Allegedly, the next election and the one after that and the one after that will be fought for the hearts and minds of the “people who get up early in the morning”. Therefore, the battleground is a massive geographical arc of new estates and houses stretching from on the coast at Drogheda out west to Mullingar, down to Portlaoise, sweeping down to Carlow and then finishing up at the sea again in Arklow. This is where alarms go off well before six-thirty in the morning. For these commuters, RTÉ’s ‘Morning Ireland’ is in reality ‘mid-Morning Ireland’ because they are up and out well before 7am.
The election will be about women because women who have just had their first babies will determine who wins this battle. This the result of the fact that mothers who are going back to work after having kids, are on the commuting road in huge numbers. According to the census, the greatest increase in employment in the past five years was seen in women aged 35 to 44.
The census reveals that this huge demographic radius is Ireland’s baby belt. The buckle of the baby belt used to be Naas, now it’s Portlaoise. Every five years or so, the buckle of Ireland’s baby belt loosens a notch or two, easing itself out a dozen miles or so into what used to be rural Ireland. As the arc grows bigger, its circumference maps our outer ‘Communterville’.
These places are Ireland’s exurbs.
The suburbs end just outside the M50 and they then are replaced by the exurbs — large estates built around motorways in a massive radius incorporating and linking previously distinct towns that had nothing to do with each other, such as Kells and Gorey, until now. Today these towns are dominated by a similar daily rhythm — up and out by 6.30am and back home close to 8pm.
This is Applegreen country.
It’s a world of Costa coffee, crèches and burgeoning GAA clubs. This is an Ireland of new immigrant families, displaced Dulchies and conflicted inter-generational loyalties, where dad is pure Hill 16 Dub but the kids are exclusively Royals. In the same way as traditional West Ham supporters now live miles away from their East End roots somewhere in farthest Essex, Dubs GAA supporters are no longer in Finglas, Fairview or Walkinstown, but quite usually Navan, Monesterevin and Castledermot.
These changes are picked up in the 2016 census, which is a treasure trove of information about how we all live today.
First thing that jumps out of the data is our car addiction.
The overall number of people commuting to work increased from 1.7 million in 2011 to 1.88 million in 2016, an increase of 10.7pc. This is a huge increase as the recovery seeped out from Dublin.
The number of people driving to work increased by 85,180 to 1,152,631 and was the largest increase of all categories. We tend to drive alone because although commuting passengers increased to 77,335 in 2016 from 69,164 in 2011, it is still a tiny fraction of those in cars every day.
We are using public transport more, but not enough.
The number of us commuting by public transport has increased by 30,144 persons over the five years, bringing the total to 174,569. This still represents a European low of only 9.3pc of all working commuters.
Cycling has exploded but this is mainly a city affair. In the 2011 census, 39,803 people cycled to work; now it is 56,837 and rising. That’s a huge 42.8pc over the five years.
However, the message from the census is that in order to make people’s lives immeasurably better, Ireland needs huge investment in public transport. This should be the first thing the new Taoiseach does, particularly if he wants to be the “patron saint of those who get up early in the morning”.
Affordable public transport is the key to civilised society. We see this all over Europe. Traffic, traffic jams and the daily hassle of the commute take their toll on families, relationships and people’s health.
Ireland is a tiny country and a few new fast train lines could transform commuting here. As this column has pointed out before, with a better transport system, such as French-style fast commuter trains, most of the main conurbations of Ireland could be accessed east to west and north to south in less than an hour. French TGVs travel at an average speed of 320kmh, meaning that Dublin to Cork — a distance of 157 miles — could theoretically be done in about 45 minutes. Belfast to Cork could be done in under an-hour-and-half, while Dublin to Galway would be just over 30 minutes.
Now imagine how quick people could get in and out of Dublin with such an investment.
The reason we should focus on Dublin right now is because this is where the problem is at the moment.
One very noticeable development in the past five years is that although commuting numbers in the counties around Dublin have increased as those in work have increased, we have not seen, even on a smaller scale, similar developments around Cork, Limerick or Galway.
