Between 1995 and 2007, the Republic of Ireland was the worldwide model of successful adaptation to economic globalisation. The success story was phenomenal: a doubling of the workforce; a massive growth in exports; a GDP that was substantially above the EU average. Ireland became the world’s largest exporter of software and manufactured the world’s supply of Viagra. The factors that made it possible for Ireland to become prosperous – progressive social change, solidarity, major State investment in education, and the critical role of the EU – were largely ignored as too sharply at odds with the dominant free market ideology. The Irish boom was shaped instead into a simplistic moral tale of the little country that discovered low taxes and small government and prospered as a result. There were two big problems. Ireland acquired a hyper-capitalist economy on the back of a corrupt, dysfunctional political system. And the business class saw the influx of wealth as an opportunity to make money out of property. Aided by corrupt planning and funded by poorly regulated banks, an unsustainable property-led boom gradually consumed the Celtic Tiger. This is, as Fintan O’Toole writes, ‘a good old-fashioned jeremiad about the bastards who got us into this mess’. It is an entertaining, passionate story of one of the most ignominious economic reversals in recent history.
Ship of Fools
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Brian Groom, "Financial Times"
"O'Toole ... has produced a coruscating polemic against the cronyism and corruption that in his view helped to fuel the boom.... [H]is highly readable book is a salutary reminder that cronyism, light regulation and loose ethics can be a deadly combination."
"Cleveland Plain Dealer""An interesting and readable post-mortem.... "Ship of Fools" is not just for those drawn to Irish politics or economics. Americans, in particular, will relate to Ireland's battle to restore its economy and renew faith in its leaders." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
"O'Toole ... has produced a coruscating polemic against the cronyism and corruption that in his view helped to fuel the boom.... [H]is highly readable book is a salutary reminder that cronyism, light regulation and loose ethics can be a deadly combination."
"Cleveland Plain Dealer""An interesting and readable post-mortem.... "Ship of Fools" is not just for those drawn to Irish politics or economics. Americans, in particular, will relate to Ireland's battle to restore its economy and renew faith in its leaders." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
The definitive, blistering polemic on the near-total extinction of the Celtic Tiger, held up as a model for small nations everywhere in the boom.
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39 of 40 people found the following review helpful
By S. Foy
Format:Paperback
If you are Irish this book will make you very angry, if you're not I suppose you'll be entitled to wonder if we are actually capable of governing ourselves. O'Toole pushes all the buttons; financial scandals from DIRT evasion to the curious state of Bertie Ahern's finances, the madness of the property boom, the scandals involving the Catholic church, and the shortcomings of Ireland's current political system to mention but a few. Through it all he reminds us of the Irish people's capacity for Doublethink, our ability to know something but not know it, whether it concern Charlie Haughey's dubiously acquired wealth or the paedophile scandals currently rocking the nation. O'Toole is not trying to be objective here, he states at the beginning of the book that he has set out to write a polemical, in this he more than succeeds, rarely has a book made me so angry... or depressed. O'Toole makes it abundantly clear that we are the architects of our own misfortune, that we squandered our opportunity to definitively break with the economic misery that dominated our history until the dawn of the Celtic Tiger in the mid 1990s, that we got ahead of ourselves and forgot to fix the structural problems that remained throughout the period of economic boom, such as our bloated and inefficient health system. O'Toole does strike some notes of hope at the end, he belatedly reminds us that we are a capable people and that we can pull ourselves out of this, it's just going to be a slow and painful process. This book is a must read, you may not agree with all of O'Toole's points but it is a useful contribution to the ongoing debate about the causes and likely outcomes of Ireland's current economic crisis.
18 of 20 people found the following review helpful
By Val Mcdermid
Format:Paperback
A clear, devastating and clinical analysis of how the Irish economy became the basket case of the EU. Fintan O'Toole lays out the jaw-dropping corruption, arrogant stupidity and cupidity thathas brought Ireland to its knees in a readable, often savagely funny account that had me gripped even though I'm not particularly interested in the subject.
24 of 27 people found the following review helpful
By A reader
Format:Paperback
Have to disagree with some of these reviews, though they do highlight a number of the books definite strengths (e.g., strong writing and descriptive history), the book does not offer anything new and barely addresses the question posed in its title, which was the main attraction for me.
It focuses far too much on the corruption as opposed to the stupidity, which was the real cause of Ireland's housing bubble and its terminal decline in productivity. More of a (albeit well deserved) tirade against Fianna Fail etc. than an analysis of HOW the celtic tiger came to an shuddering end. While interesting, the role of Ansbacher/non-resident accounts/Ben Dunne & CJH etc. not nearly as relevant as the years of 'partnership', illogical tax breaks and biased economic 'analysis' from Government and vested interests.
For a better history see Matt Cooper's book or for better analysis see Derek Brawn's book
It focuses far too much on the corruption as opposed to the stupidity, which was the real cause of Ireland's housing bubble and its terminal decline in productivity. More of a (albeit well deserved) tirade against Fianna Fail etc. than an analysis of HOW the celtic tiger came to an shuddering end. While interesting, the role of Ansbacher/non-resident accounts/Ben Dunne & CJH etc. not nearly as relevant as the years of 'partnership', illogical tax breaks and biased economic 'analysis' from Government and vested interests.
For a better history see Matt Cooper's book or for better analysis see Derek Brawn's book
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mega corruption
A real good read, corruption exposed at all levels of society in Ireland.
Without doubt an 'unputdownable' book.
And as usual good price and fast delivery from Amazon.
Without doubt an 'unputdownable' book.
And as usual good price and fast delivery from Amazon.
Published 5 months ago by C. Mcnabb
3.0 out of 5 stars
Standing On the Dock
As the writer himself declares at the beginning of this book, it is intended to be a polemical rather than a historical or academic work. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Honrus Publicus
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ship of Fools: How Stupidity and Corruption Sank the Celtic Tiger
Having been in Ireland for over a year now, mentions of the economic plight are never far away, along with it apportions of blame to numerous figures, mostly notably, politicians,... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Ben Cotton
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful book - should be read by everyone in Ireland and the UK
This is a devastating expose of the stupidity and corruption of the Irish ruling elite. It's amazing that none of the people exposed in this book have been prosecuted - especially... Read more
Published 12 months ago by manager
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent
A well researched, well written, informative and balanced account which explains in detail the causes of the sad downfall of Ireland's economy.
Published 15 months ago by Paul
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ship of Fools - Review
This is a hard-hitting account of the reasons why the Irish economy crashed. It details the means by which bankers, property developers and politicians, in collusion, were able to... Read more
Published 17 months ago by McCann
4.0 out of 5 stars
De-Regulation
Fintan O'Toole presents a cautionary tale for all those who promote deregulation in the development and the financial sectors. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Jim
5.0 out of 5 stars
A SHIP CREWED BY FISCAL FOOLS
That finances and thus the economic destiny of a country can be allowed to come under the control of a motley bunch of people completely and utterly devoid of the slightest ability... Read more
Published 22 months ago by DOPPLEGANGER
5.0 out of 5 stars
A passionate and pinpoint rant!
With Ireland's (and other Eurozone countries') current economic woes very much in the news, it is instructive to realise that the REAL bad times were the years of boom. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Thomas
5.0 out of 5 stars
Scathing study of the Irish bust
Fintan O'Toole, historian, biographer, critic and journalist with the Irish Times, has written a brilliant account of the Irish boom and bust. Read more
Published on 14 April 2011 by William Podmore
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