Media Watch - Fiscal Treaty Edition

[Dr. FIVE]

Plenty of fun and games in the papers and on the airwaves over next while.
Here we can track referendum coverage across the Irish media and abroad.

[jmcc]

Should be interesting to see if the EU has got its propaganda department working. They had a social media contract for a site and promotion open for tender a few months ago. Might be worth watching for the rise of "opinion influencers". There will, of course, be more than enough EUnuchs in the Oirish media who can be relied upon to trot out the Brussels bull for free (or at least a few trips to cover EU conferences and jaunts to sunnier places).

Regards...jmcc

[PaddyJoe]

The FT covers Joan Burton's call for a restructuring of the Anglo promissory notes and links it to the referendum:


February 29, 2012 7:30 pm
The European Union should cut the cost of Ireland’s banking bail-out to help it pass the eurozone fiscal pact in a high-stakes referendum (http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/80dc4c64-6220-11e1-807f-00144feabdc0.html) due to be held later this year, a senior Irish minister has said


http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/03967556-62fa-11e1-b837-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1njH4qOn1

[Dr. FIVE]

Specially keen to see what voices from abroad have their comments reported uncritically.
We will easily end up with the French Frank Fahy painted as someone influential.

Internet is a great thing and usage has probably doubled even since Lisbon 1 & 2

[Dr. FIVE]

Ireland's referendum on the fiscal compact - This time is different


http://www.economist.com/blogs/newsbook/2012/02/irelands-referendum-fiscal-compact


Ireland's prime minister (pictured), had hoped to avoid a national plebiscite on the fiscal compact, the European Union’s fiscal treaty, which mandates tight debt and deficit rules. But on Tuesday, he was forced to accept one—following advice from the country's attorney general that a referendum was required on constitutional grounds.


a rejection of the fiscal compact would have serious financial and economic consequences. For one, it would mean that Ireland does not qualify for future financial support from the European Stability Mechanism, the euro zone’s bailout fund, since access to the ESM is conditional on ratification of the treaty. Ireland was forced to accept an international bailout in 2010, the second after Greece, and it may yet require a further EU-IMF rescue—something the government is keen to dismiss. What is more, this time a failed referendum would be a major setback for the country. It would make a return to the bond market more difficult, and raise doubts about Ireland’s membership in the euro zone.

[Ah Well]

Lifted this one from a Thread started by CF

http://www.presseurop.eu/en/content/news-brief/1564071-germany-bemoans-irritating-irish-referendum

[Andrew49]

A De Valera, on the anti-treaty side, speaking on radio now.

[DCon]

Der Spiegel


Tuesday was a good day for democracy, but a bad one for German Chancellor Angela Merkel. First, Germany's Federal Constitutional Court declared the panel of lawmakers set up to approve urgent action by the euro rescue fund to be "in large part" unconstitutional and ordered that it would need to be enlarged to include more than just its current nine members.

And on Tuesday afternoon, Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny announced his country would hold a referendum on the euro fiscal pact. This threatens to throw a spanner in the works of the euro's new architecture: It's possible that only 16 euro-zone countries will accept the fiscal corset that Germany would like them to wear in the future.


And what would a "no" mean for the fiscal pact? It would certainly not be as momentous as the Irish votes against the Nice Treaty in 2001 and the Lisbon Treaty in 2008. The EU treaties require unanimity, making the Irish "no" tantamount to a veto. The fiscal pact, on the other hand, will enter into force once it has been ratified by 12 euro-zone countries. An Irish "no" would not torpedo it.

Nevertheless, if a euro-zone country were to back out of the pact, it would cause uncertainly on the financial markets -- and possibly endanger the whole euro zone.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,818313,00.html

[PaddyJoe]

The Guardian:

If Enda Kenny, Eamon Gilmore and the rest of the Irish government have any remaining strategic acumen left, they should hold the plebiscite on the EU fiscal treaty shortly before the Republic of Ireland's football team jets off for Poland in June.

While officially ministers will emphasise the importance of Ireland remaining at the heart of Europe, the Dublin commentariat, editorial writers and pro-European opinion formers will point to the perils of alienating the rest of the EU by voting no this time.

