Chrysalis

Here we go again you could say. Fianna Fail is the largest party followed by Fine Gael and the rest bringing up the rear. The poll of two weeks ago was laughed off a little and explained as a ‘blip’ by many commentators however we now have a second poll that, this one taken after the #promshambles deal by the government, has re-enforced the results with FF now on an upward trajectory. Add to this the anecdotal evidence of radio call in shows where people were openly (imagine that, no shame) stating they would vote FF in the morning if an election were held.
What is strange to me is not the renewal of Fianna Fail as a political force but the fact that they are doing so with the same faces they had when it all fell apart in 2010/11. We still see Willie ‘the moustache’ O’Dea wheeled out for The Week in Politics and Eamon O’Cuiv hasn’t been put out to pasture either even after all his apparent internal indiscretions. I would have felt Fianna Fail would have only been able to renew its base by rejuvenating its image, promoting new faces to the front lines and calling for a reformed politics. They have been doing ‘more of the same’ and people are responding.
Missed opportunities…
As I mentioned above I was expecting Fianna Fail to sit down with itself and have an internal review and to come back strongly with a call for real and meaningful reforms to politics and electoral systems. Now, before you think I’ve had the soup I felt they would do this because strategically it would make sense. They could shed the image of the past, bring forward youth and energy and call for real changes, changes they would scream for as they would not have to deliver on them from the comfort of the opposition benches. Not only this but as a party Fianna Fail are styled in such a way that they could benefit massively from a changed electoral system.
Take for example a switch to a list based electoral system where people are voting for a party and what it stands for as well as for the leader or main face/voice of that party. In that scenario Micháil would be the Hollande or Merkel of Irish politics and would be positioned one on one with Enda, a battle I think he could win based on current and continued public opinion. If Irish people were no longer voting solely on local concerns but on national policy Fianna Fail would also be better positioned to gain being in opposition. However, we have seen none of this radical innovative thinking from them and I would argue that this has meant it is very difficult for the emergence of any real ‘new politics’ in Ireland.
So what does this tell us about ourselves?
For one thing it tells me that we don’t tend to think outside the box politically. The usual retort is ‘I had to vote mainstream because I had no alternative’ well that is crap; there are plenty of alternatives. There have been a number of party’s from across the political spectrum that have started and died or are limping along because we the people have not supported them. The recent breakup of the ULA is a high profile example. While this example may have a lot to do with those who made up the Alliance it had more to do with the lack of public engagement. If the public (from the left of the spectrum) had given it real support those at the top would have been compelled to continue and help the project grow.
There are other groups such as the CCCP, who offer a radically different approach to politics, are also finding it hard to get any traction. So where does that leave us? Well to be honest it has never been more relevant then now to say ‘we get what we vote for’. The last election saw numerous Independent candidates and new groupings offering the electorate the chance for change and they didn’t take it, if at the next election, even the local elections, they are offered a similar chance for change and again ignore it I really do not know where we are. I for one am going to keep up the search and the fight for real change, I hope at least a few others will too…