How much is this all going to cost and who will pay for it ?

MouseMan01 · 06-03-2021 08:46AM

Wanderer78 wrote: »

Once again! Where's the inflation?

The inflation will begin when the EU starts printing money as a way of paying back the investors that they borrowed from.

Presumably after lockdown ends and the economic 'adjustment' begins in earnest.

06-03-2021 08:48AM

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

Maybe it more than the pandemic itself. I found the last year has brought out an intolerant nasty side to the Irish people.

The "Man fined for going 5.2km" stories don't help

Yes, I can't speak for the poster, but I imagine that would be the main reason why a lot of people will and would be looking to emigrate. I don't think that damage can be undone. This has revealed a nastiness that I didn't know was in Irish society. We all know about the begrudgery, but this is different. This is resentment and intolerance. But it's not difficult to understand why it's particularly acute in Ireland. Ireland has the RTÉ problem. RTÉ has since March being pushing fear and stoking anxiety and resentment. This is why it is so important in a democracy to have opposition. There is no opposition in Ireland. The political parties are identical, you have a handful of independents who don't have much of a voice, and there's no opposition in the media. England has the Covid Recovery Group, Talk Radio, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, Lord Sumption, distinguished historian and retired Supreme Court Judge, has spoken out, and other public intellectuals such as Peter Hitchens have been holding the government to account. What happens when you mention media outlets or journalists, public intellectuals, at least here, is that the outlets and the people themselves are attacked. But that is to miss the point. It doesn't matter whether you particularly like the media organisation or person in question. It is that they provide that opposition that is crucial to a democracy and for debate in society. It is no coincidence that Ireland has been shut since March of last year more or less. Yes, there was a few weeks when the restrictions were relaxed a bit, but really it's been shut down for a year, whether you call it lockdown or heavy restrictions. That could only happen in Ireland because of its being unique in the Western world for having no opposition.

As to where one might go, it's a tough one. Certain states in the US and Australia might be good. Russia has the famous Russian avos, which might appeal to people. An American gentleman went to Russia a few months ago to get away from, as he described it, the hysteria about Donald Trump and covid. In Russia he found a very different world and he wrote the following words to compare Russia with the US:

"The casual, often fatalist approach to COVID-19 here is a world away from its treatment in the West, where people spend their days fearful they might die today, tomorrow, or next week."

I think they are very powerful words and I haven't been able to get them out of my head.

It's hard to know where to go, but it's good that there's a big world out there one can explore. Sweden is also an option.

06-03-2021 09:05AM

kippy wrote: »

You think its hard buying a house in Ireland - try the US or Australia.

I didn't mention anything about buying a house in Ireland, but that is a consideration all right. But renting wouldn't be an issue.

lawred2 · 06-03-2021 09:25AM

MouseMan01 wrote: »

The inflation will begin when the EU starts printing money as a way of paying back the investors that they borrowed from.

Presumably after lockdown ends and the economic 'adjustment' begins in earnest.

It's been printing money pretty much non stop for the last decade.

Yet no inflation!?

Jim2007 · 06-03-2021 09:46AM

punisher5112 wrote: »

Huge tax increases on their way.... USC will never leave us and more levies upon levies and anything else they can think up.....

It will get to the point nobody will be able to afford to retire.....

And all based on.... absolutely nothing!

Jim2007 · 06-03-2021 09:48AM

MouseMan01 wrote: »

The inflation will begin when the EU starts printing money as a way of paying back the investors that they borrowed from.

Presumably after lockdown ends and the economic 'adjustment' begins in earnest.

Sign up for economics 101.

ThunbergsAreGo · 06-03-2021 09:58AM

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Yes, I can't speak for the poster, but I imagine that would be the main reason why a lot of people will and would be looking to emigrate. I don't think that damage can be undone. This has revealed a nastiness that I didn't know was in Irish society. We all know about the begrudgery, but this is different. This is resentment and intolerance. But it's not difficult to understand why it's particularly acute in Ireland. Ireland has the RTÉ problem. RTÉ has since March being pushing fear and stoking anxiety and resentment. This is why it is so important in a democracy to have opposition. There is no opposition in Ireland. The political parties are identical, you have a handful of independents who don't have much of a voice, and there's no opposition in the media. England has the Covid Recovery Group, Talk Radio, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, Lord Sumption, distinguished historian and retired Supreme Court Judge, has spoken out, and other public intellectuals such as Peter Hitchens have been holding the government to account. What happens when you mention media outlets or journalists, public intellectuals, at least here, is that the outlets and the people themselves are attacked. But that is to miss the point. It doesn't matter whether you particularly like the media organisation or person in question. It is that they provide that opposition that is crucial to a democracy and for debate in society. It is no coincidence that Ireland has been shut since March of last year more or less. Yes, there was a few weeks when the restrictions were relaxed a bit, but really it's been shut down for a year, whether you call it lockdown or heavy restrictions. That could only happen in Ireland because of its being unique in the Western world for having no opposition.