Those in the disparate no camp, who range from Sinn Féin to the hard-left parties in the Dail as well as the Catholic right (the latter obsessed with European laws they believe have over-liberalised and secularised the country) will equate the fear factor with pure intimidation. They will portray the yes campaign – and, by association, the EU elite – as bullies who are browbeating the Irish people
http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/blog/2012/mar/02/ireland-eu-fiscal-treaty-vote-football

[Dr. FIVE]

So Moody’s says Ireland“will likely need to rely on the ESM, at least partially”. Or in other words we will likely need another bailout from official sources because the traditional market sources won’t lend us what we need to run our country. Fair enough, that’s Moody’s view. In the past, such projections and ratings by the ratings agencies have been dismissed as “clairvoyance” and in the run-up to the global banking crisis in 2007/8, the ratings agencies didn’t cover themselves in glory. Ireland’s “paper of record” however curiously reported Moody’s statement earlier today with the headline “Ireland is likely to need second bailout, ratings agency warns” and you will note that is pretty much verbatim what the Moody’s report says – there’s only four paragraphs given over to Ireland in the report and where a second bailout is referred to twice the term “likely” is used.. This afternoon however, the “paper of record” has changed its headline to “Ireland “may need” second bailout”. Not only does the verbatim “may need” not appear in the Moody’s report but it softens the language actually used in the report – it “may” snow tomorrow would be materially different to “it is likely to snow tomorrow”

http://namawinelake.wordpress.com/2012/03/05/do-politicians-who-claim-we-cant-be-bribed-instead-believe-that-they-can-scare-the-bejesus-out-of-us/

[Dr. FIVE]

Darth Vader (Sutherland) in the FT

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/ec5e59a0-6469-11e1-b50e-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1oHNoEY25





When the euro was introduced, national governments (including the UK) sought to keep the greatest possible national autonomy for economic decision-making. Looking back, we can see this was inadequate. Much of the past 18 months has been devoted to repairing the gaps in the euro’s structure of governance. The process is not yet complete, but remarkable changes of approach from member states are clear. The ratification of the agreement is an essential part of this process. This will be appreciated by Irish voters in the referendum and they will vote Yes.

[concernedparent]

Darth Vader (Sutherland) in the FT

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/ec5e59a0-6469-11e1-b50e-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1oHNoEY25

I hate someone telling me just what I would and would not appreciate.

Specially someone who has ridden on the gravy train of Brussels.

[Dr. FIVE]

Spiked - Making the fiskalpakt Ireland-proof (http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/12200/)

Good read even if Waterfield is not the EU's biggest fan

[DCon]

Bloomberg reporting that we may be allowed to issue another promissory note instead of a cash payment on the EUR 3.1 Billion due on the first promissory note

http://www.forexlive.com/blog/2012/03/06/ireland-may-be-allowed-to-delay-payment-on-bank-bailout-ious/

[disability student]

Bloomberg reporting that we may be allowed to issue another promissory note instead of a cash payment on the EUR 3.1 Billion due on the first promissory note

http://www.forexlive.com/blog/2012/03/06/ireland-may-be-allowed-to-delay-payment-on-bank-bailout-ious/

I doubt that as i heard it was something like extension of the primissory notes over 20/30 year period. Think they haven't come to an agreement which twister of words Noonan would have liked to boast his fanfare just before the FCT referendum.

For us, a default or a total W/O would be a lot better. You can't keep going appeasing them until you get tired of their faces/demands.:rolleyes:

[Sam Lord]

I don't have much time for any bourgeois school of economics but Fintan O'Toole makes good points in the IT about the anti-intellectualism of enshrining one economic approach (neo-liberal essentially) into law and banning another (Keynesianism). While it is still being aserted that we live in democracies, rights and freedoms are being relentlessly stripped away in front of our eyes without anyone hardly recognising it. Outlawing an entire (and hitherto widely accepted school of economic thought) is a breathtaking step.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2012/0306/1224312849769.html

[DCon]

Bloomberg reporting that we may be allowed to issue another promissory note instead of a cash payment on the EUR 3.1 Billion due on the first promissory note

http://www.forexlive.com/blog/2012/03/06/ireland-may-be-allowed-to-delay-payment-on-bank-bailout-ious/

RTE news covering this now.

Paying the interest on an IOU with an IOU seems a bit nuts to me. Cancel the original IOU if anything.

It obviously suits the government as they can spend/waste more cash now and put this 3 BN on the long finger

With Central Banks focussing on controlling inflation so much, the old days of debt deflating away over time might be over.

