Joseph Shearer

[Carole Cadwalladr @carolecadwalla]

1) It’s *literally* your job to regulate this platform.

2) If you can’t, what does that mean? Tell us.

3) The Dept of Culture is not ‘your’ department, it’s ours. You’re its temporary custodian

5) But Facebook is ok? Really?

[Weiran Zhang @weiran]

RIP to Crossing Continents, my favourite BBC podcast which is being cut next year.

I guess doing investigative journalism costs too much compared to getting some talking heads into a studio.

https://t.co/4RxpFLoW7p

[John Kampfner @johnkampfner]

The World Tonight & Crossing Continents were the last BBC programmes that dealt in depth with global affairs. Their demise says everything about priorities in British public life, which is mired more than at any time in monolingual mediocrity & insularity. You reap what you sow.

[joycemcmillan @joycemcm]

@johnkampfner What? No Crossing Continents? Suicidal stuff from the BBC.

[watershed_investigations @WATERSHED_i]

The Lough is encircled by a ring of intensive poultry farms & anaerobic digesters. That's a lot of chicken poop releasing a lot of phosphates to feed a lot of algae to suffocate a lot of wildlife.

https://t.co/58bcdV0bBc

[Farrukh @implausibleblog]

Wow! Caroline Lucas explains why we need a wealth tax - bravo 👏 #BBCQT

Caroline Lucas, "I can certainly tell you that the Green Party would not be proposing tax cuts when public services are decimated, when hospitals have huge waiting lists, when schools are crumbling, when universities can't cope.. The Green Party would be prioritising investment in public services, not cutting taxes"

David Lammy, "Where are you going to get the money to do that?"

Caroline Lucas, "A wealth tax.. Some of the richest people do not pay a proportionate amount of tax.. They have one in Switzerland, in Norway, and the sky hasn't fallen" @CarolineLucas

[BUCHANAN: Dublin Time Machine @RobLooseCannon]

Ancient Ireland was a melting pot of Celts, Vikings, Norse, Normans, and English and the meaning of our Counties names reflect that. Sometimes silly, occasionally simple yet always interesting let's begin in alphabetical order...

○Antrim = Aontroim, The home of the Glensmen translates to “the lone ridge” or “the lone dwelling.”

○Armagh = Ard Mhacha
"Macha’s height.” The ancient Celtic goddess Macha rode a magical horse and then gave birth to twins.

○Carlow = Ceatharlach
The Dolmen County aka The Barrowsiders and The Fighting Cocks (!) and let's not forget The Scallion Eaters names not very glamorous translation is the “place of cattle.”

○Cavan = An Cabhán. The name for the Medieval Kingdom of Breifni surprisingly isn't the Gaeilge for tight feckers, it means “the hollow"

○Clare = An Clár
There's been more than one name for this beautiful county. Pre 1565 CE it was called Thomond, basically “North Munster.” Clár translates to "plain" but it could also be called after the illustrious Norman family "De Clare". Also known as The Banner County, in reference to the banners captured at the Battle of Ramillies; or related to Daniel O'Connell's Catholic emancipation celebrations in 1829.

○Cork = Corcaigh
It's not the Irish for langer, the rather embarrassing meaning is “swamp/marsh." It's known as The Rebel County because in 1495 they supported the Royal pretender Perkin Warbeck. Also called "Donkey Aters" (sic) as during the Great Famine many desperate people in Skibbereen resorted to eating donkeys out of starvation.

○Derry = Doire
“oak wood.” Simples

○Donegal = Dún na nGall
"the foreigners base/stronghold” The aforementioned outsiders being the Vikings. Another name used to refer to the region was Tir Chonaill, “the country of Conall.”

○Down = An Dún
Straight to the point. “the fort.”

○Dublin = Áth Cliath = Dubhlinn
I know from experience there will be some naysayers who will (incorrectly) contradict this but the “Áth Cliath” means “fort of the hurdles/hurdled fort”. Less controversial Dubhlinn = black pool.

○Fermanagh = Fear Manach
“The Men of Manach” or depending on the context “the men from the county of the lakes.”

○Galway = Gaillimh
Stony, relating to the rocky river Gaillimh. Also known as The Tribesmen as Galway city was home to fourteen historically prominent tribal families.

