2011 year in review

Looking back on 2011

Looking back on 2011 what springs to mind in this eventful year? Well, it certainly has been an eventful year from all angles, both nationally, internationally, politically, socially and a host of other categories. Here are a few things that stood out for me in the past 12 months (in no specific order). Steve Jobs …

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1848 Tricolour Celebration 2011

It’s Green, White and Orange you know?

The Irish flag, our tricolour, our greatest national symbol, used to identify us across the globe and who knows, maybe beyond. We can all identify it at a glance. To strangers it’s a symbol of friendliness, the Irish humour, St Patrick’s Day and neutrality. Yet, so many of us still don’t actually know that much …

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So long 2010

We find ourselves yet again at the annual cusp, the last breaths of 2010 will soon be drawn and the dawn of 2011 will break. As is customary at such times, one is invited (perhaps compelled) to reflect on what the year has taught us or at the very least, what is has presented to …

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Don’t panic! (unless you want to)

So, #budget11 has been released from its cage and set free amongst the unsuspecting public. Terror hit the streets of Dublin as news of this cash gobbling monster spread. People flocked to ATMs in an attempt to claw back any money they could from the bricks and motar that retained their savings. Bank of Ireland …

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It’s cold outside, inside, it will always be cold!

We stand in the eve of what is predicted to be the worst (most austere) budget in Irish history. Based on information leaked so far, the prediction for an average single income household, earning about €35,000 per annum will see a reduction of roughly €600 per annum in take home pay (for single people on …

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Out in the cold

Yes, many things aired today, out in the cold. Amongst those stories of note we recognise the sad passing of Leslie Nielsen (legendary comedic actor, including Airplane! and the Naked Gun movies) and Ivrin Kershner (legendary director, including The Empire Strikes Back). It seems fitting that in such a day, where the world has lost …

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Dreaming of an ice Christmas

Snow still covering the ground this morning, the habitually stupid still believing that bald tires and acceleration will get their car up a frozen hill at all hours of the morning. My neighbour and I went out to crack away some of the ice from the speed ramps near our homes, to give the passing …

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The Essence of the Problem

Yesterday I overheard a conversation while trying to shake off some stress at the gym. This conversation captured perfectly why this country is in such a mess. It started with a moan about how everyone has lied to us and then how it was time for them to be ousted from power. It culminated in …

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Fianna Fail’s Ireland

I never considered emigration; until now. Not because of Ireland’s debt or related problems but because of the people who have put themselves in charge of this treehouse club, this joke of a country that is without a shred of democracy, this poodle of the EU and any other power that wants us to break …

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