My Jimdo Geocities Lifeboat
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In 1994, Iris Chang walked into a conference and saw photographs that would change her life—and eventually end it.
The images showed the Rape of Nanking: bayoneted babies, decapitated civilians, piles of bodies in a city that had become a killing field. In 1937, when the Imperial Japanese Army captured Nanking (now Nanjing), they unleashed six weeks of mass murder, rape, and torture that killed an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 Chinese civilians and soldiers.
Iris was 26 years old, a journalist and historian. She stared at those photographs and realized something horrifying: almost no one knew this had happened.
There were no major books in English. No documentaries. No memorials. The massacre had been scrubbed from Japanese textbooks and ignored by the West. The survivors were dying, taking their stories with them.
The world had decided to forget.
Iris Chang decided she wouldn't let that happen.
She spent the next two years immersing herself in one of the darkest chapters of human history. She traveled to China to interview elderly survivors whose hands still shook when they described what they'd witnessed as children. She combed through archives across three continents, searching for documentation of atrocities that had been deliberately hidden.
And then she made a discovery that would the historical world.
She found the diaries of John Rabe, a German businessman and Nazi Party member who had been living in Nanking during the massacre. Rabe had used his Nazi status and connections to create a Safety Zone that sheltered an estimated 250,000 Chinese civilians from Japanese soldiers. His detailed journals documented the atrocities in meticulous, horrifying detail.
Iris tracked down his descendants and convinced them to share his papers. For the first time, the world had a Western eyewitness account from inside the massacre.
In 1997, Iris published The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II.
The book was an immediate sensation. It spent weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. It was translated into multiple languages. Suddenly, a 28-year-old Chinese-American woman was the face of historical justice, appearing on television, debating diplomats, demanding that Japan acknowledge and apologize for war crimes.
She became a hero to millions. Chinese communities around the world celebrated her. Survivors wept with gratitude that someone had finally told their story.
But behind the book tours and accolades, something was breaking inside Iris Chang.
To write the book, she had spent years reading eyewitness accounts of unimaginable cruelty. Testimonies of women gang-raped and then murdered. Children killed in front of their parents. Soldiers competing to see who could behead the most people. Mass executions. Live burials.
She had read thousands of pages of this. She had looked at hundreds of photographs. She had sat with elderly survivors as they relived their trauma.
She had stared into the abyss. And the abyss had stared back.
"I can never escape from these images," she told a friend. "They're always with me."
Iris didn't stop. She was a perfectionist who felt responsible for every unrecorded life. She moved on to other projects, including a comprehensive history of Chinese Americans. But friends and family noticed she was changing. She was exhausted. Paranoid. She felt she was being followed, that agents of those who wanted her research silenced were watching her.
Whether the threats were real or symptoms of deepening depression remains debated. But to Iris, the danger felt tangible.
By 2004, she was researching her next book—about the Bataan Death March during World War II. Another story of war crimes. Another dive into human cruelty.
In August 2004, Iris suffered a severe nervous breakdown. She was hospitalized. Diagnosed with depression and briefly on medication.
But the darkness had taken root. She told her family she felt she could no longer protect them from the "forces" closing in. She couldn't sleep. Her physical health deteriorated. The vibrant woman who had once commanded international stages began to crumble.
On November 9, 2004, at age 36, Iris Chang drove to a quiet road in Los Gatos, California, and took her own life.
The woman who had given voice to hundreds of thousands of silent souls could no longer carry the weight of their stories.
Her death sent shockwaves through the world. How could someone so brilliant, so successful, so vital be gone?
The answer was brutal in its simplicity: she had cared too much. She hadn't just reported history—she had internalized it. The trauma of the victims she wrote about became her own trauma. She carried their pain until it crushed her.
Her husband Brett Douglas found a note she'd written, asking her family to remember her as she was before the illness—"full of life" and "dedicated to the truth."
Today, when you visit the memorial in Nanjing, you see Iris's face. Her book is required reading in many schools. The massacre she rescued from obscurity is now taught around the world.
She forced Japan to confront its past. She gave dignity to victims whose suffering had been erased. She proved that one person with a typewriter could force a global reckoning.
But her story is also a warning about the cost of bearing witness.
There's a concept in psychology called "secondary trauma"—when people who document suffering begin to experience the trauma themselves. Journalists, researchers, therapists who work with trauma victims can absorb the horror they're exposed to.
