By Paul Kennedy
A probe into the minds of the Declan Ganley, Micheal O'Leary and Miriam O'Callaghan during the debate on RTÉ Primetime.
For the original video see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbuyGJKxp9I
Or watch the full show at: http://www.rte.ie/player/#v=1056151
Embedded video can also be found here.
Showing posts with label Paul Kennedy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Paul Kennedy. Show all posts
Monday, September 28
Monday, September 21
Sunday, September 13
The hand that feeds us needs do up its menu somewhat
By Paul Kennedy
So. Lisbon. It has nothing to do with the Government.
We’ve been told to not take our locally fuelled anger out on them. That would be foolish. On our parts of course. After all, this has NOTHING to do with how our Government is running things now, so why would they be foolish? Why would they have anything to do with it? This is about Europe. Not Ireland. If the Government is doing things which we don’t like, that’s not Europe’s fault. The Government’s view that a lot of our problems where caused by ‘problems overseas’?
I guess we're supposed to ignore that for a while.
Or something.
For example, NAMA (the ones who take all those foolish loans from the foolish bankers for the good of us all) and McCarthy (Bord Snip, the one the non-fools, IE, the Government, is putting off), they are just a few things that have nothing to do with this. We know this. They’ve told us.
And they’re cleverer then us. We voted for them didn’t we? We don’t elect fools, do we?
And who are we to know? We can’t even make the HARD decisions.
Anyway, so if, like we’ve been told, that whatever we think about the government (which is probably wrong, because they know better), should have NO BEARING on how we vote in Lisbon, how can we take our anger (the anger that runs in the bile of ever-foolish livers) out?
To vote No would be merely slapping the hand that feeds us with?
Well, after it feeds all the Mahon Lawyers with Spar sandwiches and coffee first of course.
The problem is, things have changed. Drastically. The train that is Ireland hasn’t so much gone off the rails as careered into the Broadmeadow estuary, broken viaduct below it, 4.4 million people screaming all the way. We all can’t ignore anymore the excess that the current Government has wasted. Most voters know that Lisbon and our own mess shouldn’t be throw together in the same soufflé, but like it or spit it out, that’s the way our current meal is being served.
And the Government should adapt. Add a new course.
You see, an election is going to happen. Whether it’s good/bad/apocalyptic for Ireland, it will happen. Eventually. And us Irish people, well, we don’t deal in 'eventuallys', not anymore. And, at the moment, all we have is Lisbon. If the Government is so serious about a Yes to Lisbon, the best way to do it is guarantee an election in the near future. Maybe not tomorrow, or even next month, the Irish can wait, and honestly, I don’t think at the moment the newspapers could afford the extra pull out supplements an election would mean.
Revenge, after all, is a dish best served cold.
But two and half years would be mouldy revenge.
But a promise of some sandwiches around January could be nice.
Spar could cater.
So. Lisbon. It has nothing to do with the Government.
We’ve been told to not take our locally fuelled anger out on them. That would be foolish. On our parts of course. After all, this has NOTHING to do with how our Government is running things now, so why would they be foolish? Why would they have anything to do with it? This is about Europe. Not Ireland. If the Government is doing things which we don’t like, that’s not Europe’s fault. The Government’s view that a lot of our problems where caused by ‘problems overseas’?
I guess we're supposed to ignore that for a while.
Or something.
For example, NAMA (the ones who take all those foolish loans from the foolish bankers for the good of us all) and McCarthy (Bord Snip, the one the non-fools, IE, the Government, is putting off), they are just a few things that have nothing to do with this. We know this. They’ve told us.
And they’re cleverer then us. We voted for them didn’t we? We don’t elect fools, do we?
And who are we to know? We can’t even make the HARD decisions.
Anyway, so if, like we’ve been told, that whatever we think about the government (which is probably wrong, because they know better), should have NO BEARING on how we vote in Lisbon, how can we take our anger (the anger that runs in the bile of ever-foolish livers) out?
To vote No would be merely slapping the hand that feeds us with?
Well, after it feeds all the Mahon Lawyers with Spar sandwiches and coffee first of course.
The problem is, things have changed. Drastically. The train that is Ireland hasn’t so much gone off the rails as careered into the Broadmeadow estuary, broken viaduct below it, 4.4 million people screaming all the way. We all can’t ignore anymore the excess that the current Government has wasted. Most voters know that Lisbon and our own mess shouldn’t be throw together in the same soufflé, but like it or spit it out, that’s the way our current meal is being served.
And the Government should adapt. Add a new course.
You see, an election is going to happen. Whether it’s good/bad/apocalyptic for Ireland, it will happen. Eventually. And us Irish people, well, we don’t deal in 'eventuallys', not anymore. And, at the moment, all we have is Lisbon. If the Government is so serious about a Yes to Lisbon, the best way to do it is guarantee an election in the near future. Maybe not tomorrow, or even next month, the Irish can wait, and honestly, I don’t think at the moment the newspapers could afford the extra pull out supplements an election would mean.
