In an appeal to the European Union, more than 180 scientists and doctors from 36 countries warn about the danger of 5G, which will lead to a massive increase in involuntary exposure to electromagnetic radiation. The scientists urge the EU to follow Resolution 1815 of the Council of Europe, asking for an independent task force to reassess the health effects. read full story / add a comment

High Court refuses State’s request for Covid-19 adjournment in Shannon LNG Judicial Review
Administration of Justice Can Not ‘Grind To a Halt’

The High Court has issued a Judgment refusing the State’s application for a delay in hearing an environmental challenge to the inclusion of the €500 million Shannon LNG fracked gas terminal on the fourth EU Projects of Community Importance (PCI) list. Inclusion on this list makes a project eligible for up to 50% funding and requires ‘the most rapid treatment legally possible’. read full story / add a comment

The current shutdown of the economy and lockdown of society all around the world is unprecedented and it is very clear that the media are talking up the number and trying to instil panic and fear in the people. This is true not just in Ireland but everywhere else. What all the media reports have in common is that not a single one of them puts the numbers into perspective. All we see are league tables of infections and deaths for this country and others and how it is all going to get worse. read full story / add a comment

The Covid-19 global health crisis is one that required a global response led by health workers but with the consensus of almost everyone. Instead we face a piecemeal response, often in the form of repressive policing solutions that are not even particularly effective and where the borders between the states have undermined collective action and allowed the virus to multiply in the gaps.

Fear has led many to wish for harder state clampdowns as if a policing apparatus had any hope for substituting for collective solidarity between neighbours. The very ideology of neoliberal capitalism and its mantra of everyone looking after themselves has cut into the sort of community solidarity essential to popular enforcement of physical distancing. Thankfully in Ireland we discovered this process was not complete and a sufficient sense of solidarity remained that almost everyone implemented physical distancing measures before the state backed that process. read full story / add a comment

This story by Pepe Escobar which appeared on The Saker blog is being reported here because it clearly demonstrates in this particular instance, in France how the government is suppressing cures for Covid-19 available today so as to delay matters so that Big Pharma can come in with their own solutions in a few weeks time. It makes no sense that governments around the world appear so concerned about their populations as they rarely are, so it kind of make sense that they are doing things to promote the profits of Big Pharma over the welfare of citizens. There is little doubt the same or similar things is occurring in other countries.

The French government is arguably helping Big Pharma profit from the Covid-19 pandemic

What’s going on in the fifth largest economy in the world arguably points to a major collusion scandal in which the French government is helping Big Pharma to profit from the expansion of Covid-19. Informed French citizens are absolutely furious about it.

My initial question to a serious, unimpeachable Paris source, jurist Valerie Bugault, was about the liaisons dangereuses between Macronism and Big Pharma and especially about the mysterious “disappearance” – more likely outright theft – of all the stocks of chloroquine in possession of the French government. read full story / add a comment

The olive harvest time in Palestine is a wonderful time for a visit. The trees are full of ripe olives and in solidarity with the Palestinian land owners we will be part of this traditional experience. You can either climb a tree or work down on the ground. We collect the olives on the tarps and then in buckets and bags. We will have traditional Palestinian lunch on the fields and we will visit an olive press. Besides volunteering on the land you will have the chance to discover Palestine and travel around with your guide Baha, to understand the reality of the geo-political situation. There are excursions to Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Lifta, Hebron and the South Hebron hills, Ramallah (the Arafat Museum) and Nabi Saleh, known for its continuous non violent resistance. read full story / add a comment

The Irish health system is entering the Covid-19 crisis in a very poor position. Before the virus hit, it was already at breaking point. This is a result of chronic underfunding by successive governments stretching back decades and made worse in the last decade of austerity. Despite the spin from the government, the Irish state is actually one of the lowest spenders on healthcare in the OECD.

An estimated 1.9 million people could contract the Covid-19 virus in the State. A feature of the infection for some is respiratory difficulties. It is estimated that 5%-10% will need more intensive treatment in hospitals and up to half of them will need access to ventilation equipment. There is a real fear on the part of working class people generally and of course healthcare staff of the impact of COVID-19 in the context of an underfunded and overstretched health system. read full story / add a comment

The following shows how domestically you can have a left-wing totalitarianism or right-wing totalitarianism and both are compatible with the UN's One World Government and its new globally dominant ideology, neoliberal absolutism. I consider human rights truth is more important than any so-called national security. read full story / add a comment

The number of young Irish people in their 20s living at home has risen to 47.2% according to research by EU agency Eurofound. Ireland, along with Luxemburg and Romania, have the highest increases in Europe.