Iris Chang absorbed decades of horror compressed into a few years of research. She didn't have the tools to process it. She didn't know how to set it down.
Her final book, The Chinese in America, was published posthumously in 2003. It was a bestseller. More evidence of what the world had lost.
In her short life, Iris Chang accomplished what most historians never do: she changed what the world knows about history. She rescued 300,000 deaths from oblivion.
But the price was her own life.
She wrote the book that forced the world to remember. The research destroyed her. At 36, she couldn't carry the weight of 300,000 forgotten deaths anymore. She gave them their voices back—and lost her own in the silence that followed.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566382942838
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https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61566382942838
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Scholarship Ball day is finally here!
We’re so excited to celebrate our Ravens and all the generosity that makes their education possible. We love our Ravens
https://www.facebook.com/reel/849160711509160
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Athea 17th March 2026
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1LrhVwWmaq/
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Martyr Pancharius at Nicomedia
The Holy Martyr Pancharius was a friend of the emperor Diocletian. He abandoned Christianity and became a pagan. His mother and sister sent him a letter in which they urged the apostate to fear God and the dread Last Judgment. Having repented, Saint Pancharius openly confessed his faith before the emperor, for which he suffered torture at Rome. Then he was sent to Nicomedia and beheaded in 303.
https://wordpress.com/reader/blogs/99211025/posts/37102
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LEBANON
Many Lebanese contend that “this is not our war.” Lebanon’s weak government, which promised but was unable to disarm Hezbollah after the last (December 2024) ceasefire with Israel, tries to distance itself from Hezbollah and now calls for its total disarmament.
And yet not only does Hezbollah threaten the government with impunity, but the group is actually intertwined with the state. The head of the Lebanese parliament and the sitting ministers of finance, health and labor are all key Hezbollah collaborators. The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), a supposed counterweight to Hezbollah, is paralyzed and fearful of taking action against the group, and is actually becoming increasingly Shiite Muslim in its lower ranks.
The Israeli military operation is ambitious and could be another bold stroke, but it could also turn into an ineffective quagmire. The plan seems to be to mostly depopulate (that is why Christians are trying to remain in place) Lebanon south of the Litani River in order to create a buffer zone so that Hezbollah cannot rain fire on Israeli civilians in the north of the country.
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TENNIS: Galbot Robotics has released a video on its official X handle on March 16 showing a humanoid robot rallying tennis shots with a human player in real time.
The demonstration showcases the company’s LATENT system, developed in collaboration with researchers from Tsinghua University and Peking University.
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CREMATION
Sustainable alternative
Families are increasingly drawn to hydrolysis as a “gentler,” eco-friendly alternative that eliminates toxic air emissions and the need for single-use coffins.
BBC reported that a normal flame-based cremation generates about 320kg of carbon dioxide; alkaline hydrolysis is significantly cleaner, slashing those emissions sevenfold.
https://interestingengineering.com/science/scotland-legalize-water-cremations
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By: Susanna Ashton
January 26, 2022- The icon indicates free access to the linked research on JSTOR.
Punishments came on rainy days, reported Thomas Brown from South Carolina. In order to avoid losing the labor during fine weather, his enslaver would, with calculated efficiency, “… keep an account of all the things we did, and on rainy days, we were punished.”
https://daily.jstor.org/john-b-cades-project-to-document-the-stories-of-the-formerly-enslaved/?utm_source=mcae&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=jstordaily_02262026
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CORK:
durrushistory Avatar
By durrushistory on February 25, 2026
West Cork Colonial connections.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Hwx3oyFqP3TgEVeUJBJbcDzHCJMSMih_dPrbYKMiHW0/edit?tab=t.0
Bit surprised by this. The Hewitts Protestants iof greater Bandon area. Maybe close ties between Britain and Portugal.
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27 Feb 2026
Pakistan has said it is now in “open war” with Afghanistan’s Taliban government as explosions were reported in Kabul and fighting continues in other locations along the border. Pakistan says it has also attacked Kandahar and Paktika inside Afghanistan.
The declaration on Friday comes hours after Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said Afghanistan was carrying out “large-scale offensive operations” against the Pakistani military along the Durand Line, which separates the two countries.
