Kelly's Corner
by Kelly FinchamRecent Posts
- St. Patrick's Day massacre of White House shamrocks!
- Top Republican Dick Armey urges immigration reform, saying GOP is all wrong on immigrants
- AAA aims to keep drunks off road with Tipsy Tow and Tow to Go for St Patrick's Day
- Do you have to have been born in Ireland to be Irish?
- Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform sets up home on Facebook.
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St. Patrick's Day massacre of White House shamrocks!
Special Saint Patrick's Day section with features, music, videos, and more!
Top Republican Dick Armey urges immigration reform, saying GOP is all wrong on immigrants
If you listen carefully, you can hear the sound of sanity.
Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey is urging the Republican party to rethink its attitude on immigration reform.
"Handle it with some sense of compassion and some sense of civility," he said Monday at he National Press Club.
AAA aims to keep drunks off road with Tipsy Tow and Tow to Go for St Patrick's Day
"Thanks for helping us keep drunk drivers off the road."
So says Joanna Newton of the AAA South which, with Budweiser, is running its "Tow to Go" program again this year for St Patrick's Day.
Triple A will come pick you up and tow your car if you've drowned too many shamrocks. But you have to live in Florida, Georgia, selected areas in Tennessee, Arizona and Oklahoma.
Do you have to have been born in Ireland to be Irish?
Well there's a question that bedeviled me during my youth.
I never felt as if I could join in the more "Irish" events at school, oh, you know, the singing and the dancing, because, as I would hear repeatedly through secondary school; "You're not really Irish."
Being Irish, in Drogheda in the early 1980s meant being born there.
Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform sets up home on Facebook.
The Irish Lobby for Immigration Reform has set up home on Facebook.
I am the pro bono communications liaison for the ILIR and we've been inundated with queries lately about what's going on with the ILIR and, more importantly, with immigration reform.
So, I'm trying out the Facebook platform as an alternative to editing the existing Web site by hand.
Jobless numbers down in Ireland as Irish emigrate for work
Good news and bad news from Ireland today.
The unemployment numbers dropped by 2,300 in February but not because people are finding jobs.
The Central Statistics Office says that the most likely reason for the fall in jobless claims is because people are leaving.
Sarah Palin says she's on a crusade to 'bring truth back to media'
Sarah Palin says she's on a crusade to bring the truth back to media.
(We didn't even know it had gone away.)
Speaking on the Jay Leno show last night she said it was time for Americans to be able to trust their media.
Ireland threw money away like a drunk in a bar room during Celtic Tiger boom
Ireland threw money away like a drunk in a bar room during the economic boom, according to a new survey.
Okay, that's not quite what they said, but they should have.
Irish will be hit with $10 tourist fee to U.S. on visa waiver program
Want to come to the U.S. from Ireland soon? That'll be an extra $10 please.
A new bill on its way to President Obama's desk will create a national tourism agency partially funded by the $10 fee which will only be levied on visitors from countries in the visa waiver program.
Which includes Ireland.
ESPN does right thing by grounding Kornheiser over Hannah Storm sausage remarks
ESPN has done the right thing by putting Tony Kornheiser off the air for two weeks after his ugly remarks about colleague Hannah Storm.
However, they might think about sending him off on some passive-aggression training course before letting him back on again.
From Celtic Tiger to Paddy Porkies - pigs are back in fashion in Irish homes
Pigs are big in Ireland. So big in fact that applications to keep pigs have risen by 360 percent over the past two years.
That's a lot of pigs; 687 in fact. All being kept in back gardens across the country.
Democrats accused of 'empty words' on immigration reform
And what Sharry is reading adds up to a big flashing red danger sign for the beleagured Democrats.
Sharry says the Dems are in danger of losing seats in 11 key states because of the lack of progress on comprehensive immigration reform.
9/11 Mychal Judge church marks Ash Wednesday in Manhattan
The sidewalks outside our office are crowded with Catholics leaving the nearby St Francis Church bearing the Ash Wednesday ashes on their forehead.
They've been dispensing ashes from St Francis on 31st street since 7.30 this morning and will be doing so continuously until 7 p.m.
St Francis is my favorite church in New York not surprisingly really when St Francis was my favorite saint for so many years. (At least he was until I realized my hopeless causes needed St Jude's intervention!)
Firestorm of fury over anti-Irish jokes on Daily Telegraph blog
A firestorm of criticism has broken out over anti-Irish "jokes" on a Daily Telegraph blog in Britain.
