Slugger’s Daily (well sort of) Blogburst…

One week, and just two ‘daily’ blogbursts… It’s been hectic on and off the site… There’s a lot we’ve missed this week, but we’ll try to give a breeze through some of it… So, kicking off with Irish Election who announced the launch of Libertas as a pan European party (timed with the news that Ireland was to re-run a referendum on Lisbon)…- World By Storm reckons that Libertas the pan European Party adds up to little more than Declan Ganley as butter spread thinly across the EU toast

– Tomaltach reckons that Lisbon may be flawed but workable. And he’s unimpressed with Sinn Fein’s ideological resistance to it

– The Irish Left Review has a response from Green Senator Dan Boyle to Michael Taft’s outline for recovery

Budget 2009, contrary to much of the reportage of its contents subsequently, has quite clearly hitched itself to a borrowing wagon than it has to the curbing of public expenditure or additional taxation measures. Close on 13 billion euro is being sought in borrowing in 2009 and this could rise to 15 billion given the further deterioration in ta

xation receipts in 2008.

– As Gerard notes, the Government’s recovery plan will be published after a 40 day holiday for the Dail and Seanad… Elsewhere he argues that “normality will never be normal again”… Hmmm, indeed

– O’Neill picks up on Conor Murphy’s remarks that we may have a border referendum before 2016… Which is fine; but first might we expect the FSA and the FSA to learn how to talk with one another when the whole future of the Northern Irish Pork industry is (mistakenly) thrown into the pan..?

– And Jeff is wondering if Alex Salmons could use this recession against Gordon Brown in time for 2010

– And if you think Belfast (Capital of Procrastination – Seamus McKee, c 2006) is slow at effecting change, what about the reforms agreed in Constitutional Law in 1979 that are still waiting to acted upon

– Oh, and I am grateful to Jeff Peel at the Tory’s NI blog for picking this piece of mine from the mass of comments on the Tory/UUP’s New Force hook up…

– Will has Daphne Trimble’s explanation why she won’t touch the NIHC’s proposals on a new Bill of Rights. It has, she argues:

…has misinterpreted its mandate and that the additional rights suggested by the majority have little if anything to do with the principles of mutual respect for the identity and ethos of both communities and parity of esteem.

– Mairtin notes that Obama’s Senate seat is up for sale on Ebay

– And as the cheques from GoogleAds get less and less as the audience slowly rises here at Slugger (though MessageSpace remains very healthy) Alan maintains his policy of no ads… Our ads don’t pay the wages, but they have certainly helped keep Slugger afloat in the thin times by paying the bills…

– Other blogs do it by making themselves into a book… Editor of the LibDem Voice Mark Pack tells Slugger “It’s 21st century content meets 15th century technology: the web, in a book…” Do you think we could do that? [I’ll get onto the phone to my publisher right away – ed]

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