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Why do the Irish always forgive Fianna Fail?

  • 01-12-2016 2:20pm
    #1
    jetsonx
    Registered Users Posts: 1,326 ✭✭✭


    Why do the Irish always forgive Fianna Fail?

    Its a very strange relationship an electorate has with a political party.

    They ran the country into the ground several times and it's members have been shown to be endemically corrupt time and time again. But the Irish keep voting for them.

    If FF were found guilty of murdering puppies with their bare hands or committing genocide in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, the Irish would still vote for FF. It like a weird kind of Stockholm syndrome or like an abused wife who stands up for a husband who beats her up.

    Can anyone explain it?


Comments

  • #2
    davo2001
    Registered Users Posts: 3,317 ✭✭✭davo2001


    Because we love to punish ourselves, again and again and again.


  • #3
    Donal55
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,023 ✭✭✭Donal55


    davo2001 wrote: »
    Because we love to punish ourselves, again and again and again.

    Because FG behave equally as bad when we give them the chance.


  • #4
    Brian?
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 20,747 Mod ✭✭✭✭Brian?


    The primary reason is FF are exceptional at local politics. They'll get your potholes fixed, bulbs changed in street lights and so on in no time at all. They are masters of parish pump politics.

    Voters aren't voting for FF, they're voting for that nice gent who gets things done.

    they/them/theirs


    And so on, and so on …. - Slavoj Žižek




  • #5
    Idbatterim
    Registered Users Posts: 17,840 ✭✭✭✭Idbatterim


    Because FG behave equally as bad when we give them the chance
    I have lost a lot of respect for FG recently and I didnt hold them in the highest esteem, but FF are the ultimate pisstakers, I wouldnt class FG as bad as them...


  • #6
    CINCLANTFLT
    Closed Accounts Posts: 781 ✭✭✭CINCLANTFLT


    Idbatterim wrote: »
    I have lost a lot of respect for FG recently and I didnt hold them in the highest esteem, but FF are the ultimate pisstakers, I wouldnt class FG as bad as them...

    I agree with this... FF (which I voted for many times) took things to a whole new level in the crash... my fault as I voted for them :-(


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  • #7
    Badabing
    Registered Users Posts: 1,907 ✭✭✭Badabing


    Some people have forgiving the bunch of murderers Sinn Fein and their friends.


  • #8
    CINCLANTFLT
    Closed Accounts Posts: 781 ✭✭✭CINCLANTFLT


    Brian? wrote: »
    The primary reason is FF are exceptional at local politics. They'll get your potholes fixed, bulbs changed in street lights and so on in no time at all. They are masters of parish pump politics.

    Voters aren't voting for FF, they're voting for that nice gent who gets things done.

    And this I agree with as well... I know people who will spit fire and venom about FF, but then say they are giving the local FF lads their #1 as he is a "decent fellah who sorted something out for the mother"...


  • #9
    Idbatterim
    Registered Users Posts: 17,840 ✭✭✭✭Idbatterim


    you see many will vote on local issues, not realising if they voted on national issues and the country was better run, you would then have a better run country with the money to sort out the local issues!!!! Its beyond a joke...


  • #10
    ec18
    Registered Users Posts: 2,700 ✭✭✭ec18


    lack of better options?


  • #11
    jay1988
    Registered Users Posts: 549 ✭✭✭jay1988


    Badabing wrote: »
    Some people have forgiving the bunch of murderers Sinn Fein and their friends.

    That didn't take long 😊


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  • #12
    Rightwing
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,101 ✭✭✭Rightwing


    Very simple really.

    They are a party for the poor. If you or your parents are/were on the welfare they gave you plenty of freebies.

    Are you in the public sector?. They will look out for you.

    Are you an OAP? They will look out for you.

    Do you care about national debt? They won't look out for you.

    Now, how many fall into the last category? ;)


  • #13
    seamus
    Registered Users Posts: 68,317 ✭✭✭✭seamus


    Brian? wrote: »
    The primary reason is FF are exceptional at local politics. They'll get your potholes fixed, bulbs changed in street lights and so on in no time at all. They are masters of parish pump politics.

    Voters aren't voting for FF, they're voting for that nice gent who gets things done.
    This is it exactly. All politics is local. People support FF because Jimmy Barry from down the road was FF and he was very good to my grandparents, so I'll always back him and his party.
    The Healy-Rae factor is a good example of this. JHR was a FF man for 37 years. When he left the party, he took his voters with him. And now those same people vote for his sons.


  • #14
    Leonard Hofstadter
    Registered Users Posts: 5,540 ✭✭✭Leonard Hofstadter


    It's like asking why did so many people vote for Trump, or Brexit, or the Shinners. Everywhere you go there are so many deplorable options, or parties. We've always had the cancer that is FF in Ireland, and we always will, sadly.

    The one thing that gives me a crumb of comfort is that despite FG basically being FF's b****es at the moment, FG are still ahead of them and FF are getting no credit despite all their policies being implemented. I honestly thought FF would be miles ahead of FG now given that FG have totally sold out on everything they stand for.


  • #15
    323
    Registered Users Posts: 1,135 ✭✭✭323


    Brian? wrote: »
    The primary reason is FF are exceptional at local politics. They'll get your potholes fixed, bulbs changed in street lights and so on in no time at all. They are masters of parish pump politics.

    Voters aren't voting for FF, they're voting for that nice gent who gets things done.

