Category: The State

Dermot Ahern: Ethically blind?

Here’s what Sunday Times journalist, Justine McCarthy had to say about Justice Minister Dermot Ahern’s behaviour during the vote of confidence in O’Dea last week (Primetime, 19th).

There are certainly questions for the Minister for Justice, Dermot Ahern answer for his behaviour in the Dail.

The sight of him sitting beside Deputy O’Dea when he was making his statement on Wednesday, grinning from ear to ear and making pantomime noises across the chamber was literally disgusting.

This is the man who is in charge of the administration of justice in this country. He himself is a solicitor and therefore an officer of the courts. His conduct gave the impression that he believes that there is nothing wrong with recklessly slandering somebody, particularly in this case, an election candidate.

His behaviour gave the impression that he believes there is nothing wrong with swearing a false affidavit. I think Dermot Ahern should certainly be called to account for what he’s done.

I completely agree with Ms. McCarthy but I think a cowboy politician like Ahern would be genuinely puzzled by her comments.

After all, this man doesn’t believe that the criminal Haughey was corrupt and was one of the many Fianna Fail politicians who backed the chancer Bertie Ahern no matter how fantastic his ‘explanations’.

Angry – but gone

Irish Times letter

No choice but to emigrate

Madam,

I am disgusted at the the recent comments on emigration by the Tánaiste Mary Coughlan (“Tánaiste’s comments on emigration unacceptable, says Donohoe”, Seanad Report, February 17th). I, a young person of 23, have recently moved to London to take up a job. And despite Ms Coughlan’s assertions about my generation, I did not move to enjoy myself. I left my family, my friends and all that I hold dear behind because I had to.

I moved because my native country has nothing to offer me because of the self-interest, the naked greed, the croneyism of those in positions of power in Government and in financial institutions. These are the people who robbed a whole generation of a future in Ireland and they are still making the decisions about our country.

Are we the most compliant nation on Earth, or what?

I worked hard to get good results in university. When I couldn’t get a job I studied for a further year, hoping a higher diploma in nursing would open doors to employment in Ireland. But to no avail. Attitudes to my applications were dismissive at times. In contrast, hospitals in England are so appreciative of my skills and my obvious interest in my profession (as indicated by my further studies) that several of them made offers to me.

Thus I plucked up the courage to say a painful goodbye to my parents and friends. And next year it is highly likely that my brother will have to do the same.

It’s one thing for a young person to choose to travel, and I’m all for that. But it’s quite another to feel forced out of your country in order to find work. I feel every taxpayer has a stake in this exodus of highly trained, hard-working and bright young people and I want us all to be angry enough to ensure this never happens again to a generation of Irish people.

The arrogance of Ms Coughlan’s comments just go to show how this Government knows nothing of the struggles of ordinary people to make ends meet. It is time they had a wake-up call. – Yours, etc,

SARAH MOORE,

Mitcham Road,

West Croydon,

London, England.

Ireland: A country incapable of dealing with reality

According to Sunday Times columnist, Justine McCarthy, Minister for Defence Willie O’Dea perjured himself in court.

O’Dea had denied in an affidavit that he had accused Maurice Quinlivan, a Sinn Fein local-election candidate, of owning a brothel.

He only admitted that his remarks were false and defamatory after a tape recording of his comments was produced.

This is very similar to the tactics employed by Bertie Ahern while giving evidence to the Tribunal regarding his dealings in Sterling.

Right up to the moment that documentary evidence was produced, Ahern consistently denied under oath that he had ever had any significant dealings in Sterling.

Let’s immediately cut to the chase here. In a functional democracy perjury is treated as a very serious crime. In a dysfunctional democracy, like Ireland, perjury is only treated as a serious crime for the little people.

People in power and influence are rarely, if ever, even accused of the crime never mind actually charged.

In a functional democracy like the UK, for example, allegations or suspicions of perjury by any citizen are immediately investigated by the police.

There’s no convenient ignoring of the crime by a judge, court or tribunal, there’s no talk about requesting the Prime Minister to ‘advise’ a politician who is under suspicion of committing perjury. There’s no changing the discussion to any other subject that comes to mind so long as it doesn’t focus on the reality of the situation.

No, in real democracies like the UK, when evidence emerges that the crime of perjury may have been committed the police investigate and prosecutions are taken as necessary.

The first thing that happens in a dysfunctional democracy like Ireland is – nothing. The powers that be simply pretend that nothing of significance has happened and hope that nobody notices.

We witnessed the same reaction in other cases like Jim Flavin of DCC or the Neary case. No action was taken by any Irish authority in these cases until somebody from outside the country acted.

