1169 And Counting.....

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

108Ú ARD-FHEIS , SINN FÉIN POBLACHTACH , 10-11 Samhain 2012.

ON SATURDAY 27TH OCTOBER 2012.....

.....assemble at the Spire in O'Connell Street , Dublin , at 1pm to show solidarity with imprisoned Irish republicans and in opposition to internment. All genuine republicans welcome - bring POW banners , posters and leaflets.

'THERE WILL BE ANOTHER DAY.....' By Peadar O'Donnell ; first published in January 1963.

My mother had a message for me , a letter that came by hand - it was from my teacher friend at Fintown and the innocent lass gave her full address and signed her name. She named the man who bought the seized cattle. My mother, wise in the ways of the local post office, would not trust the post with a letter that came by hand. Well, this was something ; it certainly was something. I told my father and mother of this other problem that brought me racing down from Dublin and my father said at once that I must go and see these people. They were good people and it must be that I had not the full story , and he said that I should go the first thing in the morning. I knew, as soon as he said it, this was the way to face this difficulty and there was still enough night left until bedtime for me to put it to the test ; I took out Phil's bicycle and hurried on my way. It was latish when I got there and I heard their voices in the murmur of the rosary as I sat the bicycle against the wall. I waited until the voices died away and then I pulled the latch and went in - only foreigners knock. They were still on their knees , a woman and two men, all late fiftyish, and the woman spoke at once : "Under God , man, at this hour of the night, what brings you?" The men got to their feet and they spoke a vague greeting, but she would have none of it : "Let him state his errand". I rested my hands on the back of the kitchen chair which the man of the house pushed towards me and I told her I'd traced the seized cattle and that I wanted her man to go with me and take them back and that I didn't know what the devil had got into her.....(MORE LATER).

108th Ard Fheis , Republican Sinn Féin , 10th and 11th November 2012.

The 108th Ard Fheis of Republican Sinn Féin will be held in Dublin over the weekend of Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th November 2012. The 45-page Clár contains a total of 138 motions under different headings such as political and electoral policy , prisoners, constitution and rules, social and economic , organisation/activities , education and culture, publicity and Saoirse and international affairs.

The check-in of delegates is at 9.30am each day and delegate/visitor admission cards will be available at the door of the Conference Hall provided RSF Head Office has been notified in advance of your request for same : all visitors must be vouched for by a member of Republican Sinn Féin. The Presidential Address will be delivered by An tUachtarán Des Dalton on Sunday at 12.15pm. It is intended that the Ard Fheis will end the Saturday session at 6.00pm and and will wrap-up at 4.30pm on Sunday , in between which a ballad session will be held (9pm Saturday night) in the Hotel venue. Also , the annual RSF National Private Members Draw will be held at the venue over that weekend (six prizes : 1st two 2013 All-Ireland tickets [one hurling and one football] plus €500 spending money/ 2nd €500/ 3rd €300/ 4th 19-inch flat screen TV-DVD combi unit/ 5th €50 voucher for Irish Freedom Press and 6th bodhrán - and RSF will also be holding a 650-ticket raffle that same weekend in a different venue!) and finally - Irish Republican Resistance Calendars for 2013 will be available at the Ard Fheis , priced at about a fiver each.

Due to an outright (and outrageous...) refusal (!) by RSF Head Office to postpone the Ard Fheis so as it doesn't clash with the Monthly Raffle , myself and the usual raffle crew won't be present for all of it (...we hope to put in a few hours work at it on the Saturday..) as we will be our usual busy selves in the other hotel , running the Monthly Raffle. And knowing our luck, the two raffles just mean that we'll loose twice as much !

"A COUNTRY WITH A CITIZEN LIKE HIM WILL NEVER SURRENDER...."

