Local Propaganda

Despite my protests at her incessant junk mailing, and an email tete-á-tete about her heinous local traffic plans, local FGer Maria Bailey felt the need to thank me for my support in her campaign for re-election. You’re oh so welcome, Maria.

Bailey, sharing her father’s wan slogan of ‘The local man/woman – he/she WILL get the job done’ has proved that the exact opposite is the case, unless the unspecified JOB is leading a vague, parochial campaign where real interaction with the electorate is limited to nuisance-making, arms-length propaganda and postering with insipid slogans.

What’s interesting is that I have yet to meet a single local councillor on the street, or have one come to my door. Intelligent responses to emails from Gareth Crowe (FF) and and Cllr Carrie Smyth (Lab) would encourage a vote in that direction, but I can’t bring myself to vote for Fianna Fail in light of, well, their utter failure in most departments.

SF are out because their fuhrer, Gerry Adams, is still happy to lie coldly about his involvement with the IRA. Team Bailey and their showband frontman Enda Kenny mean FG are out. Purely for 80s nostalgia, you’d love to go back in time to vote for Hughie Lewis who, as a People Before Profit candidate is presumably counting on the power of love to rein in a few votes. In fact, his running mate Richard Boyd Barrett is a cogent and alert local politician who could capitalise (if you’ll excuse the pun) on the downfall of FF. The Socialist Workers Party have sensibly dropped their red-flag-waving commie brand image in favour of a new, fuzzy, touchy-feely presentation as People Before Profit. Hug a socialist. Pay it forward.

And then there’s the Greens. I had such high hopes for those guys. But I think they’re destined, in the not-too-distant future, to be released back into their natural habitat, the cosy hedgerows of the back benches, to forage for the odd dropped berry of influence among the decaying organic humus of opposition.