As to where one might go, it's a tough one. Certain states in the US and Australia might be good. Russia has the famous Russian avos, which might appeal to people. An American gentleman went to Russia a few months ago to get away from, as he described it, the hysteria about Donald Trump and covid. In Russia he found a very different world and he wrote the following words to compare Russia with the US:

"The casual, often fatalist approach to COVID-19 here is a world away from its treatment in the West, where people spend their days fearful they might die today, tomorrow, or next week."

I think they are very powerful words and I haven't been able to get them out of my head.

It's hard to know where to go, but it's good that there's a big world out there one can explore. Sweden is also an option.

This is a great post.

The media have ground the Irish people and nation dosh with constant stories of Covid fear, how racist and bad we are, how we are awful people, and punishments for breaking rules all while constantly trying to find scapegoats to take pressure off failing institution's (and ignoring rules themselves (Retirement party etcl. No debate, no caveats, no alternate perspectives just pure misery and condescension.

And worse in the next breath telling us how important mental health is. The media more than anyone has destroyed the mental health of this country.

This all has an effect, the joy has been taken out of life in Ireland.

Wanderer78 · 06-03-2021 09:58AM

Jim2007 wrote: »

Sign up for economics 101.

jesus dont, even more bullsh!t! theres plenty of resources out there explaining in great detail whats going on, neoclassical is the fantasy land version

kippy · 06-03-2021 10:02AM

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

This is a great post.

The media have ground the Irish people and nation dosh with constant stories of Covid fear, how racist and bad we are, how we are awful people, and punishments for breaking rules all while constantly trying to find scapegoats to take pressure off failing institution's (and ignoring rules themselves (Retirement party etcl. No debate, no caveats, no alternate perspectives just pure misery and condescension.

And worse in the next breath telling us how important mental health is. The media more than anyone has destroyed the mental health of this country.

This all has an effect, the joy has been taken out of life in Ireland.

The media should be avoided in general if you are concerned for your mental health - I would also include online platforms such as twitter, FB and even boards in that.

06-03-2021 10:25AM

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

This is a great post.

The media have ground the Irish people and nation dosh with constant stories of Covid fear, how racist and bad we are, how we are awful people, and punishments for breaking rules all while constantly trying to find scapegoats to take pressure off failing institution's (and ignoring rules themselves (Retirement party etcl. No debate, no caveats, no alternate perspectives just pure misery and condescension.

And worse in the next breath telling us how important mental health is. The media more than anyone has destroyed the mental health of this country.

This all has an effect, the joy has been taken out of life in Ireland.

Spot on.

The most important thing for me in terms of where to emigrate to is that there wouldn't be the constant threat of lockdowns. It'd be a big risk to go Melbourne, for example. Dan Andrews has locked down the state again and again. New Zealand would be a risk as well with its locking down over a single case. The Isle of Man the same. Even Sweden I'd be a bit cautious about. Increasingly the Swedish Government has been threatening to shut places down. They've even passed legislation that allows them to do so.

I'd feel very good about states such as South Dakota, Florida, and Texas, especially South Dakota. Whenever I hear Governor Noem being interviewed she emphasises the importance of freedom and individual responsibility. Crucially America has opposition in the form of the Republican Party as well as various media outlets. There is a huge emphasis on freedom in the States, so I think one could consider going there and could find a state that suits them. Neil Oliver described the US as a country made up of many different countries. The only problem is that it's rather difficult to get into the States.

I would consider Russia as well because of the Russian 'avos'.

sebdavis · 06-03-2021 11:04AM

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

This is a great post.

The media have ground the Irish people and nation dosh with constant stories of Covid fear, how racist and bad we are, how we are awful people, and punishments for breaking rules all while constantly trying to find scapegoats to take pressure off failing institution's (and ignoring rules themselves (Retirement party etcl. No debate, no caveats, no alternate perspectives just pure misery and condescension.

And worse in the next breath telling us how important mental health is. The media more than anyone has destroyed the mental health of this country.

This all has an effect, the joy has been taken out of life in Ireland.

