Let the hair sit

by planetparker

Our TDs and senators are supposed to adhere to a dress code in the forthcoming session. Gone will be the strapless minis and Doc Martins for the men, and the bomber jackets and dungarees favoured by some lady deputies, to be replaced by suits, cut jackets and button-down shirts and blouses. How Middle class and uncomfortable they will look. In fact, it is nothing more than treating our public representatives like school students who must wear a uniform, no matter how unflattering. The clothes worn by public representatives should be their own affair, and theirs alone. They have little enough real power as it is. Maybe this is just another attempt at the puppets’ humiliation by their puppet masters in the Civil Service. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett is correct in calling this move the height of absurdity and immorality at a time when many people are facing the repercussions of frequently cowardly cuts in public spending.

 This dress code is supposed to originate from the Ceann chomhairle. Well a former holder of the office, Rowery O’Hanlon, always looked like a constipated peacock in his regalia, while the costume worn by the present Ceann chomhairle looks as if it has come from a jumble sale or Oxfam shop, having been sewn together from a few black and green sacks. In fact he looks like a tramp trying to stay warm or a coal delivery man.

 Surely those who care so much about our public representatives’ appearances should be concerned that they always aim for authenticity and not attempt to mislead their public. Surely items such as platform shoes and hair pieces should be banned from the house.

 Of course this dress code will not apply to the Civil Service. Members of the Department of Social Victimisation will still wear outfits inspired by the sartorial ideals of Fuck It casual.