comment and analysis

This is my father and it's the first time we met
This is my father and it's the first time we met
We don't need more road safety laws, we need enforcement
We don't need more road safety laws, we need enforcement
Knee jerk responses with zero evidence base such as mandatory hi-vis will not fix our problems, writes Ciarán Cannon

Fri, 06 Feb, 2026

Is a shift towards for-profit care homes a fair deal for all?
Is a shift towards for-profit care homes a fair deal for all?
Nursing home models don't fully address fears about dementia and long-term care. As the population ages, the Government urgently needs to plan, writes Suzanne Cahill

Fri, 06 Feb, 2026

Learning is complex, messy, emotional: AI can’t replicate that
Learning is complex, messy, emotional: AI can’t replicate that
ChatGPT and other AI tools may seem irresistible. But educators should beware, as they could end up trading away the thing that gives them value — the rich experience of slow learning

Thu, 05 Feb, 2026

"Limitless With Chris Hemsworth" New York Premiere
Epstein files: Focus should be on his depravity and apparent immunity
All of these big important men who insist they had no idea — did they not have access to Google? asks Suzanne Harrington

Thu, 05 Feb, 2026

58th UNIFIL Battalion at Dublin Airport 1986
Ireland is buying defence capability, without confronting what that actually requires
Ireland’s defence culture prioritises reassurance over coercion — a model increasingly misaligned with Europe’s deteriorating security environment

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Melania Trump Movie
Marina Hyde: From Melania’s black carpet to ICE, Trump’s techlords may be getting buyer’s remorse
The no-shows at the first lady’s movie premiere suggest they may be counting the cost of their chumminess with the president

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Gareth O'Callaghan: Claire Byrne's new Newstalk show should have opened with Colm Meaney, not Micheál Martin
Gareth O'Callaghan: Claire Byrne's new Newstalk show should have opened with Colm Meaney, not Micheál Martin
Colm Meaney stole the show as the broadcaster masterfully mixed light and shade on her return 'home' after 15 years at RTÉ

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Middle East conflict
Enda Brady: Latest Mandelson revelations put Starmer's judgement in question
Fresh Epstein allegations expose arrogance, judgement failures and the risks Keir Starmer took by resurrecting Labour’s most controversial fixer

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

calculator with the word rent
Rent reform: Tenants and landlords alike are let down by new residential tenancies bill
Labour's housing spokesman says the the Residential Tenancies (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2026 will spook small landlords into leaving the market, while failing to protect tenants

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Ageing parents of children with disabilities 'run ragged full-time caring have to be lobbyists too’
Ageing parents of children with disabilities 'run ragged full-time caring have to be lobbyists too’
With nobody to represent them, people with intellectual disabilities may never leave for-profit emergency placements far from home, writes Cianan Brennan

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Oracle CEO Larry Ellison delivers a keyn
Why TikTok’s first week of American ownership was a disaster
App endured a major outage and user backlash over perceived censorship. Now it’s facing an inquiry by the California governor and an ascendant competitor, writes Blake Montgomery

Mon, 02 Feb, 2026

When Israel accepts 70,000 deaths in Gaza, the West’s moral failure is no longer deniable
When Israel accepts 70,000 deaths in Gaza, the West’s moral failure is no longer deniable
As deaths mount and aid is criminalised, Western governments respond with caution, procedure and silence instead of consequence

Mon, 02 Feb, 2026

Pope Leo XIV Holds Epiphany Mass and Jubilee Closing
Will Pope Leo speak truth to power to Donald Trump?
The Vatican's money problems mean Pope Leo’s freedom to act as an independent moral player on the world stage is compromised

Mon, 02 Feb, 2026

St. Brigid mural
St Brigid's Day should inspire real change to empower Irish women
Women are really good at celebrating and supporting each other - but it's no substitute for structural change and political will, writes Ingrid Seim

Sun, 01 Feb, 2026

David O'Mahony: Children's book shows it's good to get out of your comfort zone
David O'Mahony: Children's book shows it's good to get out of your comfort zone
Most of my work has ghosts, ghouls, supernatural entities, or occasionally some sort of fantasy realm. However, I wrote something completely different for an audience of one, my seven-year-old daughter. Now it's going to be read to her class, writes David O'Mahony

Sat, 31 Jan, 2026

The Mick Clifford Podcast: Major questions remain following Limerick garda trial  
The Mick Clifford Podcast: Major questions remain following Limerick garda trial  
In this week’s podcast, Mick swaps chairs and is interviewed by Deirdre O’Shaughnessy

