Sir, - The steady erosion of respect for the human person has coincided with the so called "liberal agenda".
Rather than label things, we must be crystal clear. In terms of accountability, it is the incompetence and mismanagement of important affairs, by successive governments (across all party political lines), for almost three decades that have brought us to where we are.
While a wise man learns from a fool's mistakes, a wise man also learns from another wise man! If the Bostonian John Timoney could achieve dramatic reductions, as Chief of Police, in the USA's capital of crime, New York, by introducing new, dynamic and intelligent strategies, why can we not adopt similar methods here? Homicides down 47 per cent, robberies down 40 per cent, car thefts down 50 per cent.
Perhaps Mr Timoney might be persuaded to apply for the vacancy filled by the retirement of Garda Commissioner Culligan. The post is open to outsiders. Now we are full EU members, why not a Sicilian or a German. Their anti Mafia and Bader Meinhoff strategies have been successful.
The US experience shows that more than a third of all violent crime is drug related. Why can we not legislate to use our army to sweep the identified "drug areas" night after night, week after week, until those associated with this evil, pernicious trade change to law abiding behaviour or move elsewhere.
My family and I live in suburbs of north Kildare which nestles in the beautiful Liffey Valley. We do not want drugs and its serious crime bed fellows to permeate our community and infect our young.
Yours, etc.,
Highfield Park
Leixlip, Co Kildare.