“So how do you explain that in a country frequently ranked as one of the richest in the world, public squalor dominates our public realm, infrastructure and services?” @judesherry.bsky.social & my thoughts in todays The Journal #DerelictIreland #RestPlayWork #PublicLuxury #SpeirGhorm

Delighted to read and talk about poetry at the inaugural Greystones Book Festival. Do join us - Sunday 9th August, 1pm Greystones Rugby Club Tickets €7.50

"A judicial review is any case taken against any public body that may have broken the law — it's the separation of powers working as intended". Thanks to @cathalmalone.bsky.social for writing this for us www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...

Judicial reviews are a fundamental part of democracy — not a dig at the Government by greedy lawyers

A judicial review is any case taken against any public body that may have broken the law — it's the separation of powers working as intended, writes Cathal Malone

irishexaminer.com

Really begs the question how much he has donated to 'Progress Ireland' to push his deregulation agenda doesn't it? Calls for wealth taxes on the super-rich are growing across the world and People Before Profit will renew our call for a tax on multi-millionaires in Budget 2027.

Irish entrepreneur Patrick Collison donated $7m to group opposing California wealth tax

Building a Better California opposes proposal that would require California’s billionaire residents to pay a one-off tax on their assets

irishtimes.com

"Closing the book on the financial crisis" is not only reductive, but blatantly false. We're living with housing crisis and infrastructural deficits because the Irish upper crust wouldn't punish the people responsible or tax the people that could bear it. #spéirghorm #ireland archive.vn/PBg8f

Is this a good time to mention that in college my History of Translation lecturer (Michael Cronin) told us that one of the first vernacular translations of The Illiad was into Irish, and the translator had to give the main characters dogs because in Gaelic society a free man had a dog

📣 Time To Write, now open for bookings! A free monthly gathering for playwrights and performance makers working on a writing project, Time To Write returns on August 10 with guest playwright Emmet Kirwan. ✍️Book your free spot now: https://www.abbeytheatre.ie/whats-on/time-to-write/

It is straight from the authoritarian playbook. "NGOs and courts shouldn't be able to get involved, we're elected, we represent The Will Of The People." Can they hear themselves, like.

John Gibbons 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇪🇺@thinkorswim.bsky.social · 2w ago

Astonishing attack on civil society and environmental justice by a government lacking either vision or basic competence. www.thejournal.ie/jack-chamber...

What's a Futurama line that lives forever in your head? Mine is, "Oh, a lesson in not changing history from Mr. I'm My Own Grandpa."

Anyone making this argument should be asked to explain how the increased load of 25,000 public servants going back to full time commutes to central Dublin will be absorbed by the public transport system.

The Irish Times@irishtimes.com · 3w ago

Gerard Howlin: Scaling back remote working should be on the agenda as payback for public sector pay rises

Scholars and writers gathered in Galway last month to explore how the lived realities as well as artistic and media portrayals of the Irish working class have shaped and been shaped by the socioeconomic and cultural dimensions of globalization. 👉 Read a recap: irishstudies.nd.edu/news/global-...

While The Irish Times marketed itself under the tagline "the story of why", they are doing their bit again of not giving context why someone like Government advisor Sean O’Driscoll might be against environmental legislation, so here's this article again: irishcycle.com/2026/01/17/w...

Who is Sean O’Driscoll? And why does the Government and media keep treating him as an infrastructure expert?

Comment & Analysis Long Read: Sean O’Driscoll is a member of the Government’s Accelerating Infrastructure Taskforce, which has a direct role in feeding into policy, and making the lead story on…

irishcycle.com

The public is invited to this free symposium on 11-12 June at @uniofgalway.bsky.social. It aims to expand understandings of class in Ireland and bring local conditions into dialogue with global issues and international contexts. 👉 Register and see details here: go.nd.edu/irish-working-class

Myself, Fran Lock, Lisa McCinerney, & Scott McKendry will take part in a writers round table as part of this symposium. It takes place next Friday, June 12th at 4PM in Galway. You can register for tickets at the link below.

Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies@ndirishstudies.bsky.social · 3mo ago

The public is invited to this free symposium on 11-12 June at @uniofgalway.bsky.social. It aims to expand understandings of class in Ireland and bring local conditions into dialogue with global issues and international contexts. 👉 Register and see details here: go.nd.edu/irish-working-class

At long last, the cover launch of my debut novel PRESTIGE DRAMA is here! It's a funny, angry book about Derry, history, memory and Troubles-scented television. I think it's quite good, however I can *confirm* that it's quite short. And you can pre-order it everywhere NOW: geni.us/Prestige_Drama

A new film documents Dubliners’ resistance to subordination of social life to profit. “The market is a monster,” says filmmaker James Redmond. “It turns living spaces into dead space.”

