Seven Days

A glance at the week that was

Decent Dissent

The nation has no doubt been glued to the

Winter Olympics

, which has suffered just a little from the unfortunate problem of a lack of snow. There have also been complaints about public transport, the fence around the Olympic flame, and the dangers of the luge run after the death of a competitor during a practice run. Organisers are unhappy with the griping of some British journalists in particular causing organisers to say that they seem to be at a different games. Meanwhile, more shocking, was that Irish team’s skiwear looks like this.

The possibilities are open-ended but the winning proposals should be game-changers

President Mary McAleeseon the Your Country Your Call competition for new ideas to revive the country

Slow decline

Willie O'Deahad a rough week, when he came under fire for having given an incorrect statement in an affidavit. He said he had made a "genuine and honest mistake", which seemed to be enough to get Green Party support to pass a motion of confidence in the Dáil. But as the Opposition's complaints got louder, Green Party chairman Dan Boyle went on Twitter to say: "Not happy with what happened today." As the Greens turned on him, O'Dea finally apologised on RTÉ. He resigned from cabinet on Thursday night.

The numbers

48% of maths teachersin secondary schools are unqualified

650 UFO sightingswere reported to the UK's ministry of defence last year – the highest for 31 years

6 weeks Jerry Flanneryis banned from rugby after kicking a French player last weekend

We now know

King Tutankhamun'sparents were a brother and sister,

Rents are risingagain for the first time in two years

Stephen Irelandhas spent a reported £100,000 on a fish tank