Archives Feb

ACHIVES...MONTH BY MONTH COMENTARY ON THE REAL IRELAND

February 2007
28 Feb 2007
Gun crime on the increase, detection rates decrease... More
Corporate crooks off the hook... More
House prices to stall... More
Fury of gun victim family as they're not told of inquest... More
Five-year waits for private care... More
Nuns fight claim they ignored mother's wishes on adoptions... More
Anti-crime laws 'threaten rights'... More
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27 Feb 2007
FF to boost election coffers with €200-a-head dinner
(I wasn't invited. Must have been a clerical error!)... More
Two-in-five schoolgirls now dabble in drugs... More
Nurses plan stoppages over pay and conditions... More
Hospitals seek cut in agency workers to 'save cash'... More
Court bid against paper adjourned... More
Shock at 'sudden' release of paedophile swim coach... More
Meanwhile, the women he attacked still suffer and are still being ignored... More
Supermarkets 'squeeze' cabbage farmer off land after 25 years... More
Taoiseach denounces 'illiberal secularist voices' in democracy... More
Gardai seize evidence to fight global child pron ring... More
Brennan to tackle State pensions ‘time bomb’... More
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26 Feb 2007
Minister says he is going to close hospital which has already been closed for 5 years... More
Youth cafés to finally get green light after 10 years... More
Drink-driving clampdown damages Government’s popularity... More
Grenade attack on Limerick house... More
Poll shows sharp dip in Fianna Fáil support... More
Time for change as Hobbs says Bertie is devoid of vision... More
Nurses begin first in series of strikes... More
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25 Feb 2007
HOMES SEIZED AS PROPERTY CRISIS WORSENS...More
Garda and Fireman killed attending crash...Man arrested... More
Intruders left Marian Finucane's house 'like an abattoir'... More
'Il Duce' O'Dea derided for dressing down... More
Decentralisation disaster is just a game of musical chairs... More
EU experts: Economy faces major slowdown ... More
FF support down, boost for opposition ... More
Faster broadband on way as Eircom increases investment ... More
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24 Feb 2007
A pub a day closes...200 new off-licences open... More
HSE urged to speed up nursing home death probe ... More
Fear of further violence after man is shot at home... More
Bus service for rural pubs could be ready for election... More
‘Domestic abuse must be seen as a serious crime’... More
Mansfield denies ‘bizarre’ accounting... More
Fox hunt turned farm outing into 'a day of terror'... More
Council in bid to halt estate work...(The builder will win!) More
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23 Feb 2007
€1bn transport hub plans for city ... More
Vomiting bug leads to ban on visitors in two hospitals... More
Quinn Direct to launch price war with VHI ... More
Journalist arrested over leak vows he will not be ‘intimidated’ ... More
Shipping companies pay staff €1.31 an hour ... More
Quinn vows BUPA war over €34m 'penalty'
Angry billionaire dubs VHI 'illegal' as he presses on with takeover... More
One in 30 homes burgled... More
Drug criminals 'enjoying luxury lifestyles'... More
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22 Feb 2007
The Health Insurance mess... More
Fears as Harney closes BUPA loophole ... More
300 workers worry as future put in doubt... More
Irish women ‘among EU’s worst-treated workers’ ... More
Lack of services puts transsexuals at risk ... More
Gardaí investigate possible gangland connection after Dublin shooting... More
Family’s second tragedy as son stabbed to death ... More
Workplace violence rate here among highest in Europe... More
Dad dangled two-week-old from window... More
Legal challenge to tribunal put back... More
Three students savagely bitten by man on same night... More
Crime gangs getting rich on fake medicine... More
Would-be mum had 22-week wait for scan to find baby dead... More
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21 Feb 2007

TOLL ROADS SWINDLE:
Deal done by two known crooks Padraig Flynn and George Redmond in 1987
For whom the bill tolls... More
New road deal will cost taxpayer €713m, and tolls will stay... More
Road rage over M50 buy-out
Motorists will be clobbered twice to bankroll €600m toll sale... More

