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Category:Europe
Reflections on Activism
We attended a protest outside the Irish Parliament to object to the deal that Coillte, a State company, made with a UK venture capital company. In this Big Picture Conversation, we reflect on why we went to the gathering and whether activism works.
Happy St Brigid’s Bank Holiday
Happy St Brigid’s Bank Holiday. It is a great step to establish a holiday to honour Ireland’s matron saint. This is a meaningful day in its recognition of the feminine; an embracing of the qualities of compassion, nature, nurture, inclusion and collaboration that are so urgently needed in the world today; with Brigid’s fire to …
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The World in a Carrot
There was a time when I was strongly resistant to the dirt, bother, inconvenience of the organic vegetable. As my taste buds adjusted though, I began to feel let down by the shops’ offerings.
Irish House Prices
In a wander around the internet I came across Irish government statistics on house prices. When did the hallucination begin? And hubris was so un-Irish. Not anymore.
Who did Irish taxpayer’s bail out?
An unsurprising analysis of teh commitment teh Irish government took on in bailing out unguaranteed bondholders. Read Who are the bond holders we are bailing out? by David Malone author of Debt Generation. The list is good to have, though it is the story that makes you cringe with disgust at the greed and carelessness …
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Are we saying goodbye to privacy in EU? and the world?
Norway, a member state of the EU, makes most tax information available to the public for free, online and with analysis tools. You can compare incomes and wealth of celebrities, friends, yourself. You can see where people live. There are positive aspects to this open approach to disclosure – it supports a more egalitarian economy. …
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Amnesty reports decline in Russian liberty
Amnesty International released Freedom Limited, a report detailing declining freedom of speech in Putin’s Russia. Unsurprising, but sad news. A backlash is inevitable, but probably later rather than sooner. Intelligent systems naturally tend to open systems; Russia’s wealth is fuelling its intellectual capacities which will demand openness in governance. BBC report
EU environment failing: air pollution, biodiversity loss and poor water quality
The European Environment Agency released its fourth assessment report on the environmental situation in 53 European countries, highlighting significant air pollution, biodiversity loss and poor water quality across the region. The irony of the report is that a principal cause of these problems is growing consumption and the demand for transport neither of which people …
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EU rates held at 4%
The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged at 4% on 7 September, but it is not clear that they will not be increased to 4.25% soon. The ECB is reacting to the increase in perceived risk in financial markets, catalysed by the sub-prime meltdown. At the same time as the hold on rates increase, …
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