THE idea of a killer selecting a victim at random; the idea that the desire to kill or rape is so powerful, that the identity of the victim is irrelevant to the murderer, is so alien to anything we might regard as normal.

LIKE every member of democratic parliaments around the world, the members of the Northern Assembly, every last one of them, was elected to administer, run, develop, and advance the society they represent.

THOUSANDS of farmers protested in Brussels yesterday as the EU announced it will release €500m to help those hit by plunging farm-gate prices. 

IT is a reassuring victory for humanity and the power of redemption — one of the great and underestimated forces of conscience and decency — that Germany has assumed the role of Europe’s moral leader by spearheading the EU’s response to the refugee crisis.

“THEY’RE all the same, they’re all in it for what they can get out of it” is one of the dog-eared and all too often accurate accusations levelled at our politicians.

THE last thing the Catholic diocese of Cloyne in East Cork needs is another scandal.

A CAMPAIGN to raise awareness of male-specific cancers has been launched by VHI Healthcare in association with the Men’s Cancer Alliance.

AN understanding of the extent of the appalling refugee crisis in Southern Europe has finally reached the Vatican.

IF a nation’s maturity is judged by how it includes and protects the interests of minority groups, then by that simple but demanding yardstick, Ireland is doing pretty well.

THE memory of Kerry teenager Dónal Walsh was deeply etched into the national consciousness when, while gravely ill from terminal cancer and clinging desperately to life, he made a moving plea for an end to the suicide epidemic among young people.