Latest news with #Horgan
Irish Examiner
11 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Poetry review: A debut that urges us to care
Care is Jennifer Horgan's debut collection from the ever-excellent Doire Press. Horgan's poems have been described by William Wall as 'at once tender and profoundly alienated, elegiac, and acerbic'. Her voice, he says, is 'raw… uncompromising' and it's hard to disagree. Divided into five sections, this is a collection that very deliberately speaks to Ireland in the 2020s. Every line, every image is arresting and carefully delivered. These poems challenge us to reconcile with our past, they shine a light on our attitudes and behaviours towards women, and they ask us to imagine a different future. The book begins with the poem It's Just a Dream I Had. Like much of Horgan's work, it presents a world that sits somewhere at the meeting point of dream and reality. In the opening stanza we meet a mother figure who is 'slumped in a bath' before being told that the speaker is 'drawn to the grey hair inside/her thighs, the dough-layered stomach'. There's also a son 'high up on a bunk, as if on a ship that forgot to sink' and a father who 'sits like a Buddha in a trance of desireless retreat'. The speaker, seemingly the new owner of this haunted dwelling, informs us that they are seeking 'an exorcism' on the place. The possibility of this being a metaphor for a society, a nation, or an individual coming to terms with a dark past is obvious. In the final stanza, we're told that 'even the tea we drink holds her water,/refusing to turn a healthy colour, years after the rooms were gutted'. Some things, it seems, cannot be expunged. Horgan is always unflinching, but she strikes a gentler, more wistful note in the excellent Last Summer's Dresses; a standout piece amongst the whole collection. We meet the speaker as she carries out the mundane task of handwashing two dresses. The poem gains in intensity as the dresses, and the chore, prompt memories: 'Last summer…the dry terrain of an Italian villa.' We learn that the second dress was last worn on a trip to Naples: 'We ended up running down that train platform. I felt the blood drip dripping down my thighs as I tried to keep pace.' Then the killer line: 'I cried for you to stop and you didn't.' The poem closes with an extraordinarily evocative image, brilliant in its simplicity as the dresses hang together on the line 'both restored/two soldiers, two uniforms, drying'. There are no romantic illusions here about Ireland's past or present but those left behind by rapid change are portrayed with empathy. Letter from an Old Man Standing at the New Cork Docks is a longer poem that gives voice to a man coming to terms with the realisation that the world has moved on without him. Things, however, are never hopeless and these characters show resilience: 'A strange, strange quiet is happening here. And the quiet for me has never been louder… I'm glad of it really'. Horgan's voice is striking in its bluntness but this is a book that, as the title suggests, wants us to care — for ourselves and each other. The speaker in almost every poem is driven by an impulse to seek and give love. That said, good intentions don't always have good outcomes, as the darkly comic Home Visit after Bereavement illustrates: 'I leave so drunk I start talking to the dog… Out of my mind'. More than anything, this is a book filled with outstanding poems. Horgan gives voice to a range of characters and concerns not often seen in Irish literature. Debut collections don't normally come this strong.
Vancouver Sun
a day ago
- Business
- Vancouver Sun
B.C. Premier David Eby celebrates production start at LNG Canada plant in Kitimat
VICTORIA — Premier David Eby started a news conference this week by taking a victory lap that showed his new-found enthusiasm for LNG development. 'In the next few days, B.C. will be marking the first cargo of LNG Canada shipping from the West Coast to international markets around the world,' Eby told reporters Wednesday. 'This is the largest private sector investment in our province's history. It will result in a 0.4 per cent increase in the nation's GDP. It will bring billions of dollars in benefits to B.C., to Alberta and all Canadians. 'And it is an example of what we are focused on delivering for British Columbians: Clean, reliable energy to power growth and using the revenues from those projects to strengthen the services that families depend on.' A daily roundup of Opinion pieces from the Sun and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Informed Opinion will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Plus, as Eby noted, the $40 billion, Kitimat-based project that began production this week 'was delivered under the NDP government.' B.C. Liberal Premier Christy Clark got the ball rolling on LNG development in 2011. But no projects were underway when she lost power in 2017. Shell and its partners in LNG Canada only approved a final investment decision after the New Democrats took office under John Horgan. The key was Horgan's approval of $6 billion in tax and regulatory relief over 40 years. Horgan forecast that the project would nevertheless bring in $550 million a year in revenues over the same period. Eby was part of the cabinet that approved the incentives and steered them through the legislature with the support of the Opposition B.C. Liberals. The Greens, the NDP's then partners in power sharing, voted against them. The New Democrats also deserve credit for overcoming ferocious opposition from some Indigenous leaders and environmental