Letters to the Editor: 'Having so many children on waiting lists doesn't add up'

'Many of the serious paediatric conditions related to streptococcal infection, eg rheumatic heart disease and scarlet fever, have disappeared' (stock photo)

Letters to the Editor

Eilish O’Regan reports that 86,625 children are on hospital consultant paediatric waiting lists (Irish Independent, November 11), which represents 10pc of the 879,000 children under 14 (2016 Census).

At a time when arguably we in Ireland are the healthiest population in the history of the universe, this is bizarre.

Many of the serious paediatric conditions related to streptococcal infection, eg rheumatic heart disease and scarlet fever, have disappeared.

Presumably those referring these children either haven’t got the expertise or the will to deal with what must be fairly minor conditions, not forgetting the legal Sword of Damocles, or maybe the parents are demanding hospital referral.

This anomaly deserves an inquiry.

Dr Michael Foley

Palmerston Gardens, Rathmines, Dublin 6

From venture to vulture – don’t bank on understanding

I still don’t understand the difference between venture capital and vulture funds, or bankers and politicians.

An extract from ‘Flash Boys’, by Michael Lewis: “By mid-2007 Goldman’s bond-trading department was aiding and abetting a global financial crisis, most infamously by helping the Greek government to rig its books and disguise its debt and designing subprime mortgage securities to fail, so that they might make money by betting against them.”

Peter Sutherland was chairman of Goldman Sachs from 1995 to 2015. Lloyd Blankfein was chief executive of Goldman Sachs from 2006 to 2018. On November 9, 2009, Lloyd Blankfein told ‘The Times’, he was just a banker “doing God’s work”.

So help me God.

Michael Terry

Lucan, Co Dublin

RTÉ needs to realise where the blame lies for its woes

I read the following from the top article on your front page last Thursday (“RTÉ to slash 200 jobs next year and cut top stars’ salaries by 15pc,” Irish Independent) with some annoyance: “The broadcaster blamed high rates of TV licence fee evasion as one of the reasons it had to make the deep cuts.”

Just for the record, nothing to do with me, or I suspect the majority of decent people in this country.

Brian McDevitt

Glenties, Co Donegal

Gaybo won respect far and wide as the voice of Ireland

I read Liam Collins’s article on Gay Byrne’s funeral (“Howth was Gaybo’s refuge – he could ‘escape the audience’”, Irish Independent, November 9).

Coming from London in 1997 I only caught the end of his ‘Late Late’ shows, but respected his career.

His words did him proud.

Mark Charles

Athenry, Galway

Scaring young people with climate alarmism is wrong

I am writing this letter to congratulate Ian O’Doherty on a well-balanced article on the climate change scare that is being promoted by most sections of the media and governments. There has always been climate change. Nobody seems to question anything that these people are saying.

I am over three-quarters of a century on Earth and I have seen all types of weather in that time. Over the years one weather event is going to be cancelled out with another event elsewhere.

I am all for the reduction in the use of plastic etc, but some of the proposals that are being suggested are crazy.

Young people are being brainwashed and worried by all the propaganda.

Michael Savage

Tralee, Co Kerry

Let’s keep the language clean in the by-election campaigns

Following on from last year’s presidential election campaign, I am concerned that other candidates might be aping Peter Casey in the forthcoming by-election campaigns.

While one’s ability to use pejorative and offensive language is no indication of potential as a public representative, it might win votes.

I do hope that all of the respective party leaders will intervene swiftly and firmly where necessary.

PJ O’Meara

Newtownadam, Cahir, Co Tipperary

Hard to weather the storm as Christmas comes ever earlier

Mid-November and already sick of Christmas ads.

Just wondering if the premature arrival of the season could be put down to climate change?

M O’Brien

Dalkey, Co Dublin