Coronavirus

[Carnage]

^
That's the first post of yours that I've read in this thread for a good month. Proof if it were needed that I can continue to skip the rest. Carry on.

[astfgyl]

^
That's the first post of yours that I've read in this thread for a good month. Proof if it were needed that I can continue to skip the rest. Carry on.

That's grand man, keep the blinkers on while the world falls to shit around you. Carry on indeed. First though, tell me how has covid affected your life other than the restrictions and the irrational fear...

...exactly

[Cailleach]

I've been wondering for a while why Sinn Fein have been taking a back seat when it comes to opposing any of the craic over the last few months. I see it now, let the other two destroy each other and come in to pick up the pieces. I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole either, seeing how they will refuse to oppose country-destroying policies for their own long term gain. They are all as bad as each other when it comes down to it.

So you finally see  what Sinn Fein are up to.
. While mainstream parties tend to be all as bad as each other, there are some politicans -- not many, granted,  -  who will put their principles before political opportunism. 

[astfgyl]

Yeah, and to think I wanted them to get in in the last election as a show of defiance to the usual two. I didn't vote for them though as the local lad seemed like a bit of a bum.

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

On what basis should they oppose it, exactly? Their leader was laid flat out with it for a couple of weeks  so she may have a slightly different opinion about the whole thing than you, no?

[astfgyl]

There are and were lots of things they could have opposed. Bit of a shinner, are you? Their leader also made a full recovery and didn't need hospital treatment just like the overwhelming majority of "cases". Plenty of people have a different opinion about the whole thing than me. I'm sure you are one of them, too. I was one myself for quite some time.

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

You said you were wondering why they were taking a backseat in opposing things, but you were making a fairly hasty conclusion as to the reason. Could simply be that they didn't feel they had a strong basis for opposition, in which case doing so would have been foolish, especially but not only politically speaking.

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

I'll remind you that in France, for example, people are looking at Ireland and saying, "Wow, why aren't we handling and communicating things as well and as clearly as they are?"

[astfgyl]

In the beginning that was a completely understandable position, to show a united front in the face of what seemed like an unprecedented public health emergency. I have said many times, that no one was to blame for the original response as it really seemed like the right thing to do. Before any of this happened I really thought that a victory for Sinn Fein would be an ideal two fingers to the main two parties and I really hoped they would secure the majority required. Now though, it seems to me that they are as blinkered as the rest of the parties when it comes to questioning any of the narrative surrounding the situation we find ourselves in. Where now is the champion for the underdog that they had painted themselves as for the last 10 years? The meek acceptance of the 5 point plan and the immediate support given to the government and NPHET for the further locking down of counties by county bounds in the face of the severe pressure this puts on the very demographic that they purport to represent, namely the SME's and the non-professionals, was very poor and I personally would have expected to see something more closely resembling an opposition from them. Varadkar had more to say about the case definition than anybody from Sinn Fein has up to now. As the main opposition party, surely the onus is on them to at least ask the questions, especially regarding the role of NPHET in all of this. Instead it's left to Deputy Michael McNamara to ask the questions around all of this. This is where I am getting my conclusion from as to what they are at. Perhaps I will be proven wrong in time. That possibility is never off the table.

Fuck, things must be really be bad in France if they are praising the carry on over here!

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

What you don't seem to understand is that your new position on COVID has an overwhelming amount of opposition, for the moment at least. In situations of great uncertainty, especially touching on public health, especially when public health was one of the major points of the previous election, one has to be at the polar opposite to reckless.

[Black Shepherd Carnage]

Maybe I'm understanding you wrong, but your logic seems to be; since SF don't share my skepticism, they're as politically corrupt as FF and FG. That seems unfounded logic to me.

[astfgyl]

Ah no, I fully understand that I am in the minority by a long long way. Not everyone will be as curious (understatement) as myself about all of this, and the vast majority will read the headlines or watch the nightly briefings and the Late Late on Fridays and also Newstalk every day. My problem with those sources is that they refuse to give any voice or credence to the opposing view. The lack of discussion there really worries me. The Late Late especially is the worst propaganda I have ever seen. This is why I think the opposition should ask the questions even if not necessarily outright disagreeing with it. It seems to me that they are duty bound to do so in the interest of those who they represent. But politics and duty to those they serve don't always go hand in hand.

[Cailleach]

There are and were lots of things they could have opposed. Bit of a shinner, are you? Their leader also made a full recovery and didn't need hospital treatment just like the overwhelming majority of "cases". Plenty of people have a different opinion about the whole thing than me. I'm sure you are one of them, too. I was one myself for quite some time.

Regarding Sinn Fein not opposing anything, Mary Lou is vocal about the government not handing out more money.  It easy to say that when you won't be  the person in charge when the money has to be paid back.  She'll be the very one complaining when the times comes to pay it back, yet if she had her way the burden would be even greater. I  suppose if we had entrepreneurs like Slab Murphy overseeing the department of finance things would be better all around

[Emphyrio]

astfgyl won't be happy right about now.

[Ollkiller]

astfgyl won't be happy right about now.

was thinking the exact same thing.