Letters to the Editor, July 2nd: On overseas voting, AI, and Wimbledon

Irish Times

21 hours ago

Sir, – As an Irish citizen living abroad, I am compelled to voice my frustration over the denial of my fundamental right to vote for our president ('
Irish presidential election must be the last to exclude voters in North, Dáil hears,
' June 25th). This situation not only undermines my democratic rights but also makes me feel like a second-class citizen.
Living outside Ireland, many of us maintain strong ties to our homeland – our family, heritage and interests are intertwined with the future of Ireland.
Yet, when it comes to the time to participate in the selection of our president, we are excluded from the process that shapes our nation's future. This exclusion is not just a deficit in democracy but it is a significant gap in the recognition of our diaspora's contributions and voices as citizens.
Voting is the cornerstone of democracy. It is not just a right, but a profound responsibility that connects citizens to their government and Ireland regardless of where they reside. The issues that affect Ireland – be it economic policy, social justice, or healthcare – also resonate deeply with us living abroad or in the North. We deserve the opportunity to have our voices heard and influence who gets to represent the entire Irish nation, including our diaspora.
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I urge the Irish Government to plan for the referendum and to reconsider this exclusion and ensure that all Irish citizens, no matter where they reside, have the right to vote in presidential elections. It is time to recognise that our global community has a stake in and will play a huge role in Ireland's future on the world's stage. – Yours, etc,
CIARÁN SCALLY,
Oakland,
California.
Value of the Hpat
Sir, – The question about the value of the Health Professions Admissions Test or Hpat ('
Aptitude test downgraded by medical schools over 'gaming'
, '' July 1st) is a timely one, as we are now seeing doctors reach consultant positions who were selected using it as part of their criteria for university entry.
I suspect though that the scale of the problem is underestimated by the article. The idea that one cannot prepare for the Hpat is long debunked.
Speaking to a parent earlier this week, I was told of an outlay somewhere between ¤4,000-¤5,000 on preparing for it, which had paid off with steady improvement over the last two years in repeated assessments.
Almost every medical student now describes similar intense preparations, with demonstrable progress over time. It therefore clearly favours the more affluent student. Courses, online teaching, and subscription phone apps are available.
Writing as a medical consultant who has interviewed many hundreds of other doctors for a range of posts, I have seen a plethora of CVs which list Hpat results among other achievements.
There seems to be little if any correlation with performance in the job, with individuals in the top few per cent sometimes proving outstanding and other times dropping out of the career altogether. I have rarely heard anyone in the profession defend it as a predictor of performance.
The more complex question to consider is of whether it's possible to determine a person's aptitude for medicine. It is such a multifaceted career that almost any type of mindset can find a role.
The optimum mentalities required to be a psychiatrist, medical statistician, anaesthesiologist, general practitioner or pathologist must surely differ. Similarly, there are areas that require exceptional manual dexterity and areas that require little, if any.
The burden of proof must lie with those who advocate or run this source of extra pressure on students to show its value. An assessment of those who first took the exam in its early years, around 2009-10, could be done now. If it does not show a meaningful benefit to patients or society from selecting medical students in this way, surely it should be dropped?
It is costing students, or their parents, millions of euro annually, adding to pressure on young people and limiting access to a profession to the better off. These realities require serious justification. – Yours, etc,
BRIAN O'BRIEN,
Kinsale,
Co Cork.
Disadvantaging students
Sir, – Am I correct in thinking that an additional 4.500 pupils sat the Leaving Certificate this year? That pupils will be disadvantaged regarding inflated grades attributed to previous years? And now, on top of all of that, the Government has announced that they are increasing the administrative fees from €2,000 up to €3,000?
One would be forgiven for thinking that this cohort of students are strongly disliked by our current Government. – Yours, etc,
CIARA O'REGAN,
Killarney,
Co Kerry.
Imposter syndrome
Sir, – 'I was kind of getting past my imposter syndrome, but it's come charging back now.' This was a comment from multi award-winning author, Donal Ryan, on discovering that he had won the prestigious Orwell Prize for Political Fiction for his novel Heart, Be at Peace.
Those words, coming from such a talented and successful author, in an era where entitlement appears to be the order of the day, were admirable and refreshing.
It can be somewhat nauseating to listen to people who subtly or vehemently convey to all and sundry the notion that the world continuously revolves around them.
Wouldn't the world be a much better place if, like Donal, more of us parked our enlarged egos and sense of entitlement? – Yours, etc,
PAT McLOUGHLIN,
Co Limerick.
Fintan's family and AI connection
Sir, – Fintan O'Toole writes eloquently about the 'hallucinations' that AI has produced about his personal life ('
I've had more wives than Henry VIII. It's news to me
,' July 1st). Large Language Models (LLMs) compose their 'facts' based on probabilities rather than certainties and there is no second layer of fact-checking that journalists, scientists and others concerned with the truth might expect .
However, their onslaught is not inevitable. Reputable sources such as The Irish Times do not need to offer up their texts to AI's relentless harvesters. Technical means exist to block their crawlers or to trap them in an infinite hall of mirrors.
Legal means exist to demand compensation or removal of illicitly sourced content. On a personal level, we can remove our data from those platforms that harvest it to produce AI slop engines.
The future is what we make it and we do not have to consent to dwell in the afterlife of fact. – Yours, etc,
RONAN McHUGH,
Copenhagen,
Denmark.
