Deal struck at national pay talks
The new national wage agreement provides for a pay increase of 6% for all workers to be paid over 21 months.

The Education Minister explains further… ” University Blog
Ferdinand von Prondzynski, President of DCU suspects that Education Minister Batt O'Keefe's comments about third level fees on Monday, that taxpayers should see value for money and resources should be directed to undergraduate study, is really suggesting that 'the government may claw back the money raised from fees'. [...]

Courage to say No to vested interests is vital for economy - The Irish Times - Tue, Sep 16, 2008
Alan Ahern claims he said this to the Fianna Fail think-in in Galway yesterday: "any scheme that involves a State subsidy to homebuyers would hinder the adjustment process and prolong the pain. Incentives to homebuyers should [...]

Blog from Bolivia
At least twenty-five people are dead as the result of political violence. It is unclear if the nation will be able to steer clear of open civil war. The Bolivian and U.S. governments have taken turns kicking one another's ambassadors out of the country. The Presidents of virtually every nation in South America [...]

Active Role for Palin’s Husband in Alaska Government - NYTimes.com
Mr Sarah Palin: professional snow machine racer, Salmon fisherman, part-time oil production operator and the power behind the Governership of Alaska?
"Ms. Leighow said Mr. Palin was not scheduled as a participant in meetings with staff or lawmakers but that it was possible, though “unusual,” that [...]

Saturday Night Live - Palin / Hillary Open
Tina Fey looks a lot of like Sarah Palin, apparently.

Gary Younge: Barack is playing the incognegro, but it is not a risk-free strategy
While American society remains ‘racist’, the population at large is less so than it has been in the last 40 years. Yet as the experiences of previous Black candidates for elections in the US have shown, white voters who say they support [...]

Fun With Cognitive Dissonance (BoRev.Net)
A fact-based post on why Evo Morales may have wanted to boot out their US ambassador.

The dominatrix | Salon
Republican strategists have made it clear that the GOP's only chance to win is by reframing the election as a battle of images. And right now, Palin is the pinup queen in that war. She's feisty, she's a mom, she's from a frontier state, she guns down wolves from the air, she's [...]

Gimme Some Truth
Flying Rodent cuts through the crap of the US election with a blunt buzz-saw and broken bottle, and slashes through the myths:
"One minute it's a shoe-in for silver-tongued bullshitter Barack Obama, and the next thing you know the McCain campaign has dug up some fruity wingnut Supernanny with a talent for sucking off [...]