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Seán Rainford

@seanrainford.bsky.social
418 followers 473 following 183 posts

Law lecturer University of Seychelles, researches constitutions, democratic socialist, views my own northtipp.substack.com

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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
For those that aren't aware, time spent doing research work as a PhD student doesn't count towards naturalisation. Should be changed. "Irish citizenship reforms should address discrepancy affecting PhD students" www.irishtimes.com/opinion/lett...
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Dermot Looney @dlooney.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Every day it seems the Irish Times sinks lower and lower. Social science manipulation 101 here and they still couldn’t get the answer they wanted.
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Terminally von der Leyen @ciaran.operationglad.io · 28/09/2026
You have to cook the question this much and it's still plurality in favor of the triple lock. C'mon lads, pack it in
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Dean Buckley @deanbuckley.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Dan is at dangerous risk of adding 2+2 here
X post by Dan O'Brien, in response to a story with the headline Is Malta becoming a mafia state

Dan's post reads

Lived in Malta in the 1990s. It has advanced economically as much as it has regressed politically.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Is Hector Bellerín the person our tech overlords want us to become? If so, ok. Tipperary North Riding Left-of-centre Biweekly Newsletter northtipp.substack.com/p/is-hector-...
northtipp.substack.com
Is Hector Bellerín the person our tech overlords want us to become? If so, ok.
A man with seemingly oodles of freetime, the former Arsenal and current Real Betis defender makes the very most of it with personal development and social activism
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
I found it: THE worst episode of the Irish Times political podcast. I think my work is done and I no longer have to subject myself to it. www.irishtimes.com/podcasts/ins...
irishtimes.com
Latest poll numbers show neither Government nor Opposition all that popular with electorate
Inside Politics podcast with Hugh Linehan
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Darach Ó Séaghdha @darach.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Finally, It’s ok to be suspicious of this fixation on what people in the 26 would “give up” to please some offstage loyalist figure. This is scaremongering disguised as maturity.
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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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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Shane Coleman got this week's Yellow Card northtipp.substack.com/p/the-triple...
northtipp.substack.com
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
northtipp.substack.com/p/the-triple...
northtipp.substack.com
The Triple Lock; or, What’s the point being an independent country?...
Maybe an Irish solution to an Irish problem wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world
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The Foggy Jew @hmcevansoneya.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
I specify far right because this has fuck all to do with migration, underlying pressures, or actually changing the dynamic within the state; he just wants people from foreign to have more obligations and less rights
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Dean Buckley @deanbuckley.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
I don't want to be more in line with the rest of the EU on citizenship. I want us to repeal the fucking 27th Amendement and return to our own tradition of birthright citizenship instead of the jus sanguinis shite that tells people born and reared here they aren't Irish if they have immigrant parents
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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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Dean Buckley @deanbuckley.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Heather Humphreys absolutely and unequivocally experienced outrageous sectarian abuse during the presidential election, but there is something conspicuous in its absence from her piece, namely that it was John Lee of the Irish Daily Mail, not randos on social media, who spearheaded the attacks
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
The triple lock doesn't stop us investing more in our defence *one bit*, so why do they constantly lump the two together? Totally dishonest and disingenuous media.
"These developments demand a full and frank public debate rather than decisions arrived at by drift. That debate must take in the Government's plan to abolish the triple lock, the mechanism requiring United Nations approval before troops can be deployed abroad in any number."
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
And the reply northtipp.substack.com/p/strength-i...
northtipp.substack.com
Strength in Disunity
Why the left’s coat of many colors is a blessing in disguise in addressing issues such as dereliction/vacancy.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
First post in a weekly argument I have with my good friend on substack North Tipp Left-of-centre Weekly Newsletter northtipp.substack.com/p/the-state-...
northtipp.substack.com
The state of Left Unity
In the spirit of left unity and cooperation, here is a tirade about what's wrong with other left parties' attitudes to left unity and why my party is the best.
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Dean Buckley @deanbuckley.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
if we – or any developed country – actually did massively restrict immigration, it would collapse our economy and the only way to "fix" it would be to massively restrict emigration. you cannot be an authoritarian about population control without authoritarian control over the population
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
🇸🇨 Last month, Seychelles' Constitutional Court invalidated the 10th Amendment. They did so on two grounds: 1) substantively, it breached Article 1 "Seychelles is a sovereign *democratic* republic"; 2) procedurally, the President should'vereferred it to the Court for review. ⚖️
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missusvee.bsky.social @missusvee.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
The Irish Times is in good form today.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
On *the very day* I start teaching Constitutional Law in the University of Seychelles, the Constitutional Court rules a constitutional amendment unconstitutional 🤯 Will await the written judgement eagerly 🇸🇨
TODAY in Seychelles

