Why does everyone hate kevin myers?

DrumSteve

Not sure if this should be in politics ( so feel free to move it).

While I dont agree with some of what he says he does raise some valid points in his opinion pieces. but everytime i go to the politics forum and his name comes up a good majority of people say they would not piss on him if he was on fire(figuratively speaking).

Why Is this?

Bandit12

Who?

mikemac

I don't

He often says the things that people are afraid to say because of the PC brigade

Having said that, he does speak rubbish often
He is controversial and people talk about him. And that's why he earns the big money from a national newspaper

Earthhorse

People in the Politics forum are very angry and are just jealous of Myers who is probably the most successful angry man in Ireland.

mikemac

Earthhorse wrote: »

....Myers who is probably the most successful angry man in Ireland.

I'll see you Kevin Myers and raise you Eamonn Dunphy

Voltex

he's crap on the radio...sounds like a blabbering fool...good writer though

orourkeda

Maybe its because he's a c@nt

starbelgrade

I've no idea - I quite like him.

DrumSteve

orourkeda wrote: »

Maybe its because he's a c@nt

yeah but why is he a ****?

ronano

I guess people dislike him because he seems in his writing to be a bit of a smug git and writes as if his opinions are nearly facts. I can understand why he rubs people up the wrong way but all considered i think he is a positive for journalism and society in Ireland. Nine of his articles might be dross but one brings an issue to the forefront that might not otherwise be tackled.

I read his column and most of the time i wanna give him a slap

cyclopath2001

He's the Jeremy Clarkson of Irish politics.

starbelgrade

Arrogant, conceited, over-opinionated... all words once used by Kevin Myers.

herya

I heard him on Newstalk this week complaining about pubs not offering sandwiches anymore, just paninis. And lattes not coffee. On the basis of one pub in Grafton St. I didn't know it's him at first and I couldn't understand why on earth George Hook is entertaining this whiny Brit teenager.

It took him ages and at some point mid-whine George good-naturedly quipped that it might be because people serving them are not Irish so it might be easier for them and the guest immediately switched to whining how the immigration in Ireland is out of control and how himself he was the only person in Ireland ready to talk about it on the telly.

This moment the penny dropped and indeed a minute later George thanked Kevin Myers for his contribution.

Orchard Rebel

Coming from a similar background to Kevin Myers (East Midlands of England with Irish parents), he seems to me to have been strongly influenced by the intellectual right in the UK (small wonder that he has written for the Sunday Telegraph down the years) who are naturally unionist and not known for their love of the Irish.

He seems to me to identify myriad ways in which he sees Ireland as being wrong but offers little in the way of a vision for how it could be better. Whether that's down to a limited intellect or a lack of belief in the place I don't know.

alfranken

He seems to be mad at ireland for not being a lord or something pompous like that

Dannyboy83

Hes entertaining, but I didn't know he was supposed to be taken seriously.........well, all the time.

Some occasional gems, definitely thought provoking.

herya

Orchard Rebel wrote: »

He seems to me to identify myriad ways in which he sees Ireland as being wrong but offers little in the way of a vision for how it could be better. Whether that's down to a limited intellect or a lack of belief in the place I don't know.

That, and also there is no direction/coherence in his rants. He just lashes out on whatever is talked about that week and he chooses the most controversial angle even if it doesn't make sense, just to stir. By pure chance he can make an isolated decent point sometimes but it's woefully random and not supported by any coherent thinking.

alfranken

herya wrote: »

That, and also there is no direction/coherence in his rants. He just lashes out on whatever is talked about that week and he chooses the most controversial angle even if it doesn't make sense, just to stir. By pure chance he can make an isolated decent point sometimes but it's woefully random and not supported by any coherent thinking.

Yep, if Ireland had a station like Fox that's where he'd be.

Mr. Incognito

The Indo is a rag.

The Sunday indo is a bigger rag.

I buy neither so Kevin Myers is long forgotten in my world.

Where the hell did he get that accent? Was it inserted up his hole in Trinity?