This was not the case in the Noughties, when new estates were being built around other cities and large towns. Unfortunately, in the past five years the gravitational pull of Dublin has become much stronger.
So while lots more of us are at work, we are at work in the greater Dublin region.
Overall, there were 199,281 more people at work in April 2016 than in 2011. The number of women at work stood at 929,967. The same figure for men is 1,076,674, bringing the total number at work to just shy of two million.
For the new Taoiseach, the battle ground is defined by where people work, where they live and how they get from A to B. Schools, hospitals and public infrastructure need to be centred on where they are demanded. The logical implication of the demographic evidence would be to put a new maternity hospital in Portlaoise where babies are being born, not Dublin 4 that has amongst the lowest birth rates in the country.
The census gives us evidence and data upon which to base policy, let’s use it.
From the very start the new Taoiseach has produced an alsolute stinker, out of what to most people seems very obvious. The first thing the Taoiseach did was get pulled into the nexus of scandals, that meets in “law and disorder”. He re-appointed a clueless peice of superficiality, back again as the Minister in charge of the Gardai and the Courts (where she is floundering). By extension this means that the scandal prone Garda Commissioner is still in control of the gardai. And then to highlight his cluelessness, he refused to remove the disgraced Attorney General from an appointment to… Read more »
It’s all office politics to these clowns………
Is there no one left in that Dail, who belongs to the major parties, that gives a shit about the country?
The location/services/infrastructure/settlement question is back with a bang. One solution is to build upwards. With the Greenfell disaster, it is now likely that the Dublin authorities will become even more paranoid about vertical develeopment. Meaning more sprawl, and more infrastructure costs. On curret rent levels, higher buildings is the obvioous solution. But the political party machines DO NOT wish to allow the market to fix the residential supply problem. Another solution is better integration with existing regional urban centres, like Cork, Galway, Limerick, etc.. This requires massive capital investment. The next option is the Kildare-under-concrete option. Which seems to be… Read more »
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Hello David, Our new taoiseach was the same ass hole who thought scam bridge was such a good idea (which it was from his perspective of lowering the cost of labour to fuck all to save business in the bankers recession). What scambridge did achieve was forcing many talent individuals out of the work force or out of the country altogether since why would anyone actually employ someone and pay them right when they had state subsidised free workers. “First thing that jumps out of the data” Let me tell you the MOST IMPORTANT THING that jumps out of the… Read more »
A few fast trains will be redundent before they are built: The coming technological change will revolutionise travel: electric cars and driverless/connected data technology renders rail lines as a means to guide a vehicle to its destination no longer necessary. See: As the age of autonomous vehicles nears, why are policy wonks focused on the past? “The delegates to the 1898 urban planning conference failed to recognize the developments that would transform their world. Today’s transportation infrastructure discussions — about building a $10-billion bus terminal in New York, or a $70-billion high-speed rail system in California — may prove similarly… Read more »
Ireland’s poltical establishment has given a cursed gift to other English speaking countries – the political machine that turns votes into all sorts of crookedness. One particularly galling example is in Chicago. Where the political machine has produced mediocrity, nepotism and fiddling for decades. In fact it has complete contaminated American politics. Americans are now wondering if it has turned America into a banana republic. http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-06-19/illinois-death-watch-continues Here is the most interesting aspect of this. Irish establishment media coverge. The Irish media does not want you to see anything wrong with this sort of approach to political power. In fact we… Read more »
https://dailyreckoning.com/stockman-most-overvalued-market-history/
I wonder why no main stream economists here are sounding the claxon?
