Last week’s Vice article on Leo Varadkar

From top: Vice piece on Leo Varadkar; tweets from Fine Gael Councillors Sharon Tolan and Andrew Duncan; Megan Noalan

Concerned Observer writes:

Just thought you might be interested in the furore on social media the past day or so.

Excellent Irish writer Megan Nolan wrote a piece for Vice dealing with some of Leo’s recent public appearances:

As is par for course at this point, two councillors tied to our valiant protectors against violence and internet bullying…proceeded to mock her supposed mental health issues because they didn’t like the content of the article, and its criticism of our Dear Leader….

The Irish Prime Minster Keeps Embarrassing Ireland and Irish People (Vice)

Tweets via Collette Brown

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75 thoughts on “Therapy?

    1. Daisy Chainsaw

      Oh dear. The Fraperoom is up early this morning! Nothing to see here, move along!

      Blueshoights really can’t bear Dear Leoder being critiqued.

      1. hex

        I’ve never voted for FG in my life. I just recognise a poorly considered op ed piece when I see one.

        Suggest you get yourself a bit of cop on.

      2. Vote Rep #1

        This sort of reply annoys me. Its as if for certain posters, if you are not 100% critical of FG/FF/Labour, you are just a shill for them. They are so correct that any possible opinion which differs from theirs could only possibly come from said political party. Its student union type stuff.

        1. Daisy Chainsaw

          It’s not about being 100% critical, but dismissing an alternative opinion about the ruling party out of hand just reeks of FG shilling. The global selling of Leo as the gay son of an immigrant has been bought wholesale. Those of us in Ireland know Leo’s deeply conservative streak cancels out any positivity that can bring..

          1. hex

            It’s pretty straightforward to dismiss an alternative opinion, when it’s built of straw.
            If you see that as FG shilling, then you’d really be better off looking a bit closer to home for a critique.

          2. Harry Molloy

            That’s a load of horse Daisy. And who “sold” that image? The only people talking about it here are his detractors. Journalists in other countries just find it interesting, so they write about it.

            Not all writing needs to be about what pisses us off.

          3. Vote Rep #1

            Rubbish. The idea that you are not allowed to dismiss an article just because it is about the ruling party without being accused of being a shill is exceptionally narrow minded. It is not very good but neither is Leo. I am able to hold these two views. Do you agree with every article which is critical of Leo regardless of its content? By your own logic, to dismiss an alternative opinion about the ruling party out of hand just reeks of FG shilling.

          4. bisted

            …the ruling party eh…who would that be…the blueshirts think it’s them…the FFers think they are…personally I think it’s Shane Fein and so does he…

          5. Andrew

            Bizarre comment and an even more bizarre narrow minded viewpoint.
            You need to meet more people.

      3. Clampers Outside!

        critique
        krɪˈtiːk/
        verb
        past tense: critiqued; past participle: critiqued
        evaluate (a theory or practice) in a detailed and analytical way.
        .
        .
        .
        Where did the writer do that again? LOL… in fairness, she did no such thing Daisy.

        The writer rambled off an ad hominem about someone they don’t like, and so personalized it, and then wrote about it in some manner of assumed victimhood, as can be presumed from their claimed “shame”.
        The writer collectiveises this shame as if the writer spoke for anyone but their own self, now assuming to speak of a collective “insecurity” which is just more of this victimhood claptrap the writer themselves are immersed in.

        Critique… pffft… not at all.

        Claptrap 100%

  1. Otis Blue

    For all that, he’s a big improvement on Kenny and Cowen in the cringe making and embarrassment stakes.

  2. GO'S

    Agree with her 100% on the cringeworthy performances of LV. Not so much on other elements, but her views are entirely reasonable. Nothing extreme and a perfectly acceptable part of a a balanced discussion.

    Defensiveness of FG about LV suggests they fear we’re all seeing through the hype.

  3. Paps

    Having a dig at him over his voice,
    having a dig at him for getting on with Candian PM,
    having a dig at men.

    1. Brother Barnabas

      she’s correct about the ‘love actually’ comment and the stunt with the socks, though, right?

      1. hex

        That it’s a reflection of a national malaise of self confidence? Nope.

        National embarrassment? Depends.

        It’s a clear indication that Varadkar is a bit of an eejit, and a bizarrely enthusiastic fan of a pretty poopy film. But he’s been public about his love of ‘Love Actually’ for at least a decade. We all have to have a hobby. Impact on my life? Zilch. YMMV.

        1. Brother Barnabas

          No, just that he’s getting up on the world stage and showing himself to be a gormless twit, which, unfortunately, does reflect on us. I thought we were over that when Enda departed. Sadly not.

          1. Clampers Outside

            How does it show him to be a gormless twit? Trudeau has a penchant for quirky socks, Leo showed him a light hearted welcome… and people think he looks gormless?

            OK

          2. Brother Barnabas

            that buffoonery might be OK in private, but behaving like a giddy schoolboy in front international media was gormless behaviour

          3. Owen C

            The Love Actually thing was stupid. I actually have zero issue with the socks thing, the person who the joke was aimed at (Trudeau) got the joke and appreciated it, so thats a good thing.