More than 70 so-called jokes have been posted on a blog by Douglas Murray (who runs an organization called "The Center for Social Cohesion,") after he wrote a piece lambasting a recent compensation payout.
The comment was fair game. Turns out that a union rep successfully sued a Conservative councilor for discrimination after said Tory told a so-called Irish joke.
Pope Benedict fails victims of Irish child sex abuse
It seems to me as if Pope Benedict has squandered an opportunity to inspire Irish Catholics.
The pope today described the decades of child sex abuse in the Irish church as a "heinous crime," but failed to take action on calls for top bishops to resign.
Vatican spokesman, Rev. Federico Lombardi, said the pope "shares the outrage" over the abuse and said Benedict pope had "already expressed profound regret."
Justice comes dropping slow as Vatican finally set to react over Irish church sex abuse
If you pay careful attention to the stories coming out of the Vatican you can just about make out a sound in the background.
It's the sound of ancient shutters being forced open. It's the sound of secrets being pushed out of dark rooms where they've been hidden for decades.
 Finally, the Vatican might just admit that the entire foundations of the Irish church need to be dug out and started again.
The Vatican has been exceedingly slow to act on the Irish child sex abuse scandal.
Northern Irish police miss dead body on sofa in two searches
Did you hear the one about the two Northern Irish police officers who failed to notice a dead body?
Not once, but twice!
Australia changing immigration visa rules to favor English language and high skills
Immigration minister Chris Evans says the country has too many hairdressers and cooks and not enough doctors and engineers.
"We were taking hairdressers from overseas in front of doctors and nurses - it didn't make any sense," Evans said.
Rare footage of Michael Collins unearthed in Pathe news reels
Rare footage of the Irish leader Michael Collins has been unearthed by Pathe News.
The footage, which was shot in 1922, shows Collins campaigning up and down the country and shows the sheer size of the throngs who turned out to hear him.
Snow joke as die-hard Unionists dig heels in over North deal
It won't be any time soon for the "Traditional Unionist Voice," which dismissed the devolution deal Friday with a petulant hissy fit.
The TUV opposes any coalition with Sinn Fein (which makes any grown-up negotiations kinda difficult don't ya think boys?) and says the DUP has sold out.
Bank of Ireland forecasts better dollar value in euro exchange rate
Good news for those of us who are paid in dollars and keep getting fleeced by the euro exchange rate.
Bank of Ireland is forecasting another dip in the exchange rate - down to $1.35 from $1.40 through the end of March.
The exchange rate is currently around $1.39.
Woman drove down Long Island Expressway HOV lane with mannequin fake passenger!
Apparently the 61-year-old woman was haring down the HOV lane when she was pulled over by a keen-eyed cop.
The police officer thought it was just a tad suspicious that the "passenger" was wearing glasses and had the visor down even though the day was cloudy and grey.
Plain speaking on immigration reform in University of Denver report
Immigration reform advocates are stuck on the sidelines as Congress continues to do nothing about much.
In the interim, the University of Denver has weighed into the fray with a thoughtful and constructive report which would grant "provisional legal status" to current so-called illegal immigrants.
The university gathered some 20 citizens on to a panel which spent 2009 hearing from pro and anti-reform advocates.
Charlie Bird: The loneliness of the long-distance reporter
The 60-year-old reporter says he has failed to make a single friend during his time here.
"Whatever that says about me, I've decided really that I'm a home bird rather than a Washington person...I won't be here this time next Christmas," he said in the second part of "Charlie Bird's American Year," which was broadcast on RTE in Ireland Monday night
Ireland shows why American health care reform is over-priced and over-due
Let's face it. When Ireland can do something better than America, you know you're in trouble.
Private health care in Ireland costs, on average, about $60 a month for a single person.
Times story shows why Donald Keough's a class act!
A lovely story about Donald Keough, the former head of Coca Cola and supporter of all things Irish, reached us yesterday via Jim Dwyer's column in the New York Times.
The year was 1995, the venue was New York's storied Tavern on the Green, and Keough was all set to present then U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Jean Kennedy Smith with a giant piece of Waterford Crystal when disaster struck.
Humpback whale puts on stunning rare show off coast of Ireland
There's something strange happening in the waters off Ireland as you can see from these stunning photographs of a humpback whale doing an acrobatic display.
The whale was photographed "breaching" off the east coast of Ireland near Wexford.
