The poor to become baby farms for the well-off? (Thirty-First Amendment of the Constitution - Rights of the Child)

[Andrew49]

Support for the Amendment comes from political parties who supported piling bank debt on the shoulders of children. A dysfunctional State proposes an amendment to deal with dysfunctional families and all the idiots line-up to praise it as a major step in giving a voice to children and enhancing children's rights.

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

I don't see any children's rights in it. What I see is a tussle between social conservatives and statists for equity in the battle over who becomes responsible for children in dysfunctional families.

I still don't see much representation for the child in the battle between the HSE effectively and the loonbrigade.

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

This referendum is badly worded, leaning on obscure references to sectional interests and is not even titled correctly.

It is not the children's referendum or the Referendum on the Rights of the Child it is quite blatantly a way of absolving the Oireachtas from an argument in which its members can see only votes lost and none gained.

A typical Irish social fudge caught up in trying to balance vested interests and which has completely lost sight of the original intent. Situation normal as regards Irish Referenda, in other words.

[Baron von Biffo]

A British MP seems to think we're still a colony so he feels free to interfere in our constitutional business.

http://www.independent.ie/national-n...e-3258909.html

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

'Liberal Democrat MP John Hemming is backing the No side because he opposes what he describes as "wrongful adoptions" in Britain.

He has warned that if the children's referendum is passed, the HSE will have similar powers to take children from their parents and put them up for adoption.'

Do politicians in Ireland never comment on abortion law in the UK for example? And where is it suggested in that article that he thinks Ireland is a colony?

Or is this another of your attempted misdirections?

'Asked if it was appropriate for a British MP to become involved in a referendum here, he said: "It's appropriate for me to tell you how bad things are in England and say, 'Please don't make the same mistake'.

"But at the end of the day, it's a decision for the Irish people to make."

Doing the old public servant thing of making a claim and assuming no-one will check the detail?

[fluffybiscuits]

From the Indo article above

Other members of APS include Athlone-based fathers' rights campaigner Joseph Egan and anti-abortion activist Nora Bennis.

Former MEP Ms Sinnott said she was acting as a voluntary adviser to the group.

What are their genuine fears?

Meanwhile Vincent Browne to hold a debate on it at Halloween

http://www.thejournal.ie/tv3-debate-...36538-Oct2012/

Does anyone think we should be using this to improve the HSE services too?

[Baron von Biffo]

The traditional High Court challenge to the Referendum Commission started today.#

http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/1019/man...eferendum.html

It's not yet known if Ockupie Daym Streat will be putting an appearance at the Commission offices.

[Baron von Biffo]

The hearing of the challenge has been adjourned for a week to allow the sides to prepare their cases.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/c...ek-571514.html

[Baron von Biffo]

Ruling expected today in the challenge to the Referendum Commission materials.

http://www.independent.ie/national-n...h-3279512.html

[Baron von Biffo]

A group campaigning for a No vote in the referendum, Two Rights Now, has claimed that at present there is a constitutional right to free primary education and a constitutional right to attend a school that's in receipt of public money without being compelled to attend religious instruction.

Both of those claims are false.

What weight are we to place on their interpretation of the proposed amendment when they don't understand the current position?

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/...325980369.html

[Baron von Biffo]

RTE radio news reporting that the challenge to the Referendum Commission has failed. The court held that the information was neutral.

[Baron von Biffo]

The High Court decision is to be appealed to the Supreme Court.

[Dr. FIVE]

[DCon]

Apparently, an Eastenders plot could impact the referendum result..

Politicians are concerned that the results of the forthcoming Children’s Referendum could be influenced by a storyline in a soap opera.

Fianna Fáil’s Robert Troy said the Eastenders effect was a worrying undercurrent among voters.

"Quite a few times I have been asked about a storyline on Eastenders where a young mother has had her child taken into care and has faced a very difficult battle to get access to the child," he said.

In the British TV show, Lola, played by Danielle Harold, has her daughter Lexi taken into care by social workers.

"People have been emotionally affected by the story and have a real concern about the sort of heavy-handed state intervention that’s portrayed."

The Longford-Wesmeath TD, who has been campaigning for a yes vote on Nov 10, said: "We need to be careful about this Eastenders effect.

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland...te-213016.html