Opinion

BY CLAIR WHITTY It’s that time of year again, doesn’t it come around so fast? Are you keeping an eye out for stocking fillers or interesting gifts to share with a loved one, a friend or secret santa? Here are some gift ideas. Essential Oils, incense sticks, and oil burners, body and facecare gift sets …

AS I SEE IT MARIANNE HERON After months of rows over undisclosed payments to Ryan Tubridy and inquisitions of RTÉ executives by the Dail Media Committee, which probably broke viewership records, a plan to save our cash-strapped public service broadcaster emerged last week. But what is public service broadcasting and why do we need it, …

BY JOHN FITZGERALD The Kilkenny Heritage Walkers marked their 600th outing last Saturday. The big occasion coincided with a tour of the site of the former city jail from which IRA volunteers staged a daring breakout in 1921. Mayor Joe Malone addressed the walkers in the lush surrounds of Castle Garden before the dedicated men …

FURTHERMORE  By Gerry Moran Last week The Kilkenny Observer made for interesting reading regarding the assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, on November 22, 1963. I found the article: ‘25 facts about that fatal day in Dallas’ quite engaging. I think it’s fair to say that people my age …

PART 2 CALLAN NUNS BLAZE A TRAIL DOWN UNDER BY JOHN FITZGERALD In a letter to the Callan Convent of Mercy shortly after his meeting with the nuns, Cardinal Moran outlined the plans he had drawn up for the nine who had volunteered for the Paramatta mission: “…They will first of all have the primary …

BY MICHAEL O’LEARY The National Hunt Season is in full swing now, and the biggest weekend of the season so far takes place with Two Grade 1s down for decision in Punchestown. It’s a Two-Day meeting at The Kildare Track with Racing tomorrow (Saturday) and Sunday, with two of Willie Mullins star performers from last …

THE FACT OF THE MATTER BY PAUL HOPKINS It is one of the enduring images of modern history, when two bullets from an assassin’s rifle hit President John F Kennedy in the head and throat as his open motorcade drove through Dallas, Texas. First Lady Jackie Kennedy cradling his head, the blown-away brain bleeding into …

BY JOHN ELLIS, FINANCIAL ADVISOR Black Friday and CyberMonday are here, and with the Christmas lights appearing in our streets and shops retailers begin to entice us into the Christmas spirit early, yet consumers say they are tightening their belts, with almost two in three planning to cut their Christmas spending this year. This “Bah …

BY JOHN ELLIS, FINANCIAL ADVISOR The recent release of Exchequer figures for the period ending October paints a multi-facet picture of Ireland’s economic landscape. While overall tax revenues have grown, there are concerns about the third consecutive monthly decline in corporation tax receipts. The figures reveal that tax revenues for the first 10 months of …

AS I SEE IT MARIANNE HERON Where are we? Where are we going? Are we nearly there? When it comes to how we are progressing on our journey as a society, it seems to me that, in these days of fake news and 50 shades of views on social media, now more than ever we …