[Griska]

Fintan O'Toole makes the point that outlawing Keynesian economic theory is somewhat thought-policeish. Which, is a fair point, all said.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2012/0306/1224312849769.html

[DCon]

Fintan O'Toole makes the point that outlawing Keynesian economic theory is somewhat thought-policeish. Which, is a fair point, all said.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2012/0306/1224312849769.html

Michael Hudson, a US economist, is on the Max Kaiser show at the minute

http://michael-hudson.com/about/


This is from his website


HUDSON: We should be learning what the European bankers are learning, which
is that a great experiment is being conducted. For the last five years in
Latvia, the neoliberals have lowered wages by about thirty percent. The
basic premise of today’s model builders is: you don’t know how far you can
lower wages and pensions until people begin to press back. Well, in Latvia
they still haven’t begun to press back when they’ve lowered by thirty
percent. Now they’re moving towards Greece on the way to Spain and Portugal
and Italy, and they’re trying to figure out how much can wages be lowered,
how much can an economy be drained until there is unrelenting pressure from
the afflicted population.

The EU and the banks have appointed a bank lobbyist, who is euphemistically
called a “technocrat”, to be in political charge of Greece. His job is to
see how much labor renumeration can be squeezed out. The neoliberals realize
that the left in Europe is completely fragmented and does not have a defense
against neoliberal policies. However, lowering wages shrinks an economy.
When you’re cutting the budget deficit, you’re reducing the amount of money
that comes into the economy to promote demand. So in effect what the EU is
doing is bleeding economies, very much like a medieval doctor would bleed
blood, believing that the loss restores health.


HUDSON: Yes and also the water systems, the sewer systems, real estate, the
islands. The debt crisis is being used to create a grab bag for private
interests to take ownership over the Greek public sector. And bankers and
people who have a plan usually do much better in a crisis than people who
don’t have a plan. So this indeed seems to be it. Finance today achieves
what military invasion used to do in times past. So the new mode of warfare
is financial, not military. It’s much cheaper and it’s much safer for the
country doing the attack.


If the EU is merely a mechanism for war of the rich against the poor, a
number of countries are going to say NO to Europe, just as the Icelanders
have voted not to join Europe, just as other countries that had planned to
join Europe, all the way to Turkey at the other end, are saying, wait a
minute, if that’s the Europe that’s coming, an oligarchic Europe whose
program is austerity and shrinkage, why on earth would we want to join?

The EU is proving that it works for private banks, but not for its citizens.


http://michael-hudson.com/2012/02/greek-strategy/

[TotalMayhem]

Goldman Sachs stooge European Central Bank President Mario Draghi has said he is confident that the referendum on new EU budgetary rules will be passed in Ireland.

Mr Draghi was asked about a restructuring of the promissory notes being used to finance the former Anglo Irish Bank.

He said the issue was "under study" but was not discussed at today's meeting.

The ECB chief said he was confident on the referendum vote because Ireland had made the most progress of all the eurozone countries which had been bailed out.

Let's all roll over now...

[DCon]

Michael Hudson, a US economist, is on the Max Kaiser show at the minute

http://michael-hudson.com/about/

This is from his website


http://michael-hudson.com/2012/02/greek-strategy/

the interview on the Keiser show is in the second half below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6wumoIHVuM&feature=player_embedded

[C. Flower]

the interview on the Keiser show is in the second half below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6wumoIHVuM&feature=player_embedded


Thanks. I'm going to read Hudson's article this evening.

[PaddyJoe]

The organisation representing the big international banks is calling for a Yes vote:

In Washington the Institute of International Finance, a powerful banking lobby which negotiated Greece’s €100 billion debt restructuring, said the referendum ranked among the current uncertainties that worried it the most.
“Putting it very simply, we worry about what happens if there’s a No vote. That throws the cat among the pigeons a little bit, specifically for Ireland,” institute chief economist Phil Suttle told The Irish Times.


The institute, which draws its directors from Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, Goldman Sachs, UBS, HSBC and Morgan Stanley, has told its members to be on alert for three strands of news from Ireland: economic performance following a new wave of fiscal austerity; opinion polls on the referendum; and “the rise of Sinn Féin” in polls.
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/2012/0328/1224314009559.html

[Dr. FIVE]

hmmm

[ang]

The organisation representing the big international banks is calling for a Yes vote:


http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/2012/0328/1224314009559.html

Way to go - the more banksters call for a yes vote the more people will respond with a NO.

[concernedparent]

Way to go - the more banksters call for a yes vote the more people will respond with a NO.

I think that what worries this shower more is the fact that a country the size of Ireland may actually have the power to upset the apple cart.

