BRAVE, visionary, radical, decisive, possibly a stroke of genius, very welcome and a masterstroke were some of the enthusiastic endorsements that greeted the Government’s commitment to underpin Irish banks.

THE farmers’ protests over the publication of EU payments were not necessary after all.

The United States Congress balked at a rescue package worth $700 billion (€485bn) on Monday, because of the implications of providing government support for bad private investments. The Irish Government, on the other hand, effectively drew up a guarantee for the banks of €400bn, or $570bn.

TWO new pieces of research, one Irish and one British, remind us of how powerful and insidious a drug alcohol is and how it can so easily become a damaging part of our lives.

AS our newspapers confirm on a daily basis gun crime has risen sharply over the past five years. There has been a startling 50% increase in the number of shootings between 2003 and 2007.

IT IS not an exaggeration to say that the section of today’s cabinet meeting dedicated to preparing next month’s budget will be just a small step in a process more challenging than anything faced by any Irish politician in the past half a century.

BRANDO, Wayne, Peck and McQueen had it, Streep Binoche and Hackman have it. Paul Newman had it in spades.

THE Government has to cut back on spending. Inevitably, there will be complaints about the programmes being cut.

The first online survey of opinions of visitors to Ireland provides some interesting insights into the state of the tourist industry in this country.

For the first time since 1983, the Irish economy is in recession, according to the latest figures published by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).