@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: Tristans embarrassment is palpable. I’m not sure I understand what being ” democratically elected” has to do with O’Snodaigh trousering €50,000 worth of ink cartridges, not paying anything back, promising to make a donation to a charity as a mea culpa but there being no evidence of this being discharged. We’ll say nothing of his postering team being caught with all sorts and jailed for membership of a terrorist organisation. There’s plenty more in the comments below. Maybe Tristan hates people expressing themselves? Politically motivated, eh? Tristan will go on to mention FG and West brits and still find time to cry here because the truth hurts, and O’Snodaigh is laughable.

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: strange how in the space of a few minutes your comment and Anthony Curran’s suddenly have over 200 likes.

@Dermot Blaine: I noticed that 100s of likes in minutes of posting.

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: same happen with FG

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: Chuckeebrother whinge mate.

@honey badger: ahhh the ‘ moral virtue’ of honey again. The non FFG supporting, Zionist genocide loving hypocrite. If it SF related we get historical diatribes but not a moral word uttered about this weeks current news about FG councillor Bill Tormey.

@Paul O’Mahoney: Comments are never allowed when there’s an open court case, but that doesn’t suit the persecution complex

@Dermot Blaine: Ah Dermot, you know that’s not true. Certain stories remain top of the pile for hours on end. Fine Gael paedo stories fall down quicker than yer mot’s kaks.

@Anthony Curran: Well the lad who was grooming the young lad , 16 , didn’t last long, nor SF giving references for a known and convicted sex offender who went on to work with more children.

@Anthony Curran: what I do know is the SF supporters have a persecution complex. It’s pretty obvious.

@Anthony Curran: it up there with FG and McGahon

@Anthony Curran: and people smuggler, allegedly.

@honey badger: Here’s a heartwarming photo of O’Snodaigh on his way into work.
https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/batons-drawn-as-sf-storms-seat-of-power/26702000.html

@Dermot Blaine: I do, indeed. One of the perps comments here from time to time..I always ask him why they had ministers home addresses, fake garda jackets, duct tape, & baseball bats as well. He told me its none of my business!

@Ger Whelan:

@Ger Whelan: or bike shed or security hut..

@Ger Whelan: To be fair, if every TD spent the same amount on ink cartridges over the same time frame as Wolfe Toner, it would cost us 8.7 million!

@honey badger: how much would it have cost if every TD bought a printer?. Such an amazing printer that it didn’t fit and they had to spend hundreds of thousands on top of the cost of the printer to make it fit.

@Ger Whelan: You’re only being silly now Ger. Why would a TD want such a huge industry-grade printer for themselves? Ink cartridges for every TD is quite plausible.

@honey badger: Your mates spent millions on e-voting machines that were never used and millions more to store them. So I’d wind yer neck in vadger.

@honey badger: because I’ve learned from experience FF/FG don’t mind wasting millions of tax payers money on useless things.

@honey badger: One of the “perps” ? You still watching reruns of Hill Street Blues ? Ya auld codger ya .. lol.

@honey badger: Honey Badger, the Fine Gael troll forgets to mention that Fine Gael ordered a € million printer and then spent another 25,000 to get a building renovated so that it could be fitted, Not only are Fine Gael collosal money wasters of tax payers money , but they are outrageously incompetent as well. €330,000 spent on a bike shed, and € million on a hut , yet still no one is found answerable.
And all this west Brit Honey Badger can obsess about is ink cartridges.

@Ger Whelan: no but his buddy claimed €50000.

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: The newest member of SFs spin department has arrived. Can’t debate but resorts to insults and name calling, no wonder they lost 3 elections in a row.

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: Do you think that they overpaid for the printer? How much do you reckon SF would have got it for?

@Paul O’Mahoney: It’s hardly insulting to call Vadger a west brit. The cap fits.

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: Tristan, you’re invited to look onto the procurement processes involved in both Leinster House and within the OPW. It is easy (and maybe a little understandable) to point at things you don’t comprehend fully, but you shouldn’t as it highlights your ignorance.
Your issue is with the civil service and a lack of accountability. Now, this is something the government should do more on! We can agree on that. I’m not obsessed with ink cartridges at all! I’m just reminding people that this oaf splurged 50 grand on ink cartridges. Now pay attention – this is the bit that annoyed me: He held his hands up when caught. Didn’t offer to pay the money pay the money back. Instead offered to donate “an amount” to charity. I can find no evidence of this offer being discharged…

@Jason Memail: Surely the printer was a failure of public sector procurement rather than government anyway

@Mick Duvanny: Either way, the comments here seem to take issue with the cost of the printer, talking about it being a waste of taxpayers money. I look forward to hearing how much the SF fans think a different government would have to pay for the same piece of machinery.

@Anthony Curran: Another ad hominem. Christopher Hitchens said he was always thrilled when debate opponents went straight to the ad hominem. It meant they had no answer. And sure, how could you defend a TD blowing €50,000 on ink cartridges, not pay the money back, say he’ll donate to charity instead but seemingly never discharge this face saving promise? We don’t even need to get into his election poster team being caught with all sorts and then jailed for membership of a terrorist organisation – it’s not that relevant to my point. But, yeah, calling me a west brit makes this all go away… ;)

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh:
Let’s not forget Sinn Fein laundering their money in Northern Ireland and Bulgaria

@Jason Memail:
Depends which flats complex supplies it to them.

@Anthony Curran: yeah, but the OPW spent that, not an individual TD helping himself to office supplies. Shocking, but not the same thing at all.

@Anthony Curran: You’d only get 140oz of Gold for 350k that’s not a lot of Gold

@Paul O’Mahoney: and it wasn’t just him. His northern brethren were at it too. Sinn Féin MLA Pat Doherty ran up a bill of almost €20,000 on printer toner cartridges in two and a half years at Stormont.

@Dermot Blaine: Must be a fetish

@Dermot Blaine: Have you seen how much Sinn Féin print? Who is tge party that never frequent the Dáil, ftom an employee in the Dáil, Sinn Féin are the hardest working group there, or how about Lucinda Creighton and her partner claiming expenses on Christmas day, want to ho further left, Richard Boyd-Barret claiming €12,000 for his car to be repaired. Tell me again who rejects pay increases while the rest take it, yeah, amazing how some forget so much but hey, let’s not forget about the Fine Gael human trafficer also caught with paedophile images

@Brian D’Arcy: The idea that SF don’t take their full pay is laughable. They can oppose it all they like while grandstanding, safe in the knowledge that they’ll get it anyway. I don’t see any SF TDs giving their pay increases to charity

@Jason Memail: They take the whole salary and expenses, Dessie Ellis aka the Finglas Bomber said he was struggling so they scrapped it.

@Brian D’Arcy: SF are in no position to accuse other parties when it comes to paedophilia, are they? Did FG cover up for this guy like SF did for their perverts? Of course there are people who abuse the expenses system in all parties, but they’re not being nominated for CC right now, are they?

@Brian D’Arcy:
Sinn Fein lied for years to their grass root members claiming the big boys lived on the average industrial wage.
Then Dessie let it slip to a jurno that the greedy lot were all pocketing the full amount plus expenses.

@Anthony Curran: if it was gold plated the Shinners would have it swiped

@Anthony Curran: and stick a twix up his hole!

@John Madden: 40,000 less than FG, 80,000 less than FF and 160, 000 down on 2020, and how many were elected on the first count? SF supporters here were saying about Harris, Martin, Varaktar that they got elected on long counts, most of SFs TDs got in on the last count and some not reaching quota……but like the 3 in a row lost elections they still think they are important.

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: suddenly? Are you new here? The Ceann Comhairle salary has been a recurring topic on here for the past week at least

@Dermot Blaine: If he gets it will he take all the money?

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: That’s hilarious it’s been discussed for the entire week with SF supporters saying it’s outrageous now they want it …..have SF no integrity left? Not that they had much to begin with

@Tristan Ua Ceithearnaigh: do u make it up as u go along

@Frank O’Hara: he did not send a parcel bomb to anyone, it was sent to the office of An Phoblacht by unionist paramilitaries, where he worked as a journalist, he carried it outside where it subsequently exploded injuring two British soldiers. Facts matter.

@Darius Guppy: He sent a parcel-bomb to a British army office that exploded and severely injured two off-duty soldiers. By virtue of carrying the bomb to the building and letting it detonate, he is responsible for sending it! He chose not to dispose of it in a responsible manner and instead deliberately put people in harm’s way.

@Brian D’Arcy: No better read the constitution….

@Paul O’Mahoney: I think the ceann comhairle has to vote for the status quo if there is a tie – so if it’s a vote on new government legislation they vote against. But I could be wrong.

On the numbers, if SF or any other opposition TD is Ceann Comhairle, then the total of all non-FFG TDs is 87. If one of those switches sides then FFG has a majority

@lesidees: Remember the early 80s , 3 Governments in 18 months, Ceann Comhairle was always non party I think and that was because he had to preserve the government, legislation been rejected usually meant another election then and it really was like have an extra seat . Ceann Comhaile are meant to be a political when in office and must persevere the Government as he constitutionally is required too.

That’s my understanding

@Paul O’Mahoney: you may be right. Legally/constitutionally I think the CC can vote whichever way they want, but by convention they don’t

@lesidees: They can’t be responsible for taking down a government they don’t have the constitutional right , they can’t vote unless it’s a tie .Its been a while but I thought it was based on the American Senate, casting vote by VP if a tie…….

Anyhow it’s all probably academic.