EVERY SATURDAY MORNING we take a look at all the best comments left on the site by our readers over the past seven days.
The Denis O’Brien injunction, Fifa corruption allegations and same-sex marriage had you all talking this week.
So here are our top comments from the week that was…
The 5 most popular comments this week
(Ireland mentioned at 7:45)
1. James Mitchell, along with 3,549 others, had no time for an Australian politician who went on an anti-Irish rant during a TV debate about marriage equality:
Island of convicts says whaaaat?
2. Proinsias O Foghlù had this to say about the Ware family, who are facing deportation due to ‘bureaucracy and ineptitude’:
This family is the type of immigrant this country needs, they have made a supreme effort to integrate into our country, they are paying their way. Common sense must prevail and give them visas.
Some 2,939 of you agreed.
3. When the High Court ruled that an injunction granted in favour of businessman Denis O’Brien was not intended to restrict the reporting of utterances in Dáil Éireann, Shane Mac Sweeney was happy with the news:
Good. You can stop deleting and censoring comments now so.
He got 2,875 green thumbs.
4. Ciaran Farrelly and 2,374 others were pleased when Sepp Blatter resigned as Fifa president:
About bloody time!!!!!!
5. Meanwhile, Charles Rex got 2,210 likes when responding to an article about a priest who allegedly gave out to parishioners who voted Yes in the same-sex marriage referendum:
Priest furious that congregation can think for themselves.
The top 5 articles which received the most comments this week
1. Here is the article that Denis O’Brien’s lawyers didn’t want you to see last Thursday (452 comments)
2. Court ruling: Media free to report Dáil comments about Denis O’Brien’s debts (264 comments)
3. Feeling of “bereavement” at gay marriage result – says leader of Ireland’s Catholics (261 comments)
4. Sinn Féin accused of ‘pitching Galway tent’ after getting $400k from US-based donors (247 comments)
5. Fine Gael and Labour have surged in the latest poll (224 comments)
Standout comments of the week
Unsurprisingly, people had a lot to say about the Denis O’Brien injunction.
Mark Kirwan shared his two cents:
I think the real point was to show that he can intimidate people and that he will not take scrutiny of his affairs lightly. As such, he wanted people (in the media, the legal system, government, etc) to know about this; the “Streisand effect” seems of limited relevance to me in this whole thing. To the extent that it is, I certainly hope this will have changed some people’s perspective on O’Brien, but the real issue regarding him is media ownership, his close proximity to power in Ireland (incorporating the Siteserv deal), and the findings of the Moriarty relating to his dealings with Michael Lowry.
These are issues people ought to have been concerned about prior to this jaunt down to the Four Courts, and today’s shenanigans are a sideshow to these bigger issues, albeit they provide a glimpse into the kind of entitled, untouchable sense of worth the likes of oligarch, Maltese-exile types luxuriate in.
On the same topic, a lot of you agreed with Irish Druid‘s praise of independent TD Catherine Murphy:
Catherine Murphy – the real Opposition!
More of you were talking about the Leaving Certificate as the exams kicked off on Wednesday. We did a poll on how it impacted readers’ lives – if at all.
Damien Kelly had this to say:
I left school at 13 and ran away to London. Managed to get accepted to university years later through an access programme and now I’m a clinical psychologist – my dream job. So for me, no :)
While Critical Thoughts shared quite a different story:
I know a lad that got a girl pregnant on results night. I’d say that’s a pretty profound impact.
Keeping in with all things nostalgia-related, The Twit shared this beautiful music-related memory:
First ever Slow Set was to Seals kiss from a rose… got a shift too! Multitasking at a pioneer disco.. good old 95.. Heat wave that summer also. Ah the memories
Caitlyn Jenner debuted on the cover of Vanity Fair, leading Paul Wallace to comment:
Brave woman, it takes strength to be who you really are and not care what anyone thinks. Most people live in a small box out of fear of what others would think if they were true to themselves.
Meanwhile, Nicola Lawless had this to say after reading about a tragic case in the US where a baby died after being left in a hot car for hours:
I was talking to a guy at the weekend who was so preoccupied with work that he forgot he had his baby in the back of the car and drove straight to work without dropping her to creche. luckily she kicked up a fuss as he tried to leave the car. he said he didn’t usually drop her (normally the wife) and that between being preoccupied and on auto pilot he just simply forgot she was in the car. he never checked in the back when he got out (why would you if you think you’re alone) and is so grateful that she caused a fuss when she saw him walking away as he got into a work van then. he got some fright. he wasn’t right for days thinking about what might have been. poor woman and the poor little baby. what a horrifically sad incident
On Thursday we asked if you’ve become happier as you’ve aged. We particularly liked John Lennox‘s contribution:
You start to realize that what others think does not matter.If someone likes you great. If someone insults you to high heaven, so what. Wish them well and carry on. Too many people spend their life dancing in anger over what others think or may have said.
And finally, Ciara had an important question about the air fresheners being sold at Tayto Park:
I have a question! Do those car fresheners smell like crisps?
Well, do they?
See any good comments? Send them on to sinead@thejournal.ie
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