Why Irish immigrants should get cheap apartments at Stuyvesant Town
Irish immigrants should get a housing quota in Stuy Town according to Ciaran Lynch (above) of the Irish Labor Party.
Keeping his tongue firmly in cheek, Lynch says that "a certain proportion of apartments...should be made available to Irish emigrants who have just arrived in the city and who are trying to find their feet.
Irish bank AIB now landlord of Stuyvesant Town in New York
It's got to be one of the great ironies of the global property crash.
Allied Irish Bank, already hobbled with toxic debt from Irish property buyers, is now the partial landlord of some 25,000 people in 11,227 units in New York.
Watch video! Conan O'Brien and Robin Williams steal my heart with Irish jig
Ah well. Conan O'Brien stole my heart last night with his insane Irish jig with Robin Williams.
Pity it's too late. Like many other people I only started watching Conan O'Brien the past few nights to see what all the fuss was about.
Returned Irish emigrants still denied social welfare in Ireland
Irish citizens are still being refused social welfare in Ireland if they are returning from abroad.
In 2009, 738 citizens, many of whom were returned emigrants, were refused such payments as disability allowance, carers allowance, jobseekers' benefit and even the old-age pension, because they had not lived in the State for the two years prior to the claim.
Immigration centers in the U.S. have long warned of the unintended consequences of the so-called habitual residency requirements which they said would unfairly exclude Irish citizens from social welfare.
Memo to Scott Brown: New poll shows public wants immigration reform
Activists for the undocumented Irish were in poor spirits Wednesday in the wake of Republican Scott Brown's victory in Massachusetts.
However, as the polls closed last night, a seasoned immigration campaigner told me that immigration reform was by no means dead.
Coakley gambling on luck of the Irish in Massachusetts Senate Race
Rumor reaches us that the Irish bookie Paddy Power has paid out early on Republican Scott Brown winning the special election in Massachusetts for the late Ted Kennedy's seat.
It's hard to tell if they have or not because there's no record of any such bets on their website (although they are quoting Brown at 20/1 to be the Republican presidential candidate in 2012.)
However, if the stories are true and they have in fact paid out, this could be very good news for Democrat Martha Coakley.
Haiti needs 100 Bernard McNamaras says Denis O'Brien
"Haiti needs 100 Bernard McNamaras." So said Digicel CEO Denis O'Brien from Haiti this morning.
He's not wrong.
Irish aid agency Concern leads way with Twitter feed from Haiti
The Irish aid agency Concern is leading the way in showing how non-profits can benefit from Twitter.
Aid worker Dominic McSorley is tweeting from Haiti at twitter.com/aidwkr
Hope for undocumented Irish as immigration reform effort inches forward
The White House has been quietly reaching out to immigration activists over the past number of weeks.
Just yesterday, Friday, a group of influential Irish Americans were invited to the White House for a briefing on immigration and also security in the North of Ireland.
Earlier, officials at the White House spoke with Latino advocates to reassure them that the administration is intent on bringing in an immigration bill this year.
Noam Chomsky joins GAA to set up team in Gaza
Noam Chomsky is a man of many different hats. He's a Professor of Linguistics at MIT but he's probably better known worldwide for his incisive criticism of big media and US foreign policy (although not necessarily in that order).
Now he's wearing yet another hat as co-president (with former Tyrone player Peter Canavan) of the new GAA club in Gaza.
Yes, that Gaza.
Perez Hilton goes too far calling Iris Robinson a whore
Celeb gossip-monger Perez Hilton has gone way too far calling Iris Robinson (above) a whore.
In his recent post, entitled "Northern Ireland's First Lady Is A Whore" Perez dubs Irish the "Celtic Cougar," and says she was involved in "a sex scandal with the 19 year old son of her former butcher!"
Iris, as you probably know, is the wife of Northern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson and her extra-marital exploits have been all over the media over the past few days.
Tip of the iceberg as Irish deported from Australia
Sobering news from Australia today with the story that 12 Irish people have been deported over the past two weeks for trying to overstay their visa.
It looks as if it is the tip of an iceberg as there are record numbers of Irish entering Australia on one-year working visas who want to stay on.
For some, their only option was to fake an application for the second-year working visa.
Martha Coakley campaign can't spell Massachusetts
You'd think, if you were running for the Senate, that you'd make sure you spelled the state's name correctly.
Not so for the Coakley campaign up in Massachusetts which has released an ad spelling the state as Massachusettes.
