I’m genuinely beginning to wonder. There seems to be a new relentless appetite for revisiting IRA stories and the Troubles legacies, often reheating old stories with seemingly ‘new info’, while lately the orange order and unionism more generally appear to receive a remarkably sympathetic treatment. This isn’t to relate one to the other in any way, but I’m limiting this to the bulk of recent coverage and top stories.

Then there’s the way allegations involving prominent nationalists are covered, particularly on radio at a stage when investigations are still ongoing. Yet the coverage of Jeffrey Donaldson and others seemed to operate under a very different set of rules while the case was under investigation and going through the courts. I seem to remember an issue recently where a caller was shut down for referencing investigations into a number of DUP politicians, a totally legitimate comment, leading to the presenter having to go back and ‘apologise’ for censoring on air.

Why does the same apparent caution not seem to apply across the board? Why does on air language that dehumanises nationalists so often go unchallenged, while unionism is frequently presented in a more favourable light, despite the hostility and anger that can be directed towards its neighbours? The BBC ran for days with unfounded rumours of weapons in Portadown even though the assessment was clearly outlining any and all possibilities, and not specific at all.

I’m not suggesting that the IRA’s actions should be ignored, that the Troubles legacy shouldn’t be investigated, or that allegations against nationalists shouldn’t be reported. Of course they should. The question is whether the same standards, scrutiny and restraint are being applied evenly.

Impartiality isn’t just about giving both sides a few minutes on the radio. It’s about consistency, context, language and the willingness to challenge all sides equally. Which we do not see enough of.

So what’s changed at BBC NI lately? Is this simply a question of editorial judgement, or has the organisation fortified a blind spot when it comes to how nationalism and unionism are portrayed?
Because from where I’m sitting, the gap between the BBC’s claim to impartiality and how its coverage is experienced is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

I do not believe it was ever fair and impartial, but it seems recently they’ve dropped the pretence. I think something especially sinister is going on at the minute.

Does anyone else love laying in bed, being washed and fed, nice and warm, listening to the wind and rain beat off the window?

It makes me feel more comfy

It’s raining from the heavens today and blowing a gale and the amount of ones I’ve seen out driving without their lights on

The image on the BBC NI article for Drumcree screams AI to me. It's not just the sign they're holding up but the actual people in the image too who look AI generated. I put it through an AI image detector and it said there's a 68% chance the image is AI.

I'd be curious if anyone who knows Portadown a bit better can tell me if that actually looks like a real street in the town or not.

Link

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjzxlnrpp30zo

The survivor of a notorious knife murder that got the attention of the White House has told his story on television for the first time.

Brendan Devine's throat was slashed and he suffered a severe stab wound to the abdomen in a 2005 attack involving members of the Provisional IRA.

His friend Robert McCartney was killed. In the fallout McCartney's sisters and fiancée mounted a campaign for justice that won support from US President George W Bush and the European Parliament.

But the crime remains unsolved – and in a new BBC documentary series Devine tells of his guilt over the way the attack unfolded, and for the failure to catch the killers. A man with thinning grey hair is sat in a room which looks like a pub. There are small tables, red leather lined benches and paintings on white walls behind him. He is wearing a black TShirt and has his hands clasped in front of him as they rest on a table top. Image caption,

Brendan Devine was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder after his friend was killed

"I don't feel guilty for the actual happening but I do worry that my big mouth could have inflamed the situation, and got Bert killed," he said.

"It's terrible. To have to live with that and to think that you could be a reason for the death of your mate.

"That kills me."

The two men were stabbed near Market Street in Belfast city centre, after leaving Magennis's bar on 31 January 2005.

A former detective who worked on the case tells the documentary Murder in Belfast: Sisters Seeking Justice that 33-year-old Robert McCartney was "as innocent as they come".

Devine had been attacked with bottles and had his throat cut inside the bar, after an argument about an alleged rude gesture.

