We can’t dodge all of the blame for corruption

HOW ironic that the Mahon Tribunal report should be published just a few days after we pretended to celebrate the arrival of Christianity to Ireland.

The report’s findings along with those of the other inquiries into political, religious and police corruption in recent years call into question not just the psyche of those under investigation, but that of our nation in general.

Those who engaged in all kinds of corrupt practices were put in place by ourselves of our own free will, and not just once but several times over many years.

Is the me féin and cute hoor mentality so deeply ingrained in our make-up that corruption is only a problem when we don’t personally benefit from it? FRANK O’CONNOR,

Blarney, Co. Cork.

Make way for the farce

IT HAS been said that Minister Phil Hogan has ordered city and county council officials to call on houses demanding payment of the household charge. Why doesn’t he do the calling himself?

He can bring along his joker-inarms Enda so we can have a convivial chat about such things as fairness and equity, broken promises, politicians’ huge pay, pensions and expenses, not to mention the capbusting salaries being paid to crony ‘advisers’, etc.

The departmental spokesman has already got into the spirit of things: he’s quoted as saying: ‘We want the local authorities to be on the ground’ - and there’s a very good chance indeed that that is precisely where a few callers will end up.

We are now moving seamlessly from chaos to farce.

JIM O’SULLIVAN, Rathedmond, Co. Sligo.

Money isn’t everything

I HOPE Michael Noonan has learned the lesson that throwing money at bondholders and others is not going to solve Ireland’s problems, in much the same way that it didn’t solve Limerick’s as shown by the exile of Mr Collins and all his family.

The only way to make a difference is to change mindsets, but first you have to change your own and as each and every Cabinet member seems i ncapable of doing this, there’s is not much hope for the rest of us. You can’t win with a losing hand.

LIAM POWER, Ballina, Co. Mayo.

Rip-off: now it’s aspirin!

HAVING read of the potential benefits of taking a daily low dose of aspirin to protect against cancer and heart disease, I went to my pharmacy to purchase some.

But I was told it was not possible to buy low- dose aspirin over the counter and that I would have to go to my GP for a prescription.

I find that incredible — in the UK you can buy 100 aspirin for £2. Why are we continually being ripped off by the health service here?

JOAN SMITH, Dublin.