While some of our more respected posters and Fitzy live in exile, they are unable to vote in Irish elections and referendums. This can leave our best and brightest feeling disenfranchised.
At the same time TFK is crawling with simpletons who have the opportunity and right to vote but are incapable of rational thought.
If any overseas posters want to vote on the Seanad or Appeals Court issues let us know here and how you intend to vote. I’ll pair each of ye off with the likes of @glasagusban[/USER] and @[USER=109]Mac and you can use them to cast your vote.
I’ll take your vote Rocko. Abolishing the Seanad is a stupid move. Of course it needs reform, so reform it. All I see in this debate is - we need to reform the Seanad, we’d love to, really, we would, but we can’t because …(insert any number of reasons). Why can’t we? Its bullshit. John F Kennedy once said that what distinguishes Irish people is that they don’t say why, they say why not? Apparently this has changed to we can’t, we can’t be arsed, or we’re scared.
It should be elected by the people, rather than outdated and irrelevant institutions. The Senate is drectly elected in Australia and works extremely well as an upper house. Its going to put a brake on the mad ideas of Abbot and his bunch of nazi sycophants. The last Australian parliament was hung, and yet managed to pass a remarkable amount of legislation and reform, with the aid and oversight of an exceptional senate. Often, senators are cabinet members here and that makes it even more relevant.
Abolish the Seanad now and I guarantee you, in five years time you’ll have another referendum to reinstate it (oh shite, we probably shouldn’t have done that).
Abolish the Seanad now and Ireland will be a laughing stock.
Reform it, stop making up excuses not to.
Finally, I wouldn’t trust anything that Mayo gobshite comes up with. I wouldn’t trust most of what any Irish politician comes up with. And you want to abolish their oversight? Madness. As @TreatyStones says, vote often, vote no.
[quote=“Fitzy, post: 840610, member: 236”]
It should be elected by the people, rather than outdated and irrelevant institutions. The Senate is drectly elected in Australia and works extremely well as an upper house. Its going to put a brake on the mad ideas of Abbot and his bunch of nazi sycophants. The last Australian parliament was hung, and yet managed to pass a remarkable amount of legislation and reform, with the aid and oversight of an exceptional senate. Often, senators are cabinet members here and that makes it even more relevant.[/quote]
I can’t understand why anyone didn’t think of that before. Of course we should copy the parliamentary system of a federal state with a fucking queen for a head of state. What a beacon of democracy and accountability.
[quote=“Fitzy, post: 840610, member: 236”]
Finally, I wouldn’t trust anything that Mayo gobshite comes up with. I wouldn’t trust most of what any Irish politician comes up with. And you want to abolish their oversight? Madness. As @TreatyStones says, vote often, vote no.[/quote]
You don’t trust Irish politicians so you want Irish politicians to oversee Irish politicians.
[quote=“Rocko, post: 840613, member: 1”]I can’t understand why anyone didn’t think of that before. Of course we should copy the parliamentary system of a federal state with a fucking queen for a head of state. What a beacon of democracy and accountability.
.[/quote]
The inevitable, lazy, tedious riposte from the chief simpleton himself. I’ve just outlined how the senate here has helped to achieve a remarkable legislative and reform agenda despite a hung parliament and horrid political class. Amazing how they somehow managed to achieve that with, horror of all horrors, a legacy head of state who is irrelevant to the country. Yes, Rocko, somehow it is a beacon of democracy and accountability given what was actually achieved in the last parliament, despite the disgusting antics of most politicians and thir media enablers here. Reform happened, legislation was passed, legislation was rejected and sent back to the lower house, senate committees made a difference, held those in power to account. But your nasty, little, closed simpleton mind just see’s “Queen!” and screams. You have nothing, no solutions, no ideas, no creativity, you have your horrible little, cynical, entrenched view of the world to which we must all conform.
You asked the question, I say vote no. Vote yes and you’ll soon have an utterly irrelevant head of state and absolutely no oversight.
Through our wonderful system, I have 2 votes, 1 in Dublin and 1 in Wexford. I’m happy to give 1 of these up for Fitzy, TWCB, Kev or any other of our diaspora.
Secondly, feel free to have as much criticism of the Irish system as you want but please do not pretend that a commonwealth country with a queen of as head of state represents something we should aspire to.
