Denis O'Brien - The 'Voldemort' of modern Ireland.

On December 10th I along with tens of thousands of ordinary Irish people took part in the 'No to Water Charges' protest in Dublin. It was a joy to be part of a mass demonstration of people of all ages that was more than just about the imposition of another stealth tax. Rather it represented the last straw for citizens throughout Ireland who they have finally said "Enough is Enough”.

The last two governments have implemented a string of austerity cuts to pay for the gambling debts of greedy anti-patriotic bankers and property speculators. Yet those who have bankrupt the country are allowed to get off scot free for committing the biggest crime in the history of the Irish state whilst hundreds of thousands of Irish men and women have as a result lost their jobs, their homes or have emigrated. The fabric of many families were torn apart. For some individuals it was too much to bear and they took their lives.

But the people protesting have not forgotten or forgiven those who are responsible for their pain.

It was very noticeable that coverage by the mainstream print and television media of the huge protest deliberately avoided any mention of the anger directed by demonstrators towards tax exile Denis O'Brien, the man whom the tax-payer funded (€200millions) Moriarty Tribunal found had undermined the Irish body politic. Yet it is he who owns the company that won the contract to install meters for Irish Water!

It is obvious then that because of his omnipotent power (in Newstalk, Today FM. Irish Independent, Topaz...) and his payments to politicians and political parties, the media, Fianna Fáil and the government are too afraid to condemn him. Like Voldemort in Harry Potter, he is the man Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

The Irresponsible Few

However one noticeably dark element of the protest was the actions of a very tiny number of idiots who later on blocked O’Connell Street Bridge for hours thus inconveniencing many people working in the city and stopping thousands of protestors from leaving Dublin to get home to Galway, Waterford, Sligo and elsewhere. I myself went over to talk to them, pointed out that I too was a protestor and wished like many others to get on buses that could not move because of their actions.. A few of them gave me a tirade of abuse and threatened to physically assault me. It was obvious that all they were looking for was a confrontation with the police, which would have only damaged the No to Water Charges campaign and undermined all the positivity of the protest.

Standing Up Against Those Who are Robbing our Natural Resources & Impoverishing our People.

Yesterday, I joined the Galway march against water charges. It was exhilarating to be part of a vibrant community of people of all ages from all backgrounds who are prepared to stand up to the anti-people anti-patriotic establishment who are intent on turning our natural resources into commodities that hard-working people are now forced to purchase in order to pay off the gambling debts of greedy bankers and speculators.

Those that benefit from the water charges are those that bankrupted Ireland in 2008 and led to over 200,000 people being forced to emigrate, hundreds of thousands losing their jobs, their family homes and their families.
Those that benefit are people like the unscrupulous Denis O'Brien, who the taxpayer-funded Moriarty Tribunal stated made payments to politicians for favours and who in the process undermined our democratic institutions, but yet this Fine Gael and Labour government is too afraid to bring to justice.
By failing to initiate action against Denis O'Brien and Michael Lowry, Labour has sold out on the principles of its socialist founders.

The Sad Case of Irish Water: Robin Hood in Reverse- Stealing from the Poor to Pay the Rich.

 
Gene Kerrigan in today's Sunday Independent (Oct 19th 2014) is so perceptive in his analysis of the Irish Water debacle. Check out the article

Through the establishment of the semi-state company Irish Water, the government is starting the process of robbing a national public resource for the benefit of a small elite. The civil servants transferred to the company continue the tradition of what they were used to in the 'public' service by getting taxpayer-funded regular bonuses for doing nothing special; politically-connected consultants get millions in fees paid for once again by the taxpayer. Then at the end of it all, we will probably find a national resource taken from us & privatised for the benefit of business people who are close to the political establishment, an example of the cosy old boys network that looks after each other so well.
People like tax exile Denis O'Brien, who was found by the taxpayer funded The Sad Case of Irish Water: Robin Hood in Reverse- Stealing from the Poor to Pay the Rich.
Gene Kerrigan in today's Sunday Independent is so right. Thru Irish Water, the government is starting the process of robbing a national public resource for the benefit of a small elite. The civil servants transferred to the company continue the tradition of what they were used to in the 'public' service by getting taxpayer-funded regular bonuses for doing nothing special; politically-connected consultants get millions in fees paid for once again by the taxpayer. Then at the end of it all, we will probably find a national resource taken from us & privatised for the benefit of business people who are close to the political establishment, an example of the cosy old boys network that looks after each other so well.
People like tax exile Denis O'Brien, who was found by the taxpayer funded Moriarty Tribunal to have corrupted Irish politics, could well benefit. The Irish Water saga has shown that 'Cronyism' paid for by hard earned money taken from you and me (the little people) is alive and well in Ireland. to have corrupted Irish politics, could well benefit. The Irish Water saga has shown that 'Cronyism' paid for by hard earned money taken from you and me (the little people) is alive and well in Ireland.

