Congratulations to Patsy Browne & Julie Moloney who were married recently
The Way I See It
By Domhnall de Barra
A very disturbing incident occurred in Abbeyfeale last week involving the robbery and assault of an elderly man. That it happened is bad enough but the fact that it happened in broad daylight, on the side of the main road, at 5.30 in the afternoon is an indication of what lengths thugs will go to, to get money. The man assaulted had previously had a robbery in his house and consequently carried a good bit of money with him when he went out. He had been shopping at a store not far from where the attack took place and I suppose his attacker noticed that his wallet was full. He must have followed him the short distance to where he was doing a bit of work in a field by the road. He approached the man and asked him if he had lost a wallet. Without thinking, the man reached into his pocket and took out his wallet only to have it snatched from his hand before being brutally kicked and beaten and left helpless on the ground. Luckily he was able to give the Gardaí a good description of his assailant and the thug was arrested shortly afterwards. A couple of days afterwards I was walking in the town park in Abbeyfeale and, in a secluded area, I noticed four well-built teenagers coming towards me. For the first time in my life I felt uncomfortable and nervous in the realisation that, if they wanted to mug me, I could do nothing to stop them. Fortunately they were ordinary decent young men who saluted me and passed on. It is absolutely wrong, and a sign of the times, that anyone should not feel safe in a public park in the middle of the day. We hear about robberies and muggings taking place regularly in major towns and cities but I never dreamed it would happen in my own back yard. I have lived in many countries in my lifetime and, in the past, I was able to walk through streets at night without a worry in the world. In the 1960s I lived in Coventry and every Sunday night I played the accordion in a place called the Kerryman’s Club in the middle of the city. After finishing playing we usually stayed on for a couple of drinks and very often the last bus home had departed when I came out. I used to walk through the city and out about two miles to get home and never once was I bothered by anyone. I had the same experience in Liverpool, a tough city with busy dockland and indeed in Dublin up to the 1980s. There are parts of Dublin now where nobody is safe from attack at any time and I can promise you I would not attempt to walk alone in those areas. Even in rural Ireland, those living in remote areas, especially elderly people, are afraid of being attacked and robbed by gangs in vans who seem to be able to operate with impunity. What has happened in our society? Should we go back to old style policing where the local Gardaí lived in the community and had first hand knowledge of all that was going on. Very often they were able to prevent crimes before they happened as they knew who the criminals were. Now they are stationed many miles away and in no position to answer a distress call in time Then we have the ridiculous court system where the same miscreants appear, time after time, charged with similar offences. On one occasion lately, there was a man up for burglary who had 159 previous convictions. How is that man at large when it is obvious that he has every intention of repeating his crimes and please spare me the social workers who plead for those in court who come from “deprived” backgrounds. We all came from “deprived” backgrounds in comparison to the lifestyle of most people today. We grew up in hard times but we never resorted to robbing and stealing. I believe the punishment should fit the crime and, having served a sentence, if somebody commits a crime again they should be put away for a long time. The only problem is that jail. nowadays, is more like a hotel than a place of punishment. We are reminded of prisoners “civil rights”. Well, I believe that if somebody deliberately breaks the law they should forfeit those rights. It is a sad reflection on a country that was once known as the island of saints and scholars. Thankfully, the man attacked in Abbeyfeale is on the road to recovery but the mental trauma will live with him forever. It should act as a warning to anyone to make sure they don’t “flash the cash”. You never know who is watching you.
Are we ever satisfied? Last week everyone was moaning about the lack of a summer and the amount of drizzly, dismal weather we were getting so one would imagine we would be very happy to see a change for the better with temperatures soaring and sunshine at last. Not so; I have met many people who “can’t stand the heat” and long for cooler weather. Of course it can be uncomfortable if temperatures go above what we are normally used to but aren’t those who complain about it the very same people who pay hundreds of Euros to jet off to the sunspots of the world where temperatures are much higher than what we experienced during the weekend? The beaches of southern Europe are full of Irish people soaking up the sun and fair play to them so why can’t we take the proper precautions and enjoy it here as well because we don’t get that much of it and most of the time we are cursing the rain. We did have the hottest day since 1887. Now there is a clamour about global warming, the use of fossil fuels, motor cars and dairy herds saying if we don’t get rid of them we are going to have more weather extremes. Can somebody tell me what caused the extreme warming in the late 1880s ? After all there were no cars, petrol or diesel. Intensive farming wasn’t even in the common vocabulary and the turf machine hadn’t been invented yet. I know we have to do our bit but are we really in control? The Earth has cooled down and heated up over time with no help from us and just a slight variation in our orbit around the Sun will change everything so the future is unpredictable, no matter what we do. In the meantime, don’t wish the summer away and enjoy every bit of good weather that comes our way. We will get enough of the bad kind.
ST. BARTHOLOMEW’S CHURCH, ATHEA
Athea Parish Church Notices
Saturday Evening Mass July 23rd at 7.30pm
Mass Intentions: Kit O’Connor (Month’s Mind). Micheál Kiely. Patsy Collins. Margaret Broderick. Nancie Langan – 1st Anniversary. Danny Mulvihill.
Readers: Mary McGrath & Margaret Cotter.
Eucharistic Ministers: Mary O’Donoghue & Catherine Woulfe.
Weekday Masses this coming week: Tuesday & Thursday morning at 9.30am. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and the Devine Mercy Chaplet on Tuesday morning.
All masses can be viewed online via the following link https://www.churchservices.tv/athea
Parish office hours: (Mon – Fri) 11am to 1pm. Contact Siobhán on 087-3331459 or email [email protected] – outside of these hours please leave a voice/text message. The next baptism course will be on Tuesday 9th August.
Moyvane / Knockanure Parish Graveyard Masses.
Friday, July 29th. Ahavoher Graveyard Mass @ 8.p.m.
Tuesday, August 2nd. Knockanure Old Graveyard Mass, @ 8.pm.
Wednesday, August 3rd. Murhur Graveyard Mass, @ 8.pm.
**Dr Kieran Murphy Celebratory Tea Party Update **
On August 1st 1984 Kieran and Val Murphy chose Athea as their home and set up a GP practice in our community. Since the beginning, Kieran and his staff have taken us under their wings and cared for us all when we needed it most. As a community we are eternally grateful for all Kieran has done for us, and for his selfless commitment to the medical needs of our community.
A sub committee of Athea Community Council, made up of representatives of voluntary groups in the parish, was established tasked with planning an event to mark this important occasion. On Friday December 3rd, on Kieran’s final working day, we presented Kieran with an invitation to a future ‘Celebratory Tea Party’. We are now glad to report that the date of Sunday, August 28th has been chosen for this community celebration, and preparations are well underway!
As part of the celebrations, we are asking people to have a search through their photo albums and to send us on some photographs of Kieran for inclusion in a display on the day. Photographs can be emailed to [email protected] or dropped into Cairde Duchais ASAP.
More updates to follow…..