Will you vote for Fianna Fail?

[mayogodhelpus@gmail.com]

The whole collapse has been spectacular. The only hope for FF would be a leader who resigned on principle say 8 or 10 years ago and was cast into the darkness over an argument about the risks the party was taking with the country but there is no such FF personality because FF doesnt do dissent. Or didn t . And nobody in the party knows anything about economics.

The finance Bill could also be in trouble. If Lenihan s party is about to be destroyed at the polls why should his agreements with the ECB and the IMF  be signed into law?  Even the FT is calling for debt to equity swaps for the banks. It is not too late.

Seafoid, how many seats so you reckon before F.F. is not sustainable anymore?

How do you reckon our standing internationally or the constitutionalty of those deals would hold up if Fianna Fáil where to get say less than 15 seats?

[mayogodhelpus@gmail.com]

Tonight with Vincent Browne

Fianna Fáil train crach http://www.tv3.ie/shows.php?request=tonightwithvincentbrowne

[INDIANA]

Hard to imagine any other Head of State going for pints midweek on a Tuesday evening. And then having to go back to the office to release a press statement about Harney's resignation. You couldnt make this up.
We are a laughing stock for the rest of the world.

[lawnseed]

i see that even before he quit biffo wasnt heading to america for patricks day must have been afraid he'd bump into j.leno

[Peter Solan the Great]

i see that even before he quit biffo wasnt heading to america for patricks day must have been afraid he'd bump into j.leno

Hardly since he called the election for March the 11th before he quit as leader of Fianna Fail.

[lawnseed]

i'm right this time peter, he had already asked mary mcaleese to present the shamrock a fortnight ago

[Cosmo Kramer]

http://irishelectionliterature.wordpress.com/2011/01/17/2002-article-by-willie-odea-fine-gaels-future-looks-bleak/

Ger Gilroy tweeted the following article from 2002. 

MGHU - all politics is cyclical. That was a ridiculous article by O'Dea, it was what he wanted to see and had no bearing on what was really going to happen. The same applies to what you want to see now, the end of FF. It is no more likely than the end of FG was back then.

FF will get in and around 30 seats in the next election and will lead the opposition to a FG/LAB coalition under a new leader. As time goes on and the economy continues to struggle they will gain in the polls as opposition parties always do in times of recession. The alternative always seems better to the public. Next election they will make a comeback under some kind of 'New Fianna Fail - lets bring back the good times' approach and make significant gains - maybe not enough to regain power. But at some point in the future with a host of new names on the front bench they will get back in. Because nothing ever changes in Irish politics and nothing ever will.

[belleaqua]

http://irishelectionliterature.wordpress.com/2011/01/17/2002-article-by-willie-odea-fine-gaels-future-looks-bleak/

Ger Gilroy tweeted the following article from 2002. 

MGHU - all politics is cyclical. That was a ridiculous article by O'Dea, it was what he wanted to see and had no bearing on what was really going to happen. The same applies to what you want to see now, the end of FF. It is no more likely than the end of FG was back then.

FF will get in and around 30 seats in the next election and will lead the opposition to a FG/LAB coalition under a new leader. As time goes on and the economy continues to struggle they will gain in the polls as opposition parties always do in times of recession. The alternative always seems better to the public. Next election they will make a comeback under some kind of 'New Fianna Fail - lets bring back the good times' approach and make significant gains - maybe not enough to regain power. But at some point in the future with a host of new names on the front bench they will get back in. Because nothing ever changes in Irish politics and nothing ever will.

Not far off the mark there I reckon. People predicting the demise/end of Fianna Fail will end up disappointed. No matter how bad things go in the next election they'll bounce back. Firstly they have by far the most effective organisation of any party both at HQ and more crucially among the grassroots. The Cumann system remains strong throughout the country and Fianna Fail will always have a significant core support. Talk of 8% today is absolute sh*te.

[seafoid]

The whole collapse has been spectacular. The only hope for FF would be a leader who resigned on principle say 8 or 10 years ago and was cast into the darkness over an argument about the risks the party was taking with the country but there is no such FF personality because FF doesnt do dissent. Or didn t . And nobody in the party knows anything about economics.

The finance Bill could also be in trouble. If Lenihan s party is about to be destroyed at the polls why should his agreements with the ECB and the IMF  be signed into law?  Even the FT is calling for debt to equity swaps for the banks. It is not too late.

Seafoid, how many seats so you reckon before F.F. is not sustainable anymore?

How do you reckon our standing internationally or the constitutionalty of those deals would hold up if Fianna Fáil where to get say less than 15 seats?

FF have never gotten less than 60 seats I think so half that would be in the danger zone. You need 7000 votes or so to get elected and that is a lot the way things are going with senior leaders abandoning the ship and FF now a magnet for incompetence. How are ordinary punters going to vote for these clowns ? How the  FF vote holds up amongst people under 40 will be crucial.    At this stage is any seat safe ?

