Now that a few days have passed and a few facts have come to light, I thought I'd give a short reaction and perhaps stimulate a bit of debate as I'd like to hear the opinions of others on the whole affair (that's if you are not fed up already).

When I initially heard reports of the riots on Saturday I wasn't surprised. But I was shocked by their ferocity. Without knowing the facts, I immediately pointed the finger at Sinn Fein supporters. While there may have been some level of organisation from elements of Republican Sinn Fein, there is certainly no conclusive evidence to indicate that this was a highly-organised, well co-ordinated effort on their part. I read yesterday in one tabloid that "Sinn Fein were up to their necks in this". Where is the evidence?

I also read that many of the people involved in the rioting were known to Gardai and journalists. However last night both David Norris and another journalist from the Irish Times, who both witnessed the riots, said this was untrue. To date, none of the people arrested have had any links with Sinn Fein or other republican elements. Personal accounts I have heard from people who got caught up in the trouble reveal that the majority of crowd were young local thugs who know as much about a Republic as George Bush knows about renewable energy.

To call these bar stool, "ooh ahh up the RA" singing fascists republicans is an offence to decent minded folk of this country who genuinely seek a united Ireland through peaceful means. However, while these people may not be members of Sinn Fein, I believe these are the people who will help vote SF into a possible power-holding position after the next election. Surely this is worrying.

Overall, I feel utterly sickened by what occurred on Saturday. Destroying your own city and attacking its guardians to make some point to Ulster Unionists, then chanting "We Won, We Won" is utter mindlessness. We are a democratic society, one in which the right to free speech is paramount and where all cultures must be treated as equal. It is imperative that we uphold these beliefs and show these thugs that their actions were pointless. To do this, the Love Ulster march should be re-organised sooner rather than later.

Published by Padraig.  

Have you been watching the latest series of The Apprentice?**. Much like Big Brother, its cast consists of the sort of characters that you'd keep away from your personal space with a big stick. (You'd poke them nonetheless). You never see homely types on this show though. The producers' preferred profile for these contestants seems to be that of a 25 to 35 year-old city-dwelling, self-obsessed, money-loving backstabber. And boy do they have 14 suitable desperadoes this time around.

Despite these characters having lots of business experience in the city, the tasks set for them are quite straightforward; the first week saw them selling fruit. So, while the women were busy juggling melons in front of their chests, the boys were busy "merchandising" and selling from their stall. (Since when did putting a few apples on a stall become “merchandising”?) Not surprisingly, the double-entendres worked a charm and the girls won.

The best part comes at the end of the show when one contestant gets it in the neck from his mercurial and slimy teammates. Just to watch these people in action makes my toes curl, but in a good way. I know I'm not like them and I glean immense satisfaction from that.

The Syed character is some piece of work. Straight-faced, he tried to convince his teammates that their team should be called "A-Team" or "Winners". His obnoxious demeanour makes him the ideal graduate from the Michael O'Leary school of thought.

What some of these perverse individuals need to do is spend time away from the city where they drink grande skinny mochas. If they went to the countryside they'd soon be told what's what. Because if there's one thing you learn from growing up there, it's humility. You're never too far away from someone who's willing to give you a proper dose of reality if you are inclined to have "notions" about yourself. For every one of us who thinks our shit doesn't smell, there's always a countryside dweller who'll give it to you straight and tell you how much it stinks.

[End of incoherent rant]

** For those of you living under a rock for the past year or so, this TV show is a competition whereby 14 people fight for the chance to earn a six-figure salary and become Alan Sugar's apprentice.

Published by Colm.  

Disclaimer: This post is about sport. Please move along if you don't have the time.

It was one of those days when it's a minute away from snowing and there's this electricity in the air, you can almost hear it. And this bag was, like, dancing with me. Like a little kid begging me to play with it. For fifteen minutes. And that's the day I knew there was this entire life behind things, and... this incredibly benevolent force, that wanted me to know there was no reason to be afraid, ever. Video's a poor excuse, I know. But it helps me remember... and I need to remember... Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world I feel like I can't take it, like my heart's going to cave in.

Shane Horgan.


Personally, I love the word beauty. In the last few years of my life I've gotten a good feeling for the word. When I was a teenager it never stood out as a word. Now it seems like the most consuming thing I can conjure in my head. I find beauty in many different situations. Particularily, I suppose I most get the feeling I'm seeing beauty when I listen to some music that touches me, some painting or some photograph that says something to me that I can't put into words.

For me, beauty is the most magical concept and I am ecstatic every time I visit it. It's the one thing that as an adult, compares to Santa Claus on Dec. 25th. I saw beauty last Wednesay night when Barca did things with a football that just made me gasp. I saw beauty today with Ireland. Surely, we should have put more points on the board, no doubt. But there is an Irishman who has been derided by silence. If you are passionate about sport, how can you not love Shane Horgan? Fuck Roy Keane, fuck Brian O'Driscoll - why not fete an Irishman who has so much heart that it explodes all over your TV? The Drogheda man with no media profile is the most valuable sportsman we have. There are many men who can be considered animals as atheletes, but Horgan brings heart and beauty to Ireland as well as all that power. He doesn't ever sound upset at being moved into the centre despite his preference for the wing, as we saw in the 2005 Six Nations. There is only one other Irish sportsman who comes close to Horgan in dedication and that is Bruff native John Hayes. These people have only one body for their life. Yet, they put it on the line without restriction every time they play for Ireland. I just am so glad that I have some Irish sporstmen who live the dream for me. It's beauty staring me in the face.

Published by Paul.  

Today's disgraceful and stomach-churning scenes in Dublin have been excellently documented in what I would consider the boggersphere's first blogstorm and arguably finest moment.

While the MSM dallied, the boggersphere took the responsibility of bringing the story and the pictures to the public.

Coverage here in London is pathetic so I don't feel like I have anything useful to add yet. Boys?

Check out the following for in-depth coverage.

The Dossing Times
Back Seat Drivers
Kevin Breathnach (eyewitness report)
Red Mum
ElBlogador
realitycheck(dot)ie
Slugger
Piaras Kelly
Planet Potato
Free
Stater
Metroblogging Dublin
United Irelander
Balrog
Richard Delevan
gpshewan
Richard Waghorne

Published by Colm.  

