Sir, - What a beautiful day it was for honouring St Patrick and what a colourful parade was organised in Dublin to mark the occasion! Some hours afterwards, while wading through the mountains of litter in the city centre with my 11-year-old son and seeing the odd person (male, of course) urinating in public, I wondered when we will, if ever, take the next step towards being a modern, civilised society and adopt minimum standards of civic pride and hygiene. Is it really too much to ask? - Yours, etc., Gerry Loughrey,
Coolatree Park, Beaumont, Dublin 9.