Now isn't that a shame.......:rolleyes:

But be prepared for more assaults on our Constitution. Its the only thing protecting us from the indifference of the bankers and their determination to ride roughshod over every small country on the periphery of Europe.

Europe just doesn't do small. They equate us with pesky midges.

[Dr. FIVE]

Elaine Byrne in the graun

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/apr/06/fiscal-storm-ireland-eu-referendum

[C. Flower]

I think that what worries this shower more is the fact that a country the size of Ireland may actually have the power to upset the apple cart.

Now isn't that a shame.......:rolleyes:

But be prepared for more assaults on our Constitution. Its the only thing protecting us from the indifference of the bankers and their determination to ride roughshod over every small country on the periphery of Europe.

Europe just doesn't do small. They equate us with pesky midges.

Yes. They are worried, but the Referendum this time does not offer Ireland the opportunity of pulling the plug on the Treaty. Others can go on without us. It is mainly about what we will do ourselves.

The Treaty is not there to deal with the immediacies of the economic crisis, it is there to cement us into permanent poverty / austerity, and to drive on with the consolidation of capital at the expense of people.

Any one country that stands up against it might provide a rallying point for others.

[Kev Bar]

Good stuff.
And a good satirical - inadvertent - take on my pro EU rant of a while back


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=TZfzAOooEOU

[Dr. FIVE]

Thomas Pringle on his court challange

http://euobserver.com/7/115911

Keiser with Gurdgiev. Household tax and the Treaty

Keiser Report: Somali Style! (E274) - YouTube

[Dr. FIVE]

Keiser rightly noting the Troika good cop, bad cop dance

[Dr. FIVE]

The Stability Treaty - YouTube

http://www.stabilitytreaty.ie/

[Dr. FIVE]

Incredibly soft interview with both John Douglas and Lucinda Creighton on this week today.
Voters none the wiser for it

http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2012/pc/pod-v-2204201230m08sthisweekpart1of3-pid0-1808184_audio.mp3

[Dr. FIVE]

Vincent Browne will be chairing a live debate next next Tues at 9pm.

[Dr. FIVE]

Browne also was on Moncreiff earlier for a good halfhour.

Part one here, Monday 23rd

http://media.newstalk.ie/listenbacks/popup

[Apjp]

Vincent Browne will be chairing a live debate next next Tues at 9pm.

And would that be tomorrow or the Tuesday after now? As well as that, is it to be televised would you know?

[Dr. FIVE]

Next tues, tv3

[Dr. FIVE]

Creighton, Coveney, Varadkar and Howlin all woeful appearances so far this week.
Government are a liability to the Yes side

[Dr. FIVE]

... Kieran O'Donnell

[Ah Well]

Creighton, Coveney, Varadkar and Howlin all woeful appearances so far this week.
Government are a liability to the Yes side

Bit like FF and the Lisbon Treaty effort then

plus ça change plus c'est la même chose

[Dr. FIVE]

Going to be a right headwreck listening to both sides for next few weeks. One good argument in 10 if you're lucky

[People Korps]

Just Vote No in order to say
1 you can and

more importantly

2 The Irish People have had enough

austerity
acquiescence
absurdity
bullshit
balderdash
bank bailout
cads
criminals
cronyism
eunuchs
Enda
endangerment
Fine Gael
Fianna Fail
failure
grinding poverty
grovelling
gnomes
hype
housing
horseshit
indigents
inspection
indecision
joblessness
joylessness
junk
knockdowns
knockouts
kenny
Lowry
loss
Labour
masters
monsters
money-lenders
Noonan
nonsense
nothingness
omens
opaqueness
ostracism
profiteering
prostrating
propaganda
quangos
quandaries
quacks
rigour
rigour-mortis
right wing
Sinn Fein
SWP
starvation
Troika
thieving
thrift
unbelievably
unforgivable
unjust
violation
vitriol
verbosity
weakness
worthlessness
wimps
xenophobia
x factor
xcretion
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
zero
zitheads

[Ah Well]

have had enough

You got that one right - reason alone without none other being required

[C. Flower]

Just Vote No in order to say
1 you can and

more importantly

2 The Irish People have had enough

austerity
acquiescence
absurdity
bullshit
balderdash
bank bailout
cads
criminals
cronyism
eunuchs
Enda
endangerment
Fine Gael
Fianna Fail
failure
grinding poverty
grovelling
gnomes
hype
housing
horseshit
indigents
inspection
indecision
joblessness
joylessness
junk
knockdowns
knockouts
kenny
Lowry
loss
Labour
masters
monsters
money-lenders
Noonan
nonsense
nothingness
omens
opaqueness
ostracism
profiteering
prostrating
propaganda
quangos
quandaries
quacks
rigour
rigour-mortis
right wing
Sinn Fein
SWP
starvation
Troika
thieving
thrift
unbelievably
unforgivable
unjust
violation
vitriol
verbosity
weakness
worthlessness
wimps
xenophobia
x factor
xcretion
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
zero
zitheads

Indeed.

