CORK County Council is to be congratulated for yesterday securing convictions for illegal dumping.

The Health Service Executive report published yesterday might be summarised as much done with a lot left to do. Life expectancy in Ireland is at its highest level ever, but more could be done through education.

The postponement of the second English paper for Leaving Certificate examinations yesterday probably attracted more attention because of the moratorium on political coverage in the media.

TWENTY years ago today the Chinese authorities crushed a pro-democracy demonstration in Tiananmen Square. Hundreds, some say thousands, of demonstrators were either shot or crushed under tanks.

IF a drowning man clutches at a straw and it turns out to be a green shoot that will do much more than save his life what’s not to like?

OUTSTANDING food and drink bills hardly represent a threat to this democracy even if they are held in the Dáil restaurant.

THOUGH brought together by the coincidental timing of their deaths, Vincent O’Brien and Danny La Rue have more in common than is immediately apparent.

MOST of us are happy enough to accept that drug abuse is a growing problem, but at the same time we don’t pay it too much attention as it does not impinge on our lives.

THOUGH they are two years out of date, and certainly overly optimistic because of that, EU figures on the financial stability of 40% of Irish households should give us all pause for thought.

UNDER-ESTIMATING the difficulty of a situation seems to be our new national sport; denial has become the new black.