Madam, - The PDs seem to be conducting themselves on the basis of little more than mood swings, rather than any substantive political analysis. For 10 years they cosied up to Fianna Fáil and laid waste to such liberal ideals as freedom of information and true government accountability.
Recently, they got skittish over whether or not to work out their last fortnight's notice under Mr Ahern's leadership, but then steadied themselves and pronounced from their moral pinnacle that Fianna Fáil had again met their exacting standards as a potential coalition partner after the election.
The odd thing is that over the course of the past month, nothing substantial seems to have occurred in the real world to justify their contortions. It almost makes one sympathetic to Fianna Fáil's exasperation. - Yours, etc,
HUGO BRADY BROWN, Stratford on Slaney, Co Wicklow.
A Chara, - Given that senior members of Fianna Fáil have been at great pains in recent days to point out that they will not be interested in speaking with Sinn Féin in relation to the formation of the next government after the election, is it safe to assume that they would not seek second preference votes from people who would choose to vote for a party that is clearly "not fit for government"? - Is mise,
PADRAIG MacSHAMHRAIN, Portmarnock, Co Dublin.
Madam, - Fine Gael and Labour are making great play of their agreed agenda for government, suggesting that it is the only recipe for a stable coalition. Unfortunately for them, as Brian Cowen has pointed out, their combined programme of spending exceeds the limits either party has set for ensuring they balance their budgets, in contrast to Fianna Fáil and the PDs, who produced a surplus in nine of the past 10 years.
Despite months of meetings, the "Alliance for Change" still can't get their sums right, which doesn't augur well for post-election negotiations should they win, never mind the seasonal scraps over budget allocations which was a recurring source of conflict in all such coalitions in the past. Why this is the kind of change we should vote for? - Yours, etc,
STEPHEN KERNAN, Old Quarry, Dalkey, Co Dublin.
Madam, - To quote the Ogden Nash poem Song of the Open Road:
"I think that I shall never see
A billboard lovely as a tree
Indeed, unless the billboards fall
I'll never see a tree at all." - Yours, etc,
MARYANGELA KEANE, Lisdoonvarna, Co Clare.
Madam, - In view of the letter from Seamus McKenna (May 12th), I would like to inform Enda Kenny, and your readers, that I will be voting Fine Gael for precisely the same reason that Mr McKenna will not.
Legislating for the X case would create a loophole likely to be exploited, leading to far more abortions than might be envisaged in the legislation itself. I cannot, in conscience, vote for a party that would permit this to happen. - Yours, etc,
JIM STACK, Lismore, Co Waterford.
Madam, - In 2005 my wife and I, as first-time buyers, purchased a house in Knocklyon, Dublin 16, and paid over €15,000 in stamp duty. As you will appreciate, this tax liability was payable almost immediately on us closing the sale.
As widely reported in the press this morning (May 14th), Mr Ahern has confirmed to the media that in the last six months he took the decision to pay tax to the Revenue Commissioners relating to the payments and gifts that he received in the early 1990s.
Had I realised that it was all right for individuals to (a) pay their tax liabilities when they feel like it and (b) pay their tax liabilities about 15 years after they fall due, I would have welcomed a €15,000 interest-free loan from the Revenue Commissioners to have been payable by me some time in 2020.
I should have contacted the Taoiseach's office when I bought the house as he is, apparently, fully au fait with the receipt of interest-free loans.
Mr Ahern and his cohorts have now, in their wisdom, decided to abolish stamp duty for all first-time buyers irrespective of whether the house is new or old. I would like to thank him and Fianna Fáil for this altruistic gesture, which will be of such huge benefit to my wife and me, at the 11th hour before the general election . -Yours, etc,
ALLAN SWEENEY, Knocklyon, Dublin 16.
Madam, - I am amazed at the lack of both media and general public outrage at the Government's decision to hold the election on a Thursday, thereby making it virtually impossible for the tens of thousands of young and old voters who work and study far away from their registered address to enjoy their constitutional right.
This decision at best flies in the face of everything a democracy stands for and at worst is a manipulative, controlling measure by the Government's number-crunchers who are terrified at what one of the largest sections of this society might do with their votes.
Perhaps one of your legal readers might take a case against this decision in the interests of the people of Ireland and all that our forefathers fought for. - Yours, etc,
NICK CRAWFORD, Rockfort Avenue, Dalkey, Co Dublin.
Madam, - Peace in our time and an economy the envy of Europe - and the Government is condemned from all quarters. Surely an Irish response to an Irish success. - Yours, etc,
MICHAEL FINN, Annmount, Friars' Walk, Cork.
Madam, - I was disgusted by Brian Cowen's outburst at Tuesday's press conference on the economy, and also on Sunday night's The Week in Politics.
Does Mr Cowen have anything constructive to say? His attacks on the media and the Opposition are as unfounded as they are breathtakingly arrogant. His central arguments for re-election seem to be that (i) only he can be trusted to run the economy; and (ii) we should reject the elaborate plot concocted by the media and the Opposition to oust him and Fianna Fáil from Government.
For a man who became Minister for Finance at a time of economic prosperity, thanks largely to his two predecessors in the Department of Finance, Charlie McCreevy and Ruairi Quinn, Mr Cowen seems to have an inflated sense of his own importance to the Irish economy. His two budgets were unremarkable and unimaginative, and his recent U-turn on stamp duty reform smacks of outright opportunism. Unlike his two predecessors, Mr Cowen doesn't have any achievements of note to point to, and instead resorts to inflammatory and paranoid outbursts.
In my view, his obsession with negativity and conspiracy should disqualify him from running the Department of Finance, which will undoubtedly face tough choices in the years ahead. - Yours, etc,
JIM FORD, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.
Madam, - Kevin Healy, in his laconic letter of May 14th, remarks: "No shirts, no horses, no country estate. What is all the fuss about?" Perhaps the answer is: "No bank account, no cheque book, no credit card!" - Yours, etc,
TONY BURKE, Abbey Park, Baldoyle, Dublin 13.
Madam, - In the context of another increase in US troop nunbers in Iraq being facilitated by the Irish Government via Shannon airport ( The Irish Times, May 15th), it is interesting to note the lack of an international dimension to the general election campaign.
We are constantly reminded of Ireland's place in the global village and the increasing connections between the peoples of the world. Why, then, has the space for public debate been squeezed somewhere between the narrowly national and the downright parochial?
For its part, the Labour Party has published an entire section in its manifesto dedicated to "A Fairer World." It includes a direct commitment to refuse the use of Shannon airport or other Irish facilities for the prosecution of any war, or military preparation for such, outside international law, international humanitarian law, or in breach of the UN Charter of the UN. - Is mise,
DERMOT LOONEY, Communications Officer, Labour Youth, Dublin 2.