THE right-wing characterisation of those fighting against Europe’s austerity agenda as dim-witted profligates was dealt another blow last week when a study underpinning the slash-and-burn policy was roundly debunked.

THE insidious subtext of the argument against same-sex marriage is that children, currently being raised by gay and lesbian couples, are harmed by the experience.

PRODIGAL party Fianna Fáil is no longer the pariah of Irish politics, but has it really learned anything from its time in political purgatory?

FIANNA FÁIL councillor Kevin Sheahan is not a racist — some of his best friends are foreign nationals. He’s had a few over to dinner.

WITHIN 24 hours, Health Minister James Reilly had responded to concerns about threesomes in an article on a HSE-funded website — if only every problem in the health service was dealt with so swiftly.

FIANNA FÁIL TD Timmy Dooley has criticised Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore for refusing to attend a male-only dinner during his St Patrick’s Day trip to America.

A FORMER government minister and his ex-wife were sentenced to jail on Monday in the UK for swapping penalty points while, in our little Republic, allegations that TDs’ penalty points were mysteriously wiped create barely a ripple of controversy.

ENDA Kenny, writing in a national newspaper on Monday, painted a picture of the Irish economy so unrecognisably rosy that I had to pinch myself and check the unemployment figures to be sure we’re still in crisis.

SETH MacFarlane’s set of reductive offensive stereotypes masquerading as risqué ribald humour at the Oscars has provoked huge controversy, but he could be forgiven for wondering what all the fuss is about considering the latent chauvinism of the industry he was there to celebrate.

AS THE Government ratchets up the pressure on struggling families by introducing an array of new taxes, the question of whether multinational companies are paying their fair share is timely.