- the words of a young man who was then employed as a dishwasher in a London hotel , Ho Chi Minh , on hearing of the death of Irish revolutionary Terence MacSwiney. After the murder of Tomás MacCurtain in March 1920, Terence MacSwiney was elected as the Lord Mayor of Cork. He was arrested under the 'Defence of the Realm Act' in August 1920 and sentenced to two years imprisonment : he embarked on a hunger strike in Brixton Jail and died after 74 days on the protest.

Those words were spoken on Monday 25th October 1920 - today (Wednesday) is the 24th October 2012 : almost 92 years after the event, by date. Terence MacSwiney (1879-1920) was the Commanding Officer of the Irish Republican Army , who died on the 74th day of his hunger strike in Brixton Prison on October 25, 1920, inspiring George William Russell ('Æ') to pen the following :

See, though the oil be low more purely still and higher

The flame burns in the body’s lamp! The watchers still

Gaze with unseeing eyes while the Promethean Will,

The Uncreated Light, the Everlasting Fire

Sustains itself against the torturer’s desire

Even as the fabled Titan chained upon the hill.

Burn on, shine on, thou immortality, until

We, too, have lit our lamps at the funeral pyre;

Till we, too, can be noble, unshakable, undismayed:

Till we, too, can burn with the holy flame, and know

There is that within us can triumph over pain,

And go to death, alone, slowly, and unafraid.

The candles of God are already burning row on row:

Farewell, lightbringer, fly to thy heaven again!

"There can be no peace between wrong and right , between truth and fallacy , between justice and oppression , between freedom and tyranny . Between them there must always be war until the wrong is righted , until justice is achieved , until freedom is won" - Terence MacSwiney (funeral video here.)

The man had one child - a daughter, Máire, - by his wife , Muriel Murphy , and mother and daughter, too, left a mark in Irish history , unlike those who killed and tortured that family - they left a stain on our history, which remains with us to this day.

MICHAEL FITZGERALD (CORK): 17TH OCTOBER 1920 , 67 DAYS.

JOSEPH MURPHY (CORK): 25TH OCTOBER 1920 , 76 DAYS.

Michael Fitzgerald.

Joseph Murphy.

Joseph Murphy died on hunger-strike , after 76 days, on the same day as Terence MacSwiney (Monday 25th October 1920) : MacSwiney died at 5.40am , hours after Murphy's death (more here) and earlier in October that year Michael Fitzgerald had died on hunger-strike (on the 17th) after 67 days (more here). A pictorial list of all 22 Irish hunger-strikers can be seen here.

THE STATE OF THE STATE WE'RE IN : VOTE 'NO' ON SATURDAY 10TH NOVEMBER 2012.

On Saturday 10th November 2012 the electorate in this State will be given the opportunity to vote 'Yes' or 'No' to what is, in effect , a proposal which would (compared with State law as presently constituted) allow State politicians the final say - in a nutshell - in how you are rearing your child or children. If the politicians get their way and a majority 'Yes' vote is recorded on the day (in what will be the 31st referendum to the Free State Constitution) a new Article to same will be embedded ('Article 42A') in place of the existing FS Article '42.5'- 'in order that the rights of the child be strengthened' , according to those campaigning for a 'Yes' vote.

A second-hand car salesman/politician , promising you something he can't deliver and, even if he could, chances are it would fall apart at the first bump....

At issue in this particular Free State referendum is the replacement of the present wording (in relation to how you rear your child/children) '...by appropriate means..' with the wording '...by proportionate means as provided by law..'. The former (existing) wording can and has taken into account the circumstances involved ie whether the parents are wealthy or unemployed - if wealthy, the child/children will have a different upbringing , materially so, at least, than the child/children of an unemployed parent(s). Depending on whom you listen to, those 'circumstances' will either be 'significantly tweaked' or 'rode roughshod over' but one thing is for sure : those seeking to 'tweak/ride roughshod over' the existing scenario are wealthy and morally blind individuals who have no notion of what it is to feel financially anxious or to have to decide between part-paying an outstanding bill or putting a dinner on the table and if you are in the unfortunate position of having to decide between food/bills then that is not fair on your kids and their 'solution' is to put a law in place whereby those kids could more easily be removed from 'that cruel environment' whereas the proper solution would be to help the parent(s) out of the poverty trap they are in.