The Constitutional Court of Seychelles has ruled that the 10th Amendment to the Constitution is unconstitutional. 
The amendment, which was assented to in June 2022, sought to expand the powers of the Seychelles Defence Forces by allowing them to enforce domestic law in matters relating to public security, environmental protection, and maritime security 
In its judgment delivered this morning, the Court found that the required constitutional procedures were not properly followed in the enactment of the amendment. 
The case stemmed from a petition filed in September 2022 by the Seychelles Human Rights Commission, the Office of the Ombudsman, and the Bar Association of Seychelles, challenging the validity of the amendment.
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Ben Wood @cosmichope.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
“The recognition of private property has really harmed Individualism, and obscured it, by confusing a man with what he possesses. It has led Individualism entirely astray. It has made gain not growth its aim.” (Oscar Wilde, "The Soul of Man Under Socialism").
static.klipy.com
Time-lapse of a Blooming Flower
ALT: Time-lapse of a Blooming Flower
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Joe Noonan @joenoonan.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
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Patrick Bresnihan @pbresnihan.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
It is getting beyond a joke that these four speakers are presented as 'for and against' neutrality. MacGill Summer School, 2026.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Constitutional reform proposals of the Democratic Socialists of America: - abolish the US Senate - replace the Presidency and Supreme Court with executives and judiciaries subordinate to Congress - expand House of Representatives - PR with 'ranked choice voting' program.dsausa.org
A REAL DEMOCRACY 

For the working class to govern, we need a new political system. End political corruption and legalized bribery: get rid of lobbyists, dark money, and Citizens United, and publicly finance all elections. Abolish the Electoral College Replace the President and Supreme Court with an executive and judiciary chosen by and subordinate to Congress A DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS 