activists. The pipeline route was blocked for months, one of the construction camps was trashed, and the legislature itself was blockaded in early 2020. Some members of the NDP put up a fight against LNG development. When Eby assumed the leadership and premier's office after Horgan stepped down in late 2022, he did not show this week's enthusiasm for LNG as a source of 'clean energy.' Rather, he insisted that any future expansion — including LNG Canada's vision to double the output of the Kitimat plant — would have to be reconciled with the province's ambitious targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. All that began to change two years ago, when LNG Canada announced that its second phase expansion could only go ahead if it were powered by natural gas, the same energy source as for the first phase. Electric drive was not an option because B.C. Hydro had yet to deliver the necessary source of power to the Kitimat site. Then came Energy Minister Adrian Dix's confirmation, earlier this year, that LNG Canada expansion was already approved to proceed with natural-gas-fired production. Eby now seems reconciled to that prospect as well. 'We are working with LNG Canada Phase 2 of their pipeline project,' he told reporters this week. Phase 2 would double the terminal's output from 14 million to 28 million tonnes a year. On a tour of the project last year, I was shown the vacant spaces where the expansion would be located. The province hopes Shell and partners will proceed with a final investment decision in 2026. Dix is scheduled to visit Kitimat next week to mark the first shipment of LNG. Eby has no plans to join him. But I'm told the premier will pay a visit later this year to celebrate the NDP's major accomplishment in weaning Canada from its sole dependence on the U.S. market for natural gas exports. While Eby's conversion on LNG is understandable in terms of politics, resource development and provincial finances, I was taken aback by his discouraging response on an unrelated matter this week. The province last week cut off the $1 million-a-year funding for the rare and expensive medication to treat Charleigh Pollock, a nine-year-old Langford girl with a terminal illness. An expert panel determined that there was no longer a case for continuing the treatment, erasing the last hope for the girl and her family. Hers is the only case in B.C., no one has been cut off the drug previously, and her family doctor maintains the treatment is providing some relief. I asked Eby if there were a case for making an exception on compassionate grounds. He voiced sympathy: 'What these parents are going through with a terminally ill child, I wouldn't wish on anybody.' But he rejected an exemption on clinical and bureaucratic grounds. 'These are profound and awful decisions that have to be made by experts and physicians, not by politicians,' said the premier. 'It doesn't make it any easier for that family, and I recognize that, but I also recognize that the other course is, if I can say, it's actually worse.' Worse? I guess he means politicians making the call on who gets expensive medication, even in isolated cases like this one. Still, I can't think of a worse outcome for Charleigh and her family than the premier rejecting a plea that could have lightened their burden in the time remaining. vpalmer@
Irish Examiner
20-06-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
Jennifer Horgan: Our obsession with youth is a way of denying death, but we should embrace it
Did you ever enter a contest to see who could lift a corpse? No? Not recently? Maybe you wrestled over a corpse then, or played cards, handing the deceased their own hand. No? Not that one either. Ok, last one - did you ever hide under a corpse, shaking it to scare the incoming mourners - especially the kids. No? Well, don't worry. It's not you, it's me. In truth, these questions would only make sense to someone who lived in Ireland 100 years ago. We called them wake games and right up until the middle of the last century, these farewells to our loved ones were packed full of mischief, merriment, and matchmaking. It was a time for divine madness, drinking and kissing and the presence of mná caointe, keening women, who wailed and sang, lamenting our dead. To give you more of a flavour, one game involved someone donning a collar and sitting in a corner to 'hear confessions'. The 'priest' would act horrified, imposing an embarrassing and severe penance, which had to be performed for all to see and enjoy. Things got so bad that in 1927, the Synod of Maynooth 'forbade absolutely' unseemly and lewd behaviour around corpses. It all sounds a bit mad, doesn't it? Sex and death – all deeply Freudian. If you've spent time over in England, you'll recognise that we've retained some of our ancestors' customs. Plenty of English people find our open coffin and open-door policies around death unsettling. Their upper lip seems to only get stiffer around stiffs. Nonetheless, compared with 1925, Irish deaths in 2025 have become sober and sanitised affairs. Children are generally left out. Last week, I went to a Seed talk with Marian Ó Tuama, a Psychotherapist, who warned that children are better off seeing dead bodies early, particularly the bodies of people they don't love. At the removals and funerals I've most recently attended, children were kept at home unless a part of the immediate family. Bereaved children no longer see their peers in their grief. It happens away from their everyday realities. And as for us adults, far from engaging in revelry, we stick to a very specific