Galway Advertiser 2008/GA_2008_07_31/GA_3107_E1_016.pdf 

Extracted text

(((

BE A GALWAY VOICE

Not happy with the registration office
Dear Editor, I would like to bring to the attention of the readers the incompetence and the utter disrespect with which its civil servants and namely the employees of the Galway registration offices are treating the people who come to apply for Irish registration. I am Russian and I moved to Galway 10 years ago when my dad was invited by a software developing company to work for them here. We pay taxes and are law abiding citizens and yet every year when we come to extend our visa we are treated like dirt and come out of the office feeling like we had to beg to be granted the privilege to stay and work for the Irish economy for one more year. What happened this year made me lose my patience -- I know how many people were put in the same situation as me and I can't keep silent any longer. This year I wanted to get a five-year registration as a daughter of an Irish citizen instead of a yearly student visa and I was refused it, which results in me having to come back every year and pay 100 every time instead of only paying it once. I do not understand why I should pay 400 more and waste my time every summer going to reapply again and again. When asked on which grounds I was refused the registration as a daughter of an Irish citizen as I am one, the reply I got was "I don't know", unfortunately for me the second official didn't know either. I was a bit taken aback by such a reply, to my mere suggestion that an official working there should at least know why he is giving me one type of stamp and not the other. Then I was asked if I was calling him stupid. Now I was brought up with a lot of respect for my elders and I wouldn't even dream of calling anyone stupid but his hostility scared me and I agreed that he knows best. After that I was told to wait for 10 days until they find out which kind of registration stamp they can grant me. My summer plans have been ruined and as an honest person I feel simply uncomfortable being in Ireland without registration and visa. I have never seen more than three people applying for registration at the same time so I cannot say they are swamped with work. I feel that if there was one official in the registration office instead of two but who actually knew what he was doing the process of receiving registration would be much more efficient and definitely more pleasant. Yours, Arsenia Nikolaeva, Clybaun Rd, Galway

Let's hope bypass decision doesn't make Galway another boring car-oriented city
Dear Editor, I see that a decision is due from An Bord Pleanala at the end of August concerning the proposed Outer City Bypass for Galway. My sincere hope is that it doesn't get the go ahead. We are currently at a stage where we have a great opportunity for Galway to become a model, sustainable, city for the rest of the country. We can become pioneers of public transport and cycling in line with best practice around the world. We all want to breathe clean, fresh air, yet everyone seems to want to drive around in cars. We need to break our love affair with the private car and become more efficient at how we travel. I watch day after day as car after car passes by with one person in each one. It's complete madness. I know what the response is: 'Well we have no alternatives!' That is why it's imperative that we support politicians who do not follow the old fashioned road building antics. What people need to do is support public transport initiatives that will get cars off the road. We need park and ride centres at various locations on the outskirts of Galway city and a public transport system for the city itself. This will prevent the clogging up of roadspace in the city and all the negative health aspects associated with it. A public transport system can take many forms, ie. trams, bus lanes, etc, but what is also needed as a matter of urgency is an undertaking by the city council to promote Galway as a cycling city and give greater priority to cyclists and less to motorists. Cities like Copenhagen, which has a worse climate than Galway, have managed to achieve this, through very simple measures to start with such as reducing car park spaces and increasing bicycle parking. To make it safer for cycling, enforcement of speed limits in the city for vehicles is badly needed and one way this could be done is with number plate recognition speed cameras.. Ultimately, road building does not solve traffic problems as seems to be the popular belief. On the contrary, it encourages more people to drive. Research from the UK and other countries backs this up. After all, how long did it take for the Quincentennary Bridge to fill up after it was constructed? In turn, with more cars on the road, emissions increase, traffic jams get worse and leads to universal frustration. We see this on the roads today, but it will just get worse until we decide to stop building more roads and focus on alternative, healthier modes of transport. Ireland likes to think of itself as ahead of the game and in keeping with European guidelines. There seems to be the perception that road building will make Galway a modern city to be looked up to. However, nothing could be further from the truth. Also, many people are of the opinion that we have advanced as a society since we have cars to bring us places and we don't have to walk and cycle any more. While we have advanced to an extent, the car is used in a grossly irresponsible way, where alternatives exist. The policy of constructing highways, ring roads, etc, is a remnant from the sixties and is outdated. One only has to look to the other side of the country, to the M50, to see the detrimental effect ring roads have on traffic flow. To make the same mistake here would be imcomprehensible. It could be the case, in the future, that as Galway expands, it will need another bridge further up the Corrib but that day is a long way off. Why not implement a public transport system before considering a hugely wasteful outer bypass? Why should the roads always get built first? I believe that the public needs to take some of the initiative as well. While the public transport system isn't the best at the moment, why not use it where possible, or else cycle to get the message across to the city council officials that what Galway wants and needs is not more roads but a decent, reliable transport system and better facilities for cyclists. We are at a fork in the road. Do we go down the path of just being another boring caroriented city or will we become a vibrant, inclusive and sustainable city, saving millions, if not billions in the future. The decision this month will truly be a defining moment in the history of Galway. Yours, David Brady, Renmore (dbrady538@yahoo.co.uk)