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Private Joseph Bradshaw VC, a native of Pallasgreen, Dromkeen, County Limerick, served with distinction in the Crimean War and the Indian Mutiny,
Born in May 1832, Bradshaw enlisted in the 2nd Battalion of the Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort’s Own) in 1853. He earned the Victoria Cross for his bravery during an assault on a Russian rifle pit on April 22, 1855, during the Siege of Sevastopol.--------------------
Bradshaw was given his medal by Queen Victoria at the first Victoria Cross Investiture, held at Hyde Park in London in June 1857. 62 awards were issued that day to Crimean War veterans – two of which were issued to men from Limerick, Joseph Bradshaw and William Coffey from Knocklong.
https://www.limerickpost.ie/2026/02/09/148-year-limerick-mystery-solved/
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ARMY: Outside of these three main concentrations in Dundalk, Wellington Barracks and the Curragh, another significant group of Belfast men in the census was that numbering 37 in Kerry. Most of them were members of the Dublin Guards who had provided the main manpower for the National Army’s seaborne landings at Fenit and Tarbert at the start of August. It is noticeable that, with only one exception, none of those assigned to the Dublin Guards had prior service in the Belfast Brigade – these were mainly non-republicans who had travelled to Dublin to enlist when the Provisional Government launched its general recruitment drive at the start of the Civil War.16
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On 2 November 1922, eight IRA men led by Charlie Daly, the Kerry-born Vice O/C of the IRA’s 1st & 2nd Northern Division, were captured near Dunlewy. They were not court-martialled until two and a half months later, on 18 January 1923, when they were charged with possession of weapons and ammunition “without proper authority.” One of the three members of the court martial was my grandfather.49
https://wordpress.com/reader/blogs/208539530/posts/4699
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CIVIL WAR: You can access the new site by typing exa.mn/CivilWarUCC
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WAR: In the years after World War I, longtime Army colleagues and friends George S. Patton and Dwight D. Eisenhower contemplated what would happen if another global conflict broke out. As Patton envisioned it: “In the next war, I’ll be the Stonewall Jackson, and you can be the Robert E. Lee. Ike, you do the big planning, and you let me go in and shoot up the enemy.”
And that’s pretty much how things worked out in World War II.
Eisenhower led from Allied headquarters as Europe’s Supreme Commander, while Patton served on the ground as commander of the Third and Seventh armies.
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HEBRIDES: At one time, about 890-1266, a less-than-Christian nation stood as the Kingdom of the Sudreys, consisting of the Hebrides, including the Isles of Lewis and Skye, and the Isle of Man. It was a kingdom with a unique culture of both Norse and Celtic aspects, including a Norse language and its own dialect of Gaelic. Established by Vikings from western Norway, this country lasted for approximately 300 years.
How truly Christian the Sudreys were is not fully known, as characteristics of the Norse pagan religion may have been present
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The Nicaraguan dictatorship announced on Jan. 10 the release of “dozens of people” who were imprisoned following pressure from the United States and coinciding with the 19th anniversary of the regime of President Daniel Ortega and his wife and “co-president,” Rosario Murillo.
In a brief statement on X, the Nicaraguan Interior Ministry said that on Saturday, Jan. 10, “dozens of people who were in the National Penitentiary System are returning to their homes and families.”
The dictatorship did not provide details about the released prisoners, but the Spanish EFE news agency was able to confirm with their families the release of seven opposition figures: Jessica Palacios, Mauricio Alonso, Mario Rodríguez Serrano, Pedro López, María José Rojas, Óscar Velásquez, and evangelical pastor Rudy Palacios.
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Reflect
Long before the popular Lord of the Rings films (which are back in theaters for their 25th anniversary this month), the books’ author J.R.R. Tolkien developed a theory about God as the Master Story Maker. He felt that the Gospels show actual historical events being shaped by God that go from disaster to the most satisfying of all happy endings. He even coined a word for these endings: “eucatastrophe,” meaning “a good catastrophe.”
In both today’s first reading and the Gospel, catastrophe turns to a happy ending. The first reading highlights Hannah, barren, whose lips move as she prays for a child. Misunderstanding, Eli the priest thinks her drunk! She explains, he understands, and her prayer is granted by God. In the Gospel, loud upheaval is caused by an unclean spirit until Jesus casts it out.
Thinking it over, how many “good catastrophes” are part of the Christian life?
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SAVING: Have you ever wished to go back to another decade for what may have been simpler times? With the Nuclear Savings Rule, you can — at least where your budget is concerned.
The Nuclear Savings Rule looks at 1950s spending habits. Many people of that era had lived through the Great Depression and maintained their frugal lifestyles even after it ended. The Nuclear Savings Rule carries forward some of that frugality and makes it relevant for today.
