Brian O'Neill

As I write this the global IT giant Microsoft has been experiencing outages across most of its key products, including OneDrive, Office, Outlook, and the much hated Teams. Microsoft 365 would be the main software package used by most organisations. As you can imagine this is causing serious issues for a lot of governments, companies, schools, universities, and basically everyone who  works on a computer. I have grown to absolutely literally loathe Microsoft the past few years. In my day …

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The idea for Open Sunday is to let you discuss what you like. Just two rules. Keep it civil and no man/woman playing. Comments will close at 12 pm on Monday. Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any political party. When not …

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In addition to our normal open Sunday, we have a politics-free post to give you all a break. So discuss what you like here, but no politics. Comments will close at 12 pm on Monday. Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any …

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Last night was a brilliant result for the Democrats as voters rejected the kleptocracy of the Trump regime. So far, Democrats have flipped Senate seats in Michigan, Texas, Iowa, Kansas, North Carolina, South Carolina and Ohio with more to come. Here's that moment: https://t.co/OV2wmUI597 pic.twitter.com/ccwg0A1FDQ — Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) November 4, 2026 It was a stunning display of democracy as voters rejected the billionaire attempts to buy their way to yet more power. In Texas the utterly disgusting $500 million …

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I’m sure many of you will join me in hoping that the Republicans get the absolute political sh*te kicked out of them today at the polls. Has there been a more corrupt presidency than Trump? He oversees what is basically a kleptocracy and does not even try to hide it. He has used the presidency to enrich his personal wealth, the wealth of his family and all his sycophants and hangers-on. The grift is just staggering, Trump made more than …

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Via the Irish News: The SDLP wants to shut down Stormont and move the Assembly to a “more appropriate and more accessible” building in Belfast city centre. The party argues that its plan will “bring democratic decision-making closer to the people it serves”. But under plans which opposition leader Matthew O’Toole insists are “not that radical”, his party proposes moving the Assembly out of Parliament Buildings by the end of the next mandate in 2032. The South Belfast and Mid …

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Our always popular live event returns to the Black Box on Tuesday, the 15th of December 2026. Join Alex Kane, Allison Morris and Alan Meban as they reflect on the year in politics. This event is sponsored by Brown O’Connor- Ireland This event always sells out, so to avoid disappointment, book your tickets now… Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is …

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The idea for Open Sunday is to let you discuss what you like. Just two rules. Keep it civil and no man/woman playing. Comments will close at 12 pm on Monday. Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any political party. When not …

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In addition to our normal open Sunday, we have a politics-free post to give you all a break. So discuss what you like here, but no politics. Comments will close at 12 pm on Monday. Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any …

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The idea for Open Sunday is to let you discuss what you like. Just two rules. Keep it civil and no man/woman playing. Comments will close at 12 pm on Monday. Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any political party. When not …

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In addition to our normal open Sunday, we have a politics-free post to give you all a break. So discuss what you like here, but no politics. Comments will close at 12 pm on Monday. Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any …

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There have long been concerns about the power of BBC Northern Ireland in the local media landscape. They have more journalists than the rest of the media put together and they very often shape what is discussed and highlighted. Who chooses the stories?Who chooses the headlines?Who chooses the framing?Who chooses the guests?Who chooses the questions? Drumcree has been fuelled from start to finish by media framing. A major theme needing to be addressed by BBCNI because it tells us something. …

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How best to describe the Upper Bann MP? I’m going to go with divisive. But it seems she may not be a member of the happy DUP family for long as she has quit as party officer. From the BelTel: DUP MP Carla Lockhart has quit her position as a party officer. She said she cannot continue to be part of a team that decides on the direction and strategy the party takes while “clearly having concerns about that”. The …

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From the BBC: Jailed former Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Jeffrey Donaldson is being investigated by London police about an alleged rape of a woman inside the Houses of Parliament, the BBC can reveal. The disgraced former MP has been accused of raping the woman in Westminster in 2016, at the very heart of the political establishment. In July, the Belfast Telegraph first reported that a woman from Northern Ireland alleged she had been sexually assaulted by Donaldson in the …

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From the BelTel: Sinn Féin’s Chris Hazzard is planning a high-stakes bid to move from Westminster to Stormont and become Strangford’s first nationalist MLA. The South Down MP will tonight launch his campaign for next year’s Assembly election in the neighbouring constituency. Speaking exclusively to the Belfast Telegraph, Mr Hazzard said boundary changes had created a “huge opportunity” for his party to win a seat in Strangford. It is one of the SDLP’s key target constituencies, but the entry of …

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The idea for Open Sunday is to let you discuss what you like. Just two rules. Keep it civil and no man/woman playing. Comments will close at 12 pm on Monday. Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any political party. When not …

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In addition to our normal open Sunday, we have a politics-free post to give you all a break. So discuss what you like here, but no politics. Comments will close at 12 pm on Monday. Brian O'NeillManaging Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any …

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From the BBC: Jeffrey Donaldson has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for a series of child sex offences, including one count of rape. The former DUP leader stood with his hands clasped in front of him in the dock of Newry Crown Court as his sentence was handed down. Judge Paul Ramsey said Donaldson’s crimes, which took place between 1985 and 2008, had led to a “catastrophic descent into disgrace”. He was sentenced to 11 years for his …

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The other day Prime Minister Andy Burnham said that he believed that there was Russian interference during the Brexit elections. From the BBC: Burnham told The Rest is Politics podcast, that upon arriving in Downing Street, he had asked if there had been Russian interference in the vote, adding: “I’ve had the clear answer that, yes, there was.” In his podcast interview, Burnham said there was “certainly misinformation, disinformation that is emanating from Russia into German politics”. He added: “I …

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Our elected leaders had a busy day up at Stormont yesterday. What were they all working so furiously on? Was it the environmental crisis of Lough Neagh? The crisis in our health service? Improving education? How to build more houses? Of course not. You wouldn’t expect anything useful or constructive from them. Instead they spent three-hours traded insults with each over during a debate before no-confidence motions in Sinn Féin ministers. I’m not even going to bother given you any …

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