The U.S.-Ireland Forum got off to a good start when Dr. Hugh Brady, President of University College Dublin, announced that funding had been obtained to assist the university in establishing an International Center to support the global Irish family. This was his address: Today there is unprecedented interest in the Irish and the Irish Diaspora, Over 80 million identify … [Read more...] about The US Ireland Forum: Hugh Brady’s Address
February March 2008 Issue
The US Ireland Forum: Don Keough’s Address
Does the Diaspora Matter? Keynote speaker and principal honoree at the forum dinner Don Keough, chairman of Allen & Company and former president of Coca-Cola, gave a stirring speech that captured the essence of what the forum was about and what it could lead to. This forum is asking an important question: Does the Diaspora really matter, and is it something that is really … [Read more...] about The US Ireland Forum: Don Keough’s Address
The Irish in California
in 2005, when it became clear that the Ronald Reagan Pub in Ballyporeen, Tipperary was no longer a viable novelty to locals or tourists, Irish-American businessman and Republican booster Frederick Ryan Jr. facilitated the bar’s relocation to Simi Valley, California, also the site of Reagan’s presidential library. This anecdote is humorous and poignant, and – for Irish critics … [Read more...] about The Irish in California
Omagh Bombing Case Collapses
By Frank Shouldice, Contributor
February / March 2008
February / March 2008
Belfast Crown Court acquitted Sean Hoey of all charges in connection with the 1998 Omagh bombing, which claimed the lives of 29 civilians. Hoey, a 38-year-old electrician from Jonesboro, Co. Armagh, was accused of 56 charges relating to the atrocity but Justice Reg Weir ruled that the forensic evidence gathered by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) was unreliable. … [Read more...] about Omagh Bombing Case Collapses
The French Connection: Cocaine in Ireland
By John Spain, Contributor
February / March 2008
February / March 2008
The death of top model Katy French a few weeks ago from a cocaine overdose has finally woken Ireland up to the fact that we are in the middle of a cocaine epidemic. Cocaine use has now permeated all levels of Irish society, from the boardroom to the bar. So much of it is being used that when RTE (the national television station) did a countrywide investigation a few weeks ago … [Read more...] about The French Connection: Cocaine in Ireland