Saluting the Republic as we bury
our history
IT is with great interest that I read the Taoiseach's
comments at the recent Fianna Fáil Árd
Fheis in which he announced that the Government would be
reintroducing the traditional 1916 Easter parade
involving the army marching past the GPO.
Mr Ahern stressed the point that the spirit of 1916 is
"our State's inheritance. We must protect it from those
who will abuse it and from the revisionists who would
seek to denigrate it".
Ah, what a pleasant relief to hear the Taoiseach speak up
for Ireland's inheritance.
Ironic, though, when you consider the Government's plans
for the M3 passing through the Tara Valley.
The Government is seeking to "protect" the seat of the
High Kings by driving the proposed M3 perilously close to
the Hill of Tara, destroying many as yet unexcavated
sites, to the horror of most of Europe's most notable
archaeologists and historians.
The proposed motorway runs 10 feet away from the
Ráth Lugh, the legendary burial place of Na
Fianna.
Sad that the modern-day leader of Fianna Fáil, and
himself a grandmaster of spin, should not bat an eyelid
at such destruction, but seek to resurrect an old parade
to try and win a few votes back from Sinn
Féin.
It's unfortunate for the taxpayer that the proposed route
for the M3 meanders through the Co. Meath countryside and
takes the long way around Tara from Dunshaughlin to
Navan.
Running the road in a straight line from Dunshaughlin to
Navan would need 3.5km less of motorway, saving somewhere
between €50m and €70m in construction
costs.
This re-routing would also take the motorway to the west
of the Hill of Tara, away from the area with the highest
concentration of history, legend and archeology.
I wonder who owns some of the land that the proposed M3
is supposed to be going through around Tara?
They must be very important indeed to be costing the
taxpayer such a large sum.
God save Ireland.
Martin Hogan,
9 Poddle Green,
Kimmage,
Dublin 12.
© The Irish Examiner, 9th. November 2005.
