One hundred organisations and groups came out in support of action on behalf of the traditional arts. They did not have the influence and the power to publicise it, nor would The Irish Times even want to do so. By and large, the cocktail circuit and pompous patronage have numbed art. Art belongs to the people; it does not belong to any statutory body or any particular organisation. It is the organisations which are rooted down among the people that realise this. How many times have we seen deserving groups, whose members were not part of the golden circle and who did not present themselves as elitist, being sidelined? They have gone away and may be sulking, but they feel deeply hurt because the idea which inspired us – the foundation stone of our nation – was not acknowledged or recognised when there was an opportunity to do so. The idea to which I refer was the inspiration of the new State – it was what we were and what made us. I am making these comments with a sense of generosity, but also with a deep sense of hurt. I am not hurt because of the way in which we were maligned or because the issue was clouded throughout the debate, but because potential was not recognised.