Category: Politics

Will We see a Sinn Féin Lurch to the ‘Right’ Post-Election?

Around this time last year, I had a conversation with a Sinn Féin TD in Dublin.  This TD has been a party member for decades. He isn’t a Johnny-come-lately or some eccentric who somehow ended up in the Dáil in...

/ 11/11/2024

Rob Carry: Grassroots Nationalist Challenges Constituency of Death in Wicklow

As Wicklow braces itself for a fiercely contested general election, one name stands out among independent candidates aiming to shake up the political establishment. A seasoned community advocate, business owner, and first-time general election candidate, Rob Carry brings a fresh...

/ 10/11/2024

Our Gallant Allies: What Ireland Can Learn from European Nationalism, A Conversation With Derek Blighe

Following Junes's European and local elections, The Burkean's Tadhg Pidgeon sat down with Derek Blighe to discuss trends emerging on the Continent and where Ireland could follow the lead. Shared with permission, the full episode is available from Spotify and...

/ 05/11/2024

Mass Migration and the Origins of the Irish Housing Crisis

Despite the economic recovery that Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil keep reminding the public about, homeownership remains an ambition confined to those willing to sacrifice their blood, sweat, and tears to achieve.  Even during the economically murky era of the...

/ 04/11/2024

The New Transatlantic Relationship: What Are Ireland’s Strategic Objectives for a Second Trump Term

Vengence is coming to the Potomac and all counts point to Leinster House being lamentably underprepared. Days shy of an American presidential election and even projections point to a second and likely proactive Trump White House term but in a...

/ 01/11/2024

Irish Hate Speech; Laws-What Happened, What We Learnt and What is Next

The dying days of the 33rd Dáil have seen a frantic legislative rush ahead of a now near-certain November 29th election date. Among these pieces of legislation is the Criminal Justice (Hate Offences) Bill, heavily enfeebled since government amendments effectively...

/ 25/10/2024
person dropping paper on box

GE24: The Irish Right Facing Defeat from Vote Splitting

EXPLAINING VOTE SPLITTING In a Single Transferable Vote system, you need a mixture of a high first preference and transfers to get elected. For most parties, they run a single candidate to maximise first preferences so that the rate of...

/ 23/10/2024

Portarlington’s Squatter Standoff and Mary Ward Update: October 17th, 2024 Asylum Roundup

Former Sinn Féin and now Independent Cllr. Aidan Mullins has drawn attention to a bizarre situation in which fifteen asylum seekers have been placed in a Co. Laois house despite having no right to be there. IPAS claims they have...

/ 17/10/2024

Agent Cobalt: Oireachtas Spy Scandal of MI5 Dirty Tricks

Weeks before a likely November election The Sunday Times Irish edition has again hit upon journalistic gold.  A potential honeypot operation at the beating heart of power in Leinster House implicating an as-of-yet anonymous Irish parliamentarian, a Russian embassy apparatchik...

/ 08/10/2024

Get Them Home! Irish Defence Forces Withdraw Necessary Amid Lebanon War

As tensions boil over in the Middle East yet again, and Israel mounts an invasion of Southern Lebanon, the Irish government ought to reconsider its engagement in the United Nations peacekeeping mission in the region. Ireland has 340 soldiers in...

/ 02/10/2024