It’s very easy to write about how the Irish Government is bungling the Coronavirus crisis (for it is, now, a crisis) by not moving quickly enough to restrict public gatherings and enforce strict containment measures, and to list the many ways in which it is failing to do so. Primarily, it’s easy to write because […]
Things looked very bad for the old Arctic Sea Ice back in 2007. If you don’t remember, that was the year that Al Gore won the nobel prize for his important work in highlighting the plight of the poor Polar Bear, which was, he said, doomed to live in a virtually ice-free arctic circle by […]
The chances of Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil, and Sinn Fein coming together to form a national government are, let’s face it, almost zero, for the simple reason that politicians probably feel that it would probably disadvantage all three parties. But that may well be wrong, and, more importantly, leaving the politics out of it, there’s […]
There are basically two competing approaches to thinking about the Coronavirus: The first is popular with many policymakers and media observers, and it is to basically accept that the virus is now out of control globally, that most of us will probably get it and survive, and that it’s just a fact of life that […]
Poor Pope Francis has had something of a torrid week of it. It began with the announcement that the Pontiff has been struck down by a mystery illness and was confined to bed. It approaches its end with an unwelcome letter in the post from Ireland’s most high profile Catholic. Of course, it seems fairly […]
It’s perfectly understandable if you missed it, because, let’s face it, the news is Coronavirus 24/7 these days, but on Monday the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) released data on new car sales for the first two months of 2020. The figures were, well, not good: New car registrations for February were down […]
Next Monday, the Global Alcohol Policy Convention will hold its annual conference in Dublin Castle, organised in partnership with the Department of Health. Over 1,000 people are expected to attend, from all parts of the world, including areas that are struggling and failing to contain the COVID-19 Coronavirus outbreak. The Department of Health are, at […]
The scale of the migrant crisis on the Greek border with Turkey is hard to put into context for an Irish audience. Already there are mumblings and grumblings of discontent in Ireland about the number of Asylum seekers, and controversy about their housing. 10,000 homeless people, when the country hit that milestone figure, was regarded […]
As we noted on Friday, former Vice President Joe Biden was expected to triumph in Saturday’s South Carolina primary, and sure enough, triumph he did. His victory was not a surprise – but the margin of it certainly was: Former Vice President Joe Biden had a big night in South Carolina, showing his promised strength […]
Former US Vice President Joe Biden holds an interesting and unenviable record. He’s run for President of the United States three times – 1988, 2008, and now in 2020. And in those three campaigns, he has never won a single primary. Not one, not ever. Since entering the present contest as the frontrunner, he’s had […]
A few short days ago, the nation’s gallant Minister for Health strode purposely out of a meeting with his officials, sleeves rolled up, frown artfully affixed to his forehead, and announced to the waiting public that he had a plan to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus: He was going to cancel a rugby match. […]
Before you get all outraged about the new report from the Central Statistics Office declaring Ireland the second most expensive country in Europe, take a minute and reflect that it’s probably not that surprising: Irish consumers pay the second highest prices in Europe, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office. The country also […]