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SOME 401 PEOPLE are waiting for beds in hospitals around the country, according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO).
As of this morning, there were 41 people on trolleys in Connolly Hospital in Blanchardstown, 37 in Beaumont Hospital, 37 in University Hospital Limerick and 31 in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda.
A full list of the number of people on trolleys today is available here.
On Tuesday, the number of people in emergency departments waiting for beds exceeded 600 for the first time ever.
Yesterday, Fianna Fáil leader criticised Leo Varadkar for his handling of the situation, saying the Health Minister needed to take action and “stop being a commentator and some sort of detached analyst”.
Varadkar’s predecessor James Reilly defended him, saying he has “a very difficult job to do”.
On Monday it emerged that Dr Tony O’Connell is to resign as HSE National Director for Acute Hospitals and Chairman of the Emergency Department Taskforce at the end of the month in order to move to Australia, where his wife is taking up a top academic post.
Vardakar said he has been in contact with O’Connell every day bar Christmas Day in recent weeks.
He said the measures advised by the Taskforce such as curtailing elective surgery and making more homecare packages available, clearly didn’t work or weren’t fully implemented over the busy Christmas period.
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“but let’s be honest, the best part for a lot of people is usually the potatoes and other sides.”
Can we get a fact check on that?
:/
@Alan Leahy: agreed!! It’s the turkey and ham for me!!
@Alan Leahy:
Is a meatless Christmas dinner not just dinner.
Let’s face it, Christmas Dinner to the majority of Ireland is the ham and turkey.
@Alan Leahy: I’m more interested in the sides on the day. The turkey and ham come into play for leftover sandwiches.
@james spice: We dip the trimmings in beaten egg, seasoned flour (pepper and chilli flakes) and fry them in a little oil. Lemon juice over the top and it’s Amazing.
@offtheball: turkey, ham & roast beef in my house, yum, yum!!
@Cian Nolan: ooof that sounds good.
@Alan Leahy: The ham is definitely the best part! I can take or leave turkey but it’s nice in sandwiches though
@Alan Leahy: Raises hand. Give me the sides, dessert and some fresh bread.
People come on here and are happy to say ‘I love animals’ but the truth is that you love to eat animals – there is no difference between a dog/calf/pig/cat they are all sentient beings yet we have factory farmed some and live with others – it’s called Speciesism
@The world outside the M50: Get over yourself, we’re omnivores.
@lelookcoco: What makes you an ‘omnivore’ ?
Your long intestines are long for a reason – to digest plant matter.
@The world outside the M50: agreed they are delicious
@The world outside the M50: our biology allows us to eat plant matter, but it doesn’t preclude consuming animal matter. Your arguement is the basis to allow choice, not to prove that we are herbivores who force ourselves to also be carnivores.
@The world outside the M50: Cant disagree. I love cows and pigs as animals but I also love eating them. It’s possible to do both at the same time. We’re animals at the end of the day and animals eat other animals.
Cants stand turkeys though so it’s always prime rib or leg of lamb in this house on Christmas Day.
@The world outside the M50: I would also point out that whilst in Western cultures we don’t tend to eat cat or dog, those species are consumed elsewhere. Most cultures happily consume insects, protein intensive, but such thought is abhorrent to western sensitivities. These are cultural artifacts, not based upon any biological requirements in terms of selectivity. For millenia we have been hunter-gatherer omnivores, and it is only with the development of food technology, in terms of alternative sources of vitamins, minerals and protein, that the biological feasibility of a vegan, vegetarian diet has become sustainable
@The world outside the M50: speciesism. That’s a thing now eh? I’m tired.
@Dearbhla O Reilly: lol. I never heard of it either. I think there are words being made up to suit the circumstances lol ;)
@Dearbhla O Reilly: Whenever I hear ‘speciesism’, I think of the vegetarians who don’t eat red meat, but chicken is grand by them!
@D. Memery: You should have a look at how your ‘food’ is ‘prepared’ or should I say how the animals are slaughtered
https://youtu.be/LQRAfJyEsko
@The world outside the M50: I wouldn’t eat dog…… Again
@Brian Tracy: Agreed that year I forgot to order the turkey was pretty ruff, a dog is not just for Christmas…dinner.
@The world outside the M50: don’t mix up the decision to eat meat with modern industrial scale agriculture, both meat and vegetables. Both have resulted in the mass destruction of ecosystems and generally results in poorer quality food. It is well accepted that as a species, particularly in developed countries, we over-produce both meat and plant based foods for what we biologically require. Biologically we require a balance between both meat and plant, but also need to reduce consumption of both in Western society. Free-range and organic as much as possible. I also voted in the poll that I’d be happy with a non-meat Christmas dinner.
@Fiona Fitzgerald: vegetarians don’t eat chicken.
@The world outside the M50: they are delicious…. Meat is good
@The world outside the M50: canine teeth is a clear example. And the fact we can digest meat.
@The world outside the M50: every time i see a vegan preaching, i make a conscious effort to eat meat the next day just to ironically offset any good they think they are doing. I now have a steak in my fridge which will 100% be used tomorrow. Thanks for the preach, i will definitely enjoy it.
@john smith iv: ‘Canine Teeth’ ! – what a joke – when was the last time you used your so called ‘Canines’ to rip an animal to death and tear it apart ?
The largest Canines on the planet belong to a Hippopotamus who of course – like all large animals – is a herbivore.
How do you know if someone is a vegan .? They will be sure to tell you within the first five seconds of meeting you.
End of the day , as a species we have an omnivore diet which helped us to grow and advance at a rate greater than other species.
@Ciaran: Helped, yes. But our mastery of fire a 1,000,000 years ago allowed us to cook food. Cooking food is a form of pre-digestion, that effectively makes food more energy-dense. It’s that which gave us the advantage, as it freed us from constant foraging.
@Fachtna Roe: True, hot food’s also a source of warmth in winter. Interestingly, I recently discovered that people with various common food allergies can indeed eat those foods if baked, which bears out your theory of making a wider range of foods digestible to us humans.
* Oops, if the foods are baked, not the people dining :-)
@Ciaran: i find its the other way round, how do you know someone’s a meat eater, they absolutely tell youuuu
@Fiona Fitzgerald: I find being baked makes me want to digest slot of food
@Keith Fay: Nobody has ever introduced themselves to me as Hi I am whatever, and then said I eat meat. I have been met with hello my name is whatever, I am a vegetarian, vegan or whatever version the follow.
There are a lot of independent places and restaurants that do meat alternative roasts that can be pre-ordered, they’re really good. Even quorn’s roast is great to replace real meat, it tastes like lamb. I know most meat eaters shudder at the thoughts of this, i was the same. When i became vegetarian the one worry i had was how disappointing Christmas dinner was going to be, i was totally wrong, the meat substitutes out there have filled the hole perfectly
@Keith Fay: @Keith Fay: “Pre-ordered” what does that even mean??
I presume you mean “ordered”.
@Keith Fay: I’d ride spiders before I’d eat a meet substitute. Happy to go (and often do) veg only.
@Brian Farrell: meat
@Brian Farrell: ride spiders…. brilliant
@Brian Farrell: think this is my favourite comment ever on the Journal!!!! Love it.
@Brian Farrell: ah man! Thanks for the laugh…classic comment!
@Keith Fay: Meat substitutes are muck and will always be a poor cousin taste wise to the real thing. If anyone decides to go vegetarian they need to get away from the idea of always trying to replace meat. There are loads of vegetarian options that are tasty on their own.
@Gavin Linden: it means you order for a specific time and date. What stone do you live under lol?
@UK Hurling Bloke: Yes, and that is called ‘ordering’.
You must have got your education in the UK.
@Brian Farrell: Comment of the month!
@Gavin Linden: pre-ordering means ordering before the release date. It’s a very common thing especially in the music and video game industry. You can’t order them as they’re not released so you pre-order, very simple.
@Brian Farrell: i mean technically anything replacing meat is a meat substitute, like a nit roast or vegetable wellington. i know what you mean though about the overly processed stuff like quorn. The roasts i mentioned are usually made from seitan or soya and are really good.
@Keith Fay: Ah yes Keith, and that too is called ‘ordering’. Very simple, no pre, prior or any other letters need to be added to that word.
Not currently the biggest issue in my life at the moment but it does join a whole range of other BS words from the hipster crowd that are completely meaningless.
@Gavin Linden: no, you’re very wrong there. It’s a valid english word that describes a specific event / process. Back to school with you please.
@Gavin Linden: from collins dictionary-
preorder
in British English
(priːˈɔːdə)
VERB (transitive)
to order something in advance of it being available
Now accept your defeat please
@Keith Fay: Not much eating on a nit roast, but enjoy yours!
@Fiona Fitzgerald: I don’t eat nit roasts, not my thing
@Gavin Linden: let it go.
@Keith Fay: I normally make a mushroom and nut roast, gone for variations over the years but always love it. sprouts and roast potatoes I love as well.
A plate of roast spuds and Brussels sprouts. I would eat it no bother as I love them both more than the turkey anyway.
Just don’t sit next to me for 13 hours.
@Serge the llama: don’t forget to add Christmas cake to that, for that nuclear experience.
“If they breathe, they live. If they live, they think. If they think, they feel. Just like you and me.” ~ Anthony Douglas Williams
@Stu Cullum: I work with loads of people that contradict that statement.
@Stu Cullum: but they have no capacity for ‘future thought’, no conscience or awareness of mortality, just learned reactions. They are not truly sentient if they can only think of the past, the present, but never of the future?
@Stu Cullum: Plants breathe as well… Photosynthesis… turning Carbon dioxide into Oxygen.
@Inno Items: I think that for purposes of this argument/calculation, you mean “plants ehtaerb”. (As if multiplying across by -1 to allow for the directionality of the oxygen consumption) ;)
@Jack Russell: Some day you should watch the strategies of working dogs in action. Those champion dogs are expert at anticipating the ploys of strays and predators alike, and their brains are excellent at independent thought – vital when the utility dogs are monitoring a flock alone for days at a time in the mountains.
If it were me against a hunting lioness, I wouldn’t bet on myself to outwit her either! A cat could run rings around me. No, I’m not even talking about muscle memory, vastly superior smelling ability & interpretation, and faster reflexes, but the expertise with which they manœuvre. It’s not called “cat chess” for nothing – Malamutes are even better at it.
@Stu Cullum: trees breathe!
@Stu Cullum: “If they breathe, they live. If they live, they move. If they move, I’m eating it”
Homer: Lisa, honey, are you saying you’re never going to eat any animal again? What about bacon?
Lisa: No.
Homer: Ham?
Lisa: No.
Homer: Pork chops?
Lisa: Dad! Those all come from the same animal!
Homer: [chuckling] Yeah, right, Lisa. A wonderful, magical animal.
If god didnt want us to eat animals then he shouldn’t have made them so yummy
Some people will be glad of any kind of dinner on Xmas day
@In the paper: hear hear
The next 2 weeks are crucial
@Genera L Consensus: gov is very concerned
@John Johnes: About their next two pay rises!
Veg have feelings too
Even when we finally do become a mostly meatless society, people will still save delicacies for Christmas day. I eat less meat than I used to eat, but I wouldn’t ever skip my turkey on Christmas day.
@John Murphy: It’s never going to happen people will always eat meat the greens and the Vegans will constantly lie through their teeth about the sustainability of grass fed meat but ploughing the earth releases far more carbon than leaving it in pasture with cattle or sheep. To be honest I’m sick and tired of social and main stream media giving tiny minorities excessive air time to force their opinions down everyone’s throat and try force them to do what they want and Vegans are by far the worst their diet isn’t even sustainable without tons of supplements even though they will deny this, and then you have the dipsticks that force their vegan diet onto their almost exclusively meat eating dogs and cats and end up starving them. Humans are naturally omnivores and no amount of propaganda will change that
@Michael McGrath: Why are you being so divisive and polarising in the way you speak about it? Has some vegan hurt you as a child or something? If You cared, you can say the exact same thing about meat eaters; they often shove it in my face about how I’m not eating properly, won’t be filled if there’s no meat or not getting my required vitamins when I try to enjoy a lovely meal. Or if I’m at a deli and order a role without meat in it.
I am mostly a vegetarian (not vegan) and I never shove it in anyone’s face. I only talk about it if asked. And if you cared to know, most vegetarians/vegans will have to let you know if they’re in your house so you don’t serve them a plate of carcass and make them feel bad/rude when they don’t eat it.
@Tomo: How am I being divisive and polarising I am telling it as it is if anyone is being polarising it’s the activist side of Veganism, I’m not thick obviously the vast amount of vegetarian and vegan people just eat what they want and mind their own affairs I drive home from work everyday along a motorway with a big billboard sign that changes periodically from #GoVeganWorld berating us for the evils of eating meat, now they have latched onto the agriculture carbon footprint b.s on their latest sign that the greens are spouting about. I couldn’t give a fig what a person wants to eat that’s their business but what I eat is my business as well. And your on about Vegans only informing people about their diet when invited to a meal, I know someone who went to a doctor last week who informed him that he was a vegan and that he would benefit greatly from the vegan diet like he did. Now could you imagine a meat eating Dr doing the same thing… Don’t think so
@Michael McGrath: I was thinking of the extreme long term ~100 years plus. By then we would be growing food with new methods hydroponics etc
But even then I’d still say people will want to eat meat. It may be grown in a more humane way though.
@John Murphy: There’s that. I was only reading about lab-grown leather, based on mushrooms.
@Michael McGrath: Odd – I’ve never had a ‘supplement’ – when was the last time you were Vegan and can prove you needed a ‘supplement’ ?
We are not ‘naturally omnivores’ – our long intestines are there for to digest plant material not meat.
If you are such a meat eater when was the last time you went to kill and eat an animal ?
@Fiona Fitzgerald: So it is faux leather.
I went vegan for 6 months and got very run down and lacked lots of vitamins. I will never give up meat again, specially at Christmas. Turkey sandwiches yum.
@Anna Carr: Then you did not understand Veganism – it is NOT a diet – it is a way of life to not harm any living creature.
Any balanced diet will resolve your vitamin deficiencies.
If you are saying ‘yum’ to the eating of a dead animal then you did not understand veganism
I’ll have the turkey, ham AND the veggie option thank you. It’s all delicious. Turkey gravy all over the veg option to wind up the veggie guests.
—–An important notice for all vegans and everybody else too —–From now on you are only allowed to eat vegetables that have been grown using imported peat products——-By order of the Irish Greens!
Where are the comments on the teachers who don’t want the kids wearing masks, they should replaced immediately.
@Martin Doyle: I think you replied to the wrong article .
@Martin Doyle: Unless you’re inviting specific teachers to your Christmas dinner, I don’t see the relevance?
@Fiona Fitzgerald: lol
@Martin Doyle: Because the likes of Raymond Scott and their terrible takes on mask wearing would be lured into those comments sections talking nonsense that would require their comments to be removed anyway. Better to keep them closed so they can’t be heard.
Turkey, ham and stuffing. Christmas just wouldn’t be the same with those wonderful foods
I love dogs and cats, and know my cats have the short gut of a carnivore and cannot live on vegetables. I will spend money on an ethically reared turkey, and give titbits to my darlings. A little meat, now and then, properly farmed
@lynda kennedy: Yes, Cats are ‘obligate carnivores’ like all the cat creatures – they have short intestines getting a burst of energy from meat. – Again there are alternatives but we are not talking about Cat food here.
There are no ‘ethically reared’ turkeys – they cannot procreate themselves due to their upper body weight – they are killed for your table – that is not ethical.
Nobody likes turkey at ours. So it will be brisket and the traditional ham.
@Ashling Visser Bishop: Have to agree. I can’t stand turkey as a meat. I find it dry and tasteless.
@Darren: I eat the Turkey because it’s there. I wouldn’t miss it if it disappeared from our Dinner. The Ham on the other hand…………….
@Darren: If the turkey is dry you’re not cooking it right.
@Cian Nolan: Same, although one of my aunts makes a delicious turkey soup. On my own I wouldn’t bother buying turkey, I’m over it.
I would be OK with a non-turkey dinner. Roast pork with crackling would be perfectly acceptable.
Turkey, Ham and sausage stuffing, pile it high on my plate go away with your veg/vegan nonsense…
I could never understand the coupling of turkey and ham, two fairly dry meats what ever way you prepare and cook them. Got a tip many years ago to go with turkey and bacon.
Cracking combination, just do the bacon in the normal way and you’ll never look back.
@Gavin Linden: Try both in the boned and rolled option, turkey doesn’t get overcooked and dry because of the legs. Ham stays really succulent as well
@Michael McGrath: Cut the legs off and cook them separately. The breast will be done in an hour and be moist. Especially if smothered in butter and wrapped in streaky rashers
@Benny McHale: yep delicious too, either way get the legs off
Answer me this.. If we’re not meant to eat animals then why are are cows and pigs etc so God dam tasty…
Go vegan folks! Eat your veggies. Its the beat. Just don’t forget to eat your meat and dairy too!
Vegans and veggies do know if we all gave up meat all these animals wouldn’t even exist except in a zoo or the odd farm . It’s so expensive to look after and care for them
@Gerrard: All farmed animals are forcibly created – there would be no need to create them
@The world outside the M50: Thats actually not true at all. Any farmer will tell you that.
TBH, as a dinner guest, I wouldn’t touch the vegetarian side dishes unless encouraged. I’ve been to some parties (in the past) where the homecooked vegetarian or vegan sides were so tasty that they were golloped up by the early arrivals, leaving the vegans a bit short of hot food!
going by the comments here it really is no wonder we are in the middle of a pandemic. every bite either fights or feeds disease. unfortunately most people choose the latter
I find turkey too dry, fillet steak for me, medium rare please
No. I wouldn’t eat a meatless dinner ever. Especially not Christmas.
@katholic: So let me get this straight – you have never ever eaten a dinner without meat – not even a pasta dish ? – wow
Turkey and ham once a year for me
Would be intersting if we could see how this developed from say 20 years ago till now .
Looking forward to turkey! Bird and fish are the only remaining meats i have no conscience about eating. I do succumb sometimes to a quater pounder! There will come a time when we will look back and think how odd we were to eat other mammals.
Enough of this vegan nonsense already. It’s akin to the temperence movements in the U.S. that led to prohibition. Enforced morality is never good for society.
OlivePork.ie for the best Christmas ham on the market people, free delivery too.
A goosey gander is a tasty meat.
No one should eat meat unless they’ve visited an abattoir.
Ignorance and inflexibility is not a good enough excuse.
Farmers need to be paid to learn how to change instead of moaning about how their business model is the road to calamity.
@Misty Eyed Mutton: Mutton is tasty if cooked properly.
No.
Why do vegans and such always preach at us meat eater/
Do they think that being talked down to and insulted will make us repent and never eat meat again.
All that does is make people dislike the message even more because the person spreading the message insults them.
I respect people and they should respect me, respect our differences like I respect yours.
have your say