World Cup 2026 Health Check: Bigger, greedier, and more grotesque than ever With just under two months to go to the 2026 World Cup, it's fair to say it hasn't exactly been plain sailing off the field.

World Cup 2026 Health Check: Bigger, greedier, and more grotesque than ever

open.substack.com/pub/gameover...

Online abuse of politicians is a profitable business Senator Eileen Flynn's comments on far-right use of the tricolour have made her a lightning rod for online abuse — because viral hatred is highly profitable

Really need to remember to share a link to the piece

www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/comm...

Please don't be fooled by protests that claim they're about the fuel/cost of living crises. Check who's organising them and who the speakers are before attending them. As the far-right have infiltrated them from the start, and now seem to have taken them over almost entirely.

2/2

Today I turn 89. I’ve seen this country at its best and its worst, and I know how much community matters. For my birthday, I’m asking you to stand with PFLAG and support the work that’s helped so many in the LGBTQ+ community, including me. give.pflag.org/page/95493/d...

Stunning day!

✅ M50 southbound ✅

All lanes are now open on the M50 southbound, as the collision at J6 (Blanchardstown) has been cleared. Delays of 20 minutes remain from J4 (Ballymun).

"kindly requested" ? Like they have a choice. 💔

The victims ranged in age from 1 to 14, according to Cpl. Chris Bordelon of the Shreveport Police Department, who spoke at a news conference. He said the shooting appeared to be domestic in nature.

God I wish we were rid of the "domestic" euphemism, which softens a brutal type of violence and makes it sound like a private affair. "Man shoots eight children, all family members, at three locations across Shreveport."

Bid to take down fake videos and images of garda response to fuel protests False viral information, much of it being generated abroad, is on a scale ‘never seen before’ in Ireland

Meanwhile, Aidan O’Brien, an analyst at the European Digital Media Observatory Ireland at Dublin City University (DCU), has been monitoring how the far-right in Ireland and abroad reacted to the fuel blockades. He said a “disinformation economy” went into full swing during last week’s protests. He uncovered conspiracy theories about the energy crisis and talk of “the great shutdown”, which were already in heavy circulation on Irish social media by the middle of March. “When the protests erupted, Irish right-wing social media influencers went into overdrive posting video content. Many of these influencers benefit from features introduced on the platforms, like algorithm promotion, and have monetised their accounts,” he explained. “There is now a disinformation economy. Influencers know the most dramatic footage, alongside the most sensational framing, will go viral, generating income. They aren’t just promoting this footage and their narratives because it suits their agenda, they’re making money doing so.” After that international far-right influencers pounced on the content, he said. “Nearly immediately, and often within minutes of the initial videos being posted, it was downloaded and repackaged by influencers outside Ireland. “It happened so quickly that you might assume these people are heavily immersed in the situation, but they’re chasing the content, and the story, often repackaging footage with false claims that the protest was about migration. “This happens because over the last five years our disinformation ecology has become exponentially complex and is fully integrated with the international far-right disinformation ecosystem.” Ireland has now become a “major focus of attention” for the international hard-right, he said. Canadian far-right influencer Ezra Levant travelled to Ireland last week as did Kevin Posobiec, whose brother Jack is an American far-right political activist and social media personality. Both filmed content while here. The fact both men…

The fact both men were willing to “jump on a plane” said a lot, added Mr O’Brien. “The foreign attention and amplification of these protests are concerning…Our Government needs to start demanding real accountability and action from these [social media] companies… “If the Minister [for Communications Patrick O’Donovan] is concerned about ‘lopsided coverage’ of the protests, he shouldn’t be worried about the radio but look at social media.” On Friday, Minister O’Donovan admitted he made a “hames” of his call for a “review” into broadcast media coverage of fuel protests. He said, “in hindsight”, he should not have suggested that the media regulator — Coimisiún na Meán — should “review” both local and national broadcast coverage of the fuel protests.

I spoke to the Sindo about the unprecedented scale of disinformation we witnessed during the fuel protests & the disinformation economy. It's not enough to get this content removed post-hoc; we need to hold the platforms accountable for promoting disinformation & hate speech.
archive.ph/AOVHC

Awww we missed you. Sorry for your loss but welcome to peaches!

Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez: “Here in Spain, we are approving and advancing a process to regularise half a million immigrants.

