Madam, - Denying that his Government plans a spending spree before next spring's general election, the Taoiseach promises instead a continuation of the "prudent, sensible management" that he claims to have been government policy "for the best of the last 20 years and certainly under my reign for the past 10" (The Irish Times, September 5th).
That's an interesting choice of word. My dictionary defines reign as "the period of rule by a monarch". Has Fianna Fáil's sense of entitlement come to that? Or was the Taoiseach thinking in more figurative terms, like the "Reign of Terror" that followed the French Revolution?
If the latter, perhaps he has come to recognize that the State, under the current Government, is going through a Reign of Error. - Yours, etc,
GEORGE McCORMICK, Burnell Drive, Mullingar, Co Westmeath.
Madam, - I wish to express my disappointment at the wholly inappropriate use of the word "rail" in the headline to a report of a speech given by President McAleese: "President rails against drink culture" (The Irish Times, September 4th).
In my understanding of its Oxford English Dictionary meaning, the word rail, used as a verb, is intended to imply immoderate or even abusive language. The President was addressing, with commendable clarity, the obsession in Ireland with making every occasion an alcohol-fuelled event. It is high time that this obsession is tackled head on.
It would be more befiting a newspaper of the prestige enjoyed by The Irish Times to take the lead in confronting this menace rather than attempting to tabloidise the President's laudable comments. - Yours, etc,
CHARLES McCULLAGH, Kilmore, Armagh.