News from a New Republic: Ireland in the 1950s

POLITICIANS are geared to think only as far as the next election. They go into liquidation if they lose their seat.

FOR years the maxim of American business was: “As General Motors goes, so goes the nation.” Today there are fears General Motors is going bankrupt and this could have further enormous implications for the global economy. The whole thing emphasises the need for new political thinking in relation to the economy.

FORMER Taoiseach Jack Lynch was, as this newspaper editorialised upon his death, “a charismatic leader, political icon and statesman”.

CIVIL servants are often called the permanent government. They are the faceless men and women who implement policy and frequently formulate it, but political decorum requires that they keep a low profile rather than outshine their nominal masters.

ECONOMISTS are still optimistic about the Celtic Tiger, but they frequently get things spectacularly wrong. People should therefore beware.

THE Dublin City and County Book of Honour of the Great War 1914-1918 was part of the homily at 11am Mass in the Pro Cathedral, Dublin, on Sunday, November 14.