Is reality about to bite for Eamon Ryan and Greens?

SIR,

Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the “who cares what it costs?” Greens are dragging out the old political chestnut of playing “kick the can down the road.”

In other words: Irish politics as usual.

It is shameful and embarrassing that this is all these have to show for themselves so many months after the General Election, when the voters chose to kick them to the curb.

There are people making very long-range decisions for us whose own constituencies didn’t want them back.

Yet they still hold their seats and still draw their salaries.

The Greens increased their representation in the Dáil but not so much as to warrant playing kingmaker for Ireland, and not nearly so much as the gains made by Sinn Féin.

Where is the democracy in that?

They want people to start cycling and walking to work on all these new trails they want built; walk to where? -- to jobs that don’t exist?

They have no plan for legitimate job growth. They just want us to stop eating meat.

And vital issues such as pensions, retirement age, tax breaks and use of natural gas...well, they say, we’ll wait until all the reports are in from the commissions that have yet to be formed. Talk about kick the can! Why does Eamon Ryan look like the cat who’s got the cream in all his recent photos?

It’s a cheshire cat’s grin that will soon disappear once he, himself, is kicked down the road in the next General Election – which will be much sooner than later.

That’s because this proposed coalition will never last.

We must return to the polls and be quick about it. Do it right this time.

Sincerely,

Tom Cahill, Ballinskelligs.

Green Party leader Eamon Ryan.