A police station, like a post office, gives villages a sense of community and now that will be lessened as a result of the changes proposed.

We had a conversation with a Garda based in County Wexford recently who was investigating a crime in Waterford and he noted that, due to the jobs issues and the abuse of drugs and alcohol, there had been a jump in rural crime.

The young and the young at heart had assembled at Faithlegg for what has fast become one of Waterford’s great festive traditions: the Hasbro Christmas Party.

For the past three years, children with special needs from across the city and county have met Santa Claus and received a wonderful Hasbro gift, before dancing and singing at a disco held in their honour.

There are many collective experiences which people share, be it Mass on Christmas Eve in, a dip in Stradbally or Kilmurrin on Christmas morning, or a walk to Mahon Falls to walk off the newly gained excess pounds.

We often strive to be individual in everything we do, but Christmas highlights that we’re really all the same and enjoy, more or less, the exact same things.

While we may all be slightly different in our approaches to Christmas, there is a sameness which undoubtedly exists each year.

It’s believed that likely changes to Garda pension provision may force the hands of some officers in this matter and lead to many calling it a day a little earlier than had been previously anticipated.

And in this era of escalating rural break-ins and burglaries, that’s the last news that those living in isolated parts of County Waterford will want to hear about.

While Waterford has not been directly affected by the 31 Garda Station closures announced on Monday, the niggling doubts over several of our smaller stations remain intact.

As we write this article, we’re awaiting the final details of yet another austerity Budget. Given how Waterford has suffered so much in this period with the recession, we’re appealing to shoppers in Waterford and the region to shop local this Christmas.

The new M9 motorway makes it easier to get to Dublin or Kilkenny, even Belfast and Northern Ireland can be reached in a day, but surely it’s better to keep our Euro in local circulation. Waterford needs more consumers and shoppers as unemployment levels sadly continue to rise.

Local businesses, finding it hard to pay ongoing costs from rent and rates to staff and overheads, now need every help possible.

Just 24 hours prior to Sunday’s sad news, former footballer Stan Collymore posted an emotional and brutally honest online account of his ongoing struggle with depression.

In that same day’s Irish Times, reporter Peter Murtagh relayed the story of the late Kate Fitzgerald, who took her life at the age of 25 following a lengthy battle with the ‘silent illness’.

The economy went into a nose dive, with the Fine Gael/Labour coalition of the time divided; with Dick Spring keen to keep spending levels maintained, which in turn led to political paralysis with Garret FitzGerald.
The then Minister Dukes, a in a bid to bridge the gap between both coalition leaders, attempted to improve the public finances by increasing taxation. And that did not work.

We’ve used it to our advantage for years, citing it as one of the main reasons why tourists should visit our country as opposed to somewhere else.
However, it’s a characteristic which we may no longer be able to claim possession of.

Speaking at a tourism conference last week, National Roads Authority Chairman Peter Malone said our céad míle fáilte had been “replaced by a snarl”.

The former director and CEO of the Jurys Doyle Hotel group believes we have lost our traditional warm and welcoming characteristics.

At the risk of having egg on my face come December 6th, I firmly believe that neither payment will be cut. To do so would risk revolt in this country and might well prove the final straw for many beleaguered citizens.

Most people, by now fed up with broken political promises and downright lying, know when they’re been told a porkie. Believe it or not, we’re not as stupid or as ill-informed as political advisers might otherwise think.

While disappointing, this news can hardly come as a surprise given the current economic circumstances. But nonetheless, it represents another kick in the teeth for Waterford, coming so soon after the merged VEC regional Headquarters was awarded to Wexford.

Needless to say, Dublin-centred interests are happy with the announcement given that 40 decentralisation projects have now been scrapped, with the vast majority of those jobs historically located in the capital.