Why don't our Politicians have to resign?

Raiser

Every other Country seems to have a one strike rule for their elected public representatives. Have a serious lapse, call a press conference, apologise, show humility and then live out your days quietly somewhere......

- Its very different in Ireland though isn't it? Fcuk everything up [again] deny it, blame someone else, claim you only read bits of it, pretend the disaster is a blessing in disguise, lie, blackmail, cheat, steal, cover up, defraud - and all the time The Green Party will have some low-IQ representative nearby eating organic oatmeal from a brown paper bag and endorsing the whole sorry charade :mad:

starn

Its just the Irish way.
Look at Micheal Lowey and Beverly Flynn there both corrupt as fvck and everyone knows it. But they still got voted back in, everytime.

seamus

Our media and consequently our population seem to have very short memories. In most cases, if someone just keeps their head low for a few months after any kind of scandal, they'll be fine and most people won't even remember it at the next election. If they do anything good in between, suddenly all is forgiven.

For some reason they don't seem to get away with it in some other countries, most notably the UK, and voters have much longer memories.

Liam Byrne

PLUS -don't forget - get a ministerial pension for every incompetent job you've done along the way......

Raiser

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_McDaid

Wikipedia wrote:

As Junior Transport Minister in November 2002, Jim McDaid spearheaded the Government's anti-drink driving campaign, warning that 'some drivers still choose to ignore our drink driving laws, and as a result innocent lives are destroyed.

In April 2005 McDaid was arrested when found driving drunk in the wrong direction on a dual carriageway outside Dublin. Oncoming vehicles were forced to swerve to avoid his car, which was eventually force to stop when a haulier was forced to block his path. Tests showed a blood alcohol level of 267mg, more than three times over the legal limit of 80 mg. He was subsequently convicted of dangerous driving while intoxicated and drunken driving, banned from driving for 2 years and fined EUR 750. However he was returned his licence after only a year. The case attracted media attention and McDaid was described as 'a disgrace' and 'an idiot'. He acknowledged that these descriptions were accurate, and stated that he was genuinely sorry for his actions.

Following the absorption of Independent Fianna Fáil and its sole TD, Niall Blaney into Fianna Fáil, there were then three outgoing Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála's in this very competitive three-seater constituency. Under the Single Transferable Vote proportional representation electoral system used in Ireland, it was considered virtually impossible for all three to be elected. Fianna Fáil duly lost one of its three seats to Fine Gael candidate Joe McHugh, with McDaid and Blaney being the two successful Fianna Fáil candidates.

The above has to be possibly the best example of the stupidity of the Irish voting public at large - these people deserve to be dragged back into that booth and have two of those little stubby pencils jammed into each dull, unblinking eye.....

nesf

Raiser wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_McDaid



The above has to be possibly the best example of the stupidity of the Irish voting public at large - these people deserve to be dragged back into that booth and have two of those little stubby pencils jammed into each dull, unblinking eye.....

Don't forget to quote the interesting part:

Jim McDaid told the Irish Independent on 1 June 2007 that he had received no help from Fianna Fáil headquarters during the general election campaign and that the party had treated him as a virtual independent. He warned that, consequently, the party should not take his support in the 30th Dáil for granted. This threat was followed through on in November 2008 when he abstained from a vote on the HPV vaccine, resulting in his explusion from the Fianna Fail parliamentary party

FF didn't want him to keep his seat. It didn't stop him getting elected though.

gandalf

The fact that these people get re-elected after their "misdemeanours" says an awful lot about the actual electorate.

I think a lot of people are not mature enough to use their vote correctly (hell I probably don't use mine maturely either!) coupled with the fact most of our politicians suffer from severe "jockies bollix" neck syndrome.

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

ChocolateSauce

The French and the Icelanders seem to have a healthy political culture, where the populace won't tolerate failure. I wish we could be more like that...I also with the Americans could be more like that.

mickoneill30

Raiser wrote: »

Every other Country seems to have a one strike rule for their elected public representatives. Have a serious lapse, call a press conference, apologise, show humility and then live out your days quietly somewhere......

Which countries?

I've lived in two other countries. Their politicians seemed just as inept as ours.

Raiser

mickoneill30 wrote: »

Which countries?

I've lived in two other countries. Their politicians seemed just as inept as ours.

The thread title wasn't "Are Irish Politicians more inept than those found in certain Countries that Michael O'Neill the 30th has kipped in?"

Its more focused on how they can stay in office when they comprehensively prove themselves beyond all reasonable doubt to be sad, shameful, shysters.

- We are to blame for this; at least those of us that would say thanks to a 4am anal intruder with a balaclava are anyhow........

mickoneill30

Raiser wrote: »

The thread title wasn't "Are Irish Politicians more inept than those found in certain Countries that Michael O'Neill the 30th has kipped in?"

