The human race has struggled to survive, but with improving success over the last two centuries.

Niall Ryan (Letters, Jul 26) is wrong when he says “tribunals have been a waste” and “their findings ... meaningless”. The tribunals decided the facts as they saw them.

Columnist Fergus Finlay, without the slightest hint that his tongue was anywhere near his cheek, has announced to the world that former Progressive Democrats Party leader Michael McDowell was perhaps the greatest party leader the world has ever known (Irish Examiner Opinion, Jul 23).

This country has spent an enormous amount of money on exhaustive tribunals of inquiry that behaved as a tightly-closed shop, had no procurement procedures and whose extravagant spending was not subjected to either independent validation or expert oversight.

The Mahon Tribunal cost the State some €200m. The State gave €30bn to save bankrupt banks.

I am tired of reading letters to the effect that if the Seanad were abolished the Dáil would be left unfettered in matters of legislation.

A functioning banking system is more important than a functioning Republic is the lie we’re being sold on a daily basis by the Troika and a puppet government.

In the light of the recent prolonged calm anti-cyclonic conditions prevalent in this country, it will not be reassuring to the hard-pressed Irish taxpayers that the subsidies (from taxpayers’ purses) to the Irish wind energy sector are providing very little payback by way of wind-generated energy.

As a person who has been involved in refereeing as an umpire at all levels including All-Ireland finals in the ’70/’80s I take a particular interest in the performance of the referee, and indeed, the assessments by John Bannon each Monday in the Irish Examiner, which are very good.

There is much to agree with in columnist Gerard Howlin’s (Opinion, Jul 24) plea for goodwill.