en, I'm dressing up as a statistic.</div><div><br /></div>Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-13105437392272937712009-07-11T12:49:00.000-07:002009-07-11T12:55:34.815-07:00The thing about fees is...My feelings towards the re-introduction of student fees were initially quite straightforward- a big NO. I felt that it would impact most on the lower-income students who were already struggling to cope with university registration fees and accomodation costs. I even spoke to Eamon Gilmore one night in the ‘Green Room’ (If you could call it that) of RTE’s Questions and Answers and urged him to oppose the re-introduction of college fees wholeheartedly. I said that it would stop people from disadvantaged areas going to college, using my own area of Crumlin/Walkinstown as an example. I told him that I was the only one of my group of seven childhood friends to go on to third-level education and that I was one of a handful of people my age in the area I knew who went to university.<br /><br />Then, as I spent more time in DCU, I realised that it wasn’t all so simple. As it is, there are very few people from any sort of ‘disadvantaged’ areas going to college. DCU’s ‘Access’ programme, which allows ‘working class’ students to go to DCU, doesn’t seem to extend to the southside of our city. Where are all the Access students from Dolphin’s Barn? Jobstown? Ballyfermot? Killinarden? The majority of people in colleges come from at least a reasonably well-off background. As a result, it seems, the majority seem to be terribly relaxed towards their college degree. One lecturer in my course resigned recently after a series of (at least a little bit) unwarranted and exaggerated claims were made against her by my fellow students. College, to these people, is about ‘the buzz’ and ‘the craic’, not the degree.<br /><br />My message to the Department of Education is this; bring back college fees through the Australian system of student loans. This system is where a student pays no registration fee or fee initially for their course, but instead repays their debt after they have graduated and reached a certain income threshold (which has not been specified). According to The Irish Times in <a href="http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/2009/0711/1224250466444.html">this</a> article, the system could yield e380 million once it is fully operational (although it will cost e75 million per year initially). The amount to be repaid- the loan- will be a minimum of e21,000, with the fee increasing depending on the field of study.<br /><br />I am in favour of this scheme. Granted, if I was to be selfish I could oppose it, as it will cost students significantly more than a degree costs currently, but we have to look at things (as FF keep telling us) ‘in the wider plan’. The one thing I would advise is that any scheme must be means-tested. The higher your family’s income, the higher your loan should be. Maybe this would force the wealthier students out there into actually thinking before they select a course to study, and not just go to a course because of the ‘buzz’ in the particular university.<br /><br />There should, however, be certain caveats in any such scheme (as Mark Coughlan points out in his excellent post <a href="http://www.irishelection.com/2009/07/govt-moving-in-the-right-direction-on-third-level-funding/">here</a>). There should, most definitely, be no freeze in third-level recruitment enforced through the loan scheme. The loan scheme must be adequately funded if it is to work correctly. Finally, the ‘Access’ programme, as seen in DCU, should be extended to all colleges (and funded by the institution itself, in combination with the local county council) and it should be correctly applied, not simply to areas that once had ‘a bad name’. It too should be means tested and open to all.<br /><br />To my fellow students who oppose the introduction of third level fees in any form (the USI et al); the current system of free education for all is nice, but completely unsustainable. Look around you, everyone is being hit. We happen to be in the ‘safe’ zone of university, we must share the hurt with our working brethren who are not so lucky.Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2221304666776500994.post-82797209619267555872009-06-27T08:49:00.000-07:002009-07-11T16:25:41.601-07:00Protest at Our Lady's Childrens Hospital, Crumlin<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtWme3WUBUE3Le9hVU9poIXQaihJGZfpA01kwsTZK4YvFegzGfQp-UXPYMJSIv558iJJvRaZzcM0Z9jF04XQ1Kc7m2VjZnaAg4aMYPdIJ6TSrXmdQ97Gj0YI0yuY9Z6DdLzhyihd3FHfc/s1600-h/DSC_0025.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 374px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtWme3WUBUE3Le9hVU9poIXQaihJGZfpA01kwsTZK4YvFegzGfQp-UXPYMJSIv558iJJvRaZzcM0Z9jF04XQ1Kc7m2VjZnaAg4aMYPdIJ6TSrXmdQ97Gj0YI0yuY9Z6DdLzhyihd3FHfc/s320/DSC_0025.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5352043587145108178" border="0" /></a>
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<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5Cdcu%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:GA;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} -</style><span lang="GA">
<br /><span style=";font-family:times new roman;font-size:100%;" >Seeing the numbers at the protest to save services in Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin was a little bit upsetting. I would estimate that just over 100 people were there. Where was everyone else? If people are able to go out and say how upset they are that Michael Jackson died, why don’t they get out and show their support for Irish children that could die if there are further cuts to the wards and staff in Crumlin hospital?
