The Fine Gael thread

[Syferus]

Anything better than those loopers, to be fair.

you've had them both for nearly a century.. the country's doing great.. isn't it? well it is if your a member of the ruling class

Doing pretty fine, yeah. A bit of a hangover in the middle of a golden age and people start fretting. Nothing to see here.

[Lar Naparka]

ahh.. at last its finally been said by one of the 'ruling class'. fianna fail's mary o rourke has said at a meeting in tyrone that the two major parties ie fine gael and fianna fail should join in coalition at the next election. sure why not? they are the same party after all. I've been saying it for yonks..

anything to prevent he shinners holding sway they'ed sell their own mothers just to get power/money

I agree with you, me oul' son.
Them bloody shinners would shoot their own mothers just to get power/money.
But, on the off chance that you're talking about FF/FG coming together, there's as much chance of that happening as there is of me becoming Pope.
For starters, half the cumanns and party officers around the country would get the bullet.
They wouldn't be able to pull strokes anymore or claim county council expenses.
Pope Lar would have issued his first edict by then, damning all of Tyrone to the deepest pits of hell. (Mind you, Roscommon might be on the hitlist too.)
Neither party is worth the full of me arse of burnt snow, as a good Donegal mate would put it but how many effin' effers would vote for a blueshirt candidate or vice versa?
The shinners wouldn't have to shoot their mothers to become the largest party in the state. Then the stroking and fiddling expenses would be as bad as ever. So why change anything?
Stuff "Mammy" O'Rourke. That oul' wan would do anything to get her mug shot into a paper.

[Farrandeelin]

ahh.. at last its finally been said by one of the 'ruling class'. fianna fail's mary o rourke has said at a meeting in tyrone that the two major parties ie fine gael and fianna fail should join in coalition at the next election. sure why not? they are the same party after all. I've been saying it for yonks..

anything to prevent he shinners holding sway they'ed sell their own mothers just to get power/money

I agree with you, me oul' son.
Them bloody shinners would shoot their own mothers just to get power/money.
But, on the off chance that you're talking about FF/FG coming together, there's as much chance of that happening as there is of me becoming Pope.
For starters, half the cumanns and party officers around the country would get the bullet.
They wouldn't be able to pull strokes anymore or claim county council expenses.
Pope Lar would have issued his first edict by then, damning all of Tyrone to the deepest pits of hell. (Mind you, Roscommon might be on the hitlist too.)
Neither party is worth the full of me arse of burnt snow, as a good Donegal mate would put it but how many effin' effers would vote for a blueshirt candidate or vice versa?
The shinners wouldn't have to shoot their mothers to become the largest party in the state. Then the stroking and fiddling expenses would be as bad as ever. So why change anything?
Stuff "Mammy" O'Rourke. That oul' wan would do anything to get her mug shot into a paper.

Woah there Lar, steady on, I think that FF and FG could go into coalition, and pretty sooner than we think. That's my own tuppence worth anyway.

[Syferus]

ahh.. at last its finally been said by one of the 'ruling class'. fianna fail's mary o rourke has said at a meeting in tyrone that the two major parties ie fine gael and fianna fail should join in coalition at the next election. sure why not? they are the same party after all. I've been saying it for yonks..

anything to prevent he shinners holding sway they'ed sell their own mothers just to get power/money

I agree with you, me oul' son.
Them bloody shinners would shoot their own mothers just to get power/money.
But, on the off chance that you're talking about FF/FG coming together, there's as much chance of that happening as there is of me becoming Pope.
For starters, half the cumanns and party officers around the country would get the bullet.
They wouldn't be able to pull strokes anymore or claim county council expenses.
Pope Lar would have issued his first edict by then, damning all of Tyrone to the deepest pits of hell. (Mind you, Roscommon might be on the hitlist too.)
Neither party is worth the full of me arse of burnt snow, as a good Donegal mate would put it but how many effin' effers would vote for a blueshirt candidate or vice versa?
The shinners wouldn't have to shoot their mothers to become the largest party in the state. Then the stroking and fiddling expenses would be as bad as ever. So why change anything?
Stuff "Mammy" O'Rourke. That oul' wan would do anything to get her mug shot into a paper.

I suppose Ballagh will survive your papal edict given you'll have appropriated it to the wrong county?

[Lar Naparka]

ahh.. at last its finally been said by one of the 'ruling class'. fianna fail's mary o rourke has said at a meeting in tyrone that the two major parties ie fine gael and fianna fail should join in coalition at the next election. sure why not? they are the same party after all. I've been saying it for yonks..

anything to prevent he shinners holding sway they'ed sell their own mothers just to get power/money

I agree with you, me oul' son.
Them bloody shinners would shoot their own mothers just to get power/money.
But, on the off chance that you're talking about FF/FG coming together, there's as much chance of that happening as there is of me becoming Pope.
For starters, half the cumanns and party officers around the country would get the bullet.
They wouldn't be able to pull strokes anymore or claim county council expenses.
Pope Lar would have issued his first edict by then, damning all of Tyrone to the deepest pits of hell. (Mind you, Roscommon might be on the hitlist too.)
Neither party is worth the full of me arse of burnt snow, as a good Donegal mate would put it but how many effin' effers would vote for a blueshirt candidate or vice versa?
The shinners wouldn't have to shoot their mothers to become the largest party in the state. Then the stroking and fiddling expenses would be as bad as ever. So why change anything?
Stuff "Mammy" O'Rourke. That oul' wan would do anything to get her mug shot into a paper.

