As a culture we permit alcoholics the luxury of euphemisms. We are delighted to indulge our leaders the same way, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the IRISH TIMES June 22 2010
 
ALCOHOLISM IS a deeply engrained cultural phenomenon that we celebrate in Ireland with euphemisms that mask its black destruction.
 
The alcoholism grows into the white elephant in [...]

Loyalty to Fianna Fáil and its leader was Brian Lenihan snr’s lodestone. His son must take a new direction, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the IRISH TIMES April 27 2010
 
‘WILL THE Taoiseach indicate when the legislation on wandering horses will be introduced in the House?”
 
When Brian Lenihan made his first, rather unremarkable, Dáil contribution 14 years [...]

RENEWING THE REPUBLIC: This series has shown a thirst for political reform coupled with an uncertainty about how to achieve it, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the Irish Times April 3 2010
 
ACCOMPANYING THIS series has been an image of our national flag, contorted at the centre by a knot. The narrative embarked upon by the various [...]

Fear is the driving force behind the most significant day in the country’s recent economic history, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the Irish Times March 30, 3009
 
TODAY WILL be full of language that seeks to “once-and-for-all” draw lines in the sand. A public exhausted by financial fatigue will continue to be confused by the complexity of [...]

The culture of self-interested national interest, as defined by Fianna Fáil, has already thrown €4bn of taxpayers’ money at Anglo Irish Bank, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the Irish TImes March 23, 2010
 
FINE GAEL is a failed political entity when compared to similar political parties in western democracies. It has never held two consecutive terms. It [...]

In contrast to our Government’s mantra that banks cannot fail, Iceland’s population is poised to vote against a deal to repay Icesave’s debts, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the Irish Times March 2, 2010
 
I LIKE to describe the manner in which I play Gaelic football as that of being a determined footballer. Unfortunately referees do not always [...]

WHEN WAS it decided to call this inquiry into our financial crisis a banking inquiry? By limiting the description of what is under scrutiny, the perception may arise that the Irish banking and regulatory systems are the sole focus of inquiry, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the IRISH TIMES January 26 2010
 
In the Dáil last week, [...]

Endemic localism and our whip system ends up reducing budget day to a theatrical exercise in parliamentary voting, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the IRISH TIMES December 8, 2009
 
IT IS of course entirely coincidental that International Anti-Corruption Day falls tomorrow, the same day as budget day. By a quirky twist of fate, tomorrow is also the [...]

Hiding decision-making processes behind the cloak of ‘commercial sensitivity’ is no way to build trust in the asset management agency, writes ELAINE BYRNE in the IRISH TIMES, August 4 2009

BRIAN LENIHAN scares me sometimes. When Áine Lawlor asked him on Morning Ireland last Friday about Nama’s process of valuing toxic assets, he had this to say: “Some of the land is at present not sellable in what is a very illiquid market and some allowance can be made, and it’s a limited allowance, but some allowance can be made for that in determination of what’s a fair price . . . some allowance can be made for longer term economic value.”

His liberal use of “allowance”, which translates as “discretion”, was very disconcerting.