Leo Varadkar comes out as gay

Teyla Emmagan

saintsaltynuts wrote: »

He is he really gay or was just the way he was reared? Do you reckon it's bum information?

Don't be a dick.

Fair play to you Leo. Enda is probably breathing a big sigh of relief.

Daith

ThisRegard wrote: »

You haven't heard anything about the upcoming referendum have you?

It's all a distraction against the HSE

_Kaiser_

Daith wrote: »

Clearly not as you view his coming out as a distraction.

If you didn't give a **** you wouldn't be posting on the topic or seeing it as a distraction.

I think you just want to be offended myself as if you can't take in what I've clearly spelled out in the post you quoted then I can't do anymore.

SpaceTime

I get a bit fed up with this blame the minster after a few months in the job. The HSE is a mess, the Health Boards were a mess, the HSE didn't even work when we had more money than we knew what to do with.

It's full of fighting vested interests that won't budge on anything : look at the National Children's Hospital debacle... Honestly you couldn't even make up how ridiculous that is.

Nobody can fix the HSE because when anyone tries to reform it the various vested interests behave politically and attack the reformer. The public won't support reform because it might mean rationalising service delivery.

There is also no control over how many hospitals run as they're entirely state funded but "independent" (run by nuns etc).

I can't honestly see how you could blame Leo Varadkar for this.

It's been a complete disaster of a system since the 1950s when the Vested interests (primarily the Religious orders) shot down the Mother and Child Scheme and any notion of a NHS style public healthcare system, calling it communism!

Sadly, we're now stuck with a completly unmanageable mess as a result of 60 years of chaos.

Radical reform usually destroyed the reformer too. So, I'm not sure really how it's ever going to be fixed.

Jawgap

DeanAustin wrote: »

Na not really. Would like to continue the conversation to see if youre holding Leo to a higher standard than you expect of yourself as so many people in Ireland do. I understand that this forum is probably not the place to do that though.

Was being a bit sarcastic with the proof reading comment. Sorry I couldn't resist the cheap shot.

No not really, just pointing out that as articulate and polished as Leo is, it just hides the fact that he is every bit as incompetent as most of the people who find their way into high office in this country.

Actually, incompetent is the wrong word. I think he is a very capable person - but he's a typical Irish politician - you can rely on him to do what's expedient instead of what's right. And in all honesty, I reckon when he's done with politics he'll probably have a lucrative second career in the private sector.

....and I didn't think it was a cheap shot - I got paid the same hourly rate for that work as I did for some much tougher tasks. As my boss said to me at the time "What do you care, it's the easiest billable hours you'll do this year!" And he was right

Sound Bite

The fact that this is breaking news and dominating all headlines is a sad reflection of society.

Am I the only one who finds it sad that being gay is still a big issue in a country with an upcoming vote of same sex marriage? Is the country still that backward?

Foxhound38

AgileMyth wrote: »

Never understood the notion of coming out.

What business is it of anyone else? Nobody ever comes out as straight.

Homosexuality was pushed under the carpet for so long and is still associated with negative connotations by the knuckle-dragging moron brigade. Public figures coming out helps with normalizing it, especially for kids who are struggling with accepting their sexuality and fear being bullied about it.

As for the news itself - interesting, fair play to him. Could well be Ireland's first gay Taoiseach. John Waters head would explode! :pac:

Jawgap

Daith wrote: »

So now his coming out is a distraction. For someone who says you don't give a **** it seems like you clearly do.

It's will affect people in this country. Other people who aren't out and see a high profile politican coming out. Just because it doesn't affect you doesn't mean it won't affect anyone else.

I'd suggest keeping an eye on the DoH tomorrow. The papers will be full of Leo and if they're going to slip something out under the radar tomorrow would be the day.

Zamboni

Foxhound38 wrote: »

As for the news itself - interesting, fair play to him. Could well be Ireland's first openly gay Taoiseach. John Waters head would explode! :pac:

fyp

Foxhound38

TheTorment wrote: »

Likeable fella, always suspected it.

Doesn't change my opinion of him one bit. I find him quite honest something a few more of our elected could be.

Yeah, I've always seen him as a cut above your general career politician. Like he could just fcuk off back to medicine if he felt like it.

conditioned games

Hope he goes back to medicine, they dont belong in poltics.

mynamejeff

leo seems to be one of the very very very few "good" politicians we have in this country

I dont see that he had the need to make any statement about his sexuality though, as long as he is competent i reckon the vast majority of people dont give a damn where he puts his pee pee in his off hours.

im sad to say i have lost a little bit of respect for him. the only reason i can fathom for a big public announcement like that is to garner publicity and boost FG in the polls a little .

Jawgap

conditioned games wrote: »

Hope he goes back to medicine, they dont belong in poltics.

Oh come on? You really think northsiders don't belong in politics - some of our best Taoisigh have been from DNS!

