THE role played by foster carers in Irish society tends to be invisible even though more than 5,000 children depend on them. It’s a task that requires sensitivity and flexibility if a caring bond is to be forged successfully.

Senator Déirdre de Búrca’s resignation from the Green Party and Seanad Éireann yesterday sent shockwaves through Irish politics similar to those caused by the resignation of George Lee from Fine Gael and Dáil Éireann at the start of the week.

As is pointed out elsewhere on this page, sport played an important role for Irish immigrants in gaining social recognition and national respect in the United States, as well as helping to develop national self-esteem here during the early years of the last century.

SO, here it is; a huge leap into the unknown to try to rescue the economy of a fellow EU member state destroyed by overspending and tax evasion.

ENGINEERS IRELAND has made some practical and valuable suggestions about how we teach maths.

ORANIA, is a small, time-warp village in South Africa’s Northern Cape province; a small speck on the map in the scrubland edging the Karoo.

WE have all heard of the cases where dishonest bank officials recommend financial packages to elderly people that will make it impossible for the investors to access their funds for a number of years.

NOW that the short but tremendous excitement generated by Hurricane George begins to abate, it would probably be worthwhile to pick through the flotsam and jetsam to see if any good can come of the whole sorry, demeaning, revealing and angry affair.

SO, another raid on people posing as dissident republicans has shown them for what they really are. Drug dealers and common criminals capable of murdering their opponents.

THOUGH George Lee took the limelight for the most regrettable reasons yesterday the real losers were Enda Kenny, Fine Gael and our parliamentary democracy.