[People Korps]

Indeed. i am sure it could be done better but it is a start

[Griska]

RTE are unashamedly showing a bias towards a yes vote.
Their tactic of "Taoiseach Enda Kenny said..." is no more than a vehicle for the yes campaign.

[Ah Well]

The scaremongering continues as predicted - a few more weeks of this rubbish to endure

Vote yes or we could be Albania says Bernard Allen with Gump due to make a social call to him

http://issuu.com/tcmeditorial/docs/echofront26042012/1

[Richardbouvet]

So far, RTE has been reasonably fair. Late debate was quite good last night on this subject, and the embarassment over the biased govt website has been well covered too.

[Dr. FIVE]

The Stability Treaty - YouTube

[Kev Bar]

This is the business.
I may have posted it elsewhere but it should be here
"Have you seen Mad Max, ever been to Longford?"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=TZfzAOooEOU

[Kev Bar]

RTE are unashamedly showing a bias towards a yes vote.
Their tactic of "Taoiseach Enda Kenny said..." is no more than a vehicle for the yes campaign.

Tragically that is Enda's actual position, so how else do you suggest they refer to him?

[Dr. FIVE]

Both Kenny and Adams have refused to take part in the TV3 debate.

Spineless

[Ah Well]

Both Kenny and Adams have refused to take part in the TV3 debate.

Spineless

Thank heavens ... we're spared the pleasure

[Ah Well]

Both Kenny and Adams have refused to take part in the TV3 debate.

Spineless

Kenny seems to be too busy delivering post in Cork to attend :D

http://www.eveningecho.ie/2012/04/26/taoiseach-in-cork-to-honour-bernard-allen/

[Kev Bar]

Divorce

Once upon a time back in the dour day.
Wannabes called cops on
contraceptive machines.
And failed marriages sought vodka.
A queer got beaten up
Banged too.
Gay was semiotics.
And Kenny cutting edge.
U2 were out of control.
Priests wild with abandon.
Where a million took to the Pope's park.
And the 'cool kids' took to Galway.
Where milk bottles rained fire.
And funerals fed slaughter.

When even Hollyhead was intoxicating,
EU shimmered erotic liberation.
Borders.
We'll slip through them.
**** them all.
And booze ballads too.
Give me French.
Sex in a mini skirt.
'Liberte'
More even more
'Fraternite'
The days.
Phew.
Then more of them.
Until
They got long.
As they do.
The skirts too.
Then all a suddenly
French was German.
The exotic... accountancy.
And flesh that caressed Mediterranean breeze
Now pinched pennies
with frozen Nordic frowns.
And somewhere along the lawyered road.
Into the spelling of 'Egalite"
(Without asking me.
What about you?)
someone
slipped
'Austere.'

[PaddyJoe]

Divorce

Once upon a time back in the dour day.
Wannabes called cops on
contraceptive machines.
And failed marriages sought vodka.
A queer got beaten up
Banged too.
Gay was semiotics.
And Kenny cutting edge.
U2 were out of control.
Priests wild with abandon.
Where a million took to the Pope's park.
And the 'cool kids' took to Galway.
Where milk bottles rained fire.
And funerals fed slaughter.

When even Hollyhead was intoxicating,
EU shimmered erotic liberation.
Borders.
We'll slip thought them.
**** them all.
And booze ballads too.
Give me French.
Sex in a mini skirt.
'Liberte'
More even more
'Fraternite'
The days.
Phew.
Then more of them.
Until
They got long.
As they do.
The skirts too.
Then all a suddenly
French was German.
The exotic... accountancy.
And flesh that caressed Mediterranean breeze
Now pinched pennies
with frozen Nordic frowns.
And somewhere along the lawyered road.
Into the spelling of 'Egalite"
(Without asking me.
What about you?)
someone
slipped
'Austere.'
I like it
About time you abandoned that dreary old prose.
Just maybe your vrai métier is trying to break its way through there:)
Anyway, that's worth reading more than once....
+2
:)

[Dr. FIVE]

Sinn Fein press office confirms "Adams ready and willing to debate treaty with Enda Kenny" on TV3

[Dr. FIVE]

lolz

[Spectabilis]

The scaremongering continues as predicted - a few more weeks of this rubbish to endure

Vote yes or we could be Albania says Bernard Allen with Gump due to make a social call to him

http://issuu.com/tcmeditorial/docs/echofront26042012/1


ACHTUNG! it says 'Do not become slaves to Debt. '
I pick it up, pity the poor postman with a ton of these leaflets to deliver.