Fixer-upper of an Irish house drops by $300,000 in two years
A single house in Drogheda in County Louth sums up the dizzying boom-to-bust of the Irish property market.
This house, at 39 Hand Street, has been on the market for several years.
It's an older style semi-detached terrace house (with the highly-sought-after Irish thing of a "side entrance.")
Video shows man falling hard on ice in Ireland
This video is becoming a YouTube phenomenon showing, as it does, what happens when you try to walk too fast on ice.
I can only hope the poor guy's all right.
He was clearly trying to get away from the cameras and ended up being the unintentional star of the RTE news.
A picture of a frozen Ireland from space via NASA
Isn't this a great picture?
The satellite image shows the big freeze over Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales.
England, Scotland and Wales are almost entirely frozen while you can see the southwest of Ireland is showing some green.
Galway voted one of world's Top Five Cities for Single Women on Vacation
Galway has been voted one of the Top Five cities for single women to visit - the only Irish place to feature in the list.
The Top Five Cities for Single Women was compiled by Single Minded Women and includes (are you ready?) Galway, New York, Sedona, Key West and Paris.
It's difficult to see how Galway could compete with the likes of Paris or Key West, but there you are.
Irish emergency rooms stretched to limit with icy casualties
Hospitals across Ireland are stretched to the limit coping with the influx of broken bones caused by slips and falls on icy roads and footpaths.
The casualties include my brother (arm) and my sister's neighbor (hip) both of whom fell victim to the recent icy snap which has seen roads and paths turn into glassy death traps.
My sister's neighbor lay on the ground for half an hour as the emergency services had to send to a neighboring county (Meath) for an ambulance. The local ambulance service was already backed up trying to pick people up the people in Louth and ferry them, slowly, to the ER.
Bono under fire on Twitter over illegal downloads
Bono is under fire on Twitter after calling for more control on illegal downloads.
Listing his top 10 for 2010, Bono argued in The New York Times that online file sharing was killing music and movies.
"The immutable laws of bandwidth tell us we're just a few years away from being able to download an entire season of '24' in 24 seconds," he wrote.
'Celtic Tiger' economist says worst might be over for Ireland
And finally, some good news.
The man who coined that cursed phrase "Celtic Tiger" says the worst might be over for Ireland.
How to conquer a fear of flying
I'm not the happiest of fliers which is why, a la Rain Man, I prefer to fly Aer Lingus, the Irish version of Qantas. Anyway, coming back from Ireland Monday I found a whole new way of dealing with my fear of flying. Take photographs! I was so busy trying to capture Ireland from the air that I didn't flinch when the plane banked. Next time I hope to have a proper camera with me to get better pictures.
These shots are over Dublin.
Christmas in Ireland 2009
It's a funny old festive season to be going back to Ireland. The Aer Lingus cabin crew are in good spirits despite their uncertain future. But then you land in Ireland and find everyone's trying to be good-tempered despite the massive uncertainties here.
Landing in Dublin Airport you can see signs of construction outside the aircraft and then you realize it's just the airport. Outside the airport the giant cranes are stilled.
It's as if the past 10 years just didn't happen.
Same old story as Irish hop to Australia
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/22/2009 8:46 AM EDT
It's deja vu all over again as Yogi Berra said.
Brendan Gleeson wins Emmy for Churchill role in 'Into the Storm'
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/20/2009 11:19 PM EDT
Celtics co-owner drops bid to buy Globe, running for Kennedy seat
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/17/2009 8:25 AM EDT
This has got to be the kind of agonizing career choice that only comes along once in every lifetime.
So long Keith Floyd, one of the world's best TV chefs
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/15/2009 2:06 PM EDT
One of the world's best TV cooks has gone to the eternal kitchen in the sky.
Demise of Notre Dame mirrors demise of Irish Catholic America
12/11/2009 12:00 PM
Notre Dame and Boston College are now the only Catholic colleges playing at the very top of American college football.
But their glory days are over. Particularly for Notre Dame. New coach Brian Kelly might be able to revive Notre Dame somewhat but the reality is that the Fighting Irish have been on life support for some time.
Dying of embarrassment, and cancer, in Ireland
12/09/2009 12:28 PM
Are the Irish dying of embarrasment?
A new report from the OECD shows that Ireland's five-year survival rates for breast, cervical and colorectal cancers are still below the OECD average.
