Election 2011 Offical Thread.

[LaurelEye]

I was very much against the invasion of Iraq.

Yeah, but Leo was quite keen on it at the time.

And not being smart, but he's going to be making the decisions and you're not.

Good find LaurelEye. Certainly gives more weight to lawnseed's initial post.

I remember the comment at the time, and I remember Leo condemning the protests against the war as anti-American although I can't find anything about it on the Irish Times or Indo websites. I'm just surprised that no-one pulled him up on it when he made the comment about Blair's reputation being tainted by Iraq.

My fear really is that we are sleepwalking into giving an overall majority to a party which has no end of obsessions on particular issues - a totally uncritical take on anything coming from Europe, an enthusiasm for military alliances, a disdain for the Irish language - and where you have an up-and-coming clique of young politicians (Leo himself, Lucinda Creighton, Brian Hayes, John Deasy) who model themselves on the Tory and US Republican parties in terms of ideology. Add to that an economic plan which is based on out-of-date, over-optimistic assumptions about growth, a belief that you can remove 30,000 people from the public services simply through natural wastage and voluntary redundancies without affecting frontline services, and a health plan which is vague on details and seems to have been written in consultation with health insurance companies. And as prospective Taoiseach we have someone who has to be protected from in-depth questioning in debates in case he has to go beyond prepared slogans.

We may get a lot more than we bargained for. Actually, a lot of ordinary FG members may get a lot more than they bargained for.

[DUBSFORSAM1]

I was very much against the invasion of Iraq.

Yeah, but Leo was quite keen on it at the time.

And not being smart, but he's going to be making the decisions and you're not.

Good find LaurelEye. Certainly gives more weight to lawnseed's initial post.

I remember the comment at the time, and I remember Leo condemning the protests against the war as anti-American although I can't find anything about it on the Irish Times or Indo websites. I'm just surprised that no-one pulled him up on it when he made the comment about Blair's reputation being tainted by Iraq.

My fear really is that we are sleepwalking into giving an overall majority to a party which has no end of obsessions on particular issues - a totally uncritical take on anything coming from Europe, an enthusiasm for military alliances, a disdain for the Irish language - and where you have an up-and-coming clique of young politicians (Leo himself, Lucinda Creighton, Brian Hayes, John Deasy) who model themselves on the Tory and US Republican parties in terms of ideology. Add to that an economic plan which is based on out-of-date, over-optimistic assumptions about growth, a belief that you can remove 30,000 people from the public services simply through natural wastage and voluntary redundancies without affecting frontline services, and a health plan which is vague on details and seems to have been written in consultation with health insurance companies. And as prospective Taoiseach we have someone who has to be protected from in-depth questioning in debates in case he has to go beyond prepared slogans.

We may get a lot more than we bargained for. Actually, a lot of ordinary FG members may get a lot more than they bargained for.

So a health service that has more nurses per head of population than nearly any OECD country and yet is rubbish is due to a lack of front line services??? Anyone who knows anything about the health service knows that we have thousands and thousands of administrators which are not required and the same is true in other departments.....Even the unions could promise 3/4bn Euro in savings with changes in work practices and everything else without problems.

How do they have a disdain for the Irish language?

The health plan which is based on the Dutch model which is ranked in the top 3 in the world and you say that is a wrong plan?

How about putting Gilmore or Adams  or Martin up and give them a thorough grilling as well about policies and see what failures they are?

[Poc me]

'So a health service that has more nurses per head of population than nearly any OECD country and yet is rubbish is due to a lack of front line services??? Anyone who knows anything about the health service knows that we have thousands and thousands of administrators which are not required and the same is true in other departments.....Even the unions could promise 3/4bn Euro in savings with changes in work practices and everything else without problems.'

And a really high level of Consultants...oh wait...thats not right is it? Yes administrators could be streamlined but would you not create more jobs in their place??

The comment about disdain for the Irish language is that FG intend to remove the compulsory aspect for studying Irish to leaving Cert.

All in all, FG are little more than a conservative party. They will have similar policies to the Republicans in US and the TOry party. Why does anyone expect they'll be any different?

[DUBSFORSAM1]

'So a health service that has more nurses per head of population than nearly any OECD country and yet is rubbish is due to a lack of front line services??? Anyone who knows anything about the health service knows that we have thousands and thousands of administrators which are not required and the same is true in other departments.....Even the unions could promise 3/4bn Euro in savings with changes in work practices and everything else without problems.'

And a really high level of Consultants...oh wait...thats not right is it? Yes administrators could be streamlined but would you not create more jobs in their place??

The comment about disdain for the Irish language is that FG intend to remove the compulsory aspect for studying Irish to leaving Cert.

