Well I think Reynolds is doing his level best, and its better than most right now.
For what its worth I have attended countless meetings of a hugely diverse number of parties, including the founding meetings I believe of both the Anti Corruption Ireland party and the Irish Freedom Party, and interacted with the National Party quite a bit, and I would say ALL Irish political parties and ALL media outlets, of any type, are massively controlled in this country. People should worry far far less about the toothy smile, past allegiances, speechifying abilities and youth or otherwise of the party leaders, and far far more about whether the intelligence agencies/gardai have got their hooks into the leadership.
What Reynolds is saying, effectively, is that Barrett set out to deliberately banjax any attempt the National Party could have had of getting traction, by creating a kind of Hollywood right wing villain at critical moments. Look at the four guys marching in step with him at the Dublin count, quoting mein kampf and Reynolds says gave a Hitlerite speech at the attacked Ard Fheis. That could only be by instruction from some group, realistically.
So this account of the real Barrett needed to be said, although obviously very difficult for Reynolds to say it. If it means at least one Irish party is emerging from the control of this Communist state then we should applaud that.
