Above: Enda Starr running the controls for the weekly Firehouse show on Radio Na Life 106.4 FM. Find out when to lock in over here. Rashers Tierney caught up with Paul from the legendary Firehouse Skank to hear about hauling the first proper sound system to Ireland in the early 1990s, friends pissing in the wrong place at a rammers gig and that all essential UK link up. Mick T-woc … Read More
Krugman: Your Government Hates You.
Economist Paul Krugman appeared on BBC’s Newsnight on Tuesday. He spoke about Austerity Europe and agreed with Kevin O’Rourke’s summation that our government is working against our best interests. Professor Krugman said: “I talked to some Irish economists. They’re pointing out that the government in Ireland is really acting against the interests of the people of Ireland but in its own interests by saying oh look, we’re good, we’re anti, … Read More
Handle Without Care.
Fran Hartnett and Giles Armstrong are two names synonymous with Irish Techno. In late 2014 they joined together, for a limited run of gigs around the country, as FraGile. Kinetika’s Jasper Mathews caught up with them to hear about their long romance that started down the back of the 49 bus. FraGile, where did the idea for collaboration come from? Giles: It’s all about the name! Fran: Haha, he admits it! … Read More
What Is It About Unelectable Galway Senators?
Not to be outdone by Fidelma Freely Memes, Galway East Senator Lorraine Higgins has taken to the tweet machine to launch a Condemn-A-Thon. Let he who doth not cast a stone be assumed to have sinned, or something (see 2007 for it’s last relevance). Senator Higgins came to light when roaring about Brickgate a few months ago. Calling Ireland a “Lawless Utopia” (sounds good to us!) we got our … Read More
Boycott Actions On Rise In Ireland.
On Thursday Ireland saw one of its busiest days of action yet for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel, Ronan Burtenshaw reports. As the death toll in Gaza rose above 1,600, actions took place in six locations across the country in shops that stock Israeli goods. In Cork, Galway, Castlebar, Westport and Limerick activists went to Marks and Spencer, Tesco, and SuperValu. They filled trollies with Israeli products, brought … Read More
Palestinian Blood On The Hands Of Obama.
Irish parliamentarian Clare Daly was among the speakers at a large demonstration outside the Israeli Embassy in Dublin today. She didn’t hold back: “This assault would not happen…without the deafening silence coming from the United States of America. A silence that has enabled the slaughter, ensured it’s continuation and has resulted in the fact that we can honestly say that there is as much Palestinian blood on the hands of Barack … Read More
An Unhealthy State Of Affairs
Did Dr James Reilly, Minister for Health, know the company believed to be recommending closing Portiuncula maternity hospital was ‘Health Partnership’ set up by his appointee as Chair to the Hospitals Group which acts on the report? An exchange in the Seanad last night between the Cathaoirleach Paddy Burke (Fine Gael) Senator Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Féin) suggests as much. The exchange took place under House privilege and allegations … Read More
#rabbleReels: Robert Burns – The People’s Poet
It’s Burns Night and we’ve linked a BBC Documentary about his life as well as a couple of other pieces of interest. He was a man ahead of his time in many ways, his influence more widespread than might be imagined. Called the ‘People’s Poet’ by Russian peasants, he wrote ‘The Rights of Woman’ before the French Revolution and Bob Dylan regards him as his inspiration. Burns had some Irish … Read More
#FallonsFables: Small Minds, Big Screen
It’s perhaps unsurprising that a country that waged war on jazz music (the music of the Devil, apparently) and which banned many of its most celebrated authors would have a remarkable history of film censorship. Donal Fallon takes a look at how Irish audiences were historically deprived of some of the most ground-breaking films of the day. The Irish state was not the only force at play in keeping … Read More
Ballyhea, Ho – Let’s Go!
An attempted military coup led Donncha Ó Briain to produce the acclaimed Chavez: Inside The Coup. He’s back with a new documentary that traces the humdrum of those rare Irish social movements fighting against austerity. Rashers Tierney quizzes him on it . Peripheral Vision is the title of the documentary. Can you tell me where that came from? It seems to suggest that the sort of movements you … Read More