All in all, FG are little more than a conservative party. They will have similar policies to the Republicans in US and the TOry party. Why does anyone expect they'll be any different?

Where have FG ever said that there would be any reductions in front line staff??? In the model they have proposed it will be in the hospitals best interests to see more patients and treat more people quicker and more efficiently.....This model works successfully in the Netherlands and is ranked at the top of the world so detail how exactly is this wrong???

So being compulsory has worked or helped the Irish language??? It's been a total failure and has put more people off the Irish language than it has helped and the quicker people realise it the better. It will still be compulsory to do it up till Junior Cert.

So having the ideas that Govt should be smalll, we don't spend more than we earn etc and it's ideal to have everyone working and what is wrong with that?

[stephenite]

I was very much against the invasion of Iraq.

Yeah, but Leo was quite keen on it at the time.

And not being smart, but he's going to be making the decisions and you're not.

Good find LaurelEye. Certainly gives more weight to lawnseed's initial post.

I remember the comment at the time, and I remember Leo condemning the protests against the war as anti-American although I can't find anything about it on the Irish Times or Indo websites. I'm just surprised that no-one pulled him up on it when he made the comment about Blair's reputation being tainted by Iraq.

My fear really is that we are sleepwalking into giving an overall majority to a party which has no end of obsessions on particular issues - a totally uncritical take on anything coming from Europe, an enthusiasm for military alliances, a disdain for the Irish language - and where you have an up-and-coming clique of young politicians (Leo himself, Lucinda Creighton, Brian Hayes, John Deasy) who model themselves on the Tory and US Republican parties in terms of ideology. Add to that an economic plan which is based on out-of-date, over-optimistic assumptions about growth, a belief that you can remove 30,000 people from the public services simply through natural wastage and voluntary redundancies without affecting frontline services, and a health plan which is vague on details and seems to have been written in consultation with health insurance companies. And as prospective Taoiseach we have someone who has to be protected from in-depth questioning in debates in case he has to go beyond prepared slogans.

We may get a lot more than we bargained for. Actually, a lot of ordinary FG members may get a lot more than they bargained for.

Long term FF Supporter Laurel???

[Poc me]

Nothing Dubs4Sam if your a conservative. That is conservative politics. Everything is wrong if your not a conservative. Do you not understand political ideologies?

Nearly every FG supporter on here is from Mayo (except Dubs4Sam)...there must be some amount of blue shirts on the washing lines in Ballina!

[stephenite]

I'm far from a blue shirt supporter

[Poc me]

Just a little joke Stephenite...

[stephenite]

Just a little joke Stephenite...

A highly offensive one

[Tubberman]

Nothing Dubs4Sam if your a conservative. That is conservative politics. Everything is wrong if your not a conservative. Do you not understand political ideologies?

Nearly every FG supporter on here is from Mayo (except Dubs4Sam)...there must be some amount of blue shirts on the washing lines in Ballina!

And every poster on here from the north (bar Evil Genius and MW if they're still around) is a SF supporter.

[Nally Stand]

Nothing Dubs4Sam if your a conservative. That is conservative politics. Everything is wrong if your not a conservative. Do you not understand political ideologies?

Nearly every FG supporter on here is from Mayo (except Dubs4Sam)...there must be some amount of blue shirts on the washing lines in Ballina!

And every poster on here from the north (bar Evil Genius and MW if they're still around) is a SF supporter.

f**k yeah

Oh...When did you convert, Maguire01/Gallsman?!!

[DUBSFORSAM1]

Nothing Dubs4Sam if your a conservative. That is conservative politics. Everything is wrong if your not a conservative. Do you not understand political ideologies?

Nearly every FG supporter on here is from Mayo (except Dubs4Sam)...there must be some amount of blue shirts on the washing lines in Ballina!

Well we've had nearly 14 years of non-conservative government throwing money away hand over fist for nothing and look where it got us...

[Banana Man]

Nothing Dubs4Sam if your a conservative. That is conservative politics. Everything is wrong if your not a conservative. Do you not understand political ideologies?

Nearly every FG supporter on here is from Mayo (except Dubs4Sam)...there must be some amount of blue shirts on the washing lines in Ballina!

And every poster on here from the north (bar Evil Genius and MW if they're still around) is a SF supporter.

You forgot Myles Na G 

[mayogodhelpus@gmail.com]

Louth Const. candidates being interviewed on RTE Radio 1 now http://www.rte.ie/radio/

[mayogodhelpus@gmail.com]

Louth Const. candidates being interviewed on RTE Radio 1 now http://www.rte.ie/radio/

Gerry has just been asked a member of the audience has he been a senior member of the IRA. The interview is taking place in an old Gaol!!!