LOST
by Mark Corcoran

The final strike action in community and voluntary sector agencies is taking place this morning at  Ability West in Tuam and Galway city, at Western Care in Belmullet, Ballina and Castlebar in Co Mayo, and at a number of community employment schemes in Co Donegal.  The action forms part of the Valuing Care, Valuing Community campaign which has been covered by various media outlets extensively over the past couple of days. Take a look at the piece RTE News put together for Wednesdays news bulletins.

 

In other surprising union news, Patricia King is to step down as general secretary of ICTU after more than seven years in the role. Yesterday, in an executive council meeting she announced her decision to step down from the position. The Irish Times covers her resignation here.

 

Ministers have been warned that the State's pension pot will be hit with growing deficits in years to come despite a multibillion euro surplus this year.  With an increase the number of working age people whose state conributions are dwindling, the prospect of yawning deficits in the future has been forecast by a private paper written to the Government.

 

The latest report from the National Cancer Registry (NCR) has illustrated how an improvement in screening programmes has contributed to better patient outcomes for three common cancers.

 

The West have heavily criticised Putin after he threatened the use of nuclear weapons to 'defend his country'. In a clear escalation on the war with Ukraine, Putin announced Russia's first mobilistation of its army reserves, the first time for Russia to do so since World War 2. 

 

Only 4% of smart meters are being used in homes across Ireland. Smart meters are meant to monitor and record electricity use throughout the day.  It is thought electricity suppliers have failed to explain the smart meter plan to customers or given them enough information to make informed decisions or offer deals attractive enough to make switching to smart tariffs worthwhile. 

 

The Irish Independent reports that it is taking up to four months for people to switch their mortgage. This means thousands of people risk paying the higher interest rates until their bank is able to complete the switch.

 

 

ZEN

A monumental day in TV History as several of the most decorated and loved TV shows make their debut. These include Friends, Maverick, Charlie's Angels, Full House, BayWatch, The West Wing and my favourite TV show of all time 'Lost'. If you've never watched Lost.... I would highly recommend the first season. Written by now Hollywood powerhouse JJ Abrams, with music from the incredible Michael Giacchino the show catapulted these film makers into stardom.  Here's a look at the famous opening scene.

 

Lost 01x01 | Opening Scene (HD)

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