Brianeen backs John O’ until the wind changes

Bradley Bytes – A sort of political column by Dara Bradley

Brian Walsh, remember him? He’s the former Galway West TD, who unexpectedly resigned his Dáil seat in January, having said in November he’d see out the term in full.

There’s a photograph of him doing the rounds online. In it, flip-flopping Brianeen is standing beside a group of men who are surrounding Mayo TD John O’Mahony. John O’ is hoping to win a seat in Galway West for Fine Gael. And the group is holding a sign which reads: “I’m backing John O’Mahony”.

Galway footballer Eddie Hoare flanks John O’; so too Seán Óg De Paor, one of the legends on Galway’s 1998 All-Ireland winning side that was managed by John O’.

But back to Brianeen. Wonder what his party and constituency colleagues Sean Kyne and Hildegarde Naughton think about him backing John O’?

Don’t worry too much lads, given his tendency to flip-flop, sure he’ll change his mind again next week.

Gerry’s geraniums

Gerry Adams was in Galway last Thursday, in An Cheathrù Rua, launching the election campaign of Senator Trevor Ò Clochartaigh.

The Sinn Féin leader announced his arrival out west with a tweet: “In Galway. It’s raining. I like Galway. Even in the rain!”

It was re-tweeted or favourite over 200 times. Galway responded to this news with, er, people tweeting back wondering was he going on the lash.

Carbon nightclub, Taaffes, Electric, and NUIG’s College Bar were all suggested as possible watering holes for the bearded one to visit. Like all politicians, he dodged the question.

Meanwhile, German-born Galway-based Shinner Stephanie Helga, who is a canvasser for Ó Clochartaigh, finally got to meet her hero Gerry.

But, as you can see from our photo, she didn’t look too impressed. So why the long face? “Too much orange (in the flowers). I had ordered green!”

‘Fiscal space’ cadets

Fiscal space: it’s the jargon de jour. A politician cannot speak in this country without uttering this annoying phrase. It has now also seeped into the lexicon of political journalists.

Do they realise how silly they sound? “Fiscal space” this and “fiscal space” that.

Neither politicians nor national journalists have explained to the rest of us what exactly it means. Perhaps they don’t know themselves.

They just say it because, after “billions ‘n billions”, it’s Finance Minister Michael Noonan’s favourite catch-phrase.

We went to Google to figure out what it might mean. It turns out a fiscal is a bird, native to Africa.

And so, a “fiscal space”, must be a space for fiscals, as in, a place where this breed of bird hangs out. Strange that politicians and journalists are talking about bird sanctuaries in the run-up to an election.

Shouldn’t these birdbrains be talking about important things like the financial well-being of the country, and how much cash the next Government has for tax cuts and increased spending?

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.