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<br /></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6wBfVgF8uoqYEejFowIROhvHnFKXCKvjOIlzhrTG5053U_hfXH7_SNAhqHdv-yErYqNvWOeKay962HM0jkGkh31Cirh-zbSQV_PTesyBRNZkgMvjh6kYqKf71E7NLHGMhRLQKuq4uQXc/s1600-h/DSC_0072.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 413px; height: 254px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6wBfVgF8uoqYEejFowIROhvHnFKXCKvjOIlzhrTG5053U_hfXH7_SNAhqHdv-yErYqNvWOeKay962HM0jkGkh31Cirh-zbSQV_PTesyBRNZkgMvjh6kYqKf71E7NLHGMhRLQKuq4uQXc/s320/DSC_0072.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5352037997382182242" border="0" /></a>
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<br /></span></span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:times new roman;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:times new roman;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;">Dr. James Reilly, Fine Gael spokesman for health (above) spoke along with several parents of children who are waiting on operations at the hospital or are currently being treated there. Cllr Joan Collins (who did an interview on this blog <a href="http://indeniall.blogspot.com/2009/06/interview-with-people-before-profit.html">here</a>) led the chants of “Harney Harney Harney, OUT OUT OUT!” , “Brendan Drumm can you hear, we don’t want your cutbacks here” and “I don’t know but I have seen, the HSE is a death machine”. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:times new roman;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:times new roman;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;">The people who did turn out should be applauded for coming out, but where was everyone else? This hospital caters for all of the children nationwide, not just Dublin children. The next protest is on July 25th, please show your support.
<br /></span></p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnKRlxLZUkxqM-R8-HAj4z55Ar5G73adoSe2_hSHw6pqEmYXSTBZioR9YpgNRnOnqPnrSVetyyiMzExoVUcbkBNAqmkQZFY9cRvIPKKNMBaW4LY3a6S-uU1ED16mnhMLptOtmBOz_rPaM/s1600-h/DSC_0058.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnKRlxLZUkxqM-R8-HAj4z55Ar5G73adoSe2_hSHw6pqEmYXSTBZioR9YpgNRnOnqPnrSVetyyiMzExoVUcbkBNAqmkQZFY9cRvIPKKNMBaW4LY3a6S-uU1ED16mnhMLptOtmBOz_rPaM/s320/DSC_0058.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5352041897168098034" border="0" /></a><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:times new roman;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;">
<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:times new roman;"><span lang="GA" style="font-size:100%;">You can access the campaign to save Our Lady's Children's Hospital in Crumlin's website <a href="http://saveourladyschildrenshospital.com/">here.</a>
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<br /></p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1bl6N3U3Cu8Iic76-JTjBNPoyLSSMonPUrUG5IqluN0NMIKHn29ZA-oPaQQqgWbwhAoy0PACA7fc-h0Dc9aWlg_ljdKC271kzrQcgkoZGQfnpETIQZ68UC4EZJFXs4s3ZULeACxakfpc/s1600-h/DSC_0032.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 213px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1bl6N3U3Cu8Iic76-JTjBNPoyLSSMonPUrUG5IqluN0NMIKHn29ZA-oPaQQqgWbwhAoy0PACA7fc-h0Dc9aWlg_ljdKC271kzrQcgkoZGQfnpETIQZ68UC4EZJFXs4s3ZULeACxakfpc/s320/DSC_0032.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5352039408104578402" border="0" /></a>
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<br />Niall Farrellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08037504516060194921noreply@blogger.com0