'Fiscal Union' it says on the front .'The Treaty that condemns you to perpetual Debt' and a photo, if you please, of our old friend Nigel Farage, MEP. Lots of images of white types inside - including Colm McCarthy. He was 'stolen' by Sinn Fein recently, now by the EFD group in the European Parliament to support the No campaign. (He's for a Yes btw)

Yes, more scaremongering on both sides.

The Europe for Freedom and Democracy group in the European Parliament has no members from Ireland
http://www.efdgroup.eu/

[Dr. FIVE]

Howlin and Doherty debating on Drivetime now.

[PaddyJoe]

Why does Howlin want to put the role of the ECJ under Article 8 to the Referendum Commission? The role of the ECJ seems to be pretty clear already:

Role of Court of Justice

If a country which has ratified this Treaty fails to put the structural deficit rules fully into national law, the issue may be referred to the Court of Justice of the EU. If a country fails to abide by the Court’s binding ruling, the Court may then impose fines of up to 0.1% of the country’s GDP.
http://www.referendum2012.ie/the-fiscal-stability-treaty-in-more-detail-2/

[Kev Bar]

ACHTUNG! it says 'Do not become slaves to Debt. '
I pick it up, pity the poor postman with a ton of these leaflets to deliver.

'Fiscal Union' it says on the front .'The Treaty that condemns you to perpetual Debt' and a photo, if you please, of our old friend Nigel Farage, MEP. Lots of images of white types inside - including Colm McCarthy. He was 'stolen' by Sinn Fein recently, now by the EFD group in the European Parliament to support the No campaign. (He's for a Yes btw)

Yes, more scaremongering on both sides.

The Europe for Freedom and Democracy group in the European Parliament has no members from Ireland
http://www.efdgroup.eu/

Our dear friends the lovers of leprechauns.

Those who for 800 years cried out for the voice of the Irish to be listened to.

Sinn Fein should just hand the keys over to this crew.

[Dr. FIVE]

Now it is Ireland's turn to reject the austerity fantasy
- Gavan Titley and John O'Brennan

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/may/10/now-ireland-turn-austerity-fantasy

[coolvr]

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2012/0511/1224315906226.html


Irish Times "Yes Man" (pun intended) Dan O'Brien explaining exactly why voting No would be a disaster for Ireland, it's a classic even by Dan's standards :)

If I didn't know him better I'd say he was using irony and sarcasm to make a point and persuade people to vote No, it's that good.

[C. Flower]

Thanks for that.

The debate on Pat Kenny this morning has shifted: the election of Hollande and Merkel's electoral weakness in Germany are affecting the confidence levels of Yes (down) and No (up).

[Dr. FIVE]

Absence of any polls or at least published ones is interesting.
Anyone have a feeling we would bet over the head with them if the yes wasn't losing ground?

[Dr. FIVE]

Jason O’Mahony and Andrea Pappin's latest effort. An exercise in, well..

http://plaintalking.ie/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Spoofers-guide-to-the-Fiscal-Treaty.pdf

[C. Flower]

Jason O’Mahony and Andrea Pappin's latest effort. An exercise in, well..

http://plaintalking.ie/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Spoofers-guide-to-the-Fiscal-Treaty.pdf

Better to spend the time ploughing through the treaty in its raw form I think.

[Dr. FIVE]

It's awful

[C. Flower]

It's awful

And very, very long.

[PaddyJoe]

Absence of any polls or at least published ones is interesting.
Anyone have a feeling we would bet over the head with them if the yes wasn't losing ground?

There's a Red C coming up in the SBP this weekend. Should be on de inter web Saturday evening.

[C. Flower]

There's a Red C coming up in the SBP this weekend. Should be on de inter web Saturday evening.

Paddy Power worth a look ?

[PaddyJoe]

Paddy Power worth a look ?

