Shortlist is out for the bloggies. No Irish blogs nominated as far as I can see. I think we could have given them a run for their money in a few categories. Shame we are not even in the Best of the UK and Ireland blogs. We’d rule in the Photo blogs. Lucky we have our own awards!
Author Archive
Bloggies Shortlisted
Monday, January 23rd, 2006Roe Vs Wade is 33 years old today
Monday, January 23rd, 2006From my limited knowledge of judicial history I know how important Roe v Wade was and how it started a new era of freedom for people around the world. It in effect struck down anti-abortion laws in the US citing a woman has a right to privacy and to do what she wants with her own body. Of late though this is being seriously eroded.
Roe v Wade inspired the McGee case in Ireland which deemed unconstitutional the ban on the sale of constraceptives and it in turn sparked the long and unending abortion arguments in Ireland. Mary Robinson was the Barrister for Mrs McGee and later was part of a pro-choice group that campaigned for legislation change on abortion.
Mary Robinson and Mary McAleese later campaigned with David Norris to remove the ban on homosexuality which was denied by the Supreme Court which amongst other things cited that it was a public health concern and so his privacy and what he did in his own home was less important than curbing homosexuals and their health risk. This was of course at the time when people were dropping like flies (or so it seemed) with AIDS. (1983-1984). Norris eventually went to the Eurpean Court of Human Rights and won (1998) but it took until 1993 before the ban on homosexuality was removed.
Now tomorrow comes a much leaked report, the conclusions of which seemed to have been decided on before a consultation process was even finished. The report is about changing the constitution to recognize more rights for children and a better more inclusive definition of what a family is. Right now a family is a married man and woman and who have or could have kids. Anything else is not a family and therefore does not have the same rights. The definition of a family will not change say the leak ks and that was made clear months ago but it seems to deflect from this rigged result they are making it a Gay Marriage issue.
It is true that if they changed the definition it may have provided for same-sex marriage but that was with one suggested definition but it would mean that umarried fathers would have rights to their kids, it would mean kids with two mummies would have parents who are equal guardians of their future, it would have meant unmarried couples would be treated better in the eyes of the law. Instead the family definition remains unchanged and the issue is turned into an emotive issue about gay marriage. Ugly spin tactics to hide the pre-Roe attitude that still exists amongst some in Ireland. There’s more coverage by Suzy and Potato. I’d be very interested in Fiona’s take on it.
The web 2.0alizer
Sunday, January 22nd, 2006I wonder is there a Web2.0 app out there that turns text into web2.0 words as you type them? So that a sentence like this: The quick brown fox whatever way the sentence ends gets turned into The qck brwnr fxr whatevr way2.0 the soontence ends as you are typing. If not, someone in Ireland make it!
Press Release for the Awards
Friday, January 20th, 2006Apologies for yet more blog posts about the Blog Awards, normal mindless ranting will resume soon.
I’m going to be putting out a press release about the Blog Awards, giving details about the event, the awards and the time and location. This will be followed up with another release on the night announcing the winners. Where I need your help though is for the end of the release which explains what blogging is and what it can do for individuals and companies. Anyone care to come up with a quick and simple explanation of blogging and why it is beneficial to some? It must be in two short enough paragraphs or less.
Tom Raftery Carole Colemans Yahoo
Friday, January 20th, 2006In the his latest interview Tom Raftery grills Bradley Horowitz of Yahoo. Of particular interest is when Tom puts Yahoo on the spot for sponsoring spyware and fucking over that journalist in China:
Yahoo! was at the receiving end of some negative publicity last year – In August, Ben Edelman outed Yahoo for funding Spyware developers, and in Sept, Yahoo! was accused by News.com of employing spyware tactics in its new version of its Instant Messenger app, does Yahoo! have a corporate Ethics Officer or a corporate Ethics statement that you follow? – 25:35
More bad PR in Sept when Chinese journalist Shi Tao was jailed for 10 years for posting “sensitive informationâ€? after Yahoo! turned over his Yahoo! hosted email account to the Chinese government – is this a case of Yahoo! putting profit before human rights? – 27:44
If this had happened in the US would Yahoo! have fought the government request in the courts? 30:37
Bradley mentions they comply with the Law of the land and the last question and corresponding answer seems very relevant now with news that Yahoo and other engines handed over search data to the US DOJ. Google refused and are going to Court. As John Battelle notes, they say there was nothing in the request for personal data but a Patriot Act request could look after that.
Sweet Eulogy For Graham Chapman
Friday, January 20th, 2006Via Monochrom: The Graham Chapman Eulogy. Funny, sweet and sad.
Guinness Ice Cream – How to make
Friday, January 20th, 2006In which my real agenda is exposed.
Thursday, January 19th, 2006No, not that agenda or that one either. As some cynics have pointed out I have an ulterior motive to the Blog Awards and running them. I want to be more popular and get to be the new “It” guy of the Irish blogging community. I’ll be like Cheers, where everyone knows my name except I’ll only midly smell of beer and peanuts. And the reason for all this? Free homecooked meals. There said it. Take your jaw off the floor. I know, shocker isn’t it?
Have you seen the blog posts on food around these parts lately? Winds has a whole shagging section on cookery as does Morgan. Suzy tempts my tummy now and then too. Bernard too has recipes.
And then of course there’s Cheesecake boy. 🙂
We should have a big cook-out. We’ve done drinks, we’ve done conferences, we’ve done dinners in a restaurant. Now the bloggers should get together and cook. I shall eat their meals as I am a nice guy.
Are there others out there? I know I forgot a few. I must be their new friend and be popular with them!
No doubt James will make an OPML node for these foody blogs 🙂
In which I become a corporate whore…
Wednesday, January 18th, 2006Rightso,
I’m not doing all of this on my own, the blogging community can now help me out with the Blog Awards. I’m looking for category sponsors as well as spotprizes for the night. Maybe you or your company can spare a few quid or maybe you know someone that works in a cash rich company that would love to sponsor a category, if so then talk up blogging and the Blog Awards and have them contact me.
Also, really important, can people let me know if they are going to come along. Right now I only know of four people who have said they’d go. Register your interest in going to the Blog Awards here.
Bring some forks to the Blog Awards
Wednesday, January 18th, 2006Mmmm cheesecake. I must add cheesecake to the list of things required for the night. There. Done.