While throughout other EU countries there was a 2% increase, Ireland saw a 11% increase. According to the report, after the recession many young people had to move back home as they would be the first ones to lose their jobs due to them having just entered the job market. read full story / add a comment

Chelsea Manning is a truth teller, The US lied about the Iraq war; She should be released and compensated read full story / add a comment

This report from the World Socialist Websites reports on the vindictive and appalling treatment of Julian Assange which has been lost in all the hype about the Corona virus which is blotting out all the other news. Even prior to the virus scare there was little coverage of Julian Assange by the main stream media. Hence the reason we are bringing this to your attention.

Julian Assange was handcuffed 11 times and stripped naked twice by Belmarsh prison guards on the opening day of this week’s extradition trial in London, his lawyers revealed in court yesterday.

read full story / add a comment

Between 5th and 12th March you are invited to attend one of our nationwide special screenings of the highly acclaimed Palestinian documentary film ‘Naila and the Uprising’. All screenings of the film will be followed by a discussion and Q&A with the film’s producer Rula Salameh. read full story / add a comment

I’ve come here this morning to show solidarity with students who are protesting against huge rent hikes that are taking place here in UCD. So I have with me here Joanna, who is the President of the Students Union and Úna who is the Welfare Officer. read full story / add a comment

In Nicaragua, since April 2018, government and para-military forces have terrorised the population leading to at least 325 deaths, over 2,000 serious injuries and hundreds of people imprisoned and illegally detained. More than 90,299 have fled into exile, mostly to Costa Rica, although some have arrived here in Ireland and are seeking asylum.

Where: Teachers's Club, Parnell Square West, Dublin 1.
When: Tues 10th March @ 7:30pm read full story / add a comment

The relentless campaign by the US and UK government to silence and torture Julian Assange for the so-called crime of exposing their murderous crimes in Iraq and elsewhere, continues with the first day of the extradition hearing where they plan to stitch him up and send him to the US where they will put him away for the rest of his life.

The farce is that he is being held in prison for breaking bail on another trumped up charge from almost a decade ago and which has long since been dismissed. This is purely a political show trial and a warning to real journalists to shut up and do not dare report on the crimes of the elite and powerful. read full story / add a comment

Climate Case Ireland, brought by Friends of the Irish Environment (FIE), is a legal challenge to the Irish government’s 2017 National Mitigation Plan, a key plank of the State’s climate policy. FIE argues that the government’s decision to adopt a Plan that allows greenhouse gas emissions to increase by about 10% between 1990 and 2020 (instead of decreasing significantly over this period as the government has accepted is necessary to help avert dangerous climate breakdown) constitutes a violation of citizens’ constitutional and human rights and Ireland’s Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015. read full story / add a comment

A public consultation on a review of sustainable transport policy is set to this Friday 28th Feb at 5:30pm after the deadline was extended.

The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport said that the review was started after a commitment in the May 2016 Programme for a Partnership Government “to ensure services are sustainable into the future and are meeting the needs of a modern economy”. read full story / add a comment

In the aftermath of the election that cemented their historically poor results of four years ago, Labour leader Brendan Howlin resigned, triggering a leadership race. The race will pit Alan Kelly, the most prominent figure remaining from the 2011-16 cabinet, against Aodhán Ó Ríordáin. read full story / add a comment

General Election 2020 was historic. It was only the second time that the combined vote of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael went below 50%. 2016 was the first, when it dipped just below 50% by 0.2%. However, this time it plunged to just 43.4% — an historic low.

The election unfolded around the desire that emerged from below for “real change” and included the widespread understanding that this could only be achieved by a rejection of Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael.

Sinn Féin were the winners, receiving the biggest share of the popular vote at 24.53%, but Fianna Fáil have taken the most seats, as Sinn Féin didn’t stand enough candidates to maximise the full value of its surge in support. read full story / add a comment

The Arts Council today launched their new policy Paying the Artist. This sets out a vision and plan to create change over the period 2020–2022. We, in Visual Artists Ireland, welcome this firm show of support for individual artists, and recognise it as part of the on-going support that the Arts Council has given our work in this area, particularly since our 2011 campaign Ask! Has the Artists Been Paid! which led to the concrete changes that have been building over the years, and impacting all art forms. We want to thank all of the supporters that we have had over the years on this campaign, especially those who worked with us on developing our approach that is aimed to benefit all artists. We are also very grateful to our sister representative organisations, all of whom bring the experiences and realities of their own artists and organisations. Listening to them and learning from them has been truly an amazing experience. We want to thank the Arts Council for their open ear, and thank them for the acknowledgement of our reports such as The Social, Economic & Fiscal Status of the Visual Artist in Ireland, which formed the basis for our campaign, and the role that we and other representative and resource organisations have played during the consultation process and will play into the future roll out and support of this policy area. read full story / add a comment