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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin

@neilmacdh.bsky.social
104 followers 121 following 102 posts

Youth mental health researcher, Gaeilgeoir, #gaa (BÁC & Maigh Eo)

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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
If this was an example of something that was "well handled"by the FAI, I'd hate to see something that they'd describe as "badly handled" #spéirghorm
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Gavin Cooney @gcooney93.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Big read here on an abject, rancorous, extraordinary day. The potential scale of fallout to come is the stuff of Saipan 2.0 Ireland v Israel: Day of infamy exposes serious lack of leadership in FAI www.irishtimes.com/sport/soccer...
irishtimes.com
Ireland v Israel: Day of infamy exposes serious lack of leadership in FAI
Gavin Bazunu has been left brutally isolated as any semblance of squad unity has been utterly sundered
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Tony - Pod Guy - Groves @tonygroves.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Gavin Bazunu, fair play. That takes guts. Yup, Tallaght.
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The Foggy Jew @hmcevansoneya.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
"I would be willing to consider changes, such as changing the flag and anthem and joining the Commonwealth" Now why would you include the Commonwealth in the question but not the headline? And then paywall the article? This is deliberate, misleading, atrocious journalism and abuse of polling data
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Very misleading conclusions taken from this survey regarding the flag, anthem, and immigration. The Irish Times and Ipsos are very experienced in this area, which makes me think they deliberately designed questions to get a desire outcome #spéirghorm www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
irishtimes.com
Small minority prepared to consider new flag to make Irish unity acceptable to unionists
Irish Times/Ipsos B&A also asked about attitudes to immigration, with a small majority of voters seeing it, on balance, as a positive
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Anna Pringle @annapr.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
This is such misleading polling. It's a compound question, asking 3 questions in one: "changes, such as changing the flag and anthem and joining the Commonwealth". Impossible to know which element people are disagreeing with.
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Ian Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
This week on Origin Story: The life & ideas of John Rawls, the most celebrated liberal philosopher of the post-war period. These are some of the most beautiful arguments in progressive thought. We do it as a one hour crash course. Everything you need to know. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/j...
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Gavan Reilly @gavreilly.com · 08/09/2026
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Darach Ó Séaghdha @darach.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
I’m not sure what raising the residency period from 5 years to 8 years will achieve for the common good. It’ll make it easier to deport children who’ve never lived anywhere else, and harder for applicants to prove unbroken periods of residency.
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Jen Keane @zenbuffy.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
A significant contributor to the gender pay gap and the continuing financial disparity between men and women is the undervaluing of all of the unpaid care work done by women in Ireland. Women all over Ireland get up early, every morning, and go to work, unpaid and unvalued.
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
They're gonna get so cocky now that they caught a traitor for all the wrong reasons... #traitorsirl
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Excellent article, but I'm surprised how little reference is made to FSG. FSG brought in the sponsors complicit in genocide before Bezos joined. Any protests at Bezos on these grounds should equally point the finger at FSG #lfc #spéirghorm www.irishtimes.com/sport/soccer...
irishtimes.com
Why I have decided to quit supporting Liverpool after 50 years
Jeff Bezos’s links to Israel and his gutting of the Washington Post should be a wake-up call to all fans
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Collective time is one of my least favourite metrics. It turns every 1 second into 7 billion collective seconds. Which means 1 individual second equates to 222 years collectively. And that's only assuming human time, not including the collective time perceived by all animals #spéirghorm
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
It was a fabulous evening last night for us in #birmingham2026 but the 23,000 spectators deserve a better explanation than this, when we were left without transport until midnight. We're baffled here as to how "fraud" explains the delays www.irishtimes.com/world/uk/202...
irishtimes.com
Man arrested in Birmingham after police incident delays Kate O’Connor medal ceremony
Transport returns to normal on Sunday after Saturday crowds faced long delays leaving stadium
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
If they're following through with this, they need to look at the nicotine pouches as well. They're extremely potent and regulations are so far behind. One of the pouches companies was even a sponsor at All Together Now and no batted an eyelid #spéirghorm www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
irishtimes.com
New law could see young people barred from buying vapes and cigarettes
Government considering ban for anyone born after certain date
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TG4 @tg4.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Comhghairdeas le foireann peile Mhaigh Eo, Seaimpíní na hÉireann! 💚❤️
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Gavan Reilly @gavreilly.com · 26/07/2026
“The famine is over! The curse be damned!! Hit the nuclear button! Mayo have won the All-Ireland!!” An all-time great sports commentary moment from Stephen Grealis and Martin McHugh on Mayo’s Midwest Radio. #gaa
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
Update for now: Andy Moran = Lionel Scaloni Depending on the next few years, I may alter this to Jurgen Klopp but Scaloni is a good fit for today given the emotion #speirghorm #gaa #mayo4sam
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
You may think Lamine Yamal is the best young sportsperson in the world, but you didn't see him play in an All Ireland final in his debut season did ya. Yup Kobe. Up Mayo. #mayo4sam #spéirghorm
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Philippe Auclair @philippeauclair.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Vaccines are one of the things humans should be the proudest of.
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Happy to contribute to this piece today in the Indo. Thanks to @conor-feehan.bsky.social for the piece. Hoping it can help influence a solution to the current problems with e-scooters #spéirghorm www.independent.ie/irish-news/y...
Text from Irish Independent stating "Mr Mac Dhonnagáin said he understands Mr Martin’s and Mr Kelly’s concerns, especially given so many young people are sustaining head injuries, but he thinks there are other methods for controlling the age of users and the speed they travel at. 

