Politics demeaned - Buffoonery discourages participation

It is unfortunate and disheartening that events of recent days have underlined again how very removed from ordinary life our political system and our politicians are.

This disconnect, glaringly obvious in both Houses of the Oireachtas in the last week, is more than unfortunate because it discourages the participation that gives our parliament its moral authority and legitimacy.

Important issues and the subtleties they raise are often lost in a quagmire of procedural Vaudeville. Rational proposals are dismissed by the kind of self-serving squalling expected at a pre-pubescent girls’ summer sleepover but not in a parliament. Anyone who doubts that need only look at the “Upper House’s” hysterical response to the launch of Fine Gael’s campaign to abolish the Seanad or consider how many of the amendments proposed to the abortion legislation were adopted.