"OUTCASTS OF EUROPE" is the "Focus" topic of today's Sunday Times in Ireland and the two-page article aptly describes the purgatory Ireland now endures. Wolfgant Schauble's vitriolic attack on Ireland's corporate tax rate last week is indicative of a growing resentment among European leaders towards the Republic. Irish politicians used to network well. In the halls of Brussels, Irish administrators enjoyed decades of punching above their weight. Today, just the opposite is happening and to seasoned observers it may take a decade of patient diplomacy to regain the favours of the European task masters. And in those ensuing years, Ireland isn't just going to be knocked down a peg or two. It's much worse than that--Ireland is going to be relegated to a lower level of peripheral existence with much less influence than ever before among European heads of State.
Sarah McInerney -- "Outcasts of Europe" in the Focus section of The Sunday Times, 14 April 2011.
Five Years Ago: "What Young Wans Should Be Able to Do" from a blog post by RedMum, April 17, 2006.
One Year Ago: "70/100 are iPhones, April 17, 2010.
Last Month: "Sunday News Paddy's Week", March 13, 2011.
Last Week: "No Sunday Newsround" from the Ballycotton Bay, Ireland.
