In Australia, as elsewhere in the developed world, doctors and parents are perplexed about an epidemic of young people, mostly teenage girls, who want to change gender. Back in August the Federal Health Minister, Greg Hunt, asked the The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) for advice on how to treat gender dysphoria in children […]
When it became clear that the novel coronavirus coming out of China was destined to be a pandemic, international concern quickly zeroed in on how countries with weak health systems, most of which are in Africa, would be affected. It was feared that they would be quickly overwhelmed by the virus and left reeling. The […]
A High Court judge has been criticised by protesters after they alleged that she threatened to involve “outside agencies” relating to their children during a hearing into a housing case. The case involved a building firm which has taken a High Court proceeding against protestors involved with the ongoing “House the Irish First” demonstration in […]
Last week I asked “What next for the Soldiers of Destiny?” and since then, at near break neck pace, the path to government has become clearer. The Leaders of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have agreed to enter detailed negotiations, as equal partners. The ongoing national emergency posed by COVID-19 has provided the political fig […]
It used to be called being ‘sent to Coventry’. It meant social ostracization, being ignored and snubbed in company – a well established form of passive aggression which has taken multiple forms in today’s world. We know it as no-platforming, blocking, muting, unfriending or cancelling. Some forms are more exclusionary than others of course. If […]
When I was in my mid-twenties, journalist Justine McCarthy wrote a vicious article attacking me in the Irish Independent. Actually there were two articles, over two consecutive weeks, both a big splash covering the front page of what was then the weekend section of the paper. I was reminded of that hatchet-job, and of winning […]
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Spain has appointed its first ever demography minister, a move which follows the appointment of the first Commissioner for Demography by the European Union. A large part of their respective roles will be to attempt to manage widespread depopulation. The European Union’s free movement policy has resulted in some member states struggling to fill their […]
No voluntary organisation in the world does more work in the fields of education, healthcare, poverty relief, etc. than the Catholic Church, led in many cases by the Church’s religious orders. Amidst all the criticism of the Church, this basic fact is often forgotten. Cara, a research body at Georgetown University in the US, compiles the […]
Sinn Féin’s spectacular and unforeseen triumph in the general election has brought new focus on the party and the way in which it is run. That has intensified as post-election polls would seem to point to an even better result in the event of coalition talks failing and a new election being called. All this […]
The most noticeable thing about International Women’s Week 2020 seems to be how many women are being censored for daring to have strong opinions. I thought encouraging women to be bold and fearless in thinking for themselves was rather the point of the whole shindig. It would appear that’s not the case. There’s a deafening silence from the […]
What are the relationships between the judges of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and leading non-governmental organisations, and what should the Court be doing about them, particularly in cases in which doubts as to the judges’ impartiality might arise? This is the topic of this post, which is worthy of interest and needs […]