That's the way things should work.Quote:
Originally Posted by bennocelt
I voted yes and explained it as best I could to those around me with the caveat that .if they still weren't sure that they should vote no.
It can always be ran again.
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That's the way things should work.Quote:
Originally Posted by bennocelt
I voted yes and explained it as best I could to those around me with the caveat that .if they still weren't sure that they should vote no.
It can always be ran again.
If in doubt vote no, but it was definitely a confused doubt for me, when I heard McDowell vehemently urging a no vote.Quote:
Originally Posted by bennocelt
Well done to Michael D, I think he will do alright.
I trust he doesn't get involved in the role of "selling Ireland" and I look forward to his active presidency in promoting a citizenship based on equality, respect, solidarity and participation for Travellers.
It will be great to welcome our president back to Galway officially next friday in front of 5000 for the play off, i hope Roddy behaves
The whole Presidential fiasco was a wonderful media circus, it happily deflected attention from what should have been looked at with real scrutiny - the 2 amendments, more money leaked into banks and how Ireland stoically continues to pay debts while others get off quite a bit. In my opinion the media made such a mockery of it all (okay, the candidates didn't help) that many solid voters just couldn't be bothered. Most people had better things to do, but that doesn't explain it all. Good luck to the winner, there are far worse places to spend 7 restful years.
I appear to have missed all your posts on those subjects too, spud.
btw The money going to the banks and the greek deal has had plenty of coverage. Sure they had nothing else to talk about yesterday! And as a second btw, the commentary on it was incredibly simplistic - so even if it did have more coverage I'm not sure the general public is/was that informed.
Congratulations to the winner of the Irish Presidential elections..... Dungeon Master
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Nice :-)Quote:
Originally Posted by SkStu
Well, the luvvies got their man, especially after the implosion of David Norris, so we're set for 7 years of establishment nodding dog. I'm surprised at how much support Gallagher got in the end, even in transfers. And Labour get the extra seat in Dublin West to boot. We'll never learn.
I just find it incredibly annoying that these votes can't be done over a weekend, I know no matter when you have it, some people will miss out, but there must be an incredible amount of people (students) who simply can't get the time off to go back, yes I know about voting by post but you know people and being lazy, I enquired about it about a month ago but was told it was too late to change where you vote from. Bah humbug
Those students should've gotten off their asses and registered at their local address which would have enabled them to vote where they were in college.Quote:
Originally Posted by Acornvilla
No excuses.
You had until Monday October 3rd to register this time.
I hear you but praise the lord we didnt get the FF bag man Gallagher and the shame of all that. It is Ireland we are never going to change that much and what was the actual turnout - wasnt it just over 50% or am I wrong (which is not great really)Quote:
Originally Posted by Spudulika
As for lazy students - thats bull Bonnie, having it on a thursday is a joke
This has to be a new low for this forum - writing off a 7 year term, the best part of weeks before he's even sworn in!Quote:
Originally Posted by Spudulika
Turnout is up on the last presidential election. Full time students are facilitated by a postal ballot, if they bother their holes to apply.Quote:
Originally Posted by bennocelt
All elections and referenda should be at weekends however I feel people would still manage to crib that they had a christening/match or something else to go to anyway that's another day's work.Quote:
Originally Posted by bennocelt
Anyone who has to make an excuse not to vote is an idiot.
Can you explain to me why those students couldn't register at their term addresses? You know why, because they couldn't be arsed!
And as Macy said they had the option of a postal vote.
Just great to see a genuine LOI supporter become President. Michael D unlike a lot of politicians he attends up to 16/20 LOI games most seasons at Terryland and not just at election times either. He has a real technical understanding of the game from a football and fans point of view. Hopefully the League can benefit a bit from his stint in the Phoenix Park....
With you on Gallagher, it was clear all along he was a sleeper for FF, I just don't see the merit in having the Aras being a retirement home again (despite the LOI link). The turnout shows how demotivated/lazy the people are. Though I suppose at least we can't complain about electoral fraud.Quote:
Originally Posted by bennocelt
Bonnie, there's no reason for the election not to be held on a Saturday as in many other countries. I always wondered if there was a particular reason for it to be on a weekday in Ireland.