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Sometimes the hardest part of doing an unpleasant task is simply getting started — typing the first word of a long report, lifting a dirty dish on the top of an overfilled sink or removing clothes from an unused exercise machine. The obstacle isn’t necessarily a lack of interest in completing a task, but the brain’s resistance to taking the first step.
Now, scientists might have identified the neural circuit behind this resistance, and a way to ease it. In a study1 published today in Current Biology, researchers describe a pathway in the brain that seems to act as a ‘motivation brake’, dampening the drive to begin a task. When the team selectively suppressed this circuit in macaque monkeys, goal-directed behaviour rebounded.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-00062-5?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-gb
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Psalm 72 speaks today of saving the children of the poor.
Right after World War II, Europe was flooded with homeless, hungry children. Thousands of scared and frightened kids were housed in refugee camps. They were lovingly cared for and well-housed and fed, but they had insomnia and were restless, agitated.
A camp psychologist had an insight into the problem and made a suggestion. After the children were put to bed, they were each given a loaf of bread to hold as they slept.
The bread produced a miracle: the children dozed off, assured that they would have something to eat the next day. That assurance provided rest and peace.
At Christmas, the Bread of Life comes to us, offering the security, nourishment, and peace no earthly ration can provide. He is the one who meets our deepest hunger.
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SUDAN: Saba, 14, loves learning languages — especially French and English — even though French isn’t taught at her current school. Born in Sudan, Saba now attends school in a refugee camp in Farchana, Chad — where her family has sought refuge for nearly two years. She already excels at Arabic and is eager to learn more so she can forge connections beyond her own community. “When we talk directly,” she says, “we can help and can really understand each other.”
“We suffered a lot in our war,
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Brigidfest 2015: Women and girls in a war zone
https://tintean.org.au/2015/03/06/brigidfest-2015-women-and-girls-in-a-war-zone/
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Dozens of Orthodox rabbis have issued “A Call for Moral Clarity, Responsibility, and a Jewish Orthodox Response in the Face of the Gaza Humanitarian Crisis,” in an addition to a recent cascade of open letters from Jewish voices responding to a hunger crisis in the Palestinian enclave nearly two years into the Israel-Hamas war there.
Unlike some of the other letters, the new letter stresses condemnation of Hamas and does not call for Israel to end the war in Gaza. Instead, the rabbis write, “Hamas’s sins and crimes do not relieve the government of Israel of its obligations to make whatever efforts are necessary to prevent mass starvation.”
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Discover, explore and remember millions of personal stories from the First World War
https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/1805121
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https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/
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War 1 Listowel search
https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/searchlives/%20listowel/filter/type%3Dagent
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2025;
Sunday 24th August a day of prayer and reflection for Gaza and for a renewed commitment by the international community for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East. We join the heartfelt appeal of Pope Leo XIV for “a ceasefire, the release of hostages, and full respect for international humanitarian law.” As the Holy Father said, “Every human being has an intrinsic dignity bestowed by God Himself.” Please join in 24 hours of prayer and reflection in your homes on Sunday 24th August. Light a candle in your family home or local parish church; attend Mass, spend time before the Blessed Sacrament; pray the Rosary; make some small personal penance or sacrifice, and on that day let the light of hope radiate out from the island of Ireland for peace, for Gaza and for the future of its people.
“Our Lady Queen of Peace, comfort all victims of war.”
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WAR 2: The period following World War I was marked by unresolved tensions from the Treaty of Versailles and the ineffectiveness of the League of Nations. Economic devastation and a desire for national resurgence fueled the rise of totalitarian regimes in Germany, Italy, and Japan. These powers embarked on aggressive expansionist policies, including German rearmament and territorial claims, Japan's brutal conquests in Asia, and Italy's imperial ambitions in Africa. The democracies of Britain and France, weakened by their own economic woes and a reluctance to confront aggression, failed to halt these escalating conflicts. This unchecked aggression, coupled with the strategic realignments like the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, ultimately set the stage for the outbreak of a global war.
https://youtu.be/iaeBnYLNXgQ?feature=shared
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaeBnYLNXgQ
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Irish History
https://youtu.be/ZcG4h3zqB1Y?feature=shared
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Swiss prosecutors have filed criminal charges against a Zurich councillor and former Green Liberal Party leader after she posted images of herself firing approximately 20 shots at a Christian image depicting the Virgin Mary and the infant Jesus. According to the Swiss news outlet 20 Minuten, the Zurich public prosecutor’s office accuses Sanija Ameti of publicly disparaging religious beliefs and disturbing religious peace under Article 261 of the Swiss Penal Code.
