Once upon a time a woman was so touched by the sufferings of man carrying a cross, a man who had been scourged and wore a crown of thorns, that she stepped out from a crowd of spectators and wiped the blood from his face with a cloth. The man was one of her people. In doing so, she showed courage. Her name was Veronica

Fast forward to our own time. Another woman was so touched by the sufferings of not one but of many of her people that she, too, stepped forward, and showed her courage. Her name also was Veronica.

We don't know the fate of the first Veronica. We do know the fate of the second. She was murdered, her body riddled with bullets.

Veronica Guerin was a journalist who paid with her life for exposing the corrupt lives of the dealers who became rich peddling drugs to those unfortunates who became their victims in the city of Dublin, and elsewhere in Ireland.

Her story was told in a film bearing her name, and in the digital videos of the movie now available in stores everywhere.

It was a shocking exposé.

As narrated at the end of the film, the murder of Veronica Guerin brought about a public outcry, resulting in stronger penalties for drug dealers and a decline in drug related crimes.

That was a scarce eight years ago.

The illegal drug trade in Ireland has rebounded. It is no longer centred in Dublin. It is prevalent in town and country.

Just last week the chief of the Gardai anti-drug unit in Donegal felt compelled to issue a warning that cocaine was becoming a threat to communities there.

There has been a bloody ongoing war between drug gangs in Limerick City.

Halpless drug addicts are to be seen on the streets of Dublin in increasing numbers.

Lest this article may deter tourists from visiting Ireland, it must be emphasized that the situation is not as dangerous as might seem. In particular, it is nothing on the scale of that which exists in other countries. But it is sickening to find that in so short a time the murder of Ireland's Veronica Guerin may be losing its impact on public consciousness.

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