June 2010 – Page 2 – Slugger O'Toole

Photograph of the Day – French Athlete

Moochin Photoman on June 29, 2010, 8:25 am | Readers 9

I’m in the final run up for an exhibition i’m having at the Waterfront Hall so i’ll be posting a few samplers this week. Moochin PhotomanPhotographer and visual artist based in Belfast. I have facilitated community based workshops with groups as diverse as visually impaired individuals in Dungannn, Travellers across Northern Ireland, Young Offenders and many community groups across Belfast. My work has exhibited extensively here in Northern Ireland in group and individual shows and has been shown in North …

ETA suspect refused bail

Pete Baker on June 28, 2010, 7:39 pm | Readers 1

The BBC reports today’s court appearance of suspected ETA terrorist Fermin Vila Michelena, who was arrested in Belfast on Thursday. According to his barrister, Michelena has been living in Belfast under an assumed name since 2007. From the BBC report The barrister accepted his client, who lived alone at a flat in north Belfast, was using an assumed name. But he claimed this was to avoid detection from the Spanish authorities and persecution for his beliefs. “He has long admired the ongoing …

Rerun of anti sport blog

Turgon on June 28, 2010, 6:47 pm | Readers 5

I see England lost at the football. For some unionists this creates all sorts of issues about supporting or not supporting England. I have no such worries: I do not support England for much the same reason as I do not support anyone else; a complete disinterest in sport (well I quite like cricket a bit but that is all). Alan in Belfast has complained about the excess sport on Slugger and as such I will repeat my anti sport …

The Fountain: A part of Londonderry that Derry forgot…

Mick Fealty on June 28, 2010, 5:30 pm | Readers 2162

Nice observational piece here from Middlemarch on Listenderry… A writer from a nationalist background who took a quiet walk into and around the tiny Fountain area: the only part of Derry city’s west bank which retains a substantial Protestant population… Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty

“The first king of England to visit us was Henry II in 1171…”

Pete Baker on June 28, 2010, 3:55 pm | Readers 62

With Elizabeth II reportedly on her way, in the Irish Times Denis Fahey provides a short history of royal visits, beginning in 1171 with Henry II. And he notes a speech by George V in Belfast, 1921. King George VI visited Northern Ireland on a number of occasions, and Queen Elizabeth has been there frequently, but the most significant visit of a British royal in the last century was probably the one made by George V in June 1921, when …

Quote of the week (so far)…

Mick Fealty on June 28, 2010, 3:47 pm | Readers 9

So far as I know it is still in the realm of speculation, but newly minted fan of Splintered Sunrise, Damian Thompson has this to say on the rumour that Ann Widdecombe is to be the next UK ambassador to the Vatican: A former Telegraph colleague of mine thought she was a jolly good thing until he sat next to her at a formal dinner and she alternately blanked him and lectured him. Now, actually, she is a jolly good thing, …

After Ireland’s reckless “if-I-have-it-I’ll-spend-it decade”…

Mick Fealty on June 28, 2010, 3:37 pm | Readers 2

There seems to be a sustained counterattack on Irish Labour at the moment, usually framed as a question: ‘what would you do instead?’ That was the predominant line of questioning of Pat Rabbitte on Morning Ireland this am… Although you can see from Noel Whelan’s column on Saturday that whilst Labour may have many policy documents they may not add up to the sum of the parts… Rabbitte’s response was not to get tangled in the detail, but to argue …

Press Watch: A new column…

admin on June 28, 2010, 12:15 pm | Readers 1

We’re not sure how regular this column will be, since it will depend to some extent on what comes in from you the readers. But f you see something wrong, misleading or inaccurate (Slugger O’Toole included, btw!!) then send it into Mick at [email protected] and he will pass it on. We cannot guarantee to publish everything we receive, but we’ll do our best to bring you the best. Here’s a couple of starters. First, these two divergent lines on the same story …

England: “We’re sh!t and we know we are…”

Mick Fealty on June 28, 2010, 11:24 am | Readers 3

The average England soccer fan has a strange love hate relationship with the serial failure of their international football team to win anything much since Wembly 1966. “It will really teach us a lesson” quipped one caller on Nicky Campbell phone in on BBC Radio Five Live this morning. Er, no actually. If there was any chance of that, you’d have learned something since you started serially beating up your managers, starting with Don Revie back in 1974. Even the sainted …

When England are smashed, take comfort in Northern Ireland

Brian Walker on June 28, 2010, 10:57 am | Readers 4

I’m old fashioned enough to support England casually as the big team, when the tiddlers have been eliminated in the qualifiers. Those Irish – unionists among them, I know – who put England last rather than support England second are sad bastards as far as I’m concerned. But I have to say that Northern Ireland qualifying twice in my life time has given me more pleasure than the entire England record, bar watching the disputed England victory in 1966 in the …

