Letters: Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh’s melodic voice captured the magic of Sunday games

​The Sound of Sundays

​Born in County Kerry, A place where the wind blows strong and the sea roars — Where winter nights rattle at the doors, And where the summer breeze Is festooned with lark song And the sounds of matches — Hopeful punts and heroic catches The speed and strength and glory Of a point well taken. The rise and fall Of hope and expectation. The heart and pulse Of a place, A people, A nation.

And when he spoke We awoke to wonder — To conjured miracles — For he could make the blind see — His melodic voice, Agile and textured like the ocean, Conveyed motion and emotion, Passion and devotion, A sense of place and history, An intimate Irish story, He was the epitome Of us and ours.

And now his hour has come. Ní bhéidh a leithéid arís ann.

John Maughan, Malahide, Co Dublin

Suspended sentences are a systemic failure

Sir — The Natasha O’Brien case highlights the fact that judicial sentencing is largely left to the discretion of a judge and, as the Supreme Court noted, on the principle of “a sentence appropriate to his degree of guilt and his relevant personal circumstances”.

However, the Court of Criminal Appeal has noted that in the case of assaults causing harm, there must “involve in principle a custodial sentence unless there are sufficient mitigating factors or other circumstances in the case warranting otherwise”.

In other words, suspended sentences for assault causing serious harm should be extremely rare.

The data suggests this is not the case. In 2017, 22pc of assault cases attracted a suspended sentence. The sentence imposed on Cathal Crotty was not a rogue judgment but a systemic failure, which stems from the contradictory and competing requirements of the legal system. Helen ­McEntee has attempted to correct this flaw by increasing the maximum sentence for assault causing harm from five years to 10 years.

The fundamental problem is that the Oireachtas has signalled through legislation, such as the Criminal Justice Act 2006, that judges should have sentencing discretion, that prison should be the “last resort”, and that sentencing should take into account mitigating factors.

In fact, the Law Reform Commission argued that the individualisation of sentences and judicial discretion may be a constitutional requirement. The right of the DPP to ask the Court of Criminal Appeal to review a sentence that is deemed “unduly lenient” places a check on the system.

There is an argument to be made that there should be wholesale mandatory minimum sentences. This is based on the thesis that when society finds a crime so insidious, such as murder, which does carry a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment, there are no mitigating factors.

The evidence from the US suggests universal mandatory sentences do not work. Moreover, as the Irish Penal Reform Trust points out, mandatory sentencing could lead to injustices; it is ineffective as a deterrent and leads to more people going to prison, which escalates costs.

Andy Hales, Kenmare, Co Kerry

Irish prison system put under pressure

Sir — People are right to be appalled by the vicious assault of Natasha O’Brien by the young, off-duty soldier Cathal Crotty, but anyone who attends our courts will not be surprised a suspended sentence was imposed on a man who did not have previous convictions.

Every day our courts sit, there are numerous cases of unprovoked assaults, usually on young men. Whatever about the merits of supporting a young man to reform and stay in employment rather than go to prison, that system could not cope if every perpetrator of similar assaults was always sent to prison.

Frank Browne, Templeogue, Dublin 16

Nation hurt by lapse in judicial wisdom

Sir — I would like to sympathise with Judge Tom O’Donnell. His unwise decision has caused the proverbial to hit the fan. We can assume he meant well, but he got it wrong in this instance. We all make mistakes.

It is quite a while since the nation was so shocked by an outrage, but in this case the outrage was compounded by a surprising lapse in judicial wisdom.

Violence against women has been a problem for a long time. We need to be more unequivocal and explicit in our opposition to it.

James Harden, Adare, Co Limerick

Women are far from blessed in Ireland

Sir — “Blessed amongst women”, a phrase thrown around, by men only too glad to be graced by the presence of women. The question really is, “Are we blessed to be women?” Are we blessed to live in fear of men and their capabilities? To be scared to leave down your drink? To never be able to walk alone, night or day? Are we blessed to be burdened by the pressures of society? To have the right clothes, To have just the right amount of make-up? Too little, you’re lazy, Too much, you’re trying too hard. What is this blessing? We never asked for it.

Lauren Connolly (aged 17), Headford, Co Galway

​RTÉ’s pundits have lost all perspective

Sir — While watching the RTÉ pundits’ views on the England v Slovenia on Tuesday, I wondered what their opinions would be if Ireland had qualified for the Euros, topped their group and advanced to the next stage while playing mediocre football. I’m sure they would not be at all critical.

Italia ’90 was a great occasion for Irish football, but the standard of play was quite ordinary. When Eamon ­Dunphy voiced criticism of the Irish team, he was pilloried and became public enemy number one. So come on lads, let’s have a sense of perspective.

James McWalter, Mullingar, Co Westmeath

Witch-hunt rhetoric says a lot about US

Sir — It is interesting to observe how former US president Donald Trump uses language to turn truth on its head. In recent weeks he has used the term “witch-hunt” many times even though he is not a witch and is not being hunted. He is simply accused of breaking the law and must face the rigours of the law.

The words, though, summon up ghosts of the past and in particular the Salem witch-trials of the late 17th century. The story of that terrible event still resonates in the American psyche.

George Orwell wrote: “If thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.” That quotation is apt when considering Trump, his rhetoric and the circus that follows him around. He has hijacked the Republican party, the Grand Old Party of history.

Observing all this it is hard to suppress a feeling of despondency and concern for the US.

Anthony McDonagh, Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan

Unwatchable debate of the unelectables

Sir — I watched highlights (what a misnomer!) of the debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. It was deeply depressing and disturbing to say the least.

What a Hobson’s choice (again) for the US electorate. A “race” between a jaded old man and a shameless charlatan.

