One of the metrics that charted the improvement in working people’s lives over the past century or more was the increase in home ownership. From a situation where most people lived in rented or otherwise non private accommodation, home ownership rose steadily in the western democracies to a situation where most people in most countries […]
The Pandemic has been very bad news for some people – restaurateurs, publicans, students, anybody working part time in hospitality, and so on, but it has been absolutely superb news for some others. Mainly, of course, the media: Our subscriber numbers jumped by nearly 50 per cent last year to 126,000 – a great performance, […]
Fascinating, and interesting, on a number of levels, this story: Mercedes Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton suffered from dizziness after the Hungarian Grand Prix and said “everything got a bit blurry on the podium”. The seven-time world champion said he was “just so exhausted afterwards” and said it was “one of the weirdest experiences I’ve […]
Foreign observers might have the impression that it is always open season for euthanasia in the Netherlands. Not so. While the guidelines are elastic and subject to interpretation, they do exist and people violating them risk prosecution. A recent story on euthanasia in the Netherlands illustrates this. A pillar of Dutch policy is that only […]
Suppose you went to a party with a group of friends, one of whom is a rather outspoken person we’ll call Ms A. After an hour or so, someone you never met before comes up to you and says, “I couldn’t help noticing that you came here with Ms A. Aren’t you concerned that her […]
The folks in Cabinet seem puzzled by the public reaction to the news that former Minister Katherine Zappone had asked for, and promptly received, one of those ludicrous positions that are clearly invented to give one of The Deserving Few another job. Zappone had a chat with Minister Simon Coveney, presumably on the special direct-dial red phone reserved for ex-Ministers who want […]
During the worst economic downturn in decades, the government have announced that they will be allocating millions of euros in taxpayer funding for art projects that promote climate change awareness. Money well spent, right? The €2 million “Creative Climate Action Fund” unveiled by Green Party Ministers Eamon Ryan and Catherine Martin is unclear in its […]
I should start this piece with a clarification, so as to avoid any confusion about the intention behind it, or the analysis which follows. This is not a policy proposal. It is not an attempt to convince Ireland’s policymakers that a mass rapid testing program would produce better health outcomes than their current strategy, that […]
The chair of NPHET, Dr. Cillian De Gascun, has finally admitted that covid is endemic and will not be eliminated. So what exactly are we continuing with the emergency measures for? As reported by Richard Chambers of Virgin Media news: “@CillianDeGascun says Covid is becoming ‘endemic’. It will not be eliminated. “If you haven’t been […]
As draconian restrictions on people’s capacity to live their lives persist, as Ireland is now segregated according to your private healthcare choices, as Lockdowns haunt every day like a spectre and as the silver lining of freedom after vaccination is turning out to be more of a mirage in the dessert, I grow increasingly concerned […]
Yesterday, Google CEO Sundar Pichai emailed all employees regarding the company’s plans to re-open its offices around the world. The email states that all who are working on one of its “campuses” will need to be vaccinated. This will apply immediately to the United States but “will expand to other regions in the coming months.” […]
The bible begins with the creation of everything that exists (Genesis, chapter 1). How is this creating done? Does God overcome some primordial, recalcitrant demonic force? No, although such accounts are found in the book of psalms. No, in Genesis God creates simply by speaking: “God said ‘let there be light’, and there was light.” […]