Michael Lowry and his two fingers to the Irish people

Pdfile

CommuterIE wrote: »

Why do people in Tip keep voting him ffs??

they have no electricity in Tipp, they only discovered the wheel tbvh :rolleyes:

AskMyChocolate

I'd have to say I'm deeply saddened by the attitude of the Tipp posters in this thread. This attitude that if the DPP can't make a case then the man has done nothing wrong is a terrible attitude and a shocking example to be setting to young people. Not being proven guilty in a court of law does not make you innocent, it just means that legally you are "not guilty" or there is insufficient evidence for the DPP to take a case because he feels he won't win it. Your innocence or guilt depends solely on whether you committed the crimes of which you are accused. The fact that Al Capone never stood trial for any crime other than "tax evasion" does not mean he wasn't a vicious murderer.

On the subject of Lowry, I'd be inclined to send CAB in to see if they can find any disparities between his assets and what he might reasonably be expected to have, but I'd say he's cute enough to have had other people hold his ill-gotten gains.

As with Aherne, O'Donoghue, Healy-Rae et-al it is very difficult to prove treason or the deliberate favouring of certain companies (and then over-paying these companies out of public funds). The line between incompetence and gombeen/sleveen is a difficult one to prove even though the dogs on the street know what's going on.

Personally, I think as we all know hospital closures are coming, Nenagh should be put top of the list with Tralee second and let the people of Kerry and North Tipperary make of that what they will. Harsh, but it might teach them to consider the national need a little bit more when they go to the polls, and make them realise that heart bypasses in Longford/Leitrim are more important than vanity bypasses or casinos, achieved through holding the Irish people to ransom.

@ Dempsey: You blame FF and try to exonerate Lowry but who was it who kept FF in power by selling his vote to the highest bidder?

Shazanne

Pdfile wrote: »

they have no electricity in Tipp, they only discovered the wheel tbvh :rolleyes:

Look - will you lay off the people of Tipp in such a generalised manner! I read somewhere back on this that all Tipperary people should be burned out of their homes:mad:
Firstly, Lowry represents NORTH Tipp only and not the South of the country. Secondly, if you check the GE results you will ote that it is largely the people of Thurles who vote for him - not the rest of the constituency to any great extent. They vote for him for what he has achieved for them as a politician, which is undisputed. It's an "all politics is local" attitude I presume.
I am originally from North Tipp (not from Thurles) and I have never voted for Lowry so I dont deserve to be "burned out of my house" for anything!
If people want to make comments then make them honestly and with the correct information and leave the rest of us alone.

Amhran Nua

The sooner Lowry and his fellow travellers are removed from responsible society and put with more fitting company, like low level drug dealers in prison cells, the better for us all. Strip the pensions and entitlements from the brazen chancers and lets have done with it.

Still, you have to laugh at the self righteous parish pump rearing its head yet again. Yes, people of North Tipp, we get it, most of you were bribed by Lowry doing local favours. The whole country may have suffered for it, but at least you got whatever extension on your house you wanted. Corruption works both ways.

The only thing funnier are the dregs of FF in the thread trying to blame everyone else for the IMF going over the family silver.

walshb

Some of the posters here defending Lowry and using pathetic excuses like, "it's opinion, it's not the courts of law, he said he did nothing wrong," blah blah blah. Unbelievable. This guy has been known to be bent for years now. He was ****ing kicked out of his party, that in itself is enough. In public life, in politics, if you cannot be seen to be ethical, honest, fair and just, then you should be removed. They damn well should
have to maintain high standards. Like it or not, they are NOT the ordinary man on the street.

So so so many people have never made it inside a court, but we damn well know they should have. The law has been proven to be an ass on so many occasions.

Biggest problem here isn't Lowry, it is the morons who continue to defend the indefensible and those who insist the man did no wrong. It doesn't surprise me though. Ireland has had this mentaity for years; it's a big part of the reason that the country doesn't prosper like it can and should.

Lowry is only being so arrogant and cocky because of this support.