Joey the lips

Mothers of baxtards comment was one

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/82069



Maybe because of his views on africa

He also described Africa as “almost an entire continent of sexually hyperactive indigents, with tens of millions of people who only survive because of help from the outside world
http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/2954


Maybe its because of his views on Ronan o gara because he had his hands in his pocket, you know "the ronan o'gara is a louth"
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/news-comment/kevin-myers-ronan-ogaras-a-real-lout-for-not-giving-the-queen-some-respect-1685515.html

It seems that every time Kevin Myers comments he creates contraversy. He is kinda like the scoolboy down the back of the class that when the teacher explains the world is round he comes out with a comment like "Well know it is actually sphereical"

K-9

Joey the lips wrote: »

Mothers of baxtards comment was one

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/82069



Maybe because of his views on africa

He also described Africa as “almost an entire continent of sexually hyperactive indigents, with tens of millions of people who only survive because of help from the outside world
http://www.ethiopianreview.com/content/2954


Maybe its because of his views on Ronan o gara because he had his hands in his pocket, you know "the ronan o'gara is a louth"
http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/news-comment/kevin-myers-ronan-ogaras-a-real-lout-for-not-giving-the-queen-some-respect-1685515.html

It seems that every time Kevin Myers comments he creates contraversy. He is kinda like the scoolboy down the back of the class that when the teacher explains the world is round he comes out with a comment like "Well know it is actually sphereical"

An attention seeker basically.

Absurdum

he's someone who I'd like to have a drink with, but before said drink was consumed I'd probably want to kill him

Acacia

He's a real-life troll.

Pride Fighter

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

The Indo is a rag.

The Sunday indo is a bigger rag.

I buy neither so Kevin Myers is long forgotten in my world.

Where the hell did he get that accent? Was it inserted up his hole in Trinity?

He went to UCD and was somewhat left leaning while there. Myarse is just simply a git.

johnnyskeleton

DrumSteve wrote: »

Why Is this?

People hate journalists. Kevin Myers is a journalist.

People hate journalists who have opinions even more than they hate other journalists. Kevin Myers' job is to express minority opinions.

People hate journalists who have an opinion different to theirs. Kevin Myers' job is to publish minority opinions which, of necessity, are different to most peoples.

While I disagree with most of what he says, he performs an important function by disagreeing with what he perceives as the majority opinion, or at least the majority opinion of the media.

thebman

Name sounds vaguely familiar, no idea who is.

I think he is against immigration, good luck with that.

lol.

lostexpectation

the other day on newstalk he went from not being able to get a good pub sandwich(his column that day apparently?!), to lowered standards in general, to lowered standards in the dail...

case closed.

Manic Moran

I think he's disliked by people because the truth hurts.

Sure, he's hyperbolic, and absolutely some of his rants seem pointless (I guess it's hard to do a quality rant every day, if it's a slow news week), but how many times has a Myers article been quoted on these same self august Boards with people saying "He may have been a little overstating the issue, but fundamentally he's correct."

There is usually a kernel of truth in what he says, and he sparks discussion. Often with a sense of humour.

As one guy put it, the Irish Jeremy Clarkson. I like both.

NTM

Joey the lips

Manic Moran wrote: »

I think he's disliked by people because the truth hurts.

Sure, he's hyperbolic, and absolutely some of his rants seem pointless (I guess it's hard to do a quality rant every day, if it's a slow news week), but how many times has a Myers article been quoted on these same self august Boards with people saying "He may have been a little overstating the issue, but fundamentally he's correct."

There is usually a kernel of truth in what he says, and he sparks discussion. Often with a sense of humour.

As one guy put it, the Irish Jeremy Clarkson. I like both.

NTM

Nahh Eammonn Dunphry is disliked because the truth hurts. Kevin Myers is disliked because when he tells you something you get the feeling that his comments come with a " Well if you dont like that you can shove it...." line!

djpbarry

Manic Moran wrote: »

I think he's disliked by people because the truth hurts.

There’s only so much hyperbole and hearsay that can be added to ‘the truth’ before it begins to resemble something very different indeed. I dislike Myers not because of his opinion, but because of the manner in which it is conveyed. But then, I dislike tabloid journalism in general.

I wouldn’t be a huge fan of Clarkson either (although I must admit, he’s a damn sight more humorous than our Kevin), possibly because I can’t tell the difference between an S-class and a C-class, but, like Myers, I don’t believe for one second that Clarkson considers everything he says himself to be true - he just likes to annoy people.

irish_bob

DrumSteve wrote: »

Not sure if this should be in politics ( so feel free to move it).

While I dont agree with some of what he says he does raise some valid points in his opinion pieces. but everytime i go to the politics forum and his name comes up a good majority of people say they would not piss on him if he was on fire(figuratively speaking).

