Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
TWO RAYS OF light shoot out from a newborn star, piercing space at over 100,000 miles an hour.
It sounds like a scene from Star Wars, as Nasa couldn’t resist pointing out during the week when it cleverly released these photos to coincide with the latest installment of the film series.
“Perfectly timed for the release of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, the Nasa/ESA Hubble Space telescope has imaged a cosmic double-bladed lightsaber,” the space agency said in a statement.
In the centre of the image, partially obscured by a dark Jedi-like cloak of dust, an adolescent star shoots twin jets out into space, demonstrating the fearsome forces of the universe.
The lightsaber lies not in a galaxy far, far away, but within our own, the Milky Way, in a turbulent breeding ground for new stars over 1,350 light years away.
And it has a blast “stronger than one from a fully armed and operational Death Star battle station”, Nasa said.
Impressive.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
100′s of millions ‘lost’ in sales – irregularities too. The whole deal stinks of corruption but according to Noonan & co there’s nothing to see here. They are the worst people to ever be in charge of this country – at the very least they are clueless idiots but st worst they are facilitators for the deals done.
We said Set. While all the little government hacks were jumping up and down shouting ‘tax evader tax evader’ every time Wallace spoke in the Dail, failure of the government to act on his information has likely cost us all hundreds of times the amount of any bill the bloke ever ran up with Revenue.
In fairness FG have always been consistent with the N.A.M.A party line approach
Never Admit Motherfcuking Anything
I’m opening a book on how quick a committee will be announced to discuss the findings.
Any takers??
The committee will be announced by an out of breath Enda using multidirectional pointy gun finger hand gestures to underline how important and serious this is. The findings of same will takes years by which time he won’t have to give a bollix.
Ff are just as guilty it was them that set up namas secrecy policies and they shouldn’t be left off the hook ff need to dump micheal martian for he was one of those that was in government that drove this country over the edge ff never again.
NAMA was established as a vehicle to enable the looting of the country by the billionaire class. Both FF and FG support this vast theft and they never waste a good crisis to crush the working class.
@FC, these type of payments and deals are everyday business in this industry so I don’t know what the big deal is. The country would be on its knees within a week if you were in power. Not because of your past but because youse couldn’t run a economy by giving all your money to people who don’t work ? Does that make sense to you?
The spoke have you not noticed the country is already on its knees?
The country is on its knees you loon. Thanks to the grasping parasites that you speak for.
@ The spokesman : “youse couldn’t run a economy”
You’ll forgive me if I only take criticism from individuals with basic grammar skills.
Cheers.
@Billy, you better go see your buddy in North Korea, hes going to be taken out soon enough. Also while your there see how happy the people are under left wing communists rule and get back to me about a country being on its knees.
@FC, deflecting the point because you know I’m right. It’s not a debate about grammar so make your point. Local colloquialism is part of our national culture so if you don’t want to debate because I’m not speaking or typing the queens English to you then that just highlights the hypocrisy of your kind.
* he’s
* you’re
* communist (singular)
Mouthpiece,
How are your buddies in DRC, Liberia, Eritrea, Burundi CAR, Uganda and Bangladesh etc etc? All abjectly poor with their people starving to death under the capitalist system.
P.S. North Korea is a monstrosity and as far from socialism as it’s possible to get.
That was correcting your post to Billy.
Spokesman. You are right about one thing… “These deals are part of everyday business in this industry”
Isn’t that kinda the problem tho??
Once the vast portfolio put in the hands of NAMA became public property, publicly owned lands, houses and other assets. A higher level of scrutiny and transparency applies than what is the norm in the development/construction industry.
The priority should have immediately switched from “how much money can we make?” to “how much good can we get from these assets for the people of Ireland?”
If that good was better realised by keeping some of the lands for public use or providing public housing or state owned hotels, or just wait until land prices increase for a better return, that’s what should have happened.
