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I’m not a big GAA supporter but I think that they are perfectly entitled to refuse a competing sport the use of a stadium they have built, mostly from their own funds.
They took a chance at a time when they were not sure where most of the money would come from. I remember headlines and back page commentary which said that the vision was beyond the resources and capabilities of a voluntary organisation and that they would surely bankrupt the GAA for generations to come!.
So they got a handout from the government. That’s hardly their fault! They asked and they received! It was up to the government to decide if they were entitled to it or not and also up to them to lay down any conditions relating to the payment at the time, i.e let in ‘foreign’ sports or no game!
The fault should lie fair and square at the governments door. They messed things up. Its up to them to sort it out. No use crying to the GAA now expecting favours.
Of course they will put the heavy hand on them now that things have started going awry.
Its the latest in a long line of calamities- (roads, railways, metro, luas, education, health, SSIA’s and not to mention broken election promises) and it won’t be the last.
Someone needs to ensure that the Coalition aren’t bailed out of this one.
I think that the problem lies in the fact that successive governments look on these schemes (metro, luas, various stadia) as a chance to embark on a ‘Grand Projet’ akin to Francois Mitterand. We saw this with the various transformations the Luas/Metro plans went through during their conception.

I say let those in the know get on with the planning and implementation of these projects and the government should get on with the day to day running of the country. Control should not be given to an individual, often with no relevant qualifications, who can reverse the decisions of expert consultants.

Maybe then the health care and education system would rise from their ruinous states when they get the focus they deserve from a government that is at the moment distracted with trying to sort out a few soccer games in 2008.
What proportion of government time has been dedicated to this over the past number of weeks I wonder?

Without interference the FAI & IRFU would have managed to build their own Stadium by now.
The Luas and metro would also probably be built.

On a final note I’m also fed up with people who are concerned about how all this will make us look in Europe. We should try to get things right for ourselves not for others.
I want to feel proud of our country and our capital city. I want to have top class transport and sports facilities. I want us to vote yes to the Nice treaty. I want to do this for ourselves (and in the case of the Nice treaty to give other countries the opportunity share the wealth of the EU)
I couldn’t care less that what we do or how we vote might make us look stupid. Enough with this inferiority complex which seems to concern so many of us (especially newspaper columnists)!

The Pro Cathedral looks well after its facelift too! Marlborough St. is already showing signs of improvement. Although I’m still not sure about the new An Bord Pleanala offices. Better than an empty gap and a big improvement on the Eircom bunker opposite I suppose. I wonder if this Eircom building is part of any architects portfolio??

The towers look quite well when driving down Amiens St, framed between Busaras and the IFSC!

I tried to go in for a look around one day but was stopped and told that only Dept of Education staff were allowed – A pity!