This excerpt from Pete Hamill's novel Forever takes place aboard a ship bound for New York. ℘℘℘ Holding a lantern, Mr. Partridge showed Cormac the next deck, and for the first time he saw the deck of the emigrants. They lived in four rows of bunks hammered together from rough plank, with no bedding supplied by the ship, jackets serving as pillows, coats as blankets. All slept … [Read more...] about The Journey to America
2003
First Word: The Hands That Built America
"Oh my love, it's a long way we've come." – U2, "The Hands That Built America" ℘℘℘ I'm glad I read Pete Hamill's book Forever before I saw the movie Gangs of New York. While I enjoyed the movie, the real story of the Five Points and the beginnings of New York City, which really was the foundation of what America was to become, is far more interesting. Hamill in his … [Read more...] about First Word: The Hands That Built America
On Trial in Colombia
The trial of three Irishmen in Colombia will resume on February 5 after a hearing in December ended in disarray. The so-called 'Colombia Three' -- James Monaghan (56), Martin McCauley (40) and Niall Connolly (36) -- are charged with assisting FARC rebels in a guerrilla campaign against the state government. The three men, all with links to Sinn Féin, have protested their … [Read more...] about On Trial in Colombia
Cardinal Meets Abuse Victims
Desmond Connell, Archbishop of Dublin, met with victims of clerical sexual abuse in an attempt to defuse widespread anger with the Church's handling of abuse cases. Two victims, Marie Collins and Ken Reilly, had said they would organize a protest march to the archbishop's residence and demand that he stand down. In response, Cardinal Connell invited them to discuss the … [Read more...] about Cardinal Meets Abuse Victims
February Launch
for Galway Hooker
A transatlantic voyage with a difference is what Steven Mulkerrins has in mind. Now living in Chicago, the 40-year-old carpenter from Connemara is applying finishing touches to a traditional Irish boat – a 47-foot Galway hooker – so that he can fulfill his dream of sailing from America to Ireland in the craft.
"It will certainly be the first hooker to sail west to east with … [Read more...] about February Launch
for Galway Hooker