O’Dea is alleged to have lied under oath last December and yet it was only when Justine McCarthy wrote her article nearly two months later that anything was done, once again everybody ignored the raging elephant until an outside source pointed it out.

The media and political reaction since the ‘expose’ has also been typical of a country that is incapable of facing reality when it doesn’t suit.

It must be kept in mind when reading the following examples that in a functional democracy there is only one reaction – an immediate investigation by police followed by prosecution if necessary.

The legal system

Nobody involved in the case seemed to take a blind bit of notice when a government minister made a false statement in a sworn affidavit. Compare this to Amanda McNamara who perjured herself because she was in absolute fear of her life about giving evidence in a brutal murder trial.

The judge in this case had no problem in identifying perjury saying that it was a very serious matter that undermined Ireland’s system of criminal justice. McNamara was given 100 hours community service and will have a criminal record for the rest of her life.

Seanad Eireann

Fine Gael spokesman on Justice Eugene Regan demanded to know from Seanad Leader, Donnie Cassidy, if Minister O’Dea was being held to account for lying under oath (Irish Times).

Cassidy ignored the question, simply stating that O’Dea was an excellent public representative and the people of Limerick were very fortunate to have such a capable person. He, (Cassidy) then proceeded to talk about another matter altogether.

This is a typical – if I ignore reality, it will go away – reaction.

Dail Eireann

Taoiseach Brian Cowen and Minister O’Dea said it was a private and personal matter. This is despite the fact that O’Dea said in his sworn affidavit that he was fully entitled to raise the issue and make the allegations as a public representative.

Obviously there’s nothing private about this matter whatsoever. O’Dea, a government minister, defamed another politician in response to questions about his (O’Dea’s) large and expensive staff paid for by the taxpayer – and we’re asked to believe that it’s a private matter?

Even if it was a private matter, is the Prime Minister of our country suggesting that it’s ok for a government minister to make a false statement in a sworn affidavit so long as it relates to a private matter?

RTE, The Week in Politics (34 min)

Sean O’Rourke and Brian Dowling. (One RTE journalist interviewing another RTE journalist).

The fact that very serious allegations of perjury are facing a government minister was completely ignored by the journalists.

The entire discussion focused on the possible political implications for O’Dea if the matter became controversial. Brian Dowling suggested that because O’Dea was a huge vote getter there was unlikely to be any impact on his career.

Irish Times editorial

The following points were made in this editorial.

The Taoiseach was in an invidious position because of the relaxed attitude adopted by his predecessors to ethical issues.

This is just silly logic suggesting that low standards in the past could act as a block to taking action in the present.

Because public confidence in authority had waned there was a need to promote high standards and ensure political accountability.

In real democracies such standards are the expected norm and not something that needs promoting.

The matter may create friction between the Coalition parties.

This is an irrelevant point unless the editor feels that government unity is more important than political, legal and ethical accountability.

This scandal and how it is being dealt with once again confirms that Ireland is nothing more than a dysfunctional, backwater state pretending to be a first world democracy.

Greeks on the street – Irish still sitting at home

There is very little difference between the economies of Ireland and Greece: both are on a slippery slope to disaster.

Neither is there much difference between the principal causes of these disasters – Political corruption and incompetence, massive tax evasion by the rich without consequences and the squeezing of ordinary citizens to pay for the whole rotten system.

There is, however, a huge difference between the reactions of ordinary citizens. A Channel 4 news report on Greek protests makes the point.

This is Greece, not Ireland. We the workers will resist.

We will fight; we will not accept the measures and that can only happen if we protest against them, not if we sit in our houses.

The Irish are still sitting in their houses – like sheep.

The truth

Irish Times letter.

Madam,

As a one-time alcoholic and an inmate of St Ita’s, Portrane may I offer my observations of the Irish psyche.

As a nation we are inherently incapable of changing either ourselves or our nature of government, of which our leaders are only too well aware.

They realise that the only thing we are likely to do as a people is to go the pub, get drunk and bitch until incoherent about the situation, instead of doing something, anything, to change it. Some of us don’t even have to go to the local to do this.

As a result of this knowledge, they are not only quite prepared to take atrociously bad decisions, such as on Nama, in order to preserve their status quo, but to flaunt their dominance, and our powerlessness to do anything about them, as we regularly witness.

Our mindset is still the same as it was under 700 years of foreign rule, when, incidentally, we were really treated no worse than we are today, by our present generation of Irish political masters.

Yours, etc,

Liam Power,
Bangor Erris,
Ballina, Co Mayo.