Much has been written about George Clooney's recent docu-film "Good Night, and Good Luck". It's a movie that brilliantly tells the story of the battle between Ed Murrow and Senator Joseph McCarthy. A history lesson in its own right, this picture resonates strongly with the current concerns over free speech.

A subplot in the film involves the news anchor Don Hollenbeck who stands firmly behind Murrow in his broadcasts against McCarthy. The news team regularly scans the print media to gauge the support for their campaign. Most articles are favourable but one is scathing of Hollenbeck. He doesn't receive the criticism too well and it ends in tragedy.

Criticism of newspaper articles has traditionally been the role of letters to the editor. The decision to print the letters rests with the newspaper so it can be argued that the means of right of reply is flawed and arbitrary.

The use of unmoderated comments in blogs has led to a more transparent debate. It has given more say to the reader which has inevitably led to more visible criticism. It is interesting therefore to see how bloggers deal with criticism. Many blogs are mouthpieces for opinions that would otherwise be unheard by the public - In Fact, Ah is no exception.

So how do you feel when somebody tears what you say to shreds? How do you as a blogger react to what can sometimes be very difficult to read? Embarrassed to be made to look a fool, a blogger can feel like a boxer in the corner of the ring. Bloodied egos take a battering from multiple opponents. Some shots go below the belt.

Positive criticism is fair. Unfortunately, a natural consequence of this freedom of expression is the tendency by some to go too far. Insults fly across the boggersphere and reputations are sullied. It is particularly distasteful therefore to see bloggers create blogs whose only purpose is to ridicule other bloggers. It must be very difficult for the target of this bile to read day after day posts that unnecessarily deride and belittle their reputation and character.

Think how ridiculous it would be if an "Irish Times Watch"-type paper was set up and solely wrote articles to counter what the IT printed every day.

Published by Colm.  

Considering how successful his lasting outing here on In Fact, Ah was, we're delighted to bring you this second piece from our new guest blogger, Micheál.

Following a recently released UN report condemning the continuing operation of US detention camp Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, Mr. Blair last week professed that Guantanamo Bay is 'an anomaly' that will have to be 'dealt with'. He expands this revealing statement to profess that he has always viewed Guantanamo Bay in this particular light. Definition of anomaly in the Oxford English dictionary defines it is as follows: deviation or departure from the normal or common order, form, or rule. Quite right Mr. Blair insofar as that this particular detention centre is an anomaly in that it deviates from the rules and regulations of international law and holds no qualms in departing from the premise of upholding basic human rights, not to mention prisoner’s rights.

Opened in 2002, the camp, built to detain suspects of the 'War on Terror', still currently holds about 500 prisoners who have never been charged with any crime. Most have been denied any form of legal counsel and their families are not provided with any information as to their physical well-being and mental state. Prisoners are kept in isolation and preferred methods of torture include desecrating the Koran, constantly playing loud music and forcing inmates to remain awake for days at a time. Physical abuse includes blind-folding, handcuffing and standing on the backs of legs as the prisoner kneels on the ground while being interrogated. Conditions are so bad that a lot of the prisoners have attempted suicide at some point or another. Those who attempt to protest or die via hunger strike are force fed through tubes inserted in their nostrils.

America defends its position by maintaining that this camp harbours the most dangerous terrorists in the world, however readily admitting that no key Al Qaeda suspects have ever been held at the base. It dismisses the UN's report as 'largely without merit' and ignores the recommendation that the base should be immediately closed.

As will be highlighted by next month's film on Channel 4 regarding the now famous Tipton Three (The Road to Guantanamo), the English Defence forces were complicit in helping the US round up so called 'suspects' and shipping them to the prison base. One of the Tipton Three was held in prison for two years on the basis that he appeared in a pre Sept 9/11 video with Osama Bin Laden. He had to be eventually released when the UK authorities proved to the US that that particular 'terror suspect' was actually working in Curry’s at the time the video was produced. Had the Tipton Three not been UK citizens they would most likely still be enduring the harsh realities of Guantanamo Bay. But all of the nine British citizens who were detained there have now been released.

While it is internationally accepted that this prison camp is completely illegal and unjustified, the US does not appear under any great pressure to close it. Why? The main reason is a lack of public outcry from the international community at large. While the UN and EU groups have openly condemned the institute, the British government has deferred from condemning it outright. For me, Tony Blair’s inability or unwillingness to condemn Guantanamo constitutes a dangerous shift in the British government's policy to what they deem acceptable and lawful in the war against terror.

Most disturbing of all is the recent report of how four actors featuring in the above film were detained under the Anti-Terrorism bill on returning to England after the film’s premiere in Berlin. The actors were subject to verbal abuse and denied access to a lawyer while questioned by Bedfordshire police. They were eventually released without charge but it is alarming that the UK authorities should feel the need to act so aggressively. It will be interesting to see how long Tony Blair can fend off the inevitable questions regarding Guantanamo – he knows he can’t condone it but how long can he go without condemning it?

Dae

Published by Colm.  

This morning I was incredulous to read Mourinho's post match comments on his side's Champions League defeat at the hands of Barcelona last night:

"How do you say cheating in Catalan?"

"Can Messi be suspended for acting? Barcelona is a cultural city with many great theatres and this boy has learned very well. He's learned play-acting."

"I don't want to say too much because then I will be suspended, but I am very proud of my team."

The unashamed hypocrisy is stunning from such a high-profile sporting figure. Arjen Robben's acting to get Jose Reina sent off recently was a far more extreme case of cheating. In case Mr. Mourinho suffers from some form of selective amnesia, he couldn't help but see in the same frame of the Del Horno/Messi incident last night that Del Horno made equally as much a theatrical disgrace of himself as Messi did.

As for the course of the game, personally I beleive Del Horno's challenge on Messi was calculated and cynical and agree with Kevin McCarra that he deservered a straight red card for it. At best it was an extremely clumsy challenge which certainly warranted a yellow card. I didn't see Sky or RTE give a replay of a challenge Del Horno made on Messi ten minutes earlier which was pretty disgusting and should have resulted in card action for Del Horno. Del Horno raised his foot and did get the ball first but followed through and planted his studs on the inside of Messi's knee, shredding what looked like a knee support or bicycle shorts he was wearing. What ever way you toss it, it seems to me Del Horno was out to get Messi and had the ref made perfect decisions Del Horno would have received at least two yellow cards.