Anti-immigrant group slams Dobbs for supporting amnesty
12/03/2009 01:04 PM
Does anyone know what is going with Lou Dobbs?
One if his biggest backers, the ludicrously named Americans for Legal Immigration PAC (ALIPAC), have pulled their support from him.
Bertie Ahern makes a turkey out of himself over Dubai
11/29/2009 12:48 PM
Bertie Ahern was in Dubai last week for a meeting of the World Economic Forum.
So what, says you.
Cavan football player 'back from the dead' for 50th annual reunion
A veteran Irish football champion shocked former team-mates when he "came back from the dead" for their 50th annual reunion.
Kevin McCormack, 69, had not been invited to the 50th annual reunion of the Cavan minor-winning team because organizers believed he was dead.
Roy Keane calls on Ireland to get over World Cup soccer mess, says FAI is whining
11/20/2009 10:30 AM
Oh dear. Looks like my favorite Irish soccer player-turned-manager Roy Keane is about to get another pasting in Ireland after he blasted the FAI for complaining about Ireland's exit from the World Cup.
"France are going to the World Cup," said former Irish captain Roy Keane said today. "Get over it. They (the FAI) want sympathy as usual. It is the usual carry-on and it is boring.”
Irish bookies refund bets over 'Hand of Frog' World Cup heartbreak
11/19/2009 12:27 PM
In Ireland they're calling it the "Hand of Frog." That'll be the handball from France's Thierry Henry which put Ireland out of the play-offs for the 2010 World Cup.
Every single player on the field - including Henry - could see it was a handball but incredibly the referee didn't.
Lou Dobbs takes another swipe at immigrants on Bill O'Reilly show
11/17/2009 02:37 PM
Lou Dobbs took yet another cheap shot at hard-working immigrants Monday night when he fetched up on the Bill O'Reilly show.
Dobbs - who quit CNN last week in a flurry of publicity - made his first public outing on Bill Reilly's "The O'Reilly Factor."
Bill O'Reilly scores first interview with 'tin pot dictator' Lou Dobbs
11/13/2009 02:22 PM
Fox star Bill O'Reilly has scored the first interview with former CNN anchor Lou Dobbs.
Dobbs will make what is expected to be the first of many appearances on Fox Monday night as a guest on O'Reilly's show.
Rosie O'Donnell drops F bomb in attack on Glenn Beck
11/08/2009 10:52 AM
Rosie O'Donnell dropped the F bomb Friday night when she blasted Glenn Beck on the Jimmy Fallon show.
O'Donnell had already used another swear word twice during Friday night's taping of NBC's "Late Night" when Fallobn reminded her about the no-swearing rule.
Merde! French terror as Irish flight announces it is going to crash
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/15/2009 12:25 PM EDT
French-speaking passengers on a flight from Dublin to Paris got the fright of their life this week when a faulty PA system announced that the plane was about to crash!
U2's such a crap name! Says who? The Edge!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/14/2009 12:24 PM EDT
Read / Fans and critics swoon as 360 kicks off in Chicago / Click here
Housing prices continue to slide in Ireland
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/14/2009 8:54 AM EDT
So last year - the 2009 prices
I'm trying to figure out if this is a good time to buy somewhere to live in Ireland.
Rachel Maddow show features Irish Central in Stephen Farrell report
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/11/2009 11:22 AM EDT
I wish Rachel Maddow had called me and told me she would be plugging our Web site!
I would have called in to the show; hell, I could have got my hair done and gone downtown to the taping!
Remembering the Irish who were killed in the Trade Center
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/11/2009 9:06 AM EDT
The remains of Sligo man Kieran Gorman were found on March 19, 2002, ending an agonizing six-month wait for his family and friends.
His family held a wake for him in Hodders funeral home on McLean Avenue, not far from the Woodlawn home which Gorman had shared with his wife Ann and two young sons, 3-year-old Barry and 18-month-old Gavin.
A bell is ringing downtown to mark the anniversary of Sept. 11
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/11/2009 8:47 AM EDT
I have been trying not to think about it but the window of my office looks right downtown where the Trade Center stood.
A bell is ringing to mark 8.46 a.m.
Dear Boss, Can I have some time off for a week in Ireland?!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/10/2009 4:04 PM EDT
Aer Lingus is offering a special September deal with flights, car rental and six nights in three four-star hotels all for the amazing price of $699.
The deals are valid from December 1 to February 11, 2010 and must be booked by September 30.