Who rattled your cage? The first post starts with "Every other country....". Thats blatantly wrong. I just asked for examples (any examples, how about restricting the examples to just one or two in Europe, I presume it would help you to ignore the US, the countries of Africa and most of Asia). Sorry it offended you Raiser. :rolleyes:

If you don't mean every other country then don't say it. I didn't realise I couldn't ask you to back up your post with any background information. I won't bother again.

Raiser wrote: »

- We are to blame for this; at least those of us that would say thanks to a 4am anal intruder with a balaclava are anyhow........

Ehm, OK.

Dark_lord_ire

starn wrote: »

Its just the Irish way.
Look at Micheal Lowey and Beverly Flynn there both corrupt as fvck and everyone knows it. But they still got voted back in, everytime.

agree. But in that case collectively we deserve to be where we are now if we vote for these criminals

Id definately agree with gandalf here...says way more about the masses than the politicians themselves..Most politicians (well fianna fail politicians anyway) by their very nature are chancers..All they did was run again..It was the people that elected them..

Dannyboy83

mickoneill30 wrote: »

Who rattled your cage? The first post starts with "Every other country....". Thats blatantly wrong. I just asked for examples (any examples, how about restricting the examples to just one or two in Europe, I presume it would help you to ignore the US, the countries of Africa and most of Asia). Sorry it offended you Raiser. :rolleyes:

If you don't mean every other country then don't say it. I didn't realise I couldn't ask you to back up your post with any background information. I won't bother again.




Ehm, OK.

Irish people always say this - "Ah sher, it happens in other countries too"

But it doesn't.


Mick, off the top of my head

Lithuanian president, paskas
Romanian president, (cant remember name)
Nigerian president
President Mbeki of South Africa
President Yeltsin of Russia (asked to step down)

Thats ignoring Nixon, Clinton, Blagojevich


There are many, many more.

What do ireland do?

Have big expensive tribunals and then fail to legislate against anything? Yes
Re-elect said person? erm....bertie/mahon trib


Why do you think Tony Blair stepped down?

deadhead13

Because the outrage never lasts long enough. They know if they wait it out the next thing to be outraged about will come along, letting them off the hook. And the fact that, they are utterly shameless.

mikemac

gandalf wrote: »

The fact that these people get re-elected after their "misdemeanours" says an awful lot about the actual electorate.

I think a lot of people are not mature enough to use their vote correctly (hell I probably don't use mine maturely either!) ...

More or less, I wouldn't blame the politicans, it's the people who elect them. And ultimately people can be selfish and will vote for the local guy who promises to save the local hospital over the far more talented politican who could achieve things for the entire country.

And this goes back to having too many politicians. Seeing as there are so many they put huge efforts into their constituency and to solve everyone's problems. But shouldn't they be legislators and be concentrating on bigger things, let the councillors deal with the rest.

starn wrote: »

Its just the Irish way.
Look at Micheal Lowey and Beverly Flynn there both corrupt as fvck and everyone knows it. But they still got voted back in, everytime.

Michael Lowery delivers for Tipp North and achieves far more then our FG backbencher and our FF juniour minister.
If he stopped delivering he'd be gone.
I'd imagine it's the same for most indepandant TD's.

mickoneill30

Dannyboy83 wrote: »

Irish people always say this - "Ah sher, it happens in other countries too"

I didn't say that. I just asked for the OP to clarify his statement that "Every other country" had a one strike rule. He couldn't, so that's the end of that question. Of those guys you listed do they fit into Raisers criteria of "have a serious lapse, call a press conference, apologise, show humility and then live out your days quietly somewhere".

I don't care how corrupt other countries are. I just care how corrupt our one is. It's not helped by sensationalist generalising.

I agree with mikemac in that I think people will vote for the politician that helped them get planning permission or the guy who campaigned for whatever the local popular issue is of the day.

If an election came up tomorrow I've no idea who I'd vote for. None of the opposition or government give me any great faith that they have a clue. The opposition just seem to oppose everything but it's easy to say you're doing it wrong without saying how to do it right. The government don't seem capable of rolling up their sleeves and saying this is what we're going to do. Maybe I would just vote for the local guy that could help me out in my local constituency, whether he's FF, FG, Green or Lab.

Het-Field

Since the Arms Trial, anything seems to go for Irish politicians.

Bertie,Lawlor,Burke,Haughey,Flynn,Bev epitomise the malignant side of Irish Politics. That is not to mention the side of politics which Dilly O Wea,Cullen,Cowan,Dempsey and Smith epitomise (the parish pump patriot).

We have a culture of useless politicians, and this ensures the likes of Micheal McDowell, Joe Higgins,Dick Spring and Alan Dukes lose their seats, while the likes of Pat Cox and Ivan Yeats take early retirement. Hence we are left with career politicians, who ave no vision, and many are on the take because it is the accpeted thing