Troubled parents have a row : do you think it best that the child/children be removed from them or that they should be helped to improve their home environment?

Err on the side of caution on Saturday 10th November next : use your vote in this Free State referendum to prevent a corrupt institution - the State in all its guises - from having the 'right' to tell you how your family life should be lived , using their privileged lifestyles as the yardstick. VOTE NO!

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

Monday, October 22, 2012

'END A DAZE' FOR THOSE FORCED TO BAIL OUT THE BANKS.

KENNY ON THE RIGHT , BUT 'WHAT'S LEFT' ?

Kenny recently made the cover of 'Time' magazine because he's following a programme constructed by right-wing economists : save the big business-class at all costs.

If this useless IMF-inspired politician can remove his head from the pages of 'Time' magazine for any length of time then maybe one of his many publicly-paid political spin/spiv doctors can bring this report to his attention and further encourage him to broaden his horizons with a follow-up read of some examples of how the policies he is imposing are affecting real people.

The nearest this clown ever got to the pulse of those he purports to represent in this State was when he called for a "revolution" , but he wasn't near enough : he considers himself to be the leader of that 'revolution' whereas, in reality, he and his type are the reason why one is needed.

Sharon.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

90 YEARS AFTER 8TH DECEMBER 1922.........

'THERE WILL BE ANOTHER DAY.....' By Peadar O'Donnell ; first published in January 1963.

Phil McCauley had a story to tell : the postman meeting a man on the road gave him a letter addressed to his brother. A letter is a family document for it is usually from a brother or sister in America or Scotland and the first member of the household the postman meets opens it ; this letter so scared the man who opened it that he fled with it to Phil McCauley , for it revealed that his brother was willing to pay the arrears if his name was "put down for the holding". Phil brought the frightened man to 'Black' James Duirnin : he wanted to pay the arrears himself rather than risk losing the holding, but he agreed to wait until I came from Dublin, provided I came at once. Here was a many-sided problem and every side was dark. Phil put me in the picture - the conspirator was a lumpy, violent man who could make great noise and his wife would be no peace-maker but his elder brother , who was unmarried, was the tenant and he was a frail man. He was too scared even to face his brother with the letter. Then, too , there was the danger that this letter was the work of some group in the village and that maybe we had only come on one incident in a campaign against us. There were a good few government supporters in Dungloe who were very hostile to me personally and who could easily lose sight of the hurt they might do the townlands in developing their attack on me. Phil had already called a committee meeting for the following evening, so I borrowed his bicycle and cycled to my father's home at Meenmore, a mile from Dungloe village. (MORE LATER).

THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.

From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" I said that with the resumption of parliament on 23rd October my Minister might receive more enquiries of this nature and that he might consider it necessary to issue a denial - he might find it necessary to say, if asked on this particular point, that he had communicated his views to the Minister for Home Affairs , my visit being the means of communication. The Minister asked me to convey his thanks to my Minister and said that he would consider the situation very carefully. The interviews terminated at about 1.10pm , and I formed the impression that the Minister was not convinced that the IRA were not actively preparing for a fresh campaign but that he did accept the suggestion that newspaper publicity should be avoided. I also formed the impression that the Minister and the Secretary knew very little about the IRA and the police machinery for dealing with the organisation. In my preliminary meeting with the Secretary he told me that Mr. Craig was unaware of Mr. Faulkner's meeting with Mr. Haughey. During my discussion with the Minister the Secretary interjected at one stage that their Prime Minister's statement in the USA that the IRA prisoners in Belfast were about to be released came as a surprise....."(MORE LATER).

A FINE GAEL-TYPE 'UNITED IRELAND'.

