12.19.02
Posted in Domestic/Relationships at 11:15 am by
It is reported today that there are 65 people on the public payroll doing constituency work for Ministers. Herr Flick has 7 people alone. This makes a nonsense of Minister Cullen’s claims of victory in the parliamentary reform drive. He finally persuaded FF TDs to accept that they have to give up their county council seats.
I agree that TDs should spend more time on national legislative work and leave the local favours stuff to the councillors. But if they then use taxpayers money to write thousands of letters in favour of planning permission (like McCreevy today) then it undermines the whole purpose.
The much lauded senior representative from Meath found himself easily thwarted in his attempt to bring in this reform..but he’s got county councillors on his payroll!
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12.18.02
Posted in Domestic/Relationships, Feminism at 12:44 pm by
Kevin Myers is very funny today. Here is a short extract:
“The single non-smoking carriage was standing-room only: the smoking carriages – whether they were officially so is, of course, another matter – resembled a London film circa 1949, with tobacco fumes wreathing around in oily coils; there was a sense of damp post-blitz despair, social poverty, and ambling through the fog – look! – here come Celia Johnson and Trevor Howard.”
I can relate to this as I used to get the train from Enfield to Connolly when I was working in the EBS.
The train would pull into Enfield having come from Sligo. No heat, piles of smokers, no light. You’d clamber into this train in the dark and it would trundle off towards Dublin. It was really pre-historic. I can’t understand why so much money is invested in roads to the detriment of the rail network.
Well I do understand. Decisions like this are made by big horrible men who want to drive their big horrible cars on big horrible roads. I believe that millions should be put into developing a fabulous public transport and it should not be required to make a profit. The profit to the economy is indirect but tangible. Less traffic in the city. Cleaner air. Better quality of life for people living in a dispersed society. More women would work because they wouldn’t have to spend 3 hours every day in traffic. Its nonsense to demand that buses should make money. Who uses them? Old people, children and young mothers. That’s why they’ll never be improved. When I’m minister I will stop all investment in roads (the NRA won’t be happy but to hell with them) and pump millions into the rail and bus networks.
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12.17.02
Posted in Uncategorized at 12:09 pm by
Premature Baby
The hysteria in the Irish press continues over the case of Bronagh Livingstone the premature baby who died in Cavan General Hospital. She was born in an ambulance on the way from Monaghan Hospital where her mother was refused admittance when she showed up in labour. Despite the fact that I am always happy to see FF in trouble, I think that in this case the Irish media have gone completely overboard.
Firstly, while the baby was born in the ambulance it did make it alive and well to Cavan General and was treated there. Whatever complications arose as a result of her premature birth arose after she was in the care of the right people. Secondly, best medical practice says that in order for medical staff to treat various categories of patients, especially cancer patients, but including premature babies or very sick babies, a critical mass must be reached. In other words, an effective post-natal unit should treat a minimum number of cases each year in order to achieve a level of expertise that will benefit the babies.
This means that while small maternity units in rural areas are a good idea for normal births (which in fairness constitute most births), it’s bad for the ones who run into trouble. It is better for all premature babies that they are treated in centralised units where the expertise is available. There is no certainty whatsoever that had the baby been treated at Monaghan that she would have lived. I think the press should be looking for comments from obstetricians and researching this issue instead of extensively quoting the highly emotional family. Its particularly unfair to villify the Minister given that a baby of his died not so long ago. He is hardly unsympathetic.
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