Ireland is officially fucked

[Cain]

I like free cheese and hating on the IMF as much as anyone, but maybe Ireland should just admit it has the accounting skills of a meth-addled dyscalculia sufferer and ask for financial aid

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/nov/05/ireland-recession-let-them-eat-cheese

The country may be a few heartbeats away from intervention by the International Monetary Fund but today the Irish government had a novel message for the public: let them eat cheese.

Brendan Smith, the agriculture minister, announced a European Union-funded scheme today that will enable the country to tuck into the EU's cheese mountain. 53 tonnes of fresh cheddar will be distributed from 15 November with collection centres in towns and cities around the country.

The minister said the scheme was "an important means of contributing towards the well-being of the most deprived citizens in the community".

"I am very conscious that many people find themselves in difficult circumstances at present and I want to commend the work of the many charitable organisations who are working on the front line to bring what comfort and relief they can," said Smith.

The initiative was immediately attacked by the opposition Fine Gael party, who called it an insult to the country, which is suffering the worst financial crisis in its history.

Brian Lenihan, the finance minister, announced on Thursday that his budget next month would cut £5.2bn from public spending, twice the amount first suggested and coming on top of swingeing cuts already made in last year's budget.

Fine Gael's agriculture spokesman, Andrew Doyle, said: "People on the breadline would rather the government's attention was on solving the economic crisis they caused and providing jobs rather than on this ridiculous announcement.

"This shows just how out of touch Fianna Fáil and the Greens truly are. Maybe looking down from their ministerial Mercs, [taoiseach or prime minister] Brian Cowen, Brendan Smith et al think that all the Irish people want or need is cheese. The truth is sadly different.

"It goes to show that they think that providing free cheese will soft soap the electorate and make us all forget the mess Fianna Fáil made of the country and the hardship Brian Lenihan will inflict on everyone. It won't."

In the past butter has been given out to the needy, but this year it was felt cheese was easier to distribute. The cheese has been manufactured in Ireland and will be bought by the government from the Irish Dairy Board and made available through charities.

The initiative was welcomed by the Society of St Vincent de Paul, a charity that looks after the poor in Ireland. It said it has seen the numbers of people seeking assistance soar. "We have people on social welfare, single mothers, the elderly, lone parents. Half the calls we take are about food and energy," said a spokesman.

But the announcement tested the patience of the wider public, who have already been warned of deep cuts to pensions, pay and social welfare in the forthcoming budget.

One caller to RTÉ's Joe Duffy phone-in radio show said: "The fact that Marie Antoinette said 'let them eat cake' was the beginning of the revolution – is that what they want?"

Another caller said: "Have they taken leave of their senses? It's not cheese that people who have lost their jobs that people are worried about, it's about how they're going to tell their children or grandchildren that Santa has very little money.

"What are they going to tell their children and grandchildren: that Santa has cheese instead?"

[The Johnny]

Wouldnt potatoes be better?

I mean, it seems a bit random and not that pragmatic to distribute cheese - what im getting to is that, would the government have an agreement with a cheese seller for profit? Like, politician A gives concession to cheese selling company A, and company A gives tax-free money to politician A?

[slothrop23]

i wonder if cheese would make a good fire.  its a cold country

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Why is redistributing food surplus to the poor a bad thing? The US has done it for ages.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

I mean, fuck, if you haven't had government cheese you haven't been poor in the US.

[Phox]

I mean, fuck, if you haven't had government cheese you haven't been poor in the US.

I miss the government cheese. We used to get it back when I was a little kid. It was pretty good cheese. Do they still give out the government cheese?

[E.O.T.]

I like free cheese and hating on the IMF as much as anyone, but maybe Ireland should just admit it has the accounting skills of a meth-addled dyscalculia sufferer and ask for financial aid

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2010/nov/05/ireland-recession-let-them-eat-cheese

The country may be a few heartbeats away from intervention by the International Monetary Fund but today the Irish government had a novel message for the public: let them eat cheese.

