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The Greens have not lost their moral compass ; they have buried it
 galway |
miscellaneous |
opinion/analysis
 Saturday February 13, 2010 11:45 by donkylemore
We need a '' Green Garrowen''- and let them run the ball at their detractors
If Ms de Burca's allegations are to be believed as written her unbridled personal column in today's Irish Times, it would seem that not only have the Greens lost their moral compass ; they have buried it under a host of erstwhile worthy principles.
In these circumstances t'would be well were the Green's to bury this current arrangement of their party system and try to reform themselves rigorously before they attempt to resurrect themselves , with any credibility. Ms de Burca's departure from Irish politics is disquieting on a number of levels. There were obvious fault lines becoming more manifest over the past weeks between she and her Party leader Minister Gormley . A quake was imminent as the tectonic plates of their individual personnae floated unhappily on a lava on discontent , and drifted inexorable towards collision.
She reveals much about this growing discontent bordering on open enmity with Mr Gormley in her very revealing and personal column in today's Irish Times
On the night of the government bank guarantee Mr Gormley is alleged to have been unavailable, asleep and uncontactable , if we are to believe some , and requiring a Grada to climb into his house to alert the Minister to the fact that he was urgently required in the Dept of Finance HQ . These allegations may be apocryphal , nonetheless Mr Gormley's personal ambiance somehow lacks the robust vigor of say General Mc Arthur; Minister Gormley's personna is more reminiscent St Francis of Assisi,albeit uncanonised and without consummated sainthood .- maybe the sandles is the only common denominator.
In this situation as in many more which were to follow he was the rabbit caught in the head-lamps.He has fudged when he could have been assertive ; timid when he should have been bold ; meek when he should have been dogmatic
He has undoubtedly compromised the very essence of Green ethos from Tara to Waste management . .He bungled at every juncture from the financial crisis to the Tara Skryne / motorway - to waste management.
In this unsavoury milieu Ms de Burca's resignation was an act of self sacrifice and even one of nobility. But if there other less altruistic personal reasons for her departure then her action would have to be viewed through a different prism and with different colored spectacles.
While Ms de Burca comes across as a committed politician , motivated from a a sense of the urgent, if not passionate need to change Irish Politics , there are undercurrents muddying the waters concerning her rejection by Ms Goeghegan -Quinn as part of Ms Quinn's Cabinee in Brussels .
This would of course be much less an edifying reason for her departure and one sincerely hopes that it is not her singular reason for her departure.But perhaps Ms de Burca genuinely believed that should would best serve her constituents and adhere more fervently to her own political values by serving in Brussels than in Dublin .
In this regard , it would appear that Ms de Burca's enunciated values were unacceptable to those espoused by Ms Goeghegan - Quinn. There would have been unreconciled conflicts in many areas from GM foods to energy and waste disposal issues .
The alliance would have been an unhappy one . It was doomed to an early divorce.
Ms de Burca has raised many important questions about the Green party.What do they stand for now; what is the Green Agenda ; when did we see any nuance of this agenda ; are the party remaining in power for the sake of power over principle at whatever cost.?
If Ms de Burca's allegations are to be believed as written in her unbridled personal column today', it would seem that not only have the Greens lost their moral compass ; they have consciously and willfully buried it all under a host of erstwhile worthy principles and ethical values.
In these circumstances t'would be well were the Green's to bury this current arrangement of their party system and try to reform themselves rigorously before they attempt to resurrect themselves , with any credibility.
Her pleasant and gracious demeanor will be much missed in Irish Politics.
She had to go. But whither now the Green party . Are they holed below the water line just about bailing the boat out to keep afloat with all their energy devoted to this task , thereby debilitating them from devoting any time to their main purpose , whatever that is at present .
The electorate have a right to know. It is insuffecient to hold together as in a rigby maul. We are all part of the management team who fielded them.
They need to look look less towards this huddle of cohesion and solidarity which is really ungracious , demeaning and dishonest. They should look out at the stunned and hushed stadium , and make the bold decision that we hope the Irish rugby team will do today in Paris .
Lets have - A Green'' Garryowen '' now and let the Green Party run boldly at their detractors
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Comments (6 of 6)
Jump To Comment: 6 5 4 3 2 1I also noticed that Fintan McGrath And O'Sullivan ( ex Tony Gregory) abstained. So called independents. They must be pro Fianna Fail.
