francis mahon : comhra

about: it's only words

2009-12-08T15:09:00.004Z

Like the Bee Gees sang, "it's only words, and words are all I have".

So what is this about? I just the other day started reading John Banville's "The Sea", and discovered, within even the first few pages, a number of words I am unfamiliar with.

Here is the plan: every time I encounter a word I haven't seen before (or recently/often enough to have a sense of what it means) I'm going to look it up and post the definition here.

mewled: v. (past) to whimper or cry weakly
tremulous: adj. trembling, quivering or shaking

filigree: n. a delicate and intricate ornamentation made from gold or silver twisted wire
circumspectly: adv. with consideration for all that is pertinent
polyglot: adj. Versed in, or speaking, many languages

apotropaic: adj. intended to ward off evil

friday 13th

2009-11-13T18:30:00.003Z

In honour of the day that's in it. I don't know how superstitious I am, but I try not to drive when the 13th falls on a Friday - my favourite ever car was written off on one such inauspicious day. Anyway, a strange thing about the number thirteen:

Not only does 11 + 2 = 12 +1, but ELEVEN plus TWO = TWELVE plus ONE.

first they gave...

2009-10-30T14:26:00.003Z

With apologies to Herr Niemoller

First they gave to the bankers, and I did not get anything —
because I was not a banker;

Then they gave to the builders, and I did not get anything —
because I was not a builder;

Then they gave to the property developers, and I did not get anything —
because I was not a property developer;

Then they gave to the public sector, and I did not get anything —
because I was not a public servant;

Then they gave to me — but there was nothing left...

horse shit

2009-10-16T14:54:00.003+01:00

This row, quite literally about horse shit, is horse shit.

The disagreement centres on a new requirement that applies to the horses-drawn carriages which travel through the grounds of Muckross House, on the outskirts of Killarney. The horses have to wear 'dung catchers', also known as 'horse nappies'.

Earlier in the year, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, which manages the heritage site, banned the entry of horses without this device. After the jarveys (operators of the carriages) kicked up a fuss, the requirement was relaxed temporarily while an independent third-party was appointed to look at the implementation of the new requirement.

Having had all summer to face the new reality, the jarveys are again up in arms, as the NPWS has now decided to re-introduce the ban. Some of the jarveys claim that the devices could scare the horses, leading to a public safety issue.

--

The way I see it, having horse shit all over the paths of the Muckross estate is a public safety issue. If I was walking my dog on the same grounds, I'd be expected (and legally required) to clean up any excrement it deposited. Why should it be any different for horses? If the horses owners can't get the horse used to the dung catching device (some claim that the horse could possibly be spooked if the device was to inadvertently rub against it's back legs), then is the animal really fit for the job of drawing a carriage around a route that consists of many unpredictable elements, including tourists, children, wildlife, a very busy urban area and even a busy main road?

Bottom line is: For once, the faceless bureaucrats are right. Keep Muckross free of horse shit - no nappy, no entry.

history: 25 years ago...

2009-10-12T18:26:00.005+01:00

I've been terribly lazy lately, and have been trying to motivate myself to get back to more regular posting. So, today is as good a time to get going, as any...

The day the Provo's nearly got Maggie!

On this day in 1984, a bomb exploded in the Brighton hotel which was hosting the Conservative Party's Annual Conference. The device, containing 100 pounds of explosives had been planted by IRA member Patrick Magee, a number of weeks beforehand. Sentenced to 35 years, he was released in 1999 as part of the Good Friday agreement.

Seeing "Lady" Thatcher on television these days, it disappoints me that as her memory fails with age, she may forget how much she is still hated by a large section of the Irish population.

bookmarked last month (september)

2009-10-01T01:00:00.003+01:00

Quieter this month, and yes, I did manage to squeeze a holiday in to my schedule. A flying visit to NYC to catch up with Black 47 and the gang... on a cruise around Manhattan island!

bookmarked recently

2009-09-01T01:00:00.001+01:00

Shame on me, neglecting my updates! At least now I have a little more time on my hands, given that my summer work contract has expired, and the sports fields tend to fall silent from September onwards... time for a holiday, I think... maybe a cruise...

last month's clippings (july/august)

2009-09-01T00:00:00.000+01:00

2009.08.31.1905
Cheat Sheets, Finding Shortcuts – Noob2Pro #26
mactipsandtricks.com

2009.08.09.1500
Finding Apps For The Mac – Noob2Pro #22
mactipsandtricks.com

2009.07.01.0800
Consumer news and bargains: Who should you follow on Twitter?
valueireland.com

last month's clippings (june)

2009-07-01T00:01:00.003+01:00

2009.06.30.2150
Create A Crossword Solver
mactipsandtricks.com

2009.06.28.2225
30+ awe inspiring digital illustrator portfolios
blog.webdistortion.com

