Month: February 2012
Ireland to have a referendum on the EU fiscal treaty…
Prime Minister Enda Kenny has just announced this afternoon that a general referendum will be held on the EU Fiscal Compact prior to the summer. Labour and Fine Gael, the parties currently in power, will campaign for a Yes vote. Sinn Fein will probably line up on the No side, which would continue their journey on the road to Euroskepticism. Fianna Fail, which spectacularly combusted in general elections last year, will be having its Ard Fheis (Party Conference) this weekend, which a good deal of the party’s future will be discussed. No doubt this referendum will be a hot topic. The sense I get so far is that Fianna Fail will back a yes vote, since the previous government was thoroughly Europhilic and the current leader, Micheal Martin, was in the prior cabinet. But let’s see what happens this weekend…
A few quick thoughts:
– The Taoiseach (Prime Minister) is announcing this now because he thinks people are generally feeling good about Ireland’s prospects. In the last 10 days or so several hundred new jobs from various overseas corporations have been announced.
– Or maybe his hand has been forced by the prospect of Sinn Fein issuing a court challenge?
– Initial takes I’m reading/hearing indicate a No vote would imply a break from the Eurozone.
Time to go listen to the radio!!
Around Chicago February 2012
Upper left – the hotel Dana. There is a cool Asian restaurant in the hotel – the billboard has a girl with 2 different colored eyes. On the roof of that hotel there is a club that is open all winter. Note – from behind – that building looks like a Soviet creation it is all faceless wall with one window. Upper middle – a cool new building on the Northwestern medical campus in Streeterville. Upper right – a little candle lit setup in the restaurant Zocalo in River North. Lower left – some random construction in River North. They are just adding a level on top of a building like it is a third world country or something. Lower middle – Chick Fil A is in Chicago near the Magnificent Mile – that place is awesome! Lower right – a cool red building in River North.
Cross posted at LITGM
File Under the Heading W-T-F
As I was working over a hot computer this afternoon, with the local classical music station on, I heard a reader for this little excursion. Oh, my – I wondered if Texas Public Radio just wants us to get a good look at what happens when a prosperous state undergoes a revolution of the proletariat, and have received a full ration of social justice, as well as management by the modern version of the philosopher kings … yep, get a good long hard look at the itinerary. It includes a stop at the Bay of Pigs Museum. Lots of lovely pre-revolution buildings – at least, that is what the TPR website page about the tour displays.
Gee, I guess they couldn’t wrangle a tour to Syria – I gather that it’s lovely, this time of year. Or maybe to another civil-rights hellhole like Burma, or Iran; so many lovely historic buildings and pleasing vistas, for the delectation of the culturally-sensitive and well-heeled visitors. I am just gob-smacked by this – and the timing for this particular tour offering, as well as the community that it has been offered to. San Antonio is a fairly conservative town, full of former military – and many of whom are sponsors and contributors to public radio – or at least, we were, back in the day.
I used to work at this place, as a part-time announcer; until they decided to let all the local part-timers go, and manage the station with a combination of full-time professionals and automation. I used to think that TPR was one of those intersections where a lot of different circles in San Antonio intersected. Now, my daughter is wondering – Did Sean Penn and Michael Moore go halfsies on corporate-sponsoring Texas Public Radio?