Health Service still a disaster... More
Polish President, Lech Kaczynski, comes to Ireland to bash gays
Senator David Norris says he has been attacked by homophobic Poles ... More
Immigrants 'forced' into getting high interest loans instead of mortgages... More
Disappearing bosses conning asylum seekers... More
Phone companies ‘lying to keep charges high’... More
Ahern apology demanded by councillors in housing row... More
Council house lies empty for over five years with 800 on waiting list... More
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18 Feb 2007
Tribunals: how much are they costing us? ... More
FF councillor cocaine probe on hold... More
As clients, we demand to know tribunal costs... More
McDowell sets up group to overhaul lawyers' charges... More
Reality has been suspended... More
Time to look at cost of tribunals... More
PDs' apartheid health system will not benefit public patients... More
Terror stalks our schools and streets countrywide... More
Growing culture of violence has child poverty at its roots... More
They're buying us off with our own money... More
'Look, I didn't ask for the bag, just gimme the bloody coffee'
Quality of life issues... More
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17 Feb 2007
Sorry, no ambulance available: the hospital's got our trolleys... More
Consultants protecting their own positions at cost of patients... More
Alternative coalition would be a disaster, says McDowell
(So we're going to have 'two in a row'!)... More
Bishops call time on €6.5bn drink binge... More
Schools: Lessons for children in protecting themselves from child abuse ... More
HEALTH Minister Mary Harney: Row could delay hospital opening... More
Gardai called as gas protesters break into Shell terminal site... More
Councillor suggests an oily plan to thwart cocaine snorters... More
CORRUPTION SECTION
The desperate battle to stop the cat from escaping.
Ahern faces new claims: Developer says Shifty got IR£30,000... More
Row over the extent to which the taxpayer is to be screwed... More
Haughey 'had no slush fund'... More
Talented lawyer who's not for turning... More
Minister admits working for developer... More
Ill-gotten gains of Charlis 'Marcos' Haughey... More
Motormouth McDowell should realise silence best policy... More
Oops, he did it again in row over €1bn fees... More
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16 Feb 2007
BLATANT SCULDUGGERY CONTINUES AS USUAL AND THE
TAXPAYER PAYS FOR IT ALL WITHOUT A WHIMPER
Special 'Obfuscation Unit' called out...again!
Mahon and McDowell clash over tribunal costs... More
TDs criticise ‘shambolic’ third-party legal costs ... More
The €1bn blunder
Judge raps Ahern, McDowell and Roche: Claims they are €700m out on probe cost... More
Opposition go after McDowell for Mahon 'outburst'... More
Tribunal contests Ahern's claim of €400m bill... More
Bill is €180m so far, and there's no one keeping track of day-to-day spending... More
Sure, it's only taxpayers money!
‘Hundreds endure pain and suffering’ as scanner unused... More
Health chief warns hospital beds need to be used 'more efficiently'... More
'Use it or lose it' law to free up land for houses (A brown envelope will soon put a stop to this little plan...'Affordable' housing will remain a dream)... More
HSE considers enforcing hospital hand-washing to tackle MRSA... More
HSE mental health delay ‘like waiting for Godot’... More
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15 Feb 2007
Prisoner bill three times more than Britain and US costs... More
One-in-four TDs fail to turn up for Dáil votes... More
MRSA ‘present in most hospitals’... More
Ahern stands over Haughey comments... More
Tensions high at halting site ahead of man’s burial... More
Massive lawyers' fees won't be cut... More
Crime suspects can no longer demand tapes of interviews... More
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14 Feb 2007
'Bungled' Dublin faces disease, rising pollution... More
Girl (11) 'blacked out after seeing her infant attacked with knitting needles'... More
Terrible public services 'making us all feel poorer'... More
More jail and less bail in war on gangs: 'Too little, too late'.... More
Guidelines on medical cards to be reviewed... More
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13 Feb 2007
200 trafficked sex workers who sought help 'just tip of the iceberg'... More
Knifeman goes on rampage and stabs four men... More
Town Councillors try to 'swindle' nuns out of convent grounds in Cashel... More
People without pensions ‘heading towards the poverty trap’... More
Biofuel becomes battleground of party politics... More
Shot boy fighting for his life... More
Unhappy motorists don't feel at all safe on road network... More
Jail for addict who stole and crashed 4x4... More
Crime and extortion in the North spilling into rest of the country
Man under police protection... More
The truth is that Ireland let its children down. We are still letting them down. ... More
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12 Feb 2007
Garda injured in halting site violence after man dies in crash... More
Man (61) battered to death in vicious attack... More
Shot teenager 'mistaken for someone else'... More
Three arrested after Polish man stabbed by gang of youths... More
Builders and developers can still do what they like: Planning!...What's That?... More
Faster to walk than take the bus in Dublin... More
Crowded prisons are the 'best of two evils'... More
Ministry needed to 'prevent race riots'... More
Shoppers set to be hit by hike in price of groceries... More
Health cover cost to keep on rising, says study
Competition in the market is not working, report finds... More
Labour to cut taxes...Pat Rabbite speech... More
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11 Feb 2007
57 per cent of young Muslims want Ireland to become an Islamic state... More
Sinn Fein is an aggressor which dons the robes of its victims... More
British and SF deal to give Provo prisoners early release... More
Tough economic action is needed... More
Government plans to starve Mahon inquiry of lawyers' cash... More
Mayhem expected on the M50 ... More
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10 Feb 2007
Man who burst into a house firing a shotgun walks free.... More
Limerick gang car chase ‘akin to Chicago gangster film’ ... More
The shocking build-up to a worldwide scandal . . . and Garda blunder... More
Councillors could face jail in inquiry over rezoning... More
Extortionists thrive on North's peace... More
Teen stabbed, teacher injured in class violence... More
Drink and drugs regular feature in schoolrooms... More
Elderly lacking experience to survive harsh winter weather... More
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09 Feb 2007
Taxpayers may face €100m bill to build new Dáil and Seanad ... More
Top gardai failed to act on child porn tip-off... More
Pfizer closure plan sends shock through industry: Over 500 jobs at risk... More
Health System spending plan allocates just €876m out of €1.7bn budget to patient care... More
Cardinal meets with sex abuse commission... More
Children 'hit by lack of English teachers'... More
Judge charged with child pornography gets €20,000 pension... More
Over €20m set aside for election losers ... More
VOTING FIASCO: Corrected register will cause 'chaos at election'... More
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08 Feb 2007
Pensioner beaten and terrorised by robber gang... More
Cancer crisis: Ireland’s new cases twice EU average... More
Spate of strikes to hit our 'crippled' Health Service... More
Daft robber jailed for part in The Great Non-escape ... More
Physicist shortage ‘could delay cancer strategy roll-out’... More
Irish criminal 'chopped up' in Spain ... More
Anti-social behaviour leads to café’s closure ... More
Cullen gives top job to tax scandal bank chief... More
Ministers in drive to save the planet . . . with same old gas-guzzlers... More
No jail for €250,000 drugs haul 'minder'... More
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07 Feb 2007
OUR HEALTH SYSTEM AFTER 10 YEARS OF FIANNA FAIL AND PD's
Alzheimer's patients are left without hot showers for over a month... More
Revealed: the scandal of our maternity services... More
Unnecessary hysterectomies scandal
Council to publish findings of misconduct on Neary doctors... More
Consultant and nurses spark war of words... More
Carers’ survey: elder abuse common... More
Private nursing homes take in €11m a week... More
HSE (Health Service Executive) bids to ease midwife boycott fears... More
Death of a child in A&E ‘is only a matter of time’... More
Harney denies climb-down in consultants row... More
Risk equalisation essential to VHI future, chief warns... More
Chemists fear for safety when treating addicts... More
€1m scanner lies idle in hospital laundry room... More
Nursing homes in east now cost €871 a week... More

