Just to prove Drapier wrong, events conspired, as revealed last weekend, to disprove his assertion that scandals do not take place during the summer. The question is, were Mary Harney's and Charlie McCreevy's holidays the stuff of scandal? The Opposition and most of the media thought so anyway.
When this issue raised its head last Sunday, Drapier felt it was, to a certain extent, a mountain out of a molehill, but, as the week moved on, it was quite apparent there was a lot more to this issue.
Drapier can assure readers he has never been the recipient of hospitality from Mr McEvaddy or indeed any other businessman in respect of holiday plans. If it had been offered, he perhaps might have adopted the same attitude as Bertie Ahern when questioned early in the week. He seemed to suggest that even he might have accepted the generous offer of a villa in the south of France for his holiday.
However, Bertie Ahern's attitude to all of this might come as a surprise, particularly to his Fianna Fail colleagues. He seemed to have absolutely no hesitation in coming out and resolutely defending the Tanaiste, no doubt prompting some in his party ail colleagues to wonder that if the shoe had been on the other foot would Mary Harney have been as resounding in her support for the Taoiseach.
Drapier can see it now: Dessie O'Malley on Prime Time saying how grave the PDs regarded the situation (i.e., if Bertie was sunning himself on somebody else - highly unlikely, Drapier would have thought, that is, Bertie lying still on a sunbed). Over the last two years Bertie Ahern has had to bend the knee on numerous occasions to Harney, no more so than during the Sheedy affair.
Readers will remember Mary insisted that Bertie apologise for a misjudgment he made or the alternative was that she would pull the plug on the Government.
Now it is Mary who seems to have misjudged reaction to her actions. The Opposition have homed in on Harney rather than McCreevy because of what they perceive as Harney's continued stance on high standards.
They probably know right well McCreevy "doesn't give a hoot" what they think. Mind you, Mary O'Rourke was able, in her own inimitable way, to pass the poisoned chalice on this one, when her name was brought into it.
It is all the more surprising that the McEvaddy family are huge backers of Fine Gael, though Drapier supposes most businessmen like to play all sides, particularly those in Government.
Mary Harney is in a difficult position despite the fact that, if the truth be known, her heart doesn't lie with any extension of Dublin Airport (favouring McEvaddy and others) but rather with being a strong and public supporter of a second airport on the south side of the city, at Baldonnel.
Last week, Drapier noticed that Beverly Cooper-Flynn spoke at the Humbert Summer School in Castlebar and had some fairly cutting things to say about what she called "opinion writers" and how Sunday paper commentators seemed to be running the agenda. She maintained that both Government and Opposition hung onto every word uttered by these people. True to form, she very quickly got a response from Gene Kerrigan of the Sunday Independent who obviously felt he was one of those people she was getting at. He wrote a hard-hitting and sarcastic article about what he called Beverly's "bleatings".
Drapier is not sure if what Beverly had to say is true, that is, that most of the leading members of political parties quiver in their collective boots about what the Sunday papers will say about them, but if they do, Drapier thinks those leaders do not serve us well. Drapier's advice to Beverly and to any others in politics is to do what he does on a Sunday and that is not bother with the Sunday papers at all.
Long ago Drapier stopped reading when the so-called commentators began to make personal remarks against Oireachtas members depending on their appearance, accent or whatever.
Drapier thinks Beverly Cooper-Flynn lets herself down by even acknowledging the Sunday papers' so-called "opinion-formers". She shows an inferiority complex, in his opinion. After all, who is elected by the people? "Give them a miss" is Drapier's advice to Beverly.
This week also saw the publication of the new Planning Bill by Noel Dempsey. By far the most controversial proposal is the one which states developers must sell up to 20 per cent of their land to local authorities for social housing in exchange for planning permission. Drapier can predict that this will be one of the most controversial pieces of legislation to come before the Dail within the next year. He thinks that if the President does not refer the Bill to the Supreme Court for a constitutionality test, the builders will be doing some protesting.
It's often said Fianna Fail is the friend of builders, but the builders won't be too happy with this one.
Things seems to be going from bad to worse for Ruairi Quinn and New Labour after their far from impressive local and European elections performance. Now, hot on those heels comes the surprise resignation of Senator Pat Gallagher. All the political parties, including Labour, felt he was a certainty for a seat in the next general election, but he has opted for a senior post with Wicklow County Council and thereby resigns his Oireachtas position.
Labour's next big test will be the by-election following on the death of Pat Upton and even then it has difficulties as to whose call it is as between Old labour and the former Democratic Left in the guise of Eric Byrne. Time will tell.
Charlie Haughey may not be the flavour of the month these days, but in his day, he wasn't far wrong when he stated that he would be suspicious of any organisation which had "Major and Superior" in its title.
He was referring to the Major Conference of Religious Superiors, who subsequently dropped the grandiose title. The same could be said for the "Quality Bus Corridors".
Like most other Dublin commuters, Drapier has had to endure these new creatures which in his opinion bring anything but "quality" to people's lives.