Category: Government

Government and media launch major propaganda campaign against water protesters

Yesterday, the Government in cooperation with its many friends in the media, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Irish Water, launched its first major propaganda campaign of 2015 aimed at defeating those who are refusing to pay water charges.

The message was simple: The water is poisoned, the infrastructure is about to collapse any minute with dire consequences for ‘customers’. The only thing that will prevent the greatest catastrophe since the famine is – investment, lots and lots of investment.

One million homes at significant risk from contaminated drinking water

screamed the Irish Independent headline.

And just in case readers didn’t get the fear message, there’s a picture of two lovely children brushing their teeth, great to get the emotions going.

Other dire warnings included: health risk to babies, e-coli, cryptosporidium, lead poisoning, endless water notices, risk to thousands of jobs.

‘Customers’ were warned that if they wanted a modern water system they would have to pay for it. €500 million per year for ten years – minimum.

Also in the Independent (partly owned by Denis O’Brien) John Tierney, Managing Director of Irish Water, was afforded an article all of his own in which he made this dire revelation:

There are now people in Ireland who cannot drink their water because it will make them ill.

His solution: Slap a bill for €2.3 billion on ‘customers’ to pay up or risk getting sick.

We want to become an organisation trusted by people to deliver every time they turn on their tap.

What he means is, of course – trusted to deliver a bill every time a ‘customer’ turns on a tap?

To be fair to Newstalk’s (fully owned by Denis O’Brien) Breakfast presenters, Ivan Yates and Brendan Donoghue, they didn’t even bother with balance.

They got stuck in right away – 20,000 on boiled water notices, nearly one million at risk. They interviewed a spokesperson from EPA asking him comfortable, leading questions that were very helpful to Irish Water.

Again we had all the dire warnings that the sky was about to fall in unless Irish Water ‘customers’ stumped up a couple of billion. At the end of the piece, in case ‘customers’ still weren’t on song, Ivan Yates hammered home the message:

There’s no avoiding the fact if we want to retain our water quality for almost a million people very significant investment needs to take place.

RTE also played its part in the Government’s propaganda campaign.

Here’s part of the written introduction on the Sean O’Rourke website to an interview with Head of Asset Management at Irish Water Jerry Grant.

In the face of opposition to water charges, the response from government and from Irish Water has remained steady. If we want to ensure a sustainable and clean supply of water into the future, charging for water is the way forward.

In fairness to RTE, this clear and dramatic abandonment of balance in favour of supporting Government policy is courageous. At least listeners now know where the national broadcaster stands on the question of water tax.

On RTE’s Late Debate presenter Cormac O’hEadhra nearly had a heart attack at the sheer horror of what was revealed in the EPA report.

Funny, all this hysteria, because Irish citizens (as opposed to customers) have been aware for decades that the water system is Third World standard, at best.

They know they’re being poisoned, they know political incompetence and corruption is at the root of the problem, they know major investment is required.

They also know, and this is where they depart from the position of the Government and its friends in the media, that this time they are not going to be screwed because of the greed and corruption of politicians.

Copy to:

Dept. of Environment
Irish Water
Environmental Protection Agency
RTE
Newstalk
Irish Independent

Creighton's new party: Bizarre and a little sad

Totally bizarre and a little sad is how I would describe Lucinda Creighton’s launch of Ireland’s latest political party.

There she was with an unknown local politician on her right and a very well known person on her left who may, or then again, may not stand for election.

The nation was told that up to 100 people have been working since last April on planning the new party yet all they could manage in terms of policy was four bullet points of principle which any party could attach to their manifesto.

Yes, there may be more to come before the party is launched – again – in eight months time but by then the moment will have been lost, it will be old news.

It will just be another political party trying to find a niche in an ever crowding space and certainly not the revolutionary movement that’s required to bring real change.

Here’s why I think Creighton’s attempt to fill the political vacuum being created by the disintegration of the old corrupt regime will, ultimately, fail.

