Sir, – Ed Abrahamson says “Israel is a country of millions of moderate Jews who seek peace” (“A McCarthyite fervour has overtaken Ireland where Israel is concerned,” Opinion, November 23rd).
As someone who spent quite a long time in my earlier years living and working on a kibbutz, I can assure you that I was never anti-Israel. I was treated well and got along well with the Israeli people I had contact with.
Israel is not a normal country, looking for peace. Mr Abrahamson has conveniently ignored the well-documented fact that Israel administers, through its army, and through support for the “settlers”, a miserable life for the Palestinian people on the West Bank, a so-called autonomous region, not run by Hamas.
Israel also finds it acceptable to conduct regular unprovoked bombing attacks on its neighbours.
Israel did not go to war in October 2023. They themselves have perpetuated a constant state of war since 1948.
And Ireland has every right to speak out about this outrage. – Yours, etc,
GEARÓID Ó MURCHÚ,
Indreabhán,
Co na Gaillimhe.
Sir, – Israeli bombs have directly caused at least 20,000 child deaths and left more paediatric amputees in Gaza than any war in recorded history. In his polemic on Irish anti-Israeli sentiment, Ed Abrahamson’s glib dismissal of this slaughter (“war is always ugly”) is particularly egregious coming from a doctor of child health. – Yours, etc,
BILLY BOURKE ,
Consultant paediatrician,
Blackrock,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – Sometimes, even for doctors, it’s hard to hear bad news. Challenges to cherished ideas, people or things can be difficult to bear.
As doctors it should be hard to bear when we see the destruction of more than half the hospitals in Gaza or the blockade to access to supplies of medical equipment and pharmaceuticals. These have resulted in thousands of preventable deaths from injuries and illnesses.
The destruction of the Gazan healthcare system is not an accident of war but a very significant breach of the international rules of war.
Israel has repeatedly broken the Geneva Conventions of 1949, especially the First and Fourth Conventions, plus the Additional Protocols of 1977, in relation to healthcare and civilian populations.
In this war in Gaza, at least 70,000 Gazan people have been killed, almost 60 per cent of whom are women, children and the elderly.
Throughout this time there has been only silence from the Israeli medical profession about the destruction of Gazan healthcare.
We waited to hear condemnation of it from the Israeli Medical Association or offers of humanitarian help for sick children from those doctors who do not support the Netanyahu government. Children are dying within easy distance of nearby Israeli hospitals
Accusations against Israel of genocide in Gaza are not just the spurious opinions of some Irish citizens but a confirmed statement from UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory which followed on from the statement by the International Association of Genocide Scholars that Israel’s conduct met the legal definition of genocide as set out by the UN Convention on Genocide.
Hamas actions on October 7th, 2023, were barbaric and rightly condemned in Ireland as elsewhere.
Hamas does not represent all Palestinians any more than the Netanyahu government represents all Israelis. Innocent Palestinians in Gaza deserve protection, as do innocent Israelis.
The situation in the Middle East is undoubtedly complicated and will be difficult to resolve, but doctors do have a duty to speak when the sick and innocent are being actively denied basic medical care. – Yours, etc,
Dr LAURA BARKER
Dr ANN MARIE CONNOLLY,
Dr MARGARET CONNOLLY,
Dr MARIE DRUMGOOLE,
Dr ALEXANDRA DUNCAN,
Dr SUSAN FINNERTY,
Dr SIOBHAN GRAHAM,
Dr MARY JENNINGS,
Dr GRACE KENNY,
Dr DERMOT LANIGAN,
Dr BRIAN LENNON,
Dr GERALDINE O’DEA,
Dr CHRIS ROSARIO,
(University of Galway, class of 1984).
Sir, – Regarding Ed Abrahamson’s criticism of Ireland in his Opinion article: I am neither pro-Palestinian nor anti-Semite. Like the Irish Government, I am pro-justice and dignity for all human beings. And like the Irish Government, I condemn the Hamas attack on October 7th.
There is an abundance of evidence of long-term inhumane treatment of Palestinians at the behest of the elected Israeli government, Israeli Defense Forces and Jewish settlers.
Armed settlers have maimed and murdered defenceless Palestinians, illegally confiscating their land and arbitrarily incarcerating hundreds of Palestinian men, women and children in Israeli jails.
Palestinians have been living and farming in Israel/Palestine for generations. Germany is responsible for the Holocaust not the Palestinians. The Old Testament is not a legal document. – Yours, etc,
SHEILA MORIARTY,
Castleknock.
Dublin.
Data centres and energy use
Sir, – Una Mullally’s recent critique of Ireland’s data-centre sector reflects understandable concerns about energy use, but it risks overlooking the strategic importance of this industry and the opportunities Ireland stands to lose if we retreat from it.
Data centres are not casually considered investments, they are driven by the rapid digitalisation of society and the demands of customers, enterprises and governments all over the world; they are the backbone of nearly every service we rely on – healthcare analytics, financial services, public administration, remote work, online education, and the digital operations of thousands of Irish businesses.
Countries across Europe, including Spain, the Nordics and the UK, are moving aggressively to attract this investment because they understand that digital infrastructure is now as essential as transport networks or manufacturing facilities.
Ireland should not allow temporary grid constraints to define long-term policy. Instead of treating data centres as an energy burden, we should recognise their ability to underpin renewable deployment by providing guaranteed demand, enabling investment in wind, solar, and storage that would otherwise struggle to get financed.
In fact, the private-wire and on-site generation models that critics dismiss are precisely the innovations that can accelerate decarbonisation without adding pressure to the public grid.
If we push this sector away, we won’t reduce global emissions – we will merely export high-value jobs, tax revenue, and influence over technologies shaping the next century.
The question is not whether Ireland can compete in the emerging AI and cloud economy, but whether we choose to remain a serious location for major investment over the coming years, with the innovation, jobs and tax revenues that those investments bring.
What is needed is not a moratorium or a retreat, but a coherent strategy: clear energy rules, faster planning for renewables, and a framework that encourages data-centre operators to invest in Ireland’s clean-energy future rather than go elsewhere. Turning our back on this opportunity would be the real act of hubris. – Yours, etc.
MICHAEL McCARTHY,
Director,
Cloud Infrastructure Ireland,
Ibec,
Dublin.
Sir, – Una Mullally might want to log on to Tailte Éireann’s rates map and look up the rateable valuations of the data centres she denounces.
Most of the data centres in Grangecastle have rateable valuations exceeding €5 million each. This results in South Dublin County Council collecting millions of euro in commercial rates annually from each data centre.
The opponents of data centres often also hold plenty of opinions about what local authorities should be spending money on – but first they’d have to have the money.
Perhaps a rethink is required? – Yours, etc,
ALEX WILSDON,
Kilkenny.
Please answer the phone
Sir, – Sheila Hobbs (“Please answer the phone,” Letters, November 24th) has a perfect right to be utterly frustrated, having come to a point where it is becoming impossible to speak to a real human being while trying to access public services.
There is, however, a simple solution to the problem. The Energy Act of 2016 that set up the Commission for Regulation of Utilities and the Consumer Rights Act of 2022 are just two pieces of legislation that could be looked at for possible amendments.
Public utilities such as gas, electricity, water, rail, road, shipping and air transport, together with banks, insurance companies, health providers, government departments and local authorities, could all be included in the changes.
They could be required by law to provide an adequate supply of real, live phone operators to answer calls from the public.
These calls would be answered within a specified time limit, averaged over the year. Where appropriate the service could be on a 24-hour basis and calls would be recorded.
If an enterprising group of politicians were to take up the idea, push it to through to completion and then take the kudos at the ballot box, it would be satisfaction enough for me to know that when I call these utilities, the phones are answered in a timely manner by living, breathing sentient beings. – Yours, etc,
BOBBY CARTY,
Dublin 6W,
Remembering David Hanly
Sir, – My memory of David Hanly goes back to the 1990 presidential election. Amid the wreckage of the Fianna Fáil campaign, Bertie Ahern, as campaign manager, had to face the music on Morning Ireland.
“Well,” growled Hanly, “what story have you for us this morning, Bertie?” – Yours, etc,
BRENDAN COFFEY,
Co Tipperary.
Recipes are for the birds
Sir, – It is astounding that in response to a turkey shortage caused by the very conditions of animal agriculture, and bird flu outbreaks driven by intensive farming, your recent feature (“For the birds: alternative showstopper dishes for the Thanksgiving or Christmas table,” November 22nd), suggests only more animal-based dishes as alternatives.
This misses the point entirely. Animal farming is directly linked to pandemic risk, climate crisis, and sustainability threats, yet instead of advancing plant-based, cruelty-free festive options, your coverage simply pivots to beef, venison, and fish, each carrying their own environmental and ethical costs.
Why ignore the wealth of festive vegan centrepieces now available, which offer celebration without cruelty or climate damage? We need leadership from chefs and media to highlight these solutions, not perpetuating the very system responsible for the problem. – Yours, etc,
LOUISA MOSS,
Cabra,
Dublin 7.
Words worth
Sir, – Here’s wishing Patsy McGarry a happy birthday (“In a Word, Monday, November 24th).
However, perhaps you could find a better location for Patsy’s In a Word column than directly under the death notices on a Monday?
He deserves better, possibly a return to his original column on Saturdays. – Yours, etc,
TONY CORCORAN,
Rathfarnham,
Dublin 14.
Tackling some rugby issues
Sir, – Many years ago a friend of mine set his alarm for a 3am call. He got out of a warm bed and turned on the TV to watch a world championship boxing match. It took a few minutes to warm up the television, but he eventually he got the commentator reading out the fighters’ names. Feelingly chilly he went out and brought in a bucket of logs.
Suddenly there was a large roar and the fight was over in a minute and 10. My friend turned around and left the logs outside and he went back to bed a disappointed boxing fan.
I felt the same way on Saturday – a game was lost after 10 minutes. A poor tackle should not spoil the rest of the match. How many English soccer matches do you see with a team losing three players at one time? It just wouldn’t happen.
Rugby is now turning into a game of players running into a wall of thick rubber and bouncing out. Surely the fans deserve better. – Yours, etc,
GERRY McCANN,
Belfast.
Sir, – Owen Doyle (Sports Monday, November 24th) states that Ireland’s rugby match against South Africa was attritional brutality, poisonous stuff, rather than a game of contact and evasion.
This arises in part because the players nowadays are huge.
In the era of contact and evasion, for example, Mike Gibson, the legendary centre who starred for Ireland and the Lions in the 1960s and 70s, weighed approximately 79 kg. On Saturday, the four centres’ weights were 95kg, 96kg, 101kg and 102kg.
More systematic analysis (Bevan et al, 2022) shows that over 20 seasons of elite professional rugby union, players have not only gained body mass but have increased their maximal running speed from 8.2 (±0.18) m/s to 9.1 (±0.10) m/s.
Players’ momentum (mass x velocity) has increased by 14 per cent; the front five players’ momentum has increased by 25 per cent, driven mainly by increased running speed.
It is time for the governing bodies to seriously consider the proposal to enforce a team “weight limit” so that the combined body mass of the 15 players on the pitch does not exceed a predetermined total.
This would improve safety without affecting the spectacle of the sport as much as the obvious alternative – a speed limit. – Yours, etc,
DECLAN MURRAY,
Portmarnock
Co Dublin.