A worrying undermining of our democracy??

The coming referendum on the abolishment of Seanad Éireann would, if passed, remove the existing constitutional right of the President to refer proposed Bills to the people for a referendum. It would pass the initial responsibility of passing Bills into law onto the Dáil alone - a dangerous development, particularly where any ruling party might hold an overall majority.

A vote to abolish the Seanad would in fact pass most law making decisions that impact upon the people to the Dáil alone, passing such responsibility to a single parliamentary body, thus removing existing safeguards meant to protect against the introduction of unconstitutional or politically or otherwise motivationally biased law.

Abolition of the Seanad would mean that a single body, the Dáil, will be responsible for passing any new laws through parliament, which must then be signed into law by the President.

However, the existing constitutional right of the President to refer any Bill to the people for referendum will be removed from the Constitution.

Related Links:
How much would we save by abolishing the Seanad?
Very cynical misleading FG posters?
A History of Iniquity, II: How Irish Governments behaved unconstitutionally, serving the EU agenda | Memo On The Unconstitutional Use Of Public Money By Irish Governments In Constitutional Referendums | Article 136 TFEU amendment, the ESM and the Fiscal Compact Treaty | The Irish Veto: Why a referendum on one treaty, and not on the other? | Referenda: A Strategy for Success? | NUI Seanad Candidates' Include Secret FFers, FGers, et al | Ronan Mullen: Independent Senator. Liberal? | Ireland in Crisis: Challenging the Consensus |

Today the mainstream media are claiming that there has been a chemical attack by the Syrian government near Damascus even whilst an UN inspection team arrives. The reports have been conflicting with the initial reports claiming 280 victims and then later up-ing it to over 1,300 killed.

However, the claims are predominantly coming from the so called Free Syrian Army who are backed and funded by some of the despotic Gulf States, as well as Saudi Arabia and by the Western powers principally France, USA and UK. This same group is made up mercenaries of all kinds including members of Al Qaeda who want to turn the country backwards and bring in Sharia Law and just back in May 2013 the UN accused the Syrian rebels of using chemical weapons.

What is most telling though is that it makes absolutely no sense for the Syrian government to do this. In recent months they have retaken areas held by rebels and seem to have repelled several attack campaigns in the past two year. And France in particular as well as the other powers have been consistently in the last year being trying to throw the mud of chemical weapons and then chemical weapon attacks in a clear effort to force public opinion to back no-fly zones and from there total demolition of the country and invasion followed later by a pliant regime. The end game is to clear the way for an attack on Iran which the crazies have been pushing hard for many years.

Update:: Mint Press News: EXCLUSIVE: Syrians In Ghouta Claim Saudi-Supplied Rebels Behind Chemical Attack
Indymedia Links:
Saudi Rulers Pour Money Into Arming Militants In Region | Syria: One "humanitarian" intervention too far | Hacker unearths plot against Syria / Iran | Interview with Syrian Communist on conflict in Syria | Syrian TV reporter killed by rebel sniper near Qusair |
Other Links:
Syria: Chemical weapons used by rebels came from Turkey -Times of Israel -Apr 2013 | Putin claims proof Syrian rebels used chemical weapons -June 2013 -Refers to earlier chemical attack. | UN: Syrian Rebels Used Chemical Weapons - The nerve agent sarin was used by 'the rebels, not by the government authorities' -refers to earlier rebel chemical weapon attack |
John Kerry’s “Colin Powell moment” | Australian government backs US-led campaign against Syria | Lying About Syria | US Uses Past Crimes to Legalize Future Ones | Hypocrisy! - CIA helped Saddam gas Iran in ’88 | Syrian army finds chemicals in militants tunnels -Press TV | Syria: Another Western War Crime In The Making -

It seems like everytime I view the Fas website more and more real jobs are dissapearing from it and being replaced with free labour internships. When I search for specific sectors now all I seem to find are internships. This scheme is absolutely sickening me as it has potentially destroyed several thousand entry level jobs. I can't believe that Joan Burton and the labour party have completely ruined the youth labour market with a scheme which is:

-replacing real paid jobs with "internships"
-exploiting the jobless
-wasting tax-payer money to provide companies with free labour
-putting underqualified/inexperienced/unvetted people in jobs with far too much responsibility(working with kids etc...)
-distorting our unemployment figures
-putting existing paid jobs at risk
-being used to makeup for a shortfall of skills in the public service due to the recruitment embargo