Why Is this?

the media in ireland is overwhelmingly liberal so kevin myers sticks out like a sore thumb , he isnt afraid to bring up sacred cows like immigration or feminism etc , the man is a national treasure

Kev_ps3

I hate him anyway because he is an arrogant anti-Irish west-Brit..

irish_bob

johnnyskeleton wrote: »

People hate journalists. Kevin Myers is a journalist.

People hate journalists who have opinions even more than they hate other journalists. Kevin Myers' job is to express minority opinions.

People hate journalists who have an opinion different to theirs. Kevin Myers' job is to publish minority opinions which, of necessity, are different to most peoples.

While I disagree with most of what he says, he performs an important function by disagreeing with what he perceives as the majority opinion, or at least the majority opinion of the media.

you are mistaken in thinking he represents minority opinion , the media in ireland is not representitive of most irish peoples views , its is disproportionatley left wing and most irish people are not left wing

irish_bob

Joey the lips wrote: »

Nahh Eammonn Dunphry is disliked because the truth hurts. Kevin Myers is disliked because when he tells you something you get the feeling that his comments come with a " Well if you dont like that you can shove it...." line!

dunphy is a populist of the highest order , a phoney ,an insider posing as a rebel , he idolised the likes of mc creevy during the boom yet now all of a sudden , hes the voice of the working man , dunphy puts myers in the happeny place when it comes to seeking attention , i have yet to see dunphy on the opposite side of mob mentality

Ziggurat

Myers is little more than a polemicist and like all polemicists he thrives off of manufacturing controversy.

Especially when he tries to paint himself as some sort of underdog voicing the truth the rest of the media won't tell. As someone else said above, he'd fit right in at Fox, what with their incessant squealing that there is some supposed liberal bias in the media.

Nodin

irish_bob wrote: »

the media in ireland is overwhelmingly liberal so kevin myers sticks out like a sore thumb , he isnt afraid to bring up sacred cows like immigration or feminism etc , the man is a national treasure

The Sindo...liberal bastion....?

OldJay

Ziggurat wrote: »

Myers is little more than a polemicist and like all polemicists he thrives off of manufacturing controversy

Exactly. An attention seeking contrarian.
Only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about would be his motto, I'd guess.

OldJay

Nodin wrote: »

The Sindo...liberal bastion....?

Doesn't write for the "Sindo" which is of course, the Sunday Independent as we all know.

eightyfish

He lost me in 07 when he salivated with praise over a book by old-Earth creationist Harum Yahya. In the article Myers demonstrates a total lack of basic understanding of science and evolution, but talks with ignorant authority about both. Could never take him seriously after reading that.

johnnyskeleton

irish_bob wrote: »

you are mistaken in thinking he represents minority opinion , the media in ireland is not representitive of most irish peoples views , its is disproportionatley left wing and most irish people are not left wing

I appreciate that the majority media opinion may not be the opinion of the majority of Irish people (I think I said so in my post). However, I don't think that the media is disproportionately left wing. I think overall the Irish media is centre-right with a healthy does of liberal attitudes, much like most things in Ireland.

Kevin Meyers' opinion can't properly be described as right wing either: some times his views could be considered extreme right wing, others fairly left wing. Usually though, I think he just shoots from the hip and disagrees with what he perceives as accepted wisdom.

Agricola

I think hes abit like Declan Ganly in that if he had an Irish accent he'd be more accepted. Its because of his middle class Brit twang and the fact he likes to batter republicanism at least once a week in his column, thats hes widely disliked.

Personally, I think hes usually on the money. Its just alot of his pieces are wrapped up in such hyperbole and long winded english that I cant be bothered to get to the point most times!

population

Agricola wrote: »

I think hes abit like Declan Ganly in that if he had an Irish accent he'd be more accepted. Its because of his middle class Brit twang and the fact he likes to batter republicanism at least once a week in his column, thats hes widely disliked.

I do not care what accent anyone has. But his article last year on Africa was about the closest thing to incitement to hatred I think I had ever read in an Irish newspaper. I spoke to a very high ranking member of the Garda about another matter on the day that article came out, and he was genuinely shocked by it's content and it's potential to lead to pockets of violence towards members of the immigrant community.

Myers got a rap on the knuckles from the press complaints commision and rather than take his medicine tried to blame it all on the Sub in the Indo who wrote the title. Noble brave man indeed.

