Drogheda Local Elections

Whiskey Devil

I've just been reading this weeks Drogheda Independent which has the rundown on all the candidates for the local elections on both sides of town. I'm living on the North side myself and I'm really struggling to find someone even half decent or likeable out of the lot of them. I've come across a few of them over the last few years and they range from complete idiots (few of those) to completely insane - well not quite! < If I didn't know him I'd probably vote for him! :pac: As for the local Soldiers of Destiny, great pair of lads. :rolleyes:


Just wondering what you all think - open to people on both sides of town.

Skcornnelg

Well my vote goes to Yinka Dixon, mainly for putting her person most admired as "the lollipop lady" as opposed to all the other Nelson Mandela/Popular American politican cliché answers.

andrew1977

I have to agree on the candidates for Drogheda, in the past i always had a couple of candidates whom i would vote for , this time there is nobody i have any interest in voting for,

positron

I am a tolerant type of person, but I am starting to get sick of all leaflets coming in the door, and all those posters on lampposts by the road. Anyone know when will they take them all down? :pac:

garrincha62

I think they are required to remove all election posters within 2 weeks of polling day.

Whiskey Devil

We received a leaflet in our door yesterday from Tommy Byrne (Fianna Fáil candidate of the other side of town). Why?

garrincha62

Ah good aul Tommy Byrne, pockets laden down with enthusiasm, head empty as a nudist beach in Donegal in December!!

One of my political heroes, a certain Shanks Godfrey, canvassed my house once. I asked him what his thoughts were on lowering the age for presidential candidates and he just looked at me and said..."You know the lights on the Viaduct? I put them there!"

A political sage!! An Aristotle of our time.

SKYDOG

Thanks Garrincha for the laugh!

Whiskey Devil

garrincha62 wrote: »

One of my political heroes, a certain Shanks Godfrey, canvassed my house once. I asked him what his thoughts were on lowering the age for presidential candidates and he just looked at me and said..."You know the lights on the Viaduct? I put them there!"

Classic. :pac:

Pink16

Skcornnelg wrote: »

Well my vote goes to Yinka Dixon, mainly for putting her person most admired as "the lollipop lady" as opposed to all the other Nelson Mandela/Popular American politican cliché answers.

But which Lollipop lady does she admire? Or is it just lollipop ladies in general? And what about lollipop men?????????????
I think she needs to clarify this.

siralansapprent

Hi, well i myself have been looking at the papers and deciding who and why and really i think well could it not be any worse then whats in there now??
So im thinkin why not vote for someone new and young at least give them a shot at it, it couldnt be any more worse then it is! Callan will get my vote and Carroll seems good as well......

garrincha62

siralansapprent wrote: »

So im thinkin why not vote for someone new and young at least give them a shot at it, it couldnt be any more worse then it is! Callan will get my vote and Carroll seems good as well......

Hmm. Aren't they representing FF & FG who always get in and never change anything? They may have youth and predictably garish accountant haircuts on their side. Indeed, they may even be promising playgrounds to hoover up the young parent vote. However they seem to me like men dangling refresher bars out the window of their hi-aces at the kiddies coming home from school. Get in go on!! Sure I've sweeties here and everything!!! Before you know it the sweeties are gone and you're left on the street holding nothing but an empty wrapper in your hand. They are cut from the same cloth (Callan looks like Carroll, and Carroll looks like Callan).

I suggest voting for Labour and for Yinka Dixon. Hows about a little diversity in local politics for a change?

Stopthemuppets

Have been out pounding the pavements for the last few weeks. Have found folk to be very disillusioned with politics and the state of affairs generally. Not suprising, you might say, given that car-crash economics and woeful social policies implemented over recent years has left us in the S**T.

People are genuinely worried over the state of the economy etc, but have you ever taken a good look around some of the really deprived areas in our town? If you were landed in one of these places, then you really would have cause for concern. And yet, I found people in these areas more keen to engage than your more affluent dweller.

Irish people seem to think that once they have exercised their democratic right then there ends their responsibilities. NO! If you want real change, then you need to get up from in front of Sky Sports and MAKE that change. Join a party and make change happen from within. Believe it or not, there are one or two parties who are open to change, open to new ideas, new blood, you can make a difference.....

Finally, voting for folk because they look the right package is just purile. These Tory boys are just in it for the career and for the business contacts that they will make- surely the penny has dropped with people out there?Stop sleepwalking with tradition and.......

siralansapprent

Its my understanding that these guys are brave enough to put themselves forward in this current economic climate, at the minute they have nothing to offer, they are just out there going for it and i respect that.......yes im really going to vote for a local councilor who has voted to buy an 8m car park (with my taxes) and leave it lying there for years unattended without doing anything on it, yes am i going to vote for a local government who cant even keep a hospital in a major town, yes am i going to vote for a local councilor who has voted to spend millions on West street and then a year later dig it all up again spend another couple of million to put 20 car spaces into it!
Come on, at least these guy are educated....is there a degree between any of local councilors there at the minute? If we vote for young educated people then at least we are portraying a change for this town which is what it needs, these fat cats on the council in my eyes have done nothing to improve Drogheda in any way, shape or form....thats traditional isnt it?

