Category Archives: In the news

Three killed at Dunboy Castle

Three young men were killed today when their car fell into the water at Dunboy Castle just outside Castletownbere in Co Cork.

Investigating gardaí say that the three local young men had been driving in the grounds of Dunboy Castle when their Ford Fiesta got stuck in grass close to a laneway below the castle which is currently being renovated.

Two other friends came to their rescue with a jeep, but for reasons which are not yet clear, all five were in the Fiesta when it slipped from the embankment and into the water.

Sad and shocking as it is, I wouldn’t mention it here except that I drove down there with my family only a week ago. We enjoyed a lovely meal in Castletownbere during which we were told that Dunboy Castle was worth a look. On the way out of the town the castle is signposted so we decided to go look. Here are a few pictures. Judging by the picture on the RTE website I’d say they went into water very close to where I parked a week earlier. That freaks me out a little bit.

Dunboy Castle

Dunboy Castle

Dunboy Castle

Bertie's yellow hair and pierced nose

Bertie Ahern
The Irish Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, Sunday Times, Dec. 23 2007

I really would love to know how the Minister for Finance survived so many years without a bank account.

Linkies ..

The 8 bit Philosophy is a documentary coming in 2008 about some of the musicians that made the C64 a great sounding machine. The trailer has sound bites from such famous names as Reyn Ouwehand and Thomas Detert. There’s a 78MB high quality trailer too but it’s the same thing that’s on Youtube.

How to find cocaine in Ireland

It’s easy to find cocaine in Ireland:

I wish the how to make cocaine video was still online.

Here’s the Podge and Rodge interview with Katy French from earlier this year. I remember this. I didn’t know who she was either!

More discussion on Politics.ie, An Fear Rua, and Peoples Republic of Cork.

Here’s my favourite quote, and a short poem from the PRC forum.

heres a better tip.dont touch the shite fullstop.then you wont have any worries and wont have to crouch in a toilet cubicle sniffing fuck knows what off a piss and shit stained toilet

My name is Cocaine – call me Coke for short.
I entered this country without a passport.
Ever since then I’ve made lots of scum rich.
Some have been murdered and found in a ditch.
I’m more valued than diamonds, more treasured than gold.
Use me just once and you too will be sold.
I’ll make a schoolboy forget his books.
I’ll make a beauty queen forget her looks.
I’ll take renowned speaker and make a bore.
I’ll take a mother and make her a whore.
I’ll make a schoolteacher forget how to teach.
I’ll make a preacher not want to preach.
I’ll take all your rent money and you’ll get evicted.
I’ll murder your babies or they’ll be born addicted.
I’ll make you rob and steal and kill.
When you’re under my power you have no will.
Remember my friend my name is ” Big C “.
If you try me just one time you may never be free.
I’ve destroyed actors, politicians and many a hero.
I’ve decreased bank accounts from millions to zero.
I make shooting and stabbing a common affair.
Once I take charge you won’t have a prayer.
Now that you know me what will you do ?
You’ll have to decide, It’s all up to you.
The day you agree to sit in my saddle.
The decision is one that no one can straddle.
Listen to me, and please listen well.
When you ride with cocaine you are headed for hell !!!

Far too much Bertie

Bertie Ahern, the Irish prime minister received a pay increase of €38,000 a few weeks ago. Not many people are happy about that. To express your disapproval, send an email to FARTOOMUCHBERTIE@gmail.com and you’ll be sent a “Far too much Bertie” sticker. 200,000 stickers have been printed so there are plenty to go around!

far too much bertie

Via Indymedia and Kevin Cotter on the Ray D’Arcy Show.

Personally, I’d prefer to see a “Get Mary Harney out!” sticker to get rid of Mary Harney, the Health Minister. Hundreds of more cancer cases in Cork and Galway are to be reviewed. What a shambles.

Update! There’s a lively discussion on boards.ie! Welcome all from there. Please feel free to comment here too.

How long can you hold your breath?

I used to be able to swim well. At a stretch I could do 50*25m lengths of a pool in about an hour. I’d be wrecked after it for days on end, but I did it. And at the time I managed to hold my breath and swim the whole length of the pool underwater. Those pesky kids at the top of the pool were always a frustrating obstacle when the air is running out ..

That all pales in comparison to the achievements of British freediver Sara Campbell who can hold her breath underwater for 4min 30sec. She recently set a world record in the disciple of, “constant weight” freediving when she dived to 90m (295ft) on one breath.

There is a risk of blackout and burst eardrums and the lungs compress to the size of a clenched fist, but deep down at 90 metres – where no other woman swimming with just a monofin for propulsion has gone before – the Red Sea looks golden to Sara Campbell.

Phew.

Luciano Pavarotti has sung his last

Luciano Pavarotti died in the early morning of September 6, 2007 at home surrounded by his wife and four daughters.

I got a bit of a shock this morning looking through my feeds when I saw Pat’s post that Pavarotti died. The Wikipedia page on him has already been updated with more details. A sad day for his family, friends, fans and the music world.

luciano-pavarotti.png

News from the beaches of Cork

Following the news that €105m worth of cocaine was recovered from the waters off West Cork over the last 2 days it appears that some people have been down to the beaches helping Gardai with their investigation..

cork.jpg

Thanks Derek for the image, anyone know where it came from originally?

Whither the outcry?

Bombs were defused and a disaster avoided in London and Glasgow yet I hardly hear a word of it online. Strange. The terrorists must be Apple users who knew that everyone would be talking about the iPhone.

Mark reminds us it wasn’t the police who noticed the bomb outside the nightclub in London. I read somewhere that paramedics were attending to a young man who had fallen outside the club when they spotted the suspicious packages in the car. If they hadn’t been there how many people would now be dead? Hugh points towards this post showing the nonsensical imbalance of news reporting.

I guess if it doesn’t happen in your own backyard then it doesn’t happen at all.

I voted today in the Irish election

Thanks Celine for taking care of Adam while we went and voted! I can’t remember who I gave all my votes to but the first two went to:

  • John McCarthy, an independent standing on health issues, including mental health. (yes, that is a pony tail!)
  • Noel O’Flynn, a Fianna Fail politician. He helped us a few weeks ago, although in hindsight there was little he could do. I’ll be blogging about that once an appeal is done.

I didn’t vote for the Worker’s Party, Socialist Party (same thing?), Sinn Fein or the Greens.

Around the Irish blogosphere:

  • Mel listed who he voted for.
  • Claire voted for the first time.
  • The Swearing Lady ponders the paradox that the Irish government wanted Sinn Fein to be part of the administration in the North, but nobody will touch them with a barge pole down south.
  • Adam thinks Rock the Vote was a complete failure. As I only became aware of that movement through blogs talking about it and taking the piss out of it I’d have to agree.
  • More coverage from Politics.ie, Irish Election, and of course Damien has plenty to say on the election. I rather enjoyed the grey tigers video he posted!