Madam, – May I commend you on the excellent case study of Dunleer, Co Louth (“Sustainable planning is cure for growth delusion”, Opinion, July 19th)?

This cameo of how one dedicated individual (Gerry Crilly) acted conscientiously to save at least one town from the ravages of development-led planning offers, simultaneously, is cause for deep despair that the building frenzy which has mortgaged the future of our young people for a generation ahead could have progressed so far and so fatally throughout the island; but also cause for hope that a community champion in a small town can still make a difference for the better.

Psychologists tell us that the five stages of grief are denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. The NIRSA (National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis) Report of last week, ably articulated by Prof Rob Kitchen, provides the riposte to the first of these stages. With 620 “ghost estates” and a national house vacancy rate of 15 per cent, it is clear that anger is well justified by taxpayers and parents at such a waste of national resources. It is unfortunate that this anger was not constructively directed over the past decade at the perpetrators of this calumny, rather than at individuals such as Gerry Crilly and organisations like An Taisce who cried “stop” only to be demonised for their efforts.

The bargaining, depression and acceptance phases will last a long time now. But the damage is done and we must also face another consequence.

The genesis of these ill-located housing units means that, even if they become occupied eventually they will most likely not be served by public transport for the foreseeable future. This will further increase car dependency and thus increase our national greenhouse gas emissions substantially.

This will eventually produce a further financial burden for those who come after us in seeking to meet our international obligations under the inevitable post-Kyoto climate change agreement.

Ultimately it is enlightened individuals who must lead us out of this mess.

The intertwined problems of planning, local democracy and climate change require a vision at present sadly lacking, but essential if a repetition of the supremacy of individual greed over community good is not to recur. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – The Government’s plan to end long-term homelessness is well explained by Jamie Smyth, Social Affairs Correspondent (Home News, August 10th). The plan to transfer 1,000 hostel beds from city centre to leased houses throughout the four Dublin local authorities is welcome if it is prioritised and properly resourced.

However, it must be recognised that many of our older homeless – mainly men – consider the city centre their home. The Salvation Army has a long tradition in providing humane, well-run and cost- effective city-centre hostels for these gentle people. We will always need a place of refuge and shelter in our city centre. Let’s not throw the baby out with the bath water. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – Reporting on the “Pathway to Home” policy (August 10th), Jamie Smyth’s findings come as no surprise to some voluntary and statutory agencies working in the field of homelessness.

Those who have pointed out the need for caution and the pitfalls of such a plan – with emphasis on privatisation of services across the board, insufficient support services for the most vulnerable people in society (especially those with mental health problems), and the drive to move people to the suburbs – have been seen as part of the problem rather than part of the solution.

Can we now accept that everyone coming from prisons or psychiatric hospitals can return to live in welcoming communities? After all, many people who find themselves homeless are homeless because they didn’t feel welcome in the area they called home.

Anyone walking the streets of Dublin can clearly see there is a problem with emergency hostels being closed (including a longstanding HSE-run hostel for women) at a time when the number of people seeking emergency accommodation is increasing.

It is well documented that every night the emergency services now provide shelter to a significant number of immigrants. These people are being excluded from the debate and are therefore not part of “the plan”. Similarly, those people who have not conformed to the specifications of “the plan” now find themselves more marginalised. The poor could find they are once again going to be left out, or worse still, blamed for the situation we find ourselves in.

Putting a lot of people with problems together – no matter where – without adequate support services, is a recipe for disaster, particularly at a time when privatisation of State services neatly described as “partnership” is widespread.

In the long distant past (which I remember) a lot of people with difficulties were housed together in areas such as Keogh Square, with little or no support. We daily still witness the result of such a lack of vision.

We are now nearing the end of 2010 and unless we accept the above, there will be a lot of people in need of services who become even more marginalised and a lot of people working in the field who become very disillusioned. It is important to realise that the human condition is complex. It might be worth reflecting on the thought that the only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – Your Editorial (August 7th) confidently asserts, “There is near-universal agreement among this State’s independent economists that there is no option but to remain on the path of fiscal correction set out by the Government last December”.