Replace the two-party system with a multi-party democracy. Expand the House of Representatives implement proportional representation and ranked choice voting in all elections, and abolish the Senate
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Watching Micheál Martin reply to Holly Cairns in the Dáil makes me wonder: is there a point at which veneration of 'civility' – generally seen as something that can help political debate – actually hinders it? The substance of the issue doesn't matter; all that matters is the tone someone uses.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
My article 'Constitutional amendment and the final say in Ireland and India' is in the International Journal of Constitutional Law, available as an open-access advanced article. academic.oup.com/icon/advance...
academic.oup.com
Constitutional amendment and the final say in Ireland and India
Abstract. Irish and Indian approaches to constitutional amendment would appear to be chalk and cheese: Irish courts insist that the people have an unfetter
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Hannah Daly @hannahdaly.ie · 07/07/2026
Ireland is a huge outlier: This is more than three times the data centre consumption share of the Netherlands (7%), which is the second highest share in Europe (average 3%).
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
“A measure should be as enduring as possible. But nothing can be absolutely unchangeable in things that are subject to change. And therefore human law cannot be altogether unchangeable.” — St Thomas Aquinas
Painting 'The Triumph of St Thomas Aquinas' by Benozzo Gozzoli (1470-1475) in the Louvre, Paris.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
Despite IT editorialising, most significant thing Rabbitte says in the interview is the following: “So yes, there are elements in Sinn Féin that could subscribe to such a social democratic platform.” That's big from someone so historically anti-SF. www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
irishtimes.com
‘The ultra left is nihilist’: Pat Rabbitte outlines why broad left alliance won’t happen
Former minister told Inside Politics podcast that co-operation between Labour and Social Democrats would be ‘wise’
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The Foggy Jew @hmcevansoneya.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Anyway Sinn Féin are gonna be more left-wing in coalition with other parties of the left than they will be in coalition with Fianna Fáil so I think some of ye need to engage with the reality a bit more than the theory either way
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The Foggy Jew @hmcevansoneya.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Same old tune as it ever was from the commentariat. First it was Labour's moral duty to go into government with the right (and get annihilated) then it was the Green Party's moral duty to go into government with the right (and get annihilated) and now it's the Soc Dem's etc etc etc
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Colman O'Sullivan @colmanos.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
Thousands have turned out for an Anti-Racism rally in Belfast city centre, organised by United Against Racism and supported by Trade Unions
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
"We need to have a *serious* debate about [X]!" Aka you all need to agree with me
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
"why do Irish people only care about Israel and not other bad counties?" Well, as the people posing this whataboutery always point out, Ireland is part of the Western system, and the West is currently backing Israel to the hilt. We're morally obligated to try and stop this.
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Louth For Ever 🦋 @louthforever.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
A party can be entirely sincere about what it stands for and still not be the form the moment requires. The eighth essay, on the week the Irish left began contesting Sinn Féin’s place in it. Left Republican Party 💭✍🏼 #Spéirghorm #IrishPolitics 🔗 forlouth.medium.com/left-republi...
forlouth.medium.com
Left Republican Party
The week the left began contesting Sinn Féin’s place in it, and what the contest revealed about the form the moment requires
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The Foggy Jew @hmcevansoneya.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
There is something actually pretty unpleasant about Pat posing this question and then, instead of following his own advice, using the article to say what he thinks Jews think But yeah feel free to reach out any time you want to do more than talk to yourself and pretend it's us, lad
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Dean Buckley @deanbuckley.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
we need to tone down the way we talk about emigration in Ireland. it is obviously a subject with a traumatic history for us, but most people who emigrate today would still emigrate if we didn't have a housing crisis, and this histrionic framing helps to fuel anti-immigrant backlash
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
He says the soft left "do not want to dismantle the capitalist system that drives housing and healthcare inequality; they merely want capitalism with a human face." A fine line but it begs the question: does SF want to dismantle capitalism? On paper their economic policy is no more left than SDs.
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Louth For Ever 🦋 @louthforever.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
😬 - Hazzard has taken MacBradaigh’s essay and walked the whole thing further to the right. SF is at sea - and its committed left republican thinkers are continuing the drifting.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
The Social Democrats are the only party fully committed to left unity and achieving a left government. www.thejournal.ie/seanad-byele...
thejournal.ie
Friction on the left over who should be included in left-wing Seanad election pact
Sinn Féin and People Before Profit were not contacted by Labour about a possible joint candidate.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Irish left wing parties: have disagreements Irish Times: does this show that the left alliance has collapsed?!
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
So many in the media are framing the "left alliance" as this grand formal thing so that once any tensions arise between parties, it proves that a left alliance will fail. There's sadly no formal "alliance", and *no one* was making the claim below 👇 www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
So the mythos became that, based on the alliance formed in last year's presidential election, an alternative left-wing government was not just possible, it was now probable.
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
In a single transferable vote system, parties can't control who their voters give preferences to.
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Ben Wood @cosmichope.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
'We are called upon...to decide the question propounded in the Sermon on the Mount, as to whether we will worship God or Mammon. The present day is a Mammon-worshipping age. Socialism proposes to dethrone the brute-god Mammon & to lift humanity into its place' (Keir Hardie, 23 April 1901).
Sketch of Keir Hardie.
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Aidan Fitzmaurice @fancyvegaspro.bsky.social · 24/05/2026
I had some Aontu reps at my door the other day telling me the media is overstuffed with left wing voices.
Pair of headlines reading "Brenda Power: Who’d be a landlord when we resent them so much?" and "Eilis O’Hanlon: If anyone is suffering from a colonised mind, maybe it’s Catherine Connolly"
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Seán Rainford @seanrainford.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Why we need more democracy at work by @standespiegelaere.bsky.social www.socialeurope.eu/from-hitlers...
socialeurope.eu
From Hitler’s Industrialists to Trump’s Tech Bros: The Case for Democracy at Work
The alignment of America’s tech billionaires with authoritarian politics echoes 1930s industrial collaboration — but Germany and Spain offer a democratic remedy.
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Fred Logue @fplogue.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
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Stephen O'Neill @oneillsb.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
There is a fundamental paradox with this claim from Mick Clifford - hardly a prolific commentator on the six counties - that the 'old sectarian state' is gone and yet there still needs to be a supermajority within its territory for a united Ireland.
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Social Democrats @social-democrats.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Government’s sudden interest in nuclear energy is a distraction. It's a tactic to mask their huge failures in developing this country’s biggest natural resource – off-shore wind. Instead of turning to nuclear, we should be doubling down on renewables, off-shore wind and solar.
socialdemocrats.ie
Government’s sudden interest in nuclear energy an attempt to distract from off-shore wind failures - Social Democrats
The Government’s sudden interest in nuclear energy is a distraction tactic to mask their huge failures in developing this country’s biggest natural resource – off-shore wind. That’s according to Socia...
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