Playoffs loom for Irish soccer team as Italy demolishes Bulgaria
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/10/2009 10:21 AM EDT
Ireland has almost certainly been ruled out of automatic qualification for the 2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa.
Italy are now four points clear in Group 8 after they demolished Bulgaria Wednesday night in the home leg in Turin.
When a reporter's safety outweighs a scoop
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/9/2009 9:25 AM EDT
It's not often that you get to be in the middle of an ethical dilemma and a huge scoop.
But that's where IrishCentral was on Saturday afternoon when we got a tip-off that Stephen Farrell (above) a second reporter for the New York Times had been kidnapped in Afghanistan.
We posted the story because Farrell holds Irish citizenship and because it was a worldwide scoop - and that's what journalists live for.
MTA has taken my bus away!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 9/8/2009 10:21 AM EDT
So, back from an idyllic stay at a secret location in Long Island (see above) to bad news from the MTA.
The express BXM4B is being axed.
Red faces at Kennedy funeral over Irish oversight
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 8/29/2009 12:13 PM EDT
(Brian Cowen at Sen. Kennedy's funeral)
Whoops!
Did anyone else notice that Ireland - the birthplace of the Kennedys - was left out at the welcome speech in the church today?
Part of Dublin Belfast rail line collapses
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 8/21/2009 4:34 PM EDT
I couldn't tell you the amount of times I've traveled on this rail line from Drogheda to Dublin and back again.
And every time we've crossed over the estuary just north of Dublin I've looked out the window and thought 'what if.'
Hats off to Diana Donnelly for daftest costume at Miss Universe!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 8/19/2009 1:22 PM EDT
Hats off to Ireland's Diana Donnelly for daftest outfit ever worn by an Irish woman!
Diana wore this loopy leprechaun outfit for the "national costume" section of the Miss Universe pageant taking place in the Bahamas.
Neeson shines spotlight on the Troubles
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 8/12/2009 1:21 PM EDT
Interesting comments from Liam Neeson on the Troubles in our news section.
He's said very little over the years about the conflict which would have been just starting when he was a teenager in Ballymena.
'Sex and the City' and the 'big-boobed Irish nanny'
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 8/11/2009 11:31 AM EDT
So, "Sex and the City" is looking for someone to play a "naturally sexy big-boobed Irish nanny called Erin."
WTF!
Major questions over Taconic Parkway crash tragedy
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 8/6/2009 2:17 PM EDT
One of the biggest stories in New York at the moment concerns a horrific wrong-way crash on the Taconic Parkway which killed eight people - including three children.
Diana Shuler, 36, from Long Island, was driving her three nieces plus her own two children home from a campground in the Catskills when she ploughed into a van carrying three men.
The €100,000 home returns to Irish property market
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 8/2/2009 11:06 AM EDT
Here then is the photographic proof of Ireland's property crash.
This three-bed townhouse went on sale in Cavan for just €100,000 or $140,000.
Gates gift a tribute to Concern
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 7/29/2009 4:57 PM EDT
I'm delighted with the news about Concern winning that enormous grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation.
It's a tribute to the organization and the people who work for it.
Simple assembly my ass!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 7/27/2009 9:35 AM EDT
Only in Ireland!
A new site called simpleasseblymehole.com has been launched in Ireland to help the fledgling Ikea shoppers.
Finally! A real Irish welcome for some Americans
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 7/23/2009 9:28 AM EDT
Finally! A good news story about Americans being welcome in Ireland!
Today's Irish papers are rubbishing earlier claims that U.S. troops 'gatecrashed' a wedding in County Clare at the weekend.
Is Sean Dunne telling porkies to get out of court date?
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 7/21/2009 11:20 AM EDT
And so to the High Court in Dublin where uber-developer Sean Dunne is in a row with CB Richard Ellis over alleged unpaid fees of €1.5m ($2.1m)
Why King was right to attack media over Jackson
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 7/6/2009 12:48 PM EDT
Well, well, well.
Happy July 4 from Little Ireland in the Bronx!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 7/3/2009 10:41 AM EDT
Today's a Federal holiday in the U.S. for Independence Day and not a moment too soon!
End of decent TV as Brotherhood gets ax
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 7/1/2009 12:01 PM EDT
Michael Caffey where are you?
Knock 'em dead in Dublin, Susan!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 6/29/2009 11:38 AM EDT
Check out our coverage and video of Susan Boyle at the O2 Center in Dublin... Click here
New York Times needs to apologize for Irish-bashing
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 6/26/2009 9:04 AM EDT
Calling all New York Times editors.