She was politically born and reared in the culture of that corrupt regime. All her contacts, friends and colleagues are members of the ruling elite that created and fully support that corrupt regime.

In common with a growing number of her fellow elites she has become aware that there’s something dangerous stirring in the undergrowth where ordinary citizens live out their lives voting for and paying taxes to the ruling class in return for a few crumbs from the table.

The fatal flaw in her efforts is that she’s an insider trying to reconfigure the rotten system by making a few cosmetic changes so that it can continue to enjoy the benefits of power.

In common with all her fellow elites she’s completely unaware that it’s far, far too late for tinkering with the system.

It’s time to get rid of it altogether and I see no member of the insider elite with the vision and courage to do that job.

The power that will destroy our corrupt political/administrative system will come from outside and, hopefully, that will happen sooner rather than later.

2015 will decide who wields power – the people or the corrupt ruling elite

To begin the New Year I’m going to restate the philosophy of this website.

Ireland is an intrinsically corrupt state.

By this I mean:

One: There is no independent state authority that has the power, resources, will or courage to challenge the rampant corruption that has done, and continues to do, so much damage to Ireland and its people.

This is no accident. Over the decades the corrupt body politic has ensured that all state agencies, including the police, are dependent on the favour of politicians if they want to keep their jobs and progress their careers.

Two: The proof of this fact can be observed every time corruption is brought to public attention. State agencies either ignore such corruption or, in many cases, actively take steps to protect the corrupt. The recent return of the Ansbacher files is a case in point.

Inevitably, this political/administrative corruption drove the citizens of Ireland over the cliff of catastrophe into the pits of despair in 2008. Since then the corrupt system has been desperately trying to reassert its power.

If it succeeds, Ireland will become a visible banana republic where the gap between the powerful and the powerless will become a permanent, and acceptably normal part of our culture.

To prevent this happening the people of Ireland need to rise up and destroy the system that has betrayed every principle of democracy and decency.

Talk of political reform is useless, that moment passed decades ago. Only the deluded believe that those who benefit enormously from our corrupt system will willingly push the button of their own self-destruction.

The people rebelled when the property tax was introduced. That rebellion was squashed when the corrupt system brought in the heavy artillery of Revenue.

The rebellion was re-ignited and became much stronger with the attempted introduction of water charges which politicised a significant section of the electorate.

But the rebellion is not about water charges, it’s not about any particular political party, it’s not even about this government.

It’s about the fact that the Irish people have finally woken up to the reality that they have been betrayed by a diseased and traitorous political system.

2015 will decide whether the people regain their democratic rights or are condemned forever to live under the oppression of the current ruling elite.

Journalist Michael Clifford: Getting it wrong on the bank inquiry

According to journalist Michael Clifford the lack of a paper trail concerning the major decisions taken during the 2008 financial crisis is of minor importance (Irish Examiner).

If that were all that was wrong in the department, we’d all be in clover.

In his article Clifford leads the raging elephant of political/administrative corruption into the room, sticks a long, well sharpened spear up the creatures rear end to ensure maximum pain and then proceeds to completely ignore the ensuing rampage.

Instead he focuses on what he obviously believes are more important aspects of the first days of the latest banking inquiry.

Like, for example, how finance officials had to go home to find out details of that year’s budget or how Fianna Fail is reacting to the inquiry.

This journalist could not be more wrong.

The lack of a paper trail is the single most important aspect of the entire disgraceful episode because it tells us just how corrupt our political/administrative system has become.

Allow me to analyse Clifford’s raging elephant in the room.

Rob Wright, the Canadian public servant who compiled a report on how the Department of Finance was asleep at the wheel during the boom, gave evidence.

Rob Wright is wrong in his conclusion that the Department was asleep at the wheel.

The Department of Finance was not asleep at the wheel. The Department was fully aware of what was happening throughout the boom years, the Central Bank, Revenue and all other relevant state agencies also knew exactly what was happening.