Turn off the TV

You let the media control you. You let political parties control you. Every evening it is the same rubbish spun my RTE. Then we have an ad every 5 min telling us that we should pay for them.

Just turn it off, once the viewers leave they will change the story

Wanderer78 · 06-03-2021 11:05AM

sebdavis wrote: »

Turn off the TV

You let the media control you. You let political parties control you. Every evening it is the same rubbish spun my RTE. Then we have an ad every 5 min telling us that we should pay for them.

Just turn it off, once the viewers leave they will change the story

that could take some time, as others such as myself enjoy their content

sebdavis · 06-03-2021 11:06AM

Deleted User wrote: »

Spot on.

The most important thing for me in terms of where to emigrate to is that there wouldn't be the constant threat of lockdowns. It'd be a big risk to go Melbourne, for example. Dan Andrews has locked down the state again and again. New Zealand would be a risk as well with its locking down over a single case. The Isle of Man the same. Even Sweden I'd be a bit cautious about. Increasingly the Swedish Government has been threatening to shut places down. They've even passed legislation that allows them to do so.

I'd feel very good about states such as South Dakota, Florida, and Texas, especially South Dakota. Whenever I hear Governor Noem being interviewed she emphasises the importance of freedom and individual responsibility. Crucially America has opposition in the form of the Republican Party as well as various media outlets. There is a huge emphasis on freedom in the States, so I think one could consider going there and could find a state that suits them. Neil Oliver described the US as a country made up of many different countries. The only problem is that it's rather difficult to get into the States.

I would consider Russia as well because of the Russian 'avos'.

So you just want to move somewhere that you don't have to go into lockdown? no matter how high the numbers are.

sebdavis · 06-03-2021 11:08AM

Wanderer78 wrote: »

that could take some time, as others such as myself enjoy their content

The content on the news?
Watch everything else if you want to. I doubt Dermot Bannon is trying to tell people how bad they are. Turn off the news.

I bet since the start of the virus the news numbers are through the roof, people watching the same BS everyday. Turn off the news. Neighbours and Home & Away on RTE 2

ThunbergsAreGo · 06-03-2021 11:09AM

sebdavis wrote: »

Turn off the TV

You let the media control you. You let political parties control you. Every evening it is the same rubbish spun my RTE. Then we have an ad every 5 min telling us that we should pay for them.

Just turn it off, once the viewers leave they will change the story

I do for the most part, but it can be hard to avoid at times.

brickster69 · 06-03-2021 11:13AM

lawred2 wrote: »

It's been printing money pretty much non stop for the last decade.

Yet no inflation!?

Even with negative interest rates.

Wanderer78 · 06-03-2021 11:14AM

sebdavis wrote: »

The content on the news?
Watch everything else if you want to. I doubt Dermot Bannon is trying to tell people how bad they are. Turn off the news.

I bet since the start of the virus the news numbers are through the roof, people watching the same BS everyday. Turn off the news. Neighbours and Home & Away on RTE 2

so how would one gain knowledge about national and international events?

sebdavis · 06-03-2021 11:15AM

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

I do for the most part, but it can be hard to avoid at times.

Really?
After a few weeks of listening to it last March I turned it off, plenty of podcast available in cars. Books to read from amazon, Netflix, Prime, Disney etc to watch on TV
Yes the odd time I turn it on, same rubbish. Big headline, tripping over each other to tell you how many dead. Then we have some clown of a politician telling us what they are doing. Then of course the clown from the opposition to tell us how the first guy was 100% wrong. Both complete idiots.

Everything else in terms of news, business etc can be found on the web. Far better content that the dribble RTE come up with. A company which is based on relatives giving relatives jobs. Run by a bigger shower of incompendent idiots than the government.

The only decent shows on RTE is made by external companies that sell to RTE.

