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General Election 2011, an opportunity missed
Opinion: If a bunch of students set up a political party, called it The Shites...
Several weeks ago I overheard the following conversation take place in a pub:
Man 1: Y’know, I’m just sick of the same old political parties - Fianna Fail, Fine Gael, Labour, sure they’re all the f***ing same, so they are.
Man 2: You’re right there Mike, I was thinking there myself only yesterd…..
Man 1: …SURE WHAT I want to see is students, if a bunch of students set up a new political party, called it, … The Shites or something, and you know I’d vote for them.
Man 2: You’re right there Mike, sure I was thinking yesterday….
Man 1: I WONDER WILL they bother their arses mind? Sure their probably too busy watching Jeremy Kyle and countdown.
Man 2: Y’know Mike you’re right, Only yesterday there I was thinking…
Man 1: COME HERE, I’ve to go to the jacks, mind that pint there.
Now, under normal circumstances, you would be well advised to pay absolutely no heed to the things you hear in pubs. And as a lifestyle choice, taking onboard every bit of advice you hear in pubs would be misguided, to say the least. But this conversation, or at least the gist of it resounded with me, and it got me thinking - why didn’t an alternate youth driven party emerge?
Given the widespread disillusionment with politics and political parties it was, albeit with the benefit of hindsight, surprising that there was no significant effort from the politically conscious youth to establish a new political movement or party free from the stigma of the failed orthodoxy.
While taking nothing away from the success of FG and Labour at the polls, it has to be stated that the perception is that FG and Labour are representative of this orthodoxy. There were several young independents running throughout the country, notably Dylan Haskins who performed admirably in Dublin south east, but it appears that independents have to fight an uphill battle, as they are either perceived as parochial stooges, married to the wants of their constituencies at the expense of society as a whole, or as inexperienced lightweights, who are often the subject of mirth and derision. Thus, it seems unlikely for an independent to be elected without a reasonably high profile which, of course, comes with increased age. Instead, surely, a cohesive and genuine effort from a dedicated group, with a clear and precise message of political and financial reform would have had a better chance of performing well in GE11, but sadly no such party emerged.
So it has to be asked, where does the motivation lie with the peers of my age and political disposition? While there are significant numbers of young people involved in politics, the majority are involved through political parties and the youth wings of these political parties. This patriarchal system does not actively promote dynamic and groundbreaking thinking, indeed the nature of the beast is of inherent conservatism and thus reactionary to crises, rather than the progressive and proactive which could have prevented some of the economic turmoil of the previous 3 years.
The general election of 2011 may, sadly, come to represent a missed opportunity for young people to have become involved in politics, which previously, was unattainable without party involvement. The social and economic situation in the next general election, some 5 years away, may not lend itself well to the idea of a youth driven reform party and the electorate may revert to voting en masse with the established political parties. This unfortunately may mean that it could be some time before a progressive reform based movement emerges...
By: conboy89