Ding, ding, dong, David! Bang the drum. Ring the bell. Blow the horn. Yes public transport is the number one issue in Ireland today! Although sadly early bird Leo, seems to be chewing the wrong worm, or dare I say it worms. He thinks Housing and Health are the core problems. But both these issues are going to get one hell of a lot worse if he doesn’t solve the public transport issue, given our current growth trajectory. The Housing crisis belongs to our primate city Dublin. Having a primate city as gorilla like as Dublin, is not good for… Read more »
I happened to overhear Simon Coveney explaining what a great job he is doing in the EU-Brexit negotiations. It was a reticent, polite fool relentless trying to reach the green button, and make us all feel like as if we were further some sort of national destiny with “our partners in Europe”. The most enthusiastic salesman of the nEU empire project was awkwardly fumbling around on empty ideas, useless promises, and the odd stick of dynamite. Holy green jersey moments, batperson !!!!! Even on Pravda/RTE, he sounded hopeless, when presented with green buttons to press in the interview. This is… Read more »
The Coveney merchant prince family have close associations with “black” Ulster Unionism ; Ref. Hugh Coveney — father of arguably “aul act” “simple” Simon — brought “black P.” Unionist / Loyalist Bob McCartney to Cork when he was Lord Mayor by way of counter to the brave stand of Bobby Sands & the other Hunger Strikers who died looking for just simple rights be given to them as political prisoners by the British establishment’s Margaret Thatcher Tory government. . . Hugh Coveney soon became a senior politician & senior Minister for Fine Gael in government. . . VERY IMPORTANT IS… Read more »
@ Grzegorz, & those others — posters & solely readers — who are earnest truth-seekers & truth-tellers,
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http://www.free…
mas…
onrywatch.org/index.html
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PLEASE DELETE THE 3 FULL-STOPs SEPARATING EACH PART OF FULL STRING ABOVE SO AS TO FORM COMPLETE URL
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AND, TO THINK THAT WE MUST ENDURE THE AUL BULL THAT THE SO-CALLED LIBERAL REVOLUTION OF BERNIE SANDERS IS “LIBERATING” 8-)
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I note the claim that Grand Orient type of F..m..nry is now operating in Ireland.
http://search.freefind.com/find.html?id=6663554&pageid=r&mode=ALL&n=0&query=Ireland
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SO EWEs LOVE HIGH-TECH SOLUTIONS ?
HERE IS WARNING OF FINAL SOLUTION FOR EWEs ;
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Did ewes ever get suspicious that the security for Fukishima Nuclear Power Plant were not from Japan ?
And, they were not from South East Asia.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmfQYMbn8Rs
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sf4b1vVch4
David, you left out that town featured so prominently in the “Popes Children” called Navan. Navan is choking without rail services and is heavily reliant on a State bus service that regularly lets early commmuters down. See its own blog here – http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056416364&page=86 86 pages and 1300 posts by commuters on their wits end. We would like to set up a working group to put the topic onto the political agenda so any help in that regard would be helpful. I note you got transport stats, how would we get relevant stats for Navan over a 10 year period? We… Read more »
Today, on the International Day of a Refugee, the “Refugees” in Calais burnt a Polish lorry worker alive. Does anyone even care anymore (it didn’t make it to the Irish news)? The show must go on – Mr Mercury sang – and now it looks the terror must on too. I only hope it won’t reach the French Revolution’s terror dimensions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAk9gpop16w
Stan,
Just to let you know that I read your message, but it’s now gone and I couldn’t reply. Thanks anyway. I try not to use that media platform you sent me your message on: it attracts undesired following (including organised). Look after yourself in Vansterdam.
The best government is the least government as Adam might say?
http://www.thedailybell.com/news-analysis/who-cares-about-the-wealth-gap-if-everyone-is-richer/
With the addition of our new gay there are presently seven heads of European governments who are childless. European politics has degenerated into a pantomime of the vanities, we are witnessing the death of Western Europe, long live the coming Caliphate 2050.
