Hugh Doyle

Banning of the National Conservatism Conference in Brussels…

Hugh Doyle on April 17, 2024, 12:05 pm | Readers 2722

A prominent news story today in both the British and European press has been that of the banning of the National Conservatism Conference by Brussels municipality of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode Mayor Emir Kir stating: I issued an order from the mayor to ban the National Conservatism Conference event to guarantee public safety. In Etterbeek, Brussels City and Saint-Josse, the far right is not welcome: Among the speakers due to talk were Nigel Farage, Suella Braverman, Viktor Orban, Eric Zemmour and Mateusz Morawiecki. …

What have you done for me lately?

Hugh Doyle on April 3, 2024, 9:25 am | Readers 4849

I’ve just read Andy Pollak’s piece: ‘How are nationalists going to get unionist consent for unity if they don’t actively work for reconciliation with that community?‘ It’s a lengthy piece that heavily features excerpts from comments and gestures from Leo Varadker and an analysis of Ireland’s Future aims and objectives. The OP is one of a recent number that focuses on ‘unionist consent’ in the event of Irish unification as if consent by unionism is some sort of prerequisite for …

From Belfast to Pamplona…

Hugh Doyle on March 10, 2024, 7:10 am | Readers 1355

Brian had said previously that he’d be interested in a blog about some of the contrasts between my home city and adopted city and I’ve finally gotten around to it so here goes with the stream of consciousness. As I’ve alluded to here a few times, my wife is Basque. We lived in West Belfast for seventeen years, spending every summer of those seventeen years here before finally deciding to come here to live full time several years ago and …

A Tale of Two Festivals…

Hugh Doyle on September 14, 2023, 3:43 pm | Readers 4214

group of people on grass field under sunny day

Have you ever heard of Electric Picnic? It’s a weekend festival held in County Laois in the Irish midlands. The festival’s web page explains it as: Ireland’s largest gathering of music & arts, and the ultimate rock n’ roll circus, Electric Picnic has established itself as one of the world’s most unique festivals. With a great selection of music, art, theatre, comedy, food and holistic health, it’s the most delightfully diverse end of summer party on the Emerald Isle It’s …

Celebrating 35 years of Féile An Phobail…

Hugh Doyle on August 13, 2023, 5:57 pm | Readers 9162

Tonight will be the closing concert for Féile An Phobail and tomorrow no doubt the Twittersphere and polemical radio shows will be ablaze with furious indignation. It’s incredible to think that Féile An Phobail is thirty-five years old this year and how far it has come in those thirty-five years. I was born in the lower Falls in 1967 and in 1970 moved to a house in one of the housing estates clustered around the top of the Whiterock Road, …

Is the smartphone the ultimate protection against police brutality?

Hugh Doyle on August 8, 2023, 10:11 am | Readers 1280

group of police in the middle of the road

Youtuber, (whatever that is) Kai Cenat is to be charged with inciting a riot after thousands of people gathered in NYC’s Union Square in the wake of Cenat stating on social media that he would be handing out 300 free PlayStations: Police plan to charge twitch streamer after PS5 giveaway mayhem https://t.co/1KOkRowU1R — BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) August 5, 2023 Now, while the charges above, how they’ll play against the Jan 6th riots and who was responsible for them is …