06 Feb 2007
Farmer who shot traveller who tried to rob him is being sued by the thugs family... More
GAA club closes doors to children as Travellers pitch 'filthy' camp... More
More on travellers
Schoolrooms are amongst most overcrowded in Europe... More
Ireland's soaring crime rate is the price of affluence... More
Man who raped prostitute is sent to jail for nine years...(Mustn't have been fit for Community Service?) More
One million changes to voter register ... More
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05 Feb 2007
Estate agent fees set to soar by 33pc
House sellers will have to pay thousands more as boom ends... More
Foriegn gangs running protection and kidnap rackets... More
Health boss refuses to ditch ill-fated PPARS system:
Original estimate €9m now costing €220m...(Someone got a wad of Irish taxpayers money for supplying a 'red herring'.) More
Gullible Irish investors swindled out of €30m ... More
Lawyers paid €24m despite pledge to slash tribunal bills... More
Road authority will ask private contractors to carry out 100,000 driving tests over next year...(This is going on for 10 YEARS. There are 400,000 drivers on Irish roads without a full/proper licence.) More
Wrung out to dry: fears grow in town with water crisis... More
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04 Feb 2007
Small Firms Association predicts 25,000 job losses this year ... More
Job cuts involve skilled workers ... More
Foreign country still trying to impose religion in Ireland... More
Highest Crime Rate in 18 countries surveyed... More
Harney was warned months ago about Bupa payments loophole ...(Our government continue to be a soft touch for slick businessmen. 'Anticipation' not in their vocabulary.) More
More taxpayer's money being squandered
€1.35 a litre to fill state vehicles when fuel can be had for 99¢-€1.02 per litre elsewhere... More
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03 Feb 2007
Job cuts involve skilled workers Man shot dead in Dublin... More
Gardai forced to transport large and violent prisoner in a trailer... More
One-shoe prisoner escapes garda to hot-foot it to freedom... More
Five years each for pair caught with weapons... More
Makers of e-voting machines still paid... More
Man (92) terrorised as eight homes burgled in one night... More
'Drug woman' may lose home after attempting to bring drugs into prison... More
Young man mowed down as car mounts the footpath... More
Three years jail for having bullets... More
Suspended sentence for priest who molested two boys... More
Raiders fail after ramming jeep into bank... More
'Significant' arrests in tiger kidnap case... More
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2 Feb 2007
10,000 children wait for specialist dental treatment... More
Ombudsman urges public to use new rights to report health service failures... More
Letter highlights conditions within ‘failing’ prison system ... More
Greens 'kingmakers' after shock poll for the coalition... More
Coalition lead cut as PD vote collapses... More
Flights grounded in €500,000 tiger kidnap... More
Ahern 'should act on these kidnappings'... More
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1 Feb 2007
Man who raped elderly widow had 60 convictions... More
Technology to make school books obsolete...(Somebody getting accoladed for doing something that was an obvious option years ago. To even put most educational books on disc is a 'no brainer'.) More
Bertie blamed for €35m digital flop
Taoiseach 'must bear responsibility for dismal failure' of cutting-edge Medialab project... More
Medialab fiasco burned up €500,000 every month... More
New BUPA tycoon to wage price war on VHI... More
Violence against women low on list of government priorities... More