The Irish & European Elections in Ireland: a Step Forward for Democracy?

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End to Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum Politics?
The results of the local and European elections of last Friday were a watershed in Irish politics. Public anger in the last general election (in 2012) brought to an end Fianna Fáil’s tenure as the largest party in the Irish republic.  Popular disgust at the lies and betrayal of the electorate by the Labour Party has ended its century-old status as the main left-wing force in Irish politics and ushered in Sinn Féin as the new radical movement of the island of Ireland. The division of political power between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael-dominated governments, that has been a hallmark of the state since the early 1930s, has come to an end. 

 

There are of course many good honest hardworking idealistic people in all of the established parties- Ciaran Cannon and councillor Frank Fahy in Fine Gael;  Eamon O'Cuiv, John McGuinness and Noel Tracey in Fianna Fáil; Sean Sherlock and Billy Cameron in Labour. But they are too few; power and greed has corrupted too many of their colleagues.  
When Michael D. Higgins left Labour after winning the Irish Presidency the party lost its conscience. Both Fianna Fáil and Labour have betrayed the egalitarian principles of their visionary patriotic founders.

The Cosy Cartel 

This weekend's results show that there is now an alternative government-in-waiting comprising progressive independents, socialists, republicans, environmentalists, community activists and beneficial business interests that has the potential to break the three-party monolith and its long time cosy relationship with property speculators, builders, top civil servants, the trade union leaders, bishops, ranchers, bankers and the EU hierarchy that has created a huge democratic deficit in this country and across Europe that has led to growing public apathy and alienation with the body politic due to the high levels of emigration, unemployment, corruption and taxes.

For the first time since we joined the EEC in 1972, people are starting to question the never-ending loss of sovereignty to a supra-national unrepresentative bureaucratic institution that has created the environment and circumstances to privatise public services and sell off national resources across Europe to multi-national corporations unaccountable to its citizens.

Newly elected TD, Ruth Coppinger

Of course the struggle for nations, local communities and ordinary people to secure control over their destinies will take many more years to achieve and will not be without heartbreak. Sinn Féin could lose their idealism and become over time corrupted by power. But the election results today was a step forward hopefully to a better future for Ireland and Europe that will be a true union of peaceful, democratic independent countries. 

It will mean at last that the great untouchables such as Denis O'Brien and others, who as the Moriarty Tribunal showed undermined the democratic institutions of our state, can be brought to justice.

Jailed for Standing up against Warmongers!

Margaretta D'Arcy is a role model for us all. 
Politicians of all parties in the last three governments facilitated the use of Shannon Airport by US military involved in an illegal invasion and war in Iraq. The country and its peoples were destroyed by this action undertaken purely to secure oilfields for the USA. 
Today Iraq is reduced to a nightmarish Mad Max landscape, controlled by warlords and their religious fundamentalist gangs, millions dead or as refugees; its female, Christian and secular inhabitants without basic human rights. 

Margaretta goes to jail for standing up for human rights, peace and neutrality, the principles supposedly of the Irish state whilst Denis O'Brien, Michael Lowry, Irish bankers, property speculators and corrupt politicians who destroyed our country for their own private gain still walk free and enjoy the riches that they stole from us. No Justice!
President Michael D Higgins participated with Margaretta on many demonstrations against the US war in Iraq and against the American military use of Shannon. 
In the past, Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore and Minister Pat Rabbitte loudly condemned American interference in the affairs of other countries and demanded that Ireland should not be caught up supporting their aggressive imperialistic
So please Mr. President and the Irish government. Have her released now!
 

