Steven Levitt, the man who attributed falling crime rates to the legalisation of abortion, has written an instructive and entertaining book, on such matters as the economics of crack-dealing street gangs, says Jim Holt

Have you read the one about the senior IRA activist – apparently a good friend of mine – who is now into picking up prostitutes at the back of Belfast City Hall? Or what about my relative who has allegedly turned his back on republicanism over the recent initiatives by the IRA? Or what about the republican women who used to undress in front of their bed room windows to distract British soldiers on foot patrol who were then easily shot by IRA snipers?

Anti-deportation activists have complained of "excessive Garda force" during the deportation of 50 Nigerians at the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) headquarters on 18 October.

The 250 properties allegedly connected to 'Slab' Murphy has become just seven, and the reputation of the Assets Recovery Agency now hangs in the balance. By Colm Heatley

Fianna Fáil's ard-fheis theme is listening, but most of the motions will congratulate Ministers and avoid all those problem issues. By Eoin O Murchu

The Minister for Education, Mary Hanafin, made an intriguing admission recently. Commenting on figures showing that the numbers of students attending non fee-paying schools in Dublin had plummeted, the Minister said that the drift to private education could be directly traced to the decision to abolish university fees a decade ago. Many parents who in the past would have put money aside for their children's university, were instead now spending that money on private education, she said.

On Friday, Rachael English lined up the ingredients for Five Seven Live with great ease: the change of mind of the witness in the Sophie Toscan du Plantier case; vets across the EU meeting in Brussels to discuss avian flu; Shell not bowing to pressure for the offshore thingamajig; poor Charlie Bird horrified in Muzaffarabad (and so would you be); bad water in Ennis (again); the regional papers, sports, farm news, traffic and news and Derek Davis; George Bush's aides engineering a press conference for him (and getting caught) and the blond Bond (no, he's still a man).

Slam Dunks and No-Brainers didn't teach PJ O'Rourke anything new about American slang; indignant and intolerant of language, Leslie Saran's book is a humourless failure

› 21 December1997: Marie Farrell saw a suspicious looking person in Schull around 3pm. Sophie du Plantier called on Marie Farrell's clothes shop that afternoon in Schull. The women did not know each other.

As the Taoiseach's brother, Noel Ahern believes he has the freedom to speak out where other TDs would hold back. Sometimes he can even be a thorn in Bertie's side. By Mary Regan