New communal Bicycle Scheme for Dublin

A new communal Bicycle Scheme has been launched in Dublin today.
Its aim is to encourage more people - Dubliners as well as visitors - to cycle in Ireland's capital city instead of using their cars or public transport.

The initiative is organised by Dublin City Council in co-operation with a French advertising company which is funding the project in return for advertising space.
This copies similar schemes in Paris, Copenhagen and sixteen other cities. But it falls well short of long-established communal bicycle pools one can find in many Dutch cities.

In Dublin a total of 450 silver-coloured unisex bicycles - complete with a wire basket for small items in front of the handle bar - are now available for use by anyone.
They can be hired at 40 city locations, from the Mater Hospital in the North of the city to Grand Canal Street in the South.

A short journey of up to half an hour is free of charge, but for longer use of the bicycles there is a rental fee. The first six hours are covered by a flat fee of € 4.50, and after that € 2 are charged for every half hour.
The target audience for the scheme is therefore the short-distance or casual cyclist who might not have a bicycle but would like to use one now and then. The project could also be attractive for visitors who wish to discover the city on two wheels at an affordable price.

However, there is an obstacle in the system that might prevent quite a lot of people from using the new communal bicycles. To use one of the velocipedes one has to leave a € 150 deposit at the renting station, "in case the bike is not returned", as one of the organisers explains.

This is so typically Irish. We just don't trust anyone any more these days. It is the same attitude that makes us pay for every drink we order in a pub at the moment we receive it.
No one trusts anyone here these days, and - to be fair - there are indeed plenty of scoundrels in Ireland who like to take advantage of others. This begins with the government and ends among the lowest of lowlife in shabby pubs.

In contrast to Ireland, most countries in continental Europe have a culture of general trust and thus a lot less abuse. There drinks are marked on the beermat as long as one is in a tavern, and before one leaves, one pays for what one has consumed.
And in some continental countries, in particular in the Netherlands and parts of Belgium, free communal bicycle pools are a long-established service in many cities. Occasionally it does happen there too that a bicycle is not returned to the pool, but it is very rare. General honesty is much more common there than in Ireland, and as people enjoy the free service, they do not abuse it.

But in post-Tiger Ireland nothing happens without money. So anyone who wants to use one of the 450 new communal bicycles in Dublin has to make a € 150 deposit, either by credit card "or with a bank draft", as a city official suggests.
As credit cards are quite common these days, it should be easy to use them for this purpose. But what about those who do not have a 'flexible friend' made of plastic?
Most of Ireland's poor people, including many who live on social welfare, never had a credit card and would never get one from the banks. A lot of these people do not even have a bank account. So how could they avail of the new bicycle scheme?

No one seems to have thought that through. Without a credit card, people would need a € 150 bank draft! This is a large amount of money for poorer people (almost 75% of a weekly social welfare payment) and I cannot imagine that many would carry a bank draft over this amount around with them, just to be able to cycle around Dublin. It seems that once again a generally good idea is blighted right from the start by focusing too much on money and by not trusting the people.

As it is, the scheme is obviously aimed at environmentally conscious people from the middle classes, and it leaves those of lower social standing out in the cold.
There is also an unanswered question of data protection, since thousands of credit card details will be collected by a private advertising company. So even though I do have a credit card and care for the environment, I will not use the scheme as long as the deposit demand is in place. Too often we hear of data theft and large amounts of financial data that are abused for commercial purposes or simply go missing.
And there is no way that I will walk around with a € 150 bank draft in my pocket at all times...

The Emerald Islander

Can one believe Bertie Ahern?

Earlier today the Taoiseach said that he thinks the public believes his testimony at the Mahon Tribunal. As he arrived at Dublin Castle for another long day of interrogation, he was asked by reporters if he thought the public believed him.
All Mr. Smile, Bertie Ahern said: "Yes, totally."

It might well be that a certain portion of the population - especially the members and lifelong supporters of Fianna Fáil - would agree with this short statement of confidence. But an increasing number of people are seriously concerned about the Taoiseach and wonder if one can believe what he is saying about his personal finances. (And depending on that, if one can believe anything he says...)

We all have personal experience with earning and handling money, keeping books and accounts, and declaring and paying taxes. There is nothing particularly special about it, as we are all equal before the law and before the revenue commissioners. Or are we not?
Well, it appears that - like on George Orwell's "Animal Farm" - some people in Ireland are more equal than others. And, as seen with the late Charles Haughey, they get away with it if they just pretend long and stubbornly enough to be "innocent" or not to be able to remember certain things and events.

I don't know about you, but if I would receive a cheque over £5000, I would remember that, as well as the person, company or organisation it came from. So when Bertie Ahern tells the Mahon Tribunal that he cannot explain the source of a £5000-cheque cashed at the Irish Permanent building society on the very day his savings account was opened, its sounds strange, to say the least. After all, he is not some aged pensioner suffering from Alzheimer's disease, but our Prime Minister and leader of the largest political party in the country. And at the time in question he was Minister for Finance, responsible for the nation's wealth, the government's budget and the setting and collecting of our taxes. That a man with such high financial responsibilities, who is also a qualified accountant, cannot recall the origin of a £5000-cheque given to him is alarming.

Liar or Fool?
The questions asked by Judge Alan Mahon, his tribunal and the whole country are rather simple, but very important:
Is Bertie Ahern a liar?
Or is he a bumbling fool, unable to recall the source of a significant sum of money donated to him personally?
If he really lies about the cheque, for whatever reason, he could not be trusted with any other matter and should not be Taoiseach or hold any position of political power. And if he is unable to remember important financial transactions, the question needs to be asked if he is actually in command of all his faculties and able to lead the country, as well as if he was ever capable to head the Department of Finance. In both cases he should seriously consider to step down and make room for someone more able (and with much better memory).

One is compelled to agree with Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore, who said today that the Taoiseach's situation was now "a national embarrassment" and called on the Tánaiste and other ministers "to call time on his leadership".
Once again one would have also hoped to hear a word from the Green Party, whose coalition with Fianna Fáil keeps Bertie Ahern in office and power. But - once again - John Gormley and his people demonstrate that they crossed the line and moved completely into Bertie's camp, leaving behind their once sharp minds, critical remarks and sound judgments of Irish politics.

In English the Irish word Taoiseach means "Leader", just as it means Führer in German and Duce in Italian. But in clear contrast to its German and Italian equivalents, the word Taoiseach is not tainted by history - yet.
Should, however, Bertie Ahern become the second Irish Prime Minister - after Charles Haughey - to be found untrustworthy with money, or even corrupt and lying to a tribunal established by parliament, the word might well become the synonym for a corrupt leader, instead of meaning simply "Leader".

The Emerald Islander