Protestant School threatened after bus axed

[Schomberg]

Is the OP suggesting that the service was withdrawn simply because the children are Protestants?

No. I didn't suggest that. I suggested that because they're a minority (didn't have to be Protestants) they're an easy target for people looking to shave off a few quid here or there. Much less hassle to go after a small group than one representing the majority who'd kick up more of a fuss.

The bottom line is, that now after the bus has been removed, the schools future is under pressure. The knock on effect from this tiny "saving" doesn't compute.

[Schomberg]

Do you believe this was done with the intention of targeting a minority.
Or was it done because the bus didn't mean the department's criteria for a funded bus?

I believe targeting a minority is always easier - less fuss will be made.

There's a lot of Protestant schools that won't meet the departments "criteria" for a lot of things. Thankfully, the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities should, in theory, protect them.

[Schomberg]

But here's my question; why refer to the childrens religion in the OP.

Erm, because it's a Protestant school?

Surely that doesn't matter in this day of age and you seem to be trying to stir something that simply isn't there. Many Catholic school buses have been closed in the last few years but threads are not made about Catholic victimhood.

Catholic schools are a dime a dozen. And no one mentioned victimhood though that you seem to feel like I'm attacking you and the state by highlighting this issue hasn't escaped notice

[ruserious]

Erm, because it's a Protestant school?



Catholic schools are a dime a dozen. And no one mentioned victimhood though that you seem to feel like I'm attacking you and the state by highlighting this issue hasn't escaped notice

hmm. Bully. Tell me did you get that dog?

[QuizMaster]

The real problem here is the ill-thought-out and arbitary way the school buses are being withdrawn.

If they have to cut they have to cut, but seriously, engage brain before weilding red pen.

The new rules are all about how far a child is from their nearest school, with no consideration for going to school in their own parish, the school they have always gone to, or indeed their religious persuasion.

It has resulted in half-empty buses driving right past the houses of children going to the same school they're headed for, and that school could be a few miles away.

I haven't looked into the details of this case, but if those children live nearer to a catholic school, I can see the new rules depriving them of transport.

[William T Riker]

Well, everything seems to be getting cut in Ireland, and if the numbers aren't there, then they're not there.

Surely the parents can chip in and hire a bus for the kids if it's so badly needed? I see certain Dublin residences are protesting over Dublin Bus routes being cut too. In such times, it's always the weakest that get hit, which may or may not include minorities.

[Schomberg]

hmm. Bully. Tell me did you get that dog?

We didn't in the end. Given our work schedules, it just didn't seem fair

[paulp]

I believe targeting a minority is always easier - less fuss will be made.

There's a lot of Protestant schools that won't meet the departments "criteria" for a lot of things. Thankfully, the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities should, in theory, protect them.

There's lots of schools that won't meet the departments criteria.
The fees parents have to pay have gone up, alot. In some cases, it can cost a family 650Euro to get the bus to their nearest school
This will have the consequence in many places where parents will opt to drive their kids to school rather than pay the fee.
This will have the consequence that the numbers taking some buses will drop below a threshold and the bus service will be withdrawn.

Do I think any of that is right? No.

Do I think the case outlined in your OP is somebody picking an easy target because it's a minority? No.

But in your OP you ask

Does anyone else get a few shivers when minorities like this are targeted?

Which at least implies that you believe that your OP case is a case where a minority is being targeted.

[SideysGhost]

I'm always in three or four minds about this sort of thing.

I have to accept parents should be able to send their children to schools of a particular ethos if they insist, the demand exists, and the school meets national educational standards....even if ideally I'd prefer if they didn't...

...because being a minority, and walling yourself away from the surrounding culture by actively seeking out separate schools etc, thus deliberately reinforcing an image of your community as "alien" doesn't strike me as particularly wise in the first place...

...and at what point do the resources expended to keep a tiny school for a minority open go past the point of "benign tolerance and support for minorities" and start encroaching on the realm of "stupid wasteful expense when there's a community school they could all go to instead"?

I don't know if that last point is applicable in this instance though. But I'm always mindful of Carndonagh Community School in Donegal, one of the largest secondary schools in the Republic, where local Protestants and Catholics were all educated together and that certainly helped the generally harmonious community relations at least among our generation.

[Watcher2]

Didn't the goverment get a much nicer drop in the bailout interest rate that was expected. Nearly a billion could be saved if memory serves me right, could they not put some of the extra savings from the interest pot to some locally needed services around the country. How much does this bus run cost the state a year?

The ignorance is astounding. We "saved" money with the interest rate reduction and you think that makes life grand???? Holy Christ, do you know anything? That was money we were mnot going to be abole pay in the first place.

Anyway, education cuts should not be happening, none of this shiite should be happening. That doesn't mean we should not be doing any of it. And I'm sure its not just this school bus thats being cut.