    1. Paps

      Her second last paragraph is all over the place, Vice must not publish unless you mention the systematic oppression of woman and some how tie it to your article.

  4. Twunt

    The author of that piece would want to get over whatever insecurity complex she has. Should Leo have done the Love Actually bit? But the rest of the world doesn’t give a flip.

  5. Not Gerry Adams

    all those complaining about the article seem to forget that Ms. Nolan was writing for Vice, so “shit-eating grin” fits the brief. Vice isn’t the IT News Review. Great article.

  6. Jimmy Ireland

    Personally attacks man in written article, doesn’t like being personally attacked as a result of said article.

    1. Weezer

      How do you know? Did you personally attack her? “Concerned Observer” sent on those tweets c/o Colette Brown.

      1. Paps

        You can check her twitter feed, she had a bit of a huff about people not agreeing with her piece.

    1. Holden MaGroin

      Yes, this is so important. We all should have stopped work to call him on it. For God’s sake.

  7. dav

    Leo should be embarrassed and shamed by the thousands that are homeless in this nation, but sociopaths don’t feel empathy..

  8. rotide

    Usual crap from vice, they write themselves at this point.

    Not sure why there’s any fuss.

  9. Clampers Outside!

    Such a joyless petty view of things… and sure play the man while you’re at it. ‘Twould nearly give ya the creeps, the salivating judgementality of it…

    laughable dross…

    ” The video of Varadkar is genuinely difficult for me as an Irish person to sit through. Partly this is because of his voice – he has a voice particular to a specific subset of well-to-do Dubliners, nasal and droning, inextricably associated with deck shoes and nightclubs with table service and habitual embezzling. But largely it’s how familiar the whole miserable dynamic is: the Irish politician doing some half-hearted clowning for his perceived betters, desperate as a bullied kid to just be liked no matter what it takes.

    Almost as painful to watch was Varadkar’s tryst with Justin Trudeau this month. Meeting PM in Dublin, Varadkar gave a nod to the Canadian Prime Minister’s love of “quirky” hosiery, revealing that he was wearing novelty mounty socks in a hideous bromance-seeking peep show. ”

    – – – –

    +1 to Paps all the way!

  10. Peter Dempsey

    Her article is rambling, narcissistic rubbish. Her Facebook friends profile has the usual SJW contingent and various bitter malcontents from the Irish left. The two FG councillors are effectively being bullied on Twitter. Plus ca change.

  11. Clampers Outside!

    This is priceless Royal We nonsense….
    “So too does Ireland perceive its international neighbours. We regard them as fully realised entities, which we must appease and perform for ”

    Is that what Megan thinks….. Why use ‘we’……

    Does anyone out there agree with the writer… that they too feel inferior to our neighbours in Europe, clearly the writer speaks for more than just their self.

    Anyone….

  12. Clampers Outside!

    It gets better and better…

    ” The longer Ireland continues in this way, allowing ourselves to exist as an embodiment of other nations’ projections, the less real we eventually will become materially, clapping and jigging and gee-whiz-begorrah-ing our way into a state of perpetual objectification. ”

    Says the writer in a piece on Catholic Ireland’s, son of a Hindu father, a son of an immigrant, and who is our gay Taoiseach….

    F_ _ _ O_ _ will ya…. your petty’s turned up to 11 !

    Laughable :)

    1. nellyb

      Common excuse not to publish dissident journos/authors behind iron curtain was ‘lack of literary value’.

      1. thecitizenatbarneys

        Are you arguing that this piece has literary merit or that it was censored?

        If neither, was it a pointless comment?

  13. Owen C

    The author, on twitter:

    “and so what that I called a politician rude names lol, it’s a piece of colour comment not investigative journalism or reportage.”

    Basically she’s admitting its written just to cause outrage, so at least she’s honest.

    1. Bodger

      Owen C, colour can be an editorial term for copy that is not news but sets the scene and fleshes out the characters in the news story.

      1. Owen C

        When you describe how the Taoiseach has a “sh*t-eating ingratiating grin” and all you’re really setting the scene for is a large group of people being offended. You don’t need to be smart to realise that. Her twitter feed is currently amounting to her saying “f*ck off I don’t need to listen to your opinion” to a lot of people, which is nice.

  14. Termagant

    I wonder if these self-same councillors would have leapt so readily to the defense of Bertie’s canary suit.

  15. Jimmey Russell

    She is being dangerously homophobic but they are being dangerously misogynistic I dont know what to think please help.

  16. :-Joe

    Some people might do better if they could stop and think for a minute….

    The hypocrasy of two nannys for the state censorship program….

    A lot of the Vice articles comments by the author have been articulated and highlighted by many other Irish people, many times before and about many previous Taosigh… perhaps there is a pattern some of you are not seeing?

    Your dear leoder* is not democratically elected.

    *Credit : Daisy Chainsaw – Broadsheet.ie July 17, 2017 at 11:06 am

    :-J

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