Messages

Snowing elsewhere up north too

Newry & Armagh have snow - but not lying yet

Surely another example of preventing any naming of the accused or reporting of the issue until the person is found guilty.  If they are acquitted, then their name should never be associated with any such accusations.

Exactly

I have always been suspicious that the allegations against William Roache were arranged by some group who (rightly) took offence at his comments about people being abused having done somthing to deserve it in previous lives.

I would like to see some punishment given to the accusers, if they are obviously lying - as far as i know perjury is still a crime, perhaps someone should charge these so called "victims" with perjury. (IMO especially the ones who the evidence prove have been spouting lies - for example the one who said Johnny Briggs warned her against William, but Johnny wasn't even on the show at the time at the time of the alleged innocent).

After succeeding in gaining a conviction for Perjury - Willian should go after them for defamation for character (although his last experience of suing for defamtion cost him a fortune).

Obviously we don't want anything to act as a deterrent for real victims coming forward to report their abuser but we want something to act as a deterrent to people making up abuse and ruining peoples lives, careers and reputations.

[Danny Morrison]

It's almost as if internment is too much of an embarrassment to allow him to speak about it.

Danny Morrison ‏@molloy1916 8h
prohibited from speaking publicly or writing for any publication, and barred from certain areas- SA apartheid Internal Security Act. M Corey

It is an absolute disgrace that someone jailed fr 4 years with out any evidence being presented, without being charged, without a trial etc.

If it was anywhere else in the UK there would have been a public outcry, but not NI - they can get away with it over here.

Martin Corey should still take his case to the Europe, as they were planning to do, it needs to be investigated and the Brits need to be told they cannot do it again.

You'd be doing well to get any savings account, investment etc to come anywhere near your interest rates on your mortgage.

Not necessarily - you just need to move your money regularly!
My mortgage is 3.99% - and up for a new deal soon and from my research can get it to 3.2% for a few years or 3.7% for a longer fix.

Savings - Santander 1,2,3 account - 3%
Nationwide current account - 5% up to £2.5k.

So you do need to play with your options and make the time to devote a bit of time once a year or more to finding the best deals for your money.

BC1 that girl that reads the AA roadwatch around 5ish def has to be from your part of the country (north louth/south armagh/monaghan) has to be

Aoife Carragher is from Monaghan I think

I still can't bring myself to support Tyrone.

As someone said earlier their wins of 2003 and 2005 are tainted due to the diving and the likes that went on.
From what i can remember they were the first team to bring this kind of "football" to Ulster and unfortuantely it seems to have rubbed off on a few more.

As for Peter Canavan - aka Peter "The Great" - is that because he was great at the diving? (Although give him his dues - he did have talent and skill but the serious amount of diving overshadowed this IMO)

Tyrone I dislike for the prevelence of diving (oh and for taking first preference on the students in the McKenna cup) and Dublin I dislike mainly due to their supporters and the booing before kick outs etc - its not sporting - on blance I think I prefer Dublin.

I would support any Ulster county other than Tyrone in general (And I'm a down girl!)

[but the day itself is class]

Congrats Rois on the engagement, the build up to the big day is a tough slog but the day itself is class.

The problem is, I am having three such days 

Need to get legally married in City Hall in Belfast first, then off to Chamonix for the chapel, then a wedding party when we get back.

Now, balladmaker, any suggestions of ballad makers for a Belfast do??  Time to resurrect the "wedding bands" thread maybe.

Congrats Rois!

PS - love the 3 day idea - Wish i had done that - I'm still sufferign post wedding blues 7 months after the wedding!

Back to one of the earlier posts. What about other businesses affected by inclement weather - where is their bailout? They don't get 10s of thousands in government and EU subsidies every year before they even get out of bed. In private enterprise they just have to suck it up.

This is what I don't get either

Thousands of people were affected by the bad weather and aren't getting any "compensation"

These include:
1) Anyone snowed in and not able to get to work - they may have lost up to a weeks wages which considering how hand to mouth a lot of people live the loss of a weeks wage could be very bad, they could be arrears with the mortgage now etc.
2) Self Employed - take someone in construction for example - if they were meant to be building something in one of the worst hit areas, they will have massive delays on it and as a result might have lost more work as the projects they were to do in the coming weeks may want the work done quicker
3) Rural shops - think of the amount of perishable goods that may have had to have been destroyed if the shop couldn't open.

Farming is already heavily subsudised, and I do not really object to compensation if is also available to others that have lost income due to the snow.

