From top: ‘Don Conroy’, Ray D’Arcy, Ciara Carroll and Simon Young: Denis O’Brien
YIKES!
Humanoids of Ireland write:
Denis O’Brien first attempted to influence the people of Ireland by appearing on The Den under the alias “Don Conroy”. Getting into the psyche of Irish children was a clever tactic to improve public opinion of him in future generations. Unfortunately, it didn’t go quite to plan. Most of these kids (now grown-ups) realise he’s still a complete [REDACTED].
A notice of the Luas strike; Luas drivers and members of SIPTU on the picket line at Sandyford Luas Depot in Dublin; and commuters walking along the green Luas line tracks towards the city centre.
Meanwhile…
From the February edition of SIPTU’s Liberty magazine.
One of the projects was a ‘land installation’ (visible from high altitude) featuring the motto of Douglas Adam’s Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy on a pasture above the town.
What song do you play if and when you do the ‘no pants dance’?
You answered in your tens.
But there could be only one winner.
Bertie Blenkinsop wins the weekly €25 Golden Discs voucher for selecting this Two Tone favourite (above) as the perfect song to make whoopie to.
Bertie modestly explains
“The song I like to play while indulging in the bad thing is The Selecter – Three Minute Hero (including foreplay and two minutes of begging).”
Mmf.
Bubblin’ under
The Old Boy: “The song I like to play while indulging in the bad thing is Wagner’s “The Ride of the Valkyries”, with Georg Solti conducting recordings for Decca.”
Don K Don G: “The song I like to play while indulging in the bad thing is Catch Me if You Can ( Me Name Is Dan) by Brendan Shine.”
Mike: “The song I like to play while indulging in the bad thing is Eric Carmen – All By Myself.”
Optimus Grime: “Oh it has to be King Kunta by Kendrick Lamar 24 7 365! For the “We want the funk” refrain alone.”
DaithiG: “The song I like to play while indulging in the bad thing is Closer by Nine Inch Nails. I rarely get past the first verse though.”
Ricky Ricardo: In honour of the great and sadly departed Prince, it has to be “Darling Nikki”: Tis pure and delightful filth. (Seriously, some of the lyrics may not be safe for work. Don’t say I didn’t warn ye.)
Former Garda Commissioner and then Assistant Garda Commissioner Noirín O’Sullivan speaking at Public Accounts Committee in January 2014
You may recall former Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan speaking at a meeting of the Joint Oireachtas Committee of Public Accounts on January 23, 2014.
Mr Callinan made that ‘disgusting’ remark in relation to the Garda whistleblowers Sgt Maurice McCabe and John Wilson during the meeting.
Mr Callinan, who was sitting next to the then assistant Garda Commissioner Noirín O’Sullivan at the time, said:
“My position is very clear, anyone that makes any report of wrongdoing to me, I will deal with it very, very seriously indeed. And I’m sure I speak for my officers here beside me, and beyond, when I say that is the case. And we will not be isolating anybody who makes a complaint of wrongdoing against another member of the force.”
“…I will not allow anybody to be bullied or harassed or anything of that nature, intimidate, any adverb, any adjective you choose to use, that will not happen on my watch, as far as I’m concerned, if people are reporting wrongdoing. But there is a mechanism and a procedure for doing it and that shouldn’t be going off to a third party with a whole raft of very, very serious allegations, criminal and otherwise and producing those elsewhere.”
“…There isn’t a whisper anywhere else, from any other member of An Garda Siochana about this corruption, this malpractice and all of those things that are levelled against their fellow officers. I, frankly, I think it’s quite disgusting. On a personal level, I think it’s quite disgusting.”
Further to this, and this week’s publication of the O’Higgins report into allegations made by Sgt Maurice McCabe….
In today’s Irish Examiner, Michael Clifford reports that claims made by Noirín O’Sullivan’s senior counsel to the O’Higgins Commission of Investigation – that Garda whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe was acting out of malice – were proven to be untrue.
Yet they weren’t included in Justice O’Higgins’ findings.
Ms O’Sullivan was represented by Colm Smyth, SC, while Sgt McCabe was represented by Michael McDowell, SC, now a Senator.
Mr Clifford reports:
At the very early stages, the inquiry was told by senior counsel for Ms O’Sullivan that evidence would be produced to show that Sgt McCabe had told two other officers that he was making his complaints because of malice he harboured towards a senior officer.
The inquiry was informed that the two officers had taken notes at the meeting in question and prepared a report which was forwarded to a senior officer.
However, a few days after the submission, Sgt McCabe informed Mr O’Higgins he had a tape recording of the meeting in question.
Mr O’Higgins indicated that the transcript coincided precisely with Sgt McCabe’s version of events and was in conflict with the allegation that he had told the two officers he was motivated by malice.
…At the inquiry, the commissioner was represented by the same counsel as two of the officers against whom Sgt McCabe had made allegations.
A Garda spokesperson said the commissioner was barred by statute from commenting on the commission.
Electric Ireland just tried to sell us their Pay as You Go Service promising it was 4% cheaper. Had a quick look around online and see that they failed to mention it would also bring a new additional daily standing charge of 19 cents.
Did the maths. Over a year’s usage using €1300 as a measure (what we paid in 2013) rather than save us €52 euro it’d cost €17 more!!!
How can they get away with promising 4% savings yet charge 1% more? Not mentioning a new standing charge in the sales pitch seems a massive oversight. Is that lawful?
