Manners cost nothing and are so enriching

THE Dáil’s Ceann Comhairle Seán Barrett spoke yesterday about how Oireachtas proceedings, like life in general, depend on a good level of civilised behaviour and respectful personal interaction to be effective.

He spoke of pointless grandstanding, of inappropriate and overly aggressive interventions and of his disappointment that some Dáil debutants have decided not to observe traditional dress codes while in the chamber. Sadly, he could have been describing a good portion of Irish life.

Like the fish knives and white gloves so beloved of the Victorian middle classes — social climbers or snobs if your disposition so disposes you — many of the mores once sacrosanct have been cast aside as holier-than-thou affectations that were, in so many pathetic ways, mere ostentation.