Una Mullally discussion thread

iffandonlyif · 14-10-2022 11:34am #1

My second attempt at a thread dedicated to the Irish Times’s progressive-in-chief.

Boggles · 14-10-2022 11:39am

Hmmmm, starts thread offers absolutely no opinion. 😕

Anyway, never heard of her. But why are you obsessed with her?

This a Jill Dando type thing?

iffandonlyif · 14-10-2022 11:41am

https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2022/10/13/una-mullally-what-does-it-mean-to-say-up-the-ra-and-why-does-it-keep-happening/

Mullally writing today about the ‘Up the Ra’ controversy. Even more than usual for Mullally, it rambles throughout its 1800 words, making it very difficult to discern a point

Along with many on Twitter she takes great issue with the Sky Sports pundit asking the Irish player if there was a need for education: ‘a ridiculous thing for someone in British media to say, given that nation’s epic blind spots regarding its own history’. She says, ‘The idea that young Irish people don’t know their history is ridiculous’ and ‘It is incredibly patronising to say young people in Ireland don’t understand their history or the past.’

But she makes a bad error in interpreting the Sky Sports presenter as meaning education of Irish history. It can just mean education about contemporary cultural realities, about the obligations of professional athletes, etc. Mullally goes on to say that, ‘There remains a disconnect between North and South. There is a frivolity to republican sloganeering in the South that does not exist in the North. Go figure. This is perhaps yet more evidence of southern ignorance in relation to the North.’ When she acknowledges ignorance, how can she be so dismissive of the need for education?!

14-10-2022 11:44am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058267442/una-mullally-discussion-thread

Invariably columnists like that are paid to be provocative, to find something to complain about; to get the clicks, to get the shares etc.

I'm more offended by how bad her writing style is.

How on Earth did someone with such a poor grasp of the language become a columnist for the Irish Times?

Maybe it's a prerequisite, I don't know.

But she is certainly not an original thinker, that's for sure. Her articles are dull; the literary equivalent of a sedative.

HalloweenJack · 14-10-2022 11:47am

Some of her points I agree with, some of them I don't.

Her pieces often make me think about things I wouldn't have given any importance too, though I may not always come to the same conclusions as herself.

Much like Hazel Chu, Louise O'Neill and Sally Rooney, I see her only crime is being an articulate woman who draws attention to issues that aren't always talked about in the mainstream and are often ignored by those not directly affected by them. She has a different take on things and isn't happy to just go with the flow. That's certainly a good quality to have.

She can come across as righteous and there are some pieces of hers which I felt were really reading too much into things.

iffandonlyif · 14-10-2022 11:50am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119743084#Comment_119743084

This is my second attempt at this thread because people like you had exactly the same poverty of imagination the first time. My hope is that this thread can be used into the future for the discussion of her articles. The OP is intentionally neutral because I did not want a biased OP to prejudice the thread from the start.

As for obsession, what is wrong with wanting a thread to discuss the writings of a prominent columnist, like there is for her stablemate Fintan O’Toole?

Boggles · 14-10-2022 11:55am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119743142#Comment_119743142

Like I said, never heard of her.

So you are obsessed, fair enough. Fill your boots. 👍️

iffandonlyif · 14-10-2022 11:57am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119743168#Comment_119743168

What a strange fellow you are.

14-10-2022 12:12pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119743142#Comment_119743142

"Stable" is the correct description of the O'Tool/Mullally halting site. Their unstinting efforts to convert the Irish Times into the Oirish Guardian Lite (with support from arguably the worst editor on these isles since BoJo quit The Spectator) drove me away from the rag, after being a committed daily reader for over 50 years.

iffandonlyif · 14-10-2022 12:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119743116#Comment_119743116

I don’t entirely agree. She’s obviously a more capable writer than average (and I say that as one who has proof read a lot of appalling college writing). But it’s clear that she writes at the edge of capabilities and occasionally steps off. Mixed metaphors and wrought sentences are common.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119743127#Comment_119743127

Yes, to her credit, she does mix political and cultural commentary in a way most others don’t. My problem is what you acknowledge in your last paragraph: that she’s righteous (and I would add pompous) and often gives a very unconvincing take on things. She effects an objective stance in which she is above the fray, observing trends, as in the above article, but really she is highly partisan.

I’m not sure why you bring the other women into it. Rooney has received universal acclaim, O’Neill writes extensively about identity politics and is derisive of opponents, and Chu, regardless of whether you support her, is highly proactive in how she operates, alienating even her own party.

Beasty · 14-10-2022 12:28pm

Second attempt eh?

No need for a third

Una Mullally discussion thread

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