David Higgins

Today the government launched it’s legislation to set up NAMA – the national asset management agency.

This was met by many sound-bites from the opposition and the most of these were seen on the RTÉ 6.1 News. Arthur Morgan of Sinn Féin and Rurai Quinn of Labour both gave their reactions. They were negative and they highlighted the risks involved to the taxpayer. They also, however, drew attention to their own beliefs. They both want to nationalize the banks. Both were vocal on this however Richard Bruton failed to outline the Fine Gael plans.

Instead he gave another opposition style bashing of the government while providing no alternative. Even though we do have an alternative.

It’s very simple. The government wants a bad bank, we want a good bank. Richard Bruton himself wrote our policy document on it, yet he didn’t mention it tonight and it is rarely mentioned by anyone else in Fine Gael either. It must be publicized that we do have policies and we do have a plan for this country.

I think Richard Bruton should be the party leader however he needs to be more vocal on how we would do things. This goes for everyone Fine Gael member in the Oireachtas.

I believe that if Kenny steps down then the front bench would be an unstoppable team of Bruton as taoiseach and George Lee as the Finance Minister. We could even achieve an overall majority in the Dáil. Kenny is the only thing standing in the way.

Today Bank Of Ireland workers went on strike over pay. They are claiming for performance related pay promised to them before the financial crisis. The Bank says that it can’t afford this due to the recession and the fact that the country is experiencing deflation. For once the Bank is right!

Many workers will see this as a stand against the big bankers who were reckless however remember that everyone has recapitalised BOI and so if a pay rise is given that would be our money.

There is absolutely no scope for pay rises in any sector, especially in the financial sector which is the highest paid section of the private sector.

Deflation means that there is scope for everyone in the country to take around 5% pay cut.

However many people are indifferent when they are told that prices are dropping.

Oh well lots of things have gone up

If we’re experiencing 3% deflation then we’re experiencing 3% deflation, no ifs or buts! Some things have gone up but more things have gone down and it has resulted in savings for the consumer. Therefore anyone who wants a pay rise is greedy (read my post on electricians for more).

I think all those who begrudge bankers should take comfort in that the majority of bankers are feeling the pain that many presume they deserve.

Ok, maybe I’m making a meal out of nothing but this is just another example of government incompetence.

Today Taoiseach Brian Cowen is opening a new stretch of the M6 between Athlone and Ballinasloe. All the speed limit signs on the new dual carriageway currently display 100km/h however in 36 days the road will be designated a motorway with a 120km/h speed limit. To allow this, all the signs must be replaced!

Thankfully a large protest at the event ensured it wasn’t the usual cosy cutting of tape affair.

One thing that I had found astonishing was the use of signage for the National Development plan. Everywhere you go across the country there are signs like the one above for projects that were finished a long time ago, under the 2000-2006 project.

Many of these signs are also very inappropriately placed. One I saw recently was a huge sign for the national broadband scheme. It was on the main street of a rural town. There is no central place for broadband and you definetly couldn’t see any work happening so it really was a pointless sign. Nobody passing through cares that you have broadband and the local residents surely don’t need to be reminded.

There are huge political implications from these signs. The centre text reads “Funded by the Irish Government”. These signs are Fianna Fáil posters in disguise!

There’s even one of these signs in my school grounds. It refers to our school’s extension. Again like the above sign it only quotes the EU and the government as funders. In my school we fundraised tirelessly to raise the money needed however no government sign is acknowledging this!

Another sign that I feel is redundant are the Special Olympics 2003 signs. These dot the countryside in every town that hosted athletes from different countries. These signs were great at the time and the idea for each town to house a country was a very successful exercise. It’s the only decentralisation plan that the government has to its credit. However these signs are now confusing to tourists and to the younger population who don’t know about the event 6 years ago.

All these useless signs should be sent to the scrap heap and they should be made to better use elsewhere.