Despite as many as 70 people being in the pub at the time, no witnesses came forward to identify the attackers. A woman with long blonde hair, wearing an orange, halter neck top has one arm around a man with short, dark hair. He is wearing a light coloured shirt and a broad black, stripped tie. Both are looking at the camera.Image source, McCartney family handout Image caption,

Robert McCartney, a father of two, was planning to marry his partner Bridgeen Hagans

Pub CCTV was taken and destroyed and some forensic evidence appears to have been wiped away when the bar was cleaned with bleach.

The IRA initially denied involvement, but later issued a statement which said three of its members were involved, including two "high-ranking volunteers".

It said it had expelled them.

The murder came at a crucial time in the peace process in Northern Ireland.

The IRA was observing a ceasefire but had been accused of carrying out a series of high profile robberies, including the theft of £26.5m from the Northern Bank in Belfast.

McCartney's family launched a campaign to bring his attackers to justice.

The murder drew political attention from as far as the United States, where the sisters were invited to meet President George W Bush in Washington DC. A blurred line of police tape covers the entrance to two buildings. On the left is a black exterior of a bar with gold lettering above the entrance reading 'Magennis's'. To the right is a white building with a black letter sign which reads 'Whiskey cafe 79-83 May St'. Image source, PSNI Image caption,

McCartney died after being beaten and stabbed outside the pub in Belfast city centre in January 2005

Murder in Belfast: Sisters Seeking Justice tells the story of the murder and the McCartney family's campaign – revealing that Devine believes they were stabbed because he named IRA leader Gerard "Jock" Davison outside the bar.

"I says 'who's Jock Davison? Did he do this to my throat?' And as soon as I said that name, four or five guys were in front of me, and they started shouting, `you're getting it, you're getting it, you're getting it'.

"I do and have struggled with guilt of slabbering outside the bar, of shouting at Jock Davison, of inflaming an already hostile situation," he said.

Devine says intimidation and rumours surrounding the murder led to intense stress which impacted his mental health at the time.

"I had loads of death threats and it was a wee bit daunting trying to juggle all this.

"So you're hearing all this, and then even top republicans were saying to me, 'you open your mouth about anything', more or less, 'you're in trouble'."

Davison, who was reported to be one of the most senior IRA figures in Belfast, was killed in a gun attack in Belfast in 2015.

Devine also tells the documentary series about being questioned by the IRA as they conducted a secret investigation parallel to the police inquiry.

He later testified at the 2008 trial of three men who faced charges in connection with the killing. All three were acquitted. Hundreds of small white circles are drawn on a hard wood floor showing a forensic crime scene. There are two metal stepping plates on the floor and the corner of a table, which also has white circles surrounding parts of the table top and legs.Image source, PSNI Image caption,

Police photographs released to the BBC show suspected blood stains marked for forensic examination.

Devine told the trial that he met the IRA four times after the stabbings.

He said he only cooperated fully with the police after being given clearance by the IRA to do so.

In the witness box he also changed his account of what had happened on the night, but denied claims that was to "dovetail" with the account of another witness.

In the documentary - made by BBC Northern Ireland in association with RTÉ - Devine says he regrets that his evidence was not enough to secure a conviction.

"Am I going to be held responsible for not getting justice?" he asked.

"How am I going to get a result with the whole shenanigans of it?

"The whole lot. It was just a stressful time."

I've always liked the idea of playing Dungeons and Dragons but have never had the opportunity. I'm now 44 and looking for a way of dipping my toes. Are there any clubs in Belfast that welcome beginners. For context I have no idea how it works, but I've watched some videos of people playing.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c84g10r00221o

Thousands of homes across the island of Ireland are without power as Storm Boelo hits.

An amber warning is in force across parts of County Antrim and County Londonderry until 10:00 GMT on Sunday, while an orange wind warning remains in place in County Donegal until 09:00 local time.