Instead the approach was sell all of these houses as soon as possible in a manner which will artificially manipulate house prices and allow government to say they had turned a profit however small so that NAMA could be called a success.
*too, you clown. Go on and respond to my post. For Connolly, for Queen and for country.
Eh, no.
I was correcting your post to Billy. It’s not ‘too Billy’.
Dear oh dear.
@John Doe, you are indeed correct it is the problem but we could not use Nama as a shining light in corporate governance, we were not in a position. I remember reading somewhere that an US investor told a conference in New York, “Don’t invest in Europe, until there is blood on the streets” circa 2009 I think we got the best deals we could under the circumstances.
@Billy the monstrosity started as liberal socialism and one thing lead to another. This is where Ireland will end up if we start voting left wing. So people do not vote left wing.
Oh dear back of the class spokesman really you need to put more effort into being a worm to succeed.
@FC, I suppose I’m glad your the grammar police instead of other type of justice that you have being known to impose. Go on and answer my point.
No mouthpiece. The monstrosity of North Korea is a result of the U.S. Imperial adventures in Korea as they sought to spread their capitalist ideology across the globe since ww2.
* you’re
* types
Billy, that was @ The spokesman.
Thanks spokesman. Think the whole country now knows that these deals and payments are everyday business under this government aided by ff. Doesn’t take long for the dirt to catch you when you leave a trail behind . As is happening now.
@FC, do Sinn Fein have the Sinn Fein clown on the Twitter machine tonight, which is why you wont answer my question. Morally what is better, taking the odd bribe, or burying bodies in a bog without telling anyone for years. ?
Wow the spokesman. Do spill. Who took the odd bribe?…
* won’t
* ‘which is better’
* ? (a question remark removes the need for a full stop)
‘I’m glad ‘your’ the grammar police’?
Had a little chuckle at that one Joey!
Here spokesman, I got you a card…….
https://bonbonsandmartinis.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/grammar.jpg?w=645
@Little one, PR for a start, anyway the shinners are out in force to shut me up for making a counter argument. There is more point debating here. Sorry for my poor grammar folks but people who point out poor grammar are just under the kos with the argument.
“but people who point out poor grammar are just under the kos with the argument.”
You mean pointing out poor grammar usage by the person lecturing others on matters of intellect?
What are u on about . PR for a start.
Tweed Cap
Have you got titles for IW and APPLE
That were/are scams.
We read today that dozens upon dozens of FDI and Vulture companies are paying little or ZERO tax.
Get the RIO investigation team over to Dublin rapidly.
There is nothing to see here. Noonan “was” in possession of the the report but he lost it down the back of sofa, what can u do. Stop arguing over small money, it’s not that important to the government in the greater scheme of things. Let’s focus on the growing economy and highly paid jobs for anybody who wants to work.
This constant paranoia many people seem to have about the government working for the big multi-nationals at the expense of the people who elected them while hiding so called shady Nama deals is not good for the collective emotional state of the nation. Let them get on with their job and we will all reap the rewards over the next few years. Even if you don’t feel it in your pocket within a few years, it’s a work in progress. Be patient, good things come to those who wait :D
The Spokesman, they will after the wholesale tax evasion by corporations, facilitated by FG/FF. Apple being just the tip of the iceberg. Add the NAMA debacle, IW etc.
All happening, under right wing neoliberal governments.
People are sick and tired struggling to live, while billions of tax money owed to the country are being siphoned off by foreign corporations, aided and abetted by right wing governments.
People are waking up to the facts of governance by neoliberals.
They don’t care what shade of government is in power as long as their interest and the welfare of the people are put first and foremost by those we elect to govern.
People have had enough of corruption and fraud.
Super Ted the rewards are already being reaped. Reaped by the 1%. By the time they’re finished, nothing will be left for anyone.
As it is homeownership is now a futile aspiration for ordinary people. Deliberate policy to turn the country into a renter society where foreign corporations are owed all the rent.
