Brian O’Neill – Page 77 – Slugger O'Toole

Northern Ireland Social Science Festival launches programme…

Brian O'Neill on October 8, 2019, 12:43 pm

| Readers 1603

Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University are again coming together to launch a packed programme of talks, workshops, plays and interactive activities that showcase the range and quality of social science research being carried out in Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland ESRC Festival of Social Science kicks off across Northern Ireland in various venues from 2 – 9 November 2019. The UK-wide Festival of Social Science is run by the Economic and Social Research Council, and aims to open up …

The case for giving up this booze and trying Sober October…

Brian O'Neill on September 29, 2019, 8:00 am

| Readers 5061

I had a good Saturday night out the other week. A few games of pool, then into another bar where I got chatting with some Hispanic tourists from LA about the nature of second-generation immigrant identity. A good time was had by all and I Glided home to my bed. The problem came six hours later when I was awakened by my son at 6am. Since becoming a dad I have found hangovers and kids don’t mix – I no …

1,200 jobs lost as Wrightbus enters administration…

Brian O'Neill on September 25, 2019, 4:26 pm

| Readers 6137

Wrightbus has failed to find a buyer for the company and has been forced to go into administration with the loss of over a thousand job. The whole story is quite a saga and I imagine the BBC Spotlight team are busy looking into the fall from grace of a once star company. From the BBC report: In the last six years Wrightbus has donated more than £15m to Green Pastures, a religious charity led by the firm’s majority shareholder …

The importance of doing what you can to improve your health…

Brian O'Neill on September 24, 2019, 3:38 pm

| Readers 1810

The wife’s uncle in America has died. Years ago he was like a lot of the population. He was gaining weight, not an unusual situation in this modern world of cheap junk food and sedentary lifestyle. The doctor diagnosed him with type 2 diabetes and prescribed him lots of pills and potions, so far a familiar tale. But what he did next shocked us all – he turned vegan. He had conservative views on many social matters, so I didn’t …

Back to school American style…

Brian O'Neill on September 20, 2019, 12:34 pm

| Readers 1500

September is the time of year when most parents breathe a sigh of relief when the kids go back to school. That is unless you are an American parent in which case you have school shootings to worry about. This new ad from Sandy Hook Promise gives a hard-hitting perspective on the issue. The stats are a bit crazy, there have been at least 288 school shootings in the United States since January 1, 2009. They now average about one …

Northern Ireland outpatient waiting lists are 100 times more than England’s…

Brian O'Neill on September 20, 2019, 12:04 pm

| Readers 2030

FactCheckNI confirms Mark H Durkins comment on the health waiting lists: From the article: CLAIM: 105,486 people were waiting over a year for a consultant-led outpatient appointment in Northern Ireland, which is 100 times more than in England, with its population 30 times greater. CONCLUSION: ACCURATE. 105,486 and 1,089 people were waiting over a year for a consultant-led outpatient appointment in Northern Ireland and England, respectively. The estimated population of Northern Ireland and England is 55,977,178 and 1,881,600, respectively. The …

Today is the 40th Anniversary of the Assassination of Lord Mountbatten and the Narrow Water Attack…

Brian O'Neill on August 27, 2019, 12:18 pm

| Readers 5190

The recent BBC Documentary ‘The Day Mountbatten Died‘ is well worth a watch. Our family used to go on holiday every year to Mullaghmore, County Sligo. It is an area I am very familiar with. Was it bravery or arrogance that Mountbatten would holiday in Ireland every year at the height of the Troubles? Whatever the case may be, there did seem to be remarkable complacency around his security. Leaving his boat unprotected in the bay did seem remarkably lax. …

50% of people in Northern Ireland now describe themselves as neither unionist or nationalist…

Brian O'Neill on August 9, 2019, 10:07 am

| Readers 23407

It seems ‘Generation Neither’ keeps growing. For years many commentators considered the middle ground a liberal myth. But the recent election success of Alliance and the Green Party has shown that more people in Northern Ireland are abandoning their traditional tribal allegiances. The latest research comes from the 2018 NI Life and Times Survey. It is clear that the middle ground is going to decide the fate of NI in terms of if we stay in the UK or unify …

Harland and Wolff to go into administration today…

Brian O'Neill on August 5, 2019, 9:50 am

| Readers 5442

It looks like the end of an era today as Harland and Wolff is due to go into administration. The company that once employed 35,000 people is now a mere shadow of its former self, employing just 130 currently. With so few jobs the economic loss is not that great, people with light engineering skills are in high demand and I imagine most workers should have no issue getting reemployed. It’s more what the shipyard represents in terms of our …

Join us for The Slugger Big Day Out! On Saturday 31st of August at Hilden Brewery…

Brian O'Neill on August 2, 2019, 2:04 pm

| Readers 1577

Join us for our one-day end of summer school at the wonderful Hilden Brewery in Lisburn. Hilden House was built in 1824 by William Barbour, founder of the Barbour Thread Company. The business grew rapidly and by the end of the 19th century, it was the biggest linen thread company in the world with offices and mills across the world. Its chairman at the end of the 19th century was Milne Barbour, grandson of the founder of the company. He …

