RTE is reporting that the Department of Finance has refused to comment on reports that Brian Lenihan has been diagnosed with cancer.
The Government's Press Secretary said any Minister's health affairs were a personal matter.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/1226/lenihanb.html
Comments (6 of 6)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6TV 3 has reported that Lenihan has pancreatic cancer.
http://tv3.ie/article.php?article_id=28526&locID=1.2.13...=home
"Speculation that Lenihan might have to stand down will shake the market’s confidence in Ireland, with the government likely to come under pressure to clarify the position when international debt markets reopen." Times, London
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/ireland/art...9.ece
callous hypocrites... "we knew on Christmas Eve but we didn't tell anyone out of respect"! I have it from very reliable sources that everyone in journalism's known for a week; but it was kept private because apparently as of this afternoon he hadn't told his children (presumably didn't want to ruin Christmas). If that's true he and his wife would have heard that TV3 were about to come out with it and were then left with about an hour to inform the children that their father was possibly dying? Sickening, if you ask me
In this age of transparency it was correct for TV3 to inform the nation of Mr Lenihan's illness, he is afterall a public figure and therefore public property. Regardless of nicetys and the old fear of big C, facing facts no matter how unpalatable is the premise (or should be) of those in government and their servants.
According to Wikipedia "Patients with pancreatic cancer are not eligible for valuable pancreatic transplantations, since the condition has a very high mortality rate and the disease, being highly malignant, could and probably would soon return". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pancreas_transplantation
Thus it is very unlikely that a fund will be raised for Lenihan Jr as was for Lenihan Sr to pay for a vital organ transplant (in his father's case that of a liver at the US Mayo Clinic). The upside of which of course is ( considering that every cloud has a silver lining) that such a fund would not be examined at one of Ireland's premier league corruption tribunals such as the Mahon and the notion that an acting taoiseach would divert funds for a star minister's transplant to his own shirt fund. Which of course is what happened to former taoiseach C.J. Haughey. Who also as it happens carried the cruel genes of a rapid eating degenerative cancer, in his case that of the prostate. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Lenihan,_Snr#Liver_t...plant
wikipedia's biography on Brial Lenihan Jr notes that he regularly chews garlic , which it would seem at a quick glance is considered quite eficacious in the struggle against vampires as it is encouraging an unhealthy pancreas (c/f http://www.mamaherb.com/cancer-of-pancreas-home-remedy-...arlic ) but it ought be noted that previously cross-referenced holistic cancer support site seems to come down in favour of blueberries rather than garlic.
One could in this short reflection on the suffering of others and the prevalence of bad cancerous genes in the FF front benches and certainly dynastic families of the Eire state, many other things. But those things would not be in the public interest yet, would they?
I take no pleasure in Mr Lenihans illness however Lenihan was Minister for Justice while the US military were (and still are obviously) using Shannon to go and wreak havoc, death, destruction and misery on so many people, killing husbands, wives and children for the past 7 years of their imperial conquest. Not to mention the domestic misery he has presided over for so many - so neither am I not going to be very sympathetic for someone like that.
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