Yer man, the ex-Fianna Fáil guy, now head of the charity Goal, said on RTE news that they had over 1,000 volunteers to go help fight the spread of Ebola in West Africa.
Isn’t it incredible that so many would so selflessly risk contagion and a horrible death?
Say what you like, and I’m as cynical as they come usually, but that’s something Ireland can be proud of.
Ireland’s ongoing 3rd world aid, both NGO’s and governmental, is per capita, way more generous than most. Is it our colonial past, our own famine only a few generations ago or the fact that we’ve still a strong connection with the land?
I know several designers and landscapers who went out to South Africa with Niall Mellon a few years back. My Sister, who works for Concern (and formerly CDC – the centre for disease control – in Atlanta), has been in the media a bit recently, talking about the awfulness of it all.
It certainly puts my virus last week and our every day travails, into prospective though eh? A couple of quid to either of these organisations, neither of whom are trying to convert the natives, would be good for the soul. Feck, now any further giving out about things seems churlish. Don’t worry, normal service will resume in future emails.
Ivan Yates is a gas man though. Yes, he’s a bit misogynistic and a bully to his co-presenter (banter?!) but a great interviewer, unafraid to state his point of view, and a loss to politics. Must read his new book. Am still reading the 80:20 rule at the moment.
So Budget day is upon us. Big swing in the mickey I hear you say. And you’d be right. Noonan ain’t gonna do much but hopefully he’ll preserve and enhance people’s confidence. So they’ll get those jobs done. By us. As the admittedly clever AIB ad campaign says; ‘We’re Backing Brave’.
Up and out in all weather, forging ahead, making things happen. Remember us Mr Noonan- the wealth creators not the takers.
Slan,
Mark 🙂