Highlighting parish pump politics

femur61

Watching "The Frontline" last night highlighted why we are in the mess we are in. We elect the same people by tradition, not by policy. Everything FF have done nationally and internationally has ruined our country. Our reputation abroad is in shatters. The lady from Kilkenny will still vote FF because, she comes from a FF family, even though our country is decimated. The lady is about the same age as myself so it is not people of a certain generation are afraid of change, I am afraid for my children. Myself and my husband feel we are rearing our children for export.

Voting for tradition and parish pump politics has to change. Bloomberg yesterday showed pictures of Jackie Healy Rae relaying the power he has had on FF. He was called "Sugar Daddy of Irish politics". I have lived in the states and UK during the last wave of immigration in the '80's and felt humiliated many times because the perception of the Irish was a "paddy" in a derogratory way. That changed in the '00's and I felt I could hold my head high and be proud but now I am embarrassed of what the country has been lowered to.

Enda doesn't have the X Factor and he definitely is a bad choice as far as the public are concerned, but many of their policies I agree with but he will find it hard to sway the voters that his party is a better choice.

thebman

What annoyed me was the Young FF memeber in the audience (by young I mean same age as me pretty much) who kept repeating, we do good work on the ground and we deserve to be awarded for it which sums up FF in a nutshell.

Local councillors on a national stage.

Its time Irish politics grew up TBH.

RichardAnd

I understand you dismay and I share it. Healy Ray is a person that shouldn't be allowed out of Kerry let alone appear as a representative for out country. Sadly he is a symptom of a larger problem and not really the problem himself.

An idea I had to fix this would be that, come election time, each constituency elected not their own politicians but the TDs for another, distant constituency that changes with each election. I never delved too deep into the idea so it probably has a problem set of it's own but things will only change by trying new ideas.

As to you comment about raising your children for emigration, consider this. Emigration has ever been part in parcel of Irish life because we have few resources, very little indigenous industry and a very "who ya know" culture none of which are conducive to a young man getting a start in life here. The emigration tradition only stopped for a brief period which was, it seems, a blip and nothing more.

However, you shouldn't get in a fuzz about this. Many people who emigrated in the past were better people for the effort. Leaving your home gives you a wider view of the world, something many Irish people lack. Also, it's not like 100% of children will have to emigrate in the next X years.

I was born in 1986, when emigration was much more common than today. Both of my parents were in the early 20s at the time and both of them found good jobs and built a life here. I myself, at 24, have a good job and I got it less than a year ago without pulling strings and without any favours. So despite what our excuse for a media tell us, all is not lost in Ireland.

Riskymove

its hardly a surprise is it


the budget itself is predicated on certain things not being done for purely political reasons (see pensions for example)

T runner

femur61 wrote: »

Watching "The Frontline" last night highlighted why we are in the mess we are in. We elect the same people by tradition, not by policy. Everything FF have done nationally and internationally has ruined our country. Our reputation abroad is in shatters. The lady from Kilkenny will still vote FF because, she comes from a FF family, even though our country is decimated. The lady is about the same age as myself so it is not people of a certain generation are afraid of change, I am afraid for my children. Myself and my husband feel we are rearing our children for export.

Voting for tradition and parish pump politics has to change. Bloomberg yesterday showed pictures of Jackie Healy Rae relaying the power he has had on FF. He was called "Sugar Daddy of Irish politics". I have lived in the states and UK during the last wave of immigration in the '80's and felt humiliated many times because the perception of the Irish was a "paddy" in a derogratory way. That changed in the '00's and I felt I could hold my head high and be proud but now I am embarrassed of what the country has been lowered to.

Enda doesn't have the X Factor and he definitely is a bad choice as far as the public are concerned, but many of their policies I agree with but he will find it hard to sway the voters that his party is a better choice.

I think the problem we have is that the whole system is geared this way. The candidates we have to choose from are parish pump candidates.

Unfortunately to people with the power to change this are all parish pump politicians. Its a vicious catch 22. If they could get away it these guys will make only minimal changes even after one of our worst crises since independence.

We need to change the type of politician we have to make the changes necessary and break this regressive debilitating ctach 22.

Ive nailed my colours to the gender quota post and I honestly dont see any other method of changing personell. The type of politicians we have are reminiscant of 19th century politcians in other countries (and in this country).

Riskymove

T runner wrote: »

I think the problem we have is that the whole system is geared this way. The candidates we have to choose from are parish pump candidates.

etc..

I am afraid this passes the buck a bit

The people are the ones who elect these guys and many do so on the basis of local issues

It is the electorate who demand TDs do something about local issues or their medical card or...or...or in return for a vote


If the current politicians seem no different from the 19th C ones its probably because most irish people are not that different from the 19th C ones when it really comes down to it

RichardAnd

T runner wrote: »

Ive nailed my colours to the gender quota post and I honestly dont see any other method of changing personell. The type of politicians we have are reminiscant of 19th century politcians in other countries (and in this country).

I'm not in favour of gender quotas or any other form of "positive discrimination". Making a rule where by X amount of women are needed is equally as unfair as barring women entirely and could creat a situation where a better candidate is keep out of office simply because of their gender. But this is another matter entirely and I won't derail the thread with it.

Heisenberg.

This post has been deleted.

Bullseye1

The reference to "blue shirt" was shocking. What would that one know about the civil war. If we cannot move away from that type of politics we are ****ed.

superhooper

It must start with the electorate. Political candidates and their lackeys should have been challenged at the doors of our houses over the years especially by the "tiger generation" as they came looking for votes for their pot hole filling policies at election time. This whole shambles now hopefully be a massive wake-up call.