Scapegoat. That’s the animal that used to be sent out into the wilderness after the Jewish Chief Priest had symbolically laid the sins of the people on it. It’s a brilliantly simple and striking idea; it’s also a daft and absurdly unjust ritual. What did the poor goat ever do, to be cast out like that?
I mention this because we’ve a similar situation in southern politics at the moment. The cry is “We need stable government!!”, and it’s hard to argue with that. The obvious answer for securing stable government is for Fine Gael and Fianna Fail form a coalition and rule for the benefit of the state and its citizens. But will they? Not if they can possibly help it. They’ve been casting around for good reasons that would defend their refusal to enter into an alliance that would end Civil War politics. And so they protest that there are unspecified but major differences in political philosophy that would make such a coalition unworkable.
None of these protests are particularly convincing. But if at the same time FG and FF can find someone else to blame for the present political chaos, that should help take the heat off them. Step forward, then, Sinn Féin.
You see, it’s because Sinn Féin won’t support Fine Gael or Fianna Fail in office that the south is experiencing this appalling delay in forming a government. Why can’t they support Fine Gael in office? Or even Fianna Fail? There are two answers to that: the Labour Party and the Green Party. If you’re a pit-prop for either FG or FF, you’ll end up being blamed and buried when the roof finally caves in.
But forget about that. The fact is, as every right-thinking person knows, Sinn Féin aren’t really a proper political party, any more than a goat is a proper human being. So here, lift these chunks of cast-iron blame and let’s attach them to the Shinner sinners. All the bits securely in place? Right, hit that Shinner-sinner-goat a good skelp and send it staggering into the political wilderness. Well done.
Right. Now that filthy animal isn’t here to mess things up, let’s get back to our business-as-usual backroom dealing. Don’t you feel sort of …cleansed already?
Jude,being fair, the fact is quite simple, the whole idea, and push, behind the possibility of this ‘grand coalition’ comes not from our electorate, not from the two largest parties, rather it comes wholly from the Free State media (the same one’s who underplayed the economy some years ago leading to a crash which was a bit more than their predicted ‘soft landing’).
It should surely be better for the twenty six counties, and the rest of us, were the two main opposition parties to join for coalition, they, rather than Fine Gael with Fianna Fáil, have substantially more in common in 2016 than an amalgam of the other two.
Fine Gael do not wish, in any way, for re-unification of our peoples, economic, political, social or otherwise, Fine Gael believe in wholesome privatisation of public services, Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin believe otherwise too.
Together they would have insufficient numbers to construct a full government however, with a new ‘rainbow coalition’ of the two parties supported by like minded independents, we could have a stable government lasting the full five years, bringing international confidence in out economy, a greater push for re-unification and proper administration of our South/North bodies (providing for better lives for our people) and the opportunity to persuade those others here that we’re not a bad crowd to live with.
I seemed to have dreamed that, when asked before the election, if FF or FG would form a coalition with SF both parties shouted No!, Nay never or perhaps they were just singing the Wild Rover. I here they provide a lot of cheap alcohol in the Dail.
Jude
“The obvious answer for securing stable government is for Fine Gael and Fianna Fail form a coalition ”
“If you’re a pit-prop for either FG or FF, you’ll end up being blamed and buried when the roof finally caves in.”
Yes, why wont they??
Which, gio – FF + FG coalesce or SF prop up FF/FG?
Jude
You point out that for SF to prop up either FF or FG would be, potentially, a poisoned chalice, yet you suggest that FF and FG should prop each other up, surely an equally unwelcome prospect.
Of course a FF/FG coalition would be to SF advantage so I understand why you are advocating it.
“Of course a FF/FG coalition would be to SF advantage so I understand why you are advocating it.”
Do you think failure to form a government will do them any favours gio?
If there is another election soon, FG will lose more seats, that is a certainty.
Some of those will definitely go to FF.
Sinn Fein came out of the last election having been accepted by the people for the first time receiving transfers from all sections.
As a result, all future elections will be a three horse race and thereore Sinn Fein are the only contender capable of replacing the civil war parties grip of the Dail and the country.
If there is another election, Sinn Fein will be going in to it on that basis.
That has not happened since partition.
If FF go into coalition with FG, there will be people leave the party.
.
If they prop up a FG government, they will not be in power and take the hit for everything the FG government does.
FG will keep their support.
If they try to reform the Dail so all parties are involved. We will be no closer to agreement in 12 months time and like Belgium, could face action from Europe to sort the mess out which would not be beneficial to the country.
A prolonged period of indecision is the worst outcome for the people who need water charges scrapped now and the money repaid.
The US are getting impatient with both of these parties abuse of corporate tax redirection through Irish based entities. There is hundreds of millions being lost here in tax revenue annually which would pay for water service upgrades and health investment. Most are US companies and it is costing them many billions.