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MONSIGNOR Quinn’s own request to start a mission church was postponed while he served in the U.S. Army as a chaplain during World War I.
Although a non-combatant with troops in France, he was severely injured in a poisonous gas attack that permanently damaged his lungs. But while there, the priest found a copy of the future saint’s autobiography, “The Story of a Soul.”
After the Armistice on Nov. 11, 1918, Quinn stayed in France until June 1919. He was reassigned to be the chaplain for a military hospital near the birthplace of Thérèse in Alençon, France. One day, he visited the home.
The caretakers, an older couple, agreed to let him stay in the house, and the dining room became the priest’s sleeping quarters, Foley said.
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: WAR Since the arrival of my first paternal ancestor in North America in late May of 1811, a full two centuries ago next spring, not one generation has gone by without being marked in some way by war.
Michael Dougherty
Nov 5, 2010 9:00 AM
Since the arrival of my first paternal ancestor in North America in late May of 1811, a full two centuries ago next spring, not one generation has gone by without being marked in some way by war. The first of our North American lineage, John Dougherty, found himself almost as soon as he got off the boat from Ireland drafted to march around western New York and Pennsylvania during the War of 1812.
https://www.yukon-news.com/letters-opinions/enemies-to-friends-war-to-peace-6984234
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War 1; Two years later, on the anniversary of his death, Reverend Totty visited his son’s grave site under the auspices of the Salvation Army. He took the train from Arras and then walked to the cemetery. As he later wrote in a letter to the Dawson Daily News, it was difficult to explain his feelings as he approached the cemetery for the first time.
Before him was a cluster of crosses set in a farmer’s field. Alfred’s grave was one of 335 resting at this inconspicuous location. The rows of wooden crosses were slightly elevated above the paths between them. No grass had grown in, nor did any flowers bloom at the place where this young man was buried
https://www.yukon-news.com/columns/remembering-four-yukoners-killed-in-the-first-world-war-6995226
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BY: Irish Post- November 11, 2021
https://youtu.be/gw9xgswOkVs?feature=shared
THE LARGEST and oldest Irish Catholic organisation in the US has paid a special tribute to American war heroes of Irish descent on Veterans Day.
The video paid particular tribute to the following:
Commodore John Barry, who was born in Tacumshane, County Wexford before emigrating to the US where he was later dubbed the Father of the American Navy.
Major Patrick Brady, who received the Medal of Honor for his work as the pilot of ambulance helicopter in Vietnam. Major Brady volunteered to rescue wounded men from a site in enemy held territory which was heavily defended and blanketed by fog.
The Irish Brigade, an infantry brigade, consisting mostly of Irish Americans, who served as part of the Union Army in the American Civil War
Sergeant Major Dan Daly, one of only two Marines who have received the Medal of Honor twice for two separate acts of heroism, once in Haiti and once in the Boxer Rebellion.
Fr Francis Duffy, the most decorated cleric in the US Army, who served as a chaplain for the 69th Infantry Regiment ("The Fighting 69th"), a unit of the New York Army National Guard drawn mostly from the city's Irish-American and immigrant population
Lt Col Martha McSally, who made history as the first female US fighter pilot to fly in combat.
