Election time

ballooba

The_Minister wrote:

That's not fair. I've only met him briefly a couple of times (in a hospital), but, by all accounts, he isn't dumb and he isn't a muppet. He is well-liked, and well-spoken.

I met him last week. I'm not the biggest fan. Polite and nice etc. but comes across as only in it for the salary imo.

He claimed to be a Councillor in letters etc. long after he lost the job.

His results: http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?id=247

Contrasted with the other options in my area Micky Mac (not a big fan either, but the guy is committed), John Gormley, Ruari Quinn, he's not great.

After this evening's performance on 6.1 by my own party's candidate Lucinda Creighton, I'm not too impressed with her either. Hangover or some such.

The_Minister

ballooba wrote:

Contrasted with the other options in my area Micky Mac (not a big fan either, but the guy is committed), John Gormley, Ruari Quinn, he's not great.

Aside from John Gormley (met him once and was not impressed), those are better candidates then him. That doesn't make him a muppet, just a reasonable competant man, running against very stiff opposition.

ballooba wrote:

After this evening's performance on 6.1 by my own party's candidate Lucinda Creighton, I'm not too impressed with her either. Hangover or some such.

I never liked her. She always struck me as an attempt to one-up Liz O'Donnell (blonde, kinda pretty etc). I only met her once (not my area), but her face went blank when I asked her about a local issue that was quite high-profie, and she should have known about.

is_that_so

InFront wrote:

..... and pretty clearly also in an RTE documentary at the beginning of last December by Dr Frank Luntz, the US election strategist and Republican advisor. It was commissioned by The Week In Politics.

Just to remind people that another Week in Politics programme tonight , again with Dr Frank Luntz, will look at the issues of the election. Well worth a look I would have thought.

RTE1 Sunday 10.20

ballooba

The_Minister wrote:

Aside from John Gormley (met him once and was not impressed), those are better candidates then him. That doesn't make him a muppet, just a reasonable competant man, running against very stiff opposition.

Passing himself off as a Councillor when he wasn't one?

InFront

is_that_so wrote:

Just to remind people that another Week in Politics programme tonight , again with Dr Frank Luntz, will look at the issues of the election. Well worth a look I would have thought.

RTE1 Sunday 10.20

Anybody see this? I'm not sure if it was as useful as the last show, it was pretty much doom and gloom for everyone in some respect. While the government's credibility seems like a major issue for them, the alternative government's PR got a bit of a battering. The key message for the FG-Labour coalition seemed to be that they're not taking adequate advantage of the anti-government feeling that is so obviously out there.

I suppose it's a bit like complaining that the music is garbage instead of being vocal enough about suggesting something better yourself. Hopefully the parties take that into consideration and start giving the government an electoral boot, there definitely does seem to be serious untapped potential there.

brianthebard

InFront wrote:

Running for FF against FF policy (the incinerator) isn't great for his credibility tbh. It comes across as hypocritical.

I would have felt it shows moral character and an unwillingness to tow the party line without thinking.

InFront

Yes perhaps I am being too cynical, I have never met Chris Andrews.

However, in terms of the voters of this particular area, I imagine that for himself, this position on the incinerator must be making him seem hypocritical. A vote for him is a vote for one more candidate to put the incinerator party back into government.
The cynic in me suggests that he is trying to gain an edge on the other FFers in his constituency, but I will zip up on that, as it is not impossible that the local electorate are indeed his main priority.

ballooba

InFront wrote:

The cynic in me suggests that he is trying to gain an edge on the other FFers in his constituency, but I will zip up on that, as it is not impossible that the local electorate are indeed his main priority.

Chris Andrews is trying to fill the seat vacated by Eoin Ryan, who is staying in Europe. His running mate is Jim O'Callaghan, who is now actually polling better than Andrews.

Andrews was elected as a councillor in 1999, he failed to win a second seat for FF in DSE in 2002. He also failed to get into the Seanad that time round. He lost his council spot in 2004 to Wendy Hederman of the PDs.

