No Time Wasters Please!

Anybody presenting themselves for election as President of Ireland need to be prepared to break protocol and be radical.

At least, anybody not from the Fine Gael/Fianna Fail camp.  We expect them to wallow in the pomp of it all and keep out of the grubby business of what really matters to people at this time.  And this is a dangerous time, folks.

The contest for the Irish Presidency has to be used as an opportunity by progressive activists to do two things.

1. To clearly define what a citizen is.  To understand that it is about society - the collection of people.  The responsibility that we all have to each other.  Of course, that puts plenty outside of all of that.  Most politicians have disavowed the concept of society - a la Thatcher.  The actions of many private companies towards their workers, the environment or to pay their way in the collective raising of public finance - ie Taxation.  These people are failing the citizenship test and any presidential candidate worth a damn has to use the attention generated by such a high profile campaign to play a part in stopping the erosion of gains made by ordinary people.

2. Obviously. To promote a 21st century progressive agenda not only to defend the best of what has been secured for ordinary people during the past few decades, but to play a vociferous part in showing that we want to disavow the barbarism of neo-liberalism.

There is  no room for the luxury of keeping out of politics here.  It is far too dangerous a situation for that.  The current crisis in capital has been turned around to attack the gains made.  This is much more serious than even the Thatcher period.  Political parties of the progressive left cannot afford the luxury of presenting themselves as 'responsible', working within the paradigm laid out by the same reactionary forces that are supposed to be our enemies.

It's time to get thrown ut the Dail chamber once in a while.  Put up with media jibes and ridicule about unworkable policies. 

We don't need safe presidential candidates who look nice for the camera's.  We need a rebel.