EVERY SATURDAY MORNING we take a look at all the best comments left on the site by our readers over the past seven days.
This week there was a lot of talk about Storm Eva, Thomas ‘Slab’ Murphy, Ray Foley – and just a little bit about Christmas.
The 5 most popular comments this week
1. Seán O’Briain got 990 green thumbs for this comment on the article about a taxi driver who was found guilty of sexually assaulting a female passenger he had picked up. The driver worked in Dublin city centre but was originally from Ukraine:
“Sammon asked the court to take into account his client’s status as a foreign national which may make incarceration more difficult due to cultural and linguistic issues.”What bearing should that have at all? What an absurd argument.“He has five previous convictions for road trafficoffences.”How does someone with so many convictions have a taxi license?
2. Next up was Máire Ní Bhríain who got 944 thumbs up for this comment beneath an article about how an abandoned Nazi beach resort is being transformed into a luxury tourist resort:
Oh we do Reich to be beside the seaside..
3. The tragic story of an 8-year-old boy who died in a farming accident in Galway elicited a strong response from readers. Caimin got 939 green thumbs for this comment:
Beyond horrible. His poor, poor family. RIP.
4. A mother and daughter died in a car crash in Cork on Tuesday morning, provoking an outpouring of sympathy from readers. Myownboss got 937 green thumbs for this comment:
God help whoever involved. Saw two Lorry drivers with very bad driving today speeding like mad on M50 changing lanes and not indicating at all, feared for myself and other drivers. Please slow down everyone we will get there in the end.
5. On the same article, Gary Donnelly got 918 thumbs up for this comment:
Such an awful tragedy. May they Rip.
The top 5 articles which received the most comments this week
1. Slovenia rejects same-sex marriage in referendum - 470 comments
2. ‘Decent republicans are tax compliant’ – Rivals attack Adams over ‘Slab’ Murphy comments – 307 comments
3. Gerry Adams: ‘Slab’ Murphy is still a good republican - 291 comments
4. Who is ‘Slab’ Murphy and why is he causing problems for Gerry Adams and Sinn Féin? - 289 comments
5. Very few Sinn Féin-ers want to talk about the ‘Slab’ Murphy story - 277 comments
Standout comments
In a vote this week, Slovenia rejected the legalisation of same-sex marriage. Lloyd Hetherington had this to say:
I read that a Slovenian comic said of it “Slovenia is so far behind Ireland that we’re expecting our potato famine in about 5 years time”.
Beachmaster was one of several commenters who were unimpressed by the Dublin chipper selling a deep fried jam sandwich (albeit for one day only):
I’m happy to see we’re going to challenge the Scots for the heart disease number one spot.
Dermot Quinn made this salient point on the opinion piece by a man who had come through the other side of an addiction to prescription painkillers:
For every story about addiction which brings out the usual “junkies” posts there is this one. it might be the road less travelled but it shows that under the destructive layers of addiction there is a person. an honest to God person, one who if they have the will and the luck can turn their life around. Fair play to you guy, you deserve the utmost respect for turning your life around before it was too late.
In an article about a taxi driver who sexually assaulted a young woman in Dublin city centre, a number of commenters had suggested that women should drink less alcohol or wear different clothes to avoid being attacked. Sarah O’Sullivan got a lot of thumbs up for this point:
It seems theres lots of things that women shouldn’t be doing these days. Wouldn’t it be better to be focusing on the perpetrators actions rather than discouraging women from reasonable behaviour like getting a taxi home after a night out.
This opinion piece about how children cope with bereavement sparked a discussion among commenters about death. Mary Cullinane described what it was like for her son when her own mother died:
Claire, condolences to you and your family, especially your little 8 year old. What a dreadful thing to happen. It is so awful that this little girl can’t get the support she needs now. I think people underestimate young children’s emotions, my Mam passed away many years back when my youngest son was also 8. I was so upset myself & also thinking of the effect it was having on my older children that it wasn’t until I was cleaning out my Mam’s house and my little boy with me, that I realised how much he was grieving, he completely broke down and said he was going to go out on the road & walk under a car so that he could be with Nana in Heaven! I hope you and your family find the help and strength you all need to get through this Christmas & just try and keep talking and listening to your little girl, I know it is so difficult especially when you are grieving yourself but hopefully the sharing of sorrow and loss will get you all through this.
A lot of commenters sent good wishes to other readers at this time of year. This one from Tony Skillington summed a lot of them up:
As good a time to wish all the contributors and the journalists on the journal.ie and very happy Christmas and a happy New Year. Keep her lit won’t ye..
And finally… Christmas was yesterday, but we still wanted to include this lovely, thoughtful comment from Rory Corbett which was left under an interview with Santa from the Stephen’s Green Shopping Centre in Dublin during the week:
Lovely article… Santa is real.. He exists inside everyone who believes in selflessly trying to put a little warmth and light in to another persons life, if just for a small while..Santa is empathy…
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