So we all know what’s going on in the world with economics and who wants to mention the dreaded R-word again !It’s not enough either that everyone is feeling hard-done-by and World leaders have quite nicely managed to cough things up rightly but it seems to me that Ireland has been done over twice by it’s government…
Not so long ago, all the Irish could hear on the radio and read in the newspapers was THE CELTIC TIGER… The economy was booming and the under-lying message was spend, spend, spend… all was wonderful in our bright green wonderland. So good times come and bad times come and after all that is the way of things. We had our moment in the sun and this is our darker hour, so maybe no one should be all that surprised… and that line of thought might be alright if that was what had happened.
THE TRUTH IS: Our economic prosperity was only for the few, like some sort of elitist joke. Certainly, no one I ever met really benefitted from the so-called Tiger! I know I didn’t catch a glimpse of it or even get a sniff of it on someone else! Neither did we have our cake… nor are we ever likely to eat it!
Mary Harney has a lot to answer for – that’s a fact! Recently, I had misfortune to visit my local A&E (accident & emergency) department in Beaumont hospital. I must admit that I didn’t quite realise how bad the standard of healthcare in Ireland really was – at its best point it was fair but for the most part it was poor. I wasn’t well but I’m very glad I wasn’t really sick! Firstly, let me state that the men and women working in the unit are fantastic human beings, working with very little as regards resources. When I made my visit it was quiet and not under the pressures of a hectic Saturday night, but even then it was apparent that they were understaffed and under-resourced. There was possibly only a dozen people needing treatment but yet the waiting time was approximately three hours (minimum)… which is unacceptable. How Mary Harney can justify anyone having to work in those conditions is beyond me – and how she can expect to justify miserable Irish healthcare is criminal – she should be ashamed to show her face in public. She should be stepping down as Minister for Health!
Last night there was nothing on tv and as channel surfed aimlessly I stumbled across “Groundhod Day”… again! As movies go it’s not the worst – so I left it on, not too pushed one way or the other (more in the background I guess)! I knew the plot and the jokes were a bit tired but the strangest notion struck me and haunted me all day today.
What the hell are GreenPeace thinking?
