Unsung Heros in Ireland

by Michelle Clarke - Social Justice and Ethics Sun Dec 23, 2007 21:28

Reflections of a Judge (Judge Michael Comyn) deceased 1952
by Michelle Clarke - Social Justice and Ethics Sun 23 Dec 2007 09:24:40 PM CST

Christmas 2007 lurks; the last two days of the working week before Christmas brought to the stage our Taoiseach, Mr. Bertie Ahern and Mr. Justice Mahon - the Mahon Tribunal, the legal eagle entourage and others including interested watchers.

Reading a book written in the 1970's by James Comyn, I note with interest the comments of his uncle, Michael Comyn, KC, Senator, Judge and Prospector and suggest they still hold context since they were written in the 1940's.

A little bit of wisdom perhaps from earlier and more insecure times:

'Governments should regard the appointment of Judges as a supremely important function. A Judge has great power - not general and diffused like the power of a Government but intimate and personal, directly affecting the lives and fortunes of individuals. Some Judges can be very bad, the two worst defects being an itch to exercise power on all occasions and the desire to be humorous.......A man who is not a good lawyer with a sound knowledge of the law should not be made a Judge, because it is the law of the land which the Judge has to administer, not what he thinks the law should be. In civil cases he usually has little discretion but in criminal cases quite a lot. (Michelle. Use of word bad - such a strong word; a Judge has to administer the law of the land).

.......

'A Judge's responsibility arises in dealing with crime. He must be fair to everyone and it must be obvious to all that he is being so. An apparent unfairness to a prisoner from the bench will often lead a jury to acquit a clearly guilty man. In passing sentence a Judge should guard particularly against any feeling of anger or resentment. (Such emotions can be felt by a Judge). Many times in the hearing of a bad, or an ill-conducted case, a Judge may feel such emotions. If they predominate at the end of the trial he is in no fit state to pass sentence and should put the prisoner back for a time. Whenever I felt excessive emotion I used to write down the sentence which occurred to me and then postpone sentence until the following morning. (Michelle: Sound....especially when proceedings are 'Bawdy' and anger throws sarcasm into the fray)

.......

'So far as bribery is concerned, I think the briber and the bribed must have an instinct for knowing each other akin to the acute sense of smell of dogs. One instance of attempted bribery actually occurred in my court. It was in a workman's compensation claim where I had a distinguished doctor sitting with me as my medical assessor. I wanted a special examination of the claimant by the assessor and while this was being conducted in my room I went on with other cases in court. After a time the doctor resumed his place near me on the bench. He had a look of outraged virtue about him and he tol me later that the workman had produced a roll of notes when they went into the room together. I told the doctor that I was satisfied that the claim was not bona fide and I intended to dismiss it. ''But you are not going to do anything about the attempt to bribe me''?, he asked ''No'', I replied. ''It is not necessary to do so and it is better not to mention that such a thing was attempted''.

(Michelle: This makes me think of Eoghan Harris, Journalist, while being interviewed on TV recently. He was firm in his view that like the Hutton Tribunal held in the UK, a few years ago, there ought to be definitive time limits placed on Tribunals of Inquiry? We talk about 'need to know' these days.....)

Judge Michael Comyn....

''I knew of one case of bribery in a particular type of election where a local councillor had a vote. The person who wanted his vote gave him a horse and actually delivered it before the polling took place. When the result was announced it was seen that this man got no vote at all, so it was obvious that this councillor had not fulfilled his promise. A few days later the briber saw the horse standing saddled near the councillor's house. He promptly went up to the horse and rode him way.

....In the nature of things there could be no claim (even to the saddle which really belonged to the councillor) and so a Rough Justice was done between two unjust men''

Has anyone looked at Revenue receipts from all people over the years who failed to make proper tax returns. The Revenue is a net earner and it looks like that have more tax dodgers to fill the coffers further. This time they will also make on the administration factor because according to the newspapers today, they intend to force the Auctioneers/Estate agents to report the names of any person in Ireland who bought properties overseas.....I reckon there will be a tidy sum from here. It may have an double edged benefit - if people get taxed on their overseas property, they may sell up and return to Ireland and even buy more property here. Then there were Amnesties also......

