Thursday 7 March 2002

Voters Defeat Ireland Abortion Bill. By a razor-thin margin, voters rejected a government plan to amend Ireland's tough abortion laws, official returns showed Thursday [~] a victory for those pushing for greater abortion rights. [AP World News] While I'm pleased with the way the vote went, nonetheless the result raises other serious questions. (1) The margin against the proposed Constitutional amendment was less than 1%, and less than 43% of the electorate voted. While parliamentary elections in Ireland are decided by a system of proportional representation, a simple majority of votes cast is sufficient to decide a referendum. I'm not sure if I'm happy with this anomaly. (2) Already (just a few hours after the official result was announced) there are conflicting opinions about the consequences of the people's decision. The Government (who must call a general election by June) appear to be saying that they have no intention of introducing legislation to deal with a ten-year-old Supreme Court judgement which ruled that the threat of suicide was legitimate grounds for allowing an abortion, while opposition parties stated during the course of the campaign that they will legislate if they gain power. Meanwhile, commentators are agreed that a split in the pro-life movement was largely responsible for the rejection of the proposed amendment, and their representatives are also sending out contradictory signals.       Another worrying aspect of the low turnout is the actual timing of the vote. Holding the poll on a Wednesday effectively disenfranchised a sizeable proportion of the electorate. Many college and university students attend their studies away from their homes, which is where they are registered to vote. There have been frequent requests for weekend polls, but the Government has consistently rejected such requests. Significantly, while much has been made of an urban/rural split in voting patterns I think it is true to say that there is also a generational split, with younger voters tending to be more liberal. It is difficult not to interpret reluctance for weekend polling as anything but a deliberate effort to obtain a particular result.       Anyway, the abortion issue has at least gone away for another while. Let's hope that if and when it resurfaces it is handled in a more considered manner. 10:44:57 PM  Your view

Current Editorials: Tech Industry Finally Irritated With Entertainment Industry. Intel and Microsoft are leading the opposition to the entertainment industry's hysterical demands for new copy-protection measures... [Morons Dot Org] Some links here refer to previously-published material, but the case is well stated and I especially like this: I've said before that the entertainment industry wants to have its digital cake and eat it too. In other words, it wants all the benefits of digital technology without having to accept the burdens. If the industry fears perfect digital copies of its product floating around the Internet, it shouldn't release digital versions in the first place. It's like me insisting on sleeping with all my doors and windows open, and then running to the legislature every week to demand tougher burglary laws. 1:05:40 PM  Your view

Irish Voters Divided on Abortion. Voters expressed strong divisions Wednesday as they decided whether to amend Ireland's restrictive abortion laws, but many united in declaring the referendum too complicated and a waste of time. [AP World News] Generally speaking any news reports I've found about our referendum have been fair and accurate, and this one certainly presents things even-handedly. I voted 'no' with a vigour which nearly forced my X through to the other side of the ballot paper. The whole approach to the issue has been sad, cynical and misled. The original Constitutional amendment came totally out of the blue and was foisted on us by a Government which caved in to right-wing pressure. The subsequent tagging on of further amendments which guaranteed the right to travel and information only served to show the inadequacy of the original wording, while this latest effort is perhaps the worst of all.       One would have thought that Government politicians would show respect for the Constitution and at least understand its fundamental purpose: to formally set out the structures of the State and to declare basic principles. But no. A classic case in point was the issue of divorce. Rather than merely do away with the original ban and leave the details for legislation which could change over the years to reflect shifts in society's attitudes, the amendment which we were presented with (and which is now enshrined in the Constitution) actually specifies the terms on which divorce may be allowed!       And this abortion referendum adopts a similar approach, actually including a specific reference to legislation which must be implemented if the amendment is passed and which can only be changed in the future by a further Constitutional amendment. No. This tinkering has to stop! Simply trying to wear down the electorate until the right-wingers get the result they want is no way to go about things. 6:08:28 AM  Your view

Most Nations Condemn US Steel Tariffs. Steel-producing countries around the world reacted angrily Wednesday to the U.S. decision to impose punitive tariffs on imports, saying the move betrayed years of work toward freer global trade and could spark an all-out trade war. [AP World News] As this presidency goes on, one interesting side-effect for people outside the US is that events are clarifying once and for all the differences between Republican and Democrat political philosophy. Despite his less-than-perfect private life, Bill Clinton consistently used America's power and influence in a responsible and statesmanlike manner, working to resolve conflicts across the world, whereas Dubya interprets US power as giving it carte blanche to ride roughshod over anyone and anything which isn't fully in the US interest -- and the main motto appears to be 'big business rules, OK'. And as for international agreements . . . 5:36:07 AM  Your view

		© Copyright 2002 Jim MacCormaic . Last update: 29/09/2002; 06:01:48 am .