SF Aengus O'Snodaigh has claimed €50,000 in expenses for Printer Ink

john reilly

raymon wrote: »

Callelyesque , the whole episode

in english what does this mean. considering the goverment are throwing billions at the ecb to help german and french banks its amazing how many f,g supporters are so concerned about sinn fein legally claiming 50,000 worth of ink.

ednwireland

happyman81 wrote: »

It's a sad reflection on this forum that this thread has received more posts than the referendum thread...

you dont think this sort of behaviour goes to the heart of whats wrong with politics in this country

meglome

john reilly wrote: »

i considering the goverment are throwing billions at the ecb to help german and french banks

I assume you have more than just your opinion to back this up?

john reilly wrote: »

considering the goverment are throwing billions at the ecb to help german and french banks its amazing how many f,g supporters are so concerned about sinn fein legally claiming 50,000 worth of ink.

But let's assume that is true for a sec.... you're saying as long as something bigger is happening it makes spending 50k on toner/ink okay?

trishasaffron

murphaph wrote: »

Eh, come again?



To be honest I don't like that SF should be using my taxes to make up a shortfall in donations to their party! Perhaps they should lobby towards a limit or ban on this propoganda junk mail, rather than entering into an arms race with FG paid for out of my taxes!

Jaysus - would he not see that leaflets without photos of his mug might be more appealing to voters?

raymon

john reilly wrote: »

in english what does this mean. considering the goverment are throwing billions at the ecb to help german and french banks its amazing how many f,g supporters are so concerned about sinn fein legally claiming 50,000 worth of ink.

Callelyesque - to take something that you are not morally entitled to, while not expressly breaking any law.

Cork boy 55

dolallyoh wrote: »

Disgraceful, who oversees the supplies to the Dail. They should be demoted.

Exactly but nothing will happen there

ayeboy wrote: »

I didnt say sack him, I said he desrves the sack but thats what's wrong with the country when those in power can take the piss in this manner with no consequences.

But what's a hundred times worse is peoples' attitudes (like yours)...ah sure the next man will only be worse!!

Why has he not been sacked/resigned and Lowry and .. and ...

:mad::mad::mad::mad:

kippy

The amount of people sticking up for what this guy did saddens me, and saddens me a lot.

It is rather ironic that these people want to refocus the debate on the bailout, fianna fail, the referendum.

The kind of thing that AOS did was commonplace during the "good times" and the attitude towards it seems to have lead us to where we are today.
Have we learned nothing?

The whole thing seems to have been buried at this stage anyway, with the referendum, Eamon O Cuiv and a few other things having overtaken it in the news.
This is what usually happens with issues such as this and it helped along by those, like those on this post, who either see nothing wrong with it, or deem it to be a minor indescretion in the whole scheme of things.

walshb

Has any media outlet latched onto the point about O'Snodaigh's father running a printing company?

murphaph

john reilly wrote: »

in english what does this mean. considering the goverment are throwing billions at the ecb to help german and french banks its amazing how many f,g supporters are so concerned about sinn fein legally claiming 50,000 worth of ink.

Did we really get to 15 pages before someone mentioned the banks? :eek:

I imagine it is not just FG supporters, rather anyone who cares a damn about Ireland and her future, that think a TD "using" 50 grand's worth of toner is something to be concerned about. If he was a FG TD would you be so forgiving? I imagine not.

Callelyesque refers to Ivor Callely, obviously.

whippet

walshb wrote: »

Has any media outlet latched onto the point about O'Snodaigh's father running a printing company?

to be fair i'd say that has no impact on anything .. for one a laser toners would be of no use to a printing company ......

My main problem is the more than slight possibility that these toners paid for by the taxpayer were probably used to distribute political views at the immeasurable number of protests / marches and general 'No' type gatherings that SF seem to attend.

Also, the possibility that they were used to print propaganda for some of AO'S know associated and canvassers

Election Posters in boot

some other of his mates

It is beyond me how anyone can defend this sort of a man or even worse vote for him

lugha

jmayo wrote: »

I think it is all very revealing, especially to some of their supporters who actually believed they were somehow different. :rolleyes:

It is and it isn’t. The notion that some new or rising political party will somehow deliver on the yearnings we have (or think we have!) for public representatives that conduct their business with the utmost integrity is a familiar one.

There was this feel about the Progressive Democrats when the first launched ,and across the political spectrum there was a similar unrealistic, and as it turns out unwarranted, expectation from the Spring tide 20 years ago. And even from the Greens before they got their turn on the potty.

Maybe €50K is good value if it puts a stop to this delusion that some have about SF

Thoie

I'm curious about this. I'm in his constituency, and have only seen about 3 leaflets from him in the last 6 years, all around election/referendum time.