We’ve had more than enough patience. The time for reckoning has come.
@Littleone, PR, NI, former FM.
Ah ok . Thanks
Who exactly is behind this €770 billion hidden in tax havens by Irish account holders. These funds are invested through companies registered in places like Panama etc into American vulture funds, then used to snap up massive profits here in Ireland while availing of numerous further tax avoidance schemes such as secrion 110, QIAIFs or ICAVs.
We saw in the Panama leaks how a very influential person connected to Government was alledged to have used this method to purchase property in London in the past.
These type of accounts and ‘connected’ influence can be the only reason for some of the astonishing deals being done with our State assets.
WHO IS REALLY PROFITTING????
….yes and believe it or not only a skilled tax evader would have the skills to spot other tax evaders. Mr. Wallace should be parachuted into NAMA to sort this out. The incentive… The state will write off his debts and liabilities as a % of what he recoups for the state as a result of his endeavors. He is the State’s best opportunity to sort this out.
While promising he and the dipidees will get to the bottom of this.
The law locks up the man or woman
Who steals the goose from off the common
But leaves the greater felon loose
Who steals the common from off the goose
The law demands that we atone
When we take things we do not own
But leaves the lords and ladies fine
Who take things that are yours and mine
The poor and wretched don’t escape
If they conspire the law to break
This must be so but they endure
Those who conspire to make the law
The law locks up the man or woman
Who steals the goose from off the common
And geese will still a common lack
Till they go and steal it back
Please people, they are not idiots, the people who vote for them are the idiots unfortunately. To call these FG/FF/Labour politicians idiots is to misunderstand the system, in the U.S. it’s referred to as ‘revolving doors’ as individuals jump from big business CEO to politics, pass the regulations to favour big business & then back to the board to reap the financial benefits. Naomi Klein has extensive evidence of this in her book/documentary ”The Shock Doctrine”.
In Ireland it’s not as blatant, the politicians here have to wait til they retire before getting truly rewarded. Let’s look at Brian Cowen, now if there’s loads of cash flowing around like the Celtic Tiger then the 1% get most of it but the plebs get some trickled down. But what if there suddenly was a big crash, & it becomes a choice between the 1% & the plebs(voters who vote for these parties), so what has he to gain by favouring the 1%…a future job on the board of Topaz, with Irelands’ version of rupert murderer..Denis O’Brien..where he can pick up 500k a yr while golfing, or maybe a lecturing tour on health for Mary Harney, getting 10/20k per talk (http://www.maryharney.ie/), or maybe helping Celia Ahernes’ career. Now in contrast what will Cowen,Aherne, Harney or currently Enda/Noonan get off Joe dope who voted for them??? seriously, it’s human nature to be self-serving but in order for things to change the voting population has to wake up to the reality of who these people are serving & stop believing Denis O’Brien sponsored media that they’re incompetant, that’s the classic excuse of last resort…the george bush excuse….whoops I made a doo-doo….a doo-doo that lined the pockets of their masters.
