The Irish election returned five TDs for the United Left Alliance, with 2.8 per cent of the first preference votes. But this victory for the Left is only part of a bigger picture of political…
Tagged By General Election 2011
Fianna Fáil and the 2011 Election
I’m working on an article for The Citizen at the moment, on the general theme of ‘Is Fianna Fáil Dead?’ It’s more of a reflective piece on the development of the party since its inception…
Democracy
Democracy The day after they won the election I cleaned out my Nationwide account, Filled my satchel at an unfinished estate With palm-sized and weighted rocks And went looking for the chanting crowds. Kevin O’Shea,…
¿What Colour is Your Parasite?
¿Why Does My Home Smell All Fishy? There is a very wily, clever, cunning word-play, probly invented by The Jews, according to which it is argued that Jesus Christ was NOT a Christian. ¡Sí! ¿How…
The Irish Election 2011 – A success for the Left
Whatever happens in the coming weeks in terms of forming a coalition government, this election represents a great leap forward for the Irish Left. That’s not how the media here sees it – naturally –…
Flying With Pigs
When I re-tweeted Labour Councillor Cian O’Callaghan’s news statement calling on Labour not to enter coalition with Fine Gael, Brendan Ogle suggested such an eventuality was akin to pigs flying. Maybe so. But then humans…
A Progressive Oppostion
It looks likely that there will be 14 Sinn Féin and up to 10 progressive left deputies in the incoming Dáil. These 24 progressive left representatives need to eclipse Fianna Fail as the opposition to…
Election Daze
Okay, it’s finally here. So let’s talk briefly about outcomes. The issue of coalition is problematic. It’s true that if, for example, the Labour Party went into government with Fine Gael then that might ameliorate…
Who Needs International Rescue?!
Is End O’Kenny. Our Very Own Tracey Ireland!! Do you remember growing up the very amazing clever animated television program show The Thrunderbirds Are Go!? No. Me neither. I am too old. In Spain, when…
Fine Gael – The Videogame
I have been playing Fine Gael’s videogame entitled ‘Go Ireland – The Videogame‘, and I think that we can glean an awful lot about the party from it. Let me, really briefly, explain some of…
Make Their Mark: Equality & Rights Alliance Poll of the Party Manifestos
How will the political parties Make Their Mark for the Equality and Human Rights Infrastructure? Here is ERA’s poll of the manifestos. A more in-depth analysis is available here (PDF). Only three of the five…
The single transferable vote – Irish style
The single transferable vote, which is the form of proportional representation we adhere to in oder to elect our politicians, is a sensible and effective means of democracy. Or is it? The argument is that…
Has the Left missed another opportunity to address the questions of equality and social justice in Ireland?
There is no doubt that the current crisis in Ireland, and internationally, has major implications not just for the economy but socially and politically as well. However, in Ireland at least, there are no signs…
Don’t Believe the Jobs Hype: Fine Gael Will Increase Unemployment
One of the defining characteristics of the 2011 general election is the championing of “competence” over incompetence. Foolish decisions made by politicians, both during the our relatively short lived ‘boom’, and since the collapse in…
Sins of the Father
Dublin Opinion
- Tax Avoidance : Fly-Tipping with Suits June 19, 2013[…]Conor McCabe
- Let’s make tax avoidance history… June 18, 2013[…]Conor McCabe
- Sad Putin at the G8… June 18, 2013[…]Conor McCabe
- The Gathering : Enniskillen-Style June 18, 2013[…]Conor McCabe
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