Abolish Seanad Éireann- a Failed Elitist Undemocratic Political Entity!

The second chamber of the Oireachtas, Seanad Éireann, is an insult to democracy, is symptomatic of an abuse of power by political parties and a waste of the monies taken from hard-working citizens in the form of taxes that are supposed to be used to pay for essential public services such as health and education rather than to provide party apparatchiks with exorbitant payments.

The Seanad is structured mainly around panel seats for agriculture, culture, industry and other sectors of society. Yet as the Senate electorate consists primarily of TDs, senators and councilors, it has never reflected these social strata. All of the political parties have traditionally used this institution as a rest-home for their members rejected by the electorate or as a launch pad for aspiring TDs.  

A typical day of low attandence in the Seanad.

It has therefore been a toothless kitten for most of its history, providing senators with large annual salaries, staff and expenses during the years of the Celtic Tiger whilst having one of the worst attendance records of any political representative entity in Europe.  A few notable courageous independent-minded senators have made important contributions that have benefited the nation. But these members were the exception and came mainly from an elitist university panel voted in by third-level graduates.

Only two pieces of legislation have been rejected by the Seanad in a history stretching back to its foundation in its present form in the 1930s.

As a result of the calamitous decision of the last government who committed the greatest crime in the history of the state by bankrupting the country and its future for decades to come in order to bail out unscrupulous private banks and foreign gambling bondholders, ordinary decent hardworking citizens and their families have suffered increased unemployment and enforced emigration. Those that are lucky enough to hold onto jobs are enduring wage reductions; increased taxes and decreased public services; the closure of schools, Garda Stations and hospitals which they are asked to suffer in a spirit of renewed patriotism in order to save the country from the abyss. 

I have no problem in answering the nation’s call and making personal sacrifices to ensure economic and social freedom for generations not yet born as our forefathers and mothers did throughout our history. But I fundamentally disagree with handing over monies in the form of taxes to be squandered by paying unnamed foreign gamblers as well as political party senators; by providing huge salaries to individual property speculators in NAMA to keep them in the ostentatious lifestyles that they were formerly accustomed too; by allowing Brian Cowen, Bertie Ahern and former government ministers as well as the former financial regulator and other top civil servants, who collectively mismanaged the country and/or who abused their positions of influence, to ‘retire’ as young men in order to enjoy huge ‘golden handshakes’ and pensions worth up to 150,000Euro per annum for their rest of their long lives whilst they also continue to earn big fees from private directorships, after-dinner speeches and media work. I disagree too with former civil servants and politicians such as Alan Dukes being appointed to lucrative positions in state-supported institutions whilst still being allowed to draw down taxpayer-funded pensions.

The new coalition was swept into office by an angry electorate. When he took office, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny promised to implement a ‘democratic revolution’ that would sweep away the political cronyism of previous governments which had brought the whole democratic process into disrepute by awarding taxpayer-funded state contracts, positions on state boards/quangos, senate seats, land re-zoning and legislative bias that too often benefited property speculators, bankers and party members.

Sadly promises made are quickly forgotten as the government parties continue to look after the “old boys (and girls) network” rewarding discredited civil servants and party loyalists rejected by the electorate. At the same time the perpetrators of the crisis go unpunished and continue to taste the good life on the backs of hard-working taxpayers.

However Enda Kenny’s recent decision to keep by his pre-election promise to abolish the Seanad must be praised as a first step in fulfilling the promise of a ‘democratic revolution’.

Maybe there is a need for a second more accountable chamber of Oireachtas comprised of the different components of Irish society from the Diaspora, farming, business innovation, arts, heritage, education, social inclusion etc. Packed with party hacks and vested interests, this will never happen whilst the existing Senate remains in existence.

April Fools' Day in Ireland- Is the Joke on Us?!