Someone in the current Free State administration apparently thought it would be a good idea to get Enda Kenny , on his recent American 'tour' , to 'play the Green Card' as well as to spoof about what a great job he and his political cronies are doing with the economy here in this banjaxed State , but of course there was no indication given of just how ignorant , arrogant and full of himself he and his crowd can be when confronted, rightly, by those of us that are sick to the back teeth of useless self-servers like them, who are just sitting it out - with permission from the IMF and the EU - whilst waiting for their golden handshake political pensions to mature.

The fact that he repeatedly referred to "two countries" (by which the buffoon meant the British-occupied Six County area and the Free State) is proof enough, if indeed such was in any doubt, that the man (and his supporters) remains confused in relation to the country in which he was born , not to mention the fact that his notion of a 'united Ireland' means rejoining the British so-called 'Commonwealth'. And to think that voicing such an opinion is considered to be 'rebellious' in the (Golden) circles where 'Two Countries' Kenny and his ilk reside. God help us !

YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHIN'......

....LIKE THE MIGHTY QUINN.

"I'm gonna do what I wanna do, I can decide 'em all

Just tell me where to put 'em and I'll tell you who to call

Nobody can get no sleep, I'm on everyone's toes

But when Quinn the Capitalist gets here

Almost everybody's gonna loose...."

(from here , with apologises [and poetic licence!])

Another rally in support of the Quinn family - the second such one - was held on Sunday last (14th October 2012) at which 'The Don' cried on stage : perhaps he had just read the following - "Take all the money raised this year by the cuts in child benefit. And from cutting the school clothing and footwear allowance. And all the cuts to jobseekers’ benefit, rent supplement and fuel allowances for the elderly. Throw in the restriction of one-parent family allowance to children under seven. Pile on all the cuts in back-to-education allowances and community employment schemes. Take all of that money from the pockets of the poorest people in Ireland this year and you still haven’t reached the amount Seán Quinn agrees he owes the Irish taxpayer.....Quinn is openly, flagrantly and quite proudly trying to hang on to this money that belongs to us. As he said - he took a “very conscious decision” to do “everything in our power to take as many assets as we could”. The basic intention is very simple – to transfer assets from the Irish people to the Quinn family...." (From here.)

It's very hard to understand the moral mentality of those people who took to the streets in support of this man and his business dealings and I can only attribute it , charitably, to a 'them-and-us' attitude promoted by the 'victim' (and swallowed by some) ie 'how dare that crowd in Dublin tell us what to do...'. That's a ploy used throughout this State by useless and/or self-serving politicians to create the illusion that those 'in charge' (those in 'the Big House' in Dublin) view the person concerned as not being 'one of us' and therefore someone who can bring to an end their cosy tax-payer-funded life on Easy Street/Kildare Street and, as such, someone to be ostracised - a 'mini-version' , if you like, of the British 'divide-and-conquer' policy. And, to the shame of those 'supporters' , it's a ploy that works , proving that there genuinely is no hope for some people.

THE 'TRAP' OF FALSE HOPE....

Regular readers will be well aware that I'm not 'into' sports of any kind - be it soccer , GAA , rugby or whatever - but even I was amazed at the sheer disregard for reality shown here by Giovanni Trapattoni after the football 'team' he manages (?) lost to a German team - "Why should I resign?.... we would still have seven games left.......when we go on the street they say ‘well done’ ......it’s not a crisis......I am sure we make a good job. Others say that, not me. I’m paid to do this job. Other people in Europe say ‘you do a good job’......I think we can achieve qualification......we have to win......" (From here.)

The man has either a penality-proof contract of employment (!) or a great pair of balls (!) or maybe he's in training (!) for a career in Leinster House , the 'home' of that type of 'do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do' bullshit. Whichever it is , it's a foul (!) way to treat the punters....