Brendan Smith, the agriculture minister, announced a European Union-funded scheme today that will enable the country to tuck into the EU's cheese mountain. 53 tonnes of fresh cheddar will be distributed from 15 November with collection centres in towns and cities around the country.

The minister said the scheme was "an important means of contributing towards the well-being of the most deprived citizens in the community".

"I am very conscious that many people find themselves in difficult circumstances at present and I want to commend the work of the many charitable organisations who are working on the front line to bring what comfort and relief they can," said Smith.

The initiative was immediately attacked by the opposition Fine Gael party, who called it an insult to the country, which is suffering the worst financial crisis in its history.

Brian Lenihan, the finance minister, announced on Thursday that his budget next month would cut £5.2bn from public spending, twice the amount first suggested and coming on top of swingeing cuts already made in last year's budget.

Fine Gael's agriculture spokesman, Andrew Doyle, said: "People on the breadline would rather the government's attention was on solving the economic crisis they caused and providing jobs rather than on this ridiculous announcement.

"This shows just how out of touch Fianna Fáil and the Greens truly are. Maybe looking down from their ministerial Mercs, [taoiseach or prime minister] Brian Cowen, Brendan Smith et al think that all the Irish people want or need is cheese. The truth is sadly different.

"It goes to show that they think that providing free cheese will soft soap the electorate and make us all forget the mess Fianna Fáil made of the country and the hardship Brian Lenihan will inflict on everyone. It won't."

In the past butter has been given out to the needy, but this year it was felt cheese was easier to distribute. The cheese has been manufactured in Ireland and will be bought by the government from the Irish Dairy Board and made available through charities.

The initiative was welcomed by the Society of St Vincent de Paul, a charity that looks after the poor in Ireland. It said it has seen the numbers of people seeking assistance soar. "We have people on social welfare, single mothers, the elderly, lone parents. Half the calls we take are about food and energy," said a spokesman.

But the announcement tested the patience of the wider public, who have already been warned of deep cuts to pensions, pay and social welfare in the forthcoming budget.

One caller to RTÉ's Joe Duffy phone-in radio show said: "The fact that Marie Antoinette said 'let them eat cake' was the beginning of the revolution – is that what they want?"

Another caller said: "Have they taken leave of their senses? It's not cheese that people who have lost their jobs that people are worried about, it's about how they're going to tell their children or grandchildren that Santa has very little money.

"What are they going to tell their children and grandchildren: that Santa has cheese instead?"

MEANWHILE

          bono is doing, what? where else?

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

I mean, fuck, if you haven't had government cheese you haven't been poor in the US.

I miss the government cheese. We used to get it back when I was a little kid. It was pretty good cheese. Do they still give out the government cheese?

It still exists but I think the distribution is different, in that it largely goes to indian reservations (like it always did) and also WIC, school lunch programs, and assistance programs for families with kids under the age of six. You can't just go to the food distribution center and pick up a food box, like it used to be.

I kind of miss the simplicity of the old food assistance program... I could do a lot with flour, lard, cheese, peanut butter, beans, and canned meat, corn, and tomatoes.

[Phox]

I mean, fuck, if you haven't had government cheese you haven't been poor in the US.

I miss the government cheese. We used to get it back when I was a little kid. It was pretty good cheese. Do they still give out the government cheese?

It still exists but I think the distribution is different, in that it largely goes to indian reservations (like it always did) and also WIC, school lunch programs, and assistance programs for families with kids under the age of six. You can't just go to the food distribution center and pick up a food box, like it used to be.

I kind of miss the simplicity of the old food assistance program... I could do a lot with flour, lard, cheese, peanut butter, beans, and canned meat, corn, and tomatoes.

Me too. 

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

I mean, fuck, if you haven't had government cheese you haven't been poor in the US.

I miss the government cheese. We used to get it back when I was a little kid. It was pretty good cheese. Do they still give out the government cheese?

It still exists but I think the distribution is different, in that it largely goes to indian reservations (like it always did) and also WIC, school lunch programs, and assistance programs for families with kids under the age of six. You can't just go to the food distribution center and pick up a food box, like it used to be.

