Talk:Kevin Myers

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Some excerpts from wikipedia that may - or may not! - be useful


Style

Myers' Irish Times opinion columns were often in contrast to its editorial position, which led to some conflict with his editors. In early January 2005, The Irish Times refused to publish a column in which he accused the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) of responsibility for the Northern Bank robbery. It was later published by the Daily Telegraph[1] He often advocates support for the United States, though he is sometimes critical of the foreign policies of the Bush administration. He ultimately endorsed the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He has praised George W. Bush, but has also described him as 'mad'. He is frequently critical of anti-war activists.[2]

Myers is sceptical of the viability of multiculturalism[3] and favours limits on immigration to prevent the growth of racial tension in Ireland. He has criticised the Catholic Church in many pieces, and favours the legalisation of prostitution.[4] In recent articles he has been critical of Islamic fundamentalism and extremism. In his journalism Myers has opposed the classification of Travellers as an ethnic minority,[5] and has opposed feminist philosophy and the role of trade unions in setting economic policy. He has written against the compensation culture and has opposed state policies towards the Irish language.[6] He has also criticised the prospect of Turkey's accession to the EU.[7]

Other columns have a less political nature, discussing road safety, pet peeves, rugby union, favourite places in Ireland, etc. The fortnightly satirical publication, The Phoenix, regularly lampoons what it sees as his apparent self-obsession, and referring to him by other names such as Kevin Myarse or Colonel MyArse.

Irishness and Nationalism

Myers promotes awareness of Irish soldiers who served in the British Armed Forces, particularly in World War I, arguing that they believed they were doing their patriotic duty as Irishmen. He has criticised the official commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising,[8] and has raised concerns about uncritically celebrating Irish rebellions of former times.Template:Citation needed He has been sceptical of the Northern Ireland peace process, and uses the hyphenated term Sinn Féin-IRA in some articles.[9][10][11]

The "bastards" controversy

Myers has been an advocate of unrestricted freedom of speech and an opponent of censorship and political correctness. He attracted considerable criticism for "An Irishman's Diary" of 8 February 2005, in which he referred to children of unmarried mothers as "bastards":

How many girls - and we’re largely talking about teenagers here - consciously embark upon a career of mothering bastards because it seems a good way of getting money and accommodation from the State? Ah. You didn’t like the term bastard? No, I didn’t think you would.|Kevin Myers, An Irishmans's Diary, The Irish Times, 8 February 2005[12]

Myers issued an unconditional apology two days later, "entirely at [his] own initiative". Irish Times editor Geraldine Kennedy also apologised for having agreed to publish the article. Myers has claimed to have received death threats over his controversial remarks.

Scotland

Myers caused controversy when he referred to Scottish people as obese and dependent on the welfare state:

There lies the ruin of Scotland - subsidies. Guaranteed transfers of capital from England have created a political culture of sloth which is now endemic and even personalised. Scottish people are the most obese in Europe, in which regard they resemble the wretched Scottish statelet. Only a minority of Scottish people work for a living - and most of those who have jobs are employed by the state: 577,300. In other words, they are employed by the English to manage themselves. The rest of the Scots are on the dole or pensions, living in state-owned housing estates, sending their children to state-run schools, where the most likely form of personal enterprise they will ever encounter is their local heroin-dealer.|Myers, Kevin, An Irishman's Diary, The Irish Times, 8 February 2006

On the 17 January 2007 he wrote a similar article about Scotland, drawing in the topical issue of the country's possible secession from the United Kingdom or gaining of some other form of independence.

Other work

He was presenter of the Challenging Times television quiz show on RTÉ during the 1990s. In 2000, he published a collection of his An Irishman's Diary columns (ISBN 1-85182-575-4) and in 2003, he published a novel Banks of Green Willow (ISBN 0-684-02013-0) which was described by John Banville "as fresh as tomorrow's headlines".Template:Citation needed In 2006, he published Watching the Door (ISBN 1-84351-085-5), about his time as a journalist in Northern Ireland during the 1970s. The book was positively reviewed by The Times,[13] The Guardian,[14] and the New Statesman,[15] while The Independent published a more mixed review that wondered whether there was "an element of hyperbole" in Myers' account.[16]

He is member of the Film Classification Appeals Board (formerly known as the Censorship Board.)[17]

Books - Full titles needed

  • Kevin Myers: From the Irish Times Column 'An Irishman's Diary' (2000)
  • Banks of Green Willow (2003)
  • Watching the Door: A Memoir, 1971-1978 (2006)
  • More Myers: An Irishman's Diary, 1997-2006 (2007)

Notes

  1. ↑ Myers, Kevin. "The price of peace? £22m in cash" The Telegraph. The Irish Times, 16 September 2005. Retrieved on 25 April 2007.
  2. ↑ Ref needed
  3. ↑ Myres, Kevin Opinion: An Irishman's Diary". Retrieved on 27 May 2008.
  4. ↑ Myers, Kevin. Let sanity prevail and bring prostitutes in from the cold. Irish Independent, 26 March 2008. Retrieved on 27 May 2008.
  5. ↑ I'm Irish, I know about the gipsy problem, Daily Telegraph, October 3, 2004
  6. ↑ Kevin Myers: Language busybodies trying to impose Irish upon us by diktat, Irish Independent, December 9, 2009
  7. ↑ For 250 years, Turkey's presence in Europe was invariably as an armed invader in Christian lands, Irish Independent, March 31, 2010
  8. ↑ Myers, Kevin. "There is nothing to celebrate in the Easter Rising; Nothing, absolutely nothing". Belfast Telegraph, 13 April 2007. Retrieved on 27 May 2008.
  9. ↑ What was achieved by Adams and McGuinness stands out as a perfect model of courage, Kevin Myers, Irish Independent, 13 November 2009, retrieved 10 December 2009
  10. ↑ IRA collusion tale is a bloody, black comedy, Kevin Myers, Irish Independent, 12 February 2008, retrieved 10 December 2009
  11. ↑ Staring into Northern Ireland's moral abyss, Kevin Myers, The Belfast Telegraph, 30 March 2008, retrieved 10 December 2009
  12. ↑ Myers, Kevin. "An Irishman's Diary by Kevin Myers". The Irish Times 8 February 2005.
  13. ↑ Watching The Door: Cheating Death In 1970s Belfast, by Kevin Myers. 2008-03-22. 
  14. ↑ Guns and girls. 2008-04-18. 
  15. ↑ Here comes trouble. 2008-03-27. 
  16. ↑ Watching the Door, by Kevin Myers. 2008-03-07. 
  17. ↑ http://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/kevin-myers/when-looney-film-censors-ran-our-moral-madhouse-1263169.html

External links


http://www.indymedia.ie/article/82069 http://www.indymedia.ie/article/78150 http://www.indymedia.ie/article/68550 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Myers http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/lies-damned-lies-and-the-wickedness-of-wikipedia-1388050.html http://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/kevin-myers/kevin-myers-irrationality-has-always-been-at-the-very-heart-of-irish-life-2281679.html

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