As I mentioned above, now that there’s not enough to ‘trickle down’, FG/FF/Labour have shown the true narrative(attack the pleb citizen…reward the 1% masters) by their choices…implement austerity….implement tax increase via U.Social charge, property tax(which is essentially charging you rent on your own house!) etc…enforce TV licence payment…send directive to Gardai to increase revenue from road/traffic offences….cut hospital funding…cut education funding….cut Gardai funding….ignore the housing crisis…implement water charges. Now on the flip side…close loopholes so corporations pay the actual 12.5%, NO CHANCE….utilise some of NAMA properties to alleviate housing crisis, NO CHANCE, instead lets wait til the economy/prices hit rock bottom & then firesale to all our 1% masters…CHECK….Europe court find Apple owe 11billion plus interest brings it to 19billion…NO CHANCE…APPEAL APPEAL APPEAL, of course with the corporate owned media pedaling the defense. This isn’t even mentioning Ray Burke selling off all our natural resources for the worst price ever in 1995 I think, still an estimated 220billion worth of natural resources under Irish jurisdiction which NO corporate media outlet has mention since the crash, why don’t we nationalise that, oh wait, there’s a European law forbidding it, think that was included in that vote we plebs got wrong the first time, so they fear mongered us plebs into ”choosing” the correct answer the second time. Seriously, actions speak louder than words, & the MOUNTAIN of evidence over the past 8yrs in Ireland, the US, the UK etc etc etc is undeniable, & yet there’s still this cognative dissonance where people think ”jez what are they doing, they don’t have a clue!!”…nope, they know exactly who they work for, & who will reward them & their families. First step is awareness, then alternative solutions, but the big challenge is affecting those changes, cos the ruling class are always at war..just look at how relentless they’ve been in sabotaging Venezuela under Chavez/Maduro
@Phil – Excellent!
@hugodebarra, the best example to prove your point is the sale of the national lottery to the private sector. Where was the logic in selling this licence to print money?
@Kerry He’s obviously still on the gravy train
@Lazlo, thanks but it’s not mine. No one knows who wrote this poem, it comes from 17th century England and is a response to the privatisation of the common land. I think it was during the time of the enclosures act. Nothing changes eh?
All you have to do Phil is look at Noonans personal investments. They are there to see ,all published on the oireachteas website .It’s not as if he’s not hiding his investments in his defence. How this man can be allowed in government is beyond belief.
Enda does not give a bo***x… eitherway…. he just wants to be taoisoch…as happy as a pig in s**t
What sort of horse manure are they going to publish!
The government protecting their good name as usual and putting two fingers up to the Irish people ever since NAMA was created. The EU might say that it was a wonderful idea, but then they did get their money back didn’t they along with the bond holders.
@Chris Kirk. I believe Nama has been one of the best things to happen to this country. We avoided a civil war which could easily have happened after the collapse in 08, this was due to the establishment of NAMA.
Noonal protecting the good name of his former FG leader Alan Dukes…..you couldn’t make it up.
You forgot been.
No it wasn’t Spokesman don’t talk ridiculous, what planet are you on…..
AAA clown Billy: same left wing socialists/communist rubbish out of you every day
AAA shit talk as usual. If it’s not our governments fault, it’s the US governments fault… it’s never the ideology in your eyes. Socialism/communism does not work. PS. Extreme capitalism does not work either. Center is best.
Fianna Fáil investigating political corruption is about as logical as a vegetarian becoming a butcher…
FF are experts in corruption so your comparison is rubbish.
Irony, amongst other things is clearly something they don’t understand
Indeed, Fianna Fáil are the experts in corruption. Hence why I used comparative irony to joke about the situation. In fact, the only time they don’t seem to like corruption is when they don’t have the opportunity to indulge in it themselves
Oscar, are you a fine gael man yourself by any chance??
Not particularly, and I’m not a supporter of any of Ireland’s political parties. I just abhor corruption of all sorts (Ireland has recently been ranked as amongst the most corrupt countries in Western Europe), and although the other political parties haven’t always exactly been immune from the practice, Fianna Fáil, when in power, have historically been the prime culprits
“Not particularly”
Sure about that Oscar?
I was unaware of the fact that criticising Fianna Fáil’s political legacy automatically branishes me a blueshirt, which I assure you that I am most certainly not
I see. It’s just when there’s a story about FG ineptitude, some would even say corruption, and there’s somebody making multiple ‘quick look over there’ posts about FF, its usually a FG person. That persons twitter account is usually full of FG politicians, and google usually loves it when you type in their name with ‘fine gael’ as a search as well.
