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Yearly Archives: 2017

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Over the past few years, pro-choice campaigners across the country have come together to fight for the rights of Irish women. 

In one of the biggest political movements seen in recent times, abortion rights groups have worker tirelessly to push for a referendum to repeal the Eight Amendment – and now, with an indicative timeline confirmed, we must fight harder than ever to make sure our voices are heard. 

In the build up to this Saturday's March for Choice in Dublin city, we spoke to Clare Lanigan from Abortion Rights Campaign (ARC), about the campaign goals, her work as a volunteer, and the significance of events such as these. 

Established in 2012, ARC is a grassroots, all-volunteer campaign advocating for free, safe and legal abortion in Ireland. As well as promoting the referendum to repeal the Eight, it also has a broader goal in making sure that the procedure is available to anyone who may need or want it.

After joining ARC as a volunteer in 2016, Clare explained what drew her to the campaign: 

"I was always very pro-choice but I wasn't really much of a 'joiner' – I would just kind of watch from the outside."

"The success of the marriage equality referendum was quite inspiring to me, even though the actual process I thought was difficult. I thought looking from the outside in,  it seemed really hard on LGBT people to kind of have to politely beg for rights. I did think that the campaign had a really inspiring outcome, so that kind of made me feel like change was possible." 

The role of an ARC volunteer is varied and rewarding. Those interested in getting involved are invited to take on positions that play to their strengths and interests, meaning there's something to suit everybody. 

Clare explained: "Most times when people volunteer they come to one of our open meetings, which are held once a month."

"People can sign up to a group depending on their particular skills or interests. There's admin, media, policy and advocacy, partners and outreach, and actions."

"I was interested in admin and in media so I signed up for those and started going to meetings and just kind of found tasks to do and went from there really."

Organisations such as ARC would not survive without the help of volunteers like Clare. The campaign is run entirely by people who have given up their time for free. 

"We've no paid staff, so all these events (march for choice, etc.) don't happen without the work of volunteers. Generally in pro-choice campaigning it's nearly always people giving their time for free."

Marches, demonstrations and the dissemination of information, are all part of what make the role of an ARC volunteer so fulfilling, however, Clare says watching the regional groups go from strength to strength has been her real highlight so far. 

"I've been really inspired seeing all the regional groups that have developed – we've always had regional groups, but over the past year they've gone from strength to strength."

"Groups in Meath, groups in Kerry, Galway, Cork, Sligo, Donegal, all over the place and so more and more people are getting involved and they're all going to be joining us at the march now on Saturday which is great because we've had regional groups before, but this is going to be the largest group yet."

While the government have committed to a referendum on the Eight Amendment in May or June of next year, Clare believes this is just the beginning.    

“The key message we want to get out there is 'repeal not replace' – we don't want more stuff in the constitution about abortion… simplicity and clarity is what we'll be looking for."

"More broadly we're really advocating strongly for more than limited access. We think it's really important to get the message out that only having exception based access, which a lot of politicians seem to think is the way forward, is not good enough."

"We're pushing very strongly for broad access which is what the citizen's assembly decided on when they went through their deliberations – so, if random members of the public can come to that conclusion, we're pretty sure the population at large can come to the same conclusion."

"A referendum is not the end of the story, in fact, in some ways, it's only the begining."

If you'd like to get involved in the campaign, ARC are looking for volunteers to hand out flyers this Thursday and Friday night. You can register your interest by e-mailing info@abortionrights.ie – or if you'd like to volunteer on a ongoing basis, new recruits are invited to pop along to the open meetings which are held once a month. You can find more information and the full calendar of events here. 

ARC are also hosting speak out on Thursday evening, offering women a safe space to talk about their abortion experiences without any judgement or without any expectation.

And don't forget to head along to the March for Choice in Dublin City Centre this Saturday, September 30. It all kicks off at 2pm at the Garden of Remembrance. 

See you there, ladies! 

Feature Image: Twitter 

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Let's be honest; the world of social media can be a cruel, cruel place.

From cyber bullying to the rise of online trolls, social media platforms play host to a barrage of negative commentary on a daily basis.

Eager to combat this, Instagram's co-founder and CEO, Kevin Systrom, has announced that the company has created tools which the public can use to avoid encountering negativity on their accounts.

"Today, we’re announcing new tools and programs to keep Instagram a safe and positive place for self-expression."

"Since the beginning, we’ve tried to make Instagram a welcoming place for everyone. Our community has grown to 800 million, with 500 million using it every day. It’s more important than ever to strengthen our commitment to safety and kindness," read the organisation's official blog.

According to the the CEO, the platform will be introducing a tool which allows users to block comments from certain people.

Previously, users had the ability to turn off all comments, but the new function allows you to filter comments, and block certain people from having a say on your posts.