It wont be long before the US will back Sinn Fein here to do something about it.
“The obvious answer for securing stable government is for Fine Gael and Fianna Fail form a coalition ” Yes, why wont they??”
They hate each other, moreso than any two parties in the north.
A sizable chunk of FF would leave and either go independent or join Sinn Fein if there was a coalition with FG in any form.
Any progressive mined party should avoid propping up either of these two parties.
One of the great goat quotes, Esteemed Blogmeister, was uttered by the eminently epigrammatic Brendan Behan:
-New York is my Lourdes, where I go for spiritual refreshment –a place where you’re least likely to be bitten by a wild goat.
Not so much a scapegoat quote but more of an escape from a goat quote.
One place that would have gotten the goat of this unrepentent Republican, would have been Killorglin, though its local BB’s are renowned for their platters of smoked goat’s cheese,.
This is a Kerry town renowned for the Puck Fair in which a puck goat – poc being the Leprechaun for he-goat –is crowned every August in memory of an august ancestor who seemingly make a scapegoat of O’Cromwelll for the latter’s daring to decorate his roundfaced Roundhead with a wart rather than a goatee. That sort of thingy.
Puck Fair durates for three days: Gathering Day, Fair Day and Scattering Day. It takes place in a town which is located in a constituency that recently returned not one but two members of the Healy-Rae Nua party. At the Gathering Day of the 32nd Doll House last week, this brace of HRN TDs (which is not, repeat not, text for Horned Toads) contributed enormously to the gaiety of both the occasion, and, erm, nation.
On a fair day you can see both at Puck Fair but as it is mainly rainy down there, you’d be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of even one of them, much less exchange the local greeting.
-Howareoohoorinoohooroo ?
Fintan O’Toole-boxset was heard to goat, oops, gloat on RTE as recently as last week at how Pearla an Bhearla / The Pearl of English is the language of choice of the Irish people, tally stick or no tally stick This is a linguistic fact which is emphatically borne out on a trip to the fair where ungulates are congregated including hairy asses, goats, piebald ponies, sheep but NO pigs are bartered, despite all the profligate tossing of Pearlai an Bhearla.
-Yerra, otherwise it would be known as Muc Fair.
The Free Southern Stateen’s favourite four-wheel brain gets a FOT fall here, on account of the fact that he hails from the same parish of his fellow Dubliner, Brendan Behan. No, not Goatstown the south city suburb which is twinned with the north city suburb, Cabra, on account of the latter being (gasp) the Spanish for Goat.
That parish in q. is Crumlin, Dublin which may or may not be twinned with its fellow crooked glenned parish in Belfast though both boast prisons. For FOT patently sees the Free Southern Stateen through the unfileable bars of (gulp) an English-constructed penitentiary of the mind; hence the Shinners and the Leprechaun being so lofty in his list of Things which Get his Goat.
Thus, his fellow parishioner, Breandan O Beachain, who had no probs with either of these two obs of Irish life, was much given to visiting another part of the Republic of Kerry, as distinct from the Kingdom of same: Dun Chaoin in the Jailtacht of that county.
Btw,Wicklow is the ancestral homeof the O’Tooles and coincidentally, its natives are nicknamed after the crepuscular birds known as ‘the goat suckers’ . Presumably for their traditional tendency to suck the significantly pendulous udders of she-goats when the evening shadows make them blue.
Puck Fair is not to be confused with another festival of a not dissimilar name and which also takes place at the same time in August: An Poc Fada. Curiously, this other festival, involving a caman, a come on and a sliotar, which celebrates the ball-striking skills, oops, skillsets of Setanta over the Cooley Peninsula. This was before he morphed into Cuchulain the (gulp) proto-Provo of the GPO rather than a TV sports channel.
Coincidentally , the Royal and Ancient course of the Poc Fada is located in the constituency which recently returned not one but two members of the mortal Shinners to the Doll House. Though, at the Gathering Day of that edifice, gaiety was hardly the word best suited to describe the feelings of the homogeneous hackiariat as they a cast a cold eye on the party leader who is akin to a deity for his followers. The Cooley Peninsula is not exactly a politically cool place for the h.h.
Some of the monolithic media , before they turned the day into their version of Scattering Day, were even heard to mutter , ‘it must be against the rules to elect a Munster doll for a Leinster constituency !’.
Doll House Reform ! Doll House Reform !
Became their mantra of the day, even as they headed off in a huff. This despite the fact that the same monolithic mediapersons have no probs whatev about singing a Connacht song as a Munster rugga anthem. Yes, the ballad which has the small birds (goat suckers, even) fly low at the first sight of Trevelyan’s corn so they might make their fledglings grow with digni-ty.
Incidentally, the Leprechaun for ‘going off in a huff’ (specifically as a result of a scapegoat getting one’s goat) is (gulp):
-imithe lena phoc (pronounced; phoc).
