What are your views on Multiculturalism in Ireland? - Threadbanned User List in OP

It's part of the reason... but not the whole reason. The government plays a huge role in all of this, with their preferential tax policies for companies/corporations, and their ever increasing taxes/regulations on small landlords. The government has ensured that many small landlords are no longer offering their properties to students, because there's no value in doing so.

Blaming immigrants for the rental crisis is far too simplistic. This has been building for over a decade, and TBH, goes back almost two decades, due to the policies of governments towards small landlords.

Rent freezes actually force landlords out of the market. My own parents have stopped renting out their property because as they're not first time property owners, the rent is frozen at the price from two years ago.. which sounds great for the tenant, but absolutely kills the landlord as the State taxes don't compensate for this, nor do the banks regarding mortgages. All the while the costs for services in the area have risen because other houses aren't frozen and companies expect landlord to be able to afford the increases. For example, I used to own a house in Cork, which I rented out. From the housing estate of 16 houses, 14 were rented out and we were all on the same mailing list as landlords. Now, only two are rented out. That's 14 houses gone from the rental market. And I wouldn't be surprised to see the same happening all over the country, as people stop renting their places out in the hopes that it forces something to change for the better. Better for the landlords, that is. It's just not worth the costs and hassle anymore, even when the profits can be so high (without rent freezes).

As for students, the university system has always been messed up in Ireland. I really think we should have adopted the same system you see in Asia, with huge dormitories housing males/females separately, and subsidized by the State. Those who want to live off-campus can, but it's a cost effective way to get through the university period, and keeps you close to your areas to study. Not going to happen though.

Nothing wrong with highlighting it but placing the blame on immigration/refugees isn't the answer.

There's a lot wrong with this country, and most of it rests with the lack of an independent media willing to ask the hard questions, and demand answers for them. In many ways, we've never really moved away from the censorship that existed in my parents and grandparents time. Rather than ban discussion of various topics, they're just never discussed, except from a particular viewpoint. ie. the glowing positives. It's the same community silence that we see in China, or other authoritarian societies, where the media is controlled and the average person is effectively silenced, by the culture around them.

It's like the addict or depressed person who keeps saying "I'm fine" again and again, when they're anything but fine. That's the problem with Irish society. We're in denial. We had the taste of being an effective/efficient prosperous society, and we're desperate to maintain the illusion that it continues to this day.

To be fair, the doctors and nurses isn't a particularly good example, as they've always headed abroad for seasoning. Most Irish doctors, surgeons, nurses ended up in Canada, Australia etc, even during the boom times, and there being plenty of housing around. Our hospitals have always had a large number of foreign "consultants" and nurses.

As for the right to housing, our political elite are hellbent on destroying the Irish economy, and ensuring a return to the 1950s. All these rights that need to be paid for, and little consideration for how they're going to be paid for. Little to no attention given to the practical sides of the promises made, or the consequences for the rake of taxation that they propose to place on Irish people.

Well.. here's the thing. I gave up on Irish politicians or governments getting grip with any of those issues long ago. Ireland has gone through a number of boom periods with record breaking economic success, and during those periods the same services continued to degrade. Attention was merely shifted away from these issues to something else with vague promises that the problems would be addressed. They never have been and never will be.. At least, not with the manner of governance that exists in Ireland as it is.

And Ireland doesn't have open borders. It has badly managed borders. There's a difference.

Oh, I'm not arguing for more immigration. I believe we should stop with the current population, manage those we already have, and seek to resolve the issues thrown up by our European neighbours but are only starting to appear here now. Naturally, that doesn't mean closing our borders and stopping all immigration. It merely means stopping all the unskilled labour, and tightening up on the management of all visa types, such as student visas.. and with a severe attitude towards deporting those who break our laws. (which includes anyone who stays past an expired visa or enters without one).

As for housing, I've always felt this attitude towards houses rather than tower apartments to be utterly retarded. The planning/building restrictions should be overhauled, and the type of tower blocks common in Asia should be built, properly managed, and occupants vetted to ensure that we don't have a rehash of the Ghettoization that the UK suffered through. But in addition to that, Dubliners should be told to cop the F on, and if you can't afford to live in the expensive parts of the city near your mammy, then, live out in the countryside and commute to work. The idea that commuting is so terrible is another retarded notion, and usually by people who have never experienced the commuting experiences of living in major cities in other countries. In Xi'an, I used to travel an hour each day by subway just to see my girlfriend... once you get used to it, it's not that bad a way to live. Alas, we have a society where people are constantly entitled to something "better", easier, or more convenient. Meh. Time for Irish people to start facing up to some simple realities. Dublin has grown too big, is too damn expensive (even for a capital city), and most of those homeless there should be seeking accommodation elsewhere in the country. (and not expect the government to provide social housing in Dublin so they can stay)