Maybe they saw through the pointlessness of the thing, and decided not to bother. I wouldn't have if the Trinity Senator hadn't put his name on the paper, and I'm not a student.Quote:
Originally Posted by BonnieShels
Our real President was in Brussels the other day telling us all what we had to do to get ourselves out of our mess. Nobody voted for him, but his decisions have the power to change our lives. We did however elect a 70-year old to sit in a personal retirement home for 14 years, sign a few bits of Dail business, travel in royalty around the world representing himself, form/dissolve a Parliament, hand out a few seals of office, and collect a large cheque for the priviledge. He'll enjoy it though, the other candidates have jobs to do in their own worlds.
Good to see the Oireachtas Inquiry bill rejected, though the bill would only be effective so long as it didn't conflict with The Constitution for Europe document that the state signed up to in the last Referendum.
That's a pretty neat summation Mypost. I wonder if the Inquiry bill will return though, so that we do what we're told next time.
get off your high horse, I tried to, as did a few others I know, I didn't know the dates and inquired too late as I had assumed I would make it back (didn't realize it was on a Thursday until about 3 weeks before the election).Quote:
Originally Posted by BonnieShels
By then it literally was a choice of eating or voting so..
If the government wanted to have students voting, they could have held it next week: it's midterm break in colleges of further education and reading week in some ITs. And they wouldn't have had to close schools for a day either.
Glad the Inquiry referendum failed. We need the provision, but with safeguards. What Shatter was proposing was lax, dangerously so. If I was Kenny, I'd be watching closely to see whether he's up to the job. It's a high profile failure, especially considering his recent arrogance.
EG, do you think Enda didn't know about it, or that it wasn't deliberate. From what I read of it - I spent an hour reading through an abridged version and came away very worried - they could overrule courts and order searches and seizures without recourse to courts. There was also something (please correct me if I'm wrong) on prosecution without representation. I was being told how great it was by an FG staffer and that I should vote yes to it as it meant they could go after the bankers. But I just thought it a bit too Orwellian in concept. Which brings me back to Shatter and Kenny, did they draw it up or was it foisted on them?
Precisely my point, Spud. Governments here just don't want students voting - they're too unpredictable and anti-establishment! (The first mortgage knocks some of that out of them!) I don't know about prosecution without representation since the Inquiries wouldn't have had power of sentencing, so technically no prosecution, although findings of fact could be construed as a verdict on an individual's good name and reputation. Nobody mentioned what I thought was an obvious flaw: that when media reported on Inquiry findings it would be impossible for the DPP to prosecute a trial - get your barrister to shout 'adverse media comment' and you'd be off the hook.
You having a laugh?Quote:
Originally Posted by Acornvilla
We have a Presidential election every 7 years normally (See the thundering disgrace and Childers). So it was clear 14 years ago that all going to plan there would have been an election around now.
As well as that Norris was the first person to launch his campaign back in March so there was some media coverage since at least then.
There's also the fact that the next presidential has to be held no more than 60 days before the ending of the incumbents' term which narrows the window somewhat.
And then it was announced on the 27th July 2011 that we were to have an election on 27th October 2011.
This was the most media-obsessed election in history so really, there was no excuse. As well as that in the lead up to the October 3rd Supplementary Register deadline there was a lot of media coverage about the deadline.
So to be honest, I fail to see how I am on my high-horse because you and your mates weren't informed enough.
It's the typical Irish attitude of making excuses for this and that rather than man up and accept your own responsibility.
By date I meant as in date, by where I could apply for the postal vote, I knew the dates of the election but did not realize it was on a Thursday, I could have gone home and voted and also worked, but I had committed to doing some voluntary work in the peoples park yesterday so I couldn't afford to go down and vote. Things aren't always as black and white as people like to paint it..
All the crap in the media overshadowed any vaguely useful information, and to be honest, I like to think I don't have my head so far up my arse that I don't generally know when things are happening I accepted responsibility a few posts back,I did however just state that I feel Thursday is a terrible time to have it and I do not recall much information stating said election was to happen mid week, sadly I don't know dates and days like the back of my hand.
I just don't like your tone. I have better things to worry about than who lied about something once upon a time so does not deserve a pointless yet prestigious position.(Hence why I obviously didn't have my facts right and led to the whole unhappy situation) I would however have liked to have a say no matter how insignificant my vote is, and its the first time I have not voted in anything since I became eligible actually so I don't like to be cast into the column of lazy useless people we seem to have so many of in our wonderful little country.
Students could always have registered at their term time address. Whatever about justification for local and general elections - for the presidential election it really didn't matter.