script. Lining up in perfectly managed and curated funeral homes we say we are 'Sorry for your loss' on repeat. Hands are held and hands are dropped, and then out the door we go again. What's crazier? Playing games over a corpse or paying doctors and dentists to give Botox injections? Death has become a sober, serious, adult-only affair. The madness of grief has drained from our communities, our practices. Stories and tributes are typed online rather than shared in person, in letters, or in our chat. But before we start to think we're evolving towards sophistication, let me address our ancestors with questions us modern urbanites understand. Tell me, great-grandmother Horgan, did you ever inject poison into your face? No, seriously, did you ever inject your face with something that would make you look younger than you are? Ancestor of 100 years ago, your doctor or your dentist – did they ever put something in your face, Botox or fillers, to make you appear younger than you are? What's crazier? Playing games over a corpse or paying doctors and dentists to give Botox injections? Or put it another way – What's crazier? Accepting death as an inherent part of living and marking it as a whole community, or denying we age and die at all. What's more concerning, the cheeky sneaky Botox or the obvious Botox? According to a Women's Health and Wellbeing Survey, commissioned by the Irish Examiner, and involving over 1,000 women, 'one in 10 women states their GP offers cosmetic treatments and one in seven that their dentist does'. What do you think? Might the people lining up for Botox be better off drinking and having sex around corpses? I know it sounds facetious but I'm deadly (pardon the pun) serious. We used to mix sex and death freely. Now we accentuate one and deny the other. I'm convinced that our ancestors were onto something – that it's healthier to put death front and centre, to literally place the corpse at the centre of the party. Increasingly, we hide death away, pretending it is not coming closer and closer the longer we live. Another study, this time carried out by University College London last year, found anxiety was the most reported problem among 511 Botox patients surveyed, with 85 people claiming they suffered it after the jab. I'm eager to know if they also suffered it before the jab. A woman explaining why she gets Botox said to me recently that she does it to look less tired. The thing is – she is tired. Her body and face are tired from being a body and a face for over 40 years. It's a tiredness that's different from a phase, a mood, an episode. Generational differences The differences in attitudes to aging and dying are not only between us and our ancestors, however. Changes are also taking place between generations. I chatted with a beautician this week about who comes into her salon. 'There's a huge difference between the attitudes of younger and older women when it comes to Botox and fillers,' she says. Younger women want to look like they've had work done. 'They're proud of it. It's a sign of success – a badge of honour, that they can look like they've had their lips done.' I must assume that the same goes for their foreheads, shined and buffed and glistening. We all know, I mean rationally, that human skin has never been so shiny. We see it happening in front of us - these young women becoming the shiny plastic dolls they once played with as children. Older women, and men, want to look natural, just not as tired. What does that tell us about how we're evolving? What's more concerning, the cheeky sneaky Botox or the obvious Botox? Is it possible we're moving from mild death anxiety (where on some level we know it's nonsense) to absolute death denial – where to look good, or cool, or current, is to look like something unhuman, something like AI. There is no suggestion that Madonna is trying to look her age anymore. File photo:) Madonna's face is a good example – there is no suggestion that she is trying to look her age anymore. She's not even trying to look like a person anymore. She has a mask on, and it's completely unrelated to her biography. The Irish Examiner Women's Health and Wellbeing Survey surprised me in one thing. It suggests that fewer women, fewer of our peers, are getting Botox than we think. The survey reveals that 10% of the women interviewed had Botox, 6% fillers and 12% either treatment. However, most women (45%) believe that 'most women my age have undergone some form of cosmetic treatment'. I wonder how interviewees interpreted the words 'cosmetic treatment'. Death anxiety Read between the lines, if the lines are still there, and it may be true that a lot of women are getting cosmetic treatments, just not Botox or fillers. A lot of people, particularly people with money, are going for less invasive services like skin peeling, micro-needling and laser resurfacing. I suppose you might call it death anxiety light, or death anxiety for beginners. But it's still death anxiety, right? You know, looking your best, looking less tired – covering up or reversing excessive living to stay sexy. And I'll pre-empt the comments about dying your hair if I may. Death anxiety is not something new. We have always tried to look younger. The earliest documented use of hair dye can be traced to Ancient Egypt, over 4,000 years ago. It's just that our death anxiety is ramping up, and it's not necessarily good for us. For anyone who cares, corpse-me is all for a party. Feel free to enjoy a smooch and a tickle around me; give me an old shake too if you fancy. I won't be looking. And if I am – I'm smiling.