Neither does Mourinho seem inclined to acknowledge Chelsea's awesome ability to get away with penalties. I'm convinced some of their defenders were goalkeepers in previous lives. Also Carvalho has a consistently cynical, calculated habit of fouling players (while defending corners) and goalkeepers (while attacking corners) on the blind side of the referee, which he hasn't been pulled up on yet. Last night again, Chelsea got away with two cast-iron penalties.

Chelsea's whole game is based on keeping it tight, packing space behind the half-way line when you don't have the ball and nicking a goal. Sure in games where they get that one goal early they open up and sometimes go on to play some football and score some goals. It will be very interesting to see how Chelsea approach the return fixture at the Noucamp. They can't afford to play Mourinho's game. On a bigger pitch (with grass on it) and in front of an inferno of home support I really fear for Chelsea considering they have to score two goals not to go out.

Published by Paul.  

Yesterday NEC Semiconductors announced the imminent closure of its plant in Co. Meath with the loss of 350 jobs. This continues the trend in Ireland’s manufacturing sector of haemorrhaging jobs at an uncomfortable rate. However, much of the talk recently with regard to employment has been about foreign nationals displacing Irish workers.

The whole debate was begun by Labour leader Pat Rabbitte in what many viewed as ‘playing the race card’ in a cynical attempt to garner votes. The unfortunate truth is that the race card is a good card, and when played can beat most hands. This was borne out by the subsequent poll in the Irish Times which showed 78% approval of a re-introduction of some form of work permit or visa scheme for EU workers coming to Ireland.

The notion that cheap foreign labour is displacing Irish workers can be dispelled quite simply. By examining the unemployment figures we can see that there has been little change in the percentage of the work force unemployed. In fact (ah?), the latest figures from the CSO show a drop from 4.4% to 4.2%, the lowest rate in the EU.

So, what for the future of Irish manufacturing? The politicos will tell us “ah sure it’s grand, we’ll just up-skill a bit here, out-source a bit there, modernise a bit there, we can do without manufacturing”. But can we? A commonly cited reason for the success of the Celtic tiger was the entrepreneurial zeal of the modern Irish businessman. Rubbish. It was foreign direct investment in the form of large US companies locating plants here and employing Irish labour (notwithstanding the contribution of EU grants and the stability engendered by ‘social partnership’). If the flight of this sector continues, we may well see a rise in unemployment. Who’d get the blame for that then? Paddy Poland, that’s who.

Published by El Commandant P.  

It's not often that GAA gets a look-in here in the boggersphere. Admittedly, this may not be of much interest to many bloggers but here goes ...

They may not know it, but what has transpired in the past week or so has just been what the GAA needed. At last the opportunity to make a film about the game of hurling has arrived – I'd call it "The Wrath of Loughnane". It has ultimately become a criminal matter with Ger Loughnane being reported for imagining that he shot a priest. It's grotesque, unbelievable, bizarre and unprecendented. It's Clare hurling.

If I was casting director for "The Wrath of Loughnane", I'd have Loughnane played by a snarling Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe as Anthony Daly and Fr Dick Doyle play Fr Harry Bohan.

Although he says he isn't, it's clear that Loughnane is extremely annoyed at losing out on an award that went to Fr. Harry Bohan, his arch-nemesis. Loughnane implied that Bohan was "hurling-wise, ... the greatest failure ever in the history of Clare". He goes on to also imply that Fr. Bohan was "insanely jealous of Clare's success." Bohan was manager of the Clare team in the late 70s when it was widely perceived that that Clare team, which included Ger Loughnane, left at least one All-Ireland after them.

To let off some steam, Loughnane telephoned the County Board Chairman Michael McDonagh to make known his displeasure about the awards. He said he used colourful terms to describe his annoyance (this can be most definitely read as fucking him out of it from a height). Loughnane made the call on speakerphone and forgot to hang up properly. He then called his friend Colum Flynn on his mobile, the team doctor who was being accused of all sorts by the team management at the time, to console him. He did so by detailing how he'd imagined shooting a certain person's head (Fr. Bohan his arch enemy) that was on top of an oil can while out hunting.

Heavy breathing emanating from the speakerphone alerted Loughnane to the fact that he failed to terminate the call to McDonagh who happens to be a Garda. Unbelievably, McDonagh reported the matter to the Gardai.

Loughnane believes he has been shafted by the Clare Champion who were also involved with the awards. Five years previously, Loughnane refused permission for them to serialise his book. Interestingly, Loughnane's book sold over 43,000 copies while Davy Fitzgerald and Mike Mc's books didn't sell 13,000 between them. The Champion gave lots of coverage to their books but barely mentioned Loughnane's.

It is widely considered to be true that Clare would not have won anything but for Loughnane. His contribution to hurling dwarfs anything done by any other person in the county. His legendary status is beyond rebuke. He was the first Clare player to have won an All-Star in the 70s and were he to have been born 20 miles to the east, he would have certainly won medals with Limerick.

Further proof of the idiocy of these awards is that they decided to also snub the second greatest man in Clare's recent GAA past, John Maughan.

There were so many other elements to this: the Ger Hartman (who works with world class athletes) take on Clare's poor physical condition; Anthony Daly's taking a wide berth; Loughnane not talking to Mike Mc; not seeing eye to eye with Davy Fitzgerald; Loughnane's own son getting an award from the County Board; the snubbing of Tony Considine; the traitor in the Jimmy Cooney affair (match where Cooney blew up 3 minutes too soon and the following sit down protest by Offaly fans); and the explosive interview with Clare FM last Friday.

Published by Colm.  

The resplendent blue sky that greeted me this morning caused my mind to turn to summer. Oxegen have announced the first handful of bands for their festival this year, unfortunately there isn't any must-see acts in there for me. I'm sure the guys at Electric Picnic won't be far away from making their own announcement pretty shortly for their 3 day extravaganza. The rumour mill at the moment seems to be revolving around MF Doom, Radiohead, Broken Social Scene, Massive Attack and Art Brut.

