Upcoming Events

National | Miscellaneous

no events match your query!

New Events

National

no events posted in last week

Blog Feeds

Anti-Empire

Anti-Empire

offsite link North Korea Increases Aid to Russia, Mos... Tue Nov 19, 2024 12:29 | Marko Marjanovi?

offsite link Trump Assembles a War Cabinet Sat Nov 16, 2024 10:29 | Marko Marjanovi?

offsite link Slavgrinder Ramps Up Into Overdrive Tue Nov 12, 2024 10:29 | Marko Marjanovi?

offsite link ?Existential? Culling to Continue on Com... Mon Nov 11, 2024 10:28 | Marko Marjanovi?

offsite link US to Deploy Military Contractors to Ukr... Sun Nov 10, 2024 02:37 | Field Empty

Anti-Empire >>

Human Rights in Ireland
Promoting Human Rights in Ireland

Human Rights in Ireland >>

Lockdown Skeptics

The Daily Sceptic

offsite link The Establishment Figures Involved in Trying to Suppress the Story of Britain?s Rape Gangs Mon Jan 13, 2025 07:00 | Laurie Wastell
Twenty one years ago, Channel 4 pulled a documentary about Asian rape gangs in Bradford after coming under pressure from an 'anti-racist' group that included several senior members of the British establishment.
The post The Establishment Figures Involved in Trying to Suppress the Story of Britain?s Rape Gangs appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link News Round-Up Mon Jan 13, 2025 01:14 | Richard Eldred
A summary of the most interesting stories in the past 24 hours that challenge the prevailing orthodoxy about the ?climate emergency?, public health ?crises? and the supposed moral defects of Western civilisation.
The post News Round-Up appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link ?It?s -3?C but I Can?t Afford to Put the Heating on Because of Rachel Reeves? Sun Jan 12, 2025 19:00 | Richard Eldred
Meet 72 year-old retired teacher Lynn Emm, who, because of Rachel Reeves, is now forced to choose between warmth and survival, heating her home for only two hours a day while struggling to make ends meet.
The post ?It?s -3?C but I Can?t Afford to Put the Heating on Because of Rachel Reeves? appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link ?Islamophobia? and the Grooming Gangs Scandal Sun Jan 12, 2025 17:00 | Richard Eldred
The APPG's dangerously vague definition of Islamophobia is smothering free speech and silencing critical discussions on grooming gangs, warns Freddie Attenborough in the Spectator.
The post ?Islamophobia? and the Grooming Gangs Scandal appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

offsite link How Wokeism Is Destroying the West Sun Jan 12, 2025 15:00 | Sallust
Sallust draws eerie parallels between the decline of the Roman Empire and the current state of Western civilisation.
The post How Wokeism Is Destroying the West appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.

Lockdown Skeptics >>

Voltaire Network
Voltaire, international edition

offsite link Voltaire, International Newsletter N?114-115 Fri Jan 10, 2025 14:04 | en

offsite link End of Russian gas transit via Ukraine to the EU Fri Jan 10, 2025 13:45 | en

offsite link After Iraq, Libya, Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, the Pentagon attacks Yemen, by Thier... Tue Jan 07, 2025 06:58 | en

offsite link Voltaire, International Newsletter N?113 Fri Dec 20, 2024 10:42 | en

offsite link Pentagon could create a second Kurdish state Fri Dec 20, 2024 10:31 | en

Voltaire Network >>

Dramatic Reduction in Irish Working Hours Announced

category national | miscellaneous | opinion/analysis author Thursday October 23, 2003 23:12author by random input Report this post to the editors

That's right ladies and gents, our overworked elected leaders have finally given the Irish working class what they have long wanted, further reduced working hours...

Well, its true except for the bit about the Irish working class. What really happened was that today, by a majority of 55 to 47 (only one PD bothered to turn up for the vote), Dail Eireann voted to give itself another week's holidays - next week! Yes indeed, our already overworked government have decided that after only four weeks back in parliament, they deserve another break - just weeks before they take their five week Christmas holliers. Uncomfirmed reports suggest that the decision was taken as Ministers are quite dizzy after a month of 'spinning like mad'.

It cannot be denied that our TDs bear a heavy workload these days, what with all those shopping centres and new pubs to open, as well as trying to steer clear of both rush-hour traffic, pedestrians and tribunals.

So while that tax-paying spongers who refuse to pay the bin tax are in jail, their taxes are being used to fund another Dail holiday. I'm sure everyone can see the justice in that.