2009.06.27.2026
Keeping Your Mac Safe From Harm
mactipsandtricks.com

2009.06.26.2025
Safari 4 Tips And Tricks – A Collection
mactipsandtricks.com

2009.06.24.1934
Add Trash To The Sidebar
mactipsandtricks.com

2009.06.21.1909
Video Capture Your Desktop
mactipsandtricks.com

2009.06.09.1108
7 free blog client alternatives reviewed
blog.webdistortion.com

2009.06.08.2232
8 of the best web design resource pages
blog.webdistortion.com

2009.06.08.1229
Press/Media Advice for an Irish Business - The Mega mix
mulley.net

2009.06.02.1936
Disable Dock Bouncing
mactipsandtricks.com

2009.06.02.1333
Pitch TV Episode 1
entrepreneur.virgin.com

last month's clippings (may)

2009-06-01T00:00:00.001+01:00

2009.05.02.2017
Terminal Tips For Spotlight
mactipsandtricks.com
2009.05.05.1957
How to write (and how not to write) a bylined article for the print media
yourtechstuff.com
2009.05.06.2058
Fine for fraud cartel mechanic
breakingnews.ie
2009.05.14.1908
A newbie guide to getting more website traffic.
webdistortion.com
2009.05.18.2147
Bulk Edit Address Book Contacts
mactipsandtricks.com
2009.05.28.1944
Randomly Display Email Signatures
mactipsandtricks.com

comment: institutional abuse

2009-05-26T18:12:00.003+01:00

I posted a comment on this post by Twenty Major, and reproduce it here: Further below is the youtube video which Twenty linked to.

It’s difficult to put feelings in to words at the best of times. I know exactly how that man feels. The abuse he suffered as a child was only magnified and compounded by the way the Commission allowed him to be treated by the legal teams. Being called a liar, having his suffering dismissed.

What happened to these children was the equivalent to a holocaust, and people have been vilified, prosecuted and even jailed for denying the Jewish Holocaust. To attempt in any way to deny the suffering inflicted by agents of the Church, with State complicity through a conspiracy of silence.
It brings the recent debate over the proposed revision of the blasphemy laws in to sharp focus. Nothing that the worst hate-mongers could invent would ever be as damaging to the Catholic Church as the truth that has finally been officially acknowledged.

While the “issue” is at the forefront of the media and public perception at the moment, it has been, is today, and will always be a huge personal issue for all of the people how were abused. The depression, the suicides, various other mental illnesses and personality disorders caused by their experiences. That is the true tragedy, the wounds that can never be healed.

Finally, as something of an aside, I hold ever member of Fianna Fail responsible for the actions of Michael Woods in sanctioning the sweet deal which limited the religious orders imdemnity. So don’t bother knocking on my door looking for a vote, because I’ll have this video on my phone, ready to replay it for you.

about: catholic church in ireland

2009-05-23T13:40:00.003+01:00

An idea from Damien Mulley:

"The Report on physical, sexual and mental abuse committed by the Catholic Church in Ireland has been out a few days and there seems to be far more outrage in other countries than here. The various political leaderships seem afraid to make any comment about this, getting spokespeople to comment instead. Now all the talk is about the Church having to pay more money. Cash isn’t justice and it doesn’t help highlight one of the darkest things about Ireland. It is my belief that every time someone does a google search for Catholic Church in Ireland, the abuse report should be front and centre. The Church itself has worked long and hard to bury the atrocities they committed. So if you feel the same way, why not link to the Report with the linking text Catholic Church in Ireland. Many would rather this report be forgotten, I’m not one of those."

update: yet more confusion

2009-05-22T15:51:00.002+01:00

I was fortunate enough, this afternoon, to be in a position to discuss my concerns with someone I consider to be somewhat of an expert the matter at hand:

Local Election Regulations 1995 (as amended).

14. (1) At an election a person may nominate himself or herself as a candidate or may, with his or her consent, be nominated by another person (being a person registered as an elector in the area of the local authority for which the person proposes to nominate the candidate) as proposer.

He had an entirely different take on the situation. He maintains that this regulation means that anyone can nominate themselves for election in any electoral area, but where another person proposes them the proposer must be a registered elector. He gave the example of being allowed to nominate himself for election in Wexford, Donegal and all points in between.

While I respect the learned individual who was kind enough to discuss the matter with me, his interpretation flies in the face of logic. Then again, he did say that there was no logic in the law!

Given the nature of some of the candidates running in Wexford, I suspect that this matter may well come before the courts.

