Some people, including many readers, will be downcast by this, or angry, or feel that their suspicions have been validated. Personally, though, it is not something that overly concerns me, for reasons set out below. If it is necessary, then sign me up: Pfizer says it plans to meet with top U.S. health officials Monday […]
I have a lovely dog but she is a bit headstrong and erratic. For nearly a year, I couldn’t take her anywhere unless she was on a lead but gradually, over time, I would let her off the lead on walks along the footpath for an increasing among of time. Bit by bit she became […]
Yesterday the Irish Government made a truly extraordinary announcement: under plans they propose to put into legislation, indoor hospitality will return in Ireland on July 26th. But only for those who have been fully vaccinated. If you are vaccinated, like me, then you will be able to sit indoors in a restaurant or a pub. […]
There was a time when humanity’s heroes were almost invariably the champions of freedom. In politics, philosophy, story-telling, and beyond, our idols were those who fought the good fight so that people could live free and in peace. It was viscerally understood, by all of us, that freedom was a good thing and that no […]
It is not hard to feel sympathy for the organisers of the Dublin Marathon. Speaking to Kieran Cuddihy on Newstalk’s Hard Shoulder last evening (an item in which yours truly also featured), lead organiser Jim Aughney said that the cancellation was not because the organisers lacked faith in the vaccine programme, or personally believed in […]
The point of the media – the reason it exists – is to report the news to the public. Our job, as journalists, is to pull together relevant information about the things that are happening in the world, and present it to you, the public, in a way that is accessible, understandable, and accurate. When […]
In 2019, Sinn Fein tabled a Motion of No Confidence in the then Minister for Health, Simon Harris. Ahead of the Dáil debate and with cringe inducing bravado, Harris took to Twitter to challenge his political opponents. “Bring it on” he tweeted. Well, bring it on they did, and it wasn’t all empty guff and political opportunism […]
Last week, Ireland’s Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, announced that he would be opening discussions with the hospitality sector to introduce a system for restricting indoor hospitality to customers who have been vaccinated against Covid. There was no public outcry. The government was not widely condemned for proposing to oblige restaurants to engage in systematic […]
Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has expressed his “disappointment” and “discomfort” with the way in which members of the public have been critical of NPHET online. When they say they’re “all in this together,” they aren’t joking. Speaking in the Dáil last week, Donnelly went to bat for everyone’s favourite unelected body of government advisors. […]
By “all” restrictions here, they really do mean “all” – no more facemasks, no more social distancing, no more restrictions on pubs and nightclubs and concerts or sporting events. When the Premier League returns after the ever-shorter football offseason, they’ll have full stadiums. The only remaining restrictions of any kind, it seems, will be some […]
Over the weekend, 140,000 fans poured into the Red Bull Ring, in Spielberg, Austria, to watch the Formula One Austrian Grand Prix. Tens of thousands watched England defeat Ukraine in Rome, in the European Championships. Across the continent, crowds poured into bars, restaurants, and sporting events. Meanwhile, in Ireland: A pilot music festival is taking […]
The last time I was involved in a car accident, it was November of 2015, and the main cause of the accident was that I left my wallet in my office and had to run back inside to get it. My now-wife and I were due, that evening, to have dinner in a nice restaurant. […]