Sir, - The Taoiseach's vision of a national stadium has many of the hallmarks of third-world countries whose leaders lavished money on grandiose schemes while their people remained in dire poverty. Truly has it been said that we have learned how to cope with poverty, but we are unable to handle wealth. Just when we have pulled out of our economic difficulties our government is being seduced with glittering projects such as Stadium Ireland. This is an old and well-worn trick of governments intent on popularity. Many of the shortcomings in our infrastructure, health care and housing provision, can be hidden behind such prestige developments.
Warming as this vision may be to the Taoiseach's heart and to the promoters and developers, it will be cold comfort for those on hospital waiting-lists and for elderly people in inadequately heated welfare homes down the country.
This, Mr Ahern, is one stadium too many, gold that will turn to dross. If it goes ahead it will stand as a moral judgment on the way we have, for example, treated refugees and asylum-seekers or on our failure to meet the UN target on overseas aid. Flushed as we are with wealth and optimism, have we lost the run of ourselves? - Yours, etc., John F. Fallon,
Boyle, Co Roscommon.