“When I bought mine, which is the compliant one, half the shop had compliant scooters and half had non-compliant ones. And it’s not illegal to sell a non-compliant one, and it’s also not illegal to sell them to people under 16,” he said.

Irish law dictates that e-scooters must have a maximum design speed of 20kmh and users must be at least 16 years old. Mr Mac Dhonnagáin pointed out that the legislation covers the use of e-scooters rather than the sale of them, in the same way cars can travel at a greater speed than the highest speed limits on our roads.

“Mine will stop accelerating at 20kmh, but there were ones in the shop that could do 70kmh. When you hear of gardaí seizing a non-compliant e-scooter, that will just get replaced because it’s not illegal to buy. That’s where I think there’s missing pieces in a lot of discussion,” Mr Mac Dhonnagáin said. "Text from Irish Independent stating: “I don’t understand why they’d have one law for usage and no law for sale. The compliant scooters are very slow vehicles, and very useful for commuters when used in a safe way. The fast ones are clearly dangerous, and need to be gone."
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Chris Bertram @crookedfootball.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
Ian Wright saying we shouldn’t forget the way the Iranian team and the Somali referee were treated. Correct.
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
Easier to compare managers than teams when it comes to GAA & soccer: Brian Cody = Alex Ferguson Jim McGuinness = Mourinho Jim Gavin = Pep Guardiola #spéirghorm
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
This is more like it: Registration, seize non-compliant e-scooters, ban sale/supply to under 16s, extend bike to work. All it needs is to ban the sale of non-compliant e-scooters (over 20km/h). They're easy to buy atm. Otherwise every seized scooter will just be replaced by a new one. #spéirghorm
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Geraldine Herbert @gerherbert.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
They are currently illegal for under 16s to use so are banned already. The real issue is why the loophole that permits the marketing and selling of escooters for kids has not been closed.
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Kevin Hargaden @kevinhargaden.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Years ago, Peter McVerry noted to me the godsend e-scooters were to people trying to climb out of poverty. They were an accessible way to get to jobs that previously were out of their reach because they'd have to show up at ~4am. The class dynamics of government's response shouldn't be missed.
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Scooters that are compliant with the law only go at 20km/h, slower than most bikes. But it's not illegal to sell ones that go 70km/h to under 16s. Surely they could ban the sale of the non-compliant scooters first before a total ban for everyone? #spéirghorm www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
irishtimes.com
Taoiseach ‘leaning towards’ ban on e-scooters
Dáil discusses problematic use of e-scooters and scramblers on roads following deaths and injuries
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Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
Social media is increasingly anti-social Only 7% of Instagram time & 17% of Facebook time is spent on content from friends or followed accounts. The rest is algorithmic video from strangers. This is what happens when you condition algorithms on looking time rather than real social engagement.
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
This has been a lovely little source of bemusement in group chats today. Joey D'Urso's reel states they both sailed and rowed. I wonder if the fan has a good rebuttal to this 🤔 #worldcup #norway
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Dexerto @dexerto.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
A Norway fan has gone viral for not taking part in their Row celebration after matches and won't do it if they win the World Cup "It’s factually wrong; they didn’t row, they sailed over the Atlantic”
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Dónal Hassett @donalh.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
So much to love about Pico waving the Irish flag, not least that he, a proud Irishman of African heritage and as Dublin as can be, embodies the kind of Irishness that the far right can't abide but is a thriving feature in communities across the island.
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
I can't see this Dublin team win the All-Ireland this year, but the forwards are still so strong when fit and were brilliant in that second half. Bugler and Breathnach still to come back too. Would love to see an attacking midfielder emerge in this squad- would be a game changer for them #gaa
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Love that the only goals I've ever seen Joao Neves score are headers and he's only 5'9. Massive respect #worldcup2026
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Gavin Cooney @gcooney93.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Comment piece on the FAI's decision on Israel game Ireland-Israel matches: FAI shifts goalposts while Government and Fifa shirk responsibility www.irishtimes.com/sport/soccer...
irishtimes.com
Gavin Cooney: Government apathy towards Israel soccer row leaves FAI unwilling to take stand
The bottom line is authorities don’t want to pay the price for a principled stand
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
From 2014 #gaa www.the42.ie/sports-pictu...
Hurling match in Croke park between Limerick and Kilkenny during heavy rain. Kilkenny goalkeeper David Herity attempting to save the sliotar from going over the bar
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Randolph Nesse @randynesse.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
Overprescribing and the "Do Something Imperative" substack.com/@randynesse/...
substack.com
Overprescribing and the "Do Something Imperative"
