You’d think the tyrants running the Irish government had enough on their hands as it is, what with their citizens mad about un-restrained immigration, the government’s fascist moves to restrain citizens, and the general sense of going to hell in a handbasket that seems to pervade any discussion of life there at the moment.

“…We cannot cope with this…”

Ivan Yates gives his observation on mass immigration into Ireland pic.twitter.com/YuEX20oLM9

— Irishman (@IrishmanIRL) January 5, 2024

There’s a referendum coming up in March that’s causing a good bit of despair and discussion, and what’s being considered is enough to turn you into a dour heavy drinker.

“There’s two things you need to know about this referendum coming up…that the government’s giving us in March. A referendum that’s supposed to be centered around the family.

And the first thing is this: The Irish government want to remove all mention of womanhood and motherhood from the constitution, because the language is outdated. It’s gendered. It’s not progressive enough. And it offends transgender people.

And the second thing is, they want to update the definition of family to include the following term, and the term is:

OTHER DURABLE RELATIONSHIPS…”

Excellent short video on the planned referendum in Ireland. pic.twitter.com/gy9e6hZ71e

— Dr. Anne Mc Closkey (@DrAnneDerry) January 5, 2024

Irish legislators want to codify “hate speech” – in point of fact, “hate thought” – to include being spoken ill of, gestured at, thought of badly, facial expressions that could be interpreted to be unkind – any of a million different perceived or imagined slights to something like 9 (could be more by now) different and specific victim-classes. These proposed laws of course come with police powers to invade your home, life, and electronics, searching for anything that could be classified as such. All literally being done in the name of “the common good.”

…The hate speech laws as they were introduced this spring were still under discussion, mostly because they were proving hugely unpopular (imagine that) with the Irish people themselves. The proposed legislation became even more despised as time passed and information leaked out about how these draconian restrictions were going to be enforced and, even worse, interpreted before being enforced.

They were, in point of fact, written to be thought crimes – reported and punished as such, for all that proponents insisted constitutionally “protected” free speech was still “protected.”

Much of this is to protect the radical LGBTQwhatever community of activists, but also because there’s a huge population of Muslims now residing in Ireland who cannot abide any criticism of either Islamic countries or the behavior of some of their own brethren in Ireland itself without shrieking about Islamophobia. It also gives the ruling party, led by many 2d generation immigrant offspring (such as their Prime Minister or “Taoiseach”)…

The only positive thing you could say about Varadkar is that he's never wavered in his wholehearted belief that Irish people are second-rate. He has been steadfast on that one from the off. He's never pretended to have anything other than sheer contempt for us. #VoteNoRef24 pic.twitter.com/3tjcGZd8zX

— Chris (@ChrisHahn411) January 5, 2024

…an iron fist at keeping independently minded Irishmen under control when they get froggy about uber liberal policies they don’t see as particularly “Irish” in nature, nor beneficial to the country as a whole.

Such as the current status of immigration..

The social fabric is utterly changed. 1 in 5 residents of Ireland were not born here. Such radical demographic change, from so many cultures, brings tensions.

Add to that our homeless & healthcare crises, the National Debt, and taxpayers forced to pay for uncapped immigration… https://t.co/qHnLSUGSc9 pic.twitter.com/rnbJBgsApg

— Jane Holland MD PhD (@drjaneholland) January 5, 2024

Those immigrant numbers and the outsized Irish benefits they receive are overwhelming an already precarious system that can’t take care of its own, and building even more resentment. The Irish are the problem, insist the government.

Another new record set.

More homeless Irish than ever before.

Meanwhile we're putting up 26,000 foreigners in hotels at a cost of €42,000,000 per month. #IrelandisFull pic.twitter.com/QI6ul1tef6

— MichaeloKeeffe (@Mick_O_Keeffe) January 5, 2024

And now the government is signaling they’re going after the food on Irish plates, since no one has paid any attention to their previous growlings about holding to the U.N.’s benchmarks for food waste reduction.

Full plates grate, and doggie bags make him very angry.

Diners need less food on plates to cut waste, says minister
Agriculture Minister said overloaded plates in food outlets ‘really grates with me and really annoys me‘

Restaurants and food outlets need to cut down on the amount of food they put on consumers’ plates to reduce waste, the Agriculture Minister has said.

Charlie McConalogue said there was a lot of waste within food service and urged every business to look to address the issue further.

…“It’s much better not to overload somebody’s plate but allow somebody to come back for seconds and there’ll be a lot less putting [food] into the bin as a result of that approach,” he said.

In an interview with the Irish Examiner, the Donegal TD said he believed it was less of a problem if people were not given enough food at a restaurant and said people can “always ask for seconds” and pay for it.

…“I think we need to be avoiding the situation when people have to be reaching for a doggy bag because you’re dealing with the problem rather than the cause so it shouldn’t be the case that plates are overloaded, that’s what I believe where we need to try and reach behavioural change.

…The Government has committed to reducing food waste by 50% by 2030 — in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

And then the consumption guilt coup de grâce, as it always is with these people:

…“I think it is a clear win on so many fronts, and a clear win as well on the emissions and climate front,” he added.

Good luck trying to snatch the doggie bag out of a senior citizen’s hand here, my friend.

It’s hard to think of what’s left for the Irish government to intrude upon, but they seem to be searching diligently for solutions where there are no problems.

The government and media have been beating the radical-right-wing horse to death in frantic efforts to frighten what lemmings they have left into keeping them in power. The state media organ in Ireland, RTE, has been leading the right-wing bogeyman crusade, couching it as not just angry Derry protestors but tying to the movements a;; over Europe, and, of course, #OrangeManBad.

IT’S SO SCARY OUT THERE – SAVE US PROGRESSIVES

1 Ha ha they “love” democracy- only when it gives them the right result. These coming elections are going to shatter the left. Especially in Europe- talking to someone that works alongside EU Parliament tells me legislation has effectively gone on ice and there’s an expectation

— Nolockdownever2 (@nolockdownever2) January 5, 2024

How does democracy across the globe survive the onslaught of these barbarians?

Insert a shriek of terror wherever it works for you.

…2024 will be an enormously challenging year on both sides of the Atlantic, according to Professor John O’Brennan, Chair of European Integration at Maynooth University.

“I think it’s potentially a terrifying year,” Prof O’Brennan said.

There are fears for the stability of the US system, and a potential rise of populist parties in the European Parliament elections. Far right parties could become the largest block in Brussels, according to Prof O’Brennan.

While right-wing politicians have yet to make a significant political breakthrough in Ireland, “polling in 15 out of 27 EU states shows that the far right is on 20% or above,” he said.

Two right-wing groupings, Identity and Democracy and the European Conservatives and Reformists could, despite previous divisions, coalesce into a powerful faction, he said.

“They have the capacity to ensure that the legislative system in the EU comes to a complete standstill. That’s potentially the most serious consequence.”

There’s a constant need to put the fear of God and right-wingers in the peasants.

Otherwise the peasants might stop to think about the hand that’s reaching for their doggie bags, and finally notice whose hand it is.