Today should have been the governments day. Big Announcement, invite the press and attach Eamonn Ryan’s grin to his face. The story was big, 50 Technology Jobs and 300 from a new upcoming tech firm. All went to plan however it’s place in the headlines was soon to be lost later in the day.

By the evening news nearly 300 jobs had been shed at Intel, Ireland’s largest multinational. Previous redundancies were to be mandatory however a drop in demand for their services has been blamed for this mandatory cut of posts.

300 jobs created, 300 jobs lost all in one day.

I find it hard to believe that Intel has seen a drop in sales. On this same day Apple has announced another record profit!

The American tech giant shipped 2.5 million Macs in its 3rd quarter and they all contain Intel chips.

5 million Iphones and 10 million iPods also helped Apple see it’s best non holiday quarter in history. Apple really is a company that knows how to ride out the recession.

It makes me wonder whether Apple will lower its prices anytime soon. I forked out €1200 for this MacBook that I’m writing on and their phone would set me back half of that!

I bought my laptop during the boom however I can’t even envisage myself getting a new iPod in these times and there are many other people who are even more strapped for cash. How then does Apple produce an $8 billion profit?

The answer, I don’t know!

Today a second Sinn Féin councillor resigned for the party. This time it was Louise Minihan who was elected as a Sinn Féin candidate for Ballyfermot/Drimnagh ward on Dublin City Council. This follows Christy Burke who left shortly after the local elections citing a lack of support from the party as his reasons. This was huge as Burke was until then Sinn Féin’s longest serving councillor. Louise Minihan has blamed the party of lacking commitment to its socialist and republican values.

Defections are not unusual but they are uncommon. During the celtic tiger hardly anyone left their parties and even now it’s only confined to the likes of Joe Beehan, leaving Fianna Fáil over the education cuts. This was understandable as the cuts were unfair and that is just one of many reasons to leave Fianna Fáil. We are bound to see more defections from Fianna Fáil even though many describe it as a cult or religious like party with devotion higher above any other party.

Defections are a sign of weakness in a party and it appears that there’s an underlying problem in Sinn Féin. Many councillors in the South-East also complained about a lack of support from the party leaders and it surprises me that such a small party in the South of Ireland couldn’t have it’s Leader or even it’s Deputy leader visit all the candidates. This also highlights a possible structural deficiency in the country’s oldest party. Fine Gael was hit hard in ’02 because of bad party structures and bad campaigning (oh and Michael Noonan!). However they learned from their mistakes and built themselves up to become the largest party in local government.

Then there’s the ideological deficit. Cllr. Minihan was quite accurate when she talked about Sinn Féin being socialist and following republicanism. They are the two cornerstones of Sinn Féin ideology, yet they are the two things than she highlights as having been lost.

Personally I don’t see it. Remember that Sinn Féin are the only party in Ireland where you can buy an IRA t-shirt from their online store. While I disagree totally with this it’s hardly a deficiency in their core values.

Then there’s socialism. I have a lot of respect for Sinn Féin’s four TD’s as they come across as hard working honest people who care deeply for the well being of the lowest in society. However again I disagree with their policies and I don’t think I’ve heard a single measure they’d enact to address the recession. But again it’s clear from their 4 TD’s that they’re socialists. On the left wing scale Sinn Féin lies somewhere between Joe Higgins and Eamonn Gilmore. And remember anywhere near Joe Higgins has to be socialism. (I’m near him by surname but I guess I’m exempt from the rule.)

So while I don’t think Sinn Féin have dropped any of their core values it’s true that their support is down. They failed to capitalise on government protest votes as effectively as FG/Lab have. They left this years elections with almost the same number of councillors and they lost their MEP for Dublin.

I’d be doubtful as to whether a general election could go any better. Mary Lou McDonald is a certain to run in Dublin and it’s likely she’ll get elected. This would bring Sinn Féin to 5 seats however this would only be a small gain compared to the gains likely by FG/Lab and it’s also likely that this support could eat into SF’s 4 sitting TD’s.

