Why is it, that here in Ireland we allow our Government to take so much of our money and spend it in ways that not only fail to benefit us, but contribute to the economic inequality of Europe? What do we get for our taxes? Our country is governed by a small elite which knows what exactly it is up to and co-ordinates its actions to mislead the people, from the dodgy rezoning of land to almost abolishing our Senate, from unjust taxes to semi-state monstrosity organizations, bankers and bondholders debts to military use of our airports. Any time you allude to this elite you may be at risk of being smeared as a conspiracist, an eccentric, a lonesome abhorrent, or a just an incredible pelter of abuse for its own sake. However, should one be so clever to present ones own arguments with rationality and evidence, not appearing at all clumsy, dishevelled nor aggressive, trailing public support and garnering serious media attention, you are both a threat and a voice of hope for those without.
In two weeks time, we the Irish people take to the polls and vote in our Local and European Elections. Electing a community representative is supposed to mean that you and your co-constituents become employers, the representative is answerable to you each and all. A small pencil attached to piece of twine becomes a weapon of Democracy. Unlike other unfortunate nations where weapons of violence and intimidation are deployed against the people whom would nearly, and sometimes do, give their life to change their government, we can change ours with a handy piece of wood containing lead. Acting collectively if we are to succeed. However - yes, I'm using the H word - as History, that savage educator has shown, we tend to vote against our own interests. History does not care whether we agree or not, it simply is.
We may not, despite efforts, be able to save those other nations from tyranny ; but we can, as individuals, guard our own liberties. One way in which to do so would be to sufficiently regulate our local police services, set up committees of appeal to hear cases of police corruption and to diligently consider gross infractions of our freedom to bitch about how we are treated, and to have that such speech protected. Never underestimate the power of an intelligent bitch: a sophisticated complaint. As for our Justice System here on our Emerald Isle, it has this very week been stripped of its safety vest, exhibiting underneath its naked corruption. And in its nude, dear ladies and gentlemen, I announce with sorrow, that Justice indeed has been perverted. Appalling, I know.
With almost unqualified disregard is how Minister's treated various pleas and appeals, and so too they also treated arguments by other members of Parliament, requesting that they deal with our police service and such infractions. May I take this opportunity to salute, as it were, the men and women of the force who do their job properly and extend my gratitude to those brave enough to tell of the abuse of the service. Thank you. Those whom have had the honour of being elected by the Irish people clearly are not enough excited to the guardianship of our liberties. So it leads me to conclude we must ourselves fight for them. Indeed, ladies and gentlemen, this is a call to attention, a battle-cry, an invitation to actively change.
The Guerin Report handed in this week was conducted as a result of Fianna Fail party Leader Michael Martin presenting a dossier to Taoiseach Enda Kenny, containing allegations by a courageous and admirable whistle-blower, Maurice McCabe. Among the infractions include:
- Two incidents involving a Mr. Jerry McGrath, whom was later convicted of murdering a Ms. Sylvia Roche-Kelly in Limerick in 2007.
- The investigation of sexual offences and child pornography offences by a priest with particular regard to the loss of a computer seized during the course of that investigation.
- The investigation of an assault at the Lakeside Manor Hotel on April 14th 2007.
- Missing files and reports being replaced with other criteria.
Some further allegations of Garda misconduct I read in this weeks Sunday Business Post:
-A psychiatric nurse who claims he witnessed the death of a patient in Garda handcuffs, and who says he was subjected to on-going harassment by Gardai after he went public with his claim.
- A doctor who claims that many of his patients were brutalized while in Garda custody and that his refusal to remain silent about this has led to Garda intimidation.
- A teacher who claims false allegations related to Child Protection concerns were made by Gardai to discredit him.
The accountability of our police service by our Ministry of Justice is an impeccable shame. These people in charge of our Justice system are more interested in protecting each other, their careers, and their mates than they are that of the Irish people. In two quick and expensive weeks, those of and supporting our government parties - the "banker and bondholder party: Fine Gael, and the misleading and sell out party Labour - will be asking us to support them and those of their cloth. A flashback : February 26th, 2014, Enda Kenny says, "Minister for Justice Alan Shatter is not one to mislead this house, any more than any other Minister". Since Shatter has resigned in disgrace, has Enda unwittingly implicated all other Ministers as misleading the Irish people? It came, as they say, from the horses mouth.
Some Independent members of Dail Eireann whom waved so obviously the flag of concern were treated contemptuously and with disdain. They upheld that flag without waver, and it should be a trophy of their subsequent vindication. "Mick Wallace, a character known for his community input, wavy hair and pink shirts, tax problems, and ad-hoc style, proposed a Policing Bill to reform aspects of the police service. Wallace, just like whistle-blower McCabe, and John Wilson - Wilson, whom courageously highlighted unjust eradication of penalty points given to those whom commit traffic and road offences - was treated despicably. Information regarding Wallace was brought to the most Senior Garda, Commissioner Martin Callinan, whom also has resigned in disgrace, collateral of the tsunami of scandals. Shatter, then Minister for Justice, ironically broke the law, and used this information during a national televised debate to discredit Wallace.
Another Independent Parliamentarian, Clare Daly, a tough and without-waffle speaker, was handcuffed by Gardai on a roadside after curiously being "incorrectly suspected of drunk driving". Another Independent, whom is currently running for Europe, Luke 'Ming' Flanagan, a consistent critic and friend of whistle-blowers, said that John Wilson and himself accompanied another whistle-blower to GSOC regarding the drug squad, and that the whistle-blower had pressing concerns about his confidentiality, which were exacerbated when they realized they were being surveilanced by an unmarked Garda car. When challenged in parliament about this, our bronze-haired, twinkly-eyed, rosey-cheeked Taoiseach Enda Kenny attempted to make a joke saying, "maybe they thought it was somebody dealing". Throughout this carnival it is the Independent's that have proven valuable, the whistle-blowers vindicated, the former Garda Commissioner and Former Minister for Justice disgraced, and our Taoiseach made look embarrassing and incompetent.
And here we are, after all, two weeks until election day. True revolution only engenders from catastrophe, usually a war or economic collapse. If you want a just society whose goal is equality of Economy it would be damaging to vote for those whom have impoverished us not only financially, but socially. We are a sovereign state with a democratically elected government that have sold us out. We are a rich cultural nation, with a fierce history of resilience and dependency. The real battle of our time is not the right versus the left, young versus the old, socialism versus capitalism, church versus state. It is, ladies and gentleman, the transference of power in its various manifestations - force, capital, education, information, influence, wealth, even sex and availability of food - from the many to the few, from the peripheral to the central. We can change that, let us begin I so dearly hope with our community's changing for the better, first. As wrote the late and indeed great, Hubert Butler, "I have always believed that local history is more important than national history. Where life is fully and consciously lived in our own neighbourhood, we are cushioned a little from the impact of great far-off events which should be of only marginal concern to us".