"Over time, we’ve launched a number of tools to help you manage the comments experience, and today we’re introducing more," the blog continued.

"Starting today, if your account is public, you’ll see a new way to choose who can comment on your posts — from everyone to just groups of people, like people you follow or your followers.".

"Also, whether your account is public or private, you’ll be able to block other accounts from commenting on your posts. In June, we launched a filter to block certain offensive comments in English, today we are expanding this filter to Arabic, French, German and Portuguese."

" The filter will improve over time, enabling the community’s experience of sharing to improve as well."

We love this.

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While most of us tumble gratefully into bed most nights, not all of us benefit from a solid night's sleep.

No matter how much you might crave a decent eight hours or how early you go to bed, if your pre-bedtime mood is a negative one, you're likely to suffer from a bad night's sleep.

According to a recent study, trying to sleep while you're in a bad mood ultimately harms your chances of doing so.

With the help of 436 volunteers, psychologists from Iowa State University examined the link between anger levels and sleep habits, and ascertained that the higher the former, the more troubled the latter.

Commenting on their findings, a report into the study states: "Overall, individuals who had poor anger control also had worse objectively and subjectively measured sleep."

"The findings tie actual sleep behaviour to individual differences in anger, suggesting poor anger control plays the most important role, and add to the growing evidence that anger and sleep depend on each other."

If you're suffering from troubled sleep and recognise that you tend to be in a bad mood as the night draws to a close, it's worth trying to resolve any issues before settling down for the night.

Similarly, making note of tasks for the following day, preparing for the morning, and removing digital devices from your bedroom can all work towards lifting your mood, and ensuring a better night's sleep.

The study was published in the Journal of Research in Personality.

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So, not only are millennials consuming less alcohol than previous generations, but they actually think getting drunk is “pathetic and embarrassing,” a UK study has found.

As part of the research, Eventbrite surveyed 1,023 millennials about their relationship with alcohol – and the results were somewhat unexpected.

On average, millennials drink a responsible five units of alcohol a week, while only one in 10 thought getting drunk was “cool.”

And while these figures reflect a positive emphasis on health and well-being among young people, we can't help but feel a little surprised.

The survey also found that in general, millennials view excessive drinking as something “belonging to an older generation.”

What's more, results showed that 70 per cent of participants would rather brag about how long it's been since their last drink, than about how drunk they got last weekend.

And it looks like some classic hangover cures are changing too.

The hair of the dog is out, and it super-charged vegan smoothie is in, with most saying they would prefer not to drink alcohol the morning after the night before.

Researchers reckon this new-found lack of interest can be blamed on two things:

Number one – Millennials are obsessed with 'living in the moment' and creating memories (which can be difficult to do after four tequila shots).

And, number two – Rather than turning to alcohol, young people are instead choosing to talk openly about their mental health issues.

So, while a sudden decline in the interest of alcohol might come as a surprise to some, the obvious benefits are hard to argue with.

After all, who wouldn't want to live a happier, more memorable, hangover-free life?

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When it comes to skincare, no two women are the same.

And yet despite our unique needs, our distinct wants and our specific desires, we’re united in one thing; the pursuit of healthy skin.

Tapping into this, scientists and dermatologists with Boots enlisted the help of thousands of women, with one goal in mind.

They realised that in order to truly understand what women want from skincare, simply asking them wasn’t enough. They needed to involve them

And with that, Boots’ brand new skincare range, YourGoodSkin, was born.

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Over the course of three years, the YourGoodSkinTM community, an online panel of over 2,500 women, co-created a range of products to help women achieve the one thing on top of their skin wish list: consistently healthy looking skin for life. 

After more than 20 efficacy trials and 3 clinical trials, a breakthrough has been made in the pursuit of, among other things, improved skin texture and even skin tone.

Commenting on the process, Dr Mike Bell, Skincare Scientific Expert at Boots, highlighted the various factors which act as barriers to the universal skincare goal.

“Our research shows that women want consistently healthy looking skin, but achieving this can be difficult when everyday life factors such as air pollution, temperature change, hormone change, stress or tiredness can cause the skin to become unbalanced.”

 

@yourgoodskin Super excited to be finally able to share this! Been keeping the secret for what seems like forever!! Brand new skincare brand exclusively available at @bootsuk It is specially formulated to work with your skin to make it healthier and better in just 28 days, based on the 5 key signs of healthy looking skin: Radiance, Texture, Oiliness, Skin Tone Evenness and Moisture Levels. I'm serious when I say it actually works, cannot wait to get my hands on it Launches 27.9.17 #boots #yourgoodskin #skincare #radiance #skintone #moisture #oiliness #skintexture #innovation #skincarebrand #new #exclusive #balancingskinconcentrate #bootsuk #walgreens #healthy #healthyskin #bbloggers #beauty #beautyblogger #ygs #goodskinforlife

A post shared by Ysabella (@neubellabeauty) on

 “Our solution was to develop the ultimate skincare hack: a range of products to deliver visibly healthier skin in just 28 days," he confirmed.

