Ireland is at international crossroads and in the crosshairs for cyber attack

In the real world, our defences are adequate for about as long as we are lucky enough to be left alone, writes Gerard Howlin

Ships, being big, attract attention. The squall between Paul Kehoe, the minister of state responsible for defence and the Defence Forces for which he is politically responsible, is a totem for something else. The row was about whether naval vessels were docked because there wasn’t sufficient crew to man them, or, as the minister claims, they were there for necessary repairs.