Mary Harney addressed a concern that has been on the lips of the whole nation today - namely that TDs do not get to spend enough time with their families. She remarked: "TDs were looking forward to spending time with their children, who would be off school next week." Yes indeed, now that the schools are out, TDs can obvioulsy not afford the childcare that the rest of double-income working families must pay for during the school holidays. Of course, it would be economically unwise for all Irish workers to follow their lead in an attempt to spend more time with their children.

One wonders what this will mean for Joe Higgins. Surely the Dail was providing a much meeded diversion from breaking the law. The boredom of the next week may well see him getting up to more mischief and landing himself back behind bars (seriously Joe -and the rest of the bin taxers!- fair play!)

In other news, Clare Daly is looking like becoming a shoe-in in the next Dublin North election (or by-election) given today's "revelations" about the activities of one G.V(ery, very drunk) Wright. I use inverted commas because everyone already knew he was corrupt as fuck!

Oh, and more Job Losses - September 2003 figures up 61% from this time last year. Ms Harney however remained optimistic, saying the "upturn in the global economy" would help out. What upturn?

author by Shannonpublication date Fri Oct 24, 2003 02:14author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Up 61? eh? Sounds catastrophic, it's a wonder they're not rioting in the streets.

So that increase leavs us with how many jobless? And waht % of the total workforce would that be?

author by random inputpublication date Fri Oct 24, 2003 02:20author address author phone Report this post to the editors

the 61% is not jobLESS it is Job LOSSES, in comparison to this time last year. I thought that would be obvious. Obvioulsy not.

(figure comes from RTE - and who am I to argue with National Broadcaster?)

author by Magspublication date Fri Oct 24, 2003 14:29author address author phone Report this post to the editors

If the Unions (ha, ha,) in this country were any good they should immediately have instructed all members to take next Tuesday to Friday off, to be with their families. Some chance. However I reckon such an instruction would quickly cause the TDs to change their minds on their self given holiday.

Anyone know if the 4 rugger buggers ever came back from their little jaunt to Australia, that just happened to coincide with the World Cup?

The lack of opposition to any indulgence of the ruling class is getting a bit annoying. But I had a good laugh this morning reading in the Irish Times that poor old Denis O Brien thinks Ireland has become a 'Communist State' beause he is expected to pay tax on £290 MILLION. He is so miffed the poor man is considering 'turning his back' on Ireland altogether.

These people are beyond parody at this stage. Just find a convenient line of lamp posts I reckon.

author by random inputpublication date Fri Oct 24, 2003 14:47author address author phone Report this post to the editors

There's a lovely strecth of sturdy overhanging lamp-posts down here. However, at present I must admit they look a bit bare. Just lacking that certain je ne sais quoi. I have, however, given them all names... Dukes, O'Fearhaill, Power, Wall, Welds, Maktoum, Dardis etc.

author by Anonymouspublication date Fri Oct 24, 2003 15:33author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Report on business sector of the Irish Examiner yesterday entitled "One rule for the poor, no rule for the rich".

The article referred to the way small business's in Ireland are being hit with taxes left, right and centre - for example new tax coming in for company vans, if you use them for personal use as well, an extra tax is being levied on this.

Where as the super-rich and the owners of huge business's can legitimately avoid huge taxes by using such things as non-Irish residency and tax havens.

No one likes giving away cash, including Denis O'Brien, and including ALL of us - I'm sure we'd all be the same if were in the same postion as he is. Its the system must be changed that does not allow the super-rich to avoid taxes and better still not allow them to become rich in the first place. But as I say I'm sure we'd all grumble if we had to give hundreds of thousands/millions of euro away so get rid of the lamp post lark I reckon.

author by random inputpublication date Fri Oct 24, 2003 15:56author address author phone Report this post to the editors

...as long as they are used for good things, and NOT, for example, building roads over Pollardstown Fen, paying for abuses carried out by the Catholic Church (the Vatican is rolling in dough) and of course the facilitation of an illegal war by Irish war criminals.

As for the lamp-posts - hang em high I say. But then what's one opinion in a country of millions? Ages ago someone on this board said "You know democracy has come to town when you see politicians hanging from lamp-posts". I agree.

And we should import vultures specifically to peck the rotting flesh from their acid-rain bleached* corpses.

(* I would like to say 'sun bleached' but this is Ireland aferall)

Number of comments per page
  
 
© 2001-2025 Independent Media Centre Ireland. Unless otherwise stated by the author, all content is free for non-commercial reuse, reprint, and rebroadcast, on the net and elsewhere. Opinions are those of the contributors and are not necessarily endorsed by Independent Media Centre Ireland. Disclaimer | Privacy