Either way Sinn Féin is facing trouble. Once seen as a party of government within a decade it’s looking likely that they’ll continue to struggle in the South for some time.

Well, it’s no secret that everyone in the music business hates pirates, Coldplay is no exception. Their new music video “Strawberry String” has a brief reference to pirates but it sends out a subliminal message to the file-sharing community: We don’t like you!

I can sympathise with the concerns of small artists who are struggling with the loss in CD sales and who are hit with the recession. Last year I bought the debut album by the Coronas, they’re doing well now and I’m proud to have supported them financially when they needed it. The same goes for Apollos Thebe. They’re a band whom I know very well and I had no problem paying a fiver for their debut EP.

However I refuse to support already wealthy artists like Coldplay. This September I’m going to their concert in the Phoenix Park, Dublin. This cost me €76!!! This is more than a lifetime contribution to the band and so I have no problem in owning ripped copies of their 4 albums.

It’s the same for U2. I’ve spent €60 on a ticket for their 360?tour in Croke Park only to find out that it’s actually a 270? tour . Again I refuse point blank to pay for any U2 album because they are already rich. U2 don’t pay all their taxes in Ireland however it is good to see them investing money into young Irish musicians. Still, I have no problem in downloading their entire discography.

Howard Wolowitz (Big Bang Theory)

This week on the International Space Station the unthinkable happened. Their toilet broke down. This is surely a once in a lifetime cock up? No, it isn’t.

The CBS comedy The Big Bang Theory very amusingly acts out this event with the character Wolowitz designing a faulty toilet which breaks down after about 10 flushes!

Him and the other scientists work tirelessly to fix the fault on a model they have on earth, but to no avail.

They can’t fix it and so the words “Houston, we have a problem!” become very poignant.

It’s also coincidental that this major mistake occurs on the week when we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the moon landings.

Wolowitz, by  the way is a engineer who lives with his mother and who desperately tries to pick up women with silly one liners. It never works!

I love the Big Bang Theory. It’s a show about 4 nerds who are totally removed from the social realities of the real world and who struggle to come to grips with the most simple of situations. Sheldon is by far the funniest character.

The show just finished it’s 2nd season and there’s a 3rd on the way, which I can’t wait for!

Even if you don’t like science or nerds, this is a very funny show for anyone to watch.

I’m middle class, I know it. Even before the crisis I was aware of the privileges that people in Knocklyon had over the likes of Tallaght or Finglas. Then the recession hit and I saw it as a positive thing for the middle class, a chance to get our heads out of the sky. To stop buying big cars and investment properties. To stop living beyond our means!

For the most part this has happened. Consumer spending is down and the housing market is gone, however there’s one thing that hasn’t left us, Holidays!

Everyday this week as I’ve checked my Bebo or Facebook pages, I’m met with virtually the same thing, uploads of holiday photos. Snaps from France, Spain, Turkey,  America, even Croatia (wherever that is)?

It’s clear then that the middle class of Ireland is still the upper class that it once was. I still see middle aged men wearing shirts driving Range Rovers with a smirk on their faces. There’s nothing to smirk about when you’re damaging the environment!!!

It’s clear then that more taxes must be imposed on our middle-upper class. Nothing too harsh to discourage productivity but I’d say you could squeeze a billion or so with a 3rd band of tax.

Most of us agree that sanctions need to be applied to Iran, as is needed to North Korea and Burma etc. However when these sanctions put at risk the well being of that nation’s citizens it’s clear that sanctions are not the right way.

Today 168 people died in Iran when an old Russian Aircraft from 1987 crashed into the ground creating a massive crater on impact. Much of Iran’s fleet is old and out of date. This causes huge risks for flyers. The oil rich nation could easily upgrade and improve its fleet if it wanted too however sanctions from the US prevents this.

