John Ó'Ríordáns Blog

Happy Easter Sunday. On this day in 1916 Irish Volunteers rose up against The Crown.

I hear today that the Irish Banks now require over €70 billion of Irish Tax payers money to pay of their gambling debts. How nice of their buddies the politicians to volunteer my money to pay it. Maybe I’m wrong but I thought Irish banks were private companies. Why are they getting public money? Another private business would simply fold.

The first 2 minutes of this video sums up really well what else we could be doing with that money. Including sending half a million Irish people into Space. I know my girlfriend would love that.

This is why I’m moving to Canada next month. I’d rather pay tax in a country where my money goes to universal healthcare.

 

Looks like me The Dalai Lama & Gerry Adams will have to sort this place out.

Why aren’t we doing this?

“Iceland’s special prosecutor into the banking crisis has confirmed that raids have taken place today and that arrests have been made. The Central Bank of Iceland is among the institutions under investigation.

Special Prosecutor, Olafur Thor Hauksson told Visir.is that house searches are taking place in at least three places today as part of investigations into the central bank, MP Bank and Straumur Bank.”

The video below tells the story of a group of US soldiers who watched a game of hurling on their way back to the US from Iraq via Shannon. They were so impressed with the “warrior aspect” of the game that they started their own team when they got back to the US. In an area with no great Irish influence and no prior hurling team they founded a team with no Irish members. It shows that Hurling could be a much more popular game if promoted more heavily outside of Ireland. But that is very difficult due to the small numbers of people playing. Which is a real pity.

There was a documentary made by the US Military about these players which is well worth a look. You can find the video entitled “Two Fields, One Team” below.

Found on The Journal

RTÉ.ie will be streaming the Winter Solstice at Newgrange from 08:55 Irish Time on 21 December. This live feed will be available on RTÉ.ie/live, News Now and RTÉ News app for iPhones.

Civilisation and empires have come and gone. Many have left iconic landmarks to their existence – such as the temples built by the Maya or the Egyptian pyramids – but all of these were built long after this truly special place.

Indeed, many claim Newgrange is the oldest building in the world. It was built 500 years before the pyramids and 1,000 years before Stonehenge.

Although other passage tombs survive there is nowhere quite like Newgrange.

It was built over 5,000 years ago close to the river Boyne by Neolithic farmers and is one of the several passage tombs in the area – the others being Knowth and Dowth.

The Boyne Valley has been dubbed Ireland’s Valley of the Kings because of the huge number of archaeological sites in it, including the three passage tombs at the complex now known as Brú na Boinne (the bend in the Boyne), Tara, Loughcrew and the Hill of Ward.

It would have taken many decades to create Newgrange using material that came from all over the east coast of Ireland.

Some 200,000 tonnes of stone and earth were used in its construction. Boulders weighing several tonnes were probably excavated nearby and dragged up the hill to the site on logs.

It’s estimated it would have taken 300 people 20 years to build.

It is likely that fewer people were involved but it would, obviously, then have taken longer to build. Possibly several generations.

Some passage tombs like those on Loughcrew were built so the rising sun on certain times of the day will light up the inner chamber.

But the builders of Newgrange showed a level of sophistication that was truly remarkable.

The rising sun on the days surrounding the winter equinox – the longest night and the shortest day of the year – shines through a box built over the entrance to the chamber.

Just before 9am, the sun rises over the nearby hills and four minutes later a shaft of golden sun lights up the inner chamber.

When it was originally built, the light would have struck the back of the cruciform (built in the shape of a cross) chamber but due to changes in the earth’s axis over the millennia, the light now just reaches into the chamber and stops two metres short of the back recess.

The event lasts 17 minutes before the sun rises too high for the light to enter the chamber and everything is plunged back into darkness again for another year.

It thought to be a passage tomb and the remains (probably the bones or ashes) of individuals were deposited there after their death.

Given the scale of the building project, it is likely those whose remains were left here would have been very important to the society but no one knows who or why.

There are also a considerable number of Neolithic artworks carved into the stones at Newgrange but no one understands their meaning.

They are maybe linked to the solstice or they could have other meanings. As with many things about Newgrange, no one really knows. That knowledge was lost thousands of years ago.

Newgrange itself was ‘lost’ for several thousand years when it was covered with soil and grass.

It was then just one of several mounds near the Boyne River but through the millennia it never really lost its importance for religious ceremonies. There are 12 standing stones around the tomb and they marked it out as a place of significance. There may have been more standing stones that could have surrounded Newgrange but they disappeared over time.