It's very tight on paddypower.com right now.
11/8 NO
8/15 YES
So Yes the favorite but not by much.
Those are odds that are way too close to call.
I'd wouldn't be enjoying my weekend at all if I was a backbencher getting frantic calls from management to get out there and canvass like hell:D

[C. Flower]

It's very tight on paddypower.com right now.
11/8 NO
8/15 YES
So Yes the favorite but not by much.
Those are odds that are way too close to call.
I'd wouldn't be enjoying my weekend at all if I was a backbencher getting frantic calls from management to get out there and canvass like hell:D

Particularly when Yes canvassing may only boost the No vote.;)

It looks as though turnout of Yes's vs Noes will make a big difference.

[People Korps]

Particularly when Yes canvassing may only boost the No vote.;)

It looks as though turnout of Yes's vs Noes will make a big difference.

Turnout boost needed for No side and get those wavering to go the right way

[Dr. FIVE]

*thunder clap*

http://www.businesspost.ie/#!story/Comment/Opinion/Correct+past+mistakes%2C+vote+no+to+the+treaty/id/19410615-5218-4fae-9784-f30c32283576

[Dr. FIVE]

Meanwhile in Venezuela

http://www.el-carabobeno.com/portada/articulo/34313/irlanda-cree-que-grecia-debe-hacer-referndum-sobre-el-euro

dear oh dear

[PaddyJoe]

Meanwhile in Venezuela

http://www.el-carabobeno.com/portada/articulo/34313/irlanda-cree-que-grecia-debe-hacer-referndum-sobre-el-euro

dear oh dear

They have the famous feta cheese quote right at the end:D

"En la compra semanal de los irlandeses, aparte del queso feta, ¿qué otros productos griegos ponen en la cesta?", se preguntó el ministro.

[Spectabilis]

Es muy embarrassing, No?

[Dr. FIVE]

si

[PaddyJoe]

Great photo as well. Looks like he's giving the two fingers to the Greeks:D

[C. Flower]

http://s2.el-carabobeno.com/public/images/articles/id34313.jpg

His PR people should tell him to say cheese...

[Dr. FIVE]

One for greece, one for the rest of us

[disability student]

http://s2.el-carabobeno.com/public/images/articles/id34313.jpg

His PR people should tell him to say cheese...

You mean Savage communications??:D

[Hapax]

http://s2.el-carabobeno.com/public/images/articles/id34313.jpg

His PR people should tell him to say cheese...

:D

[morticia]

*thunder clap*

http://www.businesspost.ie/#!story/Comment/Opinion/Correct+past+mistakes%2C+vote+no+to+the+treaty/id/19410615-5218-4fae-9784-f30c32283576

This makes my life very simple.

Step one, wait for Ganley and Farage to recommend something

Step 2; do the opposite.

Frankly, this fits nicely with HM Government recommending a make up or break up (well, Cameron anyway). Are they now leaning towards a preference to break up?

Would love to know how much it has cost UKIP (and its shadowy backers) to leaflet every house in the country. Is that even legal?? Farage is not an Irish politician, nor does he represent Ireland in any way.

Bit of a pong emanating from all of this; Frau Merkel ain't the only one with a vested interest in the vote going a certain way.

But are Messrs Farage and Ganley going to pay our dole and hospitals bill if it all goes horribly wrong post NO vote???

I doubt it.

[Dr. FIVE]

PR consultant Monica Leech on radio one telling me to vote yes

[PaddyJoe]

PR consultant Monica Leech on radio one telling me to vote yes

Good old Yes for Jobs. PR Jobs.

[PaddyJoe]

Did I just hear Fergus O'Dowd saying that Enda Kenny has told us 'that the Fiscal Treaty will not be changed between now and the vote"
I thought he said it would not be changed full stop.
Better get back on message, Fergus.

[Dr. FIVE]

Sorry, 'businesswoman' Monica Leech according to Mary Wilson

[PaddyJoe]

Ok, Fergus is on message. Enda said in an interview with Tony Connolly:

what the people vote on next Thursday will not be changed
I guess whatever happens to the Treaty after that isn't a big deal;)

[disability student]

Ok, Fergus is on message. Enda said in an interview with Tony Connolly:

I guess whatever happens to the Treaty after that isn't a big deal;)



Why are they going ahead with it if it isn't a big deal :(:mad:

[Dr. FIVE]

Vincent Browne on now

[Dr. FIVE]

lol

[coolvr]

http://www.independent.ie/opinion/comment/john-bruton-the-touching-faith-of-sinn-fein-and-why-shane-ross-is-too-clever-by-half-3123255.html

John Bruton article in the Independent today, words fail me.

[Sam Lord]

http://www.independent.ie/opinion/comment/john-bruton-the-touching-faith-of-sinn-fein-and-why-shane-ross-is-too-clever-by-half-3123255.html

John Bruton article in the Independent today, words fail me.

If you think that's bad you should check out Lucinda Creighton in the IT associating voting YES with Ireland's sporting success.

I don't think the country has seen such abuse of its sportsmen and women by a politician since Charles Haughey stepped onto the stage on the Champs-Élysées to accept the accolades for winning the Tour De France.

Gump and Co. are now it seems on par with the best international athletes. Why do Irish people tolerate this nonsense?




So far, 2012 has been a rather spectacular sporting year. Everyone brimmed with pride last week when Katie Taylor once again claimed her world championship title and simultaneously qualified for the Olympic Games. Even the most diehard Munster fans appreciated the historic Leinster victory in Twickenham, when the boys in blue were crowned Heineken Cup champions for the third time in four years.

We are all looking forward to a summer brimming with sports events from the European Championships to the London Olympics. Our hopes are high with anticipation and expectation and it is no wonder, given the talented, primed and professional athletes we are fortunate enough to have representing us.

We can learn some lessons from them. They have achieved excellence in the sporting field, not by virtue of luck or by accident, but because they are thorough in their planning, methodical in their preparations and they leave nothing to chance.

Every hour of every day is planned. They leave no stone unturned in preparing for competition and know very well that there is no alternative to hard graft. To achieve results, to succeed against the best in the world, they must toil and sweat.

They must endure pain and disappointment in order to reach the height of their ambition. There is no shortcut, no easy option because effort equals results.

Similarly, there is no shortcut to getting Ireland back on track. I hope that we in Government have tried to be frank and honest about that. There are plenty of opponents of the fiscal treaty who will claim that we can magic our problems away, but we cannot. We must continue in the quiet, determined way in which we have tackled this financial crisis since it began. We must work steadily and with determination towards Ireland’s recovery, and voting Yes to the treaty is an essential element of that.



http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2012/0529/1224316859046.html

[Dr. FIVE]

Three or four times now I've seen the success of the no campaign and particularly Sinn Féin put down to the lamentable and thankfully temporary situation of broadcasters having to give both sides of the argument a fair crack of the whip.

Extraordinary

[Dr. FIVE]

Even still, it seems the YES side has been quoted 36% more on the press.

http://www.businesspost.ie/#!story/Home/Media+And+Marketing/Yes+side+%22quoted+36%25+more%22+than+No+side+in+m edia/id/19410615-5218-4fbf-8f61-db3c26300709



According to a Newsaccess Media analysis of 1,400 of these articles published in the Irish media between May 4th and May 20th, the Yes side was quoted 36 per cent more than the No side.

"Press articles were shown to quote significantly more Yes side politicians and commentators than No side politicians and commentators," according to the Dublin-based media firm.

"This does not mean that the article content was one-sided, but that only Yes commentators were actually quoted."

[Sam Lord]

Bty, Creighton seems to approve entirely of the way the last government handled mattters:



We must continue in the quiet, determined way in which we have tackled this financial crisis since it began.

[Dr. FIVE]

Vincent says We owe it to ourselves to oppose a trajectory that will vandalise society (http://politico.ie/latest-from-politico/tonight-with-vincent-browne-liveblog/8584-vinb-voting-no-treaty.html)

[Andrew49]

Last 3 paragraphs

We need to work towards a radically different society, where people have some real control over their lives; where inequalities of wealth, income, power, influence, social capital and cultural capital are radically narrowed; where patriarchy is subverted; where respect is accorded to everyone equally, regardless of status, class, sex, wealth or position; where protections for workers are buttressed, not dismembered by “labour market reforms”.

And to achieve that those of us who believe in this kind of society have to win arguments and minds through thoughtful debate, diligent and truthful analysis expressed in accessible forms, devoid of the familiar weary clichés and bombast.

The Maastricht Treaty, the Growth and Stability Pact, the Six-Pack and now the Fiscal Treaty are all obstacles to this kind of society. They must be opposed and the rejection of the Fiscal Treaty is a necessary and crucial part of that opposition. We owe it to ourselves, to future generations and to the peoples of Europe, who are denied a part in this process, to oppose a trajectory that will vandalise society and impoverish lives throughout the Union.