We all know that the elderly and sick people can be vulnerable. Yet there are lots of manipulators out there for whom an elderly or sick person is easy money or a soft touch. Pride means many of those exploited will refuse to admit it – especially when they care about the person doing the […]
Archive | debate
Stop the James Bulger Film being shown campaign – artistic license?
Instead of celebrating his success as his short film Detainment is shortlisted for the Oscars writer/director, Vincent Lambe has found his film subject to a campaign to boycott it and remove it from the Oscars list. The film is about the horrific 1993 murder of two-year-old James Bulger. This case shocked the world but in […]
Gender-Neutral Change and challenge
Gender-neutral – what does it mean? If I was to judge by social media I’d think it was about a lot of jerky-kneed people worrying about toilets or getting hysterical about boys not being boys, girls not being girls and all that stuff. But, social media is not the best place to learn about anything […]
Don’t Get With the Mob
If you saw a mob of thousands of people on the street attacking a lone woman – would you join them? What if the mob grew to millions and included some of your friends – friends who said the woman deserved what she got because it was ‘Karma’? I’m guessing your answer is probably no […]
The Court of Social Media and #Me Too
In the wake of this tsunami of #Me Too harassment claims, I’m starting to feel like my conscience is pulled in two directions. Women have at last been freed up to say it like it is… and it is absolutely is as they say. I do want women to be able to speak up but, […]
Acceptable Racist Abuse in Ireland
Acceptable racist abuse in Ireland – is there such a thing? Well yes… One day last year I went into a hardware shop in my local town of Kinvara to buy some sandpaper. Nothing extraordinary about that. Except that when I began speaking at the counter a man, a complete stranger to me, having heard me […]
Generation Snowflake
Generation Snowflake is a phrase used to describe those who get prickly when confronted by ideas which contradict their own. It has also been used to describe over protected young people who expect to be told they are special at every turn. Students who agree with the NUS no platform policy have also been targeted […]