Sunday 10 November 2013

Varadkar cosies up to Conradh na Gaeilge on Irish road signs

"More Irish than the Irish themselves"

Even as a kid I could see that this officially presented twaddle was utter bollocks.  How can you "be more" than what is, in this sense, after all?


You know how there has been a clamour for many things to be tackled since the bubble burst?

Like:

Those who made the bank debts public property (the Irish Government of the time) being brought to justice.

The property tax.


DIRT tax -   the highest in the world. 


The continuing scandal of Vehicle Registration Tax.


The fact PAYE workers go into the highest income-tax bracket in, or at around, the 30-grand mark...as opposed to six digits in the UK. 


Continuing tax-breaks for builders and developers.


The Government massaging the true unemployment figures by cutting benefit down to 9 months, therefore ensuring that people who have paid taxes for decades slip quietly below the radar when their benefit runs out. 


Lots of things.


So how do you make your feelings felt when something concerns you?    Contact your local TD?

One of mine is Leo Varadkar.  When we moved into Gombeen Manor here a couple of years ago, when the gobshite investors were temporarily frightened off, we discovered that our broadband was utter w**k.   It was slower than dial-up.

We got onto the bould Leo, along with Joan Burton and Peggy Hamill and some other wine-and-cheese-party type from Fine Gael whose name escapes me.  Something to do with Queen's Park Rangers, I think.

Not one of them responded. 

Eventually - with a bit of non-lobby enhanced pucking, the provider rolled out the fibre - it seems our bit of Castleknock had been forgotten - and now we are sorted.

So, how do you get a politician's ear in Ireland?

Be Conradh na Gaeilge, it seems.  These gobshites who, in their previous incarnation as the Gaelic League, helped ruin Ireland's education system by sitting on school governing committees and insisting the Irish education system be geared more toward Gaelic revivalism than education (see Tom Garvin - Preventing The Future).  These Government-funded arsebags have got Varadkar's ear just like that.

Now if this quango of hobbyists and Gaelic-language lobbyists gets its way, we will have even more nonsensical and confusing road signage than we have at present, with priority (thanks to the odious O'Cuiv's Language Act)  given to a "language" that only a tiny minority of elitists and cultural nationalists actually speak...along with their mother-tongue Hiberno-English.  

They know what the country needs, begob.


Have a look at this bollocksology:








Green light for plan to make road signs 'more Irish'



Paul Melia – 08 November 2013, Irish Independent.


Intensive lobbying by Conradh na Gaeilge could result in road signs being changed to give equal prominence to our two official languages.

Road signs display English place names more prominently than those as Gaeilge – but Transport Minister Leo Varadkar has now given his approval to replace these signs over time with a new version designed by the lobby group.

The minister and officials met with Conradh na Gaeilge earlier this week, and it unveiled new sign designs which make placenames the same size in Irish and English.
While no signs will be replaced in the short-term – the National Roads Authority (NRA) has just spent €65m re-signing the road network – the new ones may be used when needed.
Mr Varadkar has asked the NRA to consider using them on a trial basis, but new regulations must be passed before they can be put in place.

Existing road-sign legislation stipulates that priority must be given to English place names.
"I like the new design and I do think there should be parity between Irish and English where it matters, like road signs that people see every day," Mr Varadkar said. "But it's a bit like an election poster – it's only when
you put it on a road and drive past that you really know whether it works.
"I have been in touch with the NRA and they are considering putting up a few signs on a trial basis to see what people think. These would be new signs that have to go up anyway so there would be no additional cost involved."
If it goes ahead, it means that road signs will be compliant with the Official Languages Act for the first time. 

Julian de Spainn, from Conradh na Gaeilge, said the idea was first mooted a number of years ago, but the last government wasn't keen.
"It's about the language. All these things make a difference. We teach children about the importance of mlanguage, and they go outside and see that English is more prevalent on road signs. It differentiates us from other countries, too, which can only be a good thing for tourism."

The NRA said it was an "interesting proposal" and while it did have bilingual signs, it "looked forward" to implementing the idea. "This initiative is being proposed by the minister and Department of Transport, and we look forward to their direction on it," a spokesman said.

Ho-hum.  In most other countries, signage is about offering information, direction and clarity. 

In Ireland, it is all about creating bureaucracy and promoting the deluded notion that we are a nation of Gaelic speakers, long after the Irish ditched their peasant (and spoken only) babble for modernity and progress.

Leo, you seem very accessible.  How can we get your ear to change things that really matter to the Irish people, rather than engaging with the type of lobby groups who brought ruin to the country?


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10 comments:

DB said...

Priorities? Not in Ireland.

