Tag Archives: Anything Good In The…

onionYes.

“This was a terrible tragedy, but sometimes these things just happen and there’s nothing anyone can do to stop them,” said North Carolina resident Samuel Wipper, echoing sentiments expressed by tens of millions of individuals who reside in a nation where over half of the world’s deadliest mass shootings have occurred in the past 50 years and whose citizens are 20 times more likely to die of gun violence than those of other developed nations.”

‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens (The Onion)

W01 (1)-page-001Yes.

Via Ronan Casey of the Westmeath Topic (story unavailable online):

A Mullingar mother of three young children who tore up election literature in front of a local politician has been hit with a litter fine of €150 after the candidate in question reported her to the local Council.
Michelle Byrne (32) said: “….. The candidate pushed the leaflet through the letterbox and I pushed it back out. He then proceeded to push the leaflet through the letterbox again.I opened the door and told him I didn’t want any election material…and I proceeded to tear up the leaflet.” As the candidate left, Ms. Byrne picked up the pieces of paper and put them into the rubbish bin outside her residence….”
The next morning she was notified by registered post of a €150 fine...

Hardcore.

Who would do such a thing?

donovanThe New York Times on Ireland’s recovery:

But in the suburb of Shankill [Co Dublin] where John Donovan (above) , 55, lives, the economic hubbub is absent. Many of his neighbors are barely scraping by. He moved into his mother’s small cottage after his hardware supply business buckled during the crisis.

With his scant savings eroded, he shoots pigeons for food and grills them outdoors to reduce his gas and grocery bills. “I do that just to live,” he said.

 

Hardships Linger for a Mending Ireland (Liz Alderman, New York Times)

(Paulo Nunes dos Santos/NYT)

Thanks Brian

Screen Shot 2013-11-05 at 15.50.03Ah.

One of the government’s recent moves that has affected those looking for work was cutting grants for third level education. This has meant that students in low-income families are forced to apply for low-skill jobs rather than gaining qualifications that help them clamber up the employment ladder. When it comes to masters degrees, financial support has been cut entirely.

You could, of course, ask the bank for a loan, but they aren’t particularly enthralled at the idea of lending anyone any money at the moment, and it’s getting harder to find part-time jobs to support yourself while you study.

Other government policies include slashing budgets for community-led projects and business development, as well as initiating internship programmes like Jobsbridge, which offers opportunities like learning how to stack shelves at Tesco or fit tyres for Quikfit. That might sound vaguely positive, but the government foot an extra €50 on top of the dole for anyone taking part in the scheme, giving the companies full-time workers they don’t have to pay, meaning that there’s no real point in employing anyone on a proper wage.

However, perhaps the most extreme measure was the government’s decision to almost half dole payments for people under 26 last month…

 

Why Are So Many Young People Leaving Ireland (David Fleming, Vice)

Earlier: Any Doves?

Thanks Ink Tonic