Pythia

FG.
Want to get the current government out of office and am an FG activist.

Time Magazine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jr2zGYT2Egs&mode=related&search=

The people who quote the fine pieces of statute passed by this government don't mention the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Act 2003 which has been repeatedly criticised by the Information Commissioner. Nor the failure of this government to aid their own-appointed Ombudsman for Children relinquish her "frustration" at the inadequacy of her powers. Or the dirty, rushed-through Health (Ammendment) Act of 2004 which was deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. Nor the abolition of the requirement of planners to allocate 25% of new housing developments to social housing. This at a time when house prices spiral continually out of reach of the poorest in our society. This has the effect of a wealth transfer away from the average hard-working thirtysomething to developers.

With regard to children, the FF manifesto read that "We will work to end Child Poverty, with, at a minimum, a reduction of the rate to below 2% within five years." Actually, it's seven times that, (link) with our overall poverty rate a whopping 21%. It isn't just "interested" parties coming up with these figures, independent think-tanks think so too. And it's not like the state are trying to provide them with housing either, see above.

With regard to crime, Specifically in relation to bail, the government has stood by and watched dozens of people be murdered by people on bail and probably thousands assaulted.

With regard to transport, well, Seán "PD" Barrett's ESRI report Transport 21 speaks for itself. Dublin Bus have bought 15 buses for my area. Thanks to government ineptitude they can't be used.

If it wasn't for Boards' own Margaret McGaley and Irish Citizens for Trustworthy E-Voting, we'd probably have the least secure democratic process in the western world. And yes, that includes the US.

The government have failed to live up to its commitment to provide 0.7% of GNP to development aid. It would cost $10bn to provide basic water facilities for half of the people who are currently without it, which would spur fundamental change e.g it would halve the mortality rate from diarrhoea (which kills well over four times more children than HIV/AIDS) (UN Development Report 2006, pp. 41-51). We spend €14bn on health, which amounts $18.3bn. Small amounts would make a huge difference in the third world, but even in these times of plenty we won't live up to the measly 0.7% of our income that we promised. It's a disgrace.

Certainly this country has come along since 2002. With growth rates of 7% before then and 5% since it would have taken a bloody tsunami to knock us back. But we all know there's still "a lot more to do". So how much have this government achieved?

Well why not measure it against what they promised us?

With regard to Health, in 2002 Fianna Fáíl promised:

• maximum waiting times
• 3,000 extra beds
• Permanently end waiting lists within two years
• "that public funding is producing the highest possible level and quality of care."
• 200,000 extra medical cards
• "achieve a world-class health system for all."

Well done FF/PD, you've achieved none of these. And doubled spending while you were at it. Doubled spending, 4% increase in bed-nights.

I could go on. And some day soon I will, the announcement that I have a new niece or nephew on the way has halted my vitriol. The government have presided over an economic boom which for some reason the electorate are crediting to the government and not their own hard slog. We're working fine. We're getting up at 6am and joining the M50 queue so that things have this appearance of good governance. In reality what we have is an incompetent bunch of lucky bastards who are so disconnected from our society they claim they're not wasting billions of euro from our hard-earned success.

It's time for a change.

InFront

Very well said, Ibid.

It's good news again for the opposition, according to today's Sunday Business Post. There's a definite trend occuring, and if it continues, we should have a Rainbow Government by the Summer.

(From RTE News)

Poll indicates loss in FF support

An opinion poll out today indicates that Fianna Fáil has lost support to the Opposition parties.

The monthly Red C poll for today's Sunday Business Post indicates that support for Fianna Fáil is down four points to 38% since January.

Fine Gael is up one to 22%.

While Labour, in the wake of Pat Rabbitte's tax cut pledge, is up two points to 14%.

The Greens are up one to 8% and the PDs, who have also promised major tax cuts, are up one to 4%.

Sinn Féin are unchanged at 7%, and Independents and others are down one to 7%.

While the Coalition partners are still ahead of Fine Gael and Labour, the gap has narrowed to 6%