So whatever he was printing it obviously didn't go to all his constituents. Not that I'm bemoaning the lack of junk mail, but the numbers don't add up.

K-9

kippy wrote: »

The amount of people sticking up for what this guy did saddens me, and saddens me a lot.

It is rather ironic that these people want to refocus the debate on the bailout, fianna fail, the referendum.

The kind of thing that AOS did was commonplace during the "good times" and the attitude towards it seems to have lead us to where we are today.
Have we learned nothing?

The whole thing seems to have been buried at this stage anyway, with the referendum, Eamon O Cuiv and a few other things having overtaken it in the news.
This is what usually happens with issues such as this and it helped along by those, like those on this post, who either see nothing wrong with it, or deem it to be a minor indescretion in the whole scheme of things.

It would be interesting to see the reaction when the Callely stuff started coming out to this story. Also Norris and the Presidential election and "irregularities" on sickness payments then.

Somebody posted about the Westminster expenses earlier, SF seem to have a history of suspect expense claiming. The stock answer then seemed to be "well its only Westminster", the answer this time broadly "they were all at it".

SF and indeed the SWP/ULA often proudly go on about the industrial wage etc. to make them sound different. I can't understand the SF response in that context, apparently when it comes to expenses, forget that part, this is different.

Stripey Cat

walshb wrote: »

Has any media outlet latched onto the point about O'Snodaigh's father running a printing company?

No, because it's not true.

(Although actually, since it's SF, then being untrue won't stop them publishing it, so we might expect to see it in the Indo or the Herald soon.)

yourpics

Stripey Cat wrote: »

No, because it's not true.

(Although actually, since it's SF, then being untrue won't stop them publishing it, so we might expect to see it in the Indo or the Herald soon.)

No doubt the Sindo will have a special full colour pull-out supplement on Inkgate.

Liam Byrne

Stripey Cat wrote: »

walshb wrote: »

Has any media outlet latched onto the point about O'Snodaigh's father running a printing company?

No, because it's not true.

(Although actually, since it's SF, then being untrue won't stop them publishing it, so we might expect to see it in the Indo or the Herald soon.)

Something being untrue didn't seem to stop MMcG opening his mouth during the election debate, so that's hardly suddenly high on your criteria of requirements, is it ?

yourpics

Liam Byrne wrote: »

Something being untrue didn't seem to stop MMcG opening his mouth during the election debate, so that's hardly suddenly high on your criteria of requirements, is it ?

The fact remains that Sean Gallagher was is a FF bagman.

People had not researched this candidate enough before deciding to vote for him, and let's be honest, this badly needed to be highlighted.

Liam Byrne

yourpics wrote: »

Liam Byrne wrote: »

Something being untrue didn't seem to stop MMcG opening his mouth during the election debate, so that's hardly suddenly high on your criteria of requirements, is it ?

The fact remains that Sean Gallagher was is a FF bagman.

People had not researched this candidate enough before deciding to vote for him, and let's be honest, this badly needed to be highlighted.

There's no point dragging this thread off-topic with a full-blown debate, but the "let's be honest" is as ironic as they come.

Anyone objecting to dishonesty should also object to MMcG, the guy SF wanted as our president.....we either want honesty or we don't - that shouldn't change as and when suits our personal agenda.

I'm glad SG didn't win, but I don't condone MMcG lying to achieve it.

Pointing fingers at others while excusing their own indiscretions is part of SF's problem, and has been ever since they started objecting to some murders and not others.

And now they and their supporters are doing it re dodgy expenses. O'S is as bad as Callely; they need to face that fact or be labelled once again as double-standards hypocrites - it's their choice.

K-9

yourpics wrote: »

The fact remains that Sean Gallagher was is a FF bagman.

People had not researched this candidate enough before deciding to vote for him, and let's be honest, this badly needed to be highlighted.

I thought the Presidential election was over and Gallagher finished as a political figure as are FF, arguably.

But here we are, on a thread about SF and what seems expenses manipulation, talking about events from 6 months ago.

What is your opinion on the expenses claim?

southsiderosie

MOD NOTE:

Per my note pages ago, just as this thread is not about RTE, it is also not about Europe or the bailout. It is about expenses. There are plenty of threads about these topics in other sections of this forum.

Not every thread in Politics needs to include the words "banks" or "bailout", and the constant attempts to derail threads and/or push individual agendas by dragging these topics into every conversation are getting really, really tiresome.

Off-topic posts infracted and deleted, and responses deleted.

yourpics

K-9 wrote: »

I thought the Presidential election was over and Gallagher finished as a political figure as are FF, arguably.

But here we are, on a thread about SF and what seems expenses manipulation, talking about events from 6 months ago.

