Eclectic Blog from Jude Hamilton

Kenny's Irish Times Article Drove Me Around The Bend

2013-03-04T16:06:00.000Z

It is hard to believe that a Taoiseach of this country could write the drivel that Kenny wrote in the Irish Times of 4 March 2013 and it is equally hard to believe that the Irish Times printed such dross. Below are Kenny's comments and my personal responses to them. The Government is dedicated to working with the people to build on the progress achieved in the last two years Response: You are

An Open Letter to Labour TDs

2013-02-25T23:12:00.000Z

I gave the Labour party my first preference vote at the last election in the mistaken belief that it represented working people. Since taking office, your government has escalated and intensified a vicious austerity programme on the nation; transferred more debts of private banks and speculators onto the shoulders of individuals and households; caused unemployment and emigration to soar; further

Taxpayers' Money and Priory Hall

2012-02-18T12:14:00.000Z

I was listening to Matt Cooper this morning on Today FM's Very Last Word about the subject of the Priory Hall residents. I have complete sympathy for the people in Priory Hall and the predicament they find themselves in. Those who rented there may have been able to move on rather than have to rely on Dublin City Council to provide them with alternative accommodation. Those who bought, however,

Be Specific and Tell Us More, Howlin

2011-04-14T12:14:00.003+01:00

The reported statement yesterday of Labour's minister without portfolio, Brendan Howlin, that many parts of the public service are "not fit for purpose" would have done the master of black propaganda, Dr. Joseph Goebells, credit. Like his Fianna Fail predecessor in Finance, Brian Lenihan, Howlin attacks public sector workers and uses non-specific (what does "leaner, more efficient, better

Business and Politics

2011-03-14T19:44:00.000Z

I am sick to my back teeth of the constant calls from so many people for politicians to come from a "business" background. We heard it endlessly throughout the general election and I have just heard it again on RTE Radio, in relation to the Presidency, from some guy called Johnny Fallon. Apart from the fact that business people, in the main, wrecked the country, we need people in politics who

RTE's Ageist Coverage of 31st Dail is Shameful

2011-03-09T18:47:00.000Z

I have followed the coverage of today's affairs in relation to the 31st Dail by RTE and I am utterly disgusted at the ageist theme running through all of it - from Morning Ireland to Pat Kenny and Drivetime. It is an utter disgrace and RTE should be ashamed of its editorial line. On Drivetime, a contributor to the programme said - with absolutely no evidence to back up the assertion - that the

Cowen's Latest Act of Contempt for the Electorate

2011-03-03T22:10:00.001Z

I am utterly disgusted at Brian Cowen's appointment of Darragh O'Brien to Seanad Eireann. Cowen, who did not have the nerve to present himself to the people for election and is Prime Minister merely by dint of a constitutional quirk, has the gall to appoint someone whom the electorate of Dublin North so recently rejected and who represents a party that failed the nation so badly and that was

Congratulations To Dublin North's Newly Elected TDs

2011-03-01T22:00:00.000Z

It's all over in Dublin North and nearly all over in the rest of the country, with just a few recounts taking place. As was widely predicted, Fianna Fail and the Green Party were decimated and the electorate finally got their revenge. I am very pleased that Dublin North has no Fianna Fail or Green Party deputies and that, in the whole of Dublin, Fianna Fail only have one seat - Brian Lenihan's -

Hit Me Now With The Baby In My Arms

2011-02-24T15:31:00.000Z

Fianna Fail's Darragh O'Brien (Dublin North) appears to be getting desperate in his election campaign. On RTE radio today, he stressed that he is a young married man with children and a big mortgage, with no business connections. As a constituent of O'Brien's (though hopefully not for much longer), I got a letter from him along the same lines this morning. So what he is saying, in other words, is

Lenihan's Rationalisation of His Payoff Does Not Add Up

2011-02-08T12:16:00.001Z

It is remarkable that Brian Lenihan can rationalise his and Michael Martin's availing of a huge payoff when they are thrown out of office in a few weeks time because it was a "settled arrangement." I'm a public servant too and I had a "settled arrangement" in respect of my salary (which was subject to a contract between my employer and me), my pension arrangements and my terms and conditions of

Labour's Broadband Rating System Is Crazy

2011-02-03T18:53:00.001Z

As if the Green lunacy of a Building Energy Rating system was not bad enough, Labour has now come up with the utterly ridiculous idea of a Broadband Rating System for properties being sold or rented. Once again, the dead hand of Government and the burden of oppressive regulation falls on householders and businesses. This policy is utter lunacy and interferes, once again, with the property rights

Labour Keep Giving Me Reasons Not To Vote For Them

2011-02-03T18:26:00.001Z

Now the Labour Party want to negotiate a three year pay freeze in the public and private sectors. I can't understand how they keep introducing such anti-worker policies. Will they also bring in a tax increase freeze? a petrol price rise freeze? a rent increase freeze? a local authority charges freeze? I am bitterly disappointed in what I am hearing from Labour and simply can't vote for them.

