Sunny spells with only rain in the far west







 





COLUMNISTS

Rabbitte shooting messenger with attack on political media

THE hubris of Communication Minister Pat Rabbitte, who recently lambasted the quality of political journalism in this country, would be a lot easier to take seriously if the nation hadn’t been lumbered with such a headline-grabbing array of greedy and grasping incompetents in Leinster House for at least the last 30 years.

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Euro crisis ‘threatens world economy’

The eurozone crisis poses the single biggest risk to the global economy, with cutbacks in countries hardest hit by the crisis particularly vulnerable, the OECD warned.

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Economist: ‘Low’ tax rates to blame for Ireland’s deficit crisis

If tax on Irish workers was increased to the EU average, the Government would not have to borrow to run the state each year, a thinktank claims.

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Government needs a spirited discipline similar to boxer Katie’s

THE welcome boxer Katie Taylor received in Dublin on Sunday night was deserved.

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We’re fiscally sick and tired of all this debating about treaty debates

THE one statement constantly made about the fiscal treaty is that we should have more debates about it.

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Mandarin duck unlikely invader

THE collared dove, now firmly established as a native bird, bred for the first time in Ireland in 1959.

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House martins refugees from heat

NOW in the merry month of May, a potpourri of events and delights on our doorstep.

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Small mallards deceive hungry predators

A FEW days ago I was travelling slowly down the Grand Canal in my boat when a female mallard appeared out of a reed bed a few metres in front of the bow.

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Animals take a shine to more gardens

IT may be a sign of growing tolerance of wildlife, but more people are now making their gardens animal-friendly.

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Campari and Blood Orange Sorbet

IT’S DIFFICULT to see any signs of a recession in London, every restaurant seems to be full, and many now have a ‘no-booking’ policy, so a convivial queue forms round the corner for a table in the hottest spots.

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Taoiseach behind Bruton despite gaffe

Taoiseach Enda Kenny stood firmly behind Richard Bruton despite his gaffe that could cost the Government votes in the fiscal treaty referendum.

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Noonan prescribes for us a post-Grexit cheese-free diet

BLESSED are the cheese haters for they shall inherit the wealth.

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Honesty needed in referendum debate

THIS referendum debate can be reduced to competing emotions and a few heads shouting ‘Look at me!”.

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Varadkar: No to Europe-wide seniors’ free travel

The dream of a Europe-wide free travel scheme for senior citizens has been shot down by Tourism Minister Leo Varadkar, who said there was no such thing as “free travel”.

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€3bn from sale of state assets to fund employment

All €3 billion raised from the sale of state assets will be used to fund job creation following extensive negotiations with the Troika, said Reform Minister Brendan Howlin.

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Germany can’t make Germans out of us because of euro crisis

GERMANY is behaving like the euro is a pain in the ass to it, that it has received little or no reward for adopting it as its currency, that it wishes that it never gave up its Deutschmark as its own prized currency and that, now that it is stuck with the euro, it will be damned if it is going to have to pick up the tab for the fecklessness of other European nations (including us).

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Pursuit of wealth depletes natural capital and threatens human species

TWO news stories from recent days eloquently reveal the madness of a world order that we have come to accept as normal, as “the way things are”.

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EU ministers haggle over €380bn agriculture fund

The battle over how to make agriculture sustainable and environmentally friendly stepped up a gear in Brussels as ministers haggled over how to distribute a proposed €380bn over six years.

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Ministers make case for billions to create jobs

Complex plans to raise billions of euro to fund projects and create jobs have been outlined to the European Investment Bank and European Commission.

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End meritocracy myth and drop subsidies to fee-paying schools

THE most pernicious myth gaining traction as draconian cutbacks are implemented across a range of vital public services is the myth of meritocracy.

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