Lt Michael P. Murphy, who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for his heroic service in Afghanistan
Audie Murphy, who received every US military combat award for valor available from the US Army for his service during World War II
Corporal Patrick Sheahan, who was awarded the Silver Star posthumously for his service in the line of duty in Korea and waited 50 years to be formally recognised as a US citizen
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The Way I See It
By Domhnall de Barra
I had made a promise to myself that I would not write about Trump anymore but two awful happenings that occurred this week have changed my mind. One was the bombing of a hospital in Ghaza by Israeli forces and the other was the bombing of people leaving Palm Sunday ceremonies in a church in Ukraine. It is beyond any shadow of doubt that these two events are war crimes and the majority of world leaders rightly condemned them as such but Donald Trump did not. He made no mention of Ghaza and failed to condemn Russia saying they “made a mistake”. It is clear that both the Israelis and the Russians feel they have a free hand because Israel has the total backing of Trump and Putin has him in his pocket. There seems to be a plan between Trump and Putin to carve up Ukraine between them in what will be called a “peace deal”. Trump does not care about ordinary people, he just looks at the deal and how much he can make out of it. Look at what he did to the American economy with his tariffs. Ordinary people are feeling the effects, especially those with retirement pensions who see their money disappearing before their very eyes. He was forced to back track on some of the tariffs because the bond markets got spooked and he also had to take off some of the tariffs on Chinese goods because America needs them to keep going. He thought that by threatening the world they would all come looking for deals or, as put it, “kissing his ass”. There was no great rush and I think he has lost any leverage he had. There is something bothering me about all this. Where is the American government? Surely they have a duty to the people of America to protect their interests. How can one man have so much power to wield? USA is supposed to be a democracy and prided itself on being the leader of the free world but what I see is a dictator doing exactly what he wants with no respect for government or judiciary. This trade war is far from over and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a recession as a result of it. Is that going to make America great again.? I don’t think so. In a trade war everybody loses. Trade between countries should be fair and equitable. Trump condemns Europe because they will not allow American beef and other such products to be sold here. The problem is that we have standards and American beef that has had hormone treatment does not come up to those standards. The same applies to food from any other country and rightly so because the protection of the consumer is paramount. The fact is we all need each other and co-operation is the key. There is no need for strong arm or bullyboy tactics. At the end of the day people will have to sit around the table and make a deal. There will be give and take on both sides but that is the art of politics. The sad part is that the President of the greatest country in the world hasn’t a clue about politics and has surrounded himself with colleagues who know just about as much as himself. They are chosen for their unquestioning loyalty to him and there is no fear of any of them calling halt. Each day brings a new revelation that shows how far America has strayed from the great nation it once was. They may think they are smarter and better than all the rest of us but they are showing by their actions just how stupid they really are. It is time for decent Americans, Republican and Democrat, to stand up and be counted. You can’t surrender you country to a bunch of businessmen who just want to make themselves and their cronies richer. If people knew last year what they know now, I don’t think Donald Trump would be in the White House now. Time to pray I think.
This is Holy Week and it brings back memories of long ago when the vast majority of people in them parish were Roman Catholics and observed the laws of the Church. This was he last week of the Lenten Fast which was going on for seven weeks since Ash Wednesday. Fasting and abstinence were obligatory and were fairly strict. Eating was limited to one meal a day and two collations. In the small meals you couldn’t have more than a certain weight of bread. I forget exactly how much it was but it was meagre and I remember my mother weighing it on an ouncel. Every Friday was a day when no meat could be eaten and this was also strictly observed. When this week came, the last of the fasting was in sight and people were excited by the fact that they could once again eat enough!. We also gave up something for lent like sweets, drink, sugar etc. and we couldn’t wait to taste them again. This didn’t always work out. One year I gave up sugar and I couldn’t wait for Lent to be over so that I could put a couple of spoons in my tea again. Come Easter Sunday morning and I duly stirred two flowing spoons of sugar into my cup of tea. I took a mouthful and almost threw it out again. It tasted awful and I never put sugar in my tea ever since. I suppose you could say it was a blessing in disguise.
Things have changed quite a lot since then but Easter still remains the biggest festival in the catholic calendar so enjoy it everyone.
https://www.athea.ie/category/news/
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The Remarkable Life of Father Stanisław Kicman: Spared in Nazi Massacre to Save Souls
COMMENTARY: As a child, he survived a Nazi massacre. As a husband and father, he lived the Gospel. As a priest, he brought many to Christ.
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Tens of thousands have been killed since fighting broke out between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in 2023.
More than 12 million people have been displaced, and 24.6 million — half the country's population — need food assistance.
Farid said the warring factions were stealing food aid and selling it.
"That's why so many are dying in al-Fashir. They are starving."
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UKRAINE: By Currents News
It’s been over three years since Russia invaded Ukraine, and while the two countries are still debating a possible 30 day ceasefire.
Tens of thousands are feeling the effects of the conflict, including in the Diocese of Brooklyn.
https://netny.tv/episodes/currents/ukrainian-war-vets-diocese-of-brooklyn-prosthetics/?utm_medium=email&_hsmi=351969557&utm_content=351969557&utm_source=hs_email
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Michael Talty works in the County Clare Local Studies Library and County Archive. He has previously worked as a librarian and archivist in RTÉ and as an archaeologist. March 2025
If you are unable to join us in person, you can watch the lecture live online at the scheduled lecture time (or watch a recording online at any subsequent time of your choosing), by going to
https://www.youtube.com/@kilrushanddistricthistor.../streams
There will be a live chat (text) facility to enable the remote audience to participate in the discussion.