What is your opinion on the expenses claim?

Another poster brought up the SG issue.

My opinion is that AÓS didn't do anything wrong as such, but he did use the resources excessively.

I would welcome a comprehensive report on how exactly the ink/toner was used. This would allow a better evaluation of the situation.

Janedoe10

I am getting really tired of how when the FF gurus were bleeding us dry and they were the high moral ground and cupla focal jerry Adams and the opposition were like pigs in shi** highlighting their carry on ,, yet AOS was secretly raiding the stationary cupboards and draining all the cartridges . This morning on Newstalk he was almost blaming the system and dail for supplying the printers to him..Jesus how can they bleed on about taking average industrial wage when this is what's going on .. Let me say it we are fools for listening to the **** ... It's like a fix .... They can't stop themselves what's worse he was voted in because he was to fix solve the mess .. Keep them away from the tuber ware cupboard

Hannibal

Janedoe10 wrote: »

I am getting really tired of how when the FF gurus were bleeding us dry and they were the high moral ground and cupla focal jerry Adams and the opposition were like pigs in shi** highlighting their carry on ,, yet AOS was secretly raiding the stationary cupboards and draining all the cartridges . This morning on Newstalk he was almost blaming the system and dail for supplying the printers to him..Jesus how can they bleed on about taking average industrial wage when this is what's going on .. Let me say it we are fools for listening to the **** ... It's like a fix .... They can't stop themselves what's worse he was voted in because he was to fix solve the mess .. Keep them away from the tuber ware cupboard

a) it's Gerry Adams as in Gerard rather than Jerry as in Jeremiah
b) is there something wrong with using cúpla focal within Dáil Éireann? it is our national language afterall
c) AOS wasn't secretly raiding anything, if he was this would never have emerged as it is all documented who took what. He went way overboard on leaflets in 2007 and 2008 there's no doubt about that but the bigger question is how it took 4 and 5 years for this to emerge and all only a day after SF receive extremely positive news in an opinion poll. AOS done nothing illegal and it's important to focus on that.

JustinDee

The attempts to belittle what this fella are hilarious. He has fleeced for what he can. His position as a TD is untenable as he has been caught red-handed.

tfitzgerald

Martin McGuiness is furious with aodan o snodaigh it seems that's not what he meant we he said get more cartridges for us:)

lugha

Dotsey wrote: »

AOS done nothing illegal and it's important to focus on that.

Go through all the rogues in FF (and the odd one in FG) and you will find that a lot of what the did was also not illegal.

Can you cite a list of convictions for these fellows where they have been found to have acted illegally?

We have higher ambitions (though perhaps we shouldn't have!) than that our public representatives should just refrain from breaking the law.

Pompey Magnus

lugha wrote: »

Go through all the rogues in FF (and the odd one in FG) and you will find that a lot of what the did was also not illegal.

Can you cite a list of convictions for these fellows where they have been found to have acted illegally?

We have higher ambitions (though perhaps we shouldn't have!) than that our public representatives should just refrain from breaking the law.

That is absolutely true, but the talk of fraud, personal financial gain and criminal behaviour is just ridiculous, as far as I am concerned the only thing that can he can be accused of is an incredible level of stupidity and hypocrisy which is a common trait in Leinster House and I am sure he will be punished in the next election if he lasts that long.

If he can be shown that he was financially benefiting from the cartridges or using them for unauthorised purposes then it becomes a whole new ball game but I have yet to see that proof.

trishasaffron

Pompey Magnus wrote: »

If he can be shown that he was financially benefiting from the cartridges or using them for unauthorised purposes then it becomes a whole new ball game but I have yet to see that proof.

Well if its a purely legitimate use why doesn't he explain? The guff about local leafleting is just ridiculous. I reserve my right to regard it as ridiculous and to feel that we're being treated as a fools. Personally anyone who abuses their privileges is in practice "stealing" from me a taxpayer - whether it's "legal" or not.

And arguments about the scale of the carry on are just childish - like the kid who says "yeah but I only stole 2 sweeties - me brother stole a whole bag".

tfitzgerald

I don't think it matters what party they are from they all claim massive expenses . They are all crooks

Pompey Magnus

trishasaffron wrote: »

Well if its a purely legitimate use why doesn't he explain? The guff about local leafleting is just ridiculous.

You just answered your own question. He did explain, you just decided not to believe him.

And arguments about the scale of the carry on are just childish - like the kid who says "yeah but I only stole 2 sweeties - me brother stole a whole bag".

Well at least you are consistent, unlike many. I have heard people condemn O' Snodaigh's spending whilst defending James Reilly wasting €624 on delux coffee machines for his offices because it was "only" €624.