New film documents Dubliners’ resistance to subordination of social life to profit

“The market is a monster,” says filmmaker James Redmond. “It turns living spaces into dead space.”

dublininquirer.com

little-flying-robots.ghost.io/rejecting-re... We live in an age where the Internet and LLMs are encouraging ever more people to reject reality entirely. Here's my thoughts on why this is happening, and why the Terminally Online turn amongst the powerful is so dangerous.

Rejecting Reality in the Age of AI

The Internet and AI are encouraging more and more people to deny reality itself. Here's why that's bad.

little-flying-robots.ghost.io

“5 year legal odyssey came to end in High Court with a couple vindicated in full in their battle over mobile phone mast In sticking to their guns, they did the State & fellow citizens an enormous service-one likely not appreciated” @ciananbrennan.bsky.social www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...

Kilkenny couple did the public an enormous service in bringing State to heel over phone mast decision

Kilkenny couple Peter and Doreen Thomson have also shown that, in the Government’s current attempts to stifle access to review of questionable decisions made by State actors, we are heading down a ver...

irishexaminer.com

The real question is not "Why is Bluesky so left-coded," the real question is "Why can't the right exist in a social media environment without algorithmic assistance, where people can ignore them"

“Apartment Vat cut makes no sense and won’t boost housing supply” “A Vat cut meant to boost apartment construction has instead exposed a circular, ineffective policy that neither lowers costs nor increases supply” @mickcliff.bsky.social www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...

Mick Clifford: Apartment Vat cut makes no sense and won’t boost housing supply

A Vat cut meant to boost apartment construction has instead exposed a circular, ineffective policy that neither lowers costs nor increases supply

irishexaminer.com

16,766 without a home This is f*cking scandalous A result of shameful government policy with empty homes everywhere Me & @judesherry.bsky.social updated the numbers on our dereliction billboard yesterday with music by Meryl Streek Lower John St, Cork City #DerelictIreland #HousingCrisis #SpeirGorm

“I do fear that if attempts are made to cut back on rights of participation and to cut back on the right of access to the courts, people will still find a way and it might well be a way that’s going to be a lot more difficult to control.” - Prof Áine Ryall #Law www.irishtimes.com/environment/...

Plan to raise cost of judicial reviews could lead to people representing themselves in court

Law professor warns move could leave courts even more congested

irishtimes.com

buying a farm that straddles the cavan-fermanagh county border to run contreband intermezzos into the occupied 6

James Kelleher@jameskelleher.pilcrow.ie · 8mo ago

Sweating at Heathrow border control because I’ve swallowed 15 copies of uncut Intermezzo

So this is a thing you'll see a lot about immigration. The process is incredibly slow, the systems are overworked. If you have applied you will overstay before your decision is made. The system is designed such that you will be breaking the law, by their own design. This is arguably on purpose.

@jonathan-z74.bsky.social · 8mo ago

They overstayed their visas. That's not remotely a legal way.

Sweating at Heathrow border control because I’ve swallowed 15 copies of uncut Intermezzo

Sally Rooney's books may be pulled off UK shelves due to her support for Palestine Action group

The author said it was “unclear” whether any UK company can make payments to her.

thejournal.ie

i know WHY this is but that just makes it even more of a kick in the pants lmao

Despite a 16% jump in nitrates levels in Irish rivers in the last year alone, it's looking like the derogation (special dispensation to pollute more) will *still* be extended by another 3 years. Help farmers financially if needs be, but killing our rivers is just WRONG. share.google/EpaRcLKnsnPZ...

Nitrates derogation could be extended by three years after proposal backed by European Commission

Too much nitrogen in a river can lead to an over-growth of algae, which causes damage to, and can even kill, wildlife and plants.

share.google

🏗️ Ireland’s fire safety standards for apartments we need to talk about de-regulation & safety of future apartment residents (🧵 below was originally posted on 29 Feb 2020 )

Wake up call and reality check for all concerned with delivery of decent #housing, and positive societal outcomes from #planning Lorcan Sirr talkimg sense, stats and evidence, incl on scapegoating #JR #JudicialReview www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2025...

Lorcan Sirr: Judicial reviews are not the problem – and deregulation is no answer

We have seen before how cutting ‘red tape’ leads to disaster, especially in planning and housing

irishtimes.com

Today's transport plan delivers a stark message to commuters. Expect more years stuck in traffic with no viable public transport alternatives. Read our response here 👇 greenparty.ie/news/act-nat... @feljin.ie @rodericogorman.bsky.social

“An act of national self-sabotage” - Government transport plan fails commuters and climate, say Greens | Green Party

“An act of national self-sabotage” - Government transport plan fails commuters and climate, say Greens

greenparty.ie

Feljin Jose@feljin.ie · 9mo ago

Four months after it was promised, we finally have the government's transport investment plan between now and 2030. It's bad. Roads are in, public transport is out. A lot of public transport projects being put on the long-finger to make funding available for new roads.