Aibu to find this comment from Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar deeply offensive to all people with intellectual disabilities & their families. Absolutely appalling.

[55balloons]

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/politics/arid-41143480.html

This same man is trying to rush in draconian hate speech laws in Ireland..

Many disability groups in Ireland have quite rightly voiced their disgust & despair..

These vulnerable people with intellectual disabilities are suffering enough at the hands of our Prime Minister & his Fine Gael party through severe lack of funding. How dare he make fun.
Ireland as a nation is in a very bad way...

Same with O Gorman @Weonlyhavealoanofit they're eyeing up the big jobs in Europe after their inevitable downfall... Well Brussels can keep them.. It's incredible that a medical doctor could publicly target slow learners... His boyfriend Matt is also a highly educated doctor, a cardiologist. Surely with that level of education he could conduct himself more appropriately. As an highly educated man surely he was aware of the fraught Anglo-Irish relations going back to Cromwells time...

@Nousernamesleftatall it's actually terrifying.. But yet he targets groups calling them "slow learners".. How will that fit in the hate speech bill?

I'm English with no loyalties to Ireland especially, but even I can see that your average Irishman isn't going to be a mad fan of the royal family. His seeing the coronation as being a bit mad is hardly shock of the century.

I completely agree with you, @IJustHadToLookHavingReadTheBook . And had he been an average Irishman, posting from the comfort of his sofa at home, there’d be no problem at all. In fact, he’d have been the cause of much amusement as what he’s reported to have said was very funny. But he’s there in an official capacity as part of an official delegation from Ireland. Quite literally representing his country (yes, even as a partner/spouse - same as Jill Biden or Brigitte Macron). He’s not there in a personal capacity, because he’s “Matt”. So it’s wholly inappropriate behaviour and probably enormously embarrassing diplomatically within Ireland.

No, it's in no way related to learning disabilities whatsoever.

Varadkar was paraphrasing the SDLPs Seamus Mallon who coined the phrase "Good Friday Agreement is Sunningdale for slow learners" as criticism of Provisional Sinn Féin and Provisional IRA accepting as deal when they rejected the earlier Sunningdale Agreement.

That's the context Varadkar was using it in. Hence his "politics for slow learners" criticism of Provisional Sinn Féin.

His mistake was presuming most people would be aware of Mallon's historical phrase.

And I speak as a Northern Ireland Catholic Unionist who has different political views to Varadkar.

Same here. I absolutely dread the thought of those crims getting in power. Someone up thread has said the FG have destroyed Ireland, that is nothing compared to what SF would do.

@DownNative that comment was made 25 years ago. The world has become a lot more politically correct since then.
Leo himself is pioneering a hate speech law to ensure vulnerable groups like those with intellectual disabilities are no longer targeted. Then he comes out with that clanger.
Practice what you preach Leo. Absolute hypocrite.
This huge group, their carers & families all have votes too. They'll remember his "slow learners" comment at the next election & Fianna Gael will be ousted.

@Freeballing but what is the alternative, FF have made a shambles of it, FG the same.. The greens need to go, particularly Roderic o Gorman.. Labour? Aontú? There is literally no alternative to Sinn Féin.. And Leo is playing into their hands with his comments...

That's how I interpreted it too, @DownNative - I didn't find it offensive, and I have a DS with a learning disability.

Tbh, I don't know enough about his politics to comment further - I am woefully ignorant and really do need to improve my knowledge. However, taken in isolation, it appears to be a historical reference and not a deliberate slur to mock those with an intellectual disability. I do think intent matters, and I don't see that he intended his words to be derogatory or mocking.

I wasn't aware of his partner's words at the Coronation - but I'm with you @IJustHadToLookHavingReadTheBook, I found them hilarious! I really want to be in his private Insta group now, his humour is right up my street! And I love our monarchy, and I loved the Coronation - but that was very funny. Shame that someone in his private group decided to make his comments known publicly.

I'm aware of when Mallon made his statement, but you're taking Varadkar out of context all the same.

His actual words:

"Watching Sinn Féin, it is like politics for slow learners sometimes. I think it was Seamus Mallon who famously described the Good Friday Agreement as Sunningdale for slow learners because Sinn Féin finally accepted democracy and peace and power sharing and consent.

"And it does seem that they're finally starting to accept that we shall be a member of the European Union, that we should have a Special Criminal Court."

He means Provisional Sinn Féin are infamous for taking a very long time to come around to democratic norms in the Western world. That's because Provisional Sinn Féin and Provisional IRA always saw themselves as the Provisional government of the whole island. They rejected realities.

Historically, Provisional Sinn Féin and Provisional IRA viewed the EU as an "imperial project Ireland must reject". That explains their rejection of the Special Criminal Court too.

Looks to me like Varadkar is bring taken out of context and Provisional Sinn Féin are trying to exploit that as well.

Political correctness makes little sense when someone is also being taken out of context. It's clear its NOT a reference to people with learning difficulties.