Martin's Apology Not Acceptable

2011-02-02T00:12:00.000Z

Michael Martin's apology for the destruction that his corrupt party, Fianna Fail, wrought on the country is not acceptable. He was there through all the profligacy, waste, mismanagement, gombeenism, croneyism and nepotism that went on. So I hope the Irish people will cop on to themselves over the next few weeks and that the opposition parties will expose him for the part he played in the disaster

The Election At Last

2011-02-01T22:53:00.007Z

Cowen has finally dissolved the Dail and given us the election that this country so badly needs. Good riddance to him and his disastrous government of Fianna Fail and the Greens. They did untold damage to Ireland; not just to the economy, but also to society and to our political institutions and public life. They threatened the constitutional basis for our democracy and discredited politics and

Supporting the Kilmacow Marchers

2011-01-27T21:48:00.010Z

I joined the Kilmacow marchers on the final leg of their walk to Dail Eireann today. A few hundred people turned up to meet them and they were welcomed enthusiastically by all (even the Gardai, I think!). They marched with dignity and conviction and I think it was their quiet determination that impressed me most. I was glad I was there.The march was covered by Joe Duffy on RTE Radio's Liveline

Some Times You Gotta See The Funny Side

2010-11-23T20:23:00.001Z

Soup and Forks

2010-11-23T19:41:00.010Z

It was once said of Alan Dukes that, if it was raining soup, he would have a fork in his hand. Listening to Brian Hayes, Deputy Spokesman on Finance, on radio today, it seems that Fine Gael is about to reach for the forks again.Hayes was asked if Fine Gael would vote against the budget and repeatedly failed to say what the party would do. He fudged the issue and said it depended on the budget.

Rabbitte Devours Carey

2010-11-18T23:03:00.005Z

Well done Pat. About time someone told it like it is.

Irish Economy Shrinks - Can We Be Surprised?

2010-09-23T13:01:00.005+01:00

Can we be surprised that the Irish economy shrank in the second quarter of this year? A clueless government has no idea what it is at and is simply making it up as it goes along - and getting it wrong again and again.How could our economy grow when the government itself is responsible for creating so much economic uncertainty? Lenihan tells us that cuts in excess of 3 billion need to be made,

Cowen's fitness to perform his job

2010-09-16T13:07:00.017+01:00

Following a late night where it seems Cowen had a few pints, he was less than at his best the next morning on RTE Radio. Indeed, his performance was so poor that he had to apologise to the Irish people. And so we get apologies from him and excuses from his colleagues and undertakings not to let it happen again. Would you really apologise just because you were hoarse? Come on! Do you think we are

Conduct Unbecoming Fianna Fail? What A Joke

2010-08-04T08:08:00.012+01:00

For a party steeped in corruption; double dealing; corruption of local democracy; land re-zonings; bribery; brown envelopes; betting wins; telephone bugging; golden circles; financial scandals; whip-arounds; cheating on expenses and who knows what else, how could any action by a member of that corrupt party, Fianna Fail, be considered "conduct unbecoming". The idea is a joke.Fianna Fail is simply

Don't Do It,CPSU!

2010-03-25T09:41:00.010Z

The CPSU Annual Conference will take place in Galway this weekend. I understand from media reports that motions will be proposed seeking a reduction in the pay of union officials commensurate with the reductions suffered by members due to salary reductions and pension levies. If these motions are passed it will be a disaster for the union and for the fight against the savage pay cuts that have

Time for Unions to Hang Tough

2010-03-22T18:38:00.005Z

At last the work-to-rule is having an effect on the public, and near time. Irish public sector workers have been made the scapegoats for the depression, that was actually caused by Fianna Fail, banks, developers and the so-called professional classes of lawyers, accountants, auctioneers and their like.The quality of public debate, most recently characterised by the utter shite spouted by idiots

Tap Runners

2010-01-12T08:20:00.004Z

Thanks to all those "public-spirited" people who have been running taps and wasting millions of gallons of water, simply for their own naked self-interest. Due to your completely selfish actions, civic-minded citizens all over Ireland are suffering needless water cuts, leading to great inconvenience and hardship for many.Your type make me sick.

Unions Give Up Trump Card

2009-11-22T10:46:00.004Z

If reports are true that the unions have agreed not to strike in some parts of the country on Tuesday because of the weather conditions, they have just made a major blunder. After months and months of politically motivated and generated attacks on public servants and the valuable work they do for society, the unions, when they have an opportunity to give the greatest ever demonstration of the