99 years ago the Government of Ireland Act passed through both houses of parliament in London. The Act divided Ireland into two territories, “Southern Ireland” and “Northern Ireland”, each intended to be self-governing. “Northern Ireland” as defined by the Act, amounting to six of the nine counties of Ulster, Down, Derry, Armagh, Antrim, Fermanagh and […]
The Irish abortion law is to be reviewed next year and the campaign to expand its grounds has already started Last month, a newspaper article presented the tragic story of an unborn baby who had received a diagnosis of a chromosome abnormality. As this diagnosis fell outside the terms of the Irish abortion law, the […]
In a new book, political science professor at Boise State University, Professor Scott Yenor, makes it clear that the rise of individual autonomy brought about by the sexual revolution is hardly an “unmixed blessing”. In the book, The Recovery of Family Life: Exposing the Limits of Modern Ideologies, Professor Yenor skillfully examines the ideologies of contemporary liberalism, radical feminism, and sexual liberation […]
Earlier this month, my sister, my friend Melissa, and I were brainstorming about what to give our boys for Christmas. What do you get kids who have so much already? “First world problem,” noted my sister, who has spent time volunteering in India and Malawi. So. true. Kids don’t need all the latest high-tech toys. As […]
In last year’s federal budget, the Australian Government assumed a fertility rate of 1.9 children per woman in the 2019-20 year. If it eventuated, this would have represented a rise in the fertility rate, but the Government was banking on a boost in babies to help the future economic viability of existing welfare plans and […]
It’s been an exceedingly tough year for Irish businesses, so with just a few days to go for online orders here’s some great ideas for gifts from local companies – including streamed concerts and a glass of good cheer. Amazon doesn’t need your support or your cash for more junk made in China, so have a […]
A fascinating new paper in a leading peer-reviewed journal should give parents of babies with Trisomy 18 hope – and should also give Irish doctors pause. The Associate Editor of the prestigious international scientific review, Pediatrics, notes that in regard to Trisomy 13 and 18, it has “become clear that these conditions are not lethal or […]
Most requests for euthanasia in the Netherlands come from people suffering from cancer. But the number of patients who have dementia, psychiatric disorders, or multiple geriatric syndromes (MGS) is growing steadily. An article by Dutch physicians in JAMA Internal Medicine examines the kind of geriatric syndromes which motivate a person to ask for euthanasia. They found that […]
According to leaked documents revealed in the Washington Post, Huawei, China’s giant telecom, has helped to develop an AI system to identify Uyghurs, its oppressed Turkic minority in the province of Xinjiang. Allegedly the facial recognition system is programmed to send “Uyghur alarms” to the police when Uyghurs are spotted by security cameras. The documents say […]
An Austrian film called The Trouble with Being Born is winning high praise from critics at film festivals. It received a special jury award at the Berlin International Film Festival earlier this year. On Rotten Tomatoes, it scores 100% amongst critics. It’s a “hidden gem”, according to Hollywood Reporter. “A powerful and revelatory achievement,” wrote a critic for Screen […]
Clive James, who died a year ago aged 80 after a long illness, was many things: a media celebrity, a TV pundit, an interviewer and roaming traveller; an essayist, literary critic and author of five volumes of autobiography; lastly, a poet. Indeed, putting aside the other hats he put on and off in rapid succession, I suspect that poetry, that fascination for using words in a compressed space for memorable effect, was his first and last love. Much of television fame is, […]
ON THIS DAY: 12 DECEMBER 2001: Nuala O’Loan, Police Ombudsman for the North of Ireland presents report to relatives of the Omagh bombing victims As the Police Ombudsman for the North of Ireland, Nuala O’Loan met with and presented the relatives of the victims of the Omagh bombing with a report into her findings into […]