Paddy Sharkey, Hollywood, Co Wicklow

Are autopilots at the negotiating table?

Sir — I’m just wondering if the autopilots on the Aer Lingus planes are included in these dispute deliberations. They do most of the work.

Pat Burke Walsh, Ballymoney, Co Wexford

Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh king of the airwaves

Sir — Back in 2012, Mícheál Ó Sé informed Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh of the sudden death of Páidí Ó Sé with the words: “Tá àr Rí imithe uainn.”

I’m quite sure that many Irish people of a certain vintage would have echoed the same sentiment when they heard on Wednesday morning that the man from Dún Síon was also on “ar slí na fírinne”.

Though as Kerry as Carrauntoohil, Micheàl’s domain had open borders. On big match days, his voice wafted to the ends of the earth to wherever there was a wireless.

You could say that he and his contemporary Con Houlihan had a double act. Micheál would paint a picture with the spoken word on a Sunday and Con would do likewise with the written word on a Monday.

Micheál didn’t just comment on the game, he was part of the action, kicking every ball and pucking every sliotar. Without being partisan, he came across as an enthusiastic excited fan on the terrace with a microphone. He’d weave a noose with a whirlwind of words that drew his listeners into the fray with him, so that by the end of a close match (he made them all close) you’d be as exhausted as the players on the field. That was his gift.

His voice is stilled now. He used to say with a philosophic toss of the head, “níl in aon ni ach tamaill”. He was right.

This son of the soil will be taken back to Corca Dhuibhne where he uttered his first words and where he’ll rest among his many heroes and friends who he commentated on, down through the years, with Paddy Bàn Bill Dillon and other immortals. ­Solas na bhflaitheas air.

Jim O’Connell, Ashtown, Dublin 7

Welfare is at the core of farming practices

Sir — In response to the ­letter (June 23) stating that the treatment of Irish pigs is worthy of an RTÉ exposé, it should be remembered that Irish pig farming is a highly regulated industry and welfare is at the core of our farming practices.

Department of Agriculture inspections, along with inspections for quality assurance schemes, are routine, as are compulsory visits from our private veterinary practitioners.

Our goal as farmers is for our animals to grow, and one does not need an animal science background to understand that if an animal is mistreated, it will cause stress. Therefore, its immune system and metabolism are compromised, its appetite will be reduced and it will be more likely to develop an illness.

We as farmers are extremely proud of producing healthy, safe, nutritious and sustainable pork that can be traced back to Bord Bia approved farms ­nationwide.

Shane McAuliffe, pig farmer, Co Kerry

​Budget must help cancer patients

Sir — The chair of the National Cancer Strategy, Professor John Kennedy (Letters, June 23), expressed concern about the lack of government funding in each year’s annual budget.

He went on to say that the political will to support the ­National Cancer Strategy is weak and, as such, millions have been lost with consequences for the unfortunate cancer patients, whose numbers continue to increase. This situation is most concerning for clinicians and patients alike.

The Irish Cancer Society estimates that at least €20m is needed in development funding for 2025 and subsequent years to bring the National Cancer Strategy fully back on track.

Let us all hope that the necessary funding is made available to this vital service in the upcoming budget.

Tom Towey, Cloonacool, Co Sligo

Halliday displays his Keane eye yet again

Sir — Tom Halliday’s cartoon illustrating Eilis O’Hanlon’s column last Sunday (‘Grumpy Roy speaks truth to power’) was brilliant. Tom is a great contributor to your paper and deserves great credit.

Aidan O’Connor, Dungarvan, Co Waterford

Property squeeze on hard-pressed Dubs

Sir — I’m not sure how many people in Dublin know that 20pc of property tax collected there is distributed to other councils, but it’s true.

If other councils need more money, surely it’s the responsibility of the Government to sort it out, not the hard-pressed people of Dublin.

Dubliners pay more for property, house insurance and car insurance, and now councillors want to increase property tax in Dublin. There was no mention of this when they knocked on my door looking for my vote.

Is there any chance that some politician will take up the plight of hard-pressed Dubliners? I doubt it.

Jim Walsh, Templeogue, Dublin 6W

Sex offender laws are beyond the pale

Sir — In Ireland in 2024, a convicted male sex offender can legally get a certificate that allows him to say he is a woman and have access to all spaces where women and girls are ­vulnerable.

In Ireland in 2024, a convicted male sex offender can legally obtain a baby through surrogacy. Have we completely lost our minds?

E Bolger, Dublin 9

An Garda Síochána is in total disarray

Sir — The Government is desperate to recruit people into An Garda Síochána because of the decline in numbers and the number of people leaving the force.

While a reservist does not work the same number of hours as a regular garda, they carry out all the duties a regular garda is required to but do not get paid for it — not a cent, only expenses, which have to be applied for.

The work as laid out in application forms details potentially very dangerous duties, yet people are expected to do it gratis. Then there is the bleed of regular members leaving the force because of bullying, burnout, unfair treatment by management, lack of support in their roles and poor morale, which are the core reasons why members quit the force.

Two-hundred gardaí quit the force between July 2021 and June 2023, according to the Garda Representative Association.

That’s eight gardaí every month saying goodbye to a job because of the negative impact on their physical and mental health.

Many who wanted to be police officers have left to join other police forces to have a quality of life, instead of suffering in the Irish system. Scandals in the force such as the victimisation and persecution of Maurice McCabe and Majella Moynihan’s stigmatisation highlight a state institution that leaves a lot to be desired.

The same is true of the private security sector, where people are leaving in droves and job adverts are a dime a dozen.

Law enforcement and security diminishment nationwide will be the result of very bad work conditions in addition to very low or no pay for entry-level ­positions.

Maurice Fitzgerald, Shanbally, Co Cork