IT was former US vice-president Hubert Humphrey who declared that “the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; those who are in the shadows of life; the sick, the needy, and the handicapped”.

Ireland’s former ambassador to the US has turned a speech by Gerry Adams on its head, urging elected Sinn Féin members to take their seats in Westminster. 

Ireland’s reputation as a haven for writers is often seen to rest on past glories, like the works of Joyce, Yeats, Beckett, O’Casey and all the other greats of the 20th century.

GARDA Commissioner Nóirín O’Sullivan has thus far managed to hold on to her job, despite a litany of failings within the force. 

THE findings by Ombudsman Peter Tyndal of systemic failings by Tusla are both revealing and shocking. Revealing because of his forensic examination of the practices of the child and family agency, and shocking because his report unearths a litany of mistakes and malpractices.

WHAT is the greatest human virtue of all? That is a question philosophers have argued about for thousands of years.

THE launch yesterday of the latest National Drugs Strategy represents the first serious attempt by an Irish government to take illegal drug use away from the criminal justice system and treat it as a health issue. It is also the first time that alcohol has been included as part of the strategy.

IF our membership of the European Union is to mean anything beyond free trade, cheaper flights, and enhanced consumer rights, perhaps it is time for the Irish government to seek a collective bloc response to the continued incarceration of Ibrahim Halawa, whose trial in Cairo has been postponed for the 27th time.

WHOEVER thought that science was boring might want to consider a serious survey dealing with one of the most pleasurable of human activities.

We have a tendency in this country to clap ourselves on the back when advances are made in ending discriminatory practices.