Art, media, opinion and ideas
Some years ago, back when that sort of thing mattered to me, I used to enjoy going through the albums of the years lists in the music press and congratulating myself on how many of the top 50 I owned. As my tastes have grown a little more, eh, rarefied, I find that my own picks of the year correspond less and less with those of the press.
You could be forgiven for thinking that we'd forgotten all about the VoteTube competition we announced a while ago, amongst all this talk of newspapers. Don't worry, we're not quite as inactive as it looks on that front, and there may be a big bang coming on it this week, or next.
I previously wrote about how a handful of votes in a handful of constituencies will decide the next election. I took us on a little tour of the Irish PR system, explaining why your fourth and fifth preferences can make the difference between success or failure for a candidate. And I gave a link to a printable version of the Irish voter registration form.
Some time ago I lamented the passing of Top Of The Pops. For the same reason that TOTP went to its grave, the singles charts will soon be a thing of the past too. This is a real pity, as a look at the top ten will tell you much about the state of popular culture at any given time, as well as serving as a valuable corrective to those who choose to rewrite a critically correct history.
There will be an election within the year. People who claim knowledge of these things say it will most likely take place around next Easter. Lots of bloggers have been commenting on the political parties’ maneuverings as they try to position themselves.
Two and a half weeks in, and it’s been a cracker of a World Cup. Not only has the football been excellent, but (at least as important from the point of view of an armchair fan like myself) televisual entertainment of the highest order has been on offer. Adrian Chiles of the BBC continues to delight, some of his best moments coming after last night’s bad-tempered Portugal – Netherlands game.
The Sunday papers are, as expected, full of the recent internal warfare in the Progressive Democrats. What interested me most was the degree to which the PDs apply their privatised world view to the management of their party. The PDs are currently at about 3% of the vote, but the PD mindset is a remarkably pervasive one.
Launched amid great fanfare, promised as the greatest cultural event of our young century, Poetry Monday went flat after a single installment. What can I say? It was a bank holiday. There was snooker on.
Irish Seal It isn't often you're thinking about podcasting and stumble on a reference to your own grandfather. But that's what happened today when I was bumped towards Richard Develan's site to listen to his trial "Saturday View"-style podcast, Sunday Brunch. I'd listened to it, and thought it a little too slow, a little too safe and not focused enough on Ireland, but not a bad start.
There was some discussion of my previous post on Proinsias De Rossa's vote, making him the only Irish MEP to vote in favour of the Data Retention Directive passed in December of last year. (More comments here and here)I posted his statement following the vote. Now I thought I'd post his response to my email, which landed with me today.
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