....but , no doubt, all will be forgiven as Trap's team managed to beat a team that are even worse than they are and, in much the same way that the sins of Fianna Fail will be forgotten and forgiven because the alternative (Fine Gael and Labour) are worse (or at least appear worse) than they are so, too, will the sins of Trapattoni be glossed over. Such is life in this valueless Free State.

FREE STATE EXECUTIONS OF 8TH DECEMBER 1922 TO BE REMEMBERED ON 8TH DECEMBER 2012.

The 8th December 2012 will be the 90th Anniversary of the executions , by the then Leinster House Administration, of four imprisoned Irish Republicans - Richard Barrett, Rory O'Connor, Liam Mellows and Joe McKelvey. It was an act of revenge by the Free Staters for the death of Leinster House member Sean Hales , killed by the IRA. The four Irish Republicans were in prison at the time that Hales was killed and as such it was known by all concerned that none of them were involved in that particular act.

".......Liam Mellows wrote his last letter (to his mother) on December 8th , 1922 - he was then executed by a Free State Army firing squad . However , forty-six years after that execution (ie in 1968) more information regarding that deed was made public .......

In a letter to the media forty-six years after the execution of Liam Mellows (ie on April 24th , 1968) a Free State Army Captain , Ignatius O'Rourke , who was present at the execution of Liam Mellows and the other three men - Dick Barrett , Rory O'Connor and Joe McKelvey - wrote that , a few minutes before Mellows was shot dead he [Mellows] sent for the prison chaplain , a Father McMahon . Free State Army Captain O'Rourke wrote that "... a few minutes later .." he saw Father McMahon leaving the room (cell) "...accompanied by Liam Mellows , with his right arm around Liam's shoulders , and they walked along together leading the group as we all walked to the sandbags . Liam and Father McMahon appeared to be in deep , friendly conversation , with no sign of discord , disagreement or argument , just like two men discussing some point in a friendly fashion . They continued to talk until Father McMahon left Liam in the number one position at the sandbags ...." (From here - scroll down to post dated Wednesday 22nd September 2004)

Thomas Johnson, the then leader of the State Labour Party , stated re the murder of these four Irish Republicans:

"Murder most foul as in the best it is - but this most foul, bloody and unnatural. The four men in Mountjoy have been in your charge for five months…….. the Government of this country—the Government of Saorstát Eireann, announces apparently with pride that they have taken out four men, who were in their charge as prisoners, and as a reprisal for that assassination murdered them.…..I wonder whether any member of the Government who has any regard for the honour of Ireland, or has any regard for the good name of the State, or has any regard for the safety of the State, will stand over an act of this kind."

On Saturday 8th December 2012 , Republican Sinn Féin will hold a commemorative event in Wynn's Hotel , Lower Abbey Street , Dublin city centre, to mark the 90th Anniversary of the murder of those four men. Full details will be announced in the coming weeks.

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

Posted by 1169 And Counting ; Irish history, Irish politics. at 5:51 PM
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Tuesday, October 16, 2012

RAFFLE RESULTS FROM A QUIET AND SPORTS-FREE EVENT !

ROGER , ROGER.....

We had an unusually quiet - but profitable - raffle on Sunday last , 14th October , in the Kildare hotel venue : quiet due to the fact that there was no major sporting fixtures taking place that day (or if there was it wasn't evident by mad crowds in the lounge!) and profitable because all 650 tickets were sold. It was , for once, a relaxed atmosphere in which to do the job - a scenario which made it almost (!) pleasant to have to work on a Sunday!