Apartments and meals down in price, wine still a rip-off
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 6/11/2009 7:57 AM EDT
The stories behind Ireland's jobless boom
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 6/10/2009 6:31 AM EDT
I was up in the Lourdes hospital in Drogheda, County Louth, this morning bringing my mother to an eye appointment. This referral from the original €130 consultation was free.
Fianna Fail, Greens and Libertas go over the cliff
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 6/9/2009 6:27 AM EDT
It's been a massive weekend in politics here. Ireland went to the polls for mostly European and local elections and pretty much pushed Fianna Fail and the Greens over a cliff.
The hostility to the ruling government, led by Brian Cowen, is something else.
May Aer Lingus keep Ryanair off the Atlantic
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 6/8/2009 6:49 AM EDT
There are many many reasons why I dislike Ryanair. From the friend of mine whose image was used without her consent in their PR campaign to the way they treat their passengers and crew.
Why burial is so important for Irish
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 6/3/2009 11:23 AM EDT
I spoke to a woman earlier today who is raising her children alone since the death of her husband in the World Trade Center attack in 2001.
Say a prayer for the victims of Air France 447
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 6/1/2009 4:55 PM EDT
I can not imagine what the passengers and crew of Flight 447 must have gone through last night. I hope that things happened so fast that they were unconscious before the plane went down. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those who perished, particularly the three Irish women who were on board, and all those who have been left behind.
Why Susan's still a winner
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/30/2009 5:37 PM EDT
So Susan Boyle has lost out to some
Niall Ferguson has been wrong before
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/28/2009 10:23 AM EDT
So, I wake up this morning to yet another dire prediction that Ireland is about to go bust.
Biden cites Seamus Heaney in Air Force commencement address
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/27/2009 2:45 PM EDT
I love this little snippet I came across today.
Speaking at the commencement of the Air Force Academy in Colorado yesterday, Vice-President (and Irish American!) Joe Biden quoted Seamus Heaney in urging the Air Force's next generation to use the most of their opportunities.
English version of Catholicism seemed softer in schools
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/26/2009 2:30 PM EDT
My family decided to move back from England to Ireland in 1979. When I say "moved back" I'm really referring to my mother's family who were all from Drogheda, Dublin and Skerries.
My father's family were English on his dad's side and Irish on his mother's (Waterford). Anyway, up until then I had been taught in English schools with the English version of Catholicism.
Why did Ireland's religious institutions go so bad?
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/21/2009 8:33 AM EDT
Not a day went by in Ireland during the 1990s that there wasn't yet another report about terror and abuse that had been inflicted on children. Parents, uncles, siblings. It seemed like a free-for-all of horror. There had long been rumors of dreadful things at the "Catholic" facilities but the wall of silence from the Church kept any serious investigation at bay.
And then an incredibly brave woman called Christine Buckley was interviewd in an documentary called "Dear Daughter."
Top 10 laundry list for world's richest people
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/20/2009 10:48 AM EDT
No-one has been able to figure out just what the world's richest people were talking about last week but here's my wish list for them.
Buy Ireland
Or do a lease-back
Or even rent it
Put Michael Bloomberg in charge of the country
Put George Soros in charge of finance
Put Warren Buffet in charge of investments
Bill Gates in charge of industry
Put Oprah in charge of literature (all Irish writers would get on Oprah list)
Put Ted Turner in charge of RTE (and TV3 to boot)
And finally - because we are so rich - move the Gulf Stream to Donegal (have you ever tried swimming off Tory Island?!)
Is it me or is it U2?
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/20/2009 9:41 AM EDT
News: U2 fails to sell out third date in Ireland
Uh oh. It looks like U2 could be turning into the Rolling Stones of their generation. You know, the kind of band that keeps on going even when their fans have moved on. I feel like that these days with U2.
Students turn out in force to support Obama
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/17/2009 4:06 PM EDT
Standing ovations for Obama at Notre Dame
Irish paper falls for Spidey hoax
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/14/2009 5:44 PM EDT
An Irish newspaper appears to have fallen for an April Fool's day prank which claimed that Spider-Man 4 was set to be filmed in Ireland.
Gary Keogh says hello!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/13/2009 10:14 AM EDT
You'd have to be a certain age of an Irish soccer fan to get the headline but Gary Keogh certainly said HELLO to Allied Irish Bank chairman Dermot Gleeson.