 Listen | Fri, 30 Jan, 2026

 Listen |
Courts need to presume counselling notes will not be disclosed in sexual violence trials
Courts need to presume counselling notes will not be disclosed in sexual violence trials
We have spent decades trying to retrofit an adversarial system designed for property disputes to accommodate the reality of gendered sexualised violence, writes Dr Cliona Saidléar of Rape Crisis Ireland 

Fri, 30 Jan, 2026

Women hold up our national identity — but at what cost?
Women hold up our national identity — but at what cost?
Putting ourselves out for other people is what being Irish is all about, I found myself telling an English friend. If 'communalism' is what makes Ireland, who's doing it, asks Belinda Vigors 

Fri, 30 Jan, 2026

Department of Treasury
Europe's best tools for countering Trump
Assigning a small amount of risk to US government bonds would be a meaningful, targeted way to hit Trump where it hurts, writes Daniel Gros, director of the Institute for European Policymaking at Bocconi University

Thu, 29 Jan, 2026

The Inauguration Of Donald J. Trump As The 47th President
Why a gradual move away from US tech is a good idea
For a small business in Cork or a family in Galway, digital sovereignty means not waking up one day to find that your email, documents, or photos are suddenly inaccessible because a foreign leader threatened tariffs or a sanctions list changed overnight, writes Brian Honan

Thu, 29 Jan, 2026

Medieval fortified city of Carcassonne, France
Timoleague and Quin abbeys could be Ireland's Carcassonne
Cork and Clare abbeys are among Ireland's many crumbling monasteries and friaries. We should take our lead from a 19th century French architect who restored Carcassonne — or emulate our own restoration of Holycross in Tipperary

Wed, 28 Jan, 2026

India Russia Putin
Will Trump expose Europe's hypocrisy?
It seems unclear if Europe will put pressure on the rest of the world to ‘take a moral stand’ and cut off their trading ties with the US, asks Krishna Vadlamannati

Wed, 28 Jan, 2026

Enoch Burke's case highlights Ireland's problem with reincarceration
Enoch Burke's case highlights Ireland's problem with reincarceration
Enoch Burke’s repeated jailing prompts a wider reckoning on reincarceration, mental health, and whether punishment alone ever truly works

Tue, 27 Jan, 2026

Mick Clifford: Limerick garda trial should never have happened 
Mick Clifford: Limerick garda trial should never have happened 
All five defendants in the Limerick garda trial have been cleared of all charges. As Mick Clifford has been pointing out since 2020, questions remain over the ordeal they were put through

Tue, 27 Jan, 2026

Modern Scales of Justice: Digital Icon for Legal Concepts.
Digital wallet plan is a dangerous infringement on privacy
Mandating the use of a State-run digital identity as a pre-condition for holding or using a social media account would represent a profound expansion of government control, write Olga Cronin and Kris Shrishak of ICCL

Tue, 27 Jan, 2026

Trump
The global rule of law is not collapsing — Trump is the lone problem and he can be defeated
The president’s approval ratings are plummeting and most Americans see him as an aberration. It is now up to them to curtail his despotic reign, writes Simon Tisdall 

Tue, 27 Jan, 2026

Value, not sustainability, is driving the second-hand fashion boom
Value, not sustainability, is driving the second-hand fashion boom
Economic pressures and value-driven consumption are core to the second-hand surge, writes sustainability strategist Pat Kane

Mon, 26 Jan, 2026

Niamh Ní Hoireabhaird: How much is my life worth to the HSE?
Niamh Ní Hoireabhaird: How much is my life worth to the HSE?
'I’ve lost a lot of my fine motor skills, my eyesight is getting fuzzier, and my speech is slurring a lot more. I would give anything for this drug'

Mon, 26 Jan, 2026

Finland joining NATA Europe Membership Pursue, War, Conflict, Russia, Nuclear Weapons
From guarantee to risk: how Trump has changed Europe’s relationship with Nato
As Trump unsettles alliances, Europe and Ireland face the implications of a world where Nato no longer feels permanent

Sat, 24 Jan, 2026

Switzerland Davos
Shona Murray: Trump did the EU a favour by calling off Greenland threat
The EU was let off the hook this week. But, despite Gavin Newsom's warning to unite or be ‘devoured’ by Trump, there was no consensus on a way to face down the threat

Sat, 24 Jan, 2026

Sanctuary cities, ICE and federal power: what the Minneapolis shootings reveal about the US
Sanctuary cities, ICE and federal power: what the Minneapolis shootings reveal about the US
The Minneapolis shootings reveal why sanctuary cities have become one of the most volatile battlegrounds in American public life