Sheila was the Duty Manager in the hotel that day and we 'jobbed' her to pull the 1st prize out of our raffle drum - €200 - and she pulled ticket number 386 which belonged to a delighted Roger C , from Bluebell , in Dublin , who was present with his son , Mark. Both lads had just popped-in to the hotel for lunch, as they were on their way home from a job in Carlow and were thrilled to have won the prize , which they split between them. Mark then pulled the second prize (€100) which was won by Waterford girl Clair D on ticket 397 - Clair was eventually located in the other lounge and didn't believe she had won ("....sure I wouldn't win if I had the only ticket in the draw.." ) but loudly changed her mind when presented with the envelope! When Clair had calmed down we asked her to pull the 3rd prize - €40 - and it was ticket 629 , won by Conor, who had bought it from one of our resident sellers , 'Bottler' , who then pulled ticket 245 from the drum for the 4th prize (€20) and that was won by a 'Hells Angel'-type (!) , Stevo , from Ballyfermot, whom we then asked to put a gloved hand into the drum and pick the 5th prize which, with a grunt and a burp, he did - and Myles K , who had been sold ticket 349 by our Kevin, was the winner of that €20 prize.

Myles then pulled out prize number six, which went to Seán M in Clondalkin, on ticket 537. Declan from Mullingar won our second-last prize - €20 - with ticket 325 and Colm R , who had been sold ticket number 550 by Anto, walked away from our table with the last prize, €20 richer. It was a relaxing and more enjoyable than usual raffle but we know not to get to like rare occasions like that too much , and certainly not to expect more of the same for the next such event - it clashes with the 108th Ard Fheis of Republican Sinn Féin which is being held in Dublin on that same weekend. Here's hoping for an absence of sporting fixtures for that weekend at least....!
Anyway - we'll be back here tomorrow night (Wednesday 17th October 2012) with , amongst other posts, a commentary on soccer.....!

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

Posted by 1169 And Counting ; Irish history, Irish politics. at 2:02 PM
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Wednesday, October 10, 2012

BS=UDR + RUC=PSNI.

'THERE WILL BE ANOTHER DAY.....' By Peadar O'Donnell ; first published in January 1963.

One of my 'An Phoblacht' editorials stated - "The point of attack is the point of rally. Every militant Republican will be on the side of the small farmers (and) in some corner of the land some phase of the conquest is resisted. Where resistance begins organisation is born...."

In all this I was adventuring far beyond my authority and, of course, I provoked protests , and I published them : "There are men in Ireland whose vision is not your vision , whose faith in the people is not yours , whose ideal is still the Ireland of Pearse and McSwiney..." I have no doubt Maurice (Moss) Twomey , Chief of Staff and the outstanding influence in the IRA in that period, was much beset , but he never once let the matter on to the agenda of an army council meeting. There were other grumbles but I kept on shouting and in September 1926 I gave space in 'An Phoblacht' for a long quote from a poster issued by the Donegal committee (the poster itself was probably my own doing) - "We own no landlord rent, and we owe no annuity for buying out rights that were never morally binding on us. We repudiate rent and annuity as a matter of principle." But there is more to building a movement than bellowing in a newspaper. Without warning I got a telegram from Donegal calling me there at once , yet nothing in a letter of a few days before gave any hint that trouble was brewing. I was on the train north that afternoon and Con Quinn drove me from Fintown to Dungloe - Con distinguished himself later as a trade union leader at Dearborn , Michigan , and he was a great help to me.....(MORE LATER).

THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.

From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" Mr Craig (and Stout) was visibly shaken when he heard of Mr Smith's visit to Dublin of 6th September , and he took a note of it. He said that he would very much like to believe that nothing would happen this winter but he didn't see how he would ignore the advice of the RUC , his own policeforce , and said that he had already issued instructions for stepping-up police precautions. I referred to his statement that "a sizeable splinter group" was active and asked where was this group operating and how many were there. I referred to the Saor Uladh group which has been defunct since before Liam Kelly went to the USA some years ago , and the Dublin group , the members of which have shown no activity whatsoever for some years. Mr Stout asked what about MacCriostal (this showed that their sources of information were very defective) and I pointed out that since MacCriostal's release from Mountjoy Prison around 1985 , before the completion of his sentence, he had disassociated himself completely from the Saor Uladh organisation. In reply to questions I said that the use of explosives on 17th March 1963 , in Cork, in which one man lost his life and another was maimed , was for the purpose of blowing-up a war memorial and that we were satisfied that it was not an attempt on the life of our President , Mr de Valera. I mentioned that my Minister had received letters from Belfast, from Derry and from people living along thr Border , expressing doubts about any IRA activities in Border Counties and asking my Minister for reassurances....."(MORE LATER).

