Yes the oil is running out on planet earth. Yes Ireland is the most car and oil dependent economy in the world and yes it seems that the Government is doing very little about planning how to deal with this, so how would you go about making a 50 minute TV programme investigating such a crisis? Free article

Picture the scene. It's past three o'clock in the morning at the Donegal North East count centre in the Mount Errigal Hotel, Letterkenny. The battle for the last two seats is a cliffhanger between three candidates, the two outgoing Fianna Fáil TDs, Jim McDaid, Niall Blaney, and myself. Free article

Although Health was continually presented as the issue of most concern to people, the 26 County general election was ultimately fought on the economy. Many people clearly feel that 'change' could have impacted negatively on jobs and income. All of this in spite of Fine Gael and Labour offering essentially the same policy platform as the outgoing government. The Presidential nature of the campaign and the leaders debate had a significant impact in polarising support around the two potential Taoisigh. The Fine Gael vote came out and the Fianna Fáil vote (plus previous PD and Independent voters) came out to stop Fine Gael and Labour. Free article

Discussions within the party since the general election and forthright opinions being expressed across the membership are to be welcomed. But we also need to get our analysis right and draw the correct strategic conclusions. Analysing the situation from a sectional perspective on policy or publicity issues, or with a niche view of popular opinion, or even too narrow an ideological emphasis, will skew our assessment and conclusions. The most accurate perspective will be achieved by conducting our analysis within the framework of overall republican strategy. Free article

Is the under-representation of women in elected office a reflection of a patriarchal society refusing to provide for the special circumstances required to allow women to juggle other responsibilities with those of public representation? I believe that it is. Free article

Italian journalist Silvia Calamati launched the Spanish language edition of her book 'Women's Stories from the North' at a packed press conference, attended by most Basque media outlets, in the Basque city of Bilbao on Monday 4 June. Free article

Bhí mé arais ar Chnoc 16 ar an Domhnach i gcomhair an rí-ra agus ruáille búaille idir na 'Jackeens' agus an Rítheaghlach. Free article

Massacre at Loughinisland Free article

Diligent readers of this column and those of you who keep scrap books carefully filled with my sapient musings on the robust and manly jostling of the Gael will immediately recall my predictions of some time back as to the great future that lay in store for tousle headed young Mark Vaughan. Known to his chums as Madser, or more latterly Vince. Free article

Claims of media bias against Fianna Fáil during the general election are both true and untrue. They are true to the extent that some sections of the media, The Irish Times for example, is intuitively and fundamentally hostile to the party of the great unwashed and also despises all forms of Irish republicanism - the populist, posturing variety as in Fianna Fáil and the real thing as in Sinn Féin. The Irish Times is a paper that sells less copies than either the Irish Independent or the combined weight of the tabloids but it acts as the the intellectual voice of the old establishment and the professional middle classes and as such it sets much of the political agenda. Free article