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A SINN FÉIN councillor’s claim that the people who run Irish rugby are ‘West Brits’ was condemned in the Seanad this afternoon.
Fine Gael seantor Jim D’Arcy said Micheál Mac Donncha’s remarks were equivalent to an American referring to someone as an ‘Uncle Tom’ - a derogatory term used to describe black people who are considered subservient to or act like white people.
His party colleague and Seanad leader Maurice Cummins said the comments were “disgraceful” and “bigoted”.
Mac Donncha’s made the comments in a Facebook post on Saturday evening during the course of a debate over the reasons why Amhrán na bhFiann is not played during Irish rugby games outside of the State.
The Sinn Féin Dáil candidate in Dublin Bay North said the reason was an “inferiority complex and anti-national attitude of the West Brits who still run Irish rugby”.
‘West Brit’ is a derogatory term used to describe Irish people who take an interest in British affairs or are condescending towards nationalist issues.
Speaking during the Seanad Order of Business today, D’Arcy said he condemned the “outrageous comments”:
This is the equivalent of an American calling someone an ’Uncle Tom’. This goes to the heart of who we are.
“In actual fact, the people who run Irish rugby could be termed Irish heroes as they have kept a united organisation throughout the Troubles, in a deeply fractured space.”
He added: “Remember, Amhrán na bhFiann is the national anthem of a 26-county Irish Republic and we are rightly proud of it.
“This rugby team is a much more ancient and deeply spiritual manifestation of an older Irish nation. Those who run the organisation should be applauded and not abused.
I just want to say one thing, he wouldn’t say that to our county men, the two Kearney brothers, Dave and Rob, if they were looking at him.
Speaking later during the Order of Business, Cummins said Mac Donncha’s remark was a “regrettable choice of language”.
Such comments are bigoted comments, which really… we’re adding credence to it by even discussing it here in this house.
Mac Donncha has defended his use of the term ‘West Brit’.
He said that he did not consider the term offensive and, when asked if he was referring specifically to the IRFU, he said: “If the cap fits, wear it.”
Sinn Féin has declined to comment on the remark.
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Inefficient way of working. Lots of people just staying for the social life. Much prefer the German approach of shutting the office down- if you can’t do your job from 9-5 something’s wrong – go home and relax and contribute to your community.
If only all companies were like this.
Some companies work people to the point of burn out.
This happy go lucky workplace at Google etc is purely a way of keeping people in work longer and only socialising with colleagues.
Throw in the fact that they’re main targets are CS grads who might be a bit socially challenged and you have willing victims at the ready.
Software development is a very stressful and demanding job. Providing a relaxing atmosphere helps productivity.
Only stressful and demanding if badly managed. American companies think they own you so they don’t have to plan correctly, they’ll just throw more people at the problem whether it’s working until 4am or weekend work at regular rates.
These environments are fine when you’re young – the craic is great and you don’t mind working the hours if you get free drinks nights etc. however it breeds bad habits in management and workers. Just my experience.
Agreed – the American way of working is based on working long hours rather than doing your job well – its also very short term driven because of the bonus culture – it has led to biggest recession in recent memory
Modern IT is a 24hr culture. It’s not possible to do everything in the old style 9-5 workday. Software deployments and batch tasks tend to have to run outside these times. If people want a 9-5 job with handy money and promotions based on length of service etc, then IT is the wrong place to be.
“Modern IT is a 24hr culture.”
That’s not true. I work in IT, I arrive 10-15 mins late in the morning, and I am gone to catch the Luas at 5:32pm
Why not mix it up some days, and arrive 10-15mins early, and then go to catch the luas at 5.02pm. Keep people guessing
I like the cut of your jib, maybe I’ll even take it a step further and get the bus home. I’d be the talk of the office.
Anything that touches IT is like this. I just quit my job in IT recruitment, working 7:30 to 21:00 every day and then some on the weekends, take lunch at desk while working, it’s insane. Life is for living, not making other people rich mannnnnnn.
Though at 21:00 we did play some sick table tennis!
@cpm the fact that you are freely admitting to arriving late every morning and leaving at the same time each day suggests you are the work shy sort. Also you travel via public transport with the great unwashed which suggests you don’t earn enough to owe a car. I think you ought to work harder and you’ll achieve more, otherwise you’ll still be stuck at the java in your 60s.
Oh dear me, Jon! So many assumptions in such a short paragraph. Anyway, the reason I get the Luas is because it’s about 10x quicker than driving in the city centre. So maybe I’m just more efficient with my time than you are – this probably explains your 24hr work schedule.
“otherwise you’ll still be stuck at the java in your 60s.”
- let me guess, – you’re one of “those guys” who could never get their head around programming LOL
A lot of people actually choose to stay programming long into their careers, – it keeps the brain ticking over unlike a lot of other activities, and the challenge depends a lot on the complexity of the problem at hand.
Table tennis not ping pong.
Unfortunately for every Google, there are 3 places who just want to grind 10 hours a day of hard slog out of employees. ESP call centers (which aren’t it jobs). People want to work where they are valued, more likely to happen in a small business than a sprawling multi national. Not a huge shock of a survey in fairness.
Your right Paul,
Some horrible companies to work for out there.
When times are good, these companies won`t hire enough staff and people will have a high workload.
When times are bad, these companies will fire a lot of people, will then not have enough staff, people will have a higher workload, lower pay, and put in crazy hours for fear of being the next person to be fired.
Meanwhile some of the directors jump ship with payoffs close to a million quid. Not naming companies but these things happen.
Imagine the uproar if public sector workers got free haircuts, swimming pools, lounges and ping-pong tables.
Just saying.
Imagine the shock if the government that hired the public sector workers posted quarterly profits in the billions thus being able to afford the pools and nice lunches…
If IT companies are earning exorbitant profits like this doesn’t it mean we’re all overpaying for IT services?
To be honest, ill work with whoever pays me the most and offers the best T&Cs. Startups are definitely interesting but often can’t compete on wages. Young IT professionals will move around a bit.
Sitting round cuddling office dogs, playing ping pong and sitting in ‘creative spaces’ with nerds all day sounds like my idea of hell.
Office dogs sounds cool.
Don`t knock table tennis, great game.
WOOF
Some of the irish start ups are cowboy setups – people looking to make a quick buck and little interest in developing staff
Companies outside the IT sector need to take note. People perform better and you get better results if you have a fun environment and atmosphere to work in.
Lol!!! It’s not our fault we chose the right career path
I worked for two start-ups, both went out business at a moment’s notice, while the wages in start-ups with funding can be higher, the security just isn’t there, and if you have a mortgage that’s not a great thing. I’d be very happy to work for Google!
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