This is despite the fact that, in March, The Irish Times published an open letter co-ordinated by Tasc and signed by 28 economists, social scientists and economic analysts. The letter argued that the Government’s deflationary fiscal strategy had failed and that, without an investment-led approach, Ireland was facing into a “low-growth, high-debt future where unemployment will remain high and inequality endemic”.

The lack of consensus among economists regarding the Government’s economic strategy is not only apparent from the Tasc open letter: it is also evident from a quick glance at Opinion pieces published by The Irish Times over the past few months.

Prof Ray Kinsella recently wrote that “The ‘strategy’ prescribed by Ireland for recovery is to continue to cut the current budget deficit by 2 percentage points every year over the next four years . . . It is not a ‘strategy’; it’s a slavish adherence to an orthodoxy that howls at common sense”.

Paul Sweeney pointed out that “our economy has been through the biggest fall in the world . . . from peak to trough. A crude programme of spending cuts cannot possibly remedy that collapse.”

Prof Rob Kitchin, writing just two weeks ago, stated “targeted capital investment could, on the one hand, stimulate the economy in terms of employment and investment and provide multiplier effects across the private sector and, on the other, provide world-class infrastructure to facilitate and encourage indigenous growth and inward investment”.

Along with 25 others, they were signatories to the Tasc open letter.

So much for “near-universal agreement”. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – Is anyone considering the cost to the taxpayer of the extraordinary “out-of-term” meetings of the Seanad committee on members’ interests and the meetings of Fianna Fáil sub committees about expenses abuse? No politician ever meets about anything without claiming expenses. All alleged expense irregularities should be dealt with only by the Garda Síochána. If it finds evidence of criminal wrongdoing the matter should come before the courts and if convicted the wrongdoer would be expelled from public office.

Anything less than expulsion for expense abusers is no good to the taxpayer. Resignation just means the taxpayer will be funding indefinitely a generous pension. Meantime, if a referendum were held to abolish all expenses to all politicians, the result would be a foregone conclusion and this type of scandal would never occur again. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – The continuing exposure of the alleged abuses of expenses claims by members of the Oireachtais along with their application of harsh austerity measures on the rest of us is very hard to take.

In addition, the banks, on an almost daily basis, are announcing increases in interest rates without concomitant increase in the European Central Bank rate. They have also not addressed the issue of executive pay and perks such as golf club memberships etc, even though they are almost totally reliant on the hard-pressed taxpayer for survival. In fact, it was not that long ago that senior executives in Anglo-Irish Bank were awarded pay increases even though the bank itself is almost beyond repair. It would appear to bear out La Bruyère’s observation that self-indulgence and severity towards others are the same vice. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – I am trawling through the names of the Fianna Fáil TDs to see who can throw the first stone at Ivor Callely.

After that I will look at the Opposition. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – David McNeill’s article on Hiroshima (World News, August 6th) was reasoned and informative. However, it did not address the reason why the killing of approximately 220,000 mainly Japanese civilians does not rank with Auschwitz and Katyn as being a major crime against humanity. When all that is being asked from the United States is a formal apology for something that happened 65 years ago, it does seem incredibly defensive not to give one.

President Obama is to be applauded for attempting to rectify this deep hurt. He has offered to visit Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The extent that he is supported in this by his fellow countrymen could prove very revealing about their attitudes to him and the people of Japan. Hopefully, it proves to be positive. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – As a recently arrived Irish emigrant to the US, I read with much embarrassment Stephen Mangan and Hugh McDowell’s article (Weekend Review, August 7th) about the trouble related to the influx of Irish students on J-1 visas in Santa Barbara and San Diego.

This small minority of students contribute absolutely nothing to the cultural fabric of California except to portray the Irish as drunken vandals. It is disheartening that excessive consumption of alcohol is defining our national identity abroad. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – The proposals for St Stephen’s Green (Home News, August 4th) are daunting. What is proposed will ruin most of the Green. Of course we must have an underground station, but why does the necessary excavation have to involve the destruction of the lake and numerous mature trees?

The ventilation structure proposed is far too intrusive – other cities can display much smaller ones. Why cannot we have progress without destroying so much of the landscape? – Yours, etc,

Madam, – The Dublin GAA Supporters Club calls on the Ard Chomhairle to revisit its decision to increase the height of the barrier at the front of the Hill to 2.8 metres (Sport, August 9th). This decision, taken by a group of people who never use the facilities of the Hill, and without discussion with supporters’ representatives, is paradoxically a retrograde step in the health, safety and welfare systems for the stadium. It will impede the visibility from the terrace, lead to severe discomfort for those attending games and may lead to major crush problems at the end of finals.