“And I want to say to the Right and the Far Right who oppose this: Spain is the daughter of migration and will not become the mother of xenophobia.”

The last 2 weeks have seen a relentless amount of disinformation & hate speech on Irish social media. And yes the international angle is disturbing but the primary sources of these narratives have been Irish influencers. And it was Irish people organising these protests not Tommy Robinson…

Man (30s) arrested over alleged assault on women canvassing with Mary Lou McDonald The man assaulted two women amongst a group of canvassers, including Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald

Man (30s) arrested over alleged assault on women canvassing with Mary Lou McDonald The man assaulted two women amongst a group of canvassers, including Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald

Man (30s) arrested over alleged assault on women canvassing with Mary Lou McDonald The man assaulted two women amongst a group of canvassers, including Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae has denounced "outrageous" and "hurtful" online abuse and called for action against 介 Home Most Read Latest Sections.

Man convicted of abusing refugees tells Leo his 'days are numbered' Debbie McCann 05/10/2025 A convicted criminal and far-right agitator sinisterly told former Taoiseach Leo

Harassment, personal abuse, & threats have become an endemic part of Irish political life. & it’s by & large driven by social media, which has played a major part in all of these incidents.

All of these incidents have been shocking but pale into insignificance compared to what happened this week.

I’ve be involved in various capacities in counter disinformation and counter hate speech activity on Irish online spaces for over 8 years.

I have never witness anything as bad as the abuse directed at Senator Eileen Flynn… it’s gamergate levels of targeted & coordinated harassment.

Watch David Borenstein, who just won an Oscar for his documentary “Mr. Nobody Against Putin,” call out the dangers of the pending Paramount-WBD merger, and what it means for press freedom.

This is a well-documented pattern in medical research and reflects systemic gender bias in pain assessment and treatment.👇

Sprouts is a Trans owned social media site that is in the early stages and growing.

the storm of hate directed at Eileen Ní Fhloinn has come not only from the Irish far right, but the massive international networks of far right influencers on social media. even Libs of TikTok got involved. this is what people risk every time they dare to criticise the far right anywhere

Oh I can imagine that feeling never goes away. I feel mad all over again!

You'd like to think so!. Hope you are doing well now.

Jeez I've read your story before and just re-read it again now. What an absolute POS he is!

I Have a Love — The Resurrection of Beer, Football and Community Under Dublin Floodlights — Pellicle On 15 July 2009, Stephen Clinch landed in Salzburg, tired and confused, after jetting from Dublin to Sioux Falls, Minneapolis, back to Dublin, and finally, to Munich. He’d been buying equipment for hi...

This time last year I was knee-deep in League of Ireland research for this (excellent) article on the links between the league and Dublin breweries.

Would love to get back to Dalymount before it closes
www.pelliclemag.com/home/2025/8/...

This story is crazy! The Jim Dolan had a Knicks fan obsessively monitored at games just because she was trans.

If you had doubts about who Independent Ireland are and some of the fuel protest leaders - well they’re showing us.

Protesters and those whose livelihoods are at stake should have nothing to do with the far right or bigotry. #fuelprotests

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Jennifer Horgan: We have set a new standard for what angry men can achieve. It's terrifying Angry men's blockades stopped my mother being with her dying brother-in-law last week. She was not the only vulnerable person whose needs were trampled on

"The joy on the faces of far-right men, more angry, angry men, tells me everything I need to know about the blockades and this new standard of protest... We respond to the needs of angry, suffering men before the needs of everybody else."

#SpeirGorm #SpéirGhorm

'TERMS TO AVOID

"biologically male," "biologically female," "genetically male," "genetically female," "born a man," "born a woman"

a person's sex is determined by a number of factors... and one's biology does not "trump" one's gender identity.'

web.archive.org/web/20150701...
GLAAD guide *2015*

Father of disabled child refused access to a disabled car parking spot in his complex He has a blue badge, he has offered to pay, but as a social tenant, he is shut out.

The father of a disabled child has been refused access to a disabled car parking spot in his complex. He has a blue badge, he has offered to pay, but as a social tenant, he is shut out.

A must-read article by Fintan O'Toole.

"There’s a point in any social upheaval when it shifts from being against the government to being against the state."

Yes, and it's very frustrating! @bbcnewsireland.bsky.social