Cork South Central

Rebelbrowser

nesf wrote: »

A good friend of mine who is a writer by trade has put up his analysis of the candidates for Cork South Central in his blog: http://thatsnotmysquid.com/blog/?p=296#content

Highly amusing satire.

Just read it. very good. Excellent overview of FF's relationships with the banks too.

joulter

nesf wrote: »

Not a hope. Sure he's the best chance we've had of a Cork Taoiseach in decades...

Etc.

Delusion is running high on the south side so! :pac:

Reading the echo today it says that ff might only get 2 seats between the 5 cork constituencies, so much for the micheál bounce!

BaboonCsection

Am living abroad now so won't get the chance to vote but thought I would come on here and see how the candiates are going down with the locals. All the old faces (Coveny, Martin and Co.) seem to be running away with it, which is a sad reflection on my home town (someone is voting for them!).

Not sure why people think FG are bringing anything new to the table this time around? They seem as uninspired and coruptable as they were in '07 and '02.

I have checked out the Independents a bit too. McCarthy is running the slickest campaign but there is something off about him. Maybe it is his ties to FG and Sinnott that is putting me off. Finbarr O'Driscoll seems like a good guy but I think a lot of his policies are things that he could never deliver on. Same as a lot of the indos I guess.

Pdolan

DrMorphine wrote: »

Had buttimer as a religon teacher in school and he couldnt even handle a classroom of 20 people, how is he meant to be able to help manage a country?

Fianna fail have managed to cripple the country yet people will still vote for them. Just tells you the level of ignorance out there. Michael McGrath is as useful as a chocolate teapot

cornbb

joulter wrote: »

Delusion is running high on the south side so! :pac:

I'd bet my left nut that Micheal Martin will be Taoiseach in 5 years. Not that I want to see that of course, but people in this country have short memories

I'll be casting my vote later. Giving hight preferences to FG, Labour and David McCarthy. Low preference for the Greens and nothing for FF/SF.

Not sure why people think FG are bringing anything new to the table this time around? They seem as uninspired and coruptable as they were in '07 and '02.

Corruptible, how so? They couldn't possibly be any worse than FF... They haven't been squeaky clean in the past but they haven't been the worst by a long shot.

flash1080

cornbb wrote: »

I'd bet my left nut that Micheal Martin will be Taoiseach in 5 years. Not that I want to see that of course, but people in this country have short memories

I'll be casting my vote later. Giving hight preferences to FG, Labour and David McCarthy. Low preference for the Greens and nothing for FF/SF.



Corruptible, how so? They couldn't possibly be any worse than FF... They haven't been squeaky clean in the past but they haven't been the worst by a long shot.

They haven't been worse because they haven't had the opportunity. But when they get the opportunity they'll take it. Buttimer claimed over €50000 in expenses in a 12 month period while in the Seanad, the second highest.

cornbb

flash1080 wrote: »

They haven't been worse because they haven't had the opportunity. But when they get the opportunity they'll take it. Buttimer claimed over €50000 in expenses in a 12 month period while in the Seanad, the second highest.

Its not fair to say that they *would* be corrupt *if* they were in power. What is this based on? Past experience does not bear this out, at least not to anywhere near the same extent as Labour/FF. For every Buttimer or Lowry, you'll have 10 Fianna Failers pulling strokes or taking brown envelopes.

I think this whole "sure FG would be as bad as FF, better to stick with the devil you know" attitude is largely responsible for letting FF stick around for long enough to destroy the country. I'm no FG fan, I've never voted for either them or FF before, but they're the only party who haven't been spouting complete horsesh*t. Really, what's a credible alternative to lead the country?

dename

cornbb wrote: »

I think this whole "sure FG would be as bad as FF, better to stick with the devil you know" attitude is largely responsible for letting FF stick around for long enough to destroy the country. I'm no FG fan, I've never voted for either them or FF before, but they're the only party who haven't been spouting complete horsesh*t. Really, what's a credible alternative to lead the country?

Unfortunately, a large portion of the FG electorate are voting for them because they see no other alternative. It's a dismal state of affairs when people are voting because they think 'ah sure they can't be as bad as the other lot'. This isn't a dig at you cornbb, I'm sure you've thought things through and are making an informed decision. Just the above statement highlights that a lot of people are voting passionately but not passionately for a party, but passionate to get FF out. It's dismal that no other party has inspired them. But, I guess I'm just glad people are using their votes, as no vote is a vote for a bad politician (ie FF).

I would like a Left government in this country, for us to try something different for once, reform the system, and make it less of a two-horse-race. But I live in hope.:rolleyes:

Chatelaine

Haven't voted yet, but I just wanted to say thanks to the posters who gave a heads-up that Mick Finn is FF in all but name - I would have voted for him if I hadn't know that! I'm a newbie in CSC so don't know anything about the local political allegiances of candidates. . . Am left wondering why the hell I ever moved from North Central, where at least the range of independent candidates seems marginally better, if not the candidates themselves!

joulter

does david mccarthy have much of a chance here? or will the last seat be between buttimer and mcgrath?

Redr

nesf wrote: »

Not a hope. Sure he's the best chance we've had of a Cork Taoiseach in decades...

Etc.

