Two years ago, in 2012, over a period of several months and in multiple venues across the country, hundreds of thousands marched in peaceful protest against the introduction of the Household Charge and despite intense government media-spun pressure, nearly a million homeowners risked self-incrimination by refusing to register by the March 31st deadline.
In October, November and on Tue December 10th this week, hundreds of thousands of people again took to the streets, again in peaceful and good-humored protest, on this occasion against the imposition of water charges and the transparent effort at privatisation of Irish Water.
On those occasions we've been ignored (Ballyhea), undermined (Revenue brought in to act as the collection service), demonised (water protesters), but always, our anger and our numbers underestimated, our protests derided, belittled.
The government, with their small army of spinners in the various departments and embedded in the media, are making a grievous and potentially dangerous mistake.
If they won't listen to reasonable people making reasonable arguments in a reasonable manner, they risk - nay, they invite - extreme people making extreme demands in extreme ways.
Slowly but surely, by their arrogance they are raising the levels of anger among people across every level of Irish society.
I ask this government now, I ask those embedded Dáil media; listen to the people, please, for all our sakes.
Regards,
Diarmuid O'Flynn.