    About sums it up. Last time round was gob-smacked my father (the only vocal FG supporter I knew of growing up who's been voting FG for 60 years or so) said he voted FF.
    Claimed FG have proven themselves to be every bit as crooked and lacking in integrity as FF, but he at least felt he had some local representation with the FF guy.

    “Follow the trend lines, not the headlines,”



  • #16
    NIMAN
    Registered Users Posts: 32,972 ✭✭✭✭NIMAN


    For me, if Bertie actually comes back into politics, it will sum up just how stupid the Irish voter can be.


  • #17
    rockatansky
    Registered Users Posts: 1,336 ✭✭✭rockatansky


    "A person is smart, people are dumb"

    - Agent K


  • #18
    Jim2007
    Moderators, Business & Finance Moderators Posts: 9,987 Mod ✭✭✭✭Jim2007


    jetsonx wrote: »
    Why do the Irish always forgive Fianna Fail?
    Why would they not, after all they are just as responsible the the people the elected.....  Irish voters are not dumb, they know deep down that they bear some of the responsibility for what went wrong.  And if they are going to give themselves a second chance you can expect they will give the people they elect another chance too.


  • #19
    FreudianSlippers
    Registered Users Posts: 20,397 ✭✭✭✭FreudianSlippers


    Brian? wrote: »
    The primary reason is FF are exceptional at local politics. They'll get your potholes fixed, bulbs changed in street lights and so on in no time at all. They are masters of parish pump politics.

    Voters aren't voting for FF, they're voting for that nice gent who gets things done.
    This is also what inherently leads to the accusations of cronyism or corruption - the desire to get re-elected at any cost means that the parish pump has to be going stronger even if it's not entirely above board.

    I fundamentally disagree, however, that FF were directly responsible for the crash; they simply were inept and blind to the global situation and failed to slow the economy here to pad the crash. It was insane to carry on for months while the global economy crumbled pretending that we were somehow insulated and fine.

    That's ineptitude plain and simple.


    However, FG is equally as inept but less adept at growing the economy. FG are doing almost the opposite of FF pre-2008 in just watching the global economy float up and taking credit for the positives. There is plenty of scope for positive action here at the moment, but FG are seemingly incapable of actually doing anything.

    SF/AAA/PBP are economic suicide for the country.

    Labour are the yes men who will kind of go along with whoever gets the most votes, so long as they can protect the exceptionally powerful and controlling unions.



    So why do people keep forgiving FF? They don't have a lot of other options.


  • #20
    LordSutch
    Closed Accounts Posts: 12,078 ✭✭✭✭LordSutch


    jetsonx wrote: »
    Why do the Irish always forgive Fianna Fail?

    Its a very strange relationship an electorate has with a political party.

    They ran the country into the ground several times and it's members have been shown to be endemically corrupt time and time again. But the Irish keep voting for them.

    If FF were found guilty of murdering puppies with their bare hands or committing genocide in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, the Irish would still vote for FF. It like a weird kind of Stockholm syndrome or like an abused wife who stands up for a husband who beats her up.

    Can anyone explain it?

    MIRROR IMAGE
    LordSutch wrote: »
    Why do the Irish always forgive Sinn Fein?

    Its a very strange relationship an electorate has with a political party.

    Their 'alter ego' in the form of the PIRA bombed Northern Ireland into the ground over several decades while many of it's members have been shown to be criminally corrupt time & time again. But some Irish people keep voting for them.

    If SF were found guilty of murdering puppies with their bare hands or committing genocide in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, some the Irish people would still vote SF. It like a weird kind of Stockholm syndrome or like an abused wife who stands up for a husband who beats her up.

    Can anyone explain it?


  • #21
    Muahahaha
    Registered Users Posts: 19,609 ✭✭✭✭Muahahaha


    For me what is astonishing about FF is that back in 2011 17% of the electorate still voted for them. Despite the crisis they caused nearly one in every five voters didnt feel like their pockets had been mugged when the truly were.


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  • #22
    GreenFolder2
    Closed Accounts Posts: 710 ✭✭✭GreenFolder2


    Same happens everywhere ... The British assumed the Tories had recovered from Thatcherism... The Americans seem to think the Republicans are totally reformed and will look out for the little guy and the French look like they're going to vote in the same lot that brought you Sarkozy.


  • #23
    Dwarf.Shortage
    Registered Users Posts: 1,256 ✭✭✭Dwarf.Shortage


    Muahahaha wrote: »
    For me what is astonishing about FF is that back in 2011 17% of the electorate still voted for them. Despite the crisis they caused nearly one in every five voters didnt feel like their pockets had been mugged when the truly were.

    And this is why FF will always return to the table. They have a grassroots network, particularly in rural Ireland, that is stronger than any other party in the country. There are simply too many people out there who are dyed in the wool FF for the party to ever disappear.

    It's hard to conceive a worse set of circumstances around an election than that one and still they brought in 17%, that is a hard core vote that is going nowhere under any circumstances whatsoever and it is their zero, that is the baseline they start from before they've won over a single voter.

    Call it a result of our history, a manifestation of our flaws, call it whatever you want but it is here to stay. Fianna Fáil is an Irish institution that, to its members, is bigger and more important than any one individuals flaws. To them giving up on FF and voting for someone else because of Bertie's actions is akin to asking a lifelong English rugby fan to support Wales because of Dylan Hartley's, that's just not how it works.


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