Photograph of the Day – Burst

Moochin Photoman on June 28, 2010, 9:21 am | Readers 30

Moochin PhotomanPhotographer and visual artist based in Belfast. I have facilitated community based workshops with groups as diverse as visually impaired individuals in Dungannn, Travellers across Northern Ireland, Young Offenders and many community groups across Belfast. My work has exhibited extensively here in Northern Ireland in group and individual shows and has been shown in North America and i had my first solo international exhibition in New Zealand. I have been the recipient of a number of grants from the …

Peer review? They work for you …

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on June 28, 2010, 8:34 am | Readers 22

House of Lords - crowned portcullis image

On average, local peers voted in the Lords less than a quarter of the time over the last two years, while claiming on average just over £100,000 in expenses over the last four years. The most vocal third of local peers spoke an average 68 times over four years, while the quietest two-thirds only spoke an average of 11 times in four years. This morning’s Irish News (no link – article on newsstand or behind paywall) leads with Diana Rusk’s …

“verdict against Galileo was rational and just…”

Pete Baker on June 27, 2010, 11:00 pm | Readers 26

Galileo Galilei didn’t invent the telescope. But he was convicted of heresy by the Catholic Church. I’ve mentioned his trial before. And Pope Benedict XVI’s argument that the “verdict against Gaileo was rational and just, and revisionism can be legitimized solely for motives of political opportunism.” [Adds As tierney comments below, I should have noted that Benedict is quoting the philosopher P Feyerabend] Today Will Crawley noted the arguments of a Fr Ernan McMullin On today’s Sunday Sequence, Fr Ernan McMullin, …

The ‘Englezes’ V ‘The Boche’ and our complex ties with ‘de udder’ island

ItwasSammyMcNally on June 27, 2010, 1:49 pm | Readers 7

This afternoon at 3pm and the latest round of the conflict will kick off when the old war and soccer-ball adversaries take to the football field. Perhaps the bestest football chant of all time Two world wars and one world cup provides the sporting and historical context for the tie – although the damned Boche might quibble that the chant needs updating to take account of their 1970 and 1990 World Cup victories over their deadliest rivals. And we can …

Photograph of the day – flick the switch

Moochin Photoman on June 27, 2010, 9:13 am | Readers 3

Moochin PhotomanPhotographer and visual artist based in Belfast. I have facilitated community based workshops with groups as diverse as visually impaired individuals in Dungannn, Travellers across Northern Ireland, Young Offenders and many community groups across Belfast. My work has exhibited extensively here in Northern Ireland in group and individual shows and has been shown in North America and i had my first solo international exhibition in New Zealand. I have been the recipient of a number of grants from the …

What’s occuring down under?

Dewi on June 27, 2010, 5:49 am | Readers 8

So a Barry girl is the new Australian Prime Minister: Julia Gillard Which begs two interesting quiz questions: 1) What’s the Ian Paisley Snr connection? 2) Name 2 20th century Welsh speaking Prime Ministers DewiWelsh Nationalist. Rugby Fan. Know a bit about History and Railways…

A farce within a force

Blank on June 26, 2010, 7:44 pm | Readers 27

With today’s protest against DUP/SF proposed legislation to restrict the right to public assembly the PSNI earlier demonstrated how they will try and curb the current right to legal Public Assembly anyhow. Last year the PSNI successfully prevented éirígí’s protest against Armed Forces Day in Belfast by blocking protestors as they made their way to the assembly point. This year éirígí got around that by assembling directly at City Hall and not travelling there as a group. This meant their …

Fine Gael retain lead in Red C poll

Mick Fealty on June 26, 2010, 5:13 pm | Readers 0

The latest SBP/RedC poll shows a surge for Labour although less than the Irish Times poll from a fortnight ago. Fine Gael retain a healthy lead and FF languishing on a steady 24%. David has the detail on politics.ie: FF 24% (NC) FG 33% (+3) LAB 27% (+5) Greens 2% (-3) http://pie.ly/cln4Le Mick FealtyMick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest …

What has happened to Strands 2 and 3?

Brian Walker on June 26, 2010, 1:22 pm | Readers 2

It was sporting of the Guernsey chief minister to defend the cost of setting out eight delegations in a row for the latest meeting of the British-Irish Council in his lovely island. Especially as the main news to come out of it was that “ marine renewable technology isn’t quite there yet.” 125k is an awful lot of tomatoes. It wasn’t much consolation either when Biffo gripped the assembled statespersons with the news that neither Irish jurisdiction has figured out …

Photograph of the Day – Waiting on the Decant team

Moochin Photoman on June 26, 2010, 8:31 am | Readers 8

Moochin PhotomanPhotographer and visual artist based in Belfast. I have facilitated community based workshops with groups as diverse as visually impaired individuals in Dungannn, Travellers across Northern Ireland, Young Offenders and many community groups across Belfast. My work has exhibited extensively here in Northern Ireland in group and individual shows and has been shown in North America and i had my first solo international exhibition in New Zealand. I have been the recipient of a number of grants from the …