By the way, for anyone who missed Broken Social Scene's spellbinding appearance at the Temple Bar Music Centre earlier this month, KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic has a rather lo-fi session with them from last November available here (Streaming Realplayer Video).

I did actually go to the bother of e-mailing Aitken Promotions after the gig to reassure myself they were trying to get Broken Social Scene for Electric Picnic. Sure enough they said they were doing everything they could to secure them.

Fingers Crossed.

Published by Paul.  

Like Ms Sigla, I'm bewildered and a tad disappointed about the exclusion of some excellent blogs from this year's inaugural awards. To uphold the integrity of the final part of the selection process (I'm a judge you see), I'll try not to discuss who I think should or shouldn't be on this shortlist.

Suffice to say we're very flattered here at In Fact, Ah to be nominated for Best Group Blog. Especially to be nominated in the same group as Slugger.

Published by Colm.  

It's been a quiet week on infactah from the regulars but here is an interesting article provided by 'guest' contributor Micheal O'Dea.

Having recently met some self-proclaimed life coaches I was immediately intrigued and extremely suspicious of this new phenomenon. What about this new fan dangled profession of theirs and sweeping declarations that they could really help me? Lucky I met them I suppose because I hadn’t known that I “really” needed help. I probably still wouldn’t know but for our fortuitous meeting. Not necessarily suspicious by any pre-conceived notion of what life coaching entailed more so an innate scepticism that is a defining characteristic of yours truly. As they say in East Limerick – ‘it was far from life coaching you was reared!’ But in the spirit of the New Year which was fast approaching at the time, greater tolerance and understanding of humankind ,openness to new ideas…..blah de blah de blah, I heard them out. And on further investigation of the subject matter it would appear that life coaching is indeed a very big business.

So what’s it all about? A life coach works with a client over a number of meetings, usually in weekly sessions, to help them identify what they want, finding their innermost values and goals, encouraging them to take action, and helping them achieve success. The main goal of life coaching is self-actualisation - a point at which the client not only truly knows themselves but within this knowledge possess a feeling of comfort with and understanding of the person they can realistically aspire to be. The life coach will help the client identify a particular aspect of their life they are not happy with, ranging from personal issues such as romance/physical well being to more generic issues like choice of career/financial difficulties etc.

Sounds like a winning formula, right? However life coaching is not without its critics. There is some controversy surrounding life coaching, primarily because of its current unregulated, unstandardized nature. Virtually anyone can declare themselves a life coach as there is no industry standard recognized qualification. Critics assert that the practice of life coaching amounts to little more than a method of practicing psychotherapy without any restrictions, oversight, or regulation. This lack of regulation is a prime target of criticism by the mental health community. "Without licensing or certification, there's no recourse to the consumer if the service doesn't meet their needs," according to Baltimore psychologist Dr. Alice Dvoskin. "There is the potential for people to be harmed by life coaching, and there is nothing to protect the consumer." Despite this criticism, many life coaches and their clients simply don't view certification as important or necessary.

While I can definitely see the potential benefit of someone visiting a life coach if they are stuck in a proverbial rut, I agree with the concerns expressed by its critics of the possible danger of an unqualified practitioner engaging someone who has deeper psychological problems. At what point do they have the proper training and expertise to identify if a persons behavioural issues are beyond their scope. Also, I cannot quite see the justification in attending four 1 hour sessions at 85 euros a pop (yes…that’s 340 euro for the whole makeover) to have my life's direction re-asserted. Perhaps it’s just the cynic in me but is this just an industry of uncertified sweet talkers who are fleecing vulnerable clients who have more money than sense? Meanwhile I’m more inclined to head down the local and spend my hard earned wages with my friends whether they be honest or not.

Written by DAE

Published by Colm.  

Despite deep protestations from the area of my brain marked "dignity", In Fact, Ah are succumbing to a grovel-type post that has flooded the boggersphere in the past few days. And it’s all for good reason.

For the past week, I’ve not been able to post. Cold sweat beads form on my forehead whenever I try to type. Sleepless nights encourage deep thoughts that probe my soul with questions.

Unable to wrestle with these questions by myself, I sought the help of a trained brain analyser. As soon as I lay down on the sofa, my psychologist had that knowing look on her face. She knew but she asked questions anyway. She asked me how often I did it, did I do it alone or with someone else, did I look with envy at other people’s, did I do it in the dark or with the lights on, was the use of a camera involved, do I meet other people from the Internet who also do it also etc? I shamefully admitted that sometimes I do it with three others, I’m always ogling other people’s, a camera is used for those especially exciting moments and I have arranged to meet other people in person for an awards event after striking up friendships on the Internet.

"You’ve got blogitis", she exclaimed. The impact of this statement left me reeling. In my head all I could ask was "What could I do about it? Was there a cure?". A wave of relief came rushing over me when I heard her next utterance. "There is a cure", she said. "In order to cure your condition, you need to find some form of self-validation. This Irish Blog Awards event is the answer to all your problems. If you can win the Best Group Blog award, you’ll be right as rain."

I cried out loud like a child as I rocked in the foetal position. At last, I had identified the source of my woe. And I could fix it.

So in order to cure me of this horrible condition, I need our dear readers to go to this Web site and vote for In Fact, Ah under the Best Group Blog section. It won’t take but a few seconds of your time. Come on, do what you can. But be quick – the deadline for getting your vote in on time is tomorrow (Feb 17th) evening!

PS. Otherwise I’ll have to rubbish the opposition. Especially those fuckers at Disillusioned Lefty. It will make a mockery of the whole event if they win the Best Group award. They’re only kids for God sake. What would they know?!!

Published by Colm.  

Otherwise known as 'Tumbleweed'.According to that bastion of nerdweb knowledge Wikipedia, 'They typically grow on flat, often dry and/or somewhat saline soils' and there are between 100-130 species of the plant.

This weed has been utilised to great effect in films and cartoons to signify a great exapanse of silence or inactivity...

Published by El Commandant P.  