Julian Smith appointed new Secretary of State for Northern Ireland…

Brian O'Neill on July 24, 2019, 9:36 pm

| Readers 4177

The Rt Hon Julian Smith @JulianSmithUK has been appointed Secretary of State for Northern Ireland @NIOgov pic.twitter.com/RSm2tXc7Kl — UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) July 24, 2019 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 stuck in front of a screen, …

We are now 900 days without an Assembly…

Brian O'Neill on July 5, 2019, 4:15 pm

| Readers 2025

Today we hit the milestone of 900 days without a a functioning locally assembly, only 3 months to go before we hit the magic 1000! I imagine the view of most people is a collective shrug of the shoulders. Life goes on, the sun comes up and the bins get emptied. In the interests of promoting recycling (and the fact its a Friday afternoon and I want to go and lie of the sofa), I shall repeat my words from …

The murder of Thomas Niedermayer shows how tragedy can reverberate down the generations…

Brian O'Neill on June 28, 2019, 10:13 am

| Readers 7195

Powerful story by Allison Morris in today’s Irish News on the IRA murder of businessman Thomas Niedermayer in 1973: THE IRA abduction and murder of Thomas Niedermayer, the German manager of the Grundig electronics plant on the outskirts of Belfast in 1973, set off a tragic chain of events that would see his entire family wiped out. Niedermayer was seized from his west Belfast bungalow on December 27 1973. The IRA had planned to use the businessman – who was …

Free Slugger Session Event on Tuesday the 28 May 2019: Gun Violence in America…

Brian O'Neill on May 20, 2019, 2:09 pm

| Readers 447

In this Slugger Session at Queen’s we will be in discussion with Elizabeth Charash on the topic of Gun Violence in America. Wide access to firearms and loose regulations lead to more than 39,000 men, women and children being killed with guns each year in the USA. In 2017, some 39,773 died from gunshot injuries, an average of nearly 109 people each day. Per capita, this is significantly higher than in other industrialized countries. Firearm homicides in the USA disproportionately …

Free event: Friday 7th June. Brexit, Borders and Beyond: Marxism as a guide in turbulent times…

Brian O'Neill on May 10, 2019, 11:31 am

| Readers 437

The School of Applied Social and Policy Sciences at Ulster University, Reclaim the Agenda and Slugger O’Toole, warmly invite you to join us for a panel discussion on Brexit, Borders and Beyond: Marxism as a guide in turbulent times, on 7th June 2019, at the Mac Belfast, 6-8 pm. The event will start with drinks and light refreshments. Guest Speakers include: Costas Lapavitsas, Professor of Economics at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, author of The Left …

NI Council Elections 2019 – Updates and discussion…

Brian O'Neill on May 3, 2019, 10:37 am

| Readers 15993

We are not sure how much of the count we will live blog but we know you like a place to comment so I am opening this post as a place for you all to discuss the results as they happen. 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 …

Brexit as seen from Brussels – A free talk by Dr Nicholas Whyte…

Brian O'Neill on April 26, 2019, 1:51 pm

| Readers 772

Occasional Slugger Contributor Nicholas Whyte is back in town next Wednesday to give a talk at the UU Belfast Campus at 6pm on the topic of Brexit as seen from Brussels. The talk is free to attend but places are limited so you need to book. Book your place here… This is a joint UU/Slugger event, here is the blurb… What you see depends on where you stand. Nicholas Whyte, Visiting Professor at Ulster University and a Senior Director at …

So do we have too many school places or too few?

Brian O'Neill on April 11, 2019, 3:26 pm

| Readers 1247

The front page of today’s Daily Mirror has the headline ‘Soaring student numbers means Northern Ireland needs almost 300 new classrooms, study shows‘. From the story: Research from public sector procurement specialist Scape shows a sharp rise in the number of school-age children, with an extra 7,332 pupils expected to start secondary school in 2020/21. According to the report, the 9.4% rise means Northern Ireland urgently needs to build the equivalent of eight new schools to accommodate its pupils. But …

Free event: The Role of Republicans in NI Civil Rights. Dispelling the Myths. Tuesday the 16th of April, Belfast…

Brian O'Neill on April 8, 2019, 12:02 pm

| Readers 1980

The Civil Rights 50th Anniversary Commemoration Committee are holding a free event next Tuesday the 16th of April in The Duncairn Centre for Culture and Arts, Antrim Road, Belfast. Speakers: Michael Donnelly – President Workers Party of Ireland Dympna McGlade – Deputy Chairperson Commemoration Committee Malachi O’Doherty – Commentator, Author and Journalist Marian Donnelly – Secretary and Founder Member South Derry Civil Rights Association Chairperson: Michael McCorry Followed by a Q&A and contributions from participants. Slugger O’Toole is the media …

Bill Clinton and George Mitchell some of the big names backing an ambitious plan to finance the cost of Irish reunification…

Brian O'Neill on April 1, 2019, 7:30 am

| Readers 10210

The FT is reporting on an ambitious plan by billionaire Irish American hedge fund manager Ronan O’Shaughnessy to finance the cost of Irish reunification. With Brexit there have been increasing demands for a border poll on reunification. One of the major issues for debate is how the Republic will pay for an all Ireland. But Mr O’Shaughnessy believes he has a solution: Our economic appraisal of the situation is that reunification will cost in the region of 6billion euro per …