DRAPIER: It was a boring enough week in Leinster House. A dogged monotony has crept into the political agenda, characterised by an unrelenting whinge about the state of the health services. However legitimate the issue, and its importance to those who have cause to suffer its weaknesses, Drapier is struck by the low standard of the political discourse.
Fine Gael used its private members' time to showcase its newly absorbed Wexford TD Liam Twomey in yet another meandering snag list about the health services in the north-east.
The young doctor is a good catch and the transfer from Independents to the Fine Gael party was a mutually beneficial transaction. However, Fine Gael can't seem to shake off a parochial look.
The decimation of its front bench in the last election is still felt. There appears to be no strategic co-operation in terms of Dáil work with Labour. The Greens, Independents and Sinn Féin operate little pockets of perpetual grievance, but never lay a glove on the Government; the only exception being the eccentric but consistently socialist Joe Higgins.
Labour's Pat Rabbitte, by far the most accomplished and confident Opposition leader, often appears exasperated by the predicament in which he finds himself of leading a plodding squad which hasn't a hope of winning a match.
In Drapier's view, the fractured nature of the Opposition is the best thing going for this Government. No alternative is apparent half-way through its second term. Ministers look relaxed, almost smug. They are facing into the spending estimates on November 18th and the subsequent Budget in December with a surplus of €2 billion.
Brian Cowen's foul humour last week in the Chamber cannot be down to money worries, but may have something to do with the challenges of making choices in the annual estimates wrangle.
At this time of the year, every lobby group in the country is shouting for extra money. Some are more deserving than others. Last year's "savage 16" social welfare changes, which hit the poorest and only saved the Exchequer €58 million, were a political mistake and hopefully will not be repeated by Séamus Brennan.
Drapier's advice to Government would be that in times of plenty they should be generous to the poor at home and abroad.
Indeed, there was rare cross-party consensus at the meeting of the Joint Foreign Affairs Committee meeting on Tuesday.
After Conor Lenihan's unfortunate gaffe on his first day in office in calling into question the Government commitment to meet the UN target for overseas development assistance by 2007, the committee has been instrumental in reinstating the pledge on aid made by the Taoiseach to the UN in 2000.
On Tuesday, all the major NGOs and a representative of the 800 Irish missionaries abroad came and joined the chorus to hold firm on the Taoiseach's promise.
Michael D. Higgins, Liz O'Donnell, Pat Carey, Senators David Norris and Brendan Ryan, in all their diversity, backed the promised doubling of the aid budget by 2007. This will put Ireland up there in a global leadership position in terms of overseas aid, particularly in Africa with its terrible legacy of famine, conflict and AIDS.
There was jubilation all around when deputies learned that at long last the Government has moved to rein in the tribunals. Since 1997, the Mahon tribunal alone has cost €38 million and by its own estimate was scheduled to roll on until 2015.
The tribunals were like runaway trains. Many deputies and senators would be hard-pressed to name all the eight tribunals and link them with the subject matter for inquiry. But all of us are horrified by their cost.
In Drapier's view, the era of the tribunal is over. The legal eagles have been the main beneficiaries. Truth has been extracted in some instances.
But if our democratic parliamentary structures were properly working and the Dáil was functioning as an inquiring as well as a legislative body, there would have been no need for them in the first place to investigate State malpractice.
In the wake of the US presidential election, there is ever more debate about Ireland's frequent discomfort in the context of our shared values and special relationship with the US.
The Taoiseach and the new Minister for Foreign Affairs find themselves between a rock and a hard place when pressed on these matters.
With 100,000 Irish jobs dependent on American investment in Ireland and a public very critical of American foreign policy, the Taoiseach has to ride two horses at the same time in the national interest.
Given the sad passing of Yasser Arafat, and the deepening and volatile instability in the Middle East, it's vital that Ireland uses its good offices with the US to be persuaders of the need for a moderation of US policy.
The Middle East is the principal source of grievance, which has produced what is now termed international terrorism. As we know from our own bitter experience, a war against terrorism will not be won by security alone, but by brokering a sustainable and fair political settlement between Israel and the Palestinians.
There were some eyebrows raised at the new judicial appointments made this week. Drapier was pleased to note a fresh emphasis on quality rather than government party allegiance.
The boys and girls in the Law Library did themselves no favours in a documentary called Legal Eagles, screened on RTÉ during the week. The elitist set-up is straight out of the dark ages and needs a good shake up.
Another inspired Government appointment was that made by the Health Minister, Mary Harney, of Jane O'Brien, formerly of Positive Action, to the board of the Irish Blood Transfusion Service.
With Thursday set aside for the presidential inauguration, this was a shorter than usual Dáil week. Oireachtas members were invited to the splendid ceremony in Dublin Castle along with the judges, wigless at the request of the President, and the Diplomatic Corps.
After the cut and thrust and divisiveness of the American presidential race it's hard to get excited about the reinstatement, without controversy or election, of our sitting President for a second term.
However, there is huge goodwill for President McAleese.
She has been a popular and effective figurehead at home and abroad and it is rare to hear a bad word said about her in these normally catty corridors.
Her inauguration address was thoughtful, inspiring and explored new themes of community, citizenship and morality.
She has played a low-key but vital part in the peace process by bridge-building with unionist and loyalist communities. Here's hoping that goodwill can be drawn upon in the coming months as the governments attempt to get the DUP to share power with Sinn Féin in the North.
Drapier has a gloomy feeling on that front. The failed status quo, i.e. direct rule but no war, might suit unionism just fine! Time will tell.