gozunda · 06-03-2021 11:22AM

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Yes, I can't speak for the poster, but I imagine that would be the main reason why a lot of people will and would be looking to emigrate. I don't think that damage can be undone. This has revealed a nastiness that I didn't know was in Irish society. We all know about the begrudgery, but this is different. This is resentment and intolerance. But it's not difficult to understand why it's particularly acute in Ireland. Ireland has the RTÉ problem. RTÉ has since March being pushing fear and stoking anxiety and resentment. This is why it is so important in a democracy to have opposition. There is no opposition in Ireland. The political parties are identical, you have a handful of independents who don't have much of a voice, and there's no opposition in the media. England has the Covid Recovery Group, Talk Radio, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail, Lord Sumption, distinguished historian and retired Supreme Court Judge, has spoken out, and other public intellectuals such as Peter Hitchens have been holding the government to account. What happens when you mention media outlets or journalists, public intellectuals, at least here, is that the outlets and the people themselves are attacked. But that is to miss the point. It doesn't matter whether you particularly like the media organisation or person in question. It is that they provide that opposition that is crucial to a democracy and for debate in society. It is no coincidence that Ireland has been shut since March of last year more or less. Yes, there was a few weeks when the restrictions were relaxed a bit, but really it's been shut down for a year, whether you call it lockdown or heavy restrictions. That could only happen in Ireland because of its being unique in the Western world for having no opposition.

As to where one might go, it's a tough one. Certain states in the US and Australia might be good. Russia has the famous Russian avos, which might appeal to people. An American gentleman went to Russia a few months ago to get away from, as he described it, the hysteria about Donald Trump and covid. In Russia he found a very different world and he wrote the following words to compare Russia with the US:

"The casual, often fatalist approach to COVID-19 here is a world away from its treatment in the West, where people spend their days fearful they might die today, tomorrow, or next week."

I think they are very powerful words and I haven't been able to get them out of my head.

It's hard to know where to go, but it's good that there's a big world out there one can explore. Sweden is also an option.

The Australians labelled the English whingers for their ability to constantly whinge and moan about everything. I reckon that label has now firmly been owned by ourselves.

The fact is we're in the midst of a global pandemic. Of course we've had restrictions. Most like ever other country in the EU and globally. If you want extremes - New Zealand has been completely "locked in" for the same period.

We're dealing with the real-time fallout of that pandemic- with the principle objectives being to keep case numbers down and stop health services being overrun. Its not a fracking ideological debate that needs even more looney extreme factions who dont believe there is a pandemic all the way to its a big conspiracy.

The media are doing what they've always done - and running with big scarey headlines. Now we have a choice - we can close them down or we can apply a filter between them and our ears - like we usually do.

You talk of opposition being crucial to a democracy and a debate in society. And it is. We've had plenty of debate here already - even our tri party government haven't been able to agree on significant issues, with each other or even with NPHET. The opposition have been digging the boot in and you now want even more debate and opposition in the form of media rags like the daily mail? And the people have voiced various opinions loud and clear. So loud and clear- we ended up with a "meaningfull" Christmas and the ****e that ensued from that.

As to the people you refer to. Lets look at just one - Peter Hitchens has been an anti vaxer, is openly dismissive of the servitity of the Pandemic (even with the UKs horrendous case rates) and is yet another anti masker. His main role in the current **** fest that is tackling covid in the UK - is that he hates the current UK Conservative government with a passion which predates any of the current issues.

You talk of how important democracy and opposition with a straight face refer to Russia as someplace that might be a good place to avoid daily headlines produced by the likes of the daily mail and other free media like them? On one hand you seem to want the media to shut up and yet on the other you want them to continue to use tabloid style discourse. As to Sweden and its - one approach no dissent allowed approach - to ignoring the pandemic. I think we know how thats worked out for them - Sweden seems to be on a road to hell in a handcart if you look at its punitive tax regime and escalating crime levels. As for Australia-you won't be allowed in there as they've also closed their borders to all foreigners for the forseeable future.

But sure yes leave if you wish - no one is stopping that and afaik theres no restrictions on one way travel . Good luck.

ThunbergsAreGo · 06-03-2021 11:23AM

sebdavis wrote: »

Really?
After a few weeks of listening to it last March I turned it off, plenty of podcast available in cars. Books to read from amazon, Netflix, Prime, Disney etc to watch on TV
Yes the odd time I turn it on, same rubbish. Big headline, tripping over each other to tell you how many dead. Then we have some clown of a politician telling us what they are doing. Then of course the clown from the opposition to tell us how the first guy was 100% wrong. Both complete idiots.

Everything else in terms of news, business etc can be found on the web. Far better content that the dribble RTE come up with. A company which is based on relatives giving relatives jobs. Run by a bigger shower of incompendent idiots than the government.

The only decent shows on RTE is made by external companies that sell to RTE.

I am a Liverpool fan..... I find my usual football podcasts aren't an escape from misery anymore haha.