FEELIN' LUCKY , PUNK....?

....well, if it's next Sunday (14th) you're thinkin' about then you might just be lucky - but you'll have to have a ticket first!

The CABHAIR organisation will be holding a 650-ticket raffle on that Sunday in the usual Kildare venue and, unless any unsold tickets are returned to organising committee reps before then, you most definitely won't be having a winner : as things stand at the time of writing, there are no spare/unsold tickets for the 14th and, indeed, disappointed customers are being offered tickets for the November 2012 raffle instead of this one - and that particular raffle is going to prove more 'interesting' than the October one, as the 108th Ard Fheis of Republican Sinn Féin is being held on that same weekend - Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th November 2012. The normal monthly raffle is hectic enough as it is , due to the amount of tickets involved and the associated paperwork etc but it gets nuclear when it clashes with another Republican event ! But we'll manage , as we have before. Somehow...!

B-SPECIALS=UDR / RUC=PSNI .

REPLACING 'SIX-OF-ONE' WITH 'HALF-A-DOZEN' OF THE OTHER WHEN IT'S THE 'MATHS' ITSELF THAT IS FAULTY ; 26+6 DOES EQUAL 1.

A member of the 'B-Specials' , on his way to a normal day at the Office...

On this date in 1969 (10th October) 'The Hunt Report' recommended a change of name and uniform for an 'official' British-sponsored armed gang to ensure that Stormont would continue to have the 'muscle' to enforce its diktat , as they are doing now with the RUC/PSNI. But Baron 'Sir' John needn't have worried (...he didn't, by the way..) , despite the 'threat' of a Loyalist-instigated 'civil war', the political and military paymasters in Westminster never intended to change the actual structure of 'their' Irish fiefdom - their intention (as with the RUC/PSNI 'changeover') was simply to give the impression that they had done so.

And the more gullible amongst us (although they are well salaried to be so or, at least, to behave in such a gullible manner) profess themselves convinced that a new day has dawned , ignoring the fact that the shadow in the room is caused by an elephant....

A LESSON HARD-LEARNED SO EARLY IN LIFE.

TOO EARLY IN LIFE.

Back on my 'group-hug' horse again , I know , but I hope you will forgive me my indulgence and bear with me. I have mentioned this particular blog before and have been checking-in on it on a fairly regular basis since then, and a post from a few days ago has stayed with me. I have convinced myself that the author is a teenage girl (apologises if I'm wrong) but there is a certain sensitivity in the writing that I don't think a male of any age would be capable of - and again , apologises if that sounds 'elitist' or offensive, as that is not my intention.

The post I refer to begins in this manner - "At the risk of sounding 'deep' about this issue (I'm far too young for that!) I think I have stumbled on the main difference between people that are genuinely civilised and those that aren't, and it hasn't anything to do with how well-off people are, or the society they live in or the political leanings of those that govern them or whether the society they live in is a so-called 'advanced' society or not.

The difference is that people that are genuinely civilised have respect for, and live according to, the spirit of the law rather than the letter of it. Those that are genuinely civilised are guided by their conscience, morality and a personal responsibility whilst those that aren't need clearly-defined laws to stop them from doing wrong, but even if all aspects of the society they live in are governed by clearly-defined laws those that are not genuinely civilised will (most of the time) abide by those laws but only because they have to and not because they agree that it is the right thing to do......" , and is entitled 'THE 'RIGHT' TO DO WRONG.'

