We now know that the Irish government has agreed to put a total of $90 billion into Irish banks to try and keep them afloat.

In the process they have sunk the future for a young generation of Irish

This is money that the Irish taxpayer must repay, money that will betaken from the next generation.

Brian Lucey, associate professor of finance at Trinity College Dublin told The Guardian he was "stunned",about the amount that will be invested to make the banks solvent adding: "We've already put at least $42bn into them, so that's going to be $90bn, which is 50% of GNP, that's a world record."

And we don't even know if the Irish taxpayer will be finished with them then.

It is a catastrophe.

What has the Irish government done, mortgaging the future of its children in such an incredible manner?

There were two other related stories this weekend.

One was the announcement by Tasmania, an Australian island that they were open for Irish immigration.

In a previous life Tasmania was Van Diemen's Land where Irish political leaders were transported to. It was an isolated god forsaken place then and is still very isolated now.

But another generation will now be banished to Van Diemen's land, involuntary exile from their own country like O'Reilly and Thomas Francis Meagher and William Smith O'Brien before them.

The other was straight talking businessman Denis Brosnan telling Irish young people to get out of the country while they can.

"You're not going to find jobs in this country for the next four or five years," Brosnan told the Sunday Independent

"So you can do two things -- you can go for further education if your parents or somebody else can keep you there. But if you can't, just go and emigrate because there are no jobs here. It's a very sad thing to have to say.

It is a heartbreaking and very sad thing to say Mr. Brosnan and the people who frittered away the hopes and dreams of the next generation should be made pay, the bankers by jail and the politicians by being turfed out of office.

No hope of the former, lots of hope of the latter I'd say.