Before the election both Fianna Fail and Fine Gael were adamant that they would rather take arsenic than to coalesce with Sinn Fein.
Now they are both daring SF to join with them, and should such a step be taken, it is obvious that they would then revert to absolute refusal to have anything to do with them.
Wouldn’t SF be very foolish to even think aloud of the possibility of coalescing with the big baddies?
Re your goat analogy, anyone seen acting the goat deserves to be cast into the wilderness.
Methinks the wilderness might soon be over-populated!
There are those in RTÉ who yearn for the golden age of Section 31 of the Broadcasting Authority Act (1960). In ‘The Week in Politics’ 13.3.16 the presenter posed questions to the Sinn Féin representative and then proceeded to talk over the answers, followed by a warning that his microphone would be cut off. Censoring an elected representative, what next?
Checked out that programme, Iolar, a chara, and found your report on the button.
Was especially interested in finding out which of the gallery of gals (for it seems to be all gals !), which preening colleen with a mean leaning towards the intervening guillotine, filled the large role of Madame Lafarge in this particular instance.
Lo and beheaded !, none other than the former presenter of Yawning Ireland on RTE Radio, the fetching Yawnya Lawlor elle-meme.
No knitting needles in hand, mind. But with eyebrows like that which can knit a full blown- frown in nanny-seconds, who needs needles !
Tumbrils ahoy !
Politics is a funny business, isn’t it?
Before the election Fine Gael and Fianna Fail never wasted an opportunity to bash Sinn Fein, especially about the Troubles in the North. Both leaders of FG and FF met Mairia Cahill about her accusations (even though the man she accused of rape was acquitted in a court of law) and pledged their support to her. Enda even giving Mairia a hug in full view of the cameras. The Labour Party even made Mairia a senator. I cant remember any Taoiseach in the past ever meeting an alleged rape victim and giving them a hug in full view of the media….there’s been many people raped in Ireland since Mairia’s story came to light, how many of those people were met by Enda Kenny and hugged in full view of the media cameras?….
Despite all this, despite all the hypocritical lectures about the activities of the Provisional IRA and the accusations made by Mairia Cahill against Gerry Adams, Fianna Fail and Fine Gael aren’t ruling out accepting Sinn Feins support if it was offered. Indeed they seem pretty desperate for Sinn Fein to prop up one or the other. I seem to remember our esteemed Blog master, our very own Jude, saying before the election that FG and FF will bash SF but if SF could make up the numbers to form a FG or FF Government after the election then the bashing will stop because what’s most important to FG and FF is being in Government and if SF can put either of them there then a sudden dose of amnesia will infect Enda Kenny or Micheal Martin when it comes to SF and its past in the North.
When I watched Enda Kenny’s first interview by journalists when it became clear that a Fine Gael and Labour coalition was no longer possible, it was plain to see how fast Enda’s attitude had changed. He didn’t mention Sinn Fein by name but he said he was planning to speak to all, ALL, parties to see if a deal can be worked out. I was surprised by this, I expected him to say he would talk to all parties except Sinn Fein but he didn’t. It just goes to show I still have a lot to learn about the World of politics.
Unfortunately for Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, Sinn Fein are 2 or 3 steps ahead of them. Gerry Adams made repeatedly clear before the election he would not be propping up FG or FF. After the election he said the same. Gerry made clear Sinn Fein had a mandate and that mandate wasn’t to be used for any other purpose than to fulfil the promises which SF made before the public cast their votes, if that was possible. Gerry did say he would consider coalition but only if all his red line issues were met (Water charges scrapped, Special Criminal Courts ditched, etc). But he also said it would only be a coalition where SF is the larger party, not a junior partner.
So there’s no chance of SF entering into a coalition with FG/FF. If they did go into coalition they would certainly gain. Maybe SF could get FF or FG to support the North’s MP’s sitting in the Dail and having speaking rights. Giving the citizens in the North the right to vote in Presidential elections. Scrap Water charges. Push the British Government harder on things like an Irish Language Act for the North, information disclosure, etc.
But it would certainly be wrong for SF to prop up FG/FF, despite some gains. Why have a slice of the cake when if you wait a little longer you could have half the cake or the whole cake itself? FF/FG are looking for a mudguard, the role played by Labour for the past 5 years. They also want to stop Sinn Fein being the main opposition and then potentially being the Irish Government in 2021 or earlier. They would rather have SF in Government with a FG/FF lead and collar around their necks than them being an opposition gaining a massive surge in media attention and voters. SF must not fall into the trap.
As former outgoing Fine Gael TD and Justice Minister Alan Shatter said: “If Sinn Fein become the opposition then they will be the Irish Government in 5 years time”.
I doubt Martin McGuinness will be the official First Minister in the North at this election but there’s a real strong possibility SF could hold the First Minister and An Taoiseach titles by 2021….