After that opening round Newtownshandrum heartbreaker a few short weeks ago, Killeagh were in no mood to squander a second Cork SHC chance in Castlemartyr on Saturday.

IT was so inspiring to see Jedward, direct from the Eurovision noise competition, carry the Olympic torch through the streets of Dublin.

The silencing of Father Tony Flannery highlights one of the central self-imposed difficulties in the Catholic Church today; I refer to the way it has become identified with the exclusion of women from other than trivial or subservient roles in its ministry.

When Philip O’Neill tells us that ‘we are condemned to be hapless victims of a political class’ and that ‘we have had enough of it’, he is just complaining about the human being’s tendency to be corrupted by power (Letters, Apr 5).

Regarding Lou Gogan’s letter (Apr 2), it is salutary to see how politics has always tended to attract people who are hell-bent on milking the State and who, too readily, succumb to dodgy deals aimed at improving their lot at the expense of the citizens.

The recent exchanges in your paper about the possibility of making Irish optional for the Leaving Certificate raise many serious questions about the point and purpose of it being compulsory.

Ide O’Neill’s remarks (Letters, Jan 21) on the possible demise of guidance and counselling in second-level schools raise some critical issues.

FLORENCE Craven’s remarks (Letters, Jan 12) are a timely reminder that all is not well in the world of university teaching.

THE way our economy is being managed through savage unfair cuts in provision, with more to come, leaves a strong sense that the country experiences not government by the people for the people, but government by the government for the government.

PHILIP O’Neill (Letters, Jan 5) makes a number of valid points in his comments on atheism/theism.

WE should all be grateful to those atheists who have recently been contributing to your columns.

THE news of Ireland’s further depressed economy is a reminder that the recession is not just for Christmas but probably for life.

AN abiding theme of recent letters to The Irish Examiner is the helplessness experienced by the Irish people to take effective action to redress the Government’s brazen funnelling of the nation’s wealth into the pockets of those who already have too much.

READING your recent item on Ryanair’s success in eliminating its debt convinces me that Michael O’Leary should be offered the post of finance minister.

ONE can only hope that the Dame Street protest in Dublin is just the beginning of a radical confrontation of our country’s continued drift into mindless materialism where the rich prosper at the expense of the unemployed and the forgotten poor.

ANOTHER stirring Newtownshandrum victory at balmy Fermoy on Saturday, simply business a usual, as the Avondhu kingpins eased past Killeagh to book a place in the next round of the Cork SHC.

I WAS deeply distressed to read your report on the Council of Europe’s findings on prison conditions in Ireland.

THE greatest damage done to Ireland by our leaders has been the death of shame and trust. The financial bankruptcy of our country has been matched by the moral bankruptcy of those we trusted to lead us.

IT was a real breath of fresh air to read your editorial on rebuilding Ireland (October 2).

CONTRARY to Philip O’Neill’s contention, (Letters, September 28), Jennifer Sleeman’s call for a boycott of the mass required no courage for the obvious reason there was no danger involved.

I FEEL humbled by the courage of Jennifer Sleeman in her attempt to break down the irrational barriers to the inclusion of women in the ministry of the Catholic Church other than in roles where they are subservient to men.

THE deep divisions among clergy in the archdiocese over the fallout from the Murphy report are a distraction from what really matters for the future of the church.

LAST year’s winner Craig Murphy did not compete but Douglas CS kept the senior boys’ individual title thanks to an impressive performance from Richard Quirke at the South Munster Schools cross-country championships hosted by Midleton CBS yesterday.

THERE were few complaints from Cork students after yesterday’s first instalment of Irish in both State examinations.

AN east Cork school produced another generation of young entrepreneurs yesterday.

Bus services across Northern Ireland will be halted on Friday when drivers go on strike, it was confirmed tonight.