Sat, 24 Jan, 2026

Taoiseach visit to the US
Trump’s Greenland threat exposes a new era of American empire-building
Trump’s renewed threats reveal a shift from capitalism to mercantilist power politics — and Europe is dangerously unprepared

Fri, 23 Jan, 2026

Jim Clarken: World's super rich are shaping society
Jim Clarken: World's super rich are shaping society
Wealth tax would help with social solidarity, guard against extremism, and shore up public finances

Fri, 23 Jan, 2026

Patrick Holloway: Aurora borealis brought magic to an ordinary night
Patrick Holloway: Aurora borealis brought magic to an ordinary night
Witnessing the marvel brought me beyond my garden, and back to a place where magic exists, where other worlds and parallels are not fantasy

Fri, 23 Jan, 2026

The Mick Clifford Podcast: How Ozempic changed weight loss — and what comes next
The Mick Clifford Podcast: How Ozempic changed weight loss — and what comes next
A new book explores Ozempic’s unexpected rise, its societal impact, and what the weight-loss drug means for the future

 Listen | Thu, 22 Jan, 2026

 Listen |
Heated Rivalry wasn’t just TV — it mirrored the hidden reality of being gay in Irish sport
Heated Rivalry wasn’t just TV — it mirrored the hidden reality of being gay in Irish sport
Former GAA player Kevin Penrose reflects on identity, silence and why LGBTQ+ representation in sport still deeply matters.

Thu, 22 Jan, 2026

Woman Reading Bad News on Smartphone, Feeling Worried and Anxious
Why people believe misinformation even when they are told the facts
Factchecking is seen as a go-to method for tackling the spread of false information, but it often fails when used in isolation. Research suggests that misinformation is not just a content problem, but an emotional and structural one, writes Kelly Fincham

Thu, 22 Jan, 2026

Robert Reich: Davos is a chance for JPMorgan Chase CEO to help world leaders stand up to Trump
Robert Reich: Davos is a chance for JPMorgan Chase CEO to help world leaders stand up to Trump
Trump is determined to bully others into submission through tariff and legal threats — will JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon stand up to him?

Thu, 22 Jan, 2026

Schoolgirl (11-13) in science class, smiling, portrait (focus on girl)
Girls are missing from crucial Stem areas such as AI, and it shows
By the age of 12 many girls are already excluded from the subjects that will allow them to thrive in our Stem-driven FDI economy

Wed, 21 Jan, 2026

The strange comfort of watching the Beckhams fall apart
The strange comfort of watching the Beckhams fall apart
Brooklyn Beckham’s public split from his famous parents offers uncomfortable insight into celebrity families, control, and generational resentment

Tue, 20 Jan, 2026

Film allows us to listen to Hind Rajab, who speaks for all Gaza's dead children
Film allows us to listen to Hind Rajab, who speaks for all Gaza's dead children
The Voice of Hind Rajab is a disturbing, deeply moving film. Through a simple phone call, the film lays bare the horror of war for children and ordinary families, and we must heed Hind’s voice and we must not be silent in the face of inhumanity

Tue, 20 Jan, 2026

Tasers are a bad idea for quelling riots. Here's why
Tasers are a bad idea for quelling riots. Here's why
The idea that tasers would be used during a riot fundamentally misunderstands both the dynamics of civil unrest and the function of tasers, writes Illan Wall 

Tue, 20 Jan, 2026

Russia baptism anniversary Divine Lutirgy. Patriarch Kirill in festive uniform
The Ukraine war has given rise to an ‘exorcism economy’ in Russia
The Russian Orthodox Church’s appointment of Vladimir Putin as 'chief exorcist' in 2022 could also help explain why some Russians have been drawn into a fight with their inner demons

Tue, 20 Jan, 2026

Outsourcing Ireland's defence carries immediate strategic costs
Outsourcing Ireland's defence carries immediate strategic costs
If we don't exercise our sovereignty in practice, it becomes entirely theoretical — we must defend ourselves

Tue, 20 Jan, 2026

Donald Trump
Will Trump win Greenland with his tariff threats against Europe?
The US wants to take over Greenland as a forward base, so we should be wary of false flags that may arise in this context, writes Shannon Brincat

Tue, 20 Jan, 2026

Marion McKeone: Trump’s tilt at Greenland is a challenge for all of Europe
Marion McKeone: Trump’s tilt at Greenland is a challenge for all of Europe
Threatened takeover comes at the bidding of billionaires and amid a power struggle within the White House: The EU’s best bet may be to appeal to the good sense of US Republican politicians

Mon, 19 Jan, 2026

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