Internet Commentator

Unparliamentary Language

John's new motto for Irish Eagle is

Damn John Fay! Damn every one that won't damn John Fay!

This brings me right back to a party I attended 18 years ago. It was in a small house in the Liberties, packed full of second year Architecture students along with a colleague from first year who had failed to make it through to second year. He was somewhat disgruntled with the solipstic cliquey-ness and this reached an apogee at this party from which he stormed with the resounding declaration:

"F**k the lot of ye! and especially you, McGahon!"

Meagre Offerings

Last week, Samizdata's Brian Micklethwait explained why he thought it was a bad sign when a country - such as his example, Scotland - starts advertising for tourists. What then to make of the large billboard in Castlebellingham, now thankfully unencumbered by traffic between Dublin and Belfast since the M1 motorway's completion, inviting us North-Louth-ers to holiday in our neighbouring county?

Now, those of us in the north of the county aren't overly fond of the south of the county. To say that Dundalk holds Drogheda in low esteem is understating things somewhat. The epithets most commonly used to describe that "city" are unsuitable for a family blog like this. Can you imagine how we feel about Meath?

The poster is intriguingly sponsored by Mosney. That defunct "Holiday camp" acquired the moniker "Mosnia" during the 1990s, the grim compound resembling some sort of former Yugoslav internment camp. In the last few years it has moved out of the tourism business altogether and has become a government-funded residential centre for mostly Cuban and Nigerian asylum seekers, some of whom want to set up their own Fianna Fail cumann!

So, what are Mosney doing promoting Meath tourism?

One Man’s Vampire is Another Man’s Freedom Fighter

I must condemn outright the outrageous extra-judicial execution of Transylvanian "spiritual leader" Vlad "the impaler" Tepes:

The European chancelleries condemned unanimously this murder stating that it was against international legality and would surely be prejudicial to the region's thousand year old peace process. The UN’s secretary-general said that the British action was “simply unacceptable”, that it was a barbarous act perpetrated against "a democratically chosen leader" (the Count was elected once, in 1496). He also said that even someone accused of vampirism has the right for a fair and two or three centuries long trial at the International Court of Justice. The NGOs, for their part, blamed the international capitalism because, as they explained, Vlad had been for long an obstacle against the woodcutting and wolf-hunting lobbies that have been trying to destroy the delicate ecological balance of the Carpathian

European Constitution

Nice to see the Guardian's Jonathan Freedland, hardly your average "eurosceptic", coming out in favour of a UK referendum for the proposed European Constitution. Here in Ireland, our constitution requires a referendum before the European constitution may be ratified here. I cannot see such a referendum passing.

Family Related Activities

One of the "work and family related activities" which occasioned the recent blog-hudna was my daughter's christening. As I am inordinately proud of my photogenic progeny I have decided to post a couple of pictures. First, Zoe in the 70 yr old christening gown which was worn by her grandfather and second changed into her "civvies" alongside her big brother Isaac.

Pessimistic Unpatriotism

Uli Hesse-Lichtenberger explains why he isn't exactly a fan of his national team: Germany and makes the following startling observation:

I offer you the names of five great footballing nations: Brazil, Argentina, Italy, France, Holland. And I'll throw in Spain and England for good measure. Now, Germany have not beaten any (any!) of these sides in regulation time at a major tournament since July 1990. Chew on that.

Hardly a "West Brit"

Spotted at my local shop yesterday: a prominent "dissident republican"* buying one Sunday newspaper. Her choice? the Sunday Independent of course!

Food for thought for those who regularly complain of that paper's "anti-nationalist" agenda.

*as in: not just opposed to the agreement but opposed to any suspension of the "armed struggle"

Happy To You! II

Just in case I don't get to post tomorrow, I want to wish my wife Sam a Happy Birthday!

Hudna

Blogging will probably be a bit light here for about a week or so due to various work and family related activities...

One Year Sweeping

Carrie aka Stella Marie aka Ma Bear celebrates the Broom of Anger bloggiversary today. Happy Birthday!