Sir, - I showed Johnny Andrews's letter (December 9th) about Dublin's homeless to several colleagues, and all of us agree that we should look after our own "third world" first and the overseas third world second.
But there is of course no reason why, in the present economic climate, we cannot do both. The £20 million given to the GAA, plus the decrease in betting tax granted to his friends the bookies by our gambling Minister for Finance would easily fund a large hostel in Dublin, properly staffed with advisers and psychiatrists, who could help young (and not so young) people who are living on the streets to find a direction in their lives and take some advantage of our Celtic pussy-cat.
If people as articulate as Johnny Andrews have to live on the streets, there is a malaise in our society which could haunt us in the future. But if these people can be guided back into the mainstream of society, we will reap the rewards of their talents and energy, there might be less crime, and we would be spared the pitiful sight of young men and women shivering on our streets while they beg for the price of their next meal. - Yours, etc., Mark Leach,
Wheaton Court, Inchicore Terrace North, Dublin 8.