I've been meaning to update the blogroll for some time. My apologies for it taking so long to add the following blogs ...

realitycheck(dot)ie
Pretty Cunning
Tom Cosgrave (one of the originals who's back in the fold)
The Dossing Times
Planet Potato (quality blog who gave us a mention in his own blog awards)

Here's a nifty little graphic from POTB that I've also been meaning to add.

(Click to enlarge)

Published by Colm.  

I can appreciate that music critics and journos have it difficult most of the time. Each month brings a slew of new albums and gigs to review. Looking back over the recent months of musical history could be akin to casting an eye over a gigantic landfill site scoured by crows. For every gem of an album or gig there are vast tracts of mediocrity.

I hope all the hard working music cognoscenti managed to squeeze into the Temple Bar Music Centre last Saturday. It was a night that cured all ills, none more so than gig-fatigue. Broken Social Scene were in town.

For those of you not familiar with the Canadians, they are a loose collective of musicians hailing from right across the colourful strata of the burgeoning Canadian indie music scene. Most of the members are involved with their own bands such as Metric, Do Make Say Think, The Dears, Stars and Apostle of Hustle. Their spiritual leader is multi-instrumentalist Brendan Canning. Who better to marshall such a crazy behemoth of a supergroup than a man with a tincture of Leitrim heritage?

Broken Social Scene shot to underground idol status around the world with their flawless and indefatigable 2002 sophomore album "You Forgot it in People". Padraig introduced me to this album in 2003 and I've never stopped listening to it since. In late 2005 Broken Social Scene released their third long-playing record, cut from a raft of material they had amassed in the previous three years. Quite how they manage to produce music this good when you consider the logistics of meshing 14 band members who mostly have their own tours and records to attend to is astonishing.

The self-titled third album picked up where "You Forgot it in People" left off. Layer upon layer of emotionally intelligent splendour burts forth from almost every track. Somehow they marry a unique tenderness with a pop tempo that makes you want to jump all over the place.

While good material is probably a pre-requisite, an all-time great gig it does not guarantee. Luckily Broken Social Scene brought the whole package to the Temple Bar Music Centre. Great banter with the crowd (although the reviewer in today's Irish Times didn't seem to twig the sarcasm in my jibe "You're very good" shouted at the stage during the gig). Kevin Drew must have been stocking up for Valentine's Day as he got down off stage and walked through the crowd hugging everyone. There were even several broken guitar strings to put the icing on the cake. It's amazing to me now, but apparently they played for around two and a half hours. The fact that they kept the crowd completely fixated for that time is a measure of their cachet.

We managed to get a few words in with Brendan Canning afterwards, he seemed to genuinely have had a ball and loved the crowd. We tried our best to persuade him to hit Electric Picnic later this year which he sounded sympathetic to. That alone would be reason enough for a ticket.

Now all the critics, journos and humble, yet dedicated, gig-goers like ourselves on In Fact, Ah can soldier on through the musical landfill for another year or so armed with the memory of last Saturday night. After all, we don't enjoy the trauma of having to revise our list of all-time-greatest gigs too often.

Published by Paul.  

A piece in today’s Irish Times by Donal Buckley has irked me sufficiently to put fingers to keyboard this morning. The sub-heading for the piece reads: ” Putting Ireland out of business is no answer to climate change”. The gist of his piece is that the economy should come first, always. This kind of attitude is rampant throughout the nation, whereby the economy has been deified and venerated to the point of nausea. We are constantly being preached to on ‘competitiveness’, ‘dynamism’ and ‘going forward’ (as if we’d want to go backward, or even worse, left).

Buckley states: “…we must meet our imminent Kyoto obligations in ways that do not undermine our economic and social progress”. Firstly, what social progress is he talking about? The modern, efficient health system? The affordable housing? Also, how could improved environmental policy be detrimental to the ‘social’ aspect of society? Secondly, there is no doubt that stricter environmental policy will have a negative impact on commerce and industry in general. Economic prosperity and development, via the model we have chosen, tends to deliver consequences for our environment that are unsustainable. The point is that we simply cannot meet our Kyoto targets without adversely affecting industry.

Increasingly, there are certain sectors which are benefiting from improved environmentally-friendly technology. Take tourism for example, a hotel in Inchydoney has recently installed a wood-pellet burning system. However, the manager of the hotel seemed more interested in the economic advantages of the system rather than the positive environmental impact. What I’m trying to say here is that nothing which is seen as environmentally friendly will be adopted unless it is economically friendly at the same time. This attitude must change if we are to meet our Kyoto targets, it must also change if we are to leave our generations to come with a healthy planet. After all, economic damage is a lot easier to repair than environmental damage.

El Commandant P.

Published by Colm.  

You must have seen the footage of the chaos in Omagh last Sunday between Dublin and Tyrone. But surely you were not surprised? One of the offending teams is no quivering mouse when it comes to punch-up time. Indeed, they have a history when it comes to rough house tactics. Will most, if not all, of these players be sanctioned and punished? Not likely.

As Kieran Shannon in this week's Tribune excellently points out, the blame for the continued violence on the GAA pitch lies squarely with the GAA themselves. Any sport that allows the scenario whereby a player is allowed to accumulate yellow cards in successive games for fun without being punished can expect trouble.

Of course one of the most thuggish players to have ever graced a GAA pitch is none other than Ryan McMenamin. Although diminutive in stature, McMenamin punches above his waist come game-time. As pointed out by Kieran Shannon, in 2003 McMenamin punched a Mayo player from behind and also had no qualms about plunging his knees down on Tony McEntee.

What I say to all of this is: why not introduce corporal punishment? No, not in schools but on the pitch. Instead of awarding frees and penalties, arm the referee with some sort of taser. Any time a rough foul is committed give the power to the ref to allow him to zap the offending player with at least 50 volts.

In all seriousness however, the game of football is descending into an unsightly affair. And the GAA is ignoring the elephant in the corner of Croke Park (no, not Joe Kernan). Nobody has any instant solutions to this problem. But stricter punishments for violent play are necessary in this humble blogger's opinion.

Another interesting point to consider is that a culture of cheating is much more evident in the game now than in the past. Some may see it as cute-hoorism, but to call it anything other than cheating would be incorrect. You don't see the word cheat used too often in GAA columns in this country. That's because GAA players are far too revered by the commentariat and the press in general. How could you attack the motives of players who train in the muck and shit in the depths of winter?

