We’re not supposed to call it the “Indian variant”, any more, obviously, in case that makes ordinary people feel suspicious of Indian-looking people they see on the street (who comes up with this stuff, exactly?). But we are all supposed to be absolutely terrified of it. It is more transmissible, and it is on the […]
The political correspondent for the Sunday Independent, Hugh O’Connell, had an article in Sunday’s edition titled ‘Religious orders stall on joining redress scheme.’ The sub-heading of the article is ‘Mother and baby home survivors wait as negotiations continue with Government.’ Let us take a critical look at those claims in more detail, because the best […]
The claim that all improvements in living conditions are illusionary distractions was pioneered first by Lenin in What is to be Done? and updated as part of new left ideology in the 1960s by Marcuse and the Frankfurt School of Marxism. It still forms the basis of current identity politics in which the traditional working […]
In February, 12 large Canadian companies joined forces to trial mass rapid testing in their workplaces as a potential route to the reopening of their business. In March, 5,000 people attended an indoor concert in Barcelona with the help of rapid antigen tests and only two infections were traced to the event. Universities in the […]
This week has seen extraordinary and unsettling scenes across Dublin city, as Gardaí drew batons to clear young drinkers off South William Street, and clamped down on other parts of the city. Apparently groups of young people were forced to leave St Stephen’s Green and other areas, so they all drifted down to South William […]
Why are there not more young people speaking out against lockdown? This is a question I asked myself recently, not because I am madly, rabidly against lockdown, but because I am more than a little concerned about the lack of say my generation has had in the past year about lockdown and what it means […]
To be prophetic is a gift granted to the few: that rare ability, not to “go with the flow” or just blandly accept the status quo, but to look perspicaciously at the present and to offer one’s careful judgement. However contrarian the prophet may appear to his contemporaries, ultimately he is speaking for their long-term good. When […]
To read the opposite side of this debate, with my colleague Niamh Uí Bhriain, click here _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ The worst kind of tax, a wise man once said, is the kind that you have to pay. For non-smokers, an extra euro on […]
To read the opposite side of this debate, with my colleague John McGuirk, click here _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Buying a home is by far the most difficult and stressful purchase most people will ever make. Scrimping and saving for a deposit; traipsing around to view houses; persuading the bank to […]
Self-described Marxist TDs Richard-Boyd Barrett and Paul Murphy have called for the state to “override private property rights” to fix the housing crisis. At least they’re consistent, right? Hi I'm a Marxist TD… https://t.co/bUNa41vmjx — Paul Murphy 🏳️⚧️ (@paulmurphy_TD) January 21, 2019 📣 Marxism 2019 is Ireland's largest socialist conference. It's where we discuss the […]
Paul lives in Tipperary. He has a full Medical Card. He visits his GP and is told that he needs to have bloods taken in order to assist in the diagnosis of a possible condition. He is charged €25 for the blood work. Mary lives in the same town as Paul. She too has a […]
The Economic and Social Research Institute has this morning published a paper by one of its economists Kieran McQuinn on the likely short term future of the housing market in Ireland. The paper is largely technical regarding budgetary projections, but its main focus is on how state intervention in the housing market could be increased […]