Fine Gael's Leo Varadkar

Is the Joke on the Irish people as the new Irish Fine Gael/Labour coalition government breaks public promises made only a few weeks ago just prior to the General Election?!

Yesterday it was yet again more monies to the failed Irish banking sector as the government gave over 24billion euros. This represents the fifth bailout of these incompetent financial institutions that has led to the debt enslavement of the Irish people for at least another generation. The fifth bailout in just over 2 years when we were told at the first bailout in 2008 by the then Fianna Fail/Green government; that the 5billion euro given from the Irish taxpayer then would be the last, & would represent the cheapest bailout by a state in the history of the world. Now we find out that, at a present total of over 70billion euros, it is the most expensive ever in the history of the world!!

This Fine Gael/Labour lot is behaving like the last bunch.

Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore said in February that Labour in government would not take orders from the European Central Bank (ECB) when the interests of the country was been undermined. He called on the electorate to trust Labour to change the terms of the EU-IMF bailout package and stated bluntly “It’s Frankfurt’s (ECB HQ) way or Labour’s way”. Check Irish Times article.

Leo Varadaker said, on behalf of Fine Gael, on Feb 10th:
"Any bank coming to us looking for more money is going to have to show how they are going to impose losses on their junior bondholders, on their senior bondholders, and on other creditors before they come looking to us for any more money. Not another cent."

Read the Irish Examiner for more.

So yet again, these mysterious bondholders (i.e. financial gamblers)
are protected whilst those others responsible for the crisis- the politicians, bankers and property speculators - still enjoy ostentatious lifestyles while we continue to pay for their greedy ways.
I thought that this new bunch of ministers were supposed to bring morality, justice and public service back into governance?

O No!! Irish Political Parties are already back to their old tricks!

1. An international independent review of the Dept of Finance, that showed successive governments ignored the warnings of officials that tax cuts fueling the property boom was endangering the economy, was only published after the general election even though it was presented to the Minister of Finance Brian Lenihan in early December!
This was blatant deception by the government parties designed to hide the truth from the Irish people until after they had voted.

2. Then we find out a few days ago that the bankrupt Bank of Ireland lied to the Dáil Éireann (parliament) when it said no bonuses were being paid to management. In fact since it was bailed out by the Irish taxpayer in late 2008, it has handed out bonuses worth over 66million euros to senior staff! Will anyone be sacked?

Gilmore, Kenny nor Martin sadly have not demanded such action.

Give the Seanad Over to Independents & Community Campaigners!3. Only hours after the election count is completed, the political parties are back to their old failed ways by displaying an unbelievable arrogance & disrespect to the electorate.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen, leader of a FIanna Fáil/Green government that sold our country into bondage to the pay for the gambling of property speculators/bankers & were decimated at the ballot box, in his last hours in office appoints to the Seanad (Senate) a politician (Darragh O'Brien) who was kicked out of office by his constituents only days ago.
The public institution of the 'Seanad' has for decades been brought into complete disrepute by the political parties (Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Labour & Green Party), with all but the 6 university seats being filled by party political appointees who were largely 'yes-men' & ineffective. It was only the few brave outspoken 'independent' Senators such as Shane Ross & David Norris

that will be remembered for their deeds and words.

Fine Gael says the Seanad should be abolished and will organise a referendum on the issue. But in the meantime, they & the other parties are once again doling out overpaid Senatorships to members of their parties.The Seanad in possibly its last few years in existence should be given over completely to independents such as David McWilliams, Fintan O'Toole & community campaigners with no members of the political parties being allowed to sit in its chambers. After all the parties have Dáil Éireann. Why do they need a second chamber!?

Finally, I am wondering if I made a mistake last week.
As with hundreds of thousands of other citizens, I am angered at the way the political system has failed our country and condemned so many to poverty and emigration. So I thought seriously in the last few days of entering the university Senate elections in the hope that, if I won, I could contribute in some small but meaningful towards securing a more equitable, just and sustainable future for Ireland. But in the end I decided against it as I feel that my present science and technology work combined with my community volunteerism could achieve more.
Hopefully I made the right decision though I feel at present like I chickened out & failed to answer my country's call.