Sir, – Reading Fintan O'Toole's tale of his algorithmically invented family, I couldn't help but feel left out. As a bald, six-foot former geography teacher with just one wife and no shadowy past, I clearly haven't given artificial intelligence enough material to work with.
Still, if it's handing out fictional lives, I wouldn't say no to a brief spell as a jazz pianist or the forgotten third Gallagher brother. – Yours, etc,
ENDA CULLEN,
Armagh.
Ass and car
t economics
Sir, – Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers has announced that the design of State infrastructure henceforth 'will prioritise cost and efficiency over design standards and aesthetics' as a cost-saving measure. This decision is obviously based on the intellectual foundations of the 'ass and cart' school of economics which argues that if ass and carts could fly they should be used instead of expensive aeroplanes full of unnecessary well designed fittings.
While the children's hospital is not complete, we are fortunate that the outer skin, designed with a great emphasis on aesthetics, is complete. Otherwise, we might be confronted with a hospital covered in farmyard corrugated iron sheeting. – Yours, etc,
JAMES WRYNN,
Ranelagh,
Dublin 6.
Contactless travel
Sir, – I am perfectly fine with contactless travel (Letters, June 30th) if it includes not being contacted by commuters' backpacks and mobile phones without headphones. – Yours, etc,
ULTAN Ó BROIN,
Blackrock,
Co Dublin.
Hacked off by airport drop-offs
Sir, – When dropping off family members at Dublin Airport this morning (Monday, June 30th), I encountered the usual congestion and delay caused by people using the drop-off area at Terminal 1 to await and pick up arriving passengers.
I cannot understand why the airport police or other authorised personnel are not deployed to put a stop to this practice.
Those of us who abide by the drop-off rules are delayed and inconvenienced by a selfish minority who should be moved on and directed to the short-term car park at the relevant terminal.
The chief executive of the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) has rightly been very vocal in recent times about planning shortcomings and other matters which affect the development and smooth operation of the airport.
Perhaps he could now look at this issue which affects many airport users every day? On several occasions during the past few years, I have complained about this by email to DAA customer service. I have always received an automated acknowledgement, but never a substantive reply. I will do likewise about today's experience, but like St Paul writing to the Corinthians I am unlikely to get an answer. – Yours, etc,
CYRIL McINTYRE,
Celbridge,
Co Kildare.
Irish Rail and bikes
Sir, – Why is Irish Rail so bike unfriendly? In the past all trains had a brake or guards' van where bulky items of luggage and parcels, and sometimes even livestock, were carried.
Nowadays, it is only the 'mark 4' trains, which only run every second train, on the Cork-Dublin line, which have such vans. The advantage of the guards' van is that the bicycle can be wheeled on to the train and tied to a strap to prevent it from moving.
This operation does not require any heavy lifting. The alternative, as provided by Irish Rail on the bulk of its other services, is the provision of two bike spaces located behind the seats in a passenger carriage.
The design of these bike spaces is that the cyclist must perform a herculean type of manoeuvre to lift the back wheel of the bike into a rack on the ground while the front wheel is inserted into a rack which is about five feet off the ground. The result of carrying out this exercise a couple of times is shoulder pain for about a week.
In Denmark and Sweden and other continental countries, full bicycle carriages are provided on trains which allows ease of wheeling the bike on to the train and storing it, in a level position, thus obviating the risk of sciatica or frozen shoulder. – Yours, etc,
TIM BRACKEN,
Cork.
A double fault with Wimbledon
Sir – Surely some other image could have been used to show the heat at Wimbledon yesterday (July 1st) rather than the photograph used of Leylah Fernandez, 'dripping' with sweat.
Not very edifying, not very kind. – Yours , etc,
ROSARY COX,
Mount Merrion,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – It's strawberries and Pimm's time again at Wimbledon. Two weeks of great tennis. However, it's just not quite the same without linespeople calling 'fault'. What a shame. – Yours, etc,
LAURA O'MARA,
Co Dublin.
Bringing the GPO to book
Sir, – Like many people I have huge concerns about the future plans for the iconic GPO on O'Connell Street, which is not only one of Ireland's most important historic buildings but also has huge cultural significance to our nation and its foundation and Ireland's independence.
Dublin City Council has for many years been talking about opening a large new main Dublin city library on Parnell Square. Now an ideal opportunity has arisen to locate Dublin's main city library right in the heart of Dublin in the GPO, in this city of books and literature.
This would immediately revitalise O'Connell Street and help rejuvenate this part of the city. The library would be used by Dubliners and visitors of all ages as it is so accessible with buses and the Luas lines stopping beside it.
The modest 1916 exhibition that already exists could be scaled up to tell this vitally important story and attract many additional visitors. Perhaps it could also provide a dedicated 1916 research area.
There could be a bright children's section of the library to encourage all young Dubliners to read, study spaces, an array of event and exhibition spaces and even a small theatre like in Dún Laoghaire's Lexicon Library.
A new city library in the GPO is an exciting prospect and one that I believe would work well and satisfy many people's concerns.
The existing retail premises on the Henry Street side would be retained and the offices vacated by An Post could be repurposed for use by other companies and organisations.
Many of the brave men and women who fought in 1916 were teachers, writers, poets and artists and this would be a fitting tribute to their legacy.
All around the O'Connell Street area there are vacant commercial properties and we have watched with dismay how long it has taken for the old Clerys and Debenham's buildings to come back into use.
We cannot let this happen to the GPO. It must be preserved and protected and its vital role in Ireland's history appreciated. – Yours, etc,
MARITA CONLON McKENNA,
Dublin.