Watching my country go down the tubes

[lesbiassparrow]

Holy feck, Ireland is totally screwed isn't it?

Watched the Paxman interview with Brian Lenihan. Favourite moment (and a question no one in Ireland would ever dare to raise) was the bit where he said 'wouldn't your assertion [that Ireland will regain its financial health] be rather more plausible were this crisis not entirely a result of your own incompetence."

Sad fact: Cowen, Lenihan, Harney and the lot of them will retire on immense pensions and my sister will have her meagre wages cut further because everyone knows that the public sector is overpaid. Except for the politicians. You can't pay enough for the clowns we have! (Did you know out esteemed leader is paid more than the President of the US?)

Comments

[gfrancie.livejournal.com]

I have long thought that the leader should make the same amount as what the average person makes. Especially if they get a house and car service.

[lage-nom-ai.livejournal.com]

More details, for those of us woefully uninformed?

[cill-ros.livejournal.com]

Apparently if we hadn't bailed out the banks, our credit rating would have been something like France's. It look as if Cowen and co were following orders for the sake of the European banking system.

(Ironically, I was at a lecture yesterday where the speaker talked about native inadequecy in relation to the present state of the economy, and the went on to talk about the faded glories of empire. Fortunately there were other better speakers.)

[queenthesixth.livejournal.com]

What gets me is that we're in this pickle because the old boys network kicked into gear when it come to developing property and they were giving each other handouts to beat the band. I mean, half of the places that got flooded last year had buildings on areas where there never should have been. The government created this mess and now they're going around saying 'We did this as a nation'. Dude, I was housebound with crohns when all this was going on, I never even got a chance to go mad in the celtic tiger economy.

What really pisses me off though is you hear about drastic cuts. That's all they have. It's not inspiring leadership because it wouldn't hurt them to promote entrepreneurship because someone or someones out there has/have some good ideas to promote economic growth but they just can't get the funding. Taxing people who have little to start with isn't going to solve this and when the more I hear about taxes and tolls on the roads, the more I think I'm about to fall into a Robin Hood story.

Bah!

[ginger001]

Everything you say in your post, same here (to say the least) *sigh*

[nutmeg3.livejournal.com]

It's not the least bit comforting to know the entire world is going to hell in a handbasket. *sigh* I adore that question, though. How did Lenihan respond?

[meret.livejournal.com]

Favourite moment (and a question no one in Ireland would ever dare to raise) was the bit where he said 'wouldn't your assertion [that Ireland will regain its financial health] be rather more plausible were this crisis not entirely a result of your own incompetence."

I would pay money for someone to ask the republicans here that, especially bush. *hugs* Do you think it is actually incompetence on your leaders part, or they just only care about the rich?

(Did you know out esteemed leader is paid more than the President of the US?)

Did not know that!