SpaceTime

Sound Bite wrote: »

The fact that this is breaking news and dominating all headlines is a sad reflection of society.

Am I the only one who finds it sad that being gay is still a big issue in a country with an upcoming vote of same sex marriage? Is the country still that backward?

I'm not aware of *any* country where this wouldn't be headline news. That's more of a reflection of where were at than anything else.

What's setting Ireland apart is the reactions are almost entirely "good man yourself!"

Where as there are still a lot of places, including the US, where this could end your career in politics due to far right bigotry.

I don't actually think Ireland is very homophobic or even all that conservative at all. It's more that we were living under the thumb of serious oppression by "the establishment".
The Spanish are similar - actually extremely open-minded about almost everything but spent decades living under a right wing quasi-religious dictatorship.

efb

conditioned games wrote: »

Hope he goes back to medicine, they dont belong in poltics.

?

freedominacup

Chancer3001 wrote: »

Fair play to him.

Unfortunately I think this may seriously harm his prospects of becoming Taoiseach one day

I think it pretty much guarantees him the job.

Kur4mA

Couldn't give a bollix. However, my bus was 10 minutes late this morning. Sort it out Leo ffs!

_Kaiser_

Jawgap wrote: »

Oh come on? You really think northsiders don't belong in politics - some of our best Taoisigh have been from DNS!

OOo controversial I think he meant doctors though?

Personally I think we could do with another Charlie (minus the corruption - although FG and Enda have shown they're no strangers to "the game" either)

I can't see Haughey being as spineless as our current/previous "leader" when it came to the EU/ECB

stanley1980

conditioned games wrote: »

Hope he goes back to medicine, they dont belong in poltics.

Why's that? You prefer the teachers and accountants ? What profession would you prefer to see ?

mikemac1

Sound Bite wrote: »

The fact that this is breaking news and dominating all headlines is a sad reflection of society.

Am I the only one who finds it sad that being gay is still a big issue in a country with an upcoming vote of same sex marriage? Is the country still that backward?

He'a a minister, there are only 14 of them

I think there are TD's from Meath and Cork too but I couldn't name them and they are only backbenchers.

If the TD from Galway East came out this thread would not exist. A minister will make news no matter what they do

_Kaiser_

kyub wrote: »

Couldn't give a bollix. However, my bus was 10 minutes late this morning. Sort it out Leo ffs!

That's Transport.. Leo moved to Health months ago

efb

kyub wrote: »

Couldn't give a bollix. However, my bus was 10 minutes late this morning. Sort it out Leo ffs!

You want pascal Donohoe

SpaceTime

kyub wrote: »

Couldn't give a bollix. However, my bus was 10 minutes late this morning. Sort it out Leo ffs!

He's minister for Health.

Perhaps you should get on to : Paschal Donohoe..?

ebbsy

Publicity stunt no doubt. Nurses going on strike, budget overruns, and he is out of his depth.

dickwod1

kyub wrote: »

Couldn't give a bollix. However, my bus was 10 minutes late this morning. Sort it out Leo ffs!

He's not the minister for transport any more !!! (Minister for health the last 6 months)

Jawgap

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

OOo controversial I think he meant doctors though?

Personally I think we could do with another Charlie (minus the corruption - although FG and Enda have shown they're no strangers to "the game" either)

I can't see Haughey being as spineless as our current/previous "leader" when it came to the EU/ECB

Despite being a corrupt, thieving, philandering villain - a benign version of Haughey mightn't be the worst (and I type that as someone who was a member of Young FG in the late 80s!) - he had monumental personal flaws, but at least he had a bit of charisma and vision, and a ruthless streak as wide as O'Connell Street when required.

'Inda' is a bit of a charisma, ideas and vision free zone.

Sound Bite

Mustafa Handsome Violin wrote: »

For all those saying "it's not a big deal these days" etc. etc. - that's just rubbish.

It's a big deal for someone in a heterosexual society to come out, knowing a lot of people won't support him.
People are always going to be assumed straight in this society, so coming out will always be a big deal for the person.

It is but it shouldn't be!

Kur4mA

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

That's Transport.. Leo moved to Health months ago

Ah right ok... my nose is runny. Sort it out Leo!

All joking aside though, I don't understand why he feels this need to come out as gay.

realdanbreen

RayM wrote: »

Howlin 'came out' as heterosexual a few years ago, before he ran for the Labour leadership. He appeared on the front page of the Star (wearing a big woolly jumper and drinking a dirty big pint of stout) with the headline "Howlin: I'm not Gay".

Yeah, but what colour was the jumper?

Jawgap

SpaceTime wrote: »

He's minister for Health.

Perhaps you should get on to : Paschal Donohoe..?

This is Ireland - if the bus in question went through Leo's constituency then it's de Minister you get in touch with.