The spring defensive is launched in Donegal!

I’m sure you will agree with Captain Boyle and me that “Th’ whole worl’s in a terrible state o’ chassis”.

Consequently, although we do what we can to make it better, it’s important to look outside the door, especially if you’re blessed to live somewhere very special.

My survival training from my days with the mountain rescue team here reminded me of the rule of threes.

Three minutes without air.

Three days without water.

Three weeks without food.

Three SECONDS without HOPE.

That last one always stuck with me.

The featured image is from just down the road from me, a special place.

Here is some evidence outside my back door that spring has sprung.

When that tree is in full bloom, it gives wonderful shade from a blistering hot day.

For the avoidance of doubt, we get about six of those every year in Dún na nGall.

In the digital age, we don’t find the news; the news finds us.

Of course, our knowledge base of what is going on in the world has always been part of the battlespace in any conflict.

Cliches become so because they’re essentially true.

Regardless of the origin of the quote, “The first casualty of war is truth” is undeniable.

This conflict is probably the first one in which AI reporting will play a major role.

Add to the mix the fact that the guy in charge doesn’t seem clear what he wants, then putting the phone away is a good move.

This post and this image don’t add up:

It is clear to most of the citizens on the planet that our Kraut Jock friend in the Oval Office needs an intervention.

Until then, we are all in a battle for hope.

Apart from wandering up my bóithrín and drinking in the sights and sounds of the change in the year, we should do our bit where we can.

These days, my An Phoblacht skill set is deployed in the service of GAA Palestine.

Dear reader, they’re the best of people.

You can find them here.

This is our current initiative.

A few days ago, your humble correspondent, agus mo bhean chéile, delivered a substantial consignment of gear from Dún na nGall to a house where once stood the Rossville flats in Free Derry.

As I unloaded the car with herself, I knew a fair bit of the bean an tí who was receiving the stuff on her son’s behalf.

It was all too contrived for a novel.

Anyone who doesn’t know why we Irish connect with the people of Palestine doesn’t know what it means to be Irish.

That three seconds without hope thing kicks in if you think you can’t make a difference.

The British Embassy in Tehran is now on a street named after a man the Brits couldn’t break.

His words are a guide rail for me and my kind:

Everyone, Republican or otherwise has their own particular part to play. No part is too great or too small, no one is too old or too young to do something.

That thought should give hope.