“The hero of the range, YourGoodSkinTM Balancing Skin Concentrate, restores and maintains skin’s natural balance and is clinically proven to deliver visibly healthier skin in five different ways – skin texture, skin tone, radiance, oiliness and moisture levels – starting the journey to a life with visibly healthier skin.”

The range, which launches exclusively at Boots stores today, is proof that if you want something sorted, you involve the ladies in your life.

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Travel chaos looks set to continue as Ryanair announce it will continue to cancel flights until March 2018.

The airline confirmed today that it will fly 25 fewer aircraft this winter, resulting in schedule changes from November 2017 to March 2018.

"We have less than 400,000 customers booked on these flights and many of these flights have zero bookings at this time," a statement read.

"Less than 1% of the 50m customers Ryanair will carry this winter are affected and every one of these customers has received an email today giving them between five weeks to five months notice of these schedule changes, offering them alternative flights or full refunds of their airfare."

The news comes after the budget airline announced it will cancel 50 flights a day over the next six weeks after it mismanaged its employee holiday rota.

The company has apologised for any disruption caused and says all affected passengers have been contacted.

“We sincerely apologise to those customers who have been affected by last week’s flight cancellations, or these sensible schedule changes announced today,” Michael O'Leary said.

"All of the passengers who have been affected by these disruptions have now been offered re-accommodation or full refunds and their applicable €261 entitlements. In addition today, they are receiving a travel voucher (€40 one way/€80 return)."

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In what is what is arguably the biggest social media shake up of recent times, Twitter has doubled its 140 character limit.

Last night, the micro-blogging platform announced it is trailing a new 280 character system in a move they hope will allow users to “easily express themselves.”

A statement posted to the company's official blog page, revealed that a select group had been chosen to test out the new feature.

The increased limit will be available in all languages except Japanese, Chinese and Korean – largely due tot the fact that these languages can convey more in just one character.

Twitter Product Manager, Aliza Rosen said: "We want every person around the world to easily express themselves on Twitter, so we're doing something new: we're going to try out a longer limit, 280 characters, in languages impacted by cramming."

And while some users have welcomed the change with open arms, others aren't so sure.

The undisputed queen of Twitter even got in on the action.

We have to admit, we agree with Chrissy – if it's not broken, don't fix it! 

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Remember the last time you left the house feeling like a goddamn queen, only to have the universe conspire against you?

Yeah, us too, because… well… we're all human. And that's life.

Reminding us of this cruel lesson is our new favourite person, Laura Jane Williams, who not only fell victim to the treachery of the universe, but went ahead and uploaded footage of it to Twitter.

Laura, who is an author by profession, decided to film herself walking down the street, before revealing that she was feeling quite sexy.

And then this happened…

Unsurprisingly, Twitter has instantly gained a new hero, as Laura's page has been inundated with messages from the public, congratulating her on a top-notch upload.

 "Honestly what f*cking beautiful moment," wrote one while another added: "I’ve played this about 1000 times and I’m still crying."

Laura, you do you.

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Gardaí in Co Meath have issued an appeal to the public following the disappearance of a 29-year-old woman in recent days.

Martina Cranitch was last seen on Saturday morning on Ashbourne's High Street, and concerns for her safety are currently intensifying.

It has been established that Martina was carrying a black leather handbag and wearing a navy blue top with red and white flowers on it, a black leather coat, blue jeans and brown ankle boots when she was last seen at 8am on September 23.

Martina is five foot eight inches in height, and has brown hair and brown eyes.

If you have any information pertaining to the disappearance of Martina, you are urged to contact Ashbourne Garda Station on 01 – 8010600, the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.

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A restaurant in Belfast has issued an apology after a sign promoting their lunch-time deal was the subject of intense criticism in recent days.

Ribs and Bibs on Botanic Avenue promoted their £5 lunch with a distasteful reference to domestic abuse in a move which has understandably caused a furore on various social media channels in recent days.

"Ya can beat the wife, but ya can't beat a 5 pound lunch" read the controversial sign.

Members of the public who came across it wasted no time urging the restaurant to explain itself, with one social media user writing: "Why does ribs and bibs on botanic avenue think this sign is ok? Its horrific and makes light of an issue that's killing people."

 

A post on the restaurant's Facebook page suggested that they were refusing to take the public's distress seriously, with their reply only serving to further raise the ire of social media users.

"My God mate, get a life, it's a bit of wit on a small board outside a restaurant, we're not putting it on the front page of a newspaper, not making a move, see it for what it is, not as you see it," Ribs and Bibs wrote in a Facebook reply.