Thirdly, the fact that your queen is apparently irrelevant but you still have her as head of state isn’t something to be proud of or boastful of. At least the Brits get tourism from having her live there. The remarkable reform agenda doesn’t seem to have extended as far as removing that jokeshop of a head of state. That’s a situation to be sneered at and mocked, not admired.
Fourthly, Australia is a federal country, its system of government is completely different to Ireland’s and not comparable.
Fifthly, Australia is not a beacon of democracy. It’s a shining example of how inward, racist, self-congratulatory and smug a population can become if they manage to steal land from an indigenous population and persecute them for a couple of centuries. You’ll forgive me if I cool my admiration a little.
[quote=“Rocko, post: 840622, member: 1”]First of all I didn’t ask any questions.
Secondly, feel free to have as much criticism of the Irish system as you want but please do not pretend that a commonwealth country with a queen of as head of state represents something we should aspire to.
Thirdly, the fact that your queen is apparently irrelevant but you still have her as head of state isn’t something to be proud of or boastful of. At least the Brits get tourism from having her live there. The remarkable reform agenda doesn’t seem to have extended as far as removing that jokeshop of a head of state. That’s a situation to be sneered at and mocked, not admired.
Fourthly, Australia is a federal country, its system of government is completely different to Ireland’s and not comparable.
Fifthly, Australia is not a beacon of democracy. It’s a shining example of how inward, racist, self-congratulatory and smug a population can become if they manage to steal land from an indigenous population and persecute them for a couple of centuries. You’ll forgive me if I cool my admiration a little.[/quote]
I would forgive you for anything simple boy. You asked how we would intend to vote. The queen of england has absolutely no relevance here and you know it, we’re discussing an upper house and how that works and in this case it does and very well.
You just posted on another thread how important the power is that the Irish president can currently refer bills to the people. You can’t do that in Australia because you can’t have a president because you have a queen and her appointed governor general instead. That’s a ridiculous system, which might be termed quaint if it wasn’t so frighteningly undemocratic. But Australia doesn’t really want to change unfortunately. Why rock the boat when they’ve all gotten fat off their ill-acquired land?
I think this vote exchange programme is a wonderful initiative from @Rocko[/USER]. I shall be voting no on behalf of @[USER=236]Fitzy and I encourage other posters to vote no on behalf of our disenfranchised posters abroad, especially if they had been planning to use their vote to vote yes.
It’s a far better reason than voting because @Rocko[/USER] “schooled” @[USER=236]Fitzy[/USER]. Which he didn’t really. Not surprising to see @[USER=1517]carryharry[/USER] and @[USER=180]myboyblue sycophantically joining in with their clamped ratings either. Sucking up to “the bossman”. :rolleyes:
[quote=“Rocko, post: 840622, member: 1”]First of all I didn’t ask any questions.
Secondly, feel free to have as much criticism of the Irish system as you want but please do not pretend that a commonwealth country with a queen of as head of state represents something we should aspire to.
Thirdly, the fact that your queen is apparently irrelevant but you still have her as head of state isn’t something to be proud of or boastful of. At least the Brits get tourism from having her live there. The remarkable reform agenda doesn’t seem to have extended as far as removing that jokeshop of a head of state. That’s a situation to be sneered at and mocked, not admired.
Fourthly, Australia is a federal country, its system of government is completely different to Ireland’s and not comparable.
Fifthly, Australia is not a beacon of democracy. It’s a shining example of how inward, racist, self-congratulatory and smug a population can become if they manage to steal land from an indigenous population and persecute them for a couple of centuries. You’ll forgive me if I cool my admiration a little.[/quote]
OK, I just realised I’m dealing with the sophisticated Rocko / Carryharry axis, so I’ll try to speak slowly.
We’re talking about abolishing the Seanad. I used the Australia Senate as an example of how an upper house works well. Your need to appear more republican than anyone immediately leads you to start banging on about the queen of england, nothing to do with this subject. It is a ridiculous system, it is a fucking joke that the head of state of an entirely separate country is the head of state here. But the senate works well, that was all I was saying before you got all hysterical and donned your balaclava. Their ill acquired land? What, like America? What the fuck has that got to do with anything? I wouldn’t be so sure Australia doesn’t want to change.
I sincerely hope there is a No vote in this referendum, but it must be followed by reform.
Please ensure that all of you exercise your democratic right to vote.
[quote=“Fitzy, post: 841121, member: 236”]
Please ensure that all of you exercise your democratic right to vote.[/quote]
Well ok then, but only cos you said please
