Sir, - With near disbelief I listened to the Taoiseach say on RTE radio on June 9th that decommissioning needed to be "confronted" (reported in The Irish Times, June 10th).
I know that the Taoiseach has what one might call a way with words. In his political lexicon words mean what he wishes them to mean. Black can be black - but only insofar as it is not white. . .or grey. . .or. . .
His active political career has been built on a policy of non-confrontation. His pronouncements invariably contain a sprinkle of innocuous-sounding escape routes and when all fruit fails he has no hesitation in coming up with some piece of apologetic amnesia. The volte-face too has found a comfortable niche in his expedient thinking, being tendered with much gravitas from time to time because of "changed circumstances".
But confrontation? One has only to look at the manner in which he "confronted" Messrs Haughey, Burke and Flynn to wonder what exactly he has in mind when he speaks of "confronting" decommissioning. - Yours, etc., Patrick Gleeson,
Ballyroan Road, Dublin 6.