Not entirely what you’d expect, but broadband is holding me back from blogging! Not that I’m against technology, but this idiotic “trigger programme” that eircom have in establishing broadband in a popular area. So broadband, or rather the lack of it, is holding me back from blogging and generally doing what I want with the net (like for instance, make some dinero!)
Broadband is a cruel and racist reality in Ireland. So typical of the country we have become thanks to the economic boom of the Celtic Tiger, broadband is now only enjoyed by those in the major cities, business folk and the rich dads and mums who’s children play tennis and shop in London at weekends.
A year ago, Galway was ripped to pieces by Clarke Construction, who were contracted by eircom (or eirCON) to lay the broadband optical-fibre lines that made up the Galway Metropolitan Area Broadband Network. When all the work was done, the track of the line was clearly evident from the fresh line of bitumen in the centre of roads all over Galway. Unfortunately, broadband was still unavailable.
Off to Dublin I go, and as part of my placement programme (a complete farce as far as NUI, Galway is concerned) I went to live in lush green Dublin 6 and to work in snotty Dublin 4. By the time I had settled in, I was in for a serious shock! On the street where the Nigerian and Indian embassies reside, alongside John Rocha and other such famous people, broadband was NOT AVAILABLE!! eirCON saw to it that anyone who didn’t make over and above €50,000 a year did not recieve broadband. Instead, our household in D6, who had availed of eirCON phonewatch was told a technician would have to be sent out to take a test of the line, at a cost of €150 ex. VAT, and then our ability to get broadband would be assessed!? Truly, they are eirCON! So we denied ourselves the pleasure of some sweaty technician taking €150 for what we later discovered was an operation similar enough to turning on a lightswitch. We perused the Sunday media, and explored our other broadband options, from wireless to cable only to find we “lay outside the broadband area”.
And so, out here in the fringes of the European Continent, broadband has come and paid Dingle (Daingean Uí Chúis) a visit. Except, eirCON hold the reigns and rape and pillage the town for people desperate to part with their hard-soaked money to pay for broadband - an new fan-dangled product from the company that ruined the spread of share-equity in Ireland when it was privatised. In an era where the town of Ballaghaderreen (COUNTY ROSCOMMON!) had broadband available for over 2 years, Daingean Uí Chúis gets broadband. BUT!, broadband only comes to those in the town.
So, finally, me. Here in a little village which looks south over Dingle “Broadband” town, I still dabble in the Internet world through the PSTN connection. I’ve not helped the situation I admit. I have split our phone line, 7 ways in the house. Still, eirCON don’t care about us average joes. Bastards!
diarmy
*one exception to the rape and pillage of eirCON, is the success story of Dingle Internet Café who actually have paid a fortune for broadband for the past 3 years in order to help Dingle’s tourists connect to the outside world. They’re great! Horray!
