Kevin Myers (born 30 March 1947) is an English born journalist and commentator based in Ireland. He writes for the Irish Independent, and is a former contributor to The Irish Times newspaper, where he wrote the "An Irishman's Diary" column several times weekly. Until 2005, he wrote for the Sunday Telegraph in the UK. His articles often offer criticism of left-wing opinion and the "liberal consensus", sometimes incorporating hyperbolic sarcasm and parody.

Style
Myers promotes awareness of Irish soldiers who served in the British Armed Forces, particularly in World War I, arguing that they believed they were doing their patriotic duty as Irishmen. He has faulted the official commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising, and has raised concerns about uncritically celebrating Irish rebellions of former times. He has been sceptical of the Northern Ireland peace process, and regards Sinn Féin as irredeemably intertwined with the Provisional IRA.
He has also caused much controversy concerning claims that Irish people did not suffer much under British rule and that in fact the country was over-represented in the British House of Commons.

Irishness and Nationalism
Myers has been an advocate of unrestricted freedom of speech and an opponent of censorship and political correctness. He attracted considerable criticism for "An Irishman's Diary" of February 8, 2005, in which he referred to children of unmarried mothers as "bastards":
How many girls - and we're largely talking about teenagers here - consciously embark upon a career of mothering bastards because it seems a good way of getting money and accommodation from the State? Ah. You didn't like the term bastard? No, I didn't think you would.
Myers issued an "unconditional apology" two days later, "entirely at [his] own initiative". Irish Times editor Geraldine Kennedy also apologised for having agreed to publish the article. Myers has claimed to have received death threats over his controversial remarks.

The "bastards" controversy
Myers caused controversy on 8 February 2006 in his Irishman's Diary when he referred to Scottish people as obese and dependent on the welfare state.
There lies the ruin of Scotland - subsidies. Guaranteed transfers of capital from England have created a political culture of sloth which is now endemic and even personalised. Scottish people are the most obese in Europe, in which regard they resemble the wretched Scottish statelet. Only a minority of Scottish people work for a living - and most of those who have jobs are employed by the state: 577,300. In other words, they are employed by the English to manage themselves. The rest of the Scots are on the dole or pensions, living in state-owned housing estates, sending their children to state-run schools, where the most likely form of personal enterprise they will ever encounter is their local heroin-dealer.
On the 17 January 2007 he wrote a similar article about Scotland, drawing in the topical issue of the country's possible secession from the United Kingdom or gaining of some other form of independence.

Other work