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Stack Family
Susan Seabrook [email protected]
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AIKEN: From RTÉ Radio 1's Today with Sean O'Rourke in 2014, Prof Stephen Kelly profiles Frank Aiken
Although a stalwart of de Valera's cabinets, Aiken, a physically imposing 'big man’ of the revolutionary period, was on one level an odd choice of envoy. The Armagh native had issued the ceasefire order which effectively ended the Civil War in May 1923, but he was hardly renowned for his diplomatic finesse and was dubbed "the iron man with the wooden head" by contemporary wits.
https://www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2025/0304/1500070-franklin-d-roosevelt-frank-aiken-white-house-1941-meeting-row/
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By Kate Quiñones
CNA Staff, Mar 4, 2025 / 15:40 pm
As in vitro fertilization (IVF) rises in popularity, discussion continues surrounding its ethics as well as about how to respond to the plight of couples struggling with infertility. One group addressing that need is FEMM (Fertility Education and Medical Management), which focuses on the root causes of women’s reproductive health issues, offering various kinds of support for infertility.
Anna Halpine, CEO of FEMM, founded the organization in 2012 to expand options for women’s health care. FEMM provides women from puberty to menopause with health support and information, offering telehealth resources as well as an app to track cycles and symptoms.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/262549/femm-takes-holistic-approach-to-infertility-offering-alternatives-to-ivf?utm_campaign=CNA%20Daily&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=350184166&utm_content=350184166&utm_source=hs_email
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The Second Battle of Fallujah (also called Operation Phantom Fury and Operation al-Fajr) in November 2004 was the largest urban assault by U.S. forces since the Vietnam War.
https://www.dav.org/fallujah/
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Jimmy Dore Show
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Event by Kilrush and District Historical Society
Teach Ceoil Kilrush
Public · Anyone on or off Facebook
Dr. Pádraig Óg Ó Ruairc is an archaeologist and historian who specialises in 20th Century Irish political history. He has a PhD in History and a BA in Archaeology. He has published seven books, the most recent of which "The Disappeared: Forced Disappearances in Ireland 1798-1998", published in 2024, is an Irish Times bestseller. His forthcoming book "Burn them out! : A history of Fascism and the Far-Right in Ireland" will be published by Bloomsbury in April 2025.
Ó Ruairc is the historian who literally ‘knows where the bodies are’. He has spent over a decade researching the fate of ‘The Disappeared’, the forgotten victims of the centuries-long struggle for Irish freedom – the majority of whose bodies are still hidden deep in the Irish countryside. In 2018, Ó Ruairc’s research led to the recovery of the remains of Private George Chalmers, a British soldier who had been executed by the IRA in 1921 and secretly buried in a remote bog.
The spectre of ‘the Disappeared’, those abducted and secretly executed and their bodies buried in remote locations, has overshadowed the debate around the legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland for the last two decades. Yet what most people don’t realise is that ‘forced disappearances’ have been part of violent political conflicts in Ireland for over 200 years.
Ó Ruairc's groundbreaking book, the first of its kind, looks at the history of this practice in Ireland and identifies all known victims over the last century, from the North King Street Massacre in 1916 right up to 2003. Ó Ruairc cuts through the exaggeration and myth that pervade the popular history of the ‘Good Old IRA’ to prove that members of this organisation were particularly ruthless in using this course of action during the War of Independence and Civil War, much more so than their successors in the Provisional IRA or the British forces in Ireland. The author also reveals how his research has helped to locate several bodies of those long missing, one of which has already been recovered and given a proper burial.
Behind each disappearance there is the story of a life cut short and a family left searching for answers. Ó Ruairc deftly incorporates this human element, preserving the memory of those who were disappeared on both sides of the conflict.
Praise for The Disappeared includes the following:
‘Pádraig Óg Ó Ruairc’s The Disappeared will be indispensable to students of Irish history for years to come’ – Eilis O’Hanlon, The Sunday Independent
‘brilliantly researched and highly unsettling’ – Andrew Lynch, Business Post
‘…a great and sometimes painful read, which confronts a long-neglected topic’ – John Downing, The Irish Independent
‘Excellent.’ – Fortnight Magazine
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To watch the lecture live online at the scheduled lecture time (or to watch a recording online at any subsequent time of your choosing), go to
https://www.youtube.com/@kilrushanddistricthistor.../streams
There will be a live chat (text) facility to enable the remote audience to participate in the discussion.