I totally agree though

ThunbergsAreGo · 06-03-2021 11:25AM

gozunda wrote: »

You talk of opposition being crucial to a democracy and a debate in society. And it is. We've had plenty of debate here already - even our tri party government haven't been able to agree on significant issues, with each other or even with NPHET. The opposition have been digging the boot in and you now want even more debate and opposition in the form of media rags like the daily mail? And the people have voiced various opinions loud and clear. So loud and clear- we ended up with a "meaningfull" Christmas and the ****e that ensued from that.

Name three things the main Irish political parties disagree on?

landofthetree · 06-03-2021 11:41AM

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

Name three things the main Irish political parties disagree on?

FF FG Lab Greens SD SF and lots of indos could all be one party.

They all a neo-liberal.

Any party that supports 13.5% corpo tax is neo-liberal.

SF call FG Tories. FFS SF want billionaire companies to pay less than the Tories.

Wanderer78 · 06-03-2021 11:43AM

landofthetree wrote: »

FF FG Lab Greens SD SF and lots of indos could all be one party.

They all a neo-liberal.

Any party that supports 13.5% corpo tax is neo-liberal.

that ideology is far more complex than just that, and our current rate is 12.5, yes this should be increased, but that needs to be extremely carefully done

gozunda · 06-03-2021 11:58AM

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

Name three things the main Irish political parties disagree on?

If you want a political discourse on the differences or otherwise of the three current political parties in government than maybe a thread in politics may be more appropriate.

In the context of the pandemic as was detailed - we've had plenty of debate with Micheal Martin and Leo Varadkar et al fighting over Covid measures since the very start. Take a look at any of the news reports todate. That they’ve came to agreements on many of the issues is perhaps remarkable.

Eric Cartman · 06-03-2021 12:01PM

Wanderer78 wrote: »

that ideology is far more complex than just that, and our current rate is 12.5, yes this should be increased, but that needs to be extremely carefully done

It would be political and economic suicide to increase that rate

sebdavis · 06-03-2021 12:02PM

ThunbergsAreGo wrote: »

I am a Liverpool fan..... I find my usual football podcasts aren't an escape from misery anymore haha.

I totally agree though

Well you had a nice first few months

sebdavis · 06-03-2021 12:03PM

Wanderer78 wrote: »

that ideology is far more complex than just that, and our current rate is 12.5, yes this should be increased, but that needs to be extremely carefully done

In the middle of the pandemic Ireland is lucky that loads of people work in multi nationals and have continued to work/pay tax etc. Without these workers the country would be in an absolute disaster. We should not even have a consideration of increasing that rate

06-03-2021 12:10PM

sebdavis wrote: »

So you just want to move somewhere that you don't have to go into lockdown? no matter how high the numbers are.

Yes. Living under the constant threat and fear of lockdown is horrible.

Wanderer78 · 06-03-2021 12:32PM

Eric Cartman wrote: »

It would be political and economic suicide to increase that rate

sebdavis wrote: »

In the middle of the pandemic Ireland is lucky that loads of people work in multi nationals and have continued to work/pay tax etc. Without these workers the country would be in an absolute disaster. We should not even have a consideration of increasing that rate

we either increase their taxes or our taxes, which one would you like?

we should change the way we accept it, leave it at 12.5 for the time being, but accept some of it as stocks and shares

06-03-2021 12:42PM

gozunda wrote: »

The Australians labelled the English whingers for their ability to constantly whinge and moan about everything. I reckon that label has now firmly been owned by ourselves.

The fact is we're in the midst of a global pandemic. Of course we've had restrictions. Most like ever other country in the EU and globally. If you want extremes - New Zealand has been completely "locked in" for the same period.

We're dealing with the real-time fallout of that pandemic- with the principle objectives being to keep case numbers down and stop health services being overrun. Its not a fracking ideological debate that needs even more looney extreme factions who dont believe there is a pandemic all the way to its a big conspiracy.

The media are doing what they've always done - and running with big scarey headlines. Now we have a choice - we can close them down or we can apply a filter between them and our ears - like we usually do.

You talk of opposition being crucial to a democracy and a debate in society. And it is. We've had plenty of debate here already - even our tri party government haven't been able to agree on significant issues, with each other or even with NPHET. The opposition have been digging the boot in and you now want even more debate and opposition in the form of media rags like the daily mail? And the people have voiced various opinions loud and clear. So loud and clear- we ended up with a "meaningfull" Christmas and the ****e that ensued from that.

As to the people you refer to. Lets look at just one - Peter Hitchens has been an anti vaxer, is openly dismissive of the servitity of the Pandemic (even with the UKs horrendous case rates) and is yet another anti masker. His main role in the current **** fest that is tackling covid in the UK - is that he hates the current UK Conservative government with a passion which predates any of the current issues.

