Originally Posted by
Krank.ie
Somehow, they haven’t gone away you know
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” George Santayana
What a weekend that was.
Dublin win a Senior Leinster title in Hurling for the first time in 52 years. Dan Martin becomes the first Irishman to win a stage on the Tour de France since 1992. The Lions hammer Australia without BOD. Some Scottish guy won a tennis tournament. More Anglo-tapes. A train explosion in a small town in Canada. A plane crash at San Francisco airport. Major clashes in Egypt between Morsi’s supporters and the army. A referee beheaded at a soccer match in Brazil…
It was quite a weekend alright.
Hidden amongst all of that, the Sunday Independent released a poll conducted by Millward Brown.
This poll showed that Fianna Fáil had risen by 2 points since the last poll conducted in May.
Let us not forget that in the intervening period between the two polls we had the revelations of the Anglo-tapes. Surely a bank scandal such as this which is tied ever so tightly to Fianna Fáil and their horrendous management of the economy of this State would have ensured a collapse in their showing in this poll? Not at all.
The inexorable rise of Fianna Fáil in all polls since the General Election of 2011 is something that defies all logic. Or does it? Maybe logic is suspended in Ireland? Maybe we traded it along with the National Pension Reserve Fund to bail out our zombie banks? I’m almost certain we have.
The criticism of Fine Gael and their junior partner in coalition, Labour, since coming to power in 2011 has been nothing short of breathtaking. Admittedly they’ve made a mess of some things and there’s only so many times the Department of Health needs to be headline news in a period of austerity and recession; but Fianna Fáil aren’t the answer, especially to the question that pollsters are asking.
If an arsonist set your house on fire, would you ask them to help you put the fire out? No, you wouldn’t, and this is what we as a nation seem to be doing.
Ireland is calling on the Soldiers of Destiny to lead us back to the Holy Land of PPARS, electronic voting machines, tribunals, HSE creation, needless public sector pay rises, quango after quango after quango, giveaway budgets, little regulation of financial institutions, M50 toll-bridge contract scandal and the limitation of the Religious for liability stemming from abuse settlements… I could go on… So I will.
There were also the iodine tablets, Ned O’Keeffe’s bone-meal business, Padraig Flynn and his 3 houses, Bertie Ahern and his sterling (Or was it dollars? Or punts?) donations from Michael Wall, Ansbacher, Padraig Flynn, Charles Haughey’s 11m punts for favours, the Hugh O’Flaherty scandal, Bertie Ahern, Liam Lawlor’s chairmanship of the Dail Joint Ethics Committee, Bertie Ahern, Beverly Flynn and her case against RTE, Ray Burke and his Century Radio cash, Ray Burke and his developers cash, Bertie nominating Ray Burke as Justice Minister, Bertie “searching every tree in North Dublin” for Ray Burke, Padraig Flynn, Charlie Haughey and his pilfering of Brian Lenihan Srs. cancer fund, Ivor Callely and his bogus invoices, Bertie Ahern and his appointment of people to State Boards “not because they gave him money but because they were his friends”, the secret deals made with Independent TDs (Jackie Healy-Rae, Michael Lowry, Beverly Flynn) with OUR money for supporting his government majority, Bertie’s memory lapses during his cross-examination at the Mahon Tribunal, Bertie’s treatment of his former secretary Grainne Carruth…
That was exhausting. And it’s nowhere near exhaustive.
But sure you’ll say that this is a new Fianna Fáil, all of those people aren’t members of the parliamentary party anymore or are deceased etc.
Ah, but the current leader of Fianna Fáil is none other than Micheál Martin, the Champs’ son from the city of Cork.
Micheál Martin served as a minister under Bertie Ahern from 1997 until Ahern’s resignation in 2008 and from then on under the “stewardship” of Brian Cowen until 2011.
As a member of cabinet at every turn, Micheál balked at his responsibility to the Irish people.
He was the Minister for Health who was responsible for the creation of that paragon of efficiency, the HSE.
He was also in Hawkins House when the Nursing Home Charges scandal was costing the State nigh on 1bn euro.
He was responsible for the Ugandan Aid scandal. Oh what’s that you say? Well, when Micheál was Minister for Foreign Affairs, he sanctioned the Irish taxpayers money (to the tune of 166m euro pa) to be given to Uganda to fight the AIDS/HIV epidemic in the country. Unfortunately, this occurred around the time Uganda, who had not got a pot, were purchasing fighter jets from Russia and Tullow Oil were negotiating with the Ugandan government about mineral rights. I’m sure there’s no connection there though.
And of course he was a cabinet member on the fateful night of the Bank Guarantee. It was such a great idea Micheál had no issue with condemning Ireland to the current austerity which we face.
I think I have scandal fatigue at this stage.
Yeah, Fianna Fáil should lead the next government.
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