Sunday, May 17

Famous Hats to Round up the Lazy Vote

By Paul Kennedy

Down South, things are a brewing. Rain mostly, but also items of a political nature.

Doesn’t Fine Gael know how to pick them? Mere hours after a certain political poem was seen on this very website, it comes to my attention that another ‘celebrity’ is throwing their hat into the crazy hat pile that is Irish politics. Honestly, this country is so up its eyeballs in celebrity hats it’s a wonder that we haven’t stumbled across some kind of insanity filled political wedding. You’d swear that it was royal occasion coming up, not what we are being told is the most important election in decades.

Anyway, I digress into nonsensical hat-based metaphors. Sinead Sheppard is running for the local counsel in Cobh. She’s perhaps better known as “your one from Six who isn’t the one from the Den but the one who was on that Ireland talent show or whatever it was called that was on a few months ago.”


Now you all recognize her don't you?


Right, so lets count them. Mairead McGuinness, Sean Kelly, George Lee, and now Sinead, all for Fine Gael, and encompassing the Locals, Europeans and the by elections. Mairead McGuinness has been here before at least, and George knows his economics, time will judge his skill at the benches.

But recent polls seem to say that Sean Kelly will take a seat over his Fine Gael rival Colm Burke. Colm Burke has last term's experience and was a Mayor of Cork on his side, but Sean Kelly will always be the guy that opened the gates of Croke Park.
Has Sinead any experience in politics before? My research says no, but at least she’s starting at ground level, Sean Kelly is being thrown in, feet first, into Europe.

Honestly, it was George Lee that got people interested in this election, and not just in Dublin. We’re all having great conversations about Mr. Gloom down South too, and I imagine it similar in the other constituencies. Possibly because he doesn’t seem to have any direct family links to politics, possibly because he is a man with a firm grasp of economics against a cabinet of teachers and lawyers, but mostly because he is an "as seen on TV’ celebrity. The Stira factor. The same reaction would definitely not have happened had Fine Gael went to their local recruitment agency and picked an economics graduate with 20 years of experience. Applauded for the good sense yes, but your mates wouldn’t have paid much heed.

What I’d love to know, is how much is the Party looking at the candidates credentials, how much is the it looking at the candidates ‘fame’ rating for easy votes, and how much is it the celebrity looking to maintain his or hers celebrity scout badges?


Cynical? Yes. But a point worth considering. Of course these people may well be the best people for the job, but if they are, that’s why they should get our votes. Don’t just vote because you recognize them. That’s what got us into this mess, voting for the old familiars two years ago.