Economic forum may be helpful

It's easy to dismiss the economic forum which opened in Dublin today as just another talking shop. After the battering we've taken financially in recent years, there's a lot of pessimism and negativity around.

But it would be wrong to be dismissive of the event in Dublin Castle.

Irish emigrants who have achieved success abroad are coming from up to 40 countries to share their ideas.

Let's keep an open mind and suspend the begrudgery for a couple of days.

If we're to get out of this crisis, we need to become a country in which people are not afraid to innovate, to try out new ideas -- and yes, to fail.

We'd do well to remember in the week that's in it, that the late Steve Jobs was once sacked by Apple when the company had lost its edge.

We all know what happened when they invited him back.