○Kerry = Ciarrai
This one is complicated. The Ciar bit references “dark brown or black”. The Raighe means “a people or tribe.”
So it is the dark brown people-ish.

○Kildare = Cill Dara
“church of the oak.”...remember Derry?

○Kilkenny = Cill Chainnigh
“church of Cainnech,”. In approximately 597 CE Saint Cainnech converted Kilkenny to Christianity and everything's been perfect since. Kilkenny is also often called "the Marble City" because of the nearby quarry which supplied the materials for its many elegant buildings. Even though it is a limestone quarry, not marble...And of course "The Cats!"

○Laois = Laois
Another complex one. "Uí Laioghis" refers to the “people of Lugaid Laigne.” Lugaid was an out-of-town warrior who beat a gang of invaders A Team style and chased them out of the hood. He was rewarded with a hero-sized parcel of land. For historical accuracy's sake, we must also note that for a time it was called “Queen’s County” after a certain Bloody Mary Tudor.

○Leitrim = Liatroim
The quite Emo/Gothic “gray ridge.”

○Limerick = Luimneach
Like a specialty nightclub for bald me (like me), it means “bare spot.” Much sexier was the Viking title Hlymrekr which means “mighty noise.” Bord Failte would definitely prefer that. Also the "Treaty city" after the Treaty of Limerick in 1691.

○Longford = An Longfort
No prizes for this one. It means “the port”, referring to a riverside fortress on the River Shannon.

○Louth = Lú
Such a diminutive sounded name for such a powerful legendary figure. The Celtic god Lugh of the magical fearsome Tuatha Dé Danann >>continued

[Ian Dunt @IanDunt]

We really should make it mandatory for voters to watch this 3 minute clip before the election campaign begins. Would help put things into perspective.

[Joseph Shearer @Shearer_321]

@KaylaMelissa16 @ItchyMuffin @marywallopers Hi there are these still available?

[UTV Live News @UTVNews]

James Martin tells @UTVNews meeting President Biden during his visit to Belfast was a "pinch me right now" moment
https://t.co/FdJQqqf8I6

[Feargal Sharkey @Feargal_Sharkey]

I had absolutely no expectations whatsoever for @DefraGovUK's commitment to the environment and I have not been disappointed.

2063 may as well be 2163, meaningless, pointless and absurd, not unlike this government.

[ian bremmer @ianbremmer]

what’s “the west”?
we use the term all the time.
but it’s a problematic concept.

[Sarah Creighton 🍂 @Saraita101]

It's that wonderful time of year when we wait for a new NI SOS. Soon the BBC will be like "Johnathan de Whittington MP for Devon upon Avon Stratford" is the new Northern Ireland Secretary of State." The camera cuts to some rando Tory outside the Titanic centre looking bewildered.

[Paul O’Kane @pmokane]

@sgourl @naomi_long And of all the manufacturing companies in all of the towns, the NIO just happens to walk into the one that hosted the DUP manifesto launch.

[Integrated AlumNI @IntEdAlumni]

@RealCFrampton A reminder of how MLAs voted on the Integrated Education Bill in March 🙂

FOR (in alphabetical order)
Alliance
Green
People Before Profit
SDLP
SInn Fein

AGAINST
DUP
TUV
UUP

Independent Unionist
Easton -No
Sugden -Abstained
Wells -No

Independent
Lunn -Yes

[Mark E Thomas @mrmarkethomas.bsky.social @MrMarkEThomas]

Thread (1/13)
Sunak says that “government can’t be expected to solve every problem.”

Here is a list of problems this government cannot be expected to solve.

If we want them solved, we need a different government.

[Channel 4 News @Channel4News]

"You’re asking me to choose which children live and which children die."

The head of the World Food Programme (@WFPChief) tells @krishgm that $600 million is needed to tackle the food crisis in Ukraine for three months - saying "no child should die from starvation."

[Howard Beckett @HowardRBeckett]

There are 171 billionaires in the UK with a total wealth of £560bl. Taxing their wealth over £10ml at just 3% would raise almost £60bl.

Stop the tax increases on workers. Tax the billionaires.