Also Compensation payments should be made on the average number of lambs per birth to avoid claims for doubles or triples when it was actually a single birth.

Hello everyone,

Below is a link to a survey created by a researcher interested in group relations in Northern Ireland.

They would be very grateful if you have 20 mins and would consider completing the survey.

You should be 18 years or above and be from/born in Northern Ireland.

Unfortunately they don't have any funds to pay participants and so am relying on kindness!

www.surveymonkey.com/s/TPNI1

It takes about 5 minutes to do, they need 300 people to answer

There is a diffence between a survey asking would you vote for a UI and an actual border poll

As much I think the North is financially better of in the United Kingdom (or at least the individuals in the North - due to public setor jobs, handouts, NHS etc) - I do think that whatever the conditions for a UI at the time of the border poll, my heart would force me to vote YES.

I think many of the people that said they would vote No would actually vote yes if we really did get a border poll.

The reality of what a United Ireland would be like needs to be drawn up before any border poll, the undecided Catholics are not likely to vote for the unknown, but if the economics of a United Ireland can be put into a positive light then who knows how the vote would go.

Most of the people the voted in favour of the GFA basically voted in favour of peace, the vote for a UI could be sold the same way - the only way there will be everlasting peace in Northern Ireland is if reunification occurs - there will be serious unrest for a short time but eventually it will die down and Ireland can move forward as one peaceful country which will be a massive benefit economically for Northern Ireland - we could attract more businesses who are keen to locate in Northern Ireland due to the skills of the workforce etc, but are put off by the unrest.

There is no reason for the Unionists to be afraid of a United Ireland - look at Donegal, a massive 12th takes place in it every year, peacefully!

Change of tack now ?

Arrest them for obstructing the highway, disorderly behaviour etc etc.


Somebody has obviously copped on that the cops response as past 6 weeks or so has been simply pathetic.


There's not that many protesters so a few nights will red them up.

Thats what they should have been arresting them for in the first place - but there was simply too many protests for that and not enough police.

Belfast was already practically at a standstill last night with snow and then these eejits have to block more roads!

Go out and vote MR2 and as many others as you can to go out and vote alliance to show that this does not work.

Best advice yet. Don't sit on your backside complaining, vote Alliance.

Agreed - I've always said that the reason alliance don't get too many votes is because the people that don't vote are those that would actually vote for alliance - they don't vote bacause of our silly tribal politics - but get out there and vote our way out of tribal politics!

Did anyone go to the match? Have heard virtually nothing bar the Irish News report this morning? Any positives/negatives?

Positives - At times we looked very together and made good use of the ball, no selfish playing, players all passed well etc. McComiskey was brilliant. Ryan Boyle looks like he has the makings of a good player - and we need good defenders.
The defending was at times first class - at other times appalling.

Negatives - Midfield - no (or maybe 1 or 2) clean catches - Armagh beat them too it nearly every time, although thankfully they weren't good a t the clean catches either so we id manage to win a few midfield balls.

Overall, for the middle of January, it was a good team playing last night - substitutions were made at the right times, were effective etc.

It's not fair for the game to be in Derry in the first place. The Ulster championship used to have a home advantage cycle where every team was guaranteed a first round home match at least every other year. The open draw leaves teams the possibility of being unlucky but more importantly puts a possible unfair burden on some spectators in terms of travel costs. Down are certainly in that category:

2013 - Away to Derry
2012 - Away to Fermanagh
2011 - Away to Armagh
2010 - Away to Donegal
2009 - Away to Fermanagh
2008 - Away to Tyrone
2007 - Away to Cavan (prelim round)
2006 - Home to Cavan

We have had to play away for seven years in a row. I know it is the luck of the draw but it is an unfair system and does not consider the travelling fans. At least 3 of those games should have been at home and that could have saved Down families travelling to games several hundred pounds each in terms of petrol/food.

As much as would like to agree with you I can't - none of those places should cost more than around £30/£40 in fuel to get too - some like Armagh cost peanuts depending on where in Dwon you live. Food - take a picnic - no additional cost - sandwiches from the boot are part of the experience!

In saying that it should be fairer - if 2 teams are drawn in the 1st round, and one was at home last year, and was was away last year, then the team that played away should be given home advantage, otherwise first out gets home advantage.
In this case it wouldn't make a difference as Derry's first round game was against Donegal in Ballybofey last year.

Roll on June - can't wait to the start of the championship!

You can't scrap academic selection yet.

The one thting that is needed before scraping it is a good alternative, which we don't seem to have.