Stopthemuppets

Plainly, these guys are careerists, caerer politicians who trade off the brand name of FF/FG. It will be another 20 years of the same old, same old if these people get in, I can assure you. Look at the record of failed social and economic policies, a decade of tribunals, investigations,etc etc. I am truely amazed that anyone would want to vote for this mob...

Educated? Don't mean to be rude, but what exactly do we mean by "educated"? They have a business degree, perhaps? That's not what i will call educated and I have a business degree myself! What we need is people with a real vision for a better world for all, not self-interests with a narrow world-view nutured in the murky world of local gld-handed politics.

It's time for a real change, a real shift in consciousness that will last, but I fear that this will not happen. Still, I don't intend to sit on the fence any longer. See you on the hustings!

garrincha62

Stopthemuppets wrote: »

Plainly, these guys are careerists, caerer politicians who trade off the brand name of FF/FG. It will be another 20 years of the same old, same old if these people get in, I can assure you. Look at the record of failed social and economic policies, a decade of tribunals, investigations,etc etc. I am truely amazed that anyone would want to vote for this mob...

Educated? Don't mean to be rude, but what exactly do we mean by "educated"? They have a business degree, perhaps? That's not what i will call educated and I have a business degree myself! What we need is people with a real vision for a better world for all, not self-interests with a narrow world-view nutured in the murky world of local gld-handed politics.

It's time for a real change, a real shift in consciousness that will last, but I fear that this will not happen. Still, I don't intend to sit on the fence any longer. See you on the hustings!

Hear hear!!

Dingatron

+1

I'll be voting. Not sure for who yet, but I know who I won't be voting for that's for sure! Think a few people will get a rude awakening this time round.

gipi

I was slightly surprised (and delighted) to see that one of the local council candidates actually called to my door himself this afternoon - up to now I've either had supporters calling or had the leaflet just shoved in the door. At least the guy who called today was willing to take whatever might have been thrown at him (whether it be withering looks or rotten eggs....I threw neither, I hasten to add!!).

garrincha62

Aren't elections just great?
1. Thread on Local Elections opens.
2. First time posters flock to it.
3. Mud-slinging begins.

Quick question appleb, is that your real name?

garrincha62

Hi appleb. I guess she could get into trouble over that one!

It should be followed up as a matter of extreme urgency!!!

And let's not forget--let's not forget, Dude--that keeping wildlife...uh...an amphibious rodent... for, uh, domestic, you know, within the city limits... That ain't legal either.

Stopthemuppets

Things hottin up nicely out there, and I'm not just talking about the sun on SUN.

This has the makings of a decent blog.

Has anyone seen FF soldiers on the streets? Conspicuous by their absence, me thinks. Not surprising, seen as there's more bad vibes than a heavy-metal concert out there...... Shinners and LAB making belated appearances. FF & FG relying on PAID letterboxstuffers and American-style tele-canvass. Uummm....

There has been a lot of poster defacing/removing/destroying. Whatever about the awfulness of some of these, it is anti-democratic to start messin with them. I am aware that some Blueshirt up in 'Feckin went to town on the pole stuff there. Clearly, though, the big guys have an unfair advantage in terms of being able to afford large election bill-boards, new ads,etc. That's not really very democratic, is it? Your thoughts, folks?

Keep the fun goin....

PS I will be publishin my election guide here soon for all ye baffled folk on this thread- Not to be missed!

garrincha62

Poor Frank Gallagher is being defaced. Crazy eyes, Dracula teeth, you name it. Guess that is the price you pay for putting up your posters late...

I read that a poster of Declan Ganley was defaced in Eyre Square last week. A Hitler moustache subtlely added, perhaps with his 'Blue Card' immigration policy in mind. It was swiftly removed however, by some of his brownshi...activists.

I have only seen Labour and the Greens pounding the pavements. Surprised by the lack of Fine Gael, but maybe I've just been (un)lucky not to see any of their suited right of centre goons.

Shinners also have been quiet. Maybe they have no bank notes left?

FF very quiet too. Cowen is talking of a late counter attack surge. Probably will happen too. Same old lobotomised FFers will vote them in again.

garrincha62

Poor Shanks Godfrey must be suffering from penis envy. Drogheda's own political mandarin only has some old diamond shaped VOTE GODFREY NO.1 posters and a couple of heavily photoshoped images of the guru in more thick-haired days.

The man, undoubtedly a sage, is widely known to pore over the great political questions of our time. Vellum scrolls lay half read on the floor of his study, discarded in disgust as Shanks pens devastating repostes with his quill. Early on Sundays he can be seen walking barefoot (in homage to his political hero, Socrates) along the streets, eager to engage in political debate. He will approach mere citizens and hit them with lengthly spiels on the merits of the free market and how Drogheda can be compared to the decadence of 1920s Berlin.

Those of us lucky enough to catch Frank performing imaginary debates between John Stuart Mill and Plato will never forget them. As we followed him, like disciples must have followed Jesus, at a respectful distance but in ear shot nonetheless, an elderly woman approached him, cutting him off in mid-sentence. She was worried about the lack of bingo facilities for the elderly and was troubled by how the young people of today have no respect. Shanks, pulling a mobile from his toga, made a few phone calls. The old woman left. He then continued apace in the guise of Hobbes as if nothing had happened.

Thanks to him, bingo is now one of the mainstays in The Widow Murphys. The declining standards among young people has proved a more difficult equation. However, Shanks now holds knowledge sessions where young children can learn about the issues of the future when he holds court at Little Wembly on Saturday Afternoons. Kids are introduced to light philosophy and given questions to ponder over.

Some people mock Shanks. They cite the zany antics. They are wrong. They cannot see past this facade. Those who witnessed his grand political statement at the 2008 Paddy's Day Parade won't easily forget. Donned in a cream crooner suit that had seen better days, our guru joined the parade after the last float amongst the people (would he do it any other way?). Belting out Joe Dolan songs, Shanks aped around, boogying and jiving like a balding man with no shame. The crowd, transfixed, thought that there was an idiot in the wrong village. A few of us could see that what looked like a gawdy and embarrassing incident was really a staged political statement. The man was predicting the economic downturn. We could not see it. He is too clever for us.

It is easy to think of Shanks Godfrey when one reads Robert Kennedy's words....
Each time a person stands up for an ideal,
or acts to improve the lot of others...
he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope,
and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring,
those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.




Shanks Godfrey NUMBER 1
YOUR VOTE IS VITAL

delly

To the people who have joined this website recently, welcome. Please familiarise yourself with the charter.

While this is an open forum, users must maintain a certain level of respect towards each other and the candidates who are running. Accusations towards candidates will not be tolerated nor other examples of 'mud slinging'.

siralansapprent

Thats terrible...................not a Shanker supporter believe it or not!

I have you tell ye this! After all my defending of Callan Carroll last week I had a knock on my door on Saturday morning and it was Mr. Kevin Callan himself, couldnt beleive it.....I tackled him on a number of issues such as the hospital, jobs and what can he do when he gets in or if i give him a number one vote etc, needless to say i was very impressed, this guy has a lot of determination, energy and drive about him, no ****Sh** at all, genuine guy. I was really impressed i must say and he is definately one to watch i reckon. Say what you want Stopthemuppets but this guy is certainly no muppet

Stopthemuppets

Well , I suspect that we have an out-and-out Callan plant here. Please spare us the electioneering love, and direct your efforts to a more juvenile site where this rubbish may go undetected.

Love

STM

noels little bu

no has mentioned sinn fein yet. is there a reason for this. i always found imelda munster to be very good, educated and helpfull. sinn fein get my vote..

Stopthemuppets

Again, this word "educated" appears as an endorsement, a must-have credential for a candidate. And yet again, I will point out that a degree or an appearance of academia is no real qualification for a local government coun. I myself spent 8 years in-and-out of university where I met a lot of people with all the gab, all the bull, but no real substance! What is more important is for a candidate to have some integrity, a genuine interest in the welfare of all citizens in the borough and some philosophical basis behind their political stance. Talking a good game is all well and good, but where the hell has got us?

As for the "Youth" factor that is being bandied about as a selling point..... Well, again in my experience youth=stupidity, and here I speak with some authority, having been a young person for many years myself. Those of a certain vintage will know that it is more important for one's philosophy and approach to develop slowly with age and experience, to mature into a solid and enlightened ethical and moral standpoint that may help guide one's actions and the actions of others. Younger candidates tend to see glittering lights ahead of them and a move into politics is generally a career-minded move. The phrase headless-chickens springs to mind....

siralansapprent

i have a right to express what i have heard or experienced from whatever person comes to my door. Obviously you dont like Callan/Carroll or anyone else in this election apart from your own party and your bullying tactics/very strong feelings about this election wont stop me from placing positive feedback on this website no matter who its about. i hope it all works out for you and whatever you stand for.

positron

Stopthemuppets wrote: »

Well, again in my experience youth=stupidity, and here I speak with some authority, having been a young person for many years myself.

I spurted coffee all over my keyboard reading that..!

PS: I don't even drink coffee.. This must be from last week..!!

Stopthemuppets

siralansapprent wrote: »

i have a right to express what i have heard or experienced from whatever person comes to my door. Obviously you dont like Callan/Carroll or anyone else in this election apart from your own party and your bullying tactics/very strong feelings about this election wont stop me from placing positive feedback on this website no matter who its about. i hope it all works out for you and whatever you stand for.

Well you are wrong about several things here. First, NOBODY is disputing your right to express yourself, whatever you views may be. Second, I believe that there are good candidates accross the boundaries in this election, but it is up to each and every voter to determine this for themselves - we do not need blatent plugs here for individual candidates, thanks, we are quite capable....

Lastly, pointing out the abject failure of politics,politicians and political parties in this country is not bullying tactics, it is expressing the truth as I see it, as I witness it, as I experience it . It is never my intention to belittle or bully anyone, I am sorry if it experienced that, but just look at the absolute mess we are in, for heaven's sake.......... The EVIDENCE speaks for itself, as your chosen candidate should know.