Madam, - Dear old dirty Dublin is now all of these things: dear to live in, old and getting older, and definitely dirty. It's embarrassing to try to explain to visitors that not all Irish people are filthy, and hard to defend councils and corporations that find it impossible to clean up obvious, and sometimes hazardous, rubbish.
For instance, Dún Laoghaire pier: although the local corporation staff do clean the seafront daily, there are accumulated cans, bags and paper jammed down behind rocks behind the pier wall. We all know people go down there to drink, smoke and eat; then they leave their rubbish behind. I've never seen a litter warden; do they exist?
The pathways along the main street are a vista of crisp bags, plastic bottles, cans, cracked pavements, sticky residue from spilled drinks, and a sign reading "Dún Laoghaire -you are now in a litter-free zone".
We can be pardoned for being amused, but the laughter is hollow and despairing.
As taxpayers and citizens of a so-called democracy, we are entitled to expect a clean, safe environment, and it's not just litter we should be afraid of. There are not enough gardaí on the streets, public order offences are increasing, and young offenders are getting younger and more offensive. They walk unpunished after assaults, robberies, and worse.
Shanganagh Castle outside Shankill, Co Dublin - which Charlie McCreevy is preparing to rezone and sell for development -is perfect for incarcerating these young offenders. Yet we're told it's being underused in its present form. The fact is that Mr McCreevy is determined to sell off as much of our heritage as possible, before being kicked out of power in the next election, to pay off the deficits his Government have accrued. - Yours, etc.,
ANGELA FEALY, Lower Glenageary Road, Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin.