Grimy little squirt
I have tended to be somewhat ambivalent in my attitude to Senator David Norris.
Likewise I was indifferent on the subject of the Seanad [Senate].
I think both may have changed.
This is one of the best speeches I have ever heard issuing from Leinster House. In fact it is the only decent speech I have ever heard.
And anyone who calls our Dame Enda a “grimy little squirt” and a “liar and a traitor” has to be OK in my book.
The only reason we're getting these outbursts of rhetoric now is because the part time, part retired politicians in the Senate can feel the icy wind of change blowing away their cushy little numbers. Bit like the Local Councils. If the job is so vital and so necessary what's stopping them doing it on a voluntary basis?
I agree that they are just fighting to retain their cushy numbers, but Norris does make a valid point – just about every single proposal from the gubmint seems to have a hidden ulterior motive. Keny is supposedly try to abolish the Seanad "to save money" but can you trust him that there isn't some other reason he wants to abolish it? Frankly if he told me the time, I'd ask for a second opinion.
A Chief Justice can do the job of the senate, anyway nothing stopping them putting forward the idea of a voluntary Senate for the duration of "The Emergency".
It would be far more to the point to have a voluntary Dáil for the duration!
Could we have about 10 of these guys for congress over here? At least they feel free to speak exactly what's on their mind. However, I must confess I kept thinking of John Cleese all through the Senator's…uh…dissertation. Long may he air his griefs.
The vast majority of our crowd just mutter dry stuff in a monotonous tone that's read off a sheet of notes. Norris is one of the few who not only can speak [fairly] eloquently but with a drop of passion too. If there were more politicians like him, politics would be a lot more interesting.
John Cleese? The accent? Not the height anyway!
Probably nether one. It was more the attitude when Cleese goes off into one of his lecturing tirades about…well…whatever. The one scene that coming to mind though was John Cleese's character in "Fierce Creatures", trying to talk over noises of the animals in his bathroom in order to keep Jamie Lee Curtis and Kevin Kline from noticing. he ran on for so long that he actually ran out of breath.
"The one scene that kept coming to mind…" that is. Need to proof read, need to proof read…
We all knew it that morning when the only thing on the news was a report of this bank bill that was rushed through the Dail the night before. We wouldn't come out any better as a result. All their talk of a rush to save the tax payer was a lot of shit. Now, we’re finding out just how much shit we'll have to put up with. Our system isn't perfect. Far from it. But I'd rather see the senate stay until the entire government is reformed. Why? Very simple. The TD's and ministers are getting rid of local councils, decreasing the number of local representatives and bringing all the real power back to county councils and back to departments. With this recentralization of power, we need as many people watching over what is done in the Dail as possible. Jesus don't get me wrong for a second. I don't trust the shower of thieving basterds. Believe me; I know more than most people in this country what goes on behind the closed doors. But while the government is taking all the power back for themselves, they've tricked the sheeple into thinking that getting rid of the senate is a good thing. Therefore giving even more power away. This country is absolutely rotten to the core. Lessons that we didn't learn three hundred years ago still rip us apart and make us easy pickings for Europe. Very simply, the reason why we're such easy targets is we argue, bitch and complain among ourselves so much that we don't complain, bitch and moan to the people that we've actually given the power to. Our responsibility in a democracy does not end once we have casted our vote. It begins there. Protesting outside buildings doesn't work. Making an impact is what gets results. Their so tucked away in Leinster house from the public that even the largest protests aren't heard. It's the fact that you've inconvenienced the secretaries getting back from lunch that actually gets your voice heard.
Welcome back, D! [Your email is a giveaway].
I can't argue with a single point above. Originally I fell for the line about saving money, but the more I think about it, the more I'm inclined to vote to keep the Senate. The only drawback is that it keeps Crown in a position of authority!
I can guarantee however that the sheeple will be conned. They will vote to abolish the Senate. In six hundred years, we have learned absolutely nothing.