Gayjá Vu: Race to the White House 2012 and the eternal flame of the gay-marriage debate

Those of you who have read this blog over the years will be aware that it often deal with numerous issues concerning both US policy and issues in society at large. Interestingly, while it was always the intention to keep things fresh and up to date, both in terms of the issues raised and the information provided, this endeavour has seemingly been hindered. In 2008, during the Presidential Campaign of Barack Obama, one of the key issues in the campaign discourse was the topic of gay marriage. Initially the thought was that, after the election of a somewhat liberal and open-minded guy, we would see changes and progress in policy amendments within both American society and the international community regarding attitudes to gay marriage as well as other issues that show signs of a still healthy relationship between church and state. Apparently not.

Genuis in the background: Have 'real' music fans disappeared or has the brilliance waned?

Let's face it, 2010 and 2011 have not exactly been 'amazing' or 'stellar' years for music output in most fronts. It is fairly safe to assert that on both sides of the Atlantic, the Eurotrashy 'nce-nce' backing beat dominates which, let's face it, isn't exactly the mating call of the truly creative mind.

Dear Dáil Éireann: An Open Letter to the Oireachtas regarding Sen. David Norris

Dear members of the Oireachtas,

The UK Riots: Everyone Seems To Be Cashing In At Home & Abroad

Now, before I throw in my oar and paddle down the stream of voices from afar, I am aware of the irony of the title of this article. However, I think there is a slight difference between what I am about to say and what has been said in the mainstream press over the past few days and weeks.

There's No Such Thing as a Common Sense Approach: Starving the "Big (e-) D"

Today I read an article (click here) regarding warnings dealing with a connection between Facebook use and teen depression. Interestingy I found it quite useful and it some ways it validated some of the claims made on this site in previous posts. I have published several articles here that have dealt with the issues of cyberbullying and the potentially harmful effects of social networking. The funny part, if you want to call it that, is that while I recieved numerous emails of 'praise' lauding some of the things I wrote I always thought that it meant that I had a slightly deeper understanding of the harm that social networking could have over the mind and body. As if I had found a 'common sense' way of balancing what I absorb from, the likes of, Facebook and reality. I didn't.

 Copyright Huffington Post 2011

I thought I had it covered. That I knew that 'rationing' my time on social networking sites would somehow be an easy feat to achieve. But when an event occured in my life that rocked it, what seemed to bring me ease actually turned out to be the bain of my virtual-real intertwined life.

Who said this General Election wasn't a game?

You would think that, in a time of crisis, political parties might actually focus on promoting their stance on the issues at hand rather than pandering to the few WoW and RoH fans out there for those last few votes. I present to you...

Death By Bullying: This Centuries Leading Form of Persecution

In some previous posts, SHC has covered the topic of bullying in some depth giving both examples of some of the most incredible cases of bullying and its consequences as well as giving opinion on various elements. Back in December 2008, we featured an article about homophobia and the Prop. 8 in California. Now it seems that both bullying and homophobia are back in the media and for all the wrong reasons. In the past few weeks, stories about 5 teen suicides emerged in the media. Each of the teenagers was either outed as gay or perceived as gay by their 'peers' and as a result of immense taunting and bullying, took their own lives.

Quitting Smoking Kills: A Rolling Journal Of My Battle With Cigarettes

I know this is totally unorthodox for this site, but I decided to keep an online journal of my efforts to quit smoking. It is not going to take up the whole site by any means. IT will be contained within this post and this post only. The rest of the site is business as usual. Oh, and sorry for the hiatus over the Summer and Autumn. Life has been pretty hectic since June and I am only now starting to get back to doing any writing. If you have any comments or questions, don't forget to email me at info@smokinghotcoffee.org and I will get back to you right away.

UK General Election 2010 RETROSPECTIVE: Why the Liberal Democrats' Electoral Reform Proposal Cannot Work

Now that the election is well and truly behind us all, and a coaltion government between the Liberal Democrats and the Conservative Party has 'triumphed', it is maybe a good idea to take a look back at a couple of areas where this new administration might meet obstacles.

UK General Election 2010 UPDATE: Results, Review & Response

After a gruelling night and morning of vote counts, recounts and declarations, the UK electorate gave a verdict which resounded across the country regarding who they want to run their government; nobody.