‘Think twice before you vote for this shower again’
I AM astonished at the way the people of this country keep on voting for the same shower time after time.
We have a Dáil full of landlords raking it in at the expense of the downtrodden and lining their pockets and those of their friends – not to mention their advisers – with huge salaries.
They cannot give pensioners a decent raise so they can pay their way, but they can give themselves a €6,500 pay rise, as well as hefty increases for senior civil servants.
They told us there was €6.5bn in the kitty to help alleviate the cost of living for the public. Well, Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe soon put an end to that. But of course it’s okay for the
TDs and the rest – they are getting their raises regardless.
Our energy requirements are ignored, with lots of misinformation bandied about by the overpaid chief executives of the energy companies.
Our TDs aren’t up to the job when it comes to looking after our country – they’re too busy looking after themselves.
Leo Varadkar, Micheál Martin and Eamon Ryan should be run out of it immediately before they destroy our lovely country and drive young people abroad looking for affordable accommodation.
Please think before you vote next time. I know I will.
S O’Rourke, Galway.
Civil disobedience?
I WAS recently talking to an elderly pensioner with health conditions that make her susceptible to the cold, and she expressed to me her deep
concern about what this winter will most assuredly bring.
This poor soul is worried about running into debt while trying to stay warm during the months ahead.
One senses that there will be more deaths than ever among the elderly, the disabled and vulnerable groups, and one would now hope that the Government will act to prevent this.
Ministers will have to face up to this economic crisis that’s coming.
One’s greatest fear is that this administration will act on extortionate heating costs only if it is compelled to do so or if the public forces the issue.
Many people may seriously have to consider civil disobedience in not paying these exorbitant bills.
If one looks back on history, one will often see that it’s through large-scale civil disobedience that change is instigated.
I certainly don’t want to hear of people dying of hypothermia and malnutrition in Ireland this winter. I am sure that most fairminded people would agree.
John O’Brien, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary.
Queen’s dedication
LAST Tuesday, Queen Elizabeth received Liz Truss, the 15th British prime minister (Winston Churchill being the first) of her reign.
Churchill and Truss were born 101 years apart, a figure that gives some sense of the longevity of her monarchy.
The coming days will doubtless disclose many more such statistics drawn from the Queen’s 70-year reign as the UK’s head of state.
Engaging and absorbing as this data may be, her steadfastness to and observance of a commitment she gave to the British people even before she became Queen, on her
21st birthday in 1947 – ‘I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service’ – says all that needs to be said about an exceptional life dedicated to duty and service, which extended to her final days in meeting the new prime minister this week.
Michael Gannon, Co. Kilkenny.
Intolerant liberalism
GER COLLERAN’S article on liberalism (Mos, September 4) raises more questions than it answers.
Nowadays, many of those who identify as liberal, and indeed make a big noise about it, adopt attitudes that are in direct contradiction of classic liberal principles. It would appear that a type of intolerant, liberal fundamentalist world view is now rampant in many spheres of society.
For example, in relation to the contentious issue of abortion, there is absolutely no reason why proabortionists are entitled to identify as liberal, to the exclusion of those who take a pro-life stance.
The great Martin Luther King was resolutely opposed to abortion, and under Ger Colleran’s definition of liberalism, he would be viewed as an intolerant reactionary.
Likewise with regard to the other issue raised by Mr Colleran – freedom of expression, particularly pertaining to gender issues – it is ironically the ‘liberals’ who are now in the vanguard in seeking to censor non-conformist views and ideas.
The liberal cause was once a noble one but, for those who prefer a more inclusive and tolerant variety, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to identify with.
Eric Conway, Navan, Co. Meath.
Absolutely inane
THE continuous use of inane phrases by presenters on the national broadcaster must be irritating to many listeners and viewers.
I have heard meaningless contributions such as ‘you know what’ and ‘come here till I ask you’ from radio hosts. During the nine o’clock television news bulletin recently, the reader spouted out the words ‘from the get-go’ instead of ‘from the start’. Incidentally, get-go is not in my dictionary.
The use of the word ‘absolutely’ has reached epidemic proportions on both sides of the Irish Sea, and on RTÉ, some people can’t seem to stop uttering the words ‘you know’.
At least one observer can’t help wondering if such offenders are answerable to anybody.
John Coogan, Navan, Co. Meath.