It is one of the latest in a series of actions taken against fans watching games from a historic part of the ground and brands Hill attendees as second-class supporters.

Already this summer those attending games on the Hill, and only those attending in this part of the stadium, have been subjected to frisk searches, have had closed bottles of water confiscated, even though water is on sale in the ground, have been delayed entry to the ground while other parts of the stadium are open, have had flagpoles taken and had to watch on as elderly attendees have been subjected to intrusive questioning and search.

This decision has been explained as a response to problems experienced at the Leinster Final when difficulties were experienced at other parts of the ground and for which no action is proposed. The club calls on the ard chomhairle to reverse its position, to leave the pampered closeted confines of the luxury seats of the stands and experience the real life of attending a game on the Hill. We are certain that then, and only then, will fans on the Hill gain the respect and proper treatment they deserve. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – Your Opinion page, August 10th makes thought-provoking, if depressing, reading

Fintan O’Toole asks Brian Lenihan the most vital question relevant to this country’s financial viability: How much is he prepared to pump into the insatiable maw of Anglo Irish Bank? It is outrageous that this vital question remains unanswered. James P Mackey’s article concerning the Eucharist was spellbinding, and it appears to me that he is suggesting that the thinking of the simple Masai woman is closer to what Jesus intended in the Eucharist than the thinking in the Vatican.

As if the quality of Mr O’Toole and Mr Mackey’s articles were not enough, Dara Mac Dónaill’s photograph of the kestrel with the rat (Front page) must surely be nature photograph of the year! – Yours, etc,

Madam, – Power comes in many forms; the Catholic hierarchy didn’t need to be in the Oireachtas to have influence. Despite the gender imbalance among elected representatives, women’s groups shape policy much more than advocates for men. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – The ideal solution to achieve gender equality in the Dail is one that would be enthusiastically embraced by most Irish voters, male and female. Instead of finding ways to increase female participation, get rid of enough male TDs to achieve a balance. Oh what a happy day that would be. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – I believe I am right in saying that it is what is between people’s ears that is the criterion for arriving at solutions and putting them into effect, and not any physical differences between genders. And I do not buy into that philosophy of men’s and women’s brains being different, a philosophy that seems to be promulgated by women in particular in order to create division for their own ends.

If the tone of this letter offends, I apologise, but it is time we, as human beings, saw each other as people. I believe the reason there are not more female politicians in government is merely because they are late-comers to politics. Time, and not undemocratic quotas, will resolve the issue. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – No reasonable person would support the present gender balance in the Dáil. The national male/female split is about 50/50 and the parliament should reflect that. That would not guarantee a better or indeed a worse system. But politics is not all about the glamour of Dáil Éireann.

My own experience is that many more women need to get involved at grassroots level where the potwalloping is done. Mind you if we were serious about solving the problem, a very simple method would be to have an even number of seats in each constituency to be designated 50 per cent male and 50 per cent female. – Yours, etc,

Madam, – In the continuing debate on gender quotas for women TDs, a number of contributors have referred to the Scandinavian countries that have achieved greater gender balance in their parliaments since they introduced gender quotas for parliamentary elections in the 1970s. However, none of those countries have implemented gender quotas on their fishing fleets or their oil rigs.

If gender quotas are required to achieve a balance in politics, then they would also be required in other professions such as female- dominated nursing and teaching, given that gender equality is supposed to go both ways. There will be more widespread support for the gender quotas called for by Senator Ivana Bacik and the National Women’s Council when we hear that they are promoting a gender quota for women working on bin lorries.

In the 2002 general election, the Progressive Democrats defied expectations by doubling its Dáil seats to eight when Fiona O’Malley, Liz O’Donnell, Mae Sexton and Mary Harney succeeded in gaining 50 per cent of the eight seats in a government party without the need for a gender quota. However, the 2007 election was disastrous for them and reflects that the Irish electorate vote on policies and performance rather than gender. – Yours, etc,