Interesting stats in piece below from Sunday World.

Irish language organisation Conradh na Gaeilge may be successful in their bid to give Irish the same prominence on road signs as English.

Following intensive lobbying from the group, Transport Minister Leo Varadkar has now given approval to replace the signs and has asked the National Roads Authority (NRA) to consider using them on a trial basis.

Minister Varadkar said "I have been in touch with the NRA and they are considering putting up a few signs on a trial basis to see what people think. These would be new signs that have to go up anyway so there would be no additional cost involved."

Although Ireland is officially bilingual the 2011 census found that only 1.77 million of the nations 4.589 million population are able to speak Irish, and that just over 77k people speak the language on a daily basis, outside the education system, which is less than 2 per cent of the country's population.

The census also found that 119,526 people spoke Polish at home, making it Ireland’s second most spoken language.

The new signs are not set to be restricted to the Gaeltacht regions, which account for a population of just 96,628, less than the combined residents of Tallaght (71,467) and Lucan (37,622) in county Dublin.

The new design will test the ‘Turas’ typeface with colour differentiation in order to highlight both languages as based on the study conducted by Conradh na Gaeilge.

The existing system uses the British Transport typeface which the report slams as promoting the “the look of Britain” claiming that it effects the visible expression of national identity.

The new signs, if adopted will only be used when needed as the National Roads Authority have just spent €65 million re-signing the road network.

Nenad said...

Jaysus, how I miss it !!!

cheers, Ned ;)

The Gombeen Man said...

@ DB. Interesting stats indeed. 2% run the country so.

@ Nenad. You're as well out of the place, mate. But, then again, you know that. I might join you sometime.

anna said...

'existing signs' use British typeface_ I Never knew that OR cared- I didn't feel it affected MY identity- so time so many papers stopped using Times Roman type as well -SO un Irish.
Yes GM man- in any other country signs are designed to give quick info and help peopel get about- as driver i have to read signs quickly- so HOW is any one off the ferry/ airport going to quickly find the town they want- when non Gaeltacht signs will be forstly written in Irish??- absolute Nonsense- the sooner O'Cuiv's act is Repealed the better.

The Gombeen Man said...

The longer I do the blog, Anna, the more convinced I become that we simply live in a nation of utter gobshites. And that's all there is to it.

"Mick" said...

"a nation of utter gobshites"..GB....I think you are being too kind,

Jim Spriggs said...

"only 1.77 million of the nations 4.589 million population are able to speak Irish"

ONLY?!?!?!?! That's 40% There is no way on Earth that 40% of the population speak Irish. "Ar n-Athair" was probably beat into them as chisellers and they still remember how to recite it. Gombeen nonsense.

"The existing system uses the British Transport typeface which the report slams as promoting the “the look of Britain” claiming that it effects the visible expression of national identity."

Pathetic Gombeen Republican arseholery. If it were "the look of France" these gobdaws wouldn't give a tuppenny damn.

Let me effin' out of this insane KIP!!!

The Gombeen Man said...

Hi Mick. Yes, I'm far too restrained for my own good!! ;-)

Hi Jim. That 40% figure includes children from the age of 3-upwards in the education system, where they have little choice other than to speak Gaelic on a daily basis. Yes, utter shite - and proof of how statistics can lie, especially when presented by Official Ireland.

The 2% of daily speakers outside the education system is more realistic, and you can be sure they are English speakers too.

DC3 said...

From report: "and they go outside and see that English is more prevalent on road signs." Look bottom line, the IRISH gave up on the Gaelic language. Fact is, as a populace they could have chosen to continue speaking it in the home. They didn't, they chose to discard it. It disappeared quickest in Leinster and Munster. And no one gave a toss. AGAIN, the IRISH prove they are the Worlds most ridiculous population. Speaking out of both sides of their mouth while simultaneously denying it.

Thanks DB, if you read this in a fictional piece you wouldn't believe it: "The existing system uses the British Transport typeface which the report slams as promoting the “the look of Britain” claiming that it effects the visible expression of national identity." This is shear MADNESS, the carry on of individuals with serious problems in the head space area.

If only 77k speak Oirish on a daily basis, well you can say Polish is the second language.
Of course if there was 3 million poles in the country it still would never be acknowledged. That's one of the many benefits of living in a BACKWARD nowhere land with attitude. It's addicted to complete STUPIDITY.

The Gombeen Man said...

Well DC3, we can't let reality get in the way Official Ireland's vision. Plus, the more we have to pander to O'Cuiv's act - designed to create more jobs for those in the Irish Language Industry by increasing bureucracy - the crazier it will get.