Actually, you can. Humans, being the self-interested glory hunters that we are, sometimes resort to unsavoury tactics. Dirty strokes off the ball, pulling a jersey, hitting a penalty taker in the jaw with a scraw as he's about to kick(I've seen this particular tactic being employed on one occasion at home), time wasting etc are not to be admired even if you did get a chuckle from the scraw-throwing story.

The word cheat is indeed a dirty word in general in this country, usually only reserved for the likes of Michelle Smyth and Nadine Coyle (remember Popstars?). Refereeing becomes infinitely more difficult if players are going out of their way to spoil the game.

PS. One interesting thing to note is that Kieran Shannon started his piece by quoting from the late Breandán Ó hEithir's book "Over the Bar". The Times' GAA columnist Séan Moran has done likewise in the past. "Over the Bar" has become almost like a reference book for those in the GAA commenting industry.

Why wouldn't it when a cousin of mine wrote it? Ooh, the smugness. Unfortunately, I very much pale in the writing stakes when compared to Ó hEithir. Check out his other books "Pocket History of Ireland" and The Begrudger's Guide to Politics.

Published by Colm.  

The smell of dog shit ranks up there in the smelly stakes with the smell of sweat that you smell when squashed up against the armpit of an overweight unwashed co-commuter on public transport. It's really that bad.

So for the second time in recent weeks I have had that awful skid under your foot sensation that can only mean one thing – dog shit. If you have deep grooves in the soles of the shoes, it's even worse. Now London has it's fair share of green areas, but none are in very close proximity to my house where a quick wipe on the grass would have helped. It would be fair to say that had a dog been near my soiled shoe, it would have felt the soft leather of my shoe as it was rammed up its anus. Granted, the owner should have pooper-scooped.

Dogs are certainly not this man's best friends. I can unequivocally say that they are my worst enemies. Maybe it was my parents' fault for not allowing me to have the opportunity for liking dogs by banning pets throughout my childhood. But the canine species haven't exactly made an effort to win me over.

A neighbour of mine had a particularly vicious heel-snapper of a dog. Cycling by their house was a traumatic experience for a 10 year old. Falling off the bike would have meant a certain mauling. This was one mean son of a bitch. Drool didn't drop off his jaw the way it does from a docile old person. No, it was usually spat between its front teeth. Luckily, I never did receive that mauling when I was a kid. It was to come 11 years later.

See, sheepdogs don't belong in US cities. Especially ones that are tied to trees all day long. During a J1 summer in the US I became acquainted with a neighbour's dog every morning on my way to work. To demonstrate what he would do if I ever came near him, he would toss a rag doll in the air, grab it between his jaws on the way down and shake it from side to side. This was ample warning not to come within his tether.

One hot morning in July 2001 I was late for my bus into down town Milwaukee. My peripheral vision was blurred owing to my fixation with getting to the bus stop in time. Without fuss or commotion, the bastard crept up behind me and bit down on my right thigh. To add insult to injury, he had my shorts and boxers ripped so that fundament was partially exposed to the severe 10am sun.

When I confronted the owner, an old man of at least 70 years, he blubbed and cried in an effort to get me not to report the incident to the police. I agreed not to press charges but did complain to the housing management company. The owner and his wife were evicted and I was racked with guilt. But only for the five minutes up until I found out that this dog had bitten a child in the past. The owner had sworn that this hadn't happened before.

If I had known this at the time, the dog would have joined the other cuddly-woodly biting mongrels in dog hell. Okay, the owner was probably to blame for this incident too. But he got his come-uppance the scheming old-timer.

Published by Colm.  

Last Sunday I went along to see the film Hidden(Cache) in the IFI. It's the latest offering from esteemed director Miceal Haneke starring Daniel Auteuil, Juliette Bioche, Maurice Benichou and it is a truly remarkable film. Its a mystery/thriller, edge of the seat, all consuming head fuck that leaves you with more questions than answers after the credits finish rolling. Actually, it is during the final scene as the credits roll that Haneke delivers the real kicker. Everything that has gone before is turned on its head or maybe everything is explained! This blogger was left befuddled. Despite this confusion and the stark, clinical, slow moving pace it is a long time since I have been so engrossed and consumed by a film.

The basic story line revolves around a well-to-do middle class family who receive anonymous video tapes of what appears to be surveillance footage of their home accompanied with unsettling child like drawings . They supposedly have nothing to hide but the invasion of privacy and induced terror begins to take hold of the family. As the plot unfolds the father George begins to suspect only one person and eventually he is led to the home of a Moroccan man who lived with the him as a child. It is evident that something happened between the 2 men as children and as George attempts to deal with the guilt of this past incident and come to terms with the fear and paranoia in his present he is forced to witness a tragic and overwhelming act of violence which will leave any cinema audience utterly stunned. However, questions still remain and as the films grinds to its conclusion one is constantly left with an uneasy feeling and sense of anxiety as to what lies round the corner.

Hidden is as frightening as any horror film and as engrossing as any dark thriller, a fantastic cinematic experience especially on a Sunday afternoon with a mild hangover. For anyone who enjoys a bit more than guns blazing and Hollywood babes in their movies I would highly recommend you catch 'Hidden' before it slips out the back door of a cinema near you.

Published by Padraig.  

My answers to this meme which Auds asked me to contribute to are below.