The Waltzing Consumer

I would agree with previous poster that Lowry is being arrogant based on his knowledge that, no matter who's balls he licks and no matter how much he has bent over for businessmen, the people of North Tipp love a good whore.

Sickening, what the hell is wrong with these people?

RGDATA!

realdanbreen wrote: »

Just had a quick look there, no mention on page 1055.
Are you sure your not looking at the report on Eamonn Gilmore and Pat Rabbitte and the counterfeit fivers?

have a slower look this time!
page 1055 (my emphasis)

"It is Mr. Lowry and Mr. O'Brien who were at fault, and had either of them seen fit to respond to the Tribunal's inquiries openly and honestly, these officials would have been spared the spectre of public scrutiny of their actions".

Dempsey

AskMyChocolate wrote: »

I'd have to say I'm deeply saddened by the attitude of the Tipp posters in this thread. This attitude that if the DPP can't make a case then the man has done nothing wrong is a terrible attitude and a shocking example to be setting to young people. Not being proven guilty in a court of law does not make you innocent, it just means that legally you are "not guilty" or there is insufficient evidence for the DPP to take a case because he feels he won't win it. Your innocence or guilt depends solely on whether you committed the crimes of which you are accused. The fact that Al Capone never stood trial for any crime other than "tax evasion" does not mean he wasn't a vicious murderer.

On the subject of Lowry, I'd be inclined to send CAB in to see if they can find any disparities between his assets and what he might reasonably be expected to have, but I'd say he's cute enough to have had other people hold his ill-gotten gains.

As with Aherne, O'Donoghue, Healy-Rae et-al it is very difficult to prove treason or the deliberate favouring of certain companies (and then over-paying these companies out of public funds). The line between incompetence and gombeen/sleveen is a difficult one to prove even though the dogs on the street know what's going on.

Personally, I think as we all know hospital closures are coming, Nenagh should be put top of the list with Tralee second and let the people of Kerry and North Tipperary make of that what they will. Harsh, but it might teach them to consider the national need a little bit more when they go to the polls, and make them realise that heart bypasses in Longford/Leitrim are more important than vanity bypasses or casinos, achieved through holding the Irish people to ransom.

@ Dempsey: You blame FF and try to exonerate Lowry but who was it who kept FF in power by selling his vote to the highest bidder?

Exonerate Lowry, when did I try to do that? I just think trial by media/mob mentality is also a very corrupt way of doing things. Negative public opinion seems to be enough to convict a man these days.

Also, I believe the problem is the system and its only now, over 14 years later, that people want change to accountability in public office. Took us a long time to make it our mandate, didnt it?

walshb wrote: »

Some of the posters here defending Lowry and using pathetic excuses like, "it's opinion, it's not the courts of law, he said he did nothing wrong," blah blah blah. Unbelievable. This guy has been known to be bent for years now. He was ****ing kicked out of his party, that in itself is enough. In public life, in politics, if you cannot be seen to be ethical, honest, fair and just, then you should be removed. They damn well should
have to maintain high standards. Like it or not, they are NOT the ordinary man on the street.

So so so many people have never made it inside a court, but we damn well know they should have. The law has been proven to be an ass on so many occasions.

Biggest problem here isn't Lowry, it is the morons who continue to defend the indefensible and those who insist the man did no wrong. It doesn't surprise me though. Ireland has had this mentaity for years; it's a big part of the reason that the country doesn't prosper like it can and should.

Lowry is only being so arrogant and cocky because of this support.

Yet he hasnt been trialled about it. The problem isnt Lowry, its that our political system is so easy to abuse without leaving a trace. Its been like that long before 1994. John Bruton had a fair idea where and why €50,000 got donated to FG. Why didnt he do some whistle blowing? The answer is obvious!

Again also you have this trial by media/mob mentality about the whole thing, which is a corrupt way of dealing with our problems. 2 wrongs wont make a right but it will probably make you feel better.

Again I stress, the bigger problem is the political system itself and the lack of expertise and accountability within departments.