Nodin

Justind wrote: »

Doesn't write for the "Sindo" which is of course, the Sunday Independent as we all know.

Well, Sindo/Indo...they both wear the same blue coloured shirt....

Nodin

Agricola wrote: »

I think hes abit like Declan Ganly in that if he had an Irish accent he'd be more accepted. Its because of his middle class Brit twang and the fact he likes to batter republicanism at least once a week in his column, thats hes widely disliked.

Personally, I think hes usually on the money. Its just alot of his pieces are wrapped up in such hyperbole and long winded english that I cant be bothered to get to the point most times!

Well for one thing, most of us who ever read any of his crap didn't read it out in his accent. Secondly, his remarks about Africans and immigration are by and large related to race

“What most struck me while watching BBC television news reports of the Christmas sales in the West End of London, was firstly obvious, and secondly, it was something that no one with the BBC would ever have remarked on. It was this. The shoppers — and there were thousands of them — were overwhelmingly of Asian or African origin. In the vast throngs of faces, there was barely a Caucasian face to be seen; and when there was, of course, that was no guarantee that it was British.”

(my bold)
http://bnp.org.uk/tag/kevin-myers/

Why he's here on this side of the water when the BNP and Stormfront are so keen on him I don't know.

thebman

Nodin wrote: »

(my bold)
http://bnp.org.uk/tag/kevin-myers/

Why he's here on this side of the water when the BNP and Stormfront are so keen on him I don't know.

Yeah exactly what I remember about him. He can fook right off with opinions like that IMO.

Even if that is playing to that crowd, I don't think they should be played to.

FlutterinBantam

I read him an odd time and most of the time he is dead right.

In my opinion he speaks it as he sees it, and doesn't give the usual mealy mouthed platitudes so beloved of the liberal left who don't give Jack Schidt as long as they have some flyblown cause to rattle on about.

He shines a light on the the shady dealings of the flat capped merchants in the Border areas and doesn't hesitate to adopt the unpopular view when the situation deserves it.

We need more people like him, in my opinion, who are not afraid to face down the bleeding heart liberals who would have us funding every frikken jackass who is too lazy to help him or herself in any part of the globe and who get involved in causes that they have nothing to do with or have no need to get involved in.

He is not the worst by a long shot.

djpbarry

FlutterinBantam wrote: »

I read him an odd time and most of the time he is dead right.

Is he? Take the article quoted above by Nodin (full text here); he kicks off by complaining about the fact that there are apparently too many non-white faces in London for his liking, but then he goes on to say...

London had always attracted immigrants, who have generally become assimilated into the population around them.

So what exactly is his point? What is he ‘dead right’ about in this instance? Because it looks to me as though he has completely contradicting himself. London has indeed attracted many immigrants in the past, but of course, from the 20th century, a large portion were non-white and such people can never fully ‘integrate’ as far as Myers and his ilk are concerned. It’s also worth remembering that the vast majority of immigrants in London are from former British colonies, dominions, etc., so a comparison with Dublin/Ireland isn’t really valid.

I also have to draw attention to this comment:

Perhaps a majority of players in any good English team will be of at least part-African origin. This is surely worth commenting on, for many reasons, not the least of them being the rapid disappearance of role models for white working-class boys...

So he’s essentially implying that a black footballer could not possibly act as a role model for a white boy? I simply cannot believe that he is serious in making such a statement.

Nodin

FlutterinBantam wrote: »

In my opinion he speaks it as he sees it, and doesn't give the usual mealy mouthed platitudes so beloved of the liberal left who don't give Jack Schidt as long as they have some flyblown cause to rattle on about.

So he has no "causes" that he likes to "rattle on about"...?

Nodin

FlutterinBantam wrote: »

We need more people like him, in my opinion, who are not afraid to face down the bleeding heart liberals who would have us funding every frikken jackass who is too lazy to help him or herself in any part of the globe and who get involved in causes that they have nothing to do with or have no need to get involved in.

..yet twas he that supported the Iraq war...or is that 'different'?

Rebelheart

irish_bob wrote: »

the man is a national treasure

Yeah, but which nation?

Rebelheart

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

The Indo is a rag.

The Sunday indo is a bigger rag.

I buy neither so Kevin Myers is long forgotten in my world.

Where the hell did he get that accent? Was it inserted up his hole in Trinity?

The good Mr Myers is a born and bred Englishman:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Myers

He has finally found his spiritual home in the rags, as you accurately term them.