As a result there are virtually no Airbus or Boeing planes in Iran.

The blame for this lies ultimately with the US who refuse to allow planes and their parts into the country. People have died because of this sanction and it has to stop now.

David Higgins at Oxegen? Yes, believe it or not I was!

I only went for Saturday’s music however it’s clear that I will definetly be returning in 2010 for a 4 night camping holiday.

As with any big trip the preparation starts before the day and Oxegen is no exemption, even on a day ticket. The night before I packed wellies, spare socks, drink, bottle caps (I’ll explain below) and some snacks to eat.

The day began at 7.00 am with the monotone buzz from my alarm clock. This was most unwelcome considering that I have never woken earlier than 9 during the summer, also because I only got 3 hours sleep the night before (excitement keeps you awake, especially at Christmas)!. Then at 8.00 am I arrived at my friend’s house which was the Rendezvous point for the 7 of us going to the music festival.

The others arrived a little later and we then took the bus into town. Afterwards we went to O’Connell Street to purchase our €20 bus ticket when we were blessed by an offer we couldn’t refuse, free tickets on the Lucozade party bus! The coach left a little after 10.00 am and it was clear before we left that this bus was not only free, but better! We were allowed drink on the bus and there was a guitar. One of the Lucozade workers had an acoustic with him and he led a sing-song for the hour long journey. This, along with the drink got us off to a perfect start to what would be a perfect day.

Upon arrival, it was clear that Oxegen is not just a musical festival but a drinking one too. Everywhere you went in the grounds there was drink. People with cans, crates, bottles or other types that you just know are alcohol. We joined in and found a nice patch of grass to lie down on as we fueled ourselves for the day. The area where we were was just outside the entrance to the stages.

After the supplies were consumed we went inside for The Saw Doctors @2 p.m. We had VIP tickets so check-in was instant however we were subject to search like everyone else. Any bottles of liquids you have must have their caps removed incase they get used as a missile. This is where my concealed bottle caps came in handy.

We went straight to the main stage and the small number of people there meant that we got very close to the stage. We then listened to great songs like N17 and About You Know. The Saw Doctors are a fantastic Irish band and they’ve stood the test of time against an ever changing taste of music within the youth of society.

After that we went and got some food in one of the many overpriced stalls at Oxegen. Later in the day I went back for more food and the grand total came to €20 (Thankfully that was the figure I would have paid on Dublin Bus!).

• Small Ham and Mushroom Pizza – €8
• Gourmet Burger – €7
• Plain Hot Dog – €5

I also later bought a €2.50 bottle of Coke!!!

Now that our hunger was satisfied we decided to check out some of the tents. This was a good move because it was starting to rain. We immediately avoided the dance tent. We were told that half the drugs seizures happen there and also it was full of horny 20 something year olds. Instead we went into the Heineken Tent and caught the Saturday’s as they finished their set. There was once a humour in our school that the Irish girl in the group, Una Healy’s sister is a teacher in our school. Unfortunately that’s not true

When they had finished the rain was pretty heavy so 3 of us decided to search for the VIP area. We had missed it on the way in and we were sorry we didn’t find it sooner. The main feature of VIP is proper toilets. Proper as in, not being a smelly port-a-loo! After relieving ourselves in comfort we went into a cool tent in the shape of Indian Huts. Inside it was warm, sheltered and there was good music playing. The early start had knocked a lot of energy out of us so we immediately lay down in a corner and rested for a while. Then on the way out of the VIP area we came across a camper-van with Xbox 360′s inside. We were able to just walk in and play games of Gears of War and Tekken. VIP is truly worth it and I’d recommend it to anyone, regardless of the cost.

After the casual gaming we decided to find the rest of our group. We found them outside the Main Stage enjoying the end of The Blizzards. I don’t know any of their songs except Fantasy so it was great to hear that song. By now it was 5:30 p.m and only 6 hours until King of Leon. Amazingly the queue into the pit was growing hugely and so some of my friends decided to get in it to secure their place at the front for KOL at 11.30 p.m!