Betrayal through incompetence

During the discussion on last night’s Late Debate Journalist and political scientist, Elaine Byrne provided some interesting statistics that, more than anything else, prove how incompetent our public representatives are and how, through that incompetence, they betray the best interests of Ireland and its people.

Since its establishment in 1937 Seanad Eireann has produced 12 separate unimplemented reports about Seanad reform.

In the 88 years since independence there have been less than 40 private members bills that have become legislation in Dail Eireann. In the 32 years since 1978 almost 300 such bills have entered legislation in the UK parliament.

Since 1997, when the Constitutional Review Group met, there have been ten different progress reports, two substantial reports and another three reports since the committee met in 2007.

Elaine Byrne and the thee political morons

Journalist and political scientist, Elaine Byrne, had her work cut out for her on last night’s Late Debate.

Lined up against her were three moronic dinosaurs representing the current corrupt political system that has destroyed this country.

George Lee’s resignation was the topic of discussion but the underlying discussion was about the Irish political system and the need for reform of that system.

Elaine Byrne was saying the system is broken and, of course, she’s absolutely right but the dinosaurs are so far stuck up their own political rectums that they hadn’t the slightest inkling of what she was trying to tell them.

The political dinosaurs were Senator Regan of Fine Gael, Niall Collins TD of Fianna Fail and Joe Costello TD of Labour.

But before I deal with these morons I want to first quote the daddy of all political morons, Eoghan Harris where he rants on about the need for politicians to serve a political apprenticeship before they get too opinionated.

When reading this quote keep in mind that Harris never did a days political work in his life, he was appointed to the Senate solely for his unassailable ability of licking Bertie Ahern’s rear end

What’s been really concerning and worrying in the last few days is the way the discourse on the George Lee issue has become a general rejection of the notion that there should be no apprenticeship of any sort in politics.

The apprenticeship in politics is a very important preparation in terms of character. Listening to people who are annoying you, boring you, actually cranky people is a test of character and stamina and teaches people how to deal with the public.

I mean at the end of the day politics is about the rule of states and peoples and it starts with human beings, it’s not an abstract issue. I know there’s a delusion among college students and certain sections of the younger sections of the pol course (?) not the old guard I notice.

There is this delusion that all you have to do is assemble people with first class honours degrees and put them into politics and the country will be a land flowing with milk and honey. That is not how the real world works.

Incredibly, this idiot, who pontificates from the benches of that useless organisation, Seanad Eireann, claims to know how the real world works.

This moronic talk about political apprenticeships reminds me of Martin Mansergh’s (a prime example of an intellectual fool) idiotic idea that newly elected TDs shouldn’t address or criticise a Taoiseach until they’ve served for a number of years.

Not surprisingly, the political morons on the panel all agreed with Harris.

Costello (Lab)

I agree with Harris in terms of apprenticeship. I thinks it’s very important that people have to spend some time there learning…Elaine is missing the point she says the system is broken. We all agree that reforms have to take place…it’s not the political system that has failed the country, it’s the government that has failed the country and the two are totally different.

Collins (FF)

There’s an attempted circling of the wagons by the establishment around all the political parties and anyone who’s associated with politics saying the system is wrong. The system needs tweeking in particular areas, nobody’s disputing that, we all accept we have to try and better ourselves but this notion that Dail TDs and senators shouldn’t be available to the public who elects us on any level I think it’s farcical and the people who are making those comments don’t understand the work of public representatives in this country as far as I’m concerned.

Collins went on to give an example of how Irish political representatives work which sounded like a sketch straight out of Ballymagash.

We had a debate in our parliamentary party this evening about the dog breeding legislation. I met three groups of my constituents who are involved in dog breeding, that’s all part of it, we get out and about.

Byrne was completely stumped.

Dog breeding, you talk to them about dog breeding?

At this stage I lost the run of the discussion after falling to the floor in convulsions of contemptible laughter.

Collins wasn’t laughing though, he was, again, attacking Byrne because she’s an academic, what would her type know about the plain people of Ireland?

But Byrne is more tuned into the brutal reality of Irish politics than any of these morons.

It’s about politics, it’s about Ireland. We should have citizen assemblies where the citizens take ownership of the reform process where people can go into a room and say what needs reform.

I agree completely but would go much further. These political dinosaurs and all their fellow representatives from all parties have lost their right to govern or represent the people of Ireland.

The system they represent and defend so strongly is corrupt and beyond redemption, beyond reform.

We should indeed have citizen assemblies, the people should indeed take ownership, not of the reform process, but of the political system itself. The first step in taking that ownership is to destroy the current rotten system.