image of a letter to the editor of The Guardian under the heading Political Footballs -- "So Iran may have to withdraw from the Fifa World Cup because it is being bombed by the winner of the Fifa Peace Prize" by Robert Lee, London

may you live in interesting times

Every political cartoonist in the world is currently bashing their desks in frustration.

#GazaGenocide #SolidarityWithIranLebanonPalestine

Getting them outside youghal

I was born in an Iranian prison. My parents were held in their jails. My uncles lie in their mass graves. Nothing you can tell me about the crimes of the Iranian regime that I haven't lived in blood and bone. That doesn't mean I want my people bombed, maimed, killed, their homes in ruins. If your vision of liberation comes only through the destruction of innocent lives, then it's not freedom you're after. Sahar Delijani, Iranian author

I am pro Iranian people. I stand with them against their own government’s repression AND against the imperial violence in the form of bombs dropped from the sky from Israel & the US who have already killed hundreds.

I support neither imperialism or dictatorship.

Sahar Delijani said it best:

The SNA Debacle As they say, a week is a long time in politics, and last week was particularly long for some. We moved from a cliff edge of cuts to Special Needs Assistant places, to the Government ‘Pausing&…

Irish Education for the past week has been full of debate around the Special Needs Assistants debacle (from the government)
Here's my thoughts:
john-hurley.com/2026/02/23/t...
#speirgorm
#edchatie

That's lethal.

What's the quick release connected to?
Where is the phantom chain disappearing to?
Why does he have apparently two right arms, but only one leg?
Is there any bike with the derailleur on the left of the wheel?
Why is he apparently fixing issues while still moving?
so many questions...

So this image and website came up in my feed.
Kinda gobsmacked how a website could let such a terrible AI image be published. Needless to say, if the image is that bad, I didn't bother visiting the site.
Do take a moment to have some fun and see how many mistakes you can find!
#speirgorm
#AIslop

Recently I see more and more obviously AI created images that tend to be bland.
I came across this very readable post from Jason O'Gorman on how to use 7 design principles
Well worth a few minutes of your time:
www.humanosity.ie/visual-desig...
#speirgorm
#edchatie

One of my favourite photos from @fotawildlife.bsky.social
10 years ago
#speirgorm

Why are we so afraid of failure? As teachers we are very fond of certain quotations: Edison – “I’ve not failed, I’ve found 1,000 ways that don’t work” Churchill – “Success is not fin…

Latest post, "why are we so afraid of failure?"
#speirgorm
#edchatie
john-hurley.com/2026/02/16/w...

Watching "Any Given Day" from Cork University Hospital.
It really is an excellent production.
#speirgorm

Sir Ian McKellen performing a monologue from Shakespeare’s Sir Thomas More on the Stephen Colbert show. Never have I heard this monologue performed with such a keen sense of prescience. Nor have I ever been in this exact historical moment.TY Sir Ian, for reaching us once again.
#Pinks #ProudBlue

Thank you !

The New Leaving Certificate – This Is Big Across the country, secondary school teachers are engaging in CPD to prepare for the new Leaving Certificate. The new specifications for subjects are being introduced over a series of five tranches…

First post in a while. This one about the new Leaving Cert.
john-hurley.com/2026/01/26/t...
#speirgorm
#edchat
#edchatie

Northern lights near youghal
#speirgorm

Teacher burnout crisis deepens as parents demand constant contact and extra work — study A DCU study of 1,000 teachers reveals rising burnout driven by parental pressure, staff shortages and unmet special needs supports

Source: Irish Examiner
search.app/1a2Jb
Teacher Burnout Crisis,
From the Irish Examiner
#speirgorm ##edchatie

My Christmas List 2025 • a f**cking break • wine • people to use common sense • 10 hours of sleep • 12 million dollars • a snack • gym body without the gym • a new lower back • a pair of knees • no wrinkles

Dear, Santa….
#SpeirGorm

They seem idealistic.
I'd worry that the level of critique and referencing required are beyond what a lot of students have completed previously

The difference in presentation of the same fact by two British news agencies.
Guardian Vs Sky
#speirgorm

Colin Sheridan: Ireland is moving so fast, it's forgotten its people We are a rich country masquerading as a poor one, run by people terrified of annoying people even richer

Every single week, @colinivan.bsky.social uses his platform for good.

I've seen this described in my timeline as "exquisite", and it is. It deserves massive acclaim.

I hope it crosses the radars of John Collison, our Taoiseach and our Tánaiste.

Very shortly, my current role ends: if anyone needs a temporary tutor in early modern history or any freelance research work done please do drop me a message. I have over a decade's experience in teaching and in archival research.

that looks amazing!

Dr. Jane Goodall filmed an interview with Netflix in March 2025 that she understood would only be released after her death.

CEO-to-worker pay ratio in 1965: 20-1

CEO-to-worker pay ratio in 1990: 75-1

CEO-to-worker pay ratio today: 280-to-1

Trickle-down economics was always a sham.

Nothing has ever trickled down.

16 August 1944 | A transport of some 2,500 Greek Jews deported from Rhodes Island arrived at #Auschwitz. After the selection 346 men & 254 women were registered in the camp. The remaining people were murdered immediately in gas chambers.

#BookSky

A local historian started comparing records of births and deaths and realised that hundreds of children were listed as having died in one such home

For decades Ireland had "Mother and Baby" homes.
Women who got pregnant outside of marriage were sent to these places.
Baby's were adapted without consent, and the women were often treated like criminals.
.