Proud parenting done right

‘Proud’ parents tend to be insufferable. Bob Quinn got it right. Maith thú.

Living in a nicely insulated box of cotton wool

Right, here it is.

A 16 year old attacked a man and a woman, on Middle Abbey Street, because the woman in question had short hair and he assumed they were both men, and thus gay.

The ‘teen’ was drunk, and alone, and this was his first hate crime, so his defence lawyer is calling for leniency.  That’s not quite the wording being used, in fact there’s no mention of hate crimes anywhere, but I suppose that shouldn’t come as a surprise. What with ‘actual’ equality being a notion totally alien to most of our wonderful modern society.

Martina Devlin’s article today in the same paper - about the Obama vs. Hilary battle - makes an interesting point, one so interesting that I plan on quoting directly from it for fear that you may not follow the link:

‘Iron my shirt, iron my shirt,” some men chanted at Hillary Clinton as she campaigned in New Hampshire this week. It was a boorish attempt to bully her — to bully all ambitious women — back into the kitchen.

Hillary laughed. Presumably she’s heard worse. But there wasn’t much of an outcry about the incident. If they’d catcalled “polish my shoes, boy” to Barack Obama, the hecklers would have faced jail.

Questioned about it afterwards, Hillary said: “As has been abundantly demonstrated, I am also running to break through the highest and hardest glass ceiling.”

Higher and harder than the race ceiling, sky high and rock hard though it undoubtedly is? I suspect so.

The US election is going to be fascinating to watch, but it’s hard not to think the democratic candidacy will not come down to a question of which is less acceptable, a black president, or a female one. I dread to think what the answer to that one might be.

Hermitàge

Yes, I took December off, and I’m perfectly happy with that decision. Didn’t everyone take December off? (Insert rant here about excessive Dáil break(s))

It has taken me a while to find what I’d like to start my new year of ranting off with - Mary White very nearly pushed me over the edge - but I’ve got it now, and so, I’m back…