Actually, if you convict Lowry, the state will be sued by two private companies for multimillion euro compensation packages. We'll eventually get our man but at what cost? Is he really worth the expense? We'll probably end up blowing our bailout package on convicting one man :pac:

walshb

Dempsey wrote: »

Again also you have this trial by media/mob mentality about the whole thing, which is a corrupt way of dealing with our
:

I don't see a mob mentality just because people here are wanting high standards in public office.

We can dress this up any way we want, use any old defense, that is human nature, but it does not take away from the glaring fact that this country is awash with cronyism in high places, and just because some ****ing court doesn't say it, doesn't make it untrue.

The list is endless of politicians who NEVER went to court but were
shown to be a disgrace to the office they held. The system is rigged so
they do not get to go to court. That's the real crime.

Laois_Man

Dempsey wrote: »

Did Lowry put the country into the gutter? No, that was Fianna Fail

Correction: It was a FF led government supported by Michael Lowry!

Laois_Man

CommuterIE wrote: »

He has now been proven guilty in relation to payments he recieved prior to awarding the mobile phone licence to his good friend Dennis O'Brien.

He actually hasn't been "Proven" to have done anything!

(Altho I do believe he has done all that he's been accused of....plus more!)

walshb

Laois_Man wrote: »

He actually hasn't been "Proven" to have done anything!

(Altho I do believe he has done all that he's been accused of....plus more!)

And to some, even if he was "proven," the fact he denies wrongdoing is enough for them:rolleyes:

mikemac

God, what a thread

A Tipperary tax, everyone there is stupid, build a wall around it, burn their homes and lots more :rolleyes:
Standard fare for After Hours I suppose

Anyways....before we all get lynched in Tipperary, we're not going down alone
It is Tipperary North-South Offaly, so include Offaly too

Besides, the majority of his vote comes from Thurles.

The FF, SF and Lab candidates took most of the Nenagh area to the west
And that waster Noel Coonan from FG, took votes from the East and North from Roscrea and Templemore
Generalizations of course but it's a large area

Build your stupid wall around Thurles

Spokes of Glory

I have no doubt (and neither do the good folks in north Tipp I bet) that Lowry is a shyster the highest order. But peoples outrage should be directed as a system that has a 14 year inquiry with no legal ramifications, instead of a proper criminal investigation. Does anyone seriously believe there are no meeting minutes, emails, letters, records etc pertaining to the selection process and award of the licence ? Were clear criteria for selection not laid out in the tender process ? Is there not a money trail that can be followed ? Instead of which we get a report costing €200million or whatever it is, the probable result of which is that precisely no-one will be charged with anything.

Tribunals are nothing but a convenient way for Irish govts to avoid prosecutions for serious criminal corruption and negligence both in the civil service and in their own ranks, with Joe Taxpayer picking up the tab.

If Enda Kenny is taking this seriously, he'd have a complete review of ALL state procurement policies, removing personal influence over selection and award of contracts, and that could be done in 6 months or less. Dream on.

sollar

feelingstressed wrote: »

Build your stupid wall around Thurles

How about the people of thurles get nothing at all this term and if they want to vote gob****es like this in again let them get nothing for another 5 years after that.

Let them see voting undesirables in will not yield results.

daddydick

Based on the facts we know about this man, he is quite frankly a disgrace* and should be left nowhere near a public office for the rest of his life.

*in my opinion

Dionysus

Did any of you hear Morning Ireland this morning? Cían McCormack went to Thurles last night to meet some of the 350 Lowry supporters. He ended up getting his life threatened. But it, and other excerpts from the recording below, indicate the zealous mentality of these people:


Morning Ireland

walshb

Dionysus wrote: »

Did any of you hear Morning Ireland this morning? Cían McCormack went to Thurles last night to meet some of the 350 Lowry supporters. He ended up getting his life threatened. But it, and other excepts from the recording below, indicate the zealous mentality of these people:


Morning Ireland

And he only asked a simple question; and was threatened. Unreal.