Revenge, after all, is a dish best served cold.
But two and half years would be mouldy revenge.
But a promise of some sandwiches around January could be nice.
Spar could cater.
Wednesday, June 3
Calling the South constituency
By Paul Kennedy
Saturday
The people have decided. They have made their intentions clear. They have made their etchings on the paper, that old-school, irreplaceable piece of paper, placed in a box, and now removed, spread out on the table with all its fellow papers sleeves, before the undaunted counters.
Down South way, Munster robbed of fair Clare, the story is the same. We read the papers, we watch the endless Primetime specials, we look as Dobson and Miriam guide us through the blue, red and green bars which detail the scenario as it is at the time. We wait for the occasional 5 minutes of airtime that we have earned, dotted occasionally amid the fevered discussion about Dublin and the Aherns. Our news drips out mostly unnoticed, spare change from the holed pocket, meaningful, but insubstantial when compared to the walleted back pocket of our fair capital.
Three people to be picked. The classic rock trio. 3 blind mice, the Three Stooges. The Beegees. But who are they? Who's our Alvin, Simon and Theodore? We should know come Saturday, unless we come into a Florida situation, and the pieces of paper become tattered and frayed from overuse, the counter's hands bloody and raw, suffering from a similar ailment.
Odds point towards Brian Cowley getting in again. It seems that the tactic of making the Fianna Fáil Logo on the election posters so small that to make it any smaller would suck the poster into a black hole of its own physics-defying creation seems to have payed off.
I think its a bit of a toss-up between Colm Burke and Sean Kelly of Fine Gael getting it, but, if some strange person with a penchant for forced betting put a gun to my head, I would say Sean Kelly will get in. He's a well recognized man, and if you have that and aren't in prison, that's enough. Plus, Burke will be relying on preferences, whereas Sean Kelly will get enough firsts to amble in, beard in full flow.
The last seat is tough to call, but I'm gonna go out on a precariously wobbly limb here and go for Toireasa Ferris. She seems intelligent, she's polling surprisingly well, and a pretty face gets you far these days. Also, there's enough anti-Lisbon talk still going around to edge her over the finish line past Kathy Sinnott and Alan Kelly. Like 'em or loath them, you can't argue that Sinn Féin aren't at least different.
Poor Dan Boyle is just another casualty of thee Fianna Fail 'Lets lump it on the coalition party' syndrome that killed the PDs a couple of years back. Ever notice how the party with just two ministerial posts are always giving us the bad news? Michael McDowell suffered from a similar experience.
Saturday
The people have decided. They have made their intentions clear. They have made their etchings on the paper, that old-school, irreplaceable piece of paper, placed in a box, and now removed, spread out on the table with all its fellow papers sleeves, before the undaunted counters.
Down South way, Munster robbed of fair Clare, the story is the same. We read the papers, we watch the endless Primetime specials, we look as Dobson and Miriam guide us through the blue, red and green bars which detail the scenario as it is at the time. We wait for the occasional 5 minutes of airtime that we have earned, dotted occasionally amid the fevered discussion about Dublin and the Aherns. Our news drips out mostly unnoticed, spare change from the holed pocket, meaningful, but insubstantial when compared to the walleted back pocket of our fair capital.
Three people to be picked. The classic rock trio. 3 blind mice, the Three Stooges. The Beegees. But who are they? Who's our Alvin, Simon and Theodore? We should know come Saturday, unless we come into a Florida situation, and the pieces of paper become tattered and frayed from overuse, the counter's hands bloody and raw, suffering from a similar ailment.
Odds point towards Brian Cowley getting in again. It seems that the tactic of making the Fianna Fáil Logo on the election posters so small that to make it any smaller would suck the poster into a black hole of its own physics-defying creation seems to have payed off.
I think its a bit of a toss-up between Colm Burke and Sean Kelly of Fine Gael getting it, but, if some strange person with a penchant for forced betting put a gun to my head, I would say Sean Kelly will get in. He's a well recognized man, and if you have that and aren't in prison, that's enough. Plus, Burke will be relying on preferences, whereas Sean Kelly will get enough firsts to amble in, beard in full flow.
The last seat is tough to call, but I'm gonna go out on a precariously wobbly limb here and go for Toireasa Ferris. She seems intelligent, she's polling surprisingly well, and a pretty face gets you far these days. Also, there's enough anti-Lisbon talk still going around to edge her over the finish line past Kathy Sinnott and Alan Kelly. Like 'em or loath them, you can't argue that Sinn Féin aren't at least different.
Poor Dan Boyle is just another casualty of thee Fianna Fail 'Lets lump it on the coalition party' syndrome that killed the PDs a couple of years back. Ever notice how the party with just two ministerial posts are always giving us the bad news? Michael McDowell suffered from a similar experience.
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