Woah there Lar, steady on, I think that FF and FG could go into coalition, and pretty sooner than we think. That's my own tuppence worth anyway.

If that day ever comes Farr. you won't be able to access Gaaboard any more.
And why not, sez you?
Because a big fat flying pig  will have crash-landed on your keyboard; that's why.
Turkeys don't, as a rule, vote for Christmas and in a manner of speaking neither FF nor FG could be expected to so either.
At a stroke, each would stand to lose about half of its TDs and the same amount of county councillors, party officials and all the general workers/strokers/wranglers and al others who makes Irish political so rich (for some) and so complicated (for the rest of us.)
Just think about your own locality for a minute.
I bet you can name loads of houses who have always voted FF down through the generation since the Civil War. Same goes for FG.
If both parties agreed to go into coalition before an election, how many effin' effers would follow party directives and give their second, or even their tenth, preferences to Mickey Ring?
How many Blueshirts would give a vote of any sort to the likes of, say, Dara Calleary or Frank Chambers?
In every town in Mayo, you will find "party" pubs. FF supporters will have their ones and the other shower will have theirs.  Never the twain shall meet- well, not if the publicans can help it. They have always divided the spoils by keeping the bitterness between the parties going at full blast.
Shag democracy and the will of the people; power and privilege come before and other consideration.
Besides, if those long-time foes cosy up together, a lot of hardline voters for both parties will look elsewhere. Labour is best placed to make gains in this scenario but the shinners needn't bother shooting their mothers to pick up a dozen or two handy seats.
Mayo will have won as many All-Irelands as they now have Connacht titles before either side would even think of a coalition.

[Lar Naparka]

ahh.. at last its finally been said by one of the 'ruling class'. fianna fail's mary o rourke has said at a meeting in tyrone that the two major parties ie fine gael and fianna fail should join in coalition at the next election. sure why not? they are the same party after all. I've been saying it for yonks..

anything to prevent he shinners holding sway they'ed sell their own mothers just to get power/money

I agree with you, me oul' son.
Them bloody shinners would shoot their own mothers just to get power/money.
But, on the off chance that you're talking about FF/FG coming together, there's as much chance of that happening as there is of me becoming Pope.
For starters, half the cumanns and party officers around the country would get the bullet.
They wouldn't be able to pull strokes anymore or claim county council expenses.
Pope Lar would have issued his first edict by then, damning all of Tyrone to the deepest pits of hell. (Mind you, Roscommon might be on the hitlist too.)
Neither party is worth the full of me arse of burnt snow, as a good Donegal mate would put it but how many effin' effers would vote for a blueshirt candidate or vice versa?
The shinners wouldn't have to shoot their mothers to become the largest party in the state. Then the stroking and fiddling expenses would be as bad as ever. So why change anything?
Stuff "Mammy" O'Rourke. That oul' wan would do anything to get her mug shot into a paper.

I suppose Ballagh will survive your papal edict given you'll have appropriated it to the wrong county?

Nah, Guess where the new Vatican is gonna be?



Bet you got it right first time, clever boy.

[lawnseed]

the fact that coalition has been mentioned by a party stalwart in the first place especially ff  'our lords and masters' is an indication that neither party believes that they will be able to form a government come the next election without the help of sinn fein. since recent history shows that entering into power with either party is the end of your career in politics eg the greens, labour, pd's  I doubt that sinn fein would consider the prospect without cast iron preconditions for fianna fail and not at all with fine gael. with regards coalition with ff I wouldn't expect it to last very long because of the virtual criminality that is the hallmark of ff governments in power.

on the other hand fianna gael would contain all that poison in one entity exposing the nature of these gangsters once and for all it could be a blessing in disguise. more pain for paddy 

[Lar Naparka]

the fact that coalition has been mentioned by a party stalwart in the first place especially ff  'our lords and masters' is an indication that neither party believes that they will be able to form a government come the next election without the help of sinn fein. since recent history shows that entering into power with either party is the end of your career in politics eg the greens, labour, pd's  I doubt that sinn fein would consider the prospect without cast iron preconditions for fianna fail and not at all with fine gael. with regards coalition with ff I wouldn't expect it to last very long because of the virtual criminality that is the hallmark of ff governments in power.

on the other hand fianna gael would contain all that poison in one entity exposing the nature of these gangsters once and for all it could be a blessing in disguise. more pain for paddy 

