Two-faced, bare-faced cheek

By the boiling blood of the Fomorians, what the hell is this kamikaze government of ours going to do next? Introduce a tax on sex?

Just this morning I tuned into the airwaves. It’s a magic talent I have, as a Tuatha De Danann god, whereby I don’t actually need a radio. Bet you’re all jealous, eh? But anyhow, to the point.

The radio newsreader said that anyone who had received a bonus payment, or some sort of front-loaded payment of their salary BEFORE the emergency budget would have the new tax levies BACKDATED to January. So if you received extra payments for anything in the past three and a half months, you’re going to be nobbled by the government, even though you might have paid it under the previous tax regime.

And just to ensure that the government is being fair about all this (not), there’s a large group of TDs who are going to KEEP their €6,400 worth of annual bonus pay. What happened to “sharing the pain”, eh?

The Irish Independent reports today on its front page lead story that, and I quote, “Mr Lenihan’s controversial measures to curb politicians’ pay are far from clear-cut.”

Indeedy folks, listen to this. Hearken to this sodden piece of murky financial craftsmanship. “The Department of Finance confirmed that the scrapping of long-service increments would only apply to those who would be entitled to the payment in the future, and the bonus would not be taken off those already receiving it. At the moment, 66 TDs are getting a payment of €6,391 a year for 10 years’ service and six TDs are receiving €3,198 for seven years on duty.”

It’s the dirtiest of slimey slimeball trickery-snickery tactics I’ve seen in a long time. And, having been around for the last 4,000 years, I’ve seen a lot of shenanigans. Including that time when Aonghus tricked the Dagda out of Newgrange because he insisted it needed an Environmental Impact Statement prior to planning permission for a giant ring of stones around it.

This smells of bare-faced, two-faced cheek.

Punish them, I say. Put them all on a boat and send it out to sea, and there rise a great tempest against them and subject them to the lashings and beatings of the wind and the tide for ten years, until in meek penance they return to this island begging the forgiveness of its ordinary common folk, who are suffering mightily from their grave mismanagement of the economy.

Oh, and in the meantime, vote for Lugh Lamhfada.