Goodnight

Michelle

http://www.Common

by Michelle Clarke - Social Justice and Ethics Mon May 07, 2007 20:58

Yet what has become of the political culture in Ireland, in a short two decades. The excerpt from the The Americans, A study in National Character by Geoffrey Gorer published 1948 has particular relevance in the contextualisation of an Ireland that has evolved. The decision was contrived in the 1980's by Government, Financiers to engage in a financial specific market. This created a Tiger... now constantly referred to a s the Celtic Tiger.

'Culture is strong and pervasive, and the national character which is the embodiment of a local culture is acquired above all, in the earlier years of life; will-power alone is not enough to modify those motives and ways of viewing the universe which spring from unrecognised and unconscious sources; the majority of mankind cannot remould themselves by taking thought. Consequently the greater numbers of immigrants, though they had rejected as much of Europe as they could, were still incomplete Americans; their own person; their own persons; their characters; their ways of thought; usually their accent carried their stigmata of the Europe they had rejected. But though they could not transform themselves; their children would be transmuted; the public schools, in some cases aided by the neighbours, would turn their children into the 100% Americans they could never hope to be themselves.

Ireland, the Famine, the Land of Emigrants, the Rising, Colonisation - all we need do is look to the Literary figures like Sean O' Casey, W.B. Yeats, Synge.....Frank McCourt; or to the history books and education; to the GAA and sports culture all intrinsically linked to promoting a unique Irish Political Culture.........but Government decisions of the 1980's changed the playing fields in Ireland. An economic equation was created, markets that were dead like housing were kick started with incentives to purchase to let property tax free for 10 years. Companies particularly from the US were encouraged to locate in Ireland with 10% low corporation tax - Microsoft today in Ireland forms 20% of our GDP. Computerisation was one market but I have heard that 8 out of 10 of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies have a base in Ireland. The Financial Services centre......has opened up many opportunties to create the foundations for necessary social change and equality.

In the 1980's, Ireland had near 28 unemployment, emigration and particularly of graduates was high. However, education was the strong point for companies deciding to avail of our people, at all levels. As this developed, so did education, so did our tourist indfustry (thanks to companies like Ryanair)........Now we have the hotel industry and worldwide conferences have a venue in Ireland also.

G.K Chesterton, a man of wisdom and of different times wrote 'Education is simply the soul as it passes from one generation to another'. We received an excellent inheritance here.

The Proclamation of 1916 verbalised the Soul but what has happened to our Political culture - what have we learnt from history? How do we consider Evolution!

In the midst of the present scandals - I wonder has anyone out there a view on Political Culture and does anyone regard this witch hunt of a Taoiseach as acceptable in a Democracy. What about a Scales of Justice? What about the Historic Achievements that culminated in a shake hands between Revd. Ian Paisley and our Taoiseach Mr. Ahern. Tomorrow - what a historic day, we meet.

Stormont is to be re-opened. RTE 1 TV a.m. will be filming history in the making, something it is hard to envisage particularly as a child of the 1950's.

Imagine the two Extreme Enemies combining as one, to run the devolved Government of the North, This is real progress....under any global conflict.

Michelle
Quotation: Walt Whitman for the Special Day 8th May 2007
'Underneath all individuals, I swear nothing is good to me now, that ignores individuals. The American compact is altogether with individuals
The only government is that which makes minute with individuals.
(By Blue Ontario's Show)

by Jack Russell - Social Justice and Ethics Tue May 01, 2007 00:30

I agree. Dublin also has many secrets to found.....those hidden in the Houses of D4, and D6. Dublin 3, and Dublin 8. Let the exploration begin.....and let's include the canine stories in that history.