And just to repeat, turnout was up compared to 1997 - so much for increased apathy this time around due to the candidate choices and disillusion with mainstream politicians. And 1997 had only 1 politician!
No harm, but your tone implies that everyone else is more to blame than you. Stuff like -Quote:
Originally Posted by Acornvilla
Quote:
All the crap in the media overshadowed any vaguely useful information
Quote:
I knew the dates of the election but did not realize it was on a Thursday
Quote:
I have better things to worry about
Quote:
By then it literally was a choice of eating or voting
(The latter is rendered void by the fact that I can't remember an election that wasn't on mid-week)Quote:
I do not recall much information stating said election was to happen mid week
All this comes across as a very standard "shift the blame" attitude, trying everything to avoid saying that you simply messed up and didn't bother looking into things properly.
I did say I fecked up by not knowing below thou, but everything I said is true! And I was only 8 odd at the last election, so my knowledge of all this lark wouldn't be to the same level as the vast majority of you guys. I don't disagree with much of what anyone said in opposition to what I stated, just felt a bit like I was being pointed out as an example of everything that is wrong with this generation (believe me there is a lot wrong with some sections, just like in every generation) so felt entitled to at least try and justify myself.Quote:
Originally Posted by pineapple stu
I do still think Thursday is a silly day for it no matter what anyone says.
Acornvilla, I agree with you on the day of the vote. It should always be a Saturday, or at least a Friday. However I don't believe that a switch of days would have led to greater interest in voting. That was killed on Monday night and Tuesday morning.
The 1987 GE was held on a Tuesday. The 2002 Nice Treaty ref was held on a Saturday. The last abortion referendum was held on a Wednesday. They are usually on Thursdays and Fridays though, in order to follow the British tradition.Quote:
Originally Posted by pineapple stu
Turnout was reasonable at 56% - up on the last one (47%), down on 1990 (64%). Last actual election before that was 73. You are attributing too much to Monday night and Tuesday Morning.Quote:
Originally Posted by Spudulika
I'd have thought it's also to do with having the counts over the weekend - not pulling people out day jobs for the counts (both election officials and candidate teams/ tallymen).Quote:
Originally Posted by mypost
A leprechaun with a slightly effiminate affected voice as President. Sure what more could we want?
The Presidential race showed that it is more embarrassing now to own up to being a FF member than to being a murderer.
Then we had a tailor's dummy, a Eurovision winner that there were assassination attempts on, the Special K lady and someone who spoke as if they had not one but 10 plums in their mouth.
Great entertainment. Now back to reality. Jaysus, that was reality :eek:
Nonsense. It shows that you'll get caught out telling porkies about your level of involvement with FF, and changing your story multiple times.Quote:
Originally Posted by OwlsFan
Before he was even an official nominee, his FF past was outed, which he downplayed and kept harping on about not being connected to politicians and talking about grassroots members. He still went to 40% in the opinion polls. He crashed when his version of his involvement was picked apart.
Showed that civil war politics hasnt gone away, that RtE and the Independent are a joke (but we knew that!), Ireland is still fairly prejudiced against the gaymen, and FF still have enuff knuckleheads to vote for them:DQuote:
Originally Posted by OwlsFan
They still have the counts over the weekend anyway.Quote:
Originally Posted by Macy
Yeah, that's my point. Thursday election, counts start on Friday, and then continue over the weekend. Even in a General Election, that means most counts are finished early the following week if they aren't concluded on the Sunday. Less disruption to council business. Saturday elections mean counts start on the Sunday, so they disrupt more of the working week.Quote:
Originally Posted by mypost
Being a FF man didn't kill off Gallagher (he had also said he was an ex-Party member who sat on their national executive)Quote:
Originally Posted by OwlsFan
LYING about the level of his involvement killed him off.
He lied about it extensively long before the tide turned against him. There was a long run of inconsistent answers from him over when exactly he resigned from the party, when he left their national executive, his role on the executive, his reasons for associating with FF at all ... it was patently obvious that he was lying about his involvement with FF many weeks before he polled at 39%. What killed him was the evasion about money in an envelope for FF. That's a powerful image in this country.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dodge
I'd go along with Dodge's interpretation, certainly Gallagher was evasive and vague all along before that show, but he had not been so publicly nailed until that moment. The envelope image was the indelible icing on the drama.
All in all, it was a classic tv drama/debate the way it evolved and all the better for Kenny not being aggressive.
You can imagine all the rte crew doing high fives at the end of that show.