The intense situation where decisions are made
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Miguel Delaney @migueldelaney.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
Just a superb piece of writing from Paul Howard www.irishtimes.com/sport/soccer...
irishtimes.com
Paul Howard: You spend your life chasing the way the World Cup made you feel when you were 11
I wish I could say I enjoyed Japan and South Korea 2002 as much as the World Cups of my childhood
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
If you're an Irish man and you think you're immune to fake news, ask yourself why you never drank Lilt before it was discontinued. We all know why #spéirghorm
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Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
An audit of 2.5 million academic papers identified 3,000 biomedical-science papers that contain fake references. The rate of fabrication in 2025 was more than 12 times greater than that in 2023! 28 clinical-trials & 79 systematic reviews contained fake references! www.nature.com/articles/d41...
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Trish Greenhalgh @trishgreenhalgh.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Every summer I repost this article on how to spot drowning. Please read it and pass on. In the last few years I’ve had SIX messages from people who saved a kid’s life after clicking on the link from my feed. slate.com/technology/2...
slate.com
Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning
Drowning is not the violent, splashing call for help that most people expect.
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Dr Panti Bliss-Cabrera @pantibliss.bsky.social · 02/09/2025
Trans people have been around your whole life. You’ve been sharing bathrooms with them your whole life. They’ve been in your communities your whole life. They’ve even been playing sport your whole life. And you didn’t care *at all* till a few years ago when every right wing org decided you should
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Awais Aftab @awaisaftab.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
When patients ask, “What disorder do I really ‘have’?” the honest answer is usually more interesting and messier than a single diagnostic label. I wrote for the @nytimes.com on what I wish people understood about diagnoses and the nature of mental health problems. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/11/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | We’re Thinking About Mental Health Diagnoses All Wrong
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The Foggy Jew @hmcevansoneya.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
It is not merely a case of poor policy; it is actively insulting, doubly so coming from the very politicians who got us here in the first place, and a billionaire-backed think tank
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DrSinBin @drsinbin.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
I'm not joking when I say mRNA technology is more important than "AI" and it's a tragedy we're throwing billions into one while our government is aggressively defunding the other.
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
My letter to the editor published in the Irish Times this week - arguing that investing in reits and property funds for profit during a housing crisis is inherently unethical. Written in the context of the "How to Invest" series #speirghorm www.irishtimes.com/opinion/lett...
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Reposting for #spéirghorm and anyone interested in youth mental health in Ireland
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Our new paper was published yesterday on the experiences of young people with a brief #mentalhealth intervention (up to 8 sessions). www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... It's a qualitative study youth and staff perspectives on the intervention at Jigsaw (Ireland) #academicsky
The figure shows a conceptual diagram labelled “young people’s perspective” in a speech bubble at the centre. Five thick curved branches representing themes extend from the central label. The first branch is titled “Uncertainty of help-seeking” and splits into 2 thinner branches labelled “Reluctance to engage” and “Easing in”. The second branch is titled “The relationship as a non-judgemental collaboration and divides into “Non-judgemental approach and “Listening and leading”. The third branch is titled “Feeling appropriately supported” and extends upward into 3 sub-branches labelled “The value of non-directive support”, “Learning through psychoeducation”, and “Appropriate mode of intervention”. The fourth branch is labelled “Opening up” and divides into “Becoming aware” and “Expressing emotions”. The fifth branch is titled “A bittersweet end” and separates into “Anxiety vs readiness to finish”, “Progress and ongoing coping”, and “Positivity about the experience”. All text is arranged around the centre so the map reads outward from the “young people’s perspective” label.
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Neil Mac Dhonnagáin @neilmacdh.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
An artiste. RIP Moya Brennan #speirghorm youtu.be/XqpVjZ7-CM0?...
youtu.be
Clannad Newgrange from Irish film interMission
YouTube video by CompuGlobal
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Marc Scully @marcscully.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
Someone posted a semi-serious take on here a few weeks back (now sadly deleted) that Orbán had been counting on an election boost from World Cup qualification, denied him by the boys in green.
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Alan @alanmaguire.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
The thing that makes me angry about these protests is that for Repeal, we had to go out and knock on doors and be polite to people who thought we were the devil for months and these guys can just dump a tractor in the street and get what they want in five days.
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