No action was taken because our corrupt political system was, and still is, more concerned with protecting the interests of those who benefitted hugely from the boom than they were/are in the interests of the Irish people.

All our state agencies, including the police, operate under the direct control of our corrupt political system.

Wright was ‘flummoxed’ by the lack of a paper trail surrounding the major decisions made during the crisis.

He was told by many public servants that it was the Freedom of Information Act that was to blame. Nobody wanted to commit to paper anything that might come back to haunt them.

There could be serious ‘hassle’, he was told, if an FOI request revealed a difference of opinion between a minister and a civil servant.

One minister, we’re told, ‘had a lot of concern’ about the Freedom of Information Act after one such revelation.

It is deeply disturbing that civil servants can casually dismiss their disgraceful actions/inactions because of a fear of ‘hassle’ from a minister.

It is deeply disturbing that a minister (and, of course, he/she is not alone in this) expresses concern at the prospect of citizens becoming properly informed by way of an FOI.

It is deeply disturbing that any meeting of ministers and their senior public servants could be conducted without any notes/record being taken never mind the major, life impacting decisions taken during the financial crisis.

To put it bluntly, only those in charge of the most perverse, corrupt, diseased banana republic would think it acceptable to make such decisions while consciously deciding to keep no record in case they were made to account for their betrayal.

As far as I am aware, and I hope to check on this further in the coming year, there is a legal requirement for civil servants to record all minutes of all government/ministerial meetings.

Journalist Clifford ends his article:

The jury is still out on whether this whole thing will amount to a hill of beans.

Wrong again:

The jury is in, every informed person knows what happened, knows that the current inquiry is a disgraceful farce, knows that it won’t even amount to a hill of beans.

The people, in recent elections, polls and protests, have given their verdict – Guilty.

They have delivered their sentence – The abolition of our corrupt political/administrative system.

All that remains is for the sentence to be carried out and, hopefully, that will be sooner rather than later.

Copy to:
Michael Clifford
Department of Finance
All political parties

Fine Gael Cllr. Kate O'Connell: Just another gombeen politician

Fine Gael Councillor Kate O’Connell is either a complete moron with very little intelligence or she thinks that the people of Ireland are complete morons with very little intelligence.

I strongly suspect it’s the former.

Defending her party’s complete failure to reform the (corrupt) political system (RTE) she said:

Fine Gael promised a democratic revolution but I imagine when they got elected…in the dying days of the Greens and Fianna Fail government…they literally inherited an unholy mess.

They went in, I believe, with the best of intentions to reform the system. But when they went into Government Buildings the place was falling down around them.

So this gombeen is asking us to believe that when the current government came to power they were completely unaware of the major catastrophe that had just been visited upon the Irish people.

She’s asking us to believe that Fine Gael and Labour had no idea that major political reform was urgently required to bring even a tiny semblance of democracy to our country.

O’Connell is a young politician who, we are constantly told, will usher in a new form of honest and open politics to serve the people of Ireland.

Sadly, like all her colleagues, she’s nothing more than a pathetic clone of the traitors who destroyed our country.

Copy to:
Cllr. O’Connell

Eoghan Murphy: Political reform? Yes, but only if the ruling elite hold power

Fine Gael TD (and political coward) Eoghan Murphy is continuing his crusade to reform Irish politics before the evil ones in Sinn Fein and other ‘lefties’ seize power and destroy the great civilisation so labourisly built up, brick by democratic brick, by Fine Gael, Fianna Fail and Labour over the decades.

Speaking on the Today with Sean O’Rourke Murphy, a serious competitor to Leo Varadkar for political Messiah of the decade, repeated his call for political reform.

The Irish Water debacle represents a failure of the political system, we’ve got to hold the Government to account, we’ve got to get rid of the Economic Management Council (EMC).

And then…and then…he said something profound….wait for it…wait for it.

We have to stop making these mistakes because we have a history of making bad mistakes in our political system because the system is the way it is.

