I was very disappointed that the Green deal did not include the end of US flights through Shannon, the re-routing of the M3 away from Tara and the end to hospital co-location.
However, we now have two Green Party senior ministers. And look at their portfolios; John Gormley - Minister for the Environment, Heritage and local Government and Eamon Ryan - Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. Just think about this. We have a Green department of the environment and a Green department of energy; the areas concerned with the core principles of the party.
As for Shannon, the M3 and co-location, if the Green Party had turned down the deal, these things would've happened anyway. Everybody wake up, grow up and shut up complaining. The biggest part of every deal is compromise.
Let's just look at the first three principles by consensus adopted by the Green Party at its foundation:
- The impact of society on the environment should not be ecologically disruptive.
- Conservation of resources is vital to a sustainable society.
- All political, social and economic decisions should be taken at the lowest effective level.
This is big business.
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An aside on Shannon - stopping the US troops from using Shannon doesn't bring an end to the war in Iraq, it just washes our hands of it.
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Hospital co-location is the hardest pill to swallow for me. Seeing a party that was decimated as the PDs end up back in power is nothing short of a sickener but it's the price we pay for the system we have. It's bizarre that the two parties with most in common - FF & FG - will not share power but it's not unprecedented. It reminds me of the DUP and the UUP in Northern Ireland. However, it does result in crappy little parties like the Progressive Democrats getting into power.
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So, this is a good thing for the party and the country and if you're one of these people crying into your breakfast this morning because of the Judas Greens, ask yourself, what would it take for you to accept the Green Party going into power? Or is it the thought of your party of protest becoming a party of power that makes you weep?
Government is the only place to be if you want to make the changes necessary for the good of the country.
1 comment:
I think it's a great moment for Ireland and it shows that the Irish people (or at least some of them) are taking the threats to the environment serious. So many idiots on this side of the Atlantic (the US) think they have the greatest democracy in the world (believe me, some of them are so stupid, they think they have the first and only democracy - remember, the US is the only developed country in the world that has evolution/creationism debates and where men running for President admit they don't believe in evolution), but this pathetic system doesn't allow for small parties to exist in a meaningful way, never mind end up in government. Can you imagine anything green making an impact in US politics?
As for the PDs, I feel sorry for McDowell. I might not always have agreed with him, but I think he was a man who genuinely tried to do his best for Ireland. Am I wrong?
The way I see it, people accept that FF are corrupt, and they put the PDs there to keep tabs on them. Therefore, the PDs suffered for FF's wrongdoings.
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