People don’t appreciate how privileged Ireland is in terms of having mild summers (though crappy Decembers/January’s, with no snow and cold rain). Met Éireann issued a hot weather warming – 28 degrees. Well, 28 degrees is a usual weather in Kraków at that time, and 33 is not unusual either (but in a flat, it can easy get up to 40), and still everyone has to go to work (including in a suit) or study, and there is no air conditioning (air conditioning is extremely unhealthy anyway), and there is no breeze. And there are gnats that bite when you… Read more »
@ Grzegorz, . Henry Makow — born a Jew, & a CANADA-FIRSTER — has this article today on the indigenous Poles who died under the Germans when Germany had conquered Poland & occupied it & installed German work- camps, & training-camps, & dedicated concentration camps, & dedicated DEATH-CAMPS in Poland. Logistically similar to USA operating torture & detention camps in say Guantanamo, Cuba. . . Makow who lost 2 grand-parents in German concentration camps — not the USA death-camps that starved to death 1.5 million German soldiers whilst out in the elements in front of their families ; And, these… Read more »
Are German media worse in their propaganda under Merkel than they were under Dr Joseph Goebbels? This is from the latest article in “Frankfurter Rundschau”: „Words of the Polish Prime Minister in Auschwitz that Poland must, above all, guarantee safety for its citizens, fit into Warsaw’s new historical policy. Their goal is to portray the Holocaust as a German crime – as if Poland didn’t participate in in” http://www.fr.de/politik/meinung/kommentare/polen-rechte-geschichtsverdrehung-in-auschwitz-a-1297211 What Poland? Poland didn’t exist at the time, because it was invaded by Erica Steinbach’s parents (which doesn’t stop her from portraying herself and her comrades as “expellees” – this is… Read more »
Latest election result in Atlanta suburb is the most expensive ever at 25 million expended. Results bolster Trump administration and show there is still support despite the negative barrage from the false news prophets.
http://www.cnn.com/2017/06/20/politics/georgia-house-results-ossoff-handel/index.html
Fed plays the political card to destroy Trump but risks destroying the economy. But then Trump will be blamed for that too. Financial expert and former top Federal Reserve insider Danielle DiMartino Booth says the latest Fed rate hike is nothing less than an attempt to make life worse for President Trump. DiMartino Booth explains, “They are trying to do the opposite of what they did a year ago because the people who occupy the White House have changed. That’s the only feasible answer I can come up with to explain the Fed tightening into a weakening economy. Their own… Read more »
I feel it would be very remiss of me if I did not continue in the best traditions of this forum and offer “Enda the Vacuous” a happy bon voyage. On that note take it away Gladys and your Pip’s, Midnight Train to Ballina or was it Georgia…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meaVNHch96o
With the US military gone rogue in foreign lands, and the intelligence community off-the-reservation at home, and the Trump White House all gummed up in the tar baby of RussiaGate, and the House and Senate lost in the shuffle, you also have to wonder what anybody is going to do about the imminent technical bankruptcy of the USA as the Treasury Department spends down its dwindling fund of remaining cash money to pay ongoing expenses – everything from agriculture subsidies to Medicare. That well is going dry in the middle of the summer, and without any resolution to the debt… Read more »
https://agorafinancial.com/2017/06/19/billionaires-prepare-for-apocalypse-demonizing-russia-is-bad-for-u-sbanks-find-new-ways-to-rob-youand-more/
https://spectator.org/great-again/?utm_source=American+Spectator+Emails&utm_campaign=fa1c2ac8f0-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_06_21&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_797a38d487-fa1c2ac8f0-104365713 Everyone, including ex-FBI director James Comey, special counsel Robert Mueller, and deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein, has condemned leakers and anonymous sources (though Comey admits to having leaked his version of a conversation with the president to try to assure the appointment of a special counsel, an act of very questionable propriety). The Justice Department has not yielded its right to prosecute those who illegally leak and publish confidential government information. Comey had no business deciding whether Hillary Clinton should be prosecuted. His need not be the last word on the subject and her emails and the antics of… Read more »
The Fed is planning on reducing its balance sheet likely beginning in September. What happens to the markets when it takes back $2 trillion or so in the following year? The plan is $30 billion in Treasuries and $20 million in agencies per month by 2018! That is $50 billion in liquidity drain each month.