The rest of us returned to the VIP area to chillax some more. This time we went into the bar and amazingly the 3 of us were served. However it’s €6 a pint plus a €3 deposit on your cup! Even so we were able to sit back and relax with a nice cool beer. This was the queue for 2 of my mates to fall asleep! I decided to go and play some more Xbox with a more sober guy from my group and we then returned to find the two lads still in slumber. We woke them quite suddenly by throwing our bags on them, however one of them still slept .

At 7 p.m we left the VIP area and strolled around the site and we bumped into a good friend of ours from school. He was camping for the 4 nights and his weekend hadn’t been going so well. He told us that his tent was a foot underwater and that as a result he got no sleep in the two nights previous. That combined with E-Tablets he said caused the white in his eyes to turn red, prompting a passing Guard to questions his activities. However even though things weren’t great for him (he also hadn’t had sex yet to his displeasure) he was still in the mood of the festival and it proved that nothing can upset you greatly at Oxegen. It was at this time that I realized that rain had run-off my waterproof jacket into my jeans pockets. I subsequently discovered that my phone’s keyboard was not working. Sure I needed a new one anyway.

By now the queue for the pit was enormous and it was unlikely that we’d get in to join our friends already there. Also two of my friends wanted to see The Mars Volta at the O2 stage.  I decided with another friend to try for the pit and this was greatly assisted by the friend from school we just met. He stealthily distracted a group of people in the queue while me and my friend slipped into the queue, thus propelling us within meters from the top of the line.

At the top of the line, a clearly drunken man approached the stewards waving a fake pass saying that he had to get into the pit for dear life. The steward calmly told him off saying “These guys [pointing at me) have been waiting over and hour and a half, so back of the line!”. Haha, yeah right. More like a minute and a half .

Now inside the pit we then had the arduous task of reaching our friends at the top. It was vital that we made it there by Kings Of Leon. One of my friends had a calculated plan to display the word milk with four T-shirts, each one displaying a letter. 8 people were required to perform the stunt. We had plenty of time though. We just caught the end of The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and there were two more acts until KOL. The first of these were Elbow. I was eager to hear them as they are opening for Coldplay in September and when they walked on stage with a string quartet it was looking promising. Their songs were good however they were a bit slow and I only really enjoyed the last song. Not to worry though because at 10 p.m Bloc Party arrived.

I thoroughly enjoyed them especially their hits like Helicopter and Hunting for Witches. This brought us to 11 p.m and by now I was with my friends and it was only half an hour until KOL. By now I had been 3 hours in the pit and my bladder was beginning to enlarge. With no other feasible option I had no choice but to urinate in a plastic bottle .

However nothing could take from the atmosphere. One could never imagine that being so tightly packing into such a small space could be enjoyable but being in front of a massive stage with a band only feet away is an experience too good to miss. You don’t care that you’re being swayed left to right, back and forward as some eejits attempt to force their way to the top. You don’t care that you’re being touched at all side by a bunch of strangers older than you and you don’t care that the place smells like B.O and shit. This is Oxegen and in Oxegen all your worries are gone.

The clock turned 11.30 and Caleb Followill walked onto the stage followed by his two brothers and his cousin. The Kings of Leon opened with Notion, their newest single. It had to be my favourite song of the night. KOL make great use of piano in this song.

Their entire setlist was a great combination of the old and new tracks and it was well received by the crowd. Unfortunately some of the songs were slower than usual and this took away from the mood somewhat. Also there appeared to be a cock up by the drummer in Sex on Fire but it didn’t bother me too much. All in all it was a fantastic concert however they didn’t play Milk .

The music ended at 1, we got a lift at 2, I was home by 3 and in bed by 4 just as the sun was coming up.

Oxegen 2010, I can’t wait.