Chinese leaders have no real understanding of their people
Dear Editor, While I agree with Mr Thomas' call for a boycott of the Chinese Olympics and diplomatic sanctions against China for its support of genocide in Sudan and oppression in Tibet and within China itself, it is very unlikely that developed nations will do this. Mr Thomas' stand is just and principled and is supported by the the tenets and ideals of democracy, the laws and constitutions of many countries, the doctrines of all the major world religions, and by reason, logic and rationality. So why are countries supporting China when it stands against everything that they stand for ? That is the big question. The present course of action by developed nations is not encouraging China to change its ways, it is in fact aiding and abetting them in their criminal activity. Raising the issue with the Chinese ambassador or the visiting Chinese foreign minister or president or prime minister has not solved the problem and is not solving it. Many governments have done this and got nowhere. The Irish government should provide a detailed account to the Irish people of why they will not boycott the Olympics and implement diplomatic sanctions. Ireland has few economic contacts with China at the moment and is not overly reliant on it. So do the Irish government support genocide, colonialism and oppression or not? What about other countries besides Ireland? The USA will continue to support China as it has become economically and financially dependent on China. Since the mid 1990's America has been busy moving it's manufacturing and production base over to China and East Asia and making it's own workforce unemployed, creating destitution, crime and drug dependencies in the process. Furthermore, the Chinese have bought up most of the American government bonds or debt in the last 10 years and have this both for political leverage and trading advantage. While the US claims to be the great bastion of freedom and democracy, it can hardly claim to be so in light of what it has done and continues to do. Having criticised the Irish Government's position, what is Mr Thomas' view of the American position ? The root of the problem seems to be a lack of awareness and understanding among leaders and their peoples. They believe themselves to be supporters of freedom, democracy, justice, fairness, and religious righteousness and goodness, reason and rationality, etc, but are they really? In reality, in fact and in practice, they do not support any of these ideals. They are so mired in ignorance, small-mindedness, pettiness, laziness, superficiality and selfishness that they are incapable of supporting the very ideals which they claim to support and hold in such high regard. Observe the leaders of the G-8 countries and the leaders of the EU countries, and the terrible state of economic, political, financial and human rights affairs, there is not a person of high principle, intellectual depth, spiritual depth, vision or great intelligence among them. Of course, they'll tacitly and covertly support China and other similar countries, they think it's normal to do so. And they'll feed lies and platitudes to the ignorant masses who might find time to listen to them in between television, sport, golf and drinking sessions. Yes indeed, you are earning the genocides, colonialism, tyranny and oppression you claim to oppose. Where are the philosopher kings (political and social leaders) proposed by Plato in his work The Republic ? Where are the persons of high principle, wisdom, intellectual depth, spiritual depth, vision and great intelligence who could be our philosopher kings and pursue "The Idea of the Good" as proposed by Plato? Why do we have to put up with such muck, dishonesty and mediocrity in our political and economic systems? Why do we have to put up with 'casino economics' and massive crashes which almost destroy the world's financial system, and why do we have to put up with continued genocide and human rights abuses? What we really need is a complete restructuring of the education, economic and political systems in developed countries.

PUBLISHED BY:

Galway Advertiser
41-42 Eyre Square, Galway. Tel: 091 - 530900 Fax: (General) 091 567079 Fax: (Advertising) 091 - 567150 Fax: (Newsdesk) 091 - 565627 Internet Address: http://www.galwayadvertiser.ie Printed by: The Irish Times, Liffey House, Tara St, Dublin 2.

BE A GALWAY VOICE

letters@galwayadvertiser.ie
The Galway Advertiser wishes to advise that it is not responsible for the content which appears in the letters pages and accepts no liability arising from publication of material on these pages. The Galway Advertiser, 41-42 Eyre Square, Galway. Tel: 091 - 530900. Fax (General) 091 567079 Fax: (Advertising) 091 - 567150 Fax: (Newsdesk) 091 - 565627 Internet Address: http://www.galwayadvertiser.ie / news@galwayadvertiser.ie

(((
HAVE YOUR SAY

16 L E T T E R S

July 31 2008

Yours, DE Galway. (Full name and address with editor)