This will set up a bear market and postures the socialists well for the mid-term elections. This ends up being all about politics and has been now for quite some time.
https://www.outsiderclub.com/you-have-been-warned-again/2364
Defining inflation
https://needtoknow.news/2017/06/2067/
War Drums beat faster and louder.
http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/8649/syria-says-it-will-rain-scud-missiles-on-israel-if-airstrikes-dont-stop
“Irish consumers have a higher trust in news media than the international average.”
https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2017/0622/884744-news-media-research/
Sensationial speech: one of Alternative für Deutschland’s leaders came to Warsaw to apologise for German medias lies about Poland! : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtpiD7gtiE8 Coldblow would like that, because she talks about the borders a lot, BUT I think every reader should watch that 9 min speech to develop a different perspective on what goes on in Germany and Poland – different to that offered by Mr Derek Scally, who regales us with his reports on Poland in the “Anti-Irish Times.” (for example on how allegedly the Polish state TV censored the US President, allegedly deleting his words he didn’t say in first… Read more »
Disclaimer on my usage of the word medias: Media, like data, is the plural of medium and therefore already pluralis. The singular, medium, early developed the meaning “an intervening agency, means, or instrument” and was first applied to newspapers two centuries ago. In the 1920s media began to appear as a singular collective noun, sometimes with the plural medias. This singular use is now common in the fields of mass communication and advertising, but it is not frequently found outside them. So “media” is more correct than obsolete and “medias”, as it retains the original Latin grammar. And thus I… Read more »
@ Grzegorz, . . THE FOLLOWING ECHOES MUCH OF WHAT U SAY ABOUT THE TARGETING OF MODERN POLES BY THE GEO-POLITICOS . U best go to Henry Makow’s website today for to get the get the non-”Bernie Sanders’s epoch politically correct” version that I provide here [ i.e. I provide the Bernie Sanders’s epoch version ]. . . Part 1 of 2 ; . . Reply by Pole to Henry Makow’s recent article “Polish Holocaust” . . June 20, 2017 . . “Reply from Poland” by BR . . First off, you’ll have to excuse me for my poor English,… Read more »
BUT, WHO ARE THE CHESS PLAYERS ? . ANYWAY, CHESS PLAYERS IN THE MAIN ARE BUDDIES. SO, WHO ARE THESE “GE0-POLITICAL GAME PLAYING” BUDDIES ? . . HEADING ; The West Can’t Smell What Eurasia is Cooking . . 16.06.2017 . by Pepe Escobar . . EXCERPT ; A tectonic geopolitical shift happened in Astana, Kazakhstan, only a few days ago, and yet barely a ripple registered in Atlanticist circles. At the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), founded in 2001, both India and Pakistan were admitted as full members, alongside Russia, China and four Central Asian “stans”… Read more »
Follow up on burning alive the Polish driver in Calais: 4 “refugees” responsible for murder were caught by the French police. 2 of them are from Afghanistan, and 2 from Eritrea. They were charged with causing danger for road traffic.
On another related topic, some media all over the world gave the information (taken from what source?) that the terrorist who attacked the French policeman in Paris was a son of Polish immigrants.
This information turned out to be completely untrue, but no clarification was published.
Mr Trump is right that he refuses to talk to those media.
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/22/ethereum-price-crash-10-cents-gdax-exchange-after-multimillion-dollar-trade.html
How to get elected–rig it, but make sure it is rigged enough.
“Donald Trump had it right when he said if were not for the three to five million illegal votes, he would have won the popular vote in 2016. According to a new study by the nonpartisan group “Just Facts,” 5.7 million non citizens “may have cast illegal votes.” Keep in mind, this does not take into account massive voter and election fraud in places like Detroit, where there were as many as 6 times more votes than registered voters.””
http://usawatchdog.com/middle-east-dog-fight-economic-update-not-good-6-million-vote-illegally/
http://www.businessinsider.com/albert-edwards-on-central-banking-and-populism-2017-6
“For as the next inevitable economic and financial collapse comes ever nearer – a consequence of yet another global asset bubble bursting politicians will be looking for the next sacrificial lambs to throw to the wolves. It’s hard to believe Yellen, Draghi and Carney won’t be those bleating lambs. But then the mob will devour the very independence of those institutions with the connivance of a political class willing to do anything to save their own skins.”
Let the games begin!!
