Madam, - The denationalisation of Aer Lingus, the sale of Eircom, the proposed sale of ESB, the increased privatisation of waste disposal and charging for water are all signs that this country is a willing supporter of the neo-conservative school of economics.
If you add in that Ireland, in practice, supports the war in Iraq by making Shannon civilian airport open for the movement of troops and supplies to the war zone, then we ordinary citizens could not be mistaken in believing that the "Terrible Troika" of Rumsfeld, Bush and Cheney dominate the current state of thinking in the corridors of power.
There is a price to be paid for this in the under-development of the B-areas of the world so that these latter can provide both natural and human resources at the cheapest price to the A-areas, including, of course, ourselves.
It is not an accident that under-development leading to drought, hunger, disease remains stubbornly part of an ever-wealthier world. Our development is at the expense of their under-development in the same way that white apartheid South Africa grew fat on creating areas of under-development which it called "homelands" and which the rest of the world nicknamed "Bantustans".
We can sit and watch in our global village while, for example, Zimbabwe experiences 1,000 per cent inflation and not bother to put the fire out - but fires have a way of spreading from little smoulderings.
I have written to the appropriate Minister in our Government asking why there are EU sanctions against Zimbabwe. There has been no reply after several months. I asked again that Zimbabwe be put on Ireland's list for bilateral aid. It has not been given such status and I have had no reply again.
Could the reason be that while we de-nationalise, land has been nationalised in Zimbabwe - or am I accusing the Irish Government of being ideologically selective in its choice of where the aid goes? Surely that is not possible? They wouldn't do that? Bush has placed Zimbabwe on a list of "rogue nations" and we know how correct he is on country analysis. Is Ireland accepting Bush's list of rogue nations?
I would like political parties to come clean on how aid to under-developed countries should be decided. - Yours, etc,
SÉAMUS BLAKE, Strand Palace, Youghal, Co Cork.