I kind of miss the simplicity of the old food assistance program... I could do a lot with flour, lard, cheese, peanut butter, beans, and canned meat, corn, and tomatoes.

Me too. 

Um um um

It looks like Michigan still has their assistance program: http://www.michigan.gov/dhs/0,1607,7-124-5453_5527-21832--,00.html 

[Phox]

I mean, fuck, if you haven't had government cheese you haven't been poor in the US.

I miss the government cheese. We used to get it back when I was a little kid. It was pretty good cheese. Do they still give out the government cheese?

It still exists but I think the distribution is different, in that it largely goes to indian reservations (like it always did) and also WIC, school lunch programs, and assistance programs for families with kids under the age of six. You can't just go to the food distribution center and pick up a food box, like it used to be.

I kind of miss the simplicity of the old food assistance program... I could do a lot with flour, lard, cheese, peanut butter, beans, and canned meat, corn, and tomatoes.

Me too. 

Um um um

It looks like Michigan still has their assistance program: http://www.michigan.gov/dhs/0,1607,7-124-5453_5527-21832--,00.html 

Michigan FAP? 

[Don Coyote]

I mean, fuck, if you haven't had government cheese you haven't been poor in the US.

I don't remember the government cheese, although I've been told I was raised on it, but I do remember the government peanut butter. I love it when people assume that because I can sting words together properly that I wasn't poor.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Sinne Fianna Fail ata faoi gheall ag Eireann... (sorry had to). Irish cheese is pretty good I must say. Though, you're right, we're not very good with math.

Wouldnt potatoes be better?

I mean, it seems a bit random and not that pragmatic to distribute cheese - what im getting to is that, would the government have an agreement with a cheese seller for profit? Like, politician A gives concession to cheese selling company A, and company A gives tax-free money to politician A?

Please to see Irish history and the role of the potato

i wonder if cheese would make a good fire.  its a cold country

As far as the last time I was there, turf is still available, and the country is generally warmer than New England in the winter. It's not so much cold as wet.

MEANWHILE

         bono is doing, what? where else?

Paying attention to the developing countries, worshipping Jeebus and writing crappy music.

Blight,
-Just got back from the bar, so ignore me


ETA: The bit in Irish at the beginning is the start of the chorus of the Irish national anthem. Fianna Fail has a different context there, but it is also the name of one of the political parties, which, if I recall correctly is the predominant party and Ireland's version of the GOP.

[Phox]

I mean, fuck, if you haven't had government cheese you haven't been poor in the US.

I can sting words together properly that I wasn't poor.

I assume that is poor for "string"?  


Seriously though, these days elocution/education level have a perceived correlation to economic upbringing in a surprisingly large swath of the population. Anybody else remember "ebonics"?

Sinne Fianna Fail ata faoi gheall ag Eireann... (sorry had to). Irish cheese is pretty good I must say. Though, you're right, we're not very good with math.

Wouldnt potatoes be better?

I mean, it seems a bit random and not that pragmatic to distribute cheese - what im getting to is that, would the government have an agreement with a cheese seller for profit? Like, politician A gives concession to cheese selling company A, and company A gives tax-free money to politician A?

Please to see Irish history and the role of the potato

i wonder if cheese would make a good fire.  its a cold country

As far as the last time I was there, turf is still available, and the country is generally warmer than New England in the winter. It's not so much cold as wet.

MEANWHILE

         bono is doing, what? where else?

Paying attention to the developing countries, worshipping Jeebus and writing crappy music.

Blight,
-Just got back from the bar, so ignore me


ETA: The bit in Irish at the beginning is the start of the chorus of the Irish national anthem. Fianna Fail has a different context there, but it is also the name of one of the political parties, which, if I recall correctly is the predominant party and Ireland's version of the GOP.

Cheers, Blight.  

ETA: Clarification. And again.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Would have stayed longer but the commute home on public transportation would have gotten progressively crappier. I had the option of drinking in my neighborhood and having a 15 minute walk home later or getting pints for a buck fifty each closer to work with about an hour and 20 trip home. I opted for the latter.