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Post by cato on Dec 21, 2018 10:20:05 GMT
I picked up a copy of John Water's latest book commenting on the decline of Ireland a couple of weeks ago. Waters has been personally involved in recent referenda , Fathers rights campaigns and was publically accused of homophobia by a drag queen on RTE. He later received financial compensation for damage to his good name.
According to some the book is being censored by certain shops refusing to stock it as they don't like his message. It is possible . I suspect the reality is sadly simpler as most shops stock a limited range anyway . It can be hard to get any specialised book even in Dublin at times. Eason's the main stockists are hit and miss when it comes to stocking various titles .I got mine in Veritas Dublin.
Good idea for a stocking filler for the favourite conservative in your life or yourself. Go on ,you know you want to.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Dec 21, 2018 10:33:20 GMT
It looks like a great book. He seems to be becoming more and more hardline and unapologetic, perhaps as a result of no longer being a practicing journalist in Ireland. He can say what the heck he likes.
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Post by rogerbuck on Dec 21, 2018 10:38:30 GMT
I like Waters a lot and await this book eagerly. Too buried, alas, in my own right book now. But would like to hear your impressions, Cato ...
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Post by cato on Feb 2, 2019 18:11:23 GMT
I finished the book last week. I have also noticed it in most of the bookshops I frequent so it wasn't censored even though he does step on a few toes.
It's an enjoyable read, like sitting with an old friend over a coffee or a pint in front of an open fire. You get two books really for the price of one. One is the story of John Waters the journalist , his isolation over his championing of father's rights, his dealings with RTE , the Irish Times and later the Sunday Independent. This account is valuable and gives insight into the mindset of the ideological leanings of the Dublin media.
The second book ,which I prefered was a monologue addressed to his dead father reflecting on their relationship , growing up , local life and being Irish. Several times I put the book down after being moved by some insight or observation. It gets you thinking and remembering your own upbringing. A less wordy Proust from Roscommon.
In the book Waters describes suing various media organisations. This may be an additional reason why he is hated by some many media hacks. I recently saw Waters at the Rod Dreher talk. He has the aura of an old testament prophet about him. In this book he shows us some of his scars but he doesn't come across as bitter. In fact at times he can surprise when he discusses his use of expletives and his views on gay marriage. This is a great book. Please read it.
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Feb 4, 2019 11:42:25 GMT
I finished the book last week. I have also noticed it in most of the bookshops I frequent so it wasn't censored even though he does step on a few toes. It's an enjoyable read, like sitting with an old friend over a coffee or a pint in front of an open fire. You get two books really for the price of one. One is the story of John Waters the journalist , his isolation over his championing of father's rights, his dealings with RTE , the Irish Times and later the Sunday Independent. This account is valuable and gives insight into the mindset of the ideological leanings of the Dublin media. The second book ,which I prefered was a monologue addressed to his dead father reflecting on their relationship , growing up , local life and being Irish. Several times I put the book down after being moved by some insight or observation. It gets you thinking and remembering your own upbringing. A less wordy Proust from Roscommon. In the book Waters describes suing various media organisations. This may be an additional reason why he is hated by some many media hacks. I recently saw Waters at the Rod Dreher talk. He has the aura of an old testament prophet about him. In this book he shows us some of his scars but he doesn't come across as bitter. In fact at times he can surprise when he discusses his use of expletives and his views on gay marriage. This is a great book. Please read it. I'd love to. I gobble up everything featuring John Waters features in on YouTube. I can't really justify buying it, though. It sounds brilliant. It makes all the difference in the world to have a deep thinker and a gifted writer on "our side". It elevates the discourse so much. |
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Feb 4, 2019 16:08:24 GMT
I admire John Waters but I notice he's only talking to people who agree with him now-- it would be good to see him take on some of our Irish commentariat in debate, so they can argue back. Perhaps he has tried but they haven't taken him up, I don't know. I would like to hear some of his arguments challenged, even where I agree with them. (I know he's done plenty of this in the past, but I mean now.)
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Post by cato on Feb 4, 2019 21:59:17 GMT
Pearse Mulligan over at the Burkean has an interesting article where he compares Waters with the English writer Peter Hitchens.