I might mention that when this regulation first came to my attention (some years ago), it was because a candidate, Philomena Roche (Fine Gael) was proposed by a person who was not registered in the local electoral area involved.

update: more electoral chaos

2009-05-22T13:55:00.005+01:00

Following on from my recent look at Section 14(1) of the Electoral Regulations 1994, and how they might apply, I noticed a piece in today's Irish Independent regarding a fireman whose run for office has been brought to an abrupt end.

According to Section 13 (1)(i) of the Local Government Act 2001 "Subject to subsection (2), a person is disqualified from being elected or co-opted to, or from being a member of a local authority if he or she is a person employed by a local authority and is not the holder of a class, description or grade of employment designated by order under section 161 (1)(b) or deemed to have been made under that section".

Section 161 (1)(a) states that, in general "a member of a local authority is not to be employed by a local authority", which Section 161 (1)(b) allows that "The Minister may by order designate such class, description or grade of employments to which paragraph (a) does not apply and specify such conditions under which paragraph (a) does not apply.

"The Minister" made an Order in 2004, laying out the exception to paragraph (a), as follows: "every class, description or grade of employment the maximum remuneration for which on the last date for receipt of nominations at a local election does not exceed the maximum remuneration for the grade of Clerical Officer".

In Wexford Borough Council this may be relevant to two candidates: Pat Sheridan, Community Warden (Fine Gael) and Danny Forde, Caravan Park Manager (Green Party). Obviously I'm not privy to their earnings, and obtaining the maximum rates for their employment class isn't quite as straight-forward as it should be.

So, it seems that either of these candidates could be in quite a difficult position if they were to be elected...

update: electoral regulations

2009-05-21T16:43:00.002+01:00

My most recent post, a press release, stated that there was an irregularity in the way nominations for the election to Wexford Borough Council were handled.

Below is the relevant section from the Electoral Regulations 1995, as amended:

14. (1) At an election a person may nominate himself or herself as a candidate or may, with his or her consent, be nominated by another person (being a person registered as an elector in the area of the local authority for which the person proposes to nominate the candidate) as proposer.

press: borough election in legal limbo

2009-05-21T14:22:00.003+01:00

* FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE *

BOROUGH ELECTION IN LEGAL LIMBO

The failure of the Returning Officer to properly enforce the regulations regarding nominations for election to Wexford Borough Council has left the result of the townspeople’s vote open to legal challenge.

According to notices published by Mr. Pat Collins, Town Clerk, a number of the nominations received by his office have been validated, despite the fact that the nominations do not appear to comply with the relevant Electoral Regulations.

The regulations require that a person nominated for any elected office must be proposed by a elector registered to vote in the area relevant to the body to which election is being sought.

Notices published by Mr. Collins indicate that a number of nominations did not fulfil this requirement. Neither Alan McGuire of Castlebridge (Non-Party) nor Pat Sheridan of Murntown (Fine Gael) are proposed by an elector entitled to vote in the forthcoming Borough Council election.

This oversight, whether on the part of Mr. Collins or the candidates involved, leaves the entire electoral process open to potential legal challenge by unsuccessful candidates.

ENDS

update: see here for details of the regulations.

bookmarked this week

2009-05-13T18:58:00.002+01:00

Sat through the final part of the Emergency First Responder course last weekend - talk about "Death By PowerPoint"!

top 10 worst computer viruses

2009-05-07T12:41:00.003+01:00

An interesting little piece that arrived in my inbox this morning, courtesy of VNU Net: Top 10 worst computer viruses.

In summary:

I Love You
Sasser
MyDoom
Nimda
Melissa
Storm
ExploreZip
Conficker
Klez
ElkCloner

Just miseed the cut: Creeper, Brain.

Strangely, of all the virus infections I have seen, I don't think I've every met any of this infamous list!

positive feedback - customer service

2009-05-01T14:04:00.002+01:00

I'm always very quick to point out instances of poor customer service, so I thought for once I'd focus on an example of good service.

I took delivery of a package via NPX a little while ago (a 2.5" PATA hard drive from Elara), and signed for the delivery. Didn't think any more of it, until my curiosity regarding their "online tracking" system got the better of me.

When I logged on to their website and typed in the tracking number, I was more than surprised to see a photograph of my signature, as well as my mobile phone number. Out of privacy concerns, I contacted the company straight away, requesting that they remove my phone number from the image.

This they did, in a timely manner.