However, as criticism surrounding the promotion intensified, Ribs and Bibs issued a formal statement, and claimed that the individual responsible for creating the sign was new to the team.

"We do not condone abuse on men or women and the member of staff has only been working with us a couple of weeks and was on shift today by himself."

"We are dealing with it and would like to apologise for any offence caused and it will be dealt with by the management team."

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If you only have to hear the opening line of Lose Yourself in order to immediately launch into Eminem's 2002 track, then you may want to sit down before reading on.

The soundtrack to 8 Mile recently featured in scientific research, and the connotations associated with knowing the words of the track from start to finish aren't exactly uplifting.

According to a preliminary study into psychopathy, individuals who were fans of tracks including Lose Yourself and No Diggity scored the highest on the psychopath scale.

The study, which was conducted at New York City University, involved exposing 200 individuals to 260 songs while researchers compared the participants' personality tests to their taste in music.

And it turns out that Eminem fans along with Blackstreet fans raised more red flags than Sia fans, for example.

Speaking to The Guardian, head researcher, Pascal Wallisch, explained the motivation behind the study, saying: "The media portrays psychopaths as axe murderers and serial killers, but the reality is they are not obvious; they are not like The Joker in Batman,"

"They might be working right next to you and they blend in. They are like psychological dark matter," he added.

As many may consider the link between musical taste and psychopathy a tenuous one, Wallisch explains that the study allows for further investigation into a potentially dangerous group of people.

“You don’t want to have these people in positions where they can cause a lot of harm,” continued Wallisch. “We need a tool to identify them without their cooperation or consent.”

Wallisch stressed that the study was still in its preliminary phases, but are confident that their findings provide a foundation robust enough to launch a major study into the links between musical taste and psychopathic traits.

This work is very preliminary,” he said. “This is not the end of an investigation, it is the very beginning."

*Immediately deletes Lose Yourself from iPod.*

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When Natalie Morales arrived at the premiere of Battle of the Sexes, she considered the moment 'one of the happiest of her life'.

The joy was short-lived, however, when the 32-year-old actress learned that a photographer, who had purposely taken shots up her dress in an effort to expose her genitalia, sold the photographs.

Taking to Twitter to share her thoughts on the matter, the actress struggled desperately to understand the motivation of the photographer, writing: "These are photogs who go to red carpets to take photos of women.. to what, embarrass them? Because they have bodies under clothes?"

Encouraging paparazzi to consider the implications of their sordid endeavours, Natalie continued: "So you're gonna come to an event that I've waited my whole life for, that I'm super proud of, to try and exploit my body? For your gain?"

The actress, who has appeared in Santa Clarita Diet, Girls and Parks and Recreation, acknowledges that public occasions like movie premieres leave her vulnerable to certain behaviour, but insists that she shouldn't be concerned that her body will be violated.

"This specifically, is a red carpet, so I'm there for you. There's a silent contract," she wrote." I'm there to promote my movie, you're there to take pics you can sell. Pics I'm POSING for, that I've agreed to. Pictures of my face and body, covered in whatever way I see fit. I didn't pose for you to angle your camera up my skirt."

In a final jab at those responsible, Natalie added: "JOKES ON YOU, I was wearing skin coloured underwear so you can't actually see my bits. But if you could? I wouldn't be embarrassed. But YOU should be. What a disgusting, horrifying job you have."

The response to Natalie's post yesterday was overwhelmingly positive, with many social media users criticising the conduct of the paparazzi at events of this kind.

Indeed, Natalie's former Girls co-star, Lena Dunham, even weighed in, writing: "Ugh I'm so sorry. You're a gorgeous queen. I'm happy to trade in pics of my vagina at a time I actually didn't wear underwear."

Following the interest in her series of posts, Natalie decided to issue a more detailed statement, writing: "Before this gets watered down or the word "vagina" gets censored out, here's my statement on this "wardrobe malfunction" b.s."

"Some places have been asking me for a statement about the tweets I posted yesterday regarding the photos of my 'wardrobe malfunction'. I guess I could say 'no comment'. but I have of comments so here goes," she began.

"When I was sent the photos, my first instinct was to ignore them and move on", she wrote. "But then I realised this must happen to women all the time, and this time, I am not going to let it slide."

"This photographer, not unlike the ones that wait outside of the cars female celebrities are getting out of just to purposely take  pictures up their skirts, angled their camera to see up the slit of my dress. Even if they wanted to claim this was an accidental shot, they could have done what they would have done had they taken an accidental shot od their daughter's, mother's or sister's vagina; deleted it."

After insisting that she refuses to feel embarrassed by her body or indirectly ashamed as a result of the photographers actions, Natalie wrote: "You cannot tear me down."

"It's a vagina. We all came out of one. It's nothing to be ashamed of. But if doesn't belong to you. It belongs to me. And you can't have it unless I say you can."

Well said.

 

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