Green Party - what nerve!

Or, I guess I should say "what cheek"! In this week's edition of the Wicklow Times, Deirdre de Burca and Caroline Burrell of the Greens are quoted as complaining about Greenstar's service and charges. Now, I yield to no one when it comes to disgust with Greenstar, but I don't go around making political issues out of dumps and waste. The Green Party does all it can to make it nearly impossible for anyone to dump anything anywhere.

Now, they turn around and try to make it seem as if they're on the side of the householder when it comes to refuse. Well, they're not. They're anti-householder. They're in favor of some recycled waste-free, organic utopia that is totally unachievable. They are clearly panicking that people will hold them primarily responsible for the waste fiasco in this area. I hope they pay a BIG price in the coming local elections.

New follies?

When I first moved to Ireland I used to find it amusing (charming, what have you) that there were these "follies" scattered around the country. I lived near a huge one in Maynooth, Co. Kildare (visible from the M4) for a while.

However, I never imagined that I would see the day that new follies would be erected. Yet, there are two structures (erections? - I'm reminded of a man I met who referred to the archer on the sea front in Dun Laoghaire as "Willie Harvey's Erection". Although I'm not really sure who Willie Harvey was, I believe he was a local councillor.) in Killiney/Ballybrack that seem to fit that bill.

One is a brand new, miniature pillar that I thought was going to be a monument to something, but which has no description, etc. The other is a pair of huge concrete blocks near the intersection of Shanganagh Road, Ballybrack Road and Killiney Hill Road. These blocks look like refuse from a big building project. I had thought they were just cast-offs until the day I saw a large construction vehicle come along and realign them, for whatever reason.

I'd love to know the story behind these two bits of "art(?)". Any locals I've asked have been as baffled as I am.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour

My winged alter ego was talking about the Harbour this morning. I'm not really keen on any of the proposed new buildings on the Carlisle Pier.

I love the Harbour. Everytime I crest the hill on my way down into Dalkey, I take a peek out to see what it looks like. It's part of a spectacular vista, but it's the man-made part. There are virtually no man-made features in Ireland that are part of a beautiful scene. In many cases, the man-made items in a scene are a detraction from what is nature at its spectacular best. Dun Laoghaire Harbour may be the one big exception to that.

Looking out over Dublin Bay from the top of Dalkey Hill is tremendous. The view of Howth in the distance, Dalkey Island up close and the bay and the distant city make a fantastic picture. The Harbour adds to the picture. Seeing the Harbour from just above the quarry from which the Harbour stones were taken enhances the enjoyment - you can imagine the sweat and tears that went into the Harbour's construction.

All of this is important for those who are considering what to build on Carlisle Pier. I would prefer if nothing was built and the Pier was simply removed. Or, if the Pier was part of a floating Maritime Museum, intended to complement the current Maritime Museum.

But, simply building a large glass building to house a cultural center or whatever, would spoil the Harbour. The Harbour is man-made, beautiful, functional. It makes sense. Unless the new building fits in with these criteria, it will aesthetically ruin the Harbour.

There's a tree growing in Bray . . .

Driving along the Veevay Road, I saw trees being planted in front of Centra, etc. Nice touch. They'll look great above the red brick foot path. Is there no limit to the spending of public money when beautifying what is, after all, a shopping area? Shouldn't the shop-owners pay for these improvements? Are their rates being raised in response to the increased custom that this beautifying will bring?

I don't know whether the shop owners are paying for these improvements, but I doubt it. I'd love to know for sure.

No refuse collected today

Today is the first day that Greenstar will not collect refuse from all of us who paid them €370 for the weekly collection. I haven't seen any bins out, so the neighborhood got the message. Although, there are no bags of recyclables in front of many houses.

There are a few things to notice about the recyclable bags.

Most people have not crammed them full as I have. And, because the contents are mostly empty boxes and plastic containers, the bags are not heavy. Many are blowing around on the road.

Also, the fact that the bags are clear makes it possible to see what the neighbors are discarding. You can find out what papers they read, what cereals they eat, what soft drinks they consume, etc. Vaguely interesting as far as your regular neighbor snooping goes, but if I were running a local retail outfit, I'd have people up looking at these bags to see if there are any lessons to be learned.

The big test for this "no refuse collection" policy will come next week. I'm half expecting some people's bins will be so over-full that they will have extra bags lying beside the bin. Will the Greenstar collectors pick those up too?