Related Links: www.ScamBridge.ie | ScamBridge: How the Scam Works | RBB of People Before Profit TD, challenges Minister Burton on outrageous abuse of JobBridge Scheme by private waste company with state contracts
Indy Links: Job bridge converting paid work into unpaid work,and the massaging of dole figures... | Job bridge or exploitation scheme

Drumm: Wanted by the people for High Treason

The astonishing tapes show senior manager John Bowe, who had been involved in negotiations with the Central Bank, laughing and joking as he tells another senior manager, Peter Fitzgerald, how Anglo was luring the State into giving it billions of euro. Mr Fitzgerald had not been involved in the negotiations with the Central Bank and has confirmed he was unaware of any strategy or intention to mislead the authorities. Mr Bowe, in a statement last night, categorically denied that he had misled the Central Bank.

The audio recordings are from the bank's own internal telephone system and date from the heart of the financial crisis that brought the State to its knees in Sept 08.

Anglo itself was within days of complete meltdown – and in the years ahead would eat up €30bn of taxpayer money. Mr Bowe speaks about how the State had been asked for €7bn to bail out Anglo – but Anglo's negotiators knew all along this was not enough to save the bank.

Related Links: Police Draw Batons on Bank Bailout protestors | Ireland and the shadow Banking System - A Talk by Dr. Conor McCabe| The Recession, Bank Bailout or our Deficit? | Audio from Conor McCabe on Banker and Rancher Interests in the Modern Irish Economy | Anglo Irish Bank Protesters to Plead Not Guilty -Here we have a case where the govt tries to convict people protesting against the bankers but not the actual bankers themselves. | Banner Protest outside Anglo Irish Bank | Eirigí Protest at Anglo Irish Bank - 13 Photos Essay | Why the Fianna Fail Party wants to avoid bank nationalisation. | Workers Party Press Release Dec 2008 on Anglo Irish Bank | Initial Thoughts on the Govt's Guarantee to Irish Banks and Its Wider Implications | Communist Party Demand the sacking of all CEO's of Irish banks

This year's G8 promises to be different for a number of reasons. G8s and G8 protests have, by now, become something of a ritual. One where each side already knows the rules of the game. The great and good come together to discuss how they might set the world to right, and the protestors outside condemn them for not doing it quickly enough – or not really intending to do it at all. Charity is promised to Africa, and folks like Sir Bob Geldof will proclaim that a successful G8 has been had. Other folks will throw bricks and bottles at the police, and feel that they have stuck a blow for the cause. What cause exactly is not always clear. The media have a field day – a morning glimpse of presidents and prime ministers, and then spend the rest of the day with the unwashed outside; hoping that they will start a riot – or, at least, do something that looks good on camera and will fill thirty seconds on primetime news. And the general public have a little bit of entertainment to lighten the daily drudge of work, or more and more commonly, unemployment. So why should the G8 Summit on the 17th and 18th of June 2013 be any different?

Related Links: Dublin Alternative G8: March on the American Chamber of Commerce | Dublin Alternative G8 Summit | Anarchists Condemn G8 Scaremongering - press release | Another World is Possible! - Festival of Alternatives to the G8 | Dublin Alternative G8 | Irish Republican Alternative to the G8 | G8 Summit Fermanagh | Statement from Stop the G8 regarding the summit in Fermanagh this year | Verdicts in for the Genoa 10: guilty | Final sentences for police forces involved in Diaz school butchery at 2001 G8 summit in Genoa | Genoa isn't over: new support campaign for G8 2001 in Genoa, Italy | Ten Reasons Why We Need a New, Anticapitalist Alternative | 2010: Blockades, direct action and demonstrations in France. 2011: G8-G20 in France | 30th of January 1972, 14 civil rights activists were shot dead. 38 years later Justice came to Derry | Genoa riot police get 5 years | Blair & Geldof's Africa panel? | From the Hill District in Pittsburgh - where the real G20 Action is taking place | Food Sovereignty in Africa | FDC to G8-funded World Bank: Cancel all illegitimate debts | Italy - Document of summit protest against G8 economy in Lecce, June 12-13 2009 | Interview: NYC anarchist at the G8 in Japan