I WISH TO THANK ALL THE GOOD AND KIND PEOPLE OF BALLYMORE EUSTACE WHO HELPED IN THE SEARCH FOR JIMMY MURPHY. SPECIAL THANKS TO FERGAL TOOMEY WHO NOTICED THAT JIMMYS FRONT DOOR WAS OPEN ALL NIGHT AND JIMMY WASMISSING THEREFORE RAISING THE ALARM. IT IS THIS CARING REACTION TO THE UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCES THAT SAVED JIMMY'S LIFE. THANKS TO THE GARDAI FROM BLESSINGTON AND BALLYMORE, THE FIRE-BRIGADE TEAM AND THE AMBULANCE CREW FROM BALTINGLASS AND THE CIVIL DEFENSE TEAM. I AM VERY GRATEFUL TO EVERY ONE. MANY MANY THANKS. GOD BLESS YOU ALL AND WISHING YOU ALL A HEALTHY AND PROSPEROUS NEW-YEAR 2008. JIMMY WAS FOUND ALIVE AFTER 48 HOURS OUTDOORS IN FREEZING WEATHER. HE IS NAAS HOSPITAL NOW DOING WELL THANK GOD. TERESA MURPHY TSOUROS (Jimmys sister)
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8th January 2008.
Dear Editor,
Thank you for the reply to my letter in the December issue of the Bugle. The name of the little group that played after the Welly Match is Silver Lizard. In reading the article on the passing of Alice Flood R.I.P. brought back many memories of my childhood. I used to holiday with a family beside Floods and we used to go there for milk. At that time their mother was there in a wrap around apron with her hair in a bun. Alice was always Lal to me, and Nan. Mary and Kathy had a little shop in Dublin. The highlight of my visit was if one of them went up into the “parlour” and you waited to hear the biscuit tin rattle. You knew then that you were about to get a biscuit; something we wee not used to. No doubt they came from the shop in Dublin! How sad to see all that lovely family gone, but at least I have my memories.
Sincerely,
Brigid Eile.
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Dear Editors,
GREETINGS FROM MANCHESTER

Firstly, congratulations on an exceptionally good year for "The Bugle". Each issue was top class with excellent news items, reminiscences and great contributions.
My sister-in-law, Anne Hendrick, sends me the Bugle eash issue and I can assure you that it gets our immediate attention.I promised Michael Ward some years ago that I would contribute at some stage, but sadly I never got down to writing.At last the catalyst arrived in the publication of Bill Lawlor's letter {page 31] Dec. 2007.

The footnote from the Editors clarifies the situation that was upsetting to Bill. How wonderful to hear from him. I have not seen Bill for many years, but I have happy memories of seeing Bill win some of his Handball championships. Bill was a "CIOTOG" and Boy could he butt the hardball with his left. When I am in Ballymore I always enquire from Harry about Bill and Myles.

Bill mentions his father Myles who played on the same Ballymore G.F.C. team as my Father, Tom and Mary Fay (Doran's) Father, Art in 1914. Terry Purcell was also on that team.My father was also very involved with the Handball at the time of the great Tommy Leahy. I remember as a very young boy travelling to "BIG" Handbal Matches in Carlow and the BOOT INN , Ballymun. There was a lot of gambling on Handball in that era. WHEN DID THE G.A.A. TAKE OVER HANDBALL???

The real purpose of this article is to "speak up" for Jim Clarke, I was about to write defend Jim Clarke, but Jim could always defend himself.

Jim and I go back a long way in G.A.A. and family terms. We started on the school team run by my uncle Ned Whelan circa 1941. Jim went on to be a footballing ICON.
Jim deserves plaudits for his work for Handball. On my visits to Ballymore I was made aware of all the work and commitment he had given to the Handball Club. When one remembers that Jim has had personal difficulties and also that he has lived away from the village for years, his endeavours are deserving of even more recognition. Jim was ever present in my G.A.A. years and I have such wonderful memories of the Golden Years of Ballymore G.F.C. centered around the said nephew of the great Larry Stanley.

On to MATT

Great to read Matt's column again, certainly his December contribution is immense. He mentions my cousins Brigid, Margaret and Pauline singing "Three Lovely Lassies from Bunion", actually it is Three Lovely Lassies from Bannion, Bunion is what my wife had removed from her left foot last year!
Matt , Mai joins me in wishing you the very best of health in 2008 and may your ink never run dry.

MARGARET BRADY (WHELAN) R.I.P.

The December issue carried news of Margaret's death.
My cousin Margaret, as mentioned in the Dec. issue suffered great pain, but always cheerfully borne. We were great competitors in the Band Hall Question Times [the word QUIZ had not yet been used], Margaret invariably won. For that era she had the most incredible general knowledge gleaned from reading avidly. The sisters were devoted to Irish Dancing, Drama and Writing. Margaret had some of her work published.