Corruption is a cancer on the body of Irish politics. Politics should be lauded as a career of public service, yet in our country, the profession has been infected with the parasite of sleeze and self-enrichment since the inception of the modern era. Regardless of party, Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael, corruption should be eradicated from Irish public life
Well said. You should register your protest at this latest debacle by deleting the smorgasbord of fine gael TDs from your twitter account.
Ah yes sure aren’t there blueshirts hidden under every rock, infiltrating everywhere. Indeed I follow most of the government and local TDs on twitter, because, for better or for worse, they’re currently the ruling party, but also plenty of other politicians and parties around the world that I also follow. That by know means that I support any of them .
*no means
Noonan the turkey is hiding the gun, Christmas has come early.
Noonan has been exposed as a bully and a chancer, time this dinosaur was put out to grass, preferably in Mountjoy.
Noonan has been busy since August using the big black marker to remove the juicy bits.
If you decide to set up a institution without no oversight this is what tends to happen. Now for a freedom of information request or wait we didnt do minutes for that meeting.
Simon, NAMA are exempt from Freedom of Information rulers. Set up by FF and milked by FG.
I thought that the oversight was the use of ex-Anglo bank employees led by ex FG leader Alan Dukes.
Ah sure look their only friends giving each other a dig out. Why should we who will pay the bill worry…..
Mr (Dow Jones )Noonan looking after the countries best interests my eye.
There is an insider in government working against the interests of the state.
Noonan had no right to lend that money for a start it was not his to give.
Now we the People of Ireland want that money back, we can put it to good use Hospitals schools Housing.
Noonan is too old to have a job as finance Minister.
Von I’m old but I agree with you.
Noonan can’t leave. Too much to cover up. Too much ass covering to do.
And before that pr##k spokeswan opens his wide jowls, NO I am not SF although if there was a vote tomorrow they would come well before FFG.
What a last 10 years we have witnessed. Delboy Trotter has nothing on this lot.
Christy. I agree that he should held to account but i can’t stand the look of him or his voice and above all his treatment of the People of Ireland.
Wonder how much redaction will be read on this document he has it long enough to smudge it big time
I’ll never understand why governments don’t understand that the main priority of voters isn’t profit or efficiency – it’s transparency.
Zimbabwe has nothing on us.
I didn’t think any party could out-corrupt Fianna Fail but Fine Gael have managed it. Congrats lads.
Ah but the thing is Eamonn they have been fooling a lot of the Irish public for decades.What these 2 parties have been doing is feeding each other with scandal and outrage and pretending they are acting in the public interest. Wake up people they are the same party and I think the day is coming when people will see through the bullshit.
I hope this piece of news will blow FG and FF out of the water. The only expertise they have is to skrew the people of Ireland.
Saturday 17th Sept 2 pm. protest march. I will oil my wheelchair.
And this is why we need fundamental root and branch change in this filthy little state. When their billionaire buddies and speculators need their gambling losses covered it’s very much the taxpayers business, but god forbid the same taxpayer be privy to what happens to it after we’ve been robbed blind.
Project Eagle and the rest…..
Why in God’s name are fine gael and labour fianna fail doing all of this to Ireland. Between having a population carrying a monterous debt saddled on them by a private business, turning us into a tax haven for multinationals, privatising our natural resources like water, giving away our gas and fishing rights. It appears to me that Michael ” sow up your pockets” noonan and enda simply don’t care about the ordinary Irish public.
Now that the penny has dropped for you Aoife lets hope the rest of the population get the message to.
It’s been an accumulation of so much crap over the last few years that I can’t imagine how anyone in their right mind thinks it’s OK.
Aoife, I just read that the American firm, Cerberus, that bought the Project Eagle portfolio has as it’s Chairman a Dan Quayle. Yes, The former VICE President of America served under George W Bush.
And the US Authorities are “investigating” Cerberus. What chance a “correct” result.
NAMA lost €3 bn on this sale alone,and noonan knew about it.time for him to go,FF act now on behalf of the Irish people,call GE,or forever shut your mouth.