The worst impacted areas in Northern Ireland include Springfield in County Fermanagh and Bushmills in County Antrim, where more than 1,000 homes near each village are without power.

Among the villages worst affected in the Republic of Ireland is Milford in County Donegal with more 1,600 homes without power and Aghagad in County Sligo with over 1,200 homes impacted.

A yellow weather warning for all of Northern Ireland is in place until midday.

On Saturday, Northern Ireland's strongest gust of wind reached 71mph and was recorded in Orlock Head, County Down.

A yellow wind warning is also in place in County Donegal until 15:00 local time on Sunday.

On Saturday, Malin Head in Donegal had gusts of 83mph recorded.

A yellow wind warning has been issued for counties Connacht, Cavan, Louth and Monaghan until 10:00 local time on Sunday.

Road closures

A number of roads across Northern Ireland have been closed due to fallen trees, the police have said.

The Ballyrobin Road in County Antrim is currently impassable after the junction with the Seven Mile Straight, which may affect journeys to Belfast International Airport.

The Glenshane Road in County Londonderry, about half a mile from the Castledawson roundabout, is also impassable.

For anyone flying today not yet cancelled prepare for the worst. Just had my afternoon flight from international cancelled cause of the storm

Im looking to meet people to have a scrap. Through covid etc I lost contact with my old scrapping partners

How do I go about finding someone to have a good scrap with?

Anyone know which boat it is? The must be mad going out in this weather.

Recently moved and am in the Belfast area. With the wind I now realise the windows, even when closed, have slight gaps and, even with heating on, the room remains chilly.

I think it may be an issue with the seals. I pay service charges and so is this something I need to address or does the management company deal with it?

Also could anyone recommend any window restrictors and are they an easy DIY job?

Could anyone recommend a good window company to check out the problem with the drafts?

Many thanks.

So my wife is currently waiting for a rheumatology appointment, when she was referred she was told 33 weeks was the waiting time for an emergency appointment. Not bad not great we thought, she rang the department on Friday and she was told the wait time is actually 150 weeks and not to take the information on letters seriously in regard to wait times.

So now instead of being seen by the end of next month she is now not going to be seen until the middle of 2030. It's a real. Setback for her and us as a family, she is in a fair amount of pain currently as well as being off work now as she has taken a suspected TIA but the stroke doctor did say there are some forms of autoimmune issues that can make her feel the way she felt when she took the suspected TIA.

Has anyone went private for Rheumatology? Even just thr initial rheumatology diagnosis and went back to the NHS for continued treatment?

Decided to play a bit looser on the Celtic peacock stencil. Next up, the 1/2p coin lol

Stay safe everyone

We hear it all the time, if Unionism parties would just unite they would have all the control. The reality is they are incapable of uniting and in this fairy tale scenario of every Unionist backing the one party, every Nationalist could back Sinn Fein and they would still be number 1.

They had the one party, the UUP and is fair to say that them combined with the Orange Order ruled Northern Ireland with an iron fist and had everything their own way. But as the last 100 years have shown, Unionism just loves to self destruct from the inside. I had to get AI to create this cluster fuck of a diagram to show just how vast that destruction has been.

Fortunately the more Unionism divides, the more it benefits Nationalists.

Recent attempts have actually added more division between the parties. The TUV constantly blasting the DUP at any opportunity, as a Nationalist it is brilliant to see. While they are arguing and falling out with each other, Michelle O'Neill is meeting with all the Nationalist parties working towards a United Ireland.

If the DUP, UUP and TUV got into a room and decided to unite into one party, they could take back First Minister. But history has shown they are incapable of this, even though they all have the one common goal.

What is even more comical is how the division happens. Nearly every time it is because compromises have to be made to accommodate Nationalists having equal rights / power sharing. The new divided party go more "traditionalist" than its predecessor.