Yes, it does get worse. Was listening to extensive coverage of the Willie O'dea issue this morning
You need a very black sense of humour.
Good luck with your FOI request/PQ.
Gormley et al will hang on to clock up more ministerial pension and expenses.
Just wondering if there is any chance Dan Boyle will walk.....but the Seanad is the best part-time job I know and thats without considering the unvouched expenses.
How must you feel this morning . The greens voted with the FF to support a slanderer in Minister O Dea. The transcript of the tape is being published in the limerick leader. The offended SF party may be on Browne tv3 tonight Thurs.
I too am disgusted , but not surprised that Gormley is taking his money for show.
I have written to him requesting a list of the Green party members and their associates who will be travelling out of the country on St Pats. day- on government business and in receipt of state funding .
Needless to say I have recd no response. I shall have to pursue it by bay of a FOI request or a PQ.
Don
I'm not quite sure that I understand your text. Were you in some sense being prescient with regard to events which you anticipated would unfold in a particular manner. And having expressed caution you further expressed concern that your protest would be disregarded by Mr Ryan if and when he got into power?
If indeed you did send the test as I have interpeted it , it was indeed prescient .
I think we were all taken in by the Greens.
They have rolled over on every occasion and for each cause they had espoused prior to their going into government.
It is clear just how cravenly and unashamedly accommodating they've been for FF
They are despicable ; beneath contempt.
Have you any replies from Ryan. ? If you had some evidence that he held a particular view which he later abandoned for political convenience - for which , read gross betrayal of his electoral base.
This is also the reason he darent leave office now.
Why should he sacrifice a ministers pension and other perks for you or me or the people of Rosport or indeed the country - None of any that matters ; all that matters is Mr Ryan.
Principles are for losers .
If they ever had one between them I think their brains would go into an unstopable chain reaction , and cause a seizure of 8 on the Richter scale
I grieve for that sad all enduring smile on Ryan's face - its a '' feel- my -pain-kind of look .Dont you?
It makes me want to puke as Holden Caufield might have said.
If you had any messages from Ryan , why not write them into an opinion piece here .
Don
The following message was sent by me to Eamon Ryan during the Green's negotiation/acceptance of fall guy status prior to formation of the current state/corporate power structure -
'Will Corrib be a non-negotiable plank or do we become a pragmatic pawn? I would caution against the latter at your peril. (This is NOT intimidatory!) Maura'
For the record, the text was sent to mobile no 086 829 4429, the number Ryan had when he was using the Rossport 5 to get his bum on a seat in Leinster House; after he got there he ditched that mobile.
It was good to see the resignation of Deirdre de Burca and the hard hitting letter of resignation she published even if there may be a doubt that her actual reasons for resigning are as high minded as she claims.
As a green voter who will not vote for them again, its been sickening to see them continually ignore issues they campaigned on before and hear the spin about compromise being necessary in government.
The last straw for me was their refusal to stand up to Cowen/Lenehan on the U turn on pay cuts for 600 highly paid public servants. Cowen would surely have given way on this issue which would have brought money into the states depleted coffers. If the Greens voted against it and given that some of the independents would have also opposed it, Cowen would have backed down rather than see the government fall.
It would have been politically popular for the Greens because how can any fair minded person support 5% cut for public sector cleaners on a payscale stopping at €24,000 pa which is an actual net pay cut of 5% since its unlikely they were liable for tax anyway whereas any pay cut for these top people is in fact only HALF the gross cut because they are on the top rate of tax and paying income and health levies.
Years ago some greens supported the concept of a maximum income though it never was party policy. it is bizarre that gormley and Co supported the U turn for these highly paid people. if it would have caused 'pain', it would be that they might find it difficult to pay their loans on their second, third, fourth properties in bulgaria and god knows where else.
Perhaps Gormley' s moral compass is typified by the revelation that he has been claiming Dail 'turning up' money which is officially for travel and subsistence. Before he got the Ministerial eco car in mid 2007 he had no travel expenses because he cycled from his home which is near to the Dail and lost no opportunity for a photo opportunity on the bike.
According to the Sunday Tribune late last year, he claimed over €14,000 in 2006 for turning up money. This was the last full year he was a back bencher. Contrast that €14,000 with the €10,000 pa a single unemployed person gets.
How could a person of any integrity claim all that taxfree money for expenses he didn't have. Yes, it was within the rules but the politicians write the rules.