Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 11 May 2022
Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs
Europe Day and the European Year of Youth 2022: Engagement with Comhairle na nÓg
Mr. James O'Brien:
My apologies; I had a complete blank there. I believe it was Senator Keogan who asked the question of what it means to be a good European. What it means to be a good European and a good person in general are essentially one in the same. It means, for example, being tolerant of others, respectful, kind and actively trying to help people. That is why I would not necessarily consider politics as my first career option. I would perhaps skew more in favour of therapy or counselling, considering the mental health deficit that more or less everyone is experiencing, especially in the wake of the pandemic and everything happening in Ukraine and the world over, essentially. Helping people with that would be my main priority. The way we perceive the world around us impacts on our mental health. If that can be fixed, then the issues themselves do not matter to the individual as much. That is not to say the issues are not important or anything, because obviously they are.