You talk of how important democracy and opposition with a straight face refer to Russia as someplace that might be a good place to avoid daily headlines produced by the likes of the daily mail and other free media like them? On one hand you seem to want the media to shut up and yet on the other you want them to continue to use tabloid style discourse. As to Sweden and its - one approach no dissent allowed approach - to ignoring the pandemic. I think we know how thats worked out for them - Sweden seems to be on a road to hell in a handcart if you look at its punitive tax regime and escalating crime levels. As for Australia-you won't be allowed in there as they've also closed their borders to all foreigners for the forseeable future.

But sure yes leave if you wish - no one is stopping that and afaik theres no restrictions on one way travel . Good luck.

Locked in, but open domestically for the guts of a year. Ireland has been closed domestically for the guts of a year.

We've had next to no debate. No opposition in the Dáil, no opposition in the media. Any and all dissent has been crushed. Dr Feeley, Dr Morrisey, Dr De Brún, for example (cue "they're cranks and "anti-vaxxers").

If Peter Hitchens is an "anti-vaxxer" then why did he get the vaccine a few weeks ago? https://hitchensblog.mailonsunday.co.uk/2021/02/peter-hitchens-ive-had-the-covid-jab-and-all-it-cost-me-was-my-freedom.html

You did what I said would happen in my post. You're focusing on the newspapers and individuals I mentioned in my post. My point was not that the Daily Mail is a particularly good newspaper, but that it provides an alternative to newspapers such as The Guardian and The Independent, for example. Can you name an Irish newspaper that provides an alternative voice to either The Irish Times or The Irish Independent? In the US there's Fox News, Breitbart (again, the point is no that they are particularly good, but that they are an alternative voice and offer balance and opposition), and, most crucially of all, the two main parties, The Republican Party and The Democratic Party, are ideologically opposed to one another (although I have heard it be argued that they are increasingly less so).

I didn't say that democracy was important (although it obviously is). I said that debate and an alternative voice are fundamental to a well-functioning democracy.

I didn't mention the media in the context of Russia. I mentioned the Russian 'avos' and I quoted from an article an American gentleman wrote about Russia. Do you think this sentence is accurate:

"The casual, often fatalist approach to COVID-19 here is a world away from its treatment in the West, where people spend their days fearful they might die today, tomorrow, or next week."

I've listened to a number of interviews with Dr Anders Tegnell and made a point in several of those interviews to say that Sweden considered the broader health and well-being of the population in its approach to covid. Unlike Ireland, Sweden won't have to unterrify possibly 80 to 90% of the population. Sweden won't have to deal with the issue of neighbours turning on each other. That can't, and won't be solved overnight. Sweden won't have to deal with the terrible damage that has been done to the young through lack of education and opportunity. In my opinion, a lot of the damage is irreversible. That is not to be a doom merchant. I just can't see how it can be undone, but I very much hope it can be.

Imagine a guy who owns a pub in Ireland. Say he decided to emigrate after growing fed up of being closed for a year. Would he risk going to Dan Andrews' Melbourne? Would he risk going to New Zealand where a single case is enough to cause the government to lock down the country? Would he go to another country in Western Europe where the threat of lockdowns is a constant fear and possibility? Or would he go to somewhere like Florida, where Governor De Santis has vowed that the sate will never lock down again? Or to South Dakota, where Governor Noem has said on numerous occasions that there's no such thing as an unessential livelihood and who refused to shut down the state?

And I wasn't talking about me emigrating. I was trying to offer a bit of advice to the young man who has decided to emigrate.

And something else has just occurred to me. Because of the lack of opposition in Ireland (and it really is the case when you compare Ireland with other countries), Irish people are relying on the government to return to them their freedoms and liberty. But what if the government doesn't? What if it keeps restrictions in place indefinitely and justifies it by saying "we're worried about potential variants"? What then? Protest? That won't happen. RTÉ will put pressure on the government? That won't happen. This is why it's so important to have opposition, be it in politics or in the media. The Daily Mail, for example, (yes, it's a rag, but that's irrelevant) started a campaign a few months ago to pressure the government into allowing people to visit loved ones in care homes. The government soon started talking about relaxing the restrictions on care home visits. The Daily Mail is currently campaigning for the way in which deaths are recorded in England to be investigated. The newspaper is putting pressure on the government. Talk Radio puts pressure on the government every day. It's irrelevant whether you like them or not. The point is that they are opposition.

How much is this all going to cost and who will pay for it ?

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