He also discusses the need for a conservative/nationalist myth to counter the recent liberal ones that have been so sucessful in motivating and inspiring Irish people. The older Nationalist Catholic Myth is not quite dead but it has few advocates in any position of influence. Perhaps the greatest legacy of the current centenary of 1912-23 will be the formal death of that catholic separatist vision?
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Post by assisi on Feb 5, 2019 11:14:22 GMT
I admire John Waters but I notice he's only talking to people who agree with him now-- it would be good to see him take on some of our Irish commentariat in debate, so they can argue back. Perhaps he has tried but they haven't taken him up, I don't know. I would like to hear some of his arguments challenged, even where I agree with them. (I know he's done plenty of this in the past, but I mean now.) I thought that the likes of Waters (and Desmond Fennell before him) had been deliberately marginalised and isolated by the mainstream media. They won't engage him, or if they do they use their outnumbering tactic and have him in a panel with 2 or 3 opponents and the interviewer attacking him from all sides. |
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Post by assisi on Feb 5, 2019 17:39:57 GMT
Pearse Mulligan over at the Burkean has an interesting article where he compares Waters with the English writer Peter Hitchens. He also discusses the need for a conservative/nationalist myth to counter the recent liberal ones that have been so sucessful in motivating and inspiring Irish people. The older Nationalist Catholic Myth is not quite dead but it has few advocates in any position of influence. Perhaps the greatest legacy of the current centenary of 1912-23 will be the formal death of that catholic separatist vision? It would be great to have a new robust conservative/nationalist myth. But if that is not likely in the near future, there is always the option of demythologising the current progressive myth (i.e. a list of the many ways the progressives are ruining Ireland (abortion numbers, the Health Service, the European Union/hard border fiasco, rise in homelessness, the 2040 immigration plan, fertility rates, housing problems, continuous growth in mental health problems etc). |
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Post by cato on Feb 5, 2019 17:58:11 GMT
Pearse Mulligan over at the Burkean has an interesting article where he compares Waters with the English writer Peter Hitchens. He also discusses the need for a conservative/nationalist myth to counter the recent liberal ones that have been so sucessful in motivating and inspiring Irish people. The older Nationalist Catholic Myth is not quite dead but it has few advocates in any position of influence. Perhaps the greatest legacy of the current centenary of 1912-23 will be the formal death of that catholic separatist vision? It would be great to have a new robust conservative/nationalist myth. But if that is not likely in the near future, there is always the option of demythologising the current progressive myth (i.e. a list of the many ways the progressives are ruining Ireland (abortion numbers, the Health Service, the European Union/hard border fiasco, rise in homelessness, the 2040 immigration plan, fertility rates, housing problems, continuous growth in mental health problems etc). Yes. Good idea. Deconstruct the deconstructors. |
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Post by rogerbuck on Nov 12, 2019 14:14:23 GMT
I am reading John Waters Give Us Back the Bad Roads, in all its blood curdling horror.
The Ireland he knows first hand down there in Dublin feels like an alien galaxy far, far away from the one I know up here in the Tyrone/Donegal borderlands.
Somewhere there is a thread about this book. I've tried using advanced search tactics to find it without luck. Would be very grateful to anyone who could give me a link to this!
(While I'm at this, I also want to say I'm sorry IF in failing to respond to anyone here, publically or privately, I've annoyed or hurt anyone. I have felt intense need for solitude, beyond constant internet stimulation. But the sheer horror of Water's book only reconfirms for me how important this place is. And right now I would very much like to know what others made of this book, either here or at another link to discussion about it, if someone can please help me.)
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Post by Maolsheachlann on Nov 12, 2019 14:20:33 GMT
I am reading John Waters Give Us Back the Bad Roads, in all its blood curdling horror. The Ireland he knows first hand down there in Dublin feels like an alien galaxy far, far away from the one I know up here in the Tyrone/Donegal borderlands. Somewhere there is a thread about this book. I've tried using advanced search tactics to find it without luck. Would be very grateful to anyone who could give me a link to this! (While I'm at this, I also want to say I'm sorry IF in failing to respond to anyone here, publically or privately, I've annoyed or hurt anyone. I have felt intense need for solitude, beyond constant internet stimulation. But the sheer horror of Water's book only reconfirms for me how important this place is. And right now I would very much like to know what others made of this book, either here or at another link to discussion about it, if someone can please help me.) Using Administrator magic, I have whisked your post to the relevant thread!  |
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