It's a reference to Provisional Sinn Féin long rejecting democratic norms only to accept them well after everybody else has.

Op that's taken out of context, it's like a click baitey headline, and I despise leo

Excellent point regarding intent!

Agree with that, to be fair.

Well I personally find it deeply offensive. Isn't that the basis of this new hate speech law? How the person or group targeted personally interpret a comment or slur...
He quoted Mallon but before the quote he said "watching Sinn Féin politics is like watching politics for slow learners sometimes"..
What exactly is politics for slow learners? I think he needs to define this further..

Well, what does the actual text of the legislation say?

You'll have to read it first.

It's very simple really. A lot of people would like some affordable housing to be built. The primary school not to be a rat infested prefab. A health service like all other European countries - even the Brits. A functioning public transit system.

We are fed up hearing how rich we are . So rich we can fight the EU for the right not to collect taxes from the world's richest corporations.
All other left of centre parties who entered government have been found wanting. To put it mildly.

That leaves Sinn Féin. They might shit on us too but that remains to be seen. My children are early 30s . They regret not emigrating.

Personally I would like a toilet I could share with women only. I would like female only prisons, female only dressing rooms, gaa teams for women only..
I would like the government to lobby for third spaces or unisex for transsexuals instead of pandering to them & letting them infiltrate my space, my daughters space & my daughters gaa & sports teams.

I have absolutely no issue with this at all I think it just shows how far we have come as a nation that 1. our heads of state are invited to the coronation and 2. Matt felt able to mock the absolute ridiculousness of it, to me it has finally shown that we no longer live in the shadow of our coloniser but have the confidence to make these sort of funny comments at their expense 😀Yes possibly a bit disrespectful but it is well known we are a republic and not royalists fgs. King Charles didn't mind he loves it here and they are planning to make an official state visit here in a couple of weeks.

As regard the slow learner quote out of context it is dreadful in context I can see where he was coming from. I am no fan of Leo I work within the disadvantaged area of his constituency and you never see him here he is a middle class snob always has been. I also think he is incredibly immature and devoid of any personality. Just because people are medically trained does not mean they are particularly intelligent in other areas and I think Leo is one of those, he has no social intelligence at all imo and definitely plays to the corporates and developers. I think though you are being a bit dramatic when you say they have destroyed the country I think they have done better then the s**t show in the UK and we do have a good economy but they have not been able to manage the social issues that are on the increase such as housing, health care etc but many of these issues exist in other countries too and I think it is more to do with neoliberal policies over the past 40 years that have created it not necessarily what has happened in the past 10 years here. The rich have got richer and the poor (and working class) have got a hell of a lot poorer. I will not be voting fg/ff (I have never voted ff) labour will get my vote

@Dulra can you imagine Jill Biden or Rishi Sunak's wife behaving like that? Our taxpayers money paid for Matt to represent us alongside his boyfriend our Prime Ministers. In my opinion it was a huge waste of money as his behaviour really let our country down & also me personally as a tax payer.

I'm Irish and while I think it's perfectly OK take the piss out of the ceremony and pomp of the coronation in a personal capacity, I was quite appalled that someone would do this when a guest in a state capacity. Very stupid and irresponsible behaviour. Also for what it's worth I hate the way it became a joke to put ears on items as a mockery of Charles, he is a man doing a job FFS which he had little choice about, mock and criticise the institution of the monarchy all you like but laughing at people personally is wrong in any circumstances IMO. Sorry OP for my rant - gone a bit off topic there!!

A vote for anything other than FF/FG will put Sinn Fein into power unfortunately. I would like to see FG change their leadership.

@Evanna13 yes Simon Coveney would be a much better bet & if leadership changed FG may be in a slightly better position to challenge SF in the next election.. Surely FG tds know they won't be getting re elected with Leo at the helm, it just can't & won't happen.

Well I personally find it deeply offensive. Isn't that the basis of this new hate speech law?

Well exactly. I totally agree with you.

And would he be investigated for such a comment under this new law? Or is it really only for more fashionable causes? I think we all know the answer to that one.

@LaMaG absolutely agree. I watched the coronation (mainly for the style but I enjoy the pomp & ceremony too😊) & my DH was inturrupting with plenty of witty one liners which anyone is entitled to do.. But not when you are accompanying the head of state, you are inside the event & it is stipulated that phones must be turned off...

Absolutely. If this was about other minority groups that Leo advocates for it would absolutely be deemed hate speech. There has been uproar within disability groups so obviously they have also found Leo's comment deeply offensive & hurtful..

I don't see it as offensive. I have ASD, ADHD and Dyslexia and I am a fast learner. Slow learner does not automatically equal learning disability either, plenty of people are a little slow to learn for whatever reason without having any sort of disability.

@AxolotlOnions link to article below featuring statements from disability groups & a lqbqt group who are deeply upset by Leo's comment.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/leo-varadkar-slow-learners-remark-30034011.amp