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KDHS lectures are free to members, EUR5 for non-members, payable on the night only. New members are welcome. The annual membership fee (July-June) is EUR20.
The membership form can be downloaded from our website at
http://kdhs.ie/assets/files/general/membership_form.pdf
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WAR 80 years ago.
The lives of those who sacrificed for freedom on Oct. 25, 1944, summon us to integrate faith into action, following Christ’s example of heroic charity. --------------------------------------
At first glance, this book may appear to be a straightforward recounting of World War II events, but it is much more than that. Battle in the Pacific is a heartfelt tribute to the extraordinary sacrifices made by those who fought for the freedoms we cherish. It serves as a powerful reminder of the immense cost of freedom and the virtues of self-sacrifice, which resonate deeply with our Holy Catholic faith.
The novel tells the riveting true story of Commander Ernest Evans and the crew of the USS Johnston as they faced overwhelming odds during a critical naval battle. Their courage and tactical brilliance in the face of a vastly superior Japanese fleet highlight remarkable bravery and resilience. Beyond the dramatic portrayal of these historical events, the novel delves into timeless virtues that are central to our Christian life.
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Travel, specifically the touristic kind, has been colored bloody, ignorant, and invasive by imperialism. Even in more “developed,” anglicized parts of the world, it continues to threaten lifestyles, traditions, ecology, access to resources, and general peace of mind. Travel writing, historically, has followed suit in expressing everything from performative adoration and exoticization to sheer racism and erasure. But at its best it can offer a sobering portrait of human folly, bias, humiliation, and desire for connection—those endlessly conflicted feelings that come with the experience.
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Unlocking the Rosary: How You Can Get the Most Out of Praying the Glorious Mysteries
Praying the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary is an amazing way to have Mary lead us to her Son!
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Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or more commonly known as ADHD, is defined as a condition that affects people's behaviour. The NHS states that symptoms include restlessness, acting on impulse, and having trouble concentrating. The health service adds that most signs are recognised at an early age, particularly during major transitional life periods, like starting school. This is why most people are diagnosed under 12 years old (Picture: Getty Images)
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Gaza
https://www.npr.org/2024/10/09/g-s1-27175/israel-hamas-war-gaza-map
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Gibson born Dublin
The Irishwoman Who Shot Mussolini, a 2014 radio documentary, was made by Siobhán Lynam for RTÉ Radio 1.[14] A film drama-documentary, Violet Gibson, The Irish Woman Who Shot Mussolini (2020) starring Olwen Fouéré, was commissioned by TG4 and produced by Barrie Dowdall and Siobhán Lynam.[15] Gibson's story is the subject of [Noggin Theatre Company]'s play Violet Gibson: The Woman Who Shot Mussolini.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violet_Gibson
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Tarbert, Listowel and O Connell
https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/accessions/1994/94digests/irish.htm
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Harold William Cronin, 18 January 1916, Egypt. Born: 9 May 1880, Regiment: 4th Seaforth Highlanders; promoted to Lieutenant in 5th Bedfordshire Regiment on 20 May 1915, Died: 2 December 1917 at 35 Casualty Clearing Station in Palestine, leaving £268 19s to his widow
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https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/letters-first-world-war-1916-18/
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Gilbert Williams, 6 April 1916, France. Born: 18 April 1894, Regiment: 1/6 Seaforth Highlanders, Regiment number: 2175, Rank: Private, Died: 1967. Note: Williams also fought in Second World War and returned from war on 15 November 1948
https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/letters-first-world-war-1916-18/trenches-veritable-maze/
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Henry Bullen, 24 July 1916, Egypt. Born: 25 April 1893, Regiment: 2/10 Middlesex regiment, Regiment number: 2858, Rank: Private, Died: 1942
https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/letters-first-world-war-1916-18/egypt-paper/
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The Forgers
The Forgers
By Roger Moorhouse
A “remarkable” 2023 release (The Sunday Times): During World War II, a small group of activists saved thousands of Jewish lives by forging foreign identity documents. This account of their “extraordinary, audacious, and little-known rescue operation” (Daily Mail) is “as gripping as it is moving” (Julia Boyd).