Gender: Male
Age: (1-18; 19-30; 31-45; 46-60; 60+) 19-30
Nationality: Irish
Country of residence: Ireland
Sexual Orientation: Oi Loikes Girls
Do you have a disability? No
How would you describe your political philosophy? Liberal\mildly Socialist
Level of education (primary; post-primary; third-level; graduate; professional) Graduate
If you were to vote on party lines which party would you choose (Ireland)? Labour
If you were to vote on party lines which party would you choose (UK)? Lib Dem
If you were to vote on party lines which party would you choose (USA)? Hehehe, eh, I'm holding out for Bill O'Reilly to put his name forward. Whichever party he does that for, that's definetly who I'd vote for. Other than that, I don't see much of party lines over there.
Where do you stand on the EU? Currently, I'm sitting - in Athlone, Co. Westmeath, Ireland.
Did you support the invasion of Afghanistan? To give a blunt answer, Yes.
Did you support the invasion of Iraq? No.
Do you continue to support either or both of those conflicts? I don't know enough about how things are going in Afghanistan to give an answer, last thing I heard is that the poppy crop is flying. Iraq; if I didn't support it in the first place, I hardly support it now ;)
What do you believe is the single biggest issue facing Irish politics? Mary Harney's Arse and its drive to ban anything that is tenuously linked to the tragic and regretable death of one person.
What do you believe is the single biggest issue facing European politics? Whether to centralise further on policy or not.
What do you believe is the single biggest issue facing international politics? Tough call between Debt/Fair Trade/Poverty and The Environment
Are you, have you ever been, and do you ever wish to be involved in politics in a party political manner? No, No, Wouldn't rule it out.
Who would you have voted for in the past US Presidential Election? John Kerry

I can't really bare to inflict this meme on five people. I'll just go for Claire and UI, sorry guys!

Published by Paul.  

I said I wouldn't touch this one with a barge poll because it is such an emotive issue, but I can't resist. If you can't get worked up about a life or death issue, you may as well not blog at all.

Let's preface all of this by saying that I disagree with legalised abortion on demand, but I approve of abortion in exceptional medical cases. So the following can all be considered in light of my opposition to abortion on demand.

It's hard-coded into your mindset - either you're for or against it. Whereas the debate over gay marriage and divorce involves individuals and the decisions they make concerning only themselves, the entrenched views in this debate sees the Pro-Life supporters never swaying from the opinion that abortion affects two people; the mother and the unborn baby. The law in Ireland currently supports this view. However, the numbers who support either argument may change depending on how new voters make up their mind.

Central to forming an opinion on the matter is the whole issue of when it's (don't extract any meaning from my use of the word 'it') a bunch of cells and when it's a human. As expertly pointed out by a commenter Mental Meanderings, a scientific answer is needed before judgment can be made and laws can be changed in Ireland. Contrary to what Fiona DeLondres says, it is my belief that it does not come down to a decision that's based on faith or religion.

The latest point in any pregnancy when a woman can have an abortion in the UK is currently 24 weeks. I will not employ Youth Defence tactics and show you what a foetus looks like at 24 weeks (this is dealt with in another 'big debate'). But to me a foetus at 24 weeks has all the characteristics and outwardly appearances of a human being. If it looks like a baby, it's a baby. End of. However, this only pushes the argument to an earlier point in the pregnancy. Is the morning-after pill just another form of abortion?

I have nothing but respect for Fiona DeLondres's writing to date but when she says that emotion has no place in this debate, she is profoundly wrong. Emotion seeps from every corner of this issue. To treat the issue with sterile detachment would be wrong. Teenage girls feeling like they have no choice but to terminate lives inside their bodies involves emotion. A teenage father who has little or no say in whether he is willing to be a father has emotions. The girl's parents, who are ashamed of her daughter's humping in the bedroom next door, are emotional. In the whole gay marriage debate, a lot of what Fiona spoke of was about the merit of recognising the emotion and love between people of the same sex. Double standards a go-go.

The libertarian in me says that a lot of this is caused by ordinary Irish folks' prudish attitude towards sex. They have trouble imagining their daughter having sexual intercourse with a boy. How cold you must be to shun a daughter, a sister or a niece when she's in trouble? How lacking in compassion you must be to make her feel like her only option is to travel to the UK to have her offspring terminated?

A bizarre element of this debate (read also as yet another row between DeLondres and Waghorne) is the comment from Richard Waghorne that a blog is not the place to discuss this issue. Why on earth not? What could preclude this debate from happening in the blogging community? However, he has wavered and will give his opinion on Sicilian Notes.

The fact that some women elect to have an abortion because their lifestyle cannot accommodate any disruption is truly tragic and grossly self-centred. If you make the decision not to treat contraception seriously, it is this blogger's opinion that you must not shirk the responsibility of pregnancy. I will not accept the argument that it's easy for us men to say this and that we're not in any position to comment. This post contends that the foetus is the equal product of its mother and its father and it should therefore follow that the father gets a say in the foetus's fate.

We now have a young population, the Church doesn't hold as much influence on its flock and money has become more important to society. People are more educated and more inclined to rationalise debate in their own heads. In short, individualism has taken told. This all spells danger for the unborn. If science can keep a-pace with the mé féinism, pro-lifers can look forward to protracting this debate.

The pain of giving up one's progeny for adoption is very real. But adoption must be considered as a viable alternative to termination. This country has seen a shortfall of children for adoption and many couples are travelling great distances to adopt. The decision to terminate a pregnancy has left many a scar and the subsequent guilt felt by women after taking this drastic action has been well documented. Surely there is a case to be made for weighing up both options.

I'm not intellectually equipped to have a ding-dong battle with Fiona, but I'm not going to beat myself up over this. Like every other pro-lifer, I'm making this a moral issue - one that's packed to the rafters with emotion.

Published by Colm.  

This is bizarre. Came across this blog today. It turns out I know this person and we used to live relatively near each other in the West of Ireland (2 miles max).

Anyway, I almost spat my coffee at my monitor while reading some of her blog entries (see this example). You would be forgiven for thinking that you were reading Claire Fisher's blog from Six Feet Under. She had even talked to me before about In Fact, Ah but omitted to tell me about her own blog.

Go have a look for yourself.

Published by Colm.  

This is just about one of the prettiest buildings I've seen here in London. Can you imagine a few hundred people queueing to enter the Natural History Museum in Dublin at 11am on a Sunday morning? No, me neither.

Published by Colm.  

Surfing is becoming an ever more popular pastime on the west coast of Ireland and with some of the best surfing conditions in the world it's no surprise that thousands of people come from all over Europe and the world every year to surf waves in Clare, Sligo, Donegal and Kerry.