To my mind, it's a rather 'heavy' piece of writing from one so young - male or female - and even though it points to a lesson learned, it is such a pity that that lesson had to be learned in such tragic circumstances. As a mother of three girls (all of whom consider themselves to be well-versed and 'street-wise' young women but all of whom will forever remain 'my three girls') there are certain human traits which I hope (hope against hope) that my three girls do not have to encounter , and that blog details one of them. I am not a 'softie' by any means , and was not raised to be one : my parents and my family ensured that my inquisitiveness and my questioning scepticism (which I hope I have passed-on to my daughters) was encouraged and nurtured but I was not burdened with 'adult'-type problems or issues until I had developed enough to be trusted (and expected) to be able to handle issues of that nature. And that is , I think, the reason why I am particularly disturbed by the nature of the blog in question - it has introduced a child into a cut-throat world of adult treatchery that no child should be confronted with. And the two women referred to in the blog can add that to the disgusting legacy they will leave in their wake.
You can read the full post here, and the blog itself can be read here.

IRISH FARMERS PROTEST OUTSIDE THE BIGGEST SLURRY PIT IN THE STATE...

A combine harvester on its way to a straw house in Dublin , Tuesday 9th October 2012.

It was a delight to witness about 20,000 Irish farmers and their families close down Dublin City yesterday (Tuesday 9th) in a well-organised protest against State/EU/IMF threats to their standard of living - those who organised the protest and those who made it their business to take part in same and/or otherwise supported it are to be congratulated , and those who should have called their members out on protest in support - but didn't - are to be condemned for their bad judgement which can be attributed to their cosy relationship to 'Green Look-a-Likes' , the State Labour Party , who are presently , as expected, turning their back on election promises (and on those that were foolish enough to vote for them) in order to prop-up their right-wing coalition administration with Fine Gael.

This State Labour Party has exposed itself as being just a 'political prop', available (at a price) to support any other Party with which it can cohabitate , in power, for as long as it takes for its members to secure their own financial futures. Mr Gilmore and Company would do well to remember the words of Jim Larkin - "The men whose manhood you have broken will loathe you, and will always be brooding and scheming to strike a fresh blow."

And that "fresh blow" will be delivered to the State Labour Party by those that that party claims to represent - the workers , the unemployed and the underprivileged. And the sooner the better.

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

Sunday, October 07, 2012

'END A' TIMEs FOR KENNY'S STATE.....

Not for the first time , the right-wing 'Bible' that 'TIME Magazine' has become , has got it wrong : Enda Kenny and the (Fine Gael / State Labour Party) Free State Coalition that he heads-up , with permission from the IMF and the EU , of course , is not the 'economic guru' coming to the rescue of 'his people' who have recently been savaged by an incompetent political leadership : rather , he is a continuance of same - it's just that he's a better dresser than his predecessor was. 'TIME' magazine aims itself exclusively at the 'business class' - those it considers to be wealthy enough to satisfy its advertisers - and, from their perspective, the 'Enda Kenny's' of this world can do no wrong : to secure and/or increase the wealth of the wealthy and, once viewed from that perspective, it comes as no surprise that it cheers-on the likes of Kenny but the truth is that the working-class and the unemployed wouldn't consider the man fit enough to grace the cover of a comic book. Well.... with one exception , in recognition of the fact that the man considers himself to be politically useful.

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

Wednesday, October 03, 2012

RUAIRÍ AND DAN : LINKED BY THE ONE DATE.

'THERE WILL BE ANOTHER DAY.....' By Peadar O'Donnell ; first published in January 1963.

Sinn Féin suspicion of me would be sharpened if I should ask the Republican Movement now to entangle itself in agitation , for agitation led to politics and politics to the snake pit of the Free State Parliament. It was true that my message would be to the IRA mainly, but the stampede to my resolution at the General Army Convention was essentially a Sinn Féin stampede. The nearer I got to Dublