EVERY SATURDAY MORNING we like to take a look at all the best comments left on the site by you lot over the past week.

There was a lot of talk this week about Róisín Shortall versus James Reilly, Phil Hogan’s comments about Travellers, and the Nazi war dossier which revealed plans to invade Ireland. Jill Meagher’s tragic death was a major talking point with many commenters offering sympathy to her family and friends through the week. Then there was Apple apologising for the Apple Maps fiasco, more naked pictures of Kate Middleton and a lot, lot more. It was a busy week.

So here, in no particular order, are the standout comments from the week.

New figures out this week showed that one person is emigrating from Ireland every five minutes. Roy Scott had this to say…:

This is shocking stuff, I wish those young people that had to leave the very best in their new lives, you are Ireland loss and somewhere else’s gain. Try to speak kind of the Irish people as the majority did not cause the problem . Try to remember the good points of the country, stuff you will never find anywhere else in the world….but most of all stay safe and come back successful some time.

There was a huge reaction to Steve Wall of The Walls criticising Arthur’s Day for not including enough Irish bands. Steve left a long comment on this article – here’s just part of it:

So, if Arthur’s Day is really about celebrating all things Irish – and music is obviously a big part of this – then here’s a few ideas off the top of my head to help give Irish musicians their due. Feel free to laugh at them or make more suggestions:

1. Celebrate great Irish artists old and new by featuring them up there in big letters with the headliners.

2. The UK acts could support the Irish acts.

3. If the the headline acts are brought in for the Dublin shows then why not bring some Irish bands over to play at events in London or wherever and let them support the UK headliners?

3. Maybe have an Arthur’s Day catalogue of those participating Irish acts on iTunes or whatever, so bands here could get introduced to a wider audience, hopefully abroad?

4. Really give something back to Irish musicians who have contributed so much to the image of Guinness and Ireland over the years. More than just adding “plus over 500 homegrown Irish acts” at the bottom of the page. It’s the Irish musicians who really need to be celebrated here.

Ok, now I’m ready to take it all on the chin, seeing as I seem to be one of the few musicians here (besides the mighty Sinead O’Connor) to ever speak out. The airwaves can get creepily silent betimes (he says walking to the gallows ;)

Newfoundland has a surprising amount in common with Cork – including an accent that sounds unnervingly like it comes straight from the rebel county. Tony Skillington, who may be a Corkman, had a question:

Wonder if Newfoundland have any dacent hurlers?

On Friday we asked if people had turned the heating on yet – it may be early but it is COLD out there. A lot of people had stories about how they dread having to face high fuel bills this winter. Ellen Drohan explained her thoughts:

I was holding on til October but the last week i have been putting it on for an hour morning and evening so the kids won’t be cold getting up for school and getting ready for bed. dreading the price hike can barely cover the bills as they are.

There were many, many comments offering condolences to the family and friends of Jill Meagher, who was killed in Melbourne. This was from Roddie Cleere:

She lived on the other side of the world and until only recently I never heard of her or knew her face. Yet still, I feel like some I know was murdered. I hope her husband and those close to her find peace.

A lot of commenters were critical of people who queued up overnight to get their hands on the iPhone 5 – however as Patrice Auburn explains, there’s a reason why he and many others chose to queue:

As one of those ‘misguided fools’ queuing on Grafton Street, I have to say I’m pretty shocked at the level vitriol on this site today towards those of us that choose to spend our own money in our own way. Seems a bit like the troll version of ‘keying’ someone’s new car because you don’t have one yourself. I have been an Apple ‘fanboy’ since before the launch of the Mac in 1984 – we used to be called customers, I guess it’s part of the progress social media has brought. Anyway, I’m enjoying my new purchase, despite the abuse received while queuing from revellers heading home from that historic and long-standing cultural event called Arthur’s Day, but then then I’m just a victim of marketing, a misguided fool…..

But just before we’re accused of being Apple fanboys, here’s Bob MacBob on the problems with Apple Maps after CEO Tim Cook was forced to apologise to customers for the glitches on Friday:

A man using Apple Maps walks into a bar, or maybe a hotel, or possibly a church.

A missing British schoolgirl, believed to have run away with her maths teacher, was found in France on Friday. Mark L’ingarde had this question:

If a 30 yr old Maths teacher takes a 15 yr old pupil 120 miles to France at an average speed of 40mph, how many years will he get in prison?

This was a good response to a user who complained that there was no point in even discussing Chris Brown coming to Ireland given Ireland’s current situation. From Elizabeth Ahern Flynn:

Every story- every single story- that is about something other than Irish politics or the economy is inevitably met with moaners who whinge that we have better things to be talking about. If you had your way would we be steeped in our own economic misery
24/7? Articles like this matter because they discuss important issues like our attitudes towards domestic abuse. They let us reflect and ask ourselves are such acts forgivable, and if so, under what circumstances?

Two Irish restaurants were celebrating this week after they were awarded their first Michelin stars. Some commenters were unimpressed, but Ian Murphy pointed out the positives:

It’s amazing the begrudgery portrayed here.

Michelin star restaurants are expensive but a good one can really be fantastic and worth visiting.

The food is the star of the show, but also the service, wines and whole experience.

The award of a star means the food has reached a standard that is higher than you would get in your local pub or run of the mill restaurant.

Wish I could afford to go to them more often but any time I have I’ve really enjoyed it

I’d say most of the negative comments would come from people who don’t really enjoy food (meat and 2 veg types) and can never be pleased.

Steve Coogan’s Irish accent in this clip from new comedy Moone Boy is – well, it’ s something to be seen. Commenters had a lot of praise for the show – this comment from from Painey Magee for the most thumbs up on the piece:

Steve Coogan was terrific in this cameo and his Irish accent was flawless. Overall, quite a funny programme full of nostalgia. Well done to Chris O’Dowd for bringing it back home.

(Video: SkyOneZone/YouTube)

Spot a good comment? Let us know: mail christine@thejournal.ie with your suggestions for comments of the week.