'Twas often said of "Mammy" O'Rourke that the softest thing abut her was her teeth.
That dame isn't just a pretty face and I'd be wary of taking anything she has to say for what it seems to be at first sight.
FF and FG may fight away all day and every day for the benefit of their loyal followers but neither will let anyone else share the fun.
Okay, one or the other may accept help from Labour to form a coalition but they both know damn well that Labour won't pose any long term threat to them and their monopoly on power and privilege.
Labour has gone into government with both parties on a number of occasions and, each time it did, it got hammered at the next general election.  I would take it as 100% certain that Labour will lose more than half of it's present seats at the next general election.
That's always been the way and I can't see it changing anytime soon.
Labour will take a day at the seaside and spend a week in the bog in order to get into power from time to time.
If FF/FG keep banging away on the Civil War drum, each of them will get their "core" voters out. If they ever coalesced, both could expect mass defections from their ranks.
We don't have a "general" election system in the first place. In reality we have 42 separate mini elections where local issues are often more important than national ones.
Plus, Irish voters are notoriously conservative. FF and FG have the resources to put candidates up in every election and both know in advance the size of the swing needed one way or the other to either give them an extra seat or to lose them one.
A national swing of 3% one way or the other could see up to 60 seats being affected.
With this sort of volatility, neither wants a new kid on the block to spoil their party.
One side has let the other form a minority administration several times in the past rather than letting any other party make serious permanent gains.
Labour or the Shinners would need to be able to field several candidates in each constituency to have a hope of becoming a major player in the field.
That ain't gonna happen any time soon.

[muppet]

Lawnseed, would you like to buy this?

[Maguire01]

the fact that coalition has been mentioned by a party stalwart in the first place especially ff  'our lords and masters' is an indication that neither party believes that they will be able to form a government come the next election without the help of sinn fein.

To be honest, i'd imagine FF and FG (as an opposition) would consider tolerating a minority government rather accommodate coalition with SF.

since recent history shows that entering into power with either party is the end of your career in politics eg the greens, labour, pd's  I doubt that sinn fein would consider the prospect without cast iron preconditions for fianna fail and not at all with fine gael.

The idea that SF would manage what none of the other minority parties have managed is laughable. If they go into government as a minority partner, they'll get a few of their own policies, but be forced to support the majority party in passing their policies. That's the simple reality.

with regards coalition with ff I wouldn't expect it to last very long because of the virtual criminality that is the hallmark of ff governments in power.

It's uplifting to hear this new found regard for law and order from republicans. We've come a long way.

[Rossfan]

It's uplifting to hear this new found regard for law and order from republicans. We've come a long way.

I presume diesel laundering and all types of smuggling will come to a sudden end if/when SF take over 

[lawnseed]

If you have any information re fuel smuggling pass it on to the law. That will stop you having to talk
Crap.
If the fuel was being hauled south the gov would stop it in seconds as it is its a nice little earner for them.
They could stop foot and mouth in hours. Although foot in mouth seems to be endemic

[Rossfan]

If you have any information re fuel smuggling pass it on to the law.

Other than knowing it couldn't exist without your lot allowing it  I have no further info.

[lawnseed]

If you have any information re fuel smuggling pass it on to the law.

Other than knowing it couldn't exist without your lot allowing it  I have no further info.

alright.. where does all the fuel come from? answer.. the fuel terminal in Dublin docks. how many roads are there out of the fuel terminal? answer.. one. how many customs officers would it take to stop/patrol it? answer maybe two so the other guy could get tea and use the loo. the biggest beneficiaries of fuel smuggling are the fuel companies and the Irish government.
do you think its an accident that the price of fuel in the 26 shadows the north always by about 8p/litre cheaper. most hauliers fill up in the 26 usually enough to last all week. for a truck doing cross channel that could be up to 1800 litres a week @ 1.40/litre most of which is tax. multiply that by thousands not to mention cars, vans, buses etc. hence Sammy Wilsons charge that the 26 government were "stealing our money" I didn't hear noonan deny it he hid

some day I'm gonna come over there and take you out of that bog where you spend your days dreaming like some kind of Amish turf cutter and take you out to see the real world.

[mayogodhelpus@gmail.com]

If you have any information re fuel smuggling pass it on to the law.

Other than knowing it couldn't exist without your lot allowing it  I have no further info.

alright.. where does all the fuel come from? answer.. the fuel terminal in Dublin docks. how many roads are there out of the fuel terminal? answer.. one. how many customs officers would it take to stop/patrol it? answer maybe two so the other guy could get tea and use the loo. the biggest beneficiaries of fuel smuggling are the fuel companies and the Irish government.
do you think its an accident that the price of fuel in the 26 shadows the north always by about 8p/litre cheaper. most hauliers fill up in the 26 usually enough to last all week. for a truck doing cross channel that could be up to 1800 litres a week @ 1.40/litre most of which is tax. multiply that by thousands not to mention cars, vans, buses etc. hence Sammy Wilsons charge that the 26 government were "stealing our money" I didn't hear noonan deny it he hid

some day I'm gonna come over there and take you out of that bog where you spend your days dreaming like some kind of Amish turf cutter and take you out to see the real world.

Can we tax your vechicles at that point too for using our roads? Lawnseed SF will not be in government in Ireland (Republic of) in the next 50 years.