Our economic prosperity has brought a growth in grab-all materialism and acquisitiveness; when will the affluent say "we have enough"? asks John Lonergan.
There is a widely-held perception that no real poverty exists in Ireland anymore. Perhaps this is an understandable myth, as any acceptance of the existence of poverty would seriously damage the positive image we have created of ourselves of being a modern, progressive and rich country.
But let's get it straight from the start, there are thousands of our people, young and old, living in dire poverty and totally alienated from mainstream society.
Six years into the new millennium, and despite unprecedented economic growth, we have failed miserably to create a fair, equal and just society. Indeed, it is obvious now that the direct opposite has occurred. The more wealth we generate, the more widespread inequality becomes.
Our modern approach appears to be based on a philosophy of individualism where the strong are able to look after themselves, and to hell with the weak and the vulnerable. We have become a society almost exclusively based on "rights" and a "grab-all" mentality, with little interest in our responsibilities for the old, weak and the vulnerable in our society.
Never was the old saying "the more we have, the more we want" more appropriate. We have now reached the stage where some in our society are unable to distinguish between basic needs and luxuries, while thousands of our fellow citizens live in dire poverty. Report after report highlights this reality but we refuse to act; indeed, we actually resist any initiatives that seek to address this issue.
Money and materialism have become our new god and we smugly dismiss those who can't measure up as "losers".
Recently two RTÉ programmes highlighted the two extremes of contemporary Ireland. Prime Time focused on the new trend of our secondary school students going on foreign holidays to celebrate their Leaving Certificate results.
Filmed on a Greek island, many spoke smugly about the amount of spending money they had at their disposal. One young man claimed he had €1,600 to spend during his two weeks' stay (mostly on alcohol), while several others stated that they had well in excess of €1,000. This is just one example of affluent Ireland at its most obnoxious.
However, the previous night the start of the documentary series The Asylum was broadcast. This programme featured mentally-ill patients at St Ita's psychiatric hospital, Portrane, struggling to cope with their extremely difficult lives. The whole hospital came across as old, poorly equipped, dark and depressing and years beyond its sell-by date. How any human being is expected to get better in such an environment beats me. The one redeeming feature was the quality care and compassion provided by the staff.
But what a contrast between the two programmes. If the Prime Time programme reflected modern Ireland, The Asylum documentary shone the light on the Victorian Ireland that still exists despite all our wealth and affluence.
It is on such occasions that I am reminded of the philosophy of Edmund Burke, when he said well over 200 years ago: "If we command our wealth, we shall be rich and free; if our wealth commands us, we shall be poor indeed."
If Edmund Burke came back to Ireland today, what would he think of our society? I am sure he would be disgusted at how divided and fragmented we have become and, in particular, how much materialism is now dominating and demeaning our lives.
Little wonder then that Eddie Hobbs's Rip Off Republic proved to be so popular and generated so much public and media outrage.
It was oxygen for all those who have become immersed in materialism. Not surprisingly, there was no sign of any similar outrage in response to The Asylum documentary. I wonder why?
Of course, the issue is not about the creation of wealth, it is about how well and how generously we share it. The most recent census shows that the number of people in extreme poverty has been reduced. Be that as it may, I believe that for those who are currently caught up in the poverty trap, their plight is worsening day by day.
Most in this category will never be able to extricate themselves from their predicament without the generous help and support of the "haves" in our society. Let's not forget that people in this "haves" group receive more in one annual pay rise than our poor are expected to live on - or "exist" on - for a whole year. I long to hear such individuals - some of the most powerful and influential in our society - say "we have enough".
I guess I'll be waiting.
I am privileged to be invited to visit some of our most disadvantaged urban areas. I always marvel at the wonderful community activists, who, day in day out, slog away at the coalface in these areas, performing heroics on a daily basis.
Their only grievance is the serious lack of adequate facilities and financial support. I always leave angry that so many talented little children are forced to live in such appalling and poorly-resourced environments.
Indeed, we have conditioned people in those areas to be grateful for the crumbs that fall from the master's table.
I've said it before - but I'll repeat - thoroughbred horses enjoy far superior living facilities than thousands of our poor people.
The core issues needing attention are housing and education.
If we continue to develop and sustain housing estates which physically place people at the periphery of our society, we shall continue to pay a high price in terms of social exclusion.
It is no coincidence that most of our major social difficulties are to be found in the most socially disadvantaged areas.
For example, high levels of unemployment, drug addiction, crime, violence, gangland warfare, early school-leavers and joyriders. Our special schools, prisons and penal institutions are full of people from such backgrounds.
But it is not just housing alone; the lack of adequate amenities and services and the lack of positive living environs inevitably creates a negative and destructive culture, which seriously damages many of the people forced to live in such conditions.
How can we expect children born into those areas to grow up and compete with their peers from affluent areas?
Which brings me to the second key element - education. To compete in modern Ireland it is essential that all young people have a good standard of education, up to and including third level.
Again and again studies show that children from socially disadvantaged areas are many times more likely to be early school-leavers than the children of third-level graduates.
Addressing this issue is a crucial step in achieving a just and equal society. It is very clear what needs to be done. We must put people and their needs as our priority, we must care for our old, weak and most vulnerable, we must stop alienating people, we must make sure that the poor benefit more generously from our booming economy.
Above all, those who have must be challenged to share some of their wealth with the have-nots.
I agree with economist David McWilliams when he said that it is the people who will decide what type of society we are going to have in the future. We must stop blaming others.
It is our responsibility and our opportunity. But have we the courage and the generosity "to cherish all our children equally"?
John Lonergan is governor of Mountjoy Prison