It is called “Conquest by Creep” . And, it has been aided willfully by local creeps in Irish State. . . Ewe know, a hell of a lot of people have Diplomas & Degrees, & what have ewe, in “European Studies” ; These graduates have, in the main, been thoroughly indoctrinated into believing that the European Union as a project is benign even though from its conception by Kalergi & its initiation by Monet & right-throughout its operation into today, it is a malevolent dictatorship. . . Holders of “European Studies” qualifications will naturally feel that they have no academic… Read more »
http://www.oom2.com/t48105-an-encouraging-look-forward-by-foster-gamble?utm_campaign=Feed:+oo
A message of hope.
“It is getting extremely difficult to keep track of the ever increasing number of fading Hollywood stars threatening to harm or kill President Donald Trump. The latest outrage occurred when overrated actor Johnny Depp joked about assassinating the President at a U.K. music festival. He asked the crowd “When was the last time an actor assassinated a President?” This was obviously a reference to actor John Wilkes Booth who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln. He dug an even deeper hole when he followed his question by making a thinly veiled threat on the President’s life. Amazingly, he told the crowd, “it’s… Read more »
It is time to deconstruct the state and return people to local governance. That is as true for Europe as it is for the Americas.
Free trade and the use of internationally recognised money will provide prosperity. Government, of the people, by the people , for the people, needs to be followed for the betterment of all peoples.
http://www.thedailybell.com/news-analysis/how-new-hampshire-is-fighting-for-independence/
https://dailyreckoning.com/forgotten-depression-1920-1921/ “”The Forgotten Depression of 1920–1921 If Paul Krugman were around he would have screamed blue murder and set Mr. Harding down as an enemy of the people. But Harding followed a different set of lights than the good Dr. Krugman… Imagine — if possible — a contemporary president pounding this drum: We will attempt intelligent and courageous deflation, and strike at government borrowing which enlarges the evil, and we will attack high cost of government with every energy and facility which attend Republican capacity… Let us call to all the people for thrift and economy, for denial and sacrifice… Read more »
What about this one lads?
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/brexit-in-reverse-by-george-soros-2017-06?utm_source=Project+Syndicate+Newsletter&utm_campaign=2200ecc304-sunday_newsletter_25_6_2017&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_73bad5b7d8-2200ecc304-93599809
@ Grzegorz,
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Reserve for perusal at time-point that u can truly spare.
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I wonder were Cobbett & Edmund Burke interlocutors, & indeed corespondents, with each other.
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Google.com search results for terms ;
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Cobbett AND Historian AND England AND Oliver Cromwell
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https://www.google.com/search?sclient=psy-ab&biw=1301&bih=673&noj=1&q=Cobbett++AND+Historian+AND+England+AND+Oliver+Cromwell&oq=Cobbett++AND+Historian+AND+England+AND+Oliver+Cromwell&gs_l=serp.3…19931.28950.1.29374.30.28.2.0.0.0.412.4418.0j24j4-1.25.0….0…1.1.64.serp..4.16.2885…33i160k1j33i21k1.KnH7yxwwj-E
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e.g.s
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Cobbett
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FAMOUS WORK BY COBBETT ;
Admittedly, not dealing with Cromwell period which is over 100 years later.
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https://www.amazon.co.uk/History-Protestant-Reformation-England-Ireland/dp/0895553538
Ireland *The Irish) has an inherent problem.
Denial – To illustrate – If the hill won’t come to Muhammad then Muhammad will go to the hill.
Muhammad, not your typical Irish politician’s reaction.
If that hill ain’t moving then we’ll waste punter David’s hard earned taxes building a new hill.
Immigration to Canada for 25 years before reign of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau [ father of present Prime Minister Justine Trudeau ] ;
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https://twitter.com/HenryMakow/status/879122052455837696
Active Graphic of Immigration to USA ;
Worth saving.
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http://metrocosm.com/us-immigration-history-map.html
HELPING THE WEST TO GO ON THE ROAD TO NOWHERE ;
WOMEN, & MEN, EMPOWERING white WOMEN … Hmm … m !
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https://medusamagazine.com/beyond-pro-choice-the-solution-to-white-supremacy-is-white-abortion