The Journal
16-06-2025
- General
- The Journal
Areas deemed littered at lowest level in five years - but Dublin and Cork have 'deteriorated'
THE NUMBER OF areas around the country deemed littered is at its lowest level in five years, according to the group Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL). The survey of 40 towns and cities, which is carried out by the environment NGO An Taisce on behalf of IBAL, found that two-thirds of towns were clean overall, an increase on last year. Naas topped the ranking for the second year in a row, ahead of Ennis and Killarney. However, the IBAL survey said that while Dublin and Cork city centres have improved in advance of the peak season for visitors, the capital's North Inner City and Cork Northside have both 'deteriorated'. Cork Northside fell to 'seriously littered', while Dublin's North Inner City, also seriously littered, came out at the bottom of the survey. Only two of the 25 sites surveyed in the area warranted a clean grade – the lowest number in years. 'Considerable improvements' were noted at some Dublin sites previously deemed as heavily littered, including Middle Abbey Street, O'Connell Street, North Frederick Street and beside the Jervis Luas. Among the litter blackspots found were Spencer Dock, which suffered from dumping of household items; Dorset Lane, where large black sacks, a mattress and clothing items were strewn about; and the environs of the Royal Canal, where sacks of rubbish and other miscellaneous items, including some tents, featured among the litter. It said that dumping on Dominic Lane and a littered basement on Parnell Square prevented Dublin from attaining 'clean' status. IBAL IBAL 'Unfortunately litter was everywhere in the North Inner City, in stark contrast to the City Centre just a few streets away,' IBAL's Conor Horgan said. Advertisement Horgan said the negative impact of waste collection by bags instead of bins 'appears greater than ever'. He added that there would likely be 'no progress' in the North Inner City without a ban on bags, and called on Dublin City Council to convert the city to bin collection services. Businesses in Dublin city centre will be banned from leaving their waste in plastic bags for collection from 16 September. The top nine places in Ireland that were deemed 'cleaner than European norms' are as follows, and in this order: Naas, Ennis, Killarney, Leixlip, Monaghan, Sligo, Tullamore, Waterford City and Wicklow. Deposit Return Scheme Only four areas were branded littered or seriously littered overall, including Ballybane in Galway and Tallaght in Dublin. An Taisce inspectors found the environs of Dublin Airport, which are 'normally clean', to be moderately littered. Ballymun, Carlow, Fermoy, Longford and Navan were also among some of the areas found to be moderately littered. The survey noted that plastic bottle and can litter is down 50% on previous levels, a year on from the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme. However, it said this kind of litter was still found in 20% of the 500-plus sites surveyed across the country. 'We hope that the scheme will see the disappearance of this litter, but statistics so far do not bear this out,' Horgan said, adding that cans and plastic bottles 'are far from a rare sight on our streets and in our hedgerows'. The survey also found that the prevalence of coffee cups on streets across the country remains stubbornly high. But there was a fall-off in disposable vape litter. Last year, Cabinet approved draft legislation to ban the sale of disposable vapes in Ireland. A ban on selling the products in Northern Ireland and the UK came into effect on 1 June. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Independent
16-06-2025
- General
- Irish Independent
Revealed: Lowest number of litter blackspots in five years – but some areas remain stubbornly dirty, new survey finds
However, north inner-city Dublin and Cork city's northside remain 'seriously littered', according to the Irish Business Against Litter (Ibal) survey. Ibal's Conor Horgan said: 'Unfortunately litter was everywhere in the north inner city [Dublin], in stark contrast to the city centre just a few streets away. 'The negative impact of waste collection by bags instead of bins, appears greater than ever, with scavenging by gulls a persistent problem. 'No progress is likely in the north inner city without a ban on bags. We need the council to come good on its intention to convert the entire city to bin-collection services. 'In addition, it's high time that appropriate legal changes were brought into effect to allow the council to pursue those responsible for littered basements, an age-old blight on our capital city.' Dublin City Council plans to eliminate bag collections within the next year. City residents and businesses will need to use designated bins for waste collection instead of leaving out loose plastic bags. The move is intended to create a cleaner area. Naas in Co Kildare was top of the 40 cities and towns who have been deemed 'cleaner than European norms'. Ennis, Co Clare, was placed second, Killarney, Co Kerry, was third and Leixlip, Co Kildare, was placed fourth. Ibal said its latest survey showed more towns were clean than last year and the number of areas deemed littered or worse is at its lowest in five years. In general, Dublin and Cork city centres had improved in advance of the peak season for visitors, the survey noted. Only four areas were judged to be littered or seriously littered. Among these were Ballybane in Co Galway and Tallaght in Dublin, which suffered a dramatic fall compared to last year. A year on from the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme, plastic bottle and can litter is down 50pc on previous levels but was still found in 20pc of more than 500 sites surveyed across the country, the survey noted. 'We hope the scheme will see the disappearance of this litter, but statistics so far do not bear this out. Cans and plastic bottles are far from a rare sight on our streets and in our hedgerows,' said Mr Horgan. The litter blackspots in Dublin city were Spencer Dock, which suffered from dumping of household items; Dorset Lane, where large black sacks, a mattress and clothing items were left and the environs of the Royal Canal, where sacks of rubbish and other miscellaneous items, including tents, were among the junk found. While the prevalence of dumped coffee cups on streets remains high, there was a fall-off in disposable vape litter. The UK and Northern Ireland outlawed disposable vapes earlier this month and a ban here was likely in the coming months, Ibal said.
