Ireland one of the most corrupt nations in the western world

[atlantic]

At least in Italy the small guy can be as corrupt as the big guy.
QUOTE=Tess;333016][color=indigo]Before anyone shouts at me - I failed to read the link above, of course Ireland isn't more corrupt than Italy

Tess[/color][/QUOTE]

[turdsl]

Well, I suppose when you have corrupt leaders, its likely to give the country a bad name.

[jcdf]

What more can you say about a country were lucky young couples are the ones who can sell themselves into bondage for forty years so that they can have a match box to bring up their children in (if they can afford to have any children), while the unlucky ones cant even do that much. All the while a small group of landowners, builders and speculators swim in more cash than they can imagine what to do with. Fianna Fáil presided over this obsenity while the stuffed brown envelopes kept flowing.

For once we agree Cael. The Government has an obligation to protect the average citizens from monopolies such as the banks and developers and from people fooling themselves into subscribing to 100% and 120% mortgages on ridiculesly over priced property. These businessmen might not have done anything against the law, but the government should have passed laws to put the brakes on the property sector.

There were two Bacon reports, both paid for by taxpayers, and both equally ignored. They laid out strategies which could have been implemented and which could have avoided the disaster we now face.

Yes, I do think that speculators being allowed to make ridiculous profits at the expense of the working people who are left defenseless and unprotected by their so called government is the very height of corruption. That such practice is not against the law just goes to show how far the rot has gone.

I agree again! The recommendations of the Bacon report should have been implemented. We need to clean house of these politicians.

It could be worse...

Yes we are not the victims of a collapsing empire at least. We currently posses independence and the ability to control our own future, more than most.

[truthisfree]

Yeah really shocking. How many donations to a public servant's child's "football team" have I been asked to make this year already......

One of the great crutches of this country is the corruption in the civil & public services.

Agreed, I have seen someone I know in the Public Sector go to countless "meetings" in exotic locations all over the world while I have watched the department he works in produce lousy results year after year.

I have distanced myself completely from this person as I could not stand the BS.

[Geoffrey]

A bit of harmless 'corruption' is healthy in a modern, right thinking, progressive state. It's no big deal. Relax.