For Forks Sake

ON RTE Radio 1's Morning Ireland of 25 March 2011, an urbane, gentle supporter of the North Tipperary TD Michael Lowry puts up a spirited, intellectual defense on his behalf over the Moriarty Tribunal findings.

Enjoy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxoTKDEDfAQ

Dionysus

A Michael Lowry supporter last night on Lowry granting the licence to Denis O'Brien:

"Better to give the license to an Irishman than a foreigner"

What hope is there for Ireland with people making excuses for political corruption like that.

Dionysus

Is it true the Ben Dunne paid £395,000 for an extension to Michael Lowry's home in the 1990s? How much is that in today's money?


According to a profile of Michael Lowry in The Sunday Tribune in 2010 this is precisely how much Dunne the rich businessman paid Lowry the politician:

Dunne, Lowry and Haughey: a scandal that beat them all

If only the Irish could get angry ....

walshb

Dionysus wrote: »

A Michael Lowry supporter last night on Lowry granting the licence to Denis O'Brien:

"Better to give the license to an Irishman than a foreigner"

What hope is there for Ireland with people making excuses for political corruption like that.

He does have a point:) They're takin' er jobs!

The Waltzing Consumer

For Forks Sake wrote: »

ON RTE Radio 1's Morning Ireland of 25 March 2011, an urbane, gentle supporter of the North Tipperary TD Michael Lowry puts up a spirited, intellectual defense on his behalf over the Moriarty Tribunal findings.

Enjoy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxoTKDEDfAQ

Jesus :eek: Did RTE complain to the Gardai about this?

Again, to the wonderful :rolleyes: people of Thurles *clap* *clap* you guys make us so proud.

Nevermind_

Its from quite a while ago but its still very apt

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKK8eAlASy4

ilovesleep

Dionysus wrote: »

Is it true the Ben Dunne paid £395,000 for an extension to Michael Lowry's home in the 1990s? How much is that in today's money?


According to a profile of Michael Lowry in The Sunday Tribune in 2010 this is precisely how much Dunne the rich businessman paid Lowry the politician:

Dunne, Lowry and Haughey: a scandal that beat them all

If only the Irish could get angry ....

1 Pound was 1.27 euro
395,000 pounds is 501,650 euro

Nevermind_

ilovesleep wrote: »

1 Pound was 1.27 euro
395,000 pounds is 501,650 euro

Actually its a lot more if you factor in inflation over the last 15 years or so.

johngalway

Quiet you wrote: »

In fairness I wouldn't consider any politican above a move like that just so they can hold their hands up and say "it's not my fault, it's the law".

It was the first thing I thought when I heard the report. I remember a few cases that were struck out over the years because of what I would have considered relatively innocuous comments in the media so I figured it was as good as finished with as far as prosecutions go. That said I've no knowledge of anything legal so I could well be talking sh*te.

In fairness to politicians, if something is the law, then, well, that's what it is. If we lived in a dictatorship then it'd be easier criticize "The (all powerful) Leader" for doing nothing, but in our system, "The Leader" can't just go around telling judges what to do.

previous user

bigwormbundoran wrote: »

What I think is more galling is the fact that all this information was more or less known yet the people of Tipperary North still voted the bóllocks in, as opposed to the corruption itself

He fixed the roaad!

CommuterIE

Dionysus wrote: »

Did any of you hear Morning Ireland this morning? Cían McCormack went to Thurles last night to meet some of the 350 Lowry supporters. He ended up getting his life threatened. But it, and other excerpts from the recording below, indicate the zealous mentality of these people:


Morning Ireland

I find this absolutely appalling, that f**king eijits like that are among his supporters... wtf has Lowry done to his constituency!!! :eek: he's turned people into c*nts that may resort to violence... FO LOWRY, IRELAND HAS HAD ENOUGH, JUST GO! :mad:

Gunmonkey

Dionysus wrote: »

If only the Irish could get angry ....

From the radio clips above, it seems they can but only in defence of a corrupt, thick necked pile of ****e that would sell us all out for a bag of chips.