I put MM at the bottom no. 17 and McGrath no. 16

Just letting the tallymen know ...

cornbb

dename wrote: »

Unfortunately, a large portion of the FG electorate are voting for them because they see no other alternative. It's a dismal state of affairs when people are voting because they think 'ah sure they can't be as bad as the other lot'. This isn't a dig at you cornbb, I'm sure you've thought things through and are making an informed decision. Just the above statement highlights that a lot of people are voting passionately but not passionately for a party, but passionate to get FF out. It's dismal that no other party has inspired them. But, I guess I'm just glad people are using their votes, as no vote is a vote for a bad politician (ie FF).

I would like a Left government in this country, for us to try something different for once, reform the system, and make it less of a two-horse-race. But I live in hope.:rolleyes:

Its not "no other alternative", it's "best of a bad bunch".

I feel I've voted for the most credible alternative to FF. I too would like a more left-leaning government. But I feel that there is nothing on offer from the left. There is the Green party, who I did vote for in the last election but they proved to be complicit in what FF did to the country. Then there is either the political wing of the trade union movement, the political wing of the IRA, or a motley scattering of champagne socialists and single-issue independents. I will not vote for any of these groups simply by virtue of the fact that they are "to the left".

Fine Gael are by no means squeaky clean. I don't like their deafening silence on social issues. I don't want them to go far in disposing of state assets. However they have been insisting for years that they will push through with reform of things such as the health service and the public sector. Their manifesto had more depth than people give them credit for. I think that there is an outside chance that they'll get a better deal from EU/IMF. Richard Bruton seems a sensible choice of finance minister, and the economy is the only game in town now.

I'm hearing tons of people lambasting Fine Gael but I'm not hearing them suggest any realistic better alternative?

FWIW my first pref was not for a FG candidate.

dename

cornbb wrote: »

Its not "no other alternative", it's "best of a bad bunch"

I think we're actually agreeing with that one, but differently worded of course.

I find that fact dismal, that politics is so uninspiring in this era. Many people are in agreement with you, that FG are the best option. Having said that, I don't feel a strong need to argue with any FG-voter. I see the attraction in some ways, I do. I'm not voting for them myself because of their social conservatism. The economy is the main issue of the day, but there is lots of other business to attend to if we are going to see a real change in how this country is run both politically and morally.

For me, the best option at the moment is a Labour government. To each their own. Was somehwat disappointed with their campaign though and feel that they could have done a heck of a lot better.

Anyway, I would be somewhat happy with a FG/Lab coalition. I remember the Bruton-led coalition in the 90s and it achieved a lot, seemed honest, and paved a lot of the way for the economy we enjoyed in the subsequent years.

But, you know what, I thought that was going to happen in 2007 and we were so far away from it, it wasn't even funny. Anything could happen tomorrow, and if 2007 is anything to go by, there will be many surprises....

Have a good weekend cornbb

Rebel1977

joulter wrote: »

does david mccarthy have much of a chance here? or will the last seat be between buttimer and mcgrath?

Last seat will be between ff/fg, mccarthy has no chance

GymJim

GymJim wrote: »

From what I've seen and heard on the ground and incorporating some of the polls I've seen I think that Micheal Martin, Simon Coveney and Ciaran Lynch are the most likely first 3 past the quota.

After that the last 2 seats are realistically between Clune, Buttimer, McGrath and O'Leary. I have a feeling that McGrath may get the 4th seat and Buttimer slipping in ahead of Deirde Clune for the last seat. I think people may underestimate the popularity of Michael McGrath at a local level.

Paula Desmond is not popular at all outside the Carrigaline area and won't be contending as the constituency definitely won't return 2 Labour candidates and the votes in her area will go to Coveney and McGrath. Dan Boyle is very unpopular full stop. No independent strong enough in to contend though anyone unfamiliar with Ted Neville should visit his website...a good read

Booyah! Get in! Sadly predictable though

Balmed Out

congrats, my prediction was for all to stay as is. Didnt think buttimer would pass clune but did reckon mcgrath would retain his seat.

steelcityblues

McGrath would've lost his seat if MM lost the leadership battle.

Luckiest of the FF TDs.

clerk

steelcityblues wrote: »

McGrath would've lost his seat if MM lost the leadership battle.

Luckiest of the FF TDs.

Don't agree with you there to be honest.

I had him written off but fair play to him for getting elected in those circumstances. A lot of people feel he's a good TD on the ground and he got a lot of transfers. I think it reflected Clune's unpopularity as much as anything to be honest which I underestimated. He avoided the anyone but FF vote unlike most of his party.

jank

I am very surprsied that FF managed to keep its two seats here. The only place in the country where they retained all their seats.
The people of CSC must be stupid to elect them again but a few points.

I think it reflects the poor FG ticket. If you had a better candidate than Clune he/she would easily be able to get a seat. For Clune to lose a seat in such a manner when FG seats were easy to win says a lot about her. She probably thought she had it in the bag and didnt bother her ass doing anything. FG will have to look for someone new next time out and ditch clune.

Labour running two canidates. If they had only one then I think SF would have gotten the last seat.

MM being FF leader. Obvious bounce, he wont last as leader though.

FF just missed out on a seat here last time, one of the few places to actually lose a seat in 2007. Even though their vote dropped by a huge amount the managed to cling onto the last seat.

Next election FG should run only 2 and learn from this lesson!:)