Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
BACK IN JANUARY Jonathan O’Brien made headlines after a heated Dáil exchange took place between himself and Labour backbencher Eric Byrne.
The Sinn Féin TD told Byrne to “shut your mouth” after he questioned why O’Brien’s family didn’t take in his brother – a heroin addict.
Shortly afterwards, Byrne said he would not be commenting on the incident as O’Brien’s brother “is entitled to privacy“.
During an interview with TheJournal.ie, O’Brien said he had not planned on bringing his brother into the debate but did so because he “lost the rag” over how Tánaiste Joan Burton answered a question on drug use in homeless hostels.
Here he explains why he said what he did that day:
O’Brien told us that one good thing came out of the very public argument: His brother is clean and off the streets.
O’Brien was a member of the local drugs taskforce in Cork city, where he served on the council for over a decade.
He said a junior drugs minister is needed to tackle the growing addiction problem in Ireland, as Health Minister Leo Varadkar has “more than enough work to do” in relation to hospital waiting lists.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Sinn fein or not, there’s sense in what this guy is saying
Apparentky two dick$ think otherwise. Could Joan be on her iphone and Ipad, on this thread right now?
He doesn’t make sense. He is Sinn Fein and the head of a local drugs taskforce?? I wonder does he tackle the drug dealers that are on the Sinn Fein/IRA payroll ie.. Christy Griffin?
Eric Byrne is on the Dublin 12 task force, has been for years.
Also official SF, the workers party and democratic left.
There’s loads more like him filling positions that are badly needed today.
Relics of a time when we didn’t really keep an eye on our politicians.
Sinn Fein keeping an eye on our politicians??
And Sinn Fein objecting to Garda vetting of politicians??
The hypocrisy of such a statement.
Banner are you from clare
Yes but live in Dublin!
Good to hear his brother is clean and drug free.Joan won’t care though her pension is tied down so why would she care about those who have problems?
@Kerry
I’m in favour of assistance to drug addicts who want to kick the habit.
With regard to your reference to Joan Burton, I’m puzzled as to why you would think that it’s her fault or any other government minister’s fault that some people have become drug addicts.
Good to see heroin addiction being viewed as a terrible illness from which some people suffer, instead of as an immoral choice whereby the users reap what they sow
Illness, how do you catch heroin addiction and what precautions should we take to avoid infection?
I don’t get this illness thing either .
Seriously talkingsense (troll) it is the one of the most awful afflictions invented to punish mankind. I don’t care how it’s caught, I could go into many sociological factors that contribute to it but basically I just feel deep sympathy for anybody who struggles with it and I think you should too
‘Illness, how do you catch heroin addiction and what precautions should we take to avoid infection?’
Hopefully you wont catch it. With views like yours, it appears you’ve already got enough to be getting on with.
Stephen, I doubt very much it was “invented to punish mankind”. I would imagine it was invented as a recreational drug many moons ago when people didn’t know the harm it caused. In this day and age the dangers are well known. As someone who has seen first hand the affects of this on a person and their family, I have so sympathy for users and and you telling me I should won’t change that
Andrew, believe me, I won’t catch it. I would never choose to out that shite in my body.
Well the very fact of you having first-hand experience of the devastation it causes should make you sympathetic. Nobody sets out to become a heroin addict. It’s not a reasonable lifestyle choice. It’s the product of bad influences, lack of education, opportunities, a need to numb oneself against the past,, I could name a hundred things. But it shouldn’t matter what the cause is, it’s just a terrible thing
I have sympathy for families as it is them who are left to pick up the pieces and for the kids users leave behind should the worst happen. But that’s where my sympathy ends. Yes, there are many reasons people turn to heroin, but as I said, in this day and age, everyone knows the dangers. You need only walk through the city centre to see where heroin use leads.
Yes but again that’s assuming it’s a rational choice, and it just isn’t that. It’s just usually the crazy by-product of a messed-up life. I could completely imagine being a heroin addict if my life had began in a certain way, there but for the grace of whoever
Heroin was invented as a supposedly non-addictive alternative to Morphine and was marketed as a cough suppressant at the start of the 20th century. So it was invented with at least some sort of practical medical use in mind, like most drugs that become commonly used as recreational/street ones.
@stephen kavanagh
“….that’s assuming it’s a rational choice…”
There are many people who have made bad decisions but they never consumed an illegal drug (or a “legal high”).
Legality or illegality isn’t the issue Ciaran. Tut-tutting about that side of things isn’t helpful. It’s a health issue, fundamentally
@stephen
I also mentioned “legal highs”. The consumption of recreational drugs that cause psychosis and hallucinations is a choice.
Why are you talking about legal highs? They might give you a bit of a downer in the morning but nothing compared to the permanent nightmare of heroin. You’re trying to make it a moral/legal issue and I think we have to get away from that. Doesn’t matter how/why the illness is contracted, it’s still an illness
@stephen
I’m aware that, until recently, some recreational drugs have not been illegal and some might not be illegal yet.
The consumption of “legal highs” causes much harm and has caused deaths.
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-32325271
Why shouldn’t it be regarded as a moral and legal issue? You might as well say that the difference between right and wrong is not important.
@Stephen. Anyone who uses heroin is putting themselves at high risk of becoming an addict. I’m not. Guess why…. I don’t touch the stuff. Easy.
I find it difficult to have sympathy for self -induced addictions.
@stephen kavanagh: God?
Glad to see his brother is doing better. Addiction is an illness and should be treated as such.
Yea his poor brother I feel so sorry for the poor guy. He is the victim after all, not the taxpayer who pours endless money into his self pity attitude. I wonder how many times he had robbed from his own family before they kicked him out? Vote Sin Fein/IRA and let’s clear our society of drugs once and for all.
My cousin is a homeless junky and it’s a very depressing situation. Not helped by sanctimonious morons who post on the internet who know nothing about hardship.
I’m sure if you read your comment again even you would agree that it was written by an idiot.
@pete. Please explain how addiction is an illness.
Joan is beyond waking up. Living in her pampered world of privilege, pension and prawn sandwiches. She loathes the masses and longs for her sinecure on retirement.
I had occasion to hear Jonathan address a public meeting just a few weeks ago for the first time .
Everyone present were enormously impressed with his contribution .
He comes across as a really genuine human being , totally unaffected by politics .
He won’t last in Sinn Fein so!
Joan, Eammon, Pat – all millionaires. Millionaire socialists, telling the public to take the pain and this gs will get better
Have to say its great to hear that his brother is getting his life back from drugs. Theres something quite sincere about Deputy O’Brien, no rhetoric or polished delivery.
Great to hear that his brother has cleaned himself up and kicked the drugs. Its a problem along with suicide that has only increased in recent years thanks to the unjust policies implemented by FG/LAB.
@Chris
Suicide and the consumption of illegal drugs don’t just happen; they are things that are done. There is such a thing as personal responsibility – as opposed to blaming the government for everything that goes wrong in your life.
That’s one hell of a hair parting
Taking Joan seriously? One comment…2012 Budget, cut disability benefit by €88 then forced into uturn! This should have been a resigning issue back then.
Support is available to family members who are dealing with issues similar to Mr. O’Brien. Please see http://www.fsn.ie for more details.
have your say