Monthly Archives: January 2012

Zizek, Bankers Bonuses and Capitalism after Industry

Posted on January 31, 2012 by admin

In 2010, it was politicians’ expenses. More recently public ire was – rather fairly – targeted at tabloid journalists and their nimble telecommunications skills. Now it’s bankers and their egregious bonuses. RBS and Stephen Hestor has dominated the news agenda … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Society and Culture | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Review: Why It’s All Kicking Off Everywhere by Paul Mason

Posted on January 30, 2012 by admin

‘It is easier to imagine the end of the world than it is to imagine the end of capitalism,’ Fredric Jameson, a leading theorist of post-modernism, wrote in 2003. Not anymore it isn’t. If the culmination of Francis Fukuyama’s Whiggish … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Politics, Society and Culture, Sunday Business Post | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

At Edinburgh Sheriff Court

Posted on January 30, 2012 by admin

Supporters of Occupy Edinburgh were thin on the ground at the city’s sheriff court on Wednesday, 25 January, Robert Burns Day. Only 15 or so activists went to protest against their eviction from St Andrews Square, outside the headquarters of … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Scotland, Society and Culture | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Mubarak is Gone but Young Women Still Struggle in Egypt

Posted on January 29, 2012 by admin

Thanks to a grant from the Simon Cumbers Fund, I spent time in Egypt before Christmas researching female youth unemployment after the fall of Hosni Mubarak. On the eve of the 1st anniversary of the Tahrir Square protests, my piece … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Sunday Business Post | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Talking Scottish Independence with Pat Kenny

Posted on January 23, 2012 by admin

I appeared on the excellent Today with Pat Kenny program on RTE on January 12, talking about Scottish independence referendum vote and what an independent Scotland might look like. As the Today with PK site says, ‘This is shaping up … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Scotland | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

The Troubles at Boston College

Posted on January 23, 2012 by admin

Boston College-Belfast Project case and its ramifications for academic freedom and social inquiry. From Times Higher Education. The folk tale about the academic who accidentally deleted his data is older than the PC, but have you heard the one about … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Northern Ireland, Politics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Sean O’Casey in Tahrir Square

Posted on January 16, 2012 by admin

In 1936, Robert Merton published a seminal paper entitled “The Unanticipated Consequences of Purposive Social Action” in the American Sociological Review . Seemingly minor events, the then 26-year-old argued, can have profound, unanticipated implications. The “law of unintended consequences” was born. … Continue reading →

Posted in Irish Times, Politics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

St Mirren CIC’ing the Habit

Posted on January 12, 2012 by admin

Is there an alternative to robber baron chairman asset stripping your club? I spoke to an innovative new venture through in Paisley, to turn local club St Mirren into a Community Interest Company. This feature originally appeared in February 2012 … Continue reading →

Posted in Sport | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

A New Dalriada?

Posted on January 11, 2012 by admin

My thoughts on what Scottish Independence campaign – and independence itself – might mean for Northern Ireland, from Scotsman January 11. ‘Do you want Scotland to remain part of the United Kingdom?’ Doubtless it’s the kind of phrasing David Cameron … Continue reading →

Posted in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Politics, Society and Culture | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment