Do we accept the Eerie Order of Irish Chaos?

'It turns out that an eerie type of chaos can lurk just behind a facade of order - and yet, deep inside the chaos lurks an even eerier type of order'.

We seek education to understand, to better ourselves and live fuller lives in the world. But the chaos of the world will not allow you to understand, and often you come to the realisation that chaos reigns supreme.

I read with interest everyday the Irish Times, seeing this as the pulse of the nation - even if the accusation of a elitist view may have some basis in fact. It is in this pursuit of this understanding of the nation I hail from and love, that I sometime hark back to Gandalf's immortal line, 'Hobbits really are amazing creatures. You can learn all there is to know about their ways in a month, and yet after a hundred years they can still surprise you'. In the past few days things have amazed me about Ireland which in one felt swoop has confused me, perturbed me and also inspired me.

Thomas Cook was a travel company I walked by everyday in my years at Trinity. I never had any interaction with the company and even though I was involved in a competing business no more than fifty yards away, if the building was turned overnight into a Delifrance I perhaps would not have noticed. However the occupation by its workers who were made redundant, hit a raw nerve inside me. I was involved in such negotiations but wonder how I would have reacted if the disagreement had come to this. My heart tells me that to see young Dublin people being arrested, when they were clearly desperate and scared, would have made me intervene. However my head says that this made sound business sense for the company to save costs, to play hardball. However for such a proftibale group, even in this recession, my fear that this so called 'wicked' problem had a chance of resolvement through mediation. However it is interesting to think that this happened in Dublin City Centre, on a Bank Holiday when people are meant to be most positive, at their most happy.

I was always led to believe that Irish people are great in a chaos due to our initaitive and outside the box thinking.However sometimes our embrace of chaos, and our short sightedness leads us into areas that defy belief and the best problem solving. How could a man and his company on our island get into over one billion euros worth of debt? As commercial developers, the numbers that banks and individuals work with is obviously astronomical, but the misjudgement with Zoe Ltd and Liam Carroll shows an enormous irresponsibility and naivity at the best. and lack of social morality and criminality at the worst. Bankers are very eductaed people let us remember - they surely understood the consequences of a failing by him to the Irish banking system in its totality. While I will not rehearse the incentives of short termism in this sector, people need to realise that planning and pragmatism need to be the going to concern. Nobody, not even nation states as we see now are too big to fail. Progress isn't evitable, and growth takes hits in even the most resilient economy.

The final view of chaos in the Irish nation had been some 13 years in the making, but took seconds to hit. Jerry McCabe was an innocent, hard working garda when he was shot by members of the provisional IRA in a bank raid in Limerick in 1996. Arrests were made and convistions sought and obtained, but for the lesser crime of manslaughter - in that they did not mean to kill him while firing at his car with AK47s. Nonetheless, with their time done and the convicted adequately rehabiliated, they were realised this very day from Castlerea Prison in the county which I hail from. What is disgusting and repugnant about this whole affair was in the persona of the man who greeted them on their release - Martin Ferris, an elected TD from no more than fifty miles from where the guards lived, worked and died. This blatant condoning of men who, while rehabiliated, were involved in the murder of a man who gave his life in protection of state throws mud in the face of any resemblance of order. It was seen to be done with a bashful acceptance, like men who had taken a fall for a noble cause. For personal reasons, it makes me look inward and reflect on the society that I am part of and whether to understand that this is part of a successful democracy will help me grow, or in this case ignorance and small mindedness is bliss and right.

In understanding Irish politics, it is not more important than ever that our leadership needs to step up and help the country to transcend this chaos in a hope to drive forward the nation.

The world does not need more politicians, it needs leaders.

Dubliners are dragged from a travel agency. An Irishman is allowed, encouraged by Irish banks to get 1 billion euros in debt. An elected official condones murder of a guardian of the state.

This order is chaos, and it is undoubtedly eerie.