While I do have some concerns over the fact that my signature was posted to a publicly accessible website, I will attempt to address these at a later stage. For the moment, well done to NPX on taking my concern on board, and acting so quickly.

last month's clippings (april)

2009-05-01T00:00:00.007+01:00

2009.04.01.0754
April Fool’s Day Roundup
webdistortion.com
2009.04.03.0021
The Blogger's Calendar
webdistortion.com
2009.04.09.1928
Introduction to iTunes- A Beginners Guide
mactipsandtricks.com
2009.04.16.0002
99 Amazing iPhone Wallpapers
mactipsandtricks.com
2009.04.16.2303
What every blogger should know about keyword research tools
webdistortion.com
2009.04.17.2037
Make Your Own iPhone Wallpaper in Preview
webdistortion.com
2009.04.17.2040
Irish Political Party Plagiarise BBC But Think They're Cool
mneylon.com
2009.04.22.1957
A glossary of SEO terms and jargon
webdistortion.com

what the f### is a tyro?

2009-04-18T20:20:00.003+01:00

Tyro? The first time I met this word, earlier this year, was in print, being used to describe Manchester United's John O'Shea. I had to look it up. "A novice", which I felt was a little unfair to the Waterford man. I can't remember which newspaper the article was in, but I'd guess it wasn't 'The Sun' or any of it's red-top cousins. It was probably 'The Guardian'.

Anyway, imagine my surprise at hearing the word used by a soccer commentator on Setanta Sports, this afternoon, in the build-up to the FA Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Arsenal. Are Setanta trying to stand out as a more broadsheet channel, in the face of the tabloidism of Murdoch's Sky Sports? Or was the commentator attempting to slip in a disparaging remark about the relative inexperience of the Arsenal team, without awakening the ire of Gooners among the viewership?

Maybe 'tyro' is just the current mot-du-jour amongst the fraternity of football journalists - or is it some sort of bizarre challenge to work the word in to their reportage?

blogging v. comments

2009-04-16T12:44:00.004+01:00

As I lay awake in the early hours of this morning, I got to thinking, as is my wont. I read a lot of blogs, and follow the conversations that evolve in the comments with great interest. Often times, the comments are if as much value as the original blog entries which provoke them.

Then, only this morning, I read an entry Anti Smoking is dangerous, from Irish Grandad's Head Rambles blog. I felt compelled to comment...

The smoking issue is a bit of a conundrum…

Anyone got a figure for the annual cost to the exchequer of dealing with smoking-related illness, versus the annual revenue generated? Even if the revenue exceeds the cost, this is a short-term gain, because even if smoking were outlawed tomorrow and this revenue stream lost, the monetary drain of dealing with the ongoing health issues for years in to the future would continue. So, can you honestly say that smoking doesn’t harm anyone else? In a very real sense, smoking damages our children’s futures.

I’m all for freedom of choice, but I don’t think the government should be footing the bill for treating smoking related illness. I know it is only a small step from saying the same about obesity-triggered diabetes or lifestyle related heart disease, but, you know, with personal choice comes personal responsibility.

A life insurance policy won’t pay out in a case of suicide, so why should the public health system bear the cost of smoking, which is, in the final analysis, a long, slow suicide?

I've had these thoughts buried within me for a long time, but only the trigger of Grandad's post brought them to the fore, and drove me to articulate them. I guess that's what blogging is all about... starting a conversation... maybe that's why I called this blog 'comhrá'?

bookmarked this week

2009-04-16T00:59:00.002+01:00

Not very much going on at all these past weeks, but I have quite a few sites to investigate in the coming days, mostly arising out of the first part of the Emergency First Responder course...

bookmarked this week

2009-04-04T19:12:00.004+01:00

A shorter list this week, but some very interesting and useful links...

last month's clippings (march)

2009-04-01T00:00:00.002+01:00

As well as bookmarks, I quite often use the 'clippings' feature of NetNewsWire, a free product from NewsGator, to keep track of notable or interesting articles that pop in to the various RSS feeds that I follow. Again, as a backup as well as an incite in to what catches my eye, I intend to post them here monthly.

2009.03.01.1713
Introduction To Xcode - A Newbies Resource
mactipsandtricks.com
2009.03.04.1307
The Ultimate Pie Chart
rickoshea.wordpress.com
2009.03.05.1336
Educators and Technologists: how can we best change Ireland ?
chrishornat.blogspot.com
2009.03.05.1428
UK politician apologises for plagiarising newspaper
breakingnews.ie
2009.03.14.1426
Quickly Summarize Articles And Text
mactipsandtricks.com
2009.03.19.0800
Nugget of information from the European Consumer Centre
valueireland.com
2009.03.19.1727
Too Many Fish In The Sea...
rickoshea.wordpress.com
2009.03.22.1442
12 useful tips on how to promote a website.
webdistortion.com
2009.03.24.0312
75. “All A Record Company Is, Is A Bank Loan.”
pavelware.wordpress.com
2009.03.24.1603
Brian Cowen - Balls naked
mulley.net
2009.03.29.2345
Separated at birth
twentymajor.net
2009.03.30.0100
Parking
xkcd.com