I swooned at the sheer depth, the sheer insight of this young visionary.

Why oh why, I cried, did none of our past Great Leaders, who built our magnificent democracy with their bare hands, without an expense sheet in sight, not possess the wisdom of this Messiah?

But there was more…much more.

Just yesterday, said the brave Eoghan, I was talking to the Great Leader himself; the Great Enda and I told him (again) about my blueprint for political reform that I put to paper in 2012.

Go forth young man, said the Great One, go forth and consult with your colleagues and when you have done so, come back to me and we will make history, we will save the people from the evil lefties.

(As the Great Enda turned away he was heard to mutter – Feckin’ eejit).

And then, before I could catch my breath – another flash of wisdom from Murphy.

There’s a desire, particularly among new TDs who aren’t used to the old way of doing things, to give more powers to the Dail.

My God, I screamed – more power for the people’s parliament? Is there no end to this man’s vision?

Ok, he’s not promising full power to parliament, like real democracies, but you can see where he’s going. Some day, perhaps in a few decades, full democracy may reign in the land.

At this stage I was on my knees, praying to the radio. A promise of real democracy albeit at some point in the future, deliverance from the evil lefties.

Free at last, I thought, free at last – Hallelujah.

And then…..a crushing blow when the great reformer was asked:

Do you think your fellow TD Noel Coonan was fair in comparing Left wing politicians with ISIS?

Well, ya know, Noel’s an emotional guy. I think he was trying to express the disappointment we all have when we see parliamentary colleagues like the Murph going out and showing their kind of leadership which is trying to stoke civil unrest, it seems, and to be very unfair towards fellow parliamentarians.

If that’s the Left’s definition of leadership I think it’s a very poor one, it’s not to be welcomed and Noel was trying to speak to that.

Well feck it anyway. One simple question with a simple answer and the Great Messiah couldn’t do it.

The gombeen gene is so deeply ingrained in his political brain that it instantly triggered a reversion to the old way of doing things.

A politically intelligent politician would simply have admitted that Coonan had been a bit over the top and that would have been fine, well, by Irish political standards anyway.

But no, this ‘reforming’ Fine Gael TD was not now, not ever going to criticise one from his own tribe no matter how stupid, insulting or inflammatory his views.

It’s all very well referring to the lefties as a sinister lot, all very well trying to educate the peasants about what’s best for them, all very well preaching democracy, accountability and political reform but criticise a fellow member of the long established ruling class – no way, that’s not going to happen.

Copy to:

Eoghan Murphy
Fine Gael

Irish Times censors RTE censored programme

I see the Irish Times took up my story surrounding the dramatic revelation by Labour Senator John Wilson that Bord Gais had made their pitch to establish Irish Water under false pretences.

Bizarrely, however, the Irish Times took the same line as RTE and, effectively, censored the principal allegation made by Senator Whelan.

Here’ s the exact charge made by the Senator against Bord Gais.

No, what I’m saying is this. Bord Gais through the process of New Era and the line minister at the time made a pitch to establish Irish Water and I believe they did so under false pretences and they haven’t delivered.

Here’s how the Irish Times reported his allegations.

“No, what I’m saying is this: Bord Gáis through the process of New Era and the line minister at the time made a pitch to establish Irish Water . . . and they haven’t delivered.”

Leaving out the words; ‘under false pretences’ strips the report of any relevance, it effectively kills the story.

So much for the ‘paper of record’.

Note:
The Irish Times, in common with many mainstream media outlets, still finds it difficult to credit bloggers and other social media sources with stories.

Fionnan Sheahan: An 'Independent' and 'enlightened' journalist

During the pro government love-in on the Marian Finucane Show last Sunday Fionnan Sheahan, political editor of ‘Independent’ Newspapers did, like so many other establishment journalists, allow that the great unwashed do have a right to protest.

But, his generous concession to the masses came with a dire warning.

It would be a shame if recent events such as we saw here would tarnish everybody who decides to take to the streets.