In a new film Gavin Gallagher documents the passion and obsession with surfing in Ireland. Intertwined with the story of a number of fanatical surfers is some truly remarkable footage and this preview (you can watch here) shows a group of surfers riding Ireland’s biggest wave “Aill Na Searrach” under the Cliffs of Moher last year for the first time ever. These monstrous 35ft waves break just below the cliffs and are exceptionally hazardous. Anyone who has been to the awe inspiring Cliffs of Moher will truly appreciate this footage. Amazing!

Published by Colm.  

The backlash wasn't to be predicted, mainly because of the West's lack of understanding that depicting Mohammad in any form is strictly forbidden by Islam. Embassies around the Muslim world have been torched and in London extremist groups have been calling for the death of anyone who mocks their prophet. If these badly drawn cartoons were deemed to have the potential to incite hatred against Islam, the reaction has been even more in violation of hate speech laws.

If "Life of Brian" had been made in a Muslim country with Muslim actors, you can be sure that Christians living in Muslim countries would not have taken to the streets calling for the heads of the offending Muslims. The freedom to say what you like has desensitised Christians to all forms of mockery of their faith. Western religions are the butt of jokes in many comedy routines on television, in print and in public and nobody bats an eyelid.

In the Guardian on Saturday, Gary Younge argued that not only has the media insulted and offended Muslims, they also want to dictate how Muslims should react to being insulted. Too right. To be outraged is their right, to tell Londoners that their 9/11 is on its way is illegal and deeply threatening. No cartoon, no matter how offensive it is, merits the taking of so much as one life.

The virus-like spread of publication of these images by newspapers across Europe was profoundly wrong however. The race for kudos for printing the cartoons was sickening. Just because you can say something offensive, it doesn't mean you should flex your muscle and do just that. It's pathetic.

Nick Griffin of the BNP called it a multi-culturism mess. It a twisted way I agree with him. Sometimes there is simply no meeting half-way on this one; it's either black or white with no shades of grey compromise. Some serious diplomacy will be needed in the coming few weeks.

Published by Colm.  

Liverpool were well and truly beaten 2-0 today by a far superior Chelsea. It should have ended 3-0 with Hernan Crespo being denied a perfectly valid goal. The champions elect won by being the better attacking force and by winning the psychological battle. Their potency up front makes them a firm favourite when the Champions League knockout stages commence.

And in terms of gameplan and mental strength, there can be no better equipped team. When you hear John Terry saying that the league was still not theirs, you know Jose Mourinho has kept the threat of complacency at bay. Liverpool did come out fighting in the second half but wilted as every Chelsea attack looked like it could yield dividends.

The late sending off of Pepe Reina did however spoil matters. Arjen Robben looked like a man possessed and his constant questioning of refereeing decisions was particularly sour. It seems that it's perfectly okay to say "fuck off" to the linesman and be safe in the knowledge that there will be no repercussions.

Reina's well-timed tackle on Eidur Gudjohnsen got him into hot water. The situation was made worse when Robben remonstrated with Reina who in turn pushed Robben away. Predictably, Robben hit the ground like he had been struck with a truncheon.

Chelsea are a physical force to be reckoned with, especially at the back. That said, as usual Frank Lampard went AWOL against strong opposition. This will surely be a concern for Chelsea when they face Barcelona in a few weeks.

All is not lost for Liverpool. They look forward to their last 16 meeting with a beatable Benfica in the last 16 of the Champions League. This is a competition that is definitely not done and dusted. Champions League games are less physical and that should see Liverpool become a more dominant force than they currently are in the Premiership.

Published by Colm.  

Bloggers, who is catching Clap Your Hands Say Yeah in the Village tomorrow night?

In Fact, Ah we'll be there with bells on. Oh, except for the exiled Bell X1 nut.

Published by Paul.  

Every day I get the Northern Line tube to central London. It's usually crowded and wedged with commuters on their way to their nine to five jobs. In cities like London, you have to make your mean city face. You don't stare and you certainly don't speak to anyone. But ever since July, people have been staring a lot on the London underground. I carry a backpack to work as I always did in Dublin. However, the backpack has become one of the greatest sources of fear to have ever existed in this city. To allay other people's fears, I leave it on my back as much as possible and try not to fumble with it when I am on the Tube.

On July 7th, four men brought terror to London. And it hasn't gone away. People like me who carry backpacks are not to be trusted. Last night, BBC journalist Rajsh Thind in his programme "Travels with my Beard", told us about his idea for "freedom bags" which in essence is a transparent backpack. To be honest, I laughed out loud. How ridiculous? Surely the citizens of this great city would scoff at the very notion of using plastic see-through backpacks. As he handed out his free freedom bags outside Stockwell tube station, gracious receivers of this gift claimed that it could some day save their lives.

Carrying my bag around has made me wary. And with good reason. Not only do I not want to startle fellow Tube passengers, I also don't want to attract attention from police. Just over six months ago, Jean Charles de Menezes was held to the floor of an underground train and had seven bullets inserted into his brain. This happened only a few hundred yards from my home at Stockwell station. Police claimed that he jumped the barrier and refused to obey police instructions. This was later accepted as not being true.

On July 21st, a man attempted to detonate a bomb on an underground train between Stockwell and the station I enter every morning. The bomb failed to explode and he fled from that station but was later apprehended.

That said, I haven't been stopped by police. I'm a white man who obviously doesn't fit the profile. Black people is seems are not as innocent looking. They are eight times more likely to be stopped and searched by police under section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

Published by Colm.  

I'd just like to tip my hat to the Toxteth Terror who will line out from the home dressing room at Anfield this evening for the first time in four years. Robbie Fowler, professional footballer and property tycoon scored 171 goals in 330 first team appearances for Liverpool in his first period at the club. Irrespective of how staggering the stats, to understand the true Robbie Fowler one has to take into account the flair and magic which went into building his goalscoring record. In this Liverpool supporters opinion Micahel Owen is not fit to lace Fowler's boots.

On a more trivial note, aswell as being the most gifted, if not prolific, English footballer of his generation Fowler does hold the absolute record for best goal celebration of all time. After scoring against arch-rivals Everton who constantly taunted him with chants of 'Drugie Drugie Drugie' he improvised with his surroundings in this blissfully witty moment:

Robbie, I hope all you want from this move happens for you, you owe us the fans and the club nothing.

Published by Paul.