Fianna Fáil might be right about Eamon Gilmore. Give him enough time and he could do in himself and the Labour Party, or at least do himself and Labour serious damage, writes Vincent Browne.
Gilmore rose to that challenge impressively in an interview with Sean O'Rourke on RTE Radio 1 during the week and hinted at just how much harm he could do, if given the chance. But before I get into that, allow me to set the context.
The Fine Gael website was hacked this evening by the group of activists responsible for the pro-Wikileaks attacks on Visa and Mastercard in 2010. The bona fide Fine Gael website finegael2011.com loads momentarily before being replaced by an image (see below) containing a logo with the title 'ANONYMOUS'. Beneath the logo appears the text:
Government of the people by the people requires radical change in our self-serving parliamentary system, writes Vincent Browne.
The stunts over the abolition of the Seanad are a reminder that however desperate the nation's condition may be, our politicians can be relied upon to do everything they can to make matters worse.
It's time we named that traditional Irish art, much ignored in spite of its prevalence, an art handed down from father to son over generations, an art that has shaped our society more than almost every other custom, an art that has been very much in evidence again over these festive days: it's the male art of practised helplessness. By Vincent Browne
A staggering 59% of Irish Times poll respondents felt the economy would be the same if Fine Gael and Labour had been at the wheel, writes Vincent Browne.
There is huge disillusionment with politics as politics is in Ireland now. A sense that the government is hopelessly incompetent and that the alternative government is hardly any better.
There was a throwaway line in Brian Lenihan's budget speech two weeks ago about ministerial transport. It was to the effect that changes to ministerial transport arrangements would be specified in the budget annex, writes Vincent Browne.
The budget annex revealed there would be no changes to ministerial transport, apart from an undertaking that ministerial cars would henceforth be of two-litre capacity, and the transport arrangements for former taoisigh were being curtailed marginally.
The EU needs this deal as much as Ireland, for if an Irish bank goes down, it endangers banks around Europe, writes Vincent Browne.
A chap called Chandler rented a room from another chap called Webster in 1901. The agreed fee was £140, payable up front. Chandler paid £100 and owed Webster the balance. Chandler wanted to view the coronation procession of Edward VII, the heir to Queen Victoria, and his wife Alexandra on 26 June of that year.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen doesn't believe he personally was in any way responsible for the devastation caused to the country by the economic policies he pursued as Minister for Finance, by the collapse of the financial system under his watch and the bank guarantee which he gave on 30 September 2008.
Yes, he is very sorry the country has been devastated, he deeply regrets this – as does everyone else in the country, many regretting it far more than he does because they are the ones bearing the pain of the devastation.
Along with a badly negotiated bailout, the Budget puts the greatest burden on those least able to bear it, writes Vincent Browne
Brian Lenihan ended his Budget speech yesterday saying: "There is every reason to be confident about the future of this economy and this country if we only have confidence in ourselves." The problem is that he and the Government have given us every reason not to have confidence in themselves and, as a consequence, in ourselves.
The Programme of Financial Support for Ireland, will be subject to three-month reviews "of conditionality", observance of "quantative performance criteria", plus "respect for EU Council Decisions and Recommendations", writes Vincent Browne.