Forum

On Monday 12 March last Government minister John O'Donohue was on the RTÉ radio news complaining that he has learned from surveys that some tourists visiting this country would rather be met by real Irish people instead of "non-nationals". Listening to him it occurred to me that a perfect solution to his problem would be if he could get hold of a few thousand leprechauns for our hotels and restaurants. This would definitely meet the requirements of the people who filled out those survey forms.

If ever anyone was in doubt that we're facing irrevocable changes to our environment and weather very soon, then surely those doubts have finally been banished by the latest report on climate change from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). According to the EPA, summer temperatures will rise by as much as 3 Degrees Celsius within the next 50 years. This mightn't sound much to many people, but this will cause heat stress to many humans and animals. Also, it will lead to drought in the east and south east, causing an increased frequency of wild fires and pest infestations.

In 1983 a young Labour politician stood as a candidate in the UK general election.  Unilateral nuclear disarmament by the UK was one of his campaign pledges, for the young politico was a member of CND. The candidate was the future British PM, Tony Blair, who, despite a massive rebellion in his party, has just made a new fleet of nukes one of his final legacies.

As a Lady of mature years ( some would say a Senior Citizen) who lives close to the Village, I attended the recent well attended Public Meeting in the Priory. The presentation was excellent and the issues raised were relevant and informative. A number of the Public Representatives encouraged us to view the recently passed "Local Area Plan". One of the organisers at the end of the meeting encouraged the audience to visit the TRCU website.....

So Fianna Fáil TD for Donegal North-East and former government minister Jim McDaid wants a three-year pay freeze for workers, supposedly to 'protect our jobs'? Why is it always workers who must 'tighten our belts'? Why not the fat cats of business who are making record profits? What about TDs? Shouldn't they not 'tighten their belts' as well?

A recent TV interview on Seoige and O'Shea featured Michael, a private person, who was given equal airtime to Patrick, who seemed to be representing Monsanto, a major producer of GM seeds. This particular balanced approach by RTE was roughly the equivalent of giving equal airtime to the head of the Mafia and a small shopkeeper protesting at having to pay protection money. May I please state the following.

Always discussed in a ‘by the way' manner, the matter of voter apathy is an issue addressed in the wake of almost every election or referendum. The assembly elections in Northern Ireland last Wednesday however, did not suffer from significant voter apathy with a voter turnout of 63.5 per cent – a relatively high turnout. The weighty issues at stake on this occasion ensured a high turnout but I would argue that the NI system is itself structurally flawed in a way that means the community in the North is poorly served by such elections, despite a high level of participation.

With a general election looming, writers and artists in this country should be asking questions about the Bright New Dawn the government promised them nineteen months ago. 

The recent report on Cocaine usage in Ireland shows that recreational cocaine use is on the increase with the associated serious consequences. As recent debates indicate politicians in this country are afraid to even put their heads above the parapets to suggest a debate on the legalisation of drugs. It seems that this a taboo too far for them in an election year. Gay Byrne is to be applauded for raising the issue.

I am concerned that some misconceptions may be leading the Government to overlook a source of clean energy with great potential for the UK and the rest of Europe. I refer to 'concentrating solar power' (CSP), the simple but effective technique of using mirrors to concentrate sunlight to create heat and then using the heat to raise steam to drive turbines and generators, just like a conventional power station. Solar heat may be stored in melted salts so that electricity generation may continue through the night and on cloudy days.