Wednesday, Feb 22nd 2012
Finally, some good ol’ fashioned common sense is being spoken - and in the Irish Times, as well. Prionsias Breathnach of NUI Maynooth takes on calls for wage cuts head on. He does this through this time-tested process of looking up the facts. In these days, that’s almost a revolutionary act. He elaborates three reasons why calls for wage [...]
Last weekend, the Sunday Times published an article by Brenda Power entitled: TD’s funeral shamed him about the recent funeral of Independent TD, Tony Gregory. The article has forced me to put together a few words in response, because it demonstrates that in fact her words shamed her.
Op-Ed Columnist - Paul Krugman Blog - NYTimes.com
Krugman on Spain’s economic crisis and the problem that arises out of not being able to devalue: “So what can Spain do? It needs to become more competitive — but it can’t have a devaluation, because it’s a euro country. So the only alternative is wage cuts, which [...]
Israel admits troops may have used phosphorus shells in Gaza | World news | guardian.co.uk
According to [Israeli] army sources the brigade fired up to 20 phosphorus shells in a heavily built-up area around the Gaza township of Beit Lahiya, one of the worst hit areas of Gaza.
ei: Audio: Abunimah, Finkelstein, Mearsheimer discuss Israel’s attacks on Gaza
A highly informative panel discussion featuring Ali Abunimah, Norman Finkelstein and John J Mearsheimer. It was recorded on Jan 8th at the University of Chicago and the contributors discuss the reasons and ramifications of the recent attacks on Gaza and the larger Palestinian-Israeli conflict. In it [...]
FT.com | Willem Buiter’s Maverecon | Can the UK government stop the UK banking system going down the snyrting without risking a sovereign debt crisis?
This point has relevence to the Irish decision to guarantee all 6 Irish banks: “The decision not to guarantee the liabilities or the assets of the banks (other than retail deposits, [...]
Enough is enough. Nationalise the banks. Nationalise them now. A midnight strike. Put us and the economy out of our miseries. And start the long road back, if not to recovery, then at least to the starting point where recovery begins.
The opposition parties should have a field day in the debate over the Anglo-Irish natinalisation [...]
The American Conservative — Another War, Another Defeat
John Mearsheimer, author of The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, on the motives behind Israel’s mobilisation in Gaza. He correctly observes that Israel is locking itself into a millenarian-tinged ‘eternal war’, confident it can ride the wave of international condemnation and a surge in Palestinian support for [...]
My oh my. My assertion that Ireland is a low-waged economy and that public sector wage cuts will have little impact has generated a lot of comments, some of them challenging my contention and the use of statistics. I had intended to do a piece today on Sean Fitzpatrick’s legacy to our economy but as [...]
Gilbert Achcar lived in Lebanon for many years. He is now Professor at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. He is the author of many books analysing politics and society in the Middle East from a Left perspective, including The Clash of Barbarisms, Eastern Cauldron, The 33-Day War and Perilous Power [...]
