A few topics for today…
Irish political drama
There’s a debate taking place today in the Irish parliament (the Dáil) about a motion of no confidence in Leo Varadkar, who occupies the office of the Tánaiste (“tawn-ish-tuh”, the #2 position in the government hierarchy).
Leo, who is openly gay, previously held the office of Taoiseach (“tee-shock”, the #1 position in the government hierarchy, akin to a prime minister). Leo’s center-right party (Finn Gael) came in last in the February elections, and as a result he got demoted from #1 prime minister job (Taoiseach) to #2 job (Tánaiste) in the new coalition government, which wasn’t formed until June. Apparently Leo gets to be back in #1 in 2022 though, in a power sharing arrangement between the two leading political parties?
At any rate, the scandal embroiling Leo involves his sharing a confidential governmental contract with a colleague/friend. He has admitted poor judgement in an effort to sweep the offense under the rug, but his political rivals aren’t giving up so easily.
The motion of no confidence is being made by the Sinn Féin party, which made significant gains in the national election that took place last February. It was an historic election. Sinn Féin (center-left to left wing) had its best results since 1970, and broke from the 2-party system that has dominated Ireland politics — Leo’s center-right party (Finn Gael) and the other center to center-right party (Fianna Fáil), led by the current Taoiseach Micheál Martin. Sinn Féin is the party associated with the IRA and is actively advocating for reunification, especially after Brexit. Ireland seems to be leaning more left now, due to issues important to the under-55 electorate including affordable housing and more funding for public services. For more background check out this Wikipedia article.
There’s also more drama going on about Golfgate, a gathering that took place in August attended by a number of public officials that did not follow the government issued COVID social distancing guidelines. Obviously, the public did not react well to the hypocrisy, and some of the officials resigned as a result. However, one of Ireland’s Supreme Court Justices, who also attended the event, has refused to step down, despite being asked to do so by the Chief Justice.
My take-away from all this is that Irish hold their politicians to much great scrutiny / accountability. Plus, the political mechanitions have become more complicated after Ireland’s two-party system was upended in the last election.
COVID update
According to this Irish Times article, Ireland has the fastest improving incidence of COVID-19 in Europe, with a 43% drop in the past two weeks. Ireland has the 4th lowest incidence rate in Europe, behind Estonia, Norway and Finland (last week, Ireland had the lowest rate). Fingers crossed this trend continues!
Walk to Rathmines and Ranelagh
The weather is overcast but dry in the mid 50s F. I am determined to get out today, since I haven’t been out of the apartment in a couple of days due to waiting around for deliveries. As I’m getting ready, the intercom buzzes with another Amazon delivery I wasn’t expecting until later this week. I’m glad I caught it while I was at home. I text my walking buddy CJ to see if he’s available, and he is! We meet around 1:15pm. I suggest heading southward to the neighborhood of Rathmines, which I haven’t explored much. CJ suggests tacking on Ranelagh, an adjacent neighborhood I haven’t ever visited. Photos and notes to follow below.
Meter readings
Before meeting CJ for our walk, I decide to try knocking on my neighbor Irene’s door to ask for the key to the utility room so that I can get the meter readings for my electricity provider. This time she answers! She is an older Irish woman, very much as I envisioned her, and friendly. I introduce myself as her new neighbor; apparently, she didn’t know anyone had moved in until recently. After I explain why I’m bothering her, she goes back inside to get the key to the utility room, which apparently is in another section of the building accessed through a separate entrance. (I only recently noticed that beyond the end of our outdoor patio hallway, there are rows of similar looking doors on what must be another part of Sprangers Yard.) By the time Irene comes back, a man has appeared in the courtyard below on the ground level. This turns out to be Brian, whom Irene introduces as the property manager. Brian offers to send me the readings and asks for my number, which I gladly provide him. With that sorted, I bid them both goodbye. They continue conversing, and as I turn to go Irene lowers down a bag tethered to a rope so that Brian can send something up to her. Apparently she has quite the support system worked out! I don’t know if she’s a shut-in who never leaves her apartment, but this would certainly explain why I’ve never run into her coming or going from the building. It’s actually quite endearing.
Brian texts me the meter readings later in the day. There are two separate readings for daytime and nighttime (11pm-8am); the nighttime usage costs half as much as the daytime. I log into my electricity provider’s website to enter in the readings, but oddly the nighttime number is the same as the previous reading that was recorded 17 September (this information is displayed on the meter reading entry page for reference). I end up calling Energia (my provider) and am surprisingly connected with someone almost immediately. The representative is very polite and competent. After researching the meter reading history, he finds a note indicating that the nighttime meter has been unresponsive for several cycles and will need to be fixed. He further explains that this must be done by the Electricity Supply Board (or ESB), the state-owned electricity company that still services the actual meters, even though they no longer have a monopoly as the only utility provider since the market was opened (or “liberialised”) in 2000 as result of an EU directive. He goes on to say that it may take months for ESB to fix the meter, and in the meantime, they will sort out the billing by using a historical average to determine how the daytime vs. nighttime usage should be billed out to me. It’s all out of my hands, so we’ll just have to see how it works out.
Photos and notes from the walk:
The Rathmines and Ranelagh neighborhoods are home to many trendy restaurants and shops. I’d say Rathmines is more like an up-and-coming gentrified area, while Ranelagh feels more established and upper-middle class. I took notice of many great brunch places that I hope to check out once things open up again!
The most prominent landmark in Rathmines is the clock tower, built in 1899 as part of what was once the town hall building now occupied by Rathmines College. It’s known locally as the “Four Faced Liar” for its famous inaccuracy.
Rathmines Public Library building, built in 1913 and one of Dublin’s four Carnegie funded libraries:
The Stella Cinema (on the right), originally opened in 1923, was closed in 2004 but then re-opened/remodeled in 2017. I’ve never been inside, and obviously it’s closed now, but from what I understand it’s like the Parkway Theatre in Oakland or the Alamo Drafthouse Theatres, in that its amenities include comfy couches, cocktails and food.
On the way back to the city centre, we stop by Iveagh Gardens, located near St. Stephen’s Green. This green space is set back from the main streets and surrounded by buildings, making it a sort of hidden gem.
Until next time…