During her early married life Margaret and her family lived in Barnburgh, Nr. Mexborough, Yorkshire and Mai and I have very happy memories of Christmasses spent with them in the sixties.

Eddie Whelan



on passing by- again

Well to start with I would just like to wish a very happy New Year to all our readers. I hope 2008 brings you all you could wish for yourselves.

It certainly looks like my old friend Dick Roche is experiencing an almost Lazarus like reappearance on the political landscape. In what seemed almost like a deliberate dispatch to the wilderness after the election poor Dick all but disappeared from our radios and televisions. His dulcet tones no longer patronised interviewers or other interviewees, no longer gave profuse thanks to the questioner for asking the question and no longer was able to answer questions he hadn’t been asked.
As the saying goes, revenge is a dish best served cold, and be japers but Dick seems to be serving it up with gusto. First we had his very public contradiction of Bertie and Mary Hanafin over the water charges for schools. Bert and Mary said it was out of their hands because it was dictated by Brussels. Not quite so, says our Dick, its actually up to the member states themselves. Whether this was actually correct seems to have disappeared in the fuss but what a way to announce your comeback.
Now we are facing into the mudslinging over the Lisbon Treaty, or as the political parties for some reason are calling the Reform Treaty. As Junior Minister for European Affairs this one is going to have Dick on the airwaves morning, noon and night. What a treat we have in store!.
Having said that I haven’t looked at the treaty too closely but I do get a bit nervous when all the main parties are telling us there’s nothing to be worried about and it will make us all better Europeans. The sight of Fine Gael and Labour standing four square behind the Government is slightly creepy and makes you wonder what we are not being told.
Another major worry is the Greens. As far as I am aware they have campaigned against every EU referendum so far so it seems a bit strange that both green ministers are looking for a special resolution at their party conference which would allow them to side with the government regardless of what decision is reached at said conference. Yet another core value of the party sacrificed on the alter of government. Considering one of the most vociferous opponents of ceding any more national sovereignty to Brussels was Minister Gormley this u turn is even more appalling. What else is going to be discarded to hold on to power?.

Berties problems with the tribunal seem to be escalating with every visit and yet he still continues to insist that everything he has done is totally above board and that if any of the dealings were not above board then they must have occurred without his knowledge. What I consider to be totally damning is the way we have been drip fed revelations for months and months with Bertie only admitting to most of the revelations after the tribunal has found out about them. Surely if all his dealings were above board he would have come out and made a full statement at the very outset rather than have it forced out of him over all these months. Surely someone totally innocent of wrongdoing would not subject themselves to this kind of public ignominy and questioning.
Could it perhaps be that the biggest stories are yet to come so it is in his best interests to make the small ones last as long as possible?. Is it possible that, as was suggested for Liam Lawlor, Bertie is covering up for someone. Remember that Lawlor found multiple visits to Mountjoy preferable to giving full details to the tribunal. Here was another politician who lost no opportunity to protest his innocence and to publicly wonder if he was being “stitched up”. As the fellow said “me think he doth protesteth too much”.

I am seriously beginning to think that the HSE is one of the biggest rip offs of all time. If you think back this was to be the all encompassing body for our health service. The former health boards, of which I think there were about eleven, were disbanded and all the power handed over to the HSE. This was supposedly to stop duplication of services and yet no one from the former boards appears to have faced or been given redundancy. Surely if we have a centralised system then the upper management tier of the old systems should be surplus to requirements?.
The ongoing scandal of people being forced to spend hours, and sometimes days, on hospital trolleys in corridors is just not good enough. We are all supposed to be entitled to our human dignity and yet what kind of dignity is being shown to these people who are examined, fed and have their personal details discussed in front of all and sundry. One doctor in the system has become so frustrated that he has publicly stated that people are actually dying on trolleys and in A&E before they can even be assessed.
We are currently being treated to a massive media campaign on mental health which to go by previous campaigns is costing millions. This is to tell us all that mental health problems are more widespread than we think and to be tolerant and supportive of people who find themselves facing these problems. We are told how the HSE is ramping up treatment and facilities at the same time as we find out that over fifty million euro earmarked for these very same services has apparently not been spent and has been reabsorbed back into the HSE central coffers. And whose head will roll?. Don’t hold your breath.
We have a minister for health who despite a coterie of advisers, all on over a hundred grand a year, seems totally unable to bring the system to heel. When presented with yet another scandal her usual response is to say that it is being investigated but that ultimately it’s a question for the HSE and not her department. Is she seriously suggesting that the government has brought into being a HSE which is totally autonomous and answerable to absolutely nobody but itself?. How can a Health Service Executive not be answerable to the arm of government which is tasked with looking after our health i.e. the Department of Health. Either Ms Harney is or isn’t in charge. If she is why is she ignoring the problems?. If she isn’t then why isn’t she?.


All for now. Mike Edmonds.