Excavations also uncovered some Roman artefacts buried there, probably by Roman auxiliaries as a tribute – so it had significance for many people over many years.

The passage tomb was rediscovered in 1699 when material was being taken for a road building project.

It was not until 1962 that a full excavation of the site took place.

During this, thousands of pieces of brilliant white quartz were uncovered around the base of the tomb. During the ‘reconstruction’ phase they were put up around the front façade of the tomb where it is believed they once were.

Professor Michael J. O’Kelly was spent 13 years excavating and restoring the monument and is one of the people closely associated with Newgrange. It had been a tourist attraction since it was rediscovered but, acting on a hunch, he drove up from his home in Cork to be in the chamber for the winter solstice in December 1967.

Sometime earlier they had uncovered the lightbox over the entrance but no one knew what it was for. He sat for some time in the dark chamber but when the sun rose and lit up the chamber he became the first human for thousands of years to see what it was all for.

It was an event that would change him and Newgrange forever.

It is not known why the builders of Newgrange aligned it to the winter equinox, but given the time and effort it took to achieve it must have been an important reason.

What Happens

The sunlight illuminates the chamber of several mornings surrounding the equinox (18 December to 23 December) but December 21st is the solar equinox and when most people gather at Newgrange.

On the morning, the sun rises at 8.52am over the hills at the far side of the river. Four minutes later the first light hits the chamber through the lightbox. At first it is a narrow beam but then widens out. After 17 minutes the light disappears entirely from the chamber as the sun rises.

Several hundred people gather outside the chamber at the solstice for a variety of reasons. Some to welcome the start of a new astronomical year, others to commune with the spirit world, others just to enjoy the occasion.

Source

When I’m at work I don’t want to be using my Mobile Data Connection to download content onto my android phone. I had a look to see how I could easily share my laptops network connection with my phone. I came across a very useful piece of software called VirtualRouter. It takes care of everything for you. It bridges your network connections, installs a small DHCP Server and creates an ad-hoc wireless network for your phone to connect to.

Now I can browse the market, read emails, and check my social networking sites from my phone, at work for free!

Currently this software only works with Windows 7. If you want to do this for older Windows Operating Systems you can set up an ad-hoc network manually by following these steps. If you want to use Ubuntu you can follow these steps.

Looks like I’m going to have to send back my phone to HTC because the speaker volume is too low. When playing videos and when its ringing its very difficult to hear. I’ve missed a few calls and texts already. Disappointed!

Tip #1

In snow and icy conditions clear your windows and mirrors before you set out, carry a screen scraper and de-icer. Do not use hot water on the windscreen as it can crack the glass.

Tip #2

In snow and icy conditions de-mist the inside of your windows thoroughly beforeyou move off.. Make sure your windshield washer system works and is full of an anti-icing fluid.   Remember that heavy snowfall will reduce visibility! And watch out for grit / salt spreaders and snow ploughs

Tip #3

In snow and icy conditions gently does it, slow down and leave extra distance between you and the vehicle in front. Avoid harsh braking and acceleration. Use the highest gear possible to avoid wheel spin. Select a low gear when travelling downhill.

Tip#4

Falling snow, and freezing fog will reduce visibility. Do not drive on the tail lights of the vehicle in front of you as it can give a false sense of security. When you slow down, use your brakes so that the brake lights warn drivers behind you.

Tip #5

If the road looks polished or glossy it could be, “black ice”. Watch out for black ice, especially in sheltered / shaded areas on roads, under trees and beside high walls.

Tip #6

Check in your owner’s manual and find out if your vehicle has any safety assist technology like Electronic Stability Control (ESC) or Anti Lock Braking System (ABS) and know how they assist your driving in severe weather conditions.

Tip #7

While walking on footpaths and in public places, or entering and exiting your car or truck, DO NOT underestimate the dangers of snow and ice. Wear appropriate footwear and always use extreme caution.

Tip #8

Be alter for vulnerable road users – pedestrians and cyclists – who may be walking on the roadway to avoid icy pavements and cycle lanes.

I’m having problems understanding exactly what this bailout means for Ireland. Or why people are loaning us money. I was sent this link by a friend which explains why the IMF wants to give us money.

Basically it says that all the banks in Europe are owed money by Irish Banks. Their governments cannot bail them out so what they are doing is giving the Irish banks money to pay back the European banks. They are not giving the Irish people money, as the money we are getting is going straight into the Irish Governments bank bailout, NAMA . However as as these loans have to be repaid in full and with interest, the Irish people foot the bill.

So basically we are now not only paying taxes to bail out the Irish banks but also the European banks now as well.

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