Coming home from training and heard a really tough interview with Milos Krasic. He's broke, unpaid by Fenerbahce for (if I'm right) 4 months and is looking to return to Russia. I need to research the full story, but it seems he was ripped off by his club, his agent and by his sister/aunt (she was managing his funds in Germany).
And now....Leo Varadkar says he's gay! Why did he need to make it public, it was already well known! I am a bit disappointed he's making a issue of it alongside the same-sex marriage bill, but I think it now will rule him out of being taoiseach, and I can say "thank the stars", because as a person and politician he's a twit.
I think it's fair enough that he cites his own sexuality as being a reason why he supports the bill in the same way a religious person may cite their religious beliefs as being a reason why they'd oppose it. He feels he's being more transparent that way. Why does it disappoint? Do you feel he's trying to exploit his sexuality to swing favour? As you say though, it could damage any hopes he might have had of becoming Taoiseach, so it's not as if he had nothing to lose. It took courage and guts, I'm sure, and if it helps further erode the social stigmatisation/political marginalisation of homosexuality in Ireland, I think that's a good thing.
I don't know Danny, the reason, but it's been open for some time now, and he has had many chances to do this. I do not like him as a person or politician, he has been terrible in many regards for the country and a complete hypocrite. I've always found his family likeable and they are decent folk, he has always been arrogant and dangerous. I don't know if I'm going to be proved wrong on this, but 2-3 years ago he was giving interviews saying that he would like to settle down but hadn't found the right woman. This was when he was positioning himself as a future FG leader. I thought it shocking that he'd be such a hypocrite, at first, then figured - maybe he's confused or bi? But he was with someone at the time but trying to keep his sexuality a secret - again, it's his own business. The dead lad from Boyzone did the same for years, despite it being known.Originally Posted by DannyInvincible
I just question the timing, why? Someone like him doesn't just do it this way. I almost feel that this is going to damage the chances for the referendum passing. And in terms of marginalising gays or lesbians, I think it mariginalises politics more in the community.
Sounds like he'd fit right in at Dundalk
haha - if he was from Sligo he'd have been ripped off by his girlfriend/wife - same thing as sister/aunt down there. (waiting for shock and outrage)Sounds like he'd fit right in at Dundalk
UCD will be in the Europa Cup next season
1st thing I thought when I seen the 'news' was that it was an attempt to distract from all of the HSE carry on.
He did say he only properly came to terms with his sexuality within the past two years or so, but, whilst I think it's positive in terms of possible broader social acceptance of homosexuality, I can't discount the possibility that he sees some political opportunity in making a public announcement now.
Why do you think it might actually damage the chances of the referendum passing? Do you think people might view his announcement cynically and, consequently, be put off the whole motion as a sort of reaction?
You say he's "marginalising politics in the community"; are you attacking the whole concept of or focus on (fragmented) identity politics there or what do you mean exactly?
I read somewhere that he was 'outed' in Village magazine recently, so that would explain the timing.
It's not a big deal for me, but its pointless to pretend that it won't be a big deal for some people.
He was, and his partner (who isn't out) was named. I wouldn't be cynical about his motivation or timing - it seems like it was a matter of time before a newspaper splashed on it, so it beat them to the punch and did it on his own terms. I wouldn't be surprised if another couple of TDs came out or were outed in the run-up to the referendum.
Nothing he ever does is without an angle. It has been known for quite some time he was gay (from at least 2010) but his privacy was respected. He tried to do the spin and have "friends" give little bits to journos. I need to find the splash piece done by the Indo when he was going for a leadership push, it really illuminates his hypocrisy.
Osarusan, if it's true that the Village did a piece on him, it's unfortunate, but it's going to get worse.
Yeah, his angle was that he'd rather say it himself than have it splashed across the papers. There's a reason the Village piece wasn't on the front of every paper - he'd used his influence to keep his private life private until he could make the announcement himself.
In one way it's okay and (I hate myself) admirable, if it's for the greater good - or for his partner. However this would be very far from the truth. Why did he need to make an announcement? He's gay, so what? His party knew it, people in his circle knew about it. Of course he was being hypocritical (from one point of view) for not being mad open about it, but why should he? It's his own life, his own business, he deserves to be happy. The need for people to declare everything is wrong, but this would not have bothered Leo. It smacks a bit of the Ricky Martin "outing", where his career was coming off the rails and he needed to grab new audience share.
I wonder what photos were turned up from his hollyers, which he had evrey right to take, suddenly made him jump.
Why did he need to make an announcement?
First of all, he's a minister. He can't come out quietly, He's been out in his private life for years, but he's a decision-maker in government who'll have a role in future referendums that affect gay people, so he can't exactly hide.
Second of all, we still live in a country where coming out is a huge deal for people. We live in a country where young gay people have to deal with the prospect of being ostracised by their family and friends, where they fear negative consequences in their work and can stay away from entire spheres of public life for fear of having their sexuality used against them.
Thirdly, he'll have people making innuendo about holiday photos because they feel his private life is their business.
I can understand why a gay person like Varadkar would look at the society that awaits him if he comes out and say "**** these load of *****." But he's gone and stood up for who he is, and fair play to him.
What you write makes sense, for most people, but Leo does nothing without a reason. Listening (now) to Newstalk and reading the codswallop online, especially from Mimsy Lord - "first gay Taoiseach"....he is not coming out for best practice, he's looking at Dame Edna faltering and looking to position himself behind his leader for a big push (yes, deliberate ooh ar missus). He is not a good person, a useless politician and simply looking for attention for a run at the top office, as he wanted back in 2010.
Personally, I don't think there's the same stigmas attached to coming out as gay as there used to be. The idea of being ostracised by family and friends and fearing negative consequences outside of home and in work/public is a thing of the past.
The most widely viewed opinion of the whole thing as far as I can see is one of 'this shouldn't be headline news in the 21st century'. It shows both how far we've come in the past couple of years, as well as the fact people just don't care about a persons sexuality anymore as much to say this person has brown hair or black hair.
Of course, this isn't completely right across the board. It's no different now to something like racism, where only a very small minority would get offended by this sort of thing.
Last edited by nigel-harps1954; 19/01/2015 at 10:09 AM.
https://kesslereffect.bandcamp.com/album/kepler - New music. It's not that bad.
http://waterfordwhispersnews.com/201...t-special-guy/
I think this hits the mark. A man who prove completely incompetent in his previous ministerial role, has been as bad or worse in Health, and now is using his friends and his paid advisor - one Mr. F. Flannery - to be in a position to "make history". It shows how easily our meeja is bought off by a "gossip" story and to lecture an already exhausted and developed nation on how they should behave - while providing all sorts of exciting gossip on the next page.
Just out of curiosity, what did he do or not do as Minister for Transport that you have an issue with?
Gay people themselves might say otherwise: http://www.buzzfeed.com/tomphillips/...ia#.qf4pp6AwKK
David Norris claims the country is "rampant" with homophobia.
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