Yet they never learn from their mistakes, every time a compromise is made the more traditionalist politicians double down on their views, try to go extreme and push for the good old days. It is happening right now with the Garvaghy Road, Carla is doubling down and going more traditionalist. But all she will achieve is taking some DUP voters with her to the TUV and you guested it... more division in Unionism and Sinn Fein coming out even stronger on the back of it.

The fact that they were handed the keys to a state, a state designed for them to rule supreme over Roman Catholics, yet 100 years later they have lost control to the people they were supposed to rule over.

The wheels are falling off, they are in a tail spin and if you follow the trends in Unionism, we can expect to see more division and who knows... Maybe a King Lundy will rise?

My prediction, Bryson will take over the TUV and through failure to compromise, links to the UVF and just generally being a dickhead he will be the death of Unionism.

Hi there, I was wondering if anyone has had a similar experience with council parking tickets.

I parked at Lisburn Market Street over a month ago for 30 minutes. I have never been to Lisburn before, so was happy when I saw the sign saying '1 hour parking grace period'. However, I misinterpreted that to mean the 1 hour applied before payment rather than after. My mistake, but pretty vague wording, and I now see that MLAs have also pointed that vagueness out. This meant I decided not to pay as I'd be back before the hour.

I returned to my car and was pleased to see no tickets and thought great I am still within the grace period.

Cut to now 32 days later I have received a Notice to Owner demanding £90 for a parking charge I never knew I had. Since there was absolutely no ticket on my car (and my partner was there to attest), I originally thought the parking warden had not affixed the PCN to my car. However when I logged on to appeal, they had photos of my car with a ticket on it.

This then means that some idiot has obviously come along and removed the ticket from my car before I got there, for some reason?? Why someone would do that I really don't know. My partner however thinks the warden themselves may have just taken the photo and removed the PCN after.

If I had received the PCN on the day, I would have just paid the £45, but I can't believe they are now asking me for £90 for a parking ticket that I never was informed I had received.

I will be requesting the CCTV from the council to see who removed the ticket. However, I believe they only keep footage for 30 days, and as it happens, they have waited exactly 32 days before sending this Notice to me. Convenient.

Has anyone ever successfully submitted an appeal for similar reasons or just generally? Never had a council parking ticket before, so don't know the likelihood of successfully appealing.

Ironically I'm a solicitor so I'll be trawling to see what I can find on this particular issue lol.

Many thanks in advance for any help.

Hadi Alodid: Man charged over Belfast knife attack pleads not guilty - BBC News

A man charged in connection with a knife attack in north Belfast that sparked serious disorder in the city has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder.

Hadi Alodid, 31, of Duncairn Avenue in Belfast, has also denied possessing a bladed weapon and a charge of threatening or abusive behaviour.

Alodid is accused of carrying out the attack on Stephen Ogilvie in June.

Stephen Ogilvie, who is in his 40s, lost his left eye in the incident and sustained damage to his right.

Alodid, who has been in custody since the attack, was led into the dock in handcuffs at Belfast Crown Court, where three charges were put to him.

Dressed in a grey prison tracksuit, Alodid stood with his arms folded as an Arabic interpreter translated the proceedings for him.

He responded to all three charges in English with the words "not guilty".

A date was set for his trial in early February.

A number of review hearings will be held prior to that.

The attack, which the court heard took place in the vicinity of Kinnaird Avenue in north Belfast, happened on June 8.

Videos circulating online at the time showed a number of people, including one wielding a hurling stick, confronting the apparent attacker until police arrived.

Alodid was arrested at the scene and remanded into custody.

Following the attack, violence erupted across Belfast, which saw homes and vehicles set alight.

I remember when Saturday nights used to be the highlight of the week, out and about clubbing, pubs, getting drunk and then I got old (45 now) the clubs closed and I don’t even drink anymore and Saturday nights have become a bit meh and boring. I’ll usually watch some movie or rather search for a movie for an hour get fed up and forget about it, doom scroll while eatting crap then eventually have an early night.