[muppet]

Not far off the mark there I reckon. People predicting the demise/end of Fianna Fail will end up disappointed. No matter how bad things go in the next election they'll bounce back. Firstly they have by far the most effective organisation of any party both at HQ and more crucially among the grassroots. The Cumann system remains strong throughout the country and Fianna Fail will always have a significant core support. Talk of 8% today is absolute sh*te.

You are probably right but FF have financial problems as well. It will be hard to raise funds now and it will be even harder in opposition. The media slag off Kenny but this is the sort of behinds the scenes work he did in FG.

[lawnseed]

enda will have no bother raising funds now once the 'mob'  get the scent of a win the cash will flow every cronie will come running

[belleaqua]

Not far off the mark there I reckon. People predicting the demise/end of Fianna Fail will end up disappointed. No matter how bad things go in the next election they'll bounce back. Firstly they have by far the most effective organisation of any party both at HQ and more crucially among the grassroots. The Cumann system remains strong throughout the country and Fianna Fail will always have a significant core support. Talk of 8% today is absolute sh*te.

You are probably right but FF have financial problems as well. It will be hard to raise funds now and it will be even harder in opposition. The media slag off Kenny but this is the sort of behinds the scenes work he did in FG.

Ya, I believe so but I dont think thats of huge significance. Maybe Im wrong. I dont dont raising money has been a major problem for the traditional parties nor will it be in the future to the extent that it will severely curtail their impact.

And Kenny did do a good job rebuilding the party and I think the next FF leader will do exactly the same because they simply have to. Personally I think Kenny gets a very hard time of it but I dont think the overall public perception of him will change dramatically even if he becomes a rather effective Taoiseach which I think he will. Expectations are so low he cant possibly fail.

[Bogball XV]

[/Not far off the mark there I reckon. People predicting the demise/end of Fianna Fail will end up disappointed. No matter how bad things go in the next election they'll bounce back. Firstly they have by far the most effective organisation of any party both at HQ and more crucially among the grassroots. The Cumann system remains strong throughout the country and Fianna Fail will always have a significant core support. Talk of 8% today is absolute sh*te.

The cumann system strength is a myth imo, maybe 20 yrs ago, but what are they now?  4 or 5 people (not necessarily the great and the bright either) in a room once a month talking rubbish, maybe it's different where you are, but that sums up what I've been told by several former ogres.

[belleaqua]

[/Not far off the mark there I reckon. People predicting the demise/end of Fianna Fail will end up disappointed. No matter how bad things go in the next election they'll bounce back. Firstly they have by far the most effective organisation of any party both at HQ and more crucially among the grassroots. The Cumann system remains strong throughout the country and Fianna Fail will always have a significant core support. Talk of 8% today is absolute sh*te.

The cumann system strength is a myth imo, maybe 20 yrs ago, but what are they now?  4 or 5 people (not necessarily the great and the bright either) in a room once a month talking rubbish, maybe it's different where you are, but that sums up what I've been told by several former ogres.

Thats true Bogball XV, still strong in many areas but equally as you say weak in others. What I mean is its a starting point for a new leader, they doesnt have to be created they already exist, even if dormant. Thats where they'll start again, new beginning, youth bla bla bla. I certainly wouldnt count against a strong return for FF

[seafoid]

[/Not far off the mark there I reckon. People predicting the demise/end of Fianna Fail will end up disappointed. No matter how bad things go in the next election they'll bounce back. Firstly they have by far the most effective organisation of any party both at HQ and more crucially among the grassroots. The Cumann system remains strong throughout the country and Fianna Fail will always have a significant core support. Talk of 8% today is absolute sh*te.

The cumann system strength is a myth imo, maybe 20 yrs ago, but what are they now?  4 or 5 people (not necessarily the great and the bright either) in a room once a month talking rubbish, maybe it's different where you are, but that sums up what I've been told by several former ogres.

Thats true Bogball XV, still strong in many areas but equally as you say weak in others. What I mean is its a starting point for a new leader, they doesnt have to be created they already exist, even if dormant. Thats where they'll start again, new beginning, youth bla bla bla. I certainly wouldnt count against a strong return for FF

Fianna Fail is in meltdown. Discipline has been reasonable to date but once the government falls the backstabbing is going to come out into the open. Can you imagine how Batt O Keeffe and Mary Hanafin feel about Lenihan?

On 15 November O Keeffe told the assembled multitudes at the embassy in London that Ireland was not in contact with the IMF.

http://www.merrionstreet.ie/index.php/2010/11/speech-by-minister-for-enterprise-trade-and-innovation-batt-o-keeffe-td-at-ida-ireland-business-development-dinner-irish-embassy-in-london-15-november-2010/?cat=

2 days later they landed. Hanafin was also kept out of the loop. Tony Killeen was humiliated on RTE over the same thing. Pat Carey too.-  This is going to erupt into open warfare.

http://www.tribune.ie/news/article/2011/jan/23/diarmuid-doyle-last-weeks-mass-resignation-was-a-p/

  The Titanic sank after hitting an iceberg; Fianna Fáil after barging into the inevitable consequences of its own incompetence

There isn't going to be any comeback.