Name has done a terrible disservice to the Irish taxpayer.We have been swindled out of millions by the northies! Shame on them. And we guaranteed the banks!
Barrersea power station was sold too cheaply NAMA got £700 million for it
It was flipped a year later for £1100 million
At the time London property was booming they should have waited before selling it
Peter Robinson and his cronies, caught by the testies. Wonder when his next sob story will generate from.
High time for heads to roll starting with Noonan
Jebus that Noonan man!!
Fianna Fáil calling for publication of report. Is this the same Fianna Fáil who colluded with fg and labour to block an investigation into nama?
When ordinary people lose their homes because of debt but the Johnny Ronan’s of this world while in Debt with NAMA get paid by NAMA a six figure sum per annum to manage his debt even though he didn’t declare all his assets as required….and then exit NAMA with his portfolio intact….surely you can smell a rat?
Let’s have a tribunal so we can charge people like we did after the Moriarty Tribunal found wrong… anybody?
The Garda fraud squad must be busy at the silage.
The real question is, is the bottled water on the table for mixing the whitewash?
Project Eagle.. Should be called project feckyn’ vulture
Ok and why oh why is the obvious choice facing us not been hammered home by every keyboard warrior on here and every other site calling out this bullshit. Which is, for the slow witted people out there the march on September 17. Iceland, Romania, Ukraine, Poland etc etc have shown that mass protests can bring down governments but i despair that irish people have no backbone!!!!
Michael. You are so right, they moan but don’t leave their homes. It would be great to have the biggest (peaceful) protest so far.
Noonan might as well use his report/whitewash to line the bottom of his budgies cage, the game is up and he knows it.
The 30 hours of covert audio sitting in a Belfast solicitors office is the smoking gun.
Millions apon millions lost and squadered whilst folks can’t get a hospital bed……a cattle truck should be parked outside the Dail, FF/FG herded on to it and taken down to the ferry terminal Iin Dun Laoighaire.
I sense its gonna be a situation where this report will come out and we’ll find that the state (this pathetic gov) has lost possibly billions, followed closely by noonan making statements that the irish gov doesn’t want the 13 billion because our reputation will be ruined (too late, leprechaun economics and tax haven), followed by new record numbers of homeless figures.
Noonan is up to his boll(ock in it. Typical Limerick S(umbag.
Noonan has sold this country out.
How much has the IMF got involved in this?
I would love to not pay any taxes USC PRSI if we stopped paying the Government would feel the pinch after all we pay them well.
The government is suppose to work for the people under what the term democracy as that is what democracy is suppose to mean, therefore they should as it is tax payers money being used here?
will we get the TRUTH…the whole TRUTH… or anything but THE TRUTH…
“The Government will publish its report into Nama’s controversial multi-billion Project Eagle sale this week”, so not an eagle but a giant Turkey, Project Turkey, the report will say gobble gobble, gobble…
Lots of worried eyes in those pictures.
Now let the whole truth emerge.
“leaks this weekend suggest “hundreds of millions of euros” were lost due to shortcomings in the transaction, which was approved by Minister for Finance Michael Noonan.”
Approved by Noonan? Well I guess that will rule out an enquiry….
I’d say we don’t know the half of what’s going on behind closed doors – seems to be the scandals are getting bigger and bigger -
I thought Gerry Adams hated Spotlight? Now he’s quoting from their broadcasts?
He’s eminently flexible.
Is that the most interesting thing you took from the article?
Trying to use rumours from the time to cloud the issue to back your own emotional views? In order to control others beliefs, is that what you are doing?
What the fcuk are ye doing asking that space cadet Alan Kelly For his opinion. He spent five years shouting insults at any TD that mentioned NAMA from the opposition benches. The man is an irrelevant has-been, his opinion is about as much use as a turd sandwich when your hungry
Michael Noonan has balls like a Bengal tiger…. Fair play to him!!
have your say