Sir, - Anyone with a titter of sense would have to agree wholeheartedly with the sentiments expressed by Frank McDonald (Opinion, August 10th). He was writing about the rapacious development of our country, causing water shortages and sewage blockages, and the rash of insensitive schemes due to lack of proper planning, all taking place under the guise of "progress."
Near me, the small, quaint and historic village of Ballymore Eustace anxiously awaits the reply from An Bord Pleanala as to whether it is to develop in an orderly fashion or become another dormitory town for Dublin.
Believe it or not, the chief worry of the planning section of Kildare County Council is the fear of Co Kildare becoming a "deserted village". Stop laughing! It took me 15 minutes to get through the village of Clane the other day.
Cries from the hearts of teachers and priests about the depopulation of the midlands and the west go unheard, while all rush to the eastern seaboard like lemmings, adding to the chaos of traffic jams and rushed housing development, putting a strain on already strained services. But ask any of our politicians why the whole country cannot be developed along equal lines and the slick answer is "lack of infrastructure". Rubbish! A mile of road costs much the same wherever it's laid. Same goes for brick laying. Our planners, developers and politicians should be taken on a conducted tour of these depopulated areas. Regionalisation is the "in word". The thinking is about 10 years too late.
Amid all this poor planning and non-existent forward thinking, we have adopted the motto "Greed is good", as Mr McDonald suggests. The "quick buck" is number one. "We may not get the chance again, lads." We are a peasant nation still, it seems, gobsmacked and awe-struck by the flashy car and big house, and all the trappings of "high living". Ugh. So long, Naples. See Temple Bar and die! - Yours, etc.
R. Jeffers, Brannockstown, Naas, Co Kildare.