The pro government panel all muttered in solemn agreement. And I’m sure I could hear a distant murmur from the listening peasantry recognizing the wisdom and charity of this fine Irish ‘Independent’ journalist.

Somebody said to be recently, the great seer went on:

It takes a lot to get Paddy out on the streets but when he gets out there you can’t get him off again.

The pro government panel all dutifully laughed at the humorous wisdom of this great national philosopher.

I see outside Leinster House on a weekly basis groups of people from all parts of the country coming up taking up their protests and you have to say, more power to them and it’s only right and proper that they be allowed to do that.

This generous and unsought sentiment, I must admit, brought me to the edge of tears – ‘it’s only right and proper that they be allowed to do that.’

My God, I thought, the Irish peasantry is so lucky to have such an enlightened journalist recognise their democratic rights.

And, it must be remembered, this weekly engagement with the peasantry outside Leinster House probably occurs when the journalist is on his way to meet the Great Leader and his hard working fellow politicians as they beaver away protecting the democratic rights of the sadly, ignorant and unappreciative masses.

It’s no easy thing to mix in such exalted circles while at the same time retaining an understanding of the coarser feelings of the common citizenry.

I think our problem here is, you’re seeing fringe elements now attaching themselves to legitimate people.

The pro government panel all murmured in agreement at this warning to the ‘legitimate’ people of Ireland – whoever they are.

And, to be fair to this most unbiased of journalists, he does clearly take ownership of his views when he states ‘I think our problem is.

The ‘our’ he speaks of is, of course, those on the pro government panel, the government and wider body politic (excluding certain sinister elements, naturally) and his bosses at ‘Independent’ Newspapers.

RTE: A Government broadcaster

Panel on Marian Finucane’s Sunday’s show.

Gerard Craughwell, Independent Senator: Generally spoke in opposition of Sinn Fein politics and anti-water chargers protesters.

Stephen Kinsella, Economist: Generally spoke in opposition of Sinn Fein politics and anti-water chargers protesters.

Suzanne Lynch, Irish Times correspondent: Generally spoke in opposition of Sinn Fein politics and anti-water chargers protesters.

John Walshe, former special advisor to Education Minister: Generally spoke in opposition of Sinn Fein politics and anti-water chargers protesters.

Fionnan Sheahan, political editor Independent Newspapers: Generally spoke in opposition of Sinn Fein politics and anti-water chargers protesters.

In addition to the panel Ms. Finucane interviewed:

Katherine Zappone, Independent Senator: Criticised the anti-water charges protesters.

Joan Burton, Tanaiste and Minister for Social Protection: Strongly critical of water protesters. Was permitted to ramble on without any serious challenge by a mostly sympathetic Finucane.

Minister Burton even managed to repeat Kenny’s insulting advice to the peasants – To save water; you must turn off the tap when washing your teeth.

Conclusion:

RTE is not a national broadcaster; it’s a Government broadcaster.

Labour Senator John Whelan: Serving the rotten system rather than the people

During the discussion in which announced to the country that Bord Gais had established Irish Water under false pretences Labour Senator John Whelan said that, as a politician, he would rather be honest than popular.

On his website he is quoted as saying:

I don’t want to be another career politician. I desperately want to do something about the mess we are in.

Another quote on his website goes:

He has regularly been referred to as a courageous and outspoken journalist.

Well, Senator Whelan is no longer courageous and outspoken. He is just another career politician who has opted to be popular with the rotten political system rather than be honest with the Irish people.

I have been trying to contact the senator since he made his very serious allegations without success; he’s in hiding. Neither has he made any public statements, either in the Senate or in public to explain his allegations.

As a public representative Senator Whelan has a duty to either retract his allegations or take action on them. He has done neither.

So, in effect, the Senator has decided to join the ranks of political gombeens who, over the decades, have served their own and their party’s interests at the expense of Ireland and its people.

Copy to:
Senator Whelan