Sir, – I was interested to see Róisín Ingle admonishing people for their concern about open air parties and the rubbish created ("Finger-wag away, but save your 'absolute shock' for what matters", Life, June 2nd), on the basis that she would have done the same thing when she was 18. When I was 18, I volunteered in wildlife rescue. We raked cans, glass and above all plastic out of our waterways and lost count of the amount of birds we found choked on litter that "didn't matter". Life looks quite different when you join the clean-up instead of the party. I imagine Tony Holohan's shock came from the same perspective. – Yours, etc,
CAZ HYNES,
Irishtown,
Dublin 4.
Sir, – Róisín Ingle yet again sums it up. No more negativity needs to be aimed at young people in Ireland. – Yours, etc,
MYRA HIGGINS,
Mount Merrion,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – I’m tired of hearing about why we should mollycoddle ignorant outdoor socialites. If they want toilets, etc, let these people pay for them. It’s also not hard to take your own litter home. There’s no such a thing as 100 per cent safe outdoor gatherings, which can lead to affray, criminal damage and the spread of disease.
Some young people wrongly believe that the Earth rotates on their axis! With so much free education, it’s remarkable how prevalent, and acceptable, ignorance has become. I’ve had good nights out in my time, but I never upset or disturbed other people. I never needed to drink to have a good time. – Yours, etc,
Dr FLORENCE CRAVEN,
Bracknagh,
Co Offaly.
Sir, – Is it time to consider the mixed messages we send in Ireland with regard to littering? One the one hand, we support a summer festival culture which permits, for a fee, thousands of attendees to turn a green field into a rubbish dump yet express outrage when another crowd does the same thing in Dublin’s city centre? The music festivals have validated the notion that it’s somebody else’s job to clean up. Should this be corrected somehow? – Yours, etc,
PAUL McGOUGH,
Dublin 14.
Sir, – Dr Tony Holohan’s tweet stating that he was “absolutely shocked” at the scenes in Dublin city was disappointing. He is a public-sector employee whose role is to advise Government on public health matters. It is then up to Government to decide what action to take, if any. Saturday night was a failure of enforcement of public health guidelines. If Dr Holohan had issues with this then he should have taken the matter up with the appropriate Minister. He reports to Government. Not for the first time, he has exceeded his brief. – Yours, etc,
DONAL O’SULLIVAN,
Blackrock,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – I wonder will we remember the summer of 21 in Dublin when the streets stank like hell and the young people all around and drinking so well? Or will the Irish weather bring us that far? – Yours, etc,
AIDAN RODDY,
Cabinteely,
Dublin 18.
Sir, – Let’s take a look at the sums for the “outdoor summer”. I work in Dublin (for a US firm), and my wife works for the HSE. We, like many out there, simply cannot afford to rent a property in Dublin with a garden. Bins are one thing. So is a sustainable rental market. “Spend your summer outdoors, while renting a studio apartment”. That message sort of reads like “emigrate”. – Yours, etc,
JAMES KENNY,
Dublin 1.