Madam, – The election is just over and straight away there is talk about the taoiseach-in-waiting Enda Kenny going to the United States for St Patrick’s Day. Have the politicians not learnt anything?
Did they not get the message from the voters on February 25th that the good times are gone and the gravy train does not run any more? Fine Gael said it would act differently in office, yet it is acting the same as Fianna Fáil: running to America on our national holiday March 17th.
Why not ask Barack Obama to come to Ireland on St Patrick’s Day and invite him to review the national parade in Dublin with our new leader? I’m sure that many Americans would come with him and spend their dollars here, instead of our leader spending the little money we have over there. Mr Obama could stay at the American embassy in Dublin, saving Irish taxpayers’ money.
Every St Patrick’s Day our local and national leaders commit treason by leaving the nation on junkets, bleeding the taxpayers dry as they live it up with their families in five-star hotels overseas. They snub the parades at home for foreign countries. It is very soul-destroying for people to pass a reviewing stand and see no mayor or national politician to take the salute. I’m sure Mr Obama won’t leave the US on July 4th. And Mr Sarkozy will stay in France on Bastille Day. Irish politicians run out of Ireland like rats leaving a sinking ship every March 17th, yet these same people will tell us how we should be patriotic.
Our hospitals are run down and sick people are left on trolleys; our schools are falling down and there is no money to pay teachers; our poor and unemployed have to take pay cuts and cuts in social welfare, yet politicians are still living the high life. As we look for bread we are told to eat cake. – Yours, etc,