Keogh, 66, pelted Gleeson with eggs at the shareholders' meeting in Dublin today thereby becoming an instant folk hero for the beleagured Irish.
Spelling out Susan Boyle for the Americans!
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/11/2009 6:47 PM EDT
The British tabloid The Sun is having all sorts of fun with today's Oprah show featuring one Susan Boyle.
Apparently Boyle's Scottish accent was too thick for the audience and they had to subtitle her!
As you can imagine, The Sun's all outraged innocence exclaiming that "Every word had to be spelled out."
Producers might have had to spell out every word but the subtitles were dropped when Oprah interviewed Susan live by satellite.
hmm. Wonder what Oprah's show would do with someone from Kerry?!
Bono bashed over Elvis poem
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/11/2009 6:44 PM EDT
British writer Christopher Hart has hit back at U2 star Bono over his poem for Elvis Presley.
The poem, American David, which Bono is going to recite on Britain's BBC next week includes lines such as the following:
Why Bono will never make a journalist
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/11/2009 4:04 PM EDT
Yep, that's right. Bono may be many things to all people but he'll never make a journalist.
The U2 singer popped up on CNN recently with an alleged "interview" of George Clooney and it was a cringe fest.
Feherty's foot gets stuck in his mouth
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 5/11/2009 11:55 AM EDT
Poor old David Feherty.
There he was, writing a column for "D" Magazine, making jokes like he usually does and WHAM, he played straight in to the bunker.
He's all over the news today because of his comments (and you can see the story here) but in all fairness, why now?
The article was published on March 18!!!
The Irish 57
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 3/25/2009 6:38 PM EDT
The story coming out of Philadelphia today sounds as if it might reveal more than the remains of Irish immigrants. It also reveals the depth of the anti-Irish and anti-Catholic sentiment at the time. Niall O'Dowd reflects on the fate of the doomed Irish immigrants. And IrishCentral assistant editor Meghan Sweeney found a great video which discusses the abandoned immigrants
Economist Sheconomist
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 3/22/2009 6:21 PM EDT
So, the Economist reckons the Irish economy has gone over the edge of a cliff. Not hard to disagree with them. I've just heard that the second "social" phases of two huuuuge developments in my home town have been put on hold. Surely it doesn't take an English magazine to see that the numbers never added up. Drogheda has added literally thousands of houses with no concurrent increase in any sort of infrastructure. The Lourdes hospital is stretched to its breaking point, there are waiting lists for every school and public spending is at a standstill. The problems are many and the solutions are few.
Getting the hang of video
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 3/20/2009 6:07 PM EDT
So, there I was, off to the White House with my notebook and pen when web maven Elizabeth Osder thrust a Flipcam in my hand. Take this she said and see if you can get some pictures. So I did! See what you think of Obama here.
Natasha Richardson
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 3/19/2009 9:56 AM EDT
We launched Irish Central this week with a gltzy event at the American Historical Society on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. Liam Neeson had been invited but couldn't make it so he asked his mother-in-law Vanessa Redgrave to come along instead. It beggars belief that less than a week later Ms Redgrave would be attending the wake of her daughter, Natasha Richardson, there. Natasha just exuded life. It seems barely believable that she has died. Our hearts, thoughts and prayers are with Neeson, their children and all their friends and family.
Back to work
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 3/18/2009 9:49 PM EDT
The past week has been a complete blur. So much so that when my neighbor asked me, "So, what was it like?" I had no idea what she was talking about. She meant the White House. Hmm. What was it like? Well, the Obamas are fantastic, the house itself is fantastic and it was incredible to just be there but I have to admit to being a little underwhelmed by the attendance. There didn't seem to be that many Irish Americans there. However, I did see plenty of people who have piggybacked Irish affairs to further their own careers. More on them anon!
St Patrick's Day at the White House
Posted by Kelly Fincham at 3/17/2009 9:44 PM EDT
Really, when you think of it, it's got to be someone's idea of hell. Throwing your house open to 400+ Irish people and giving them unlimited quantities of free drink. Especially when the house in question is the White House. But that's the funny thing about being Irish in America. We don't drink at functions.
And yes, it's true. The Obamas look as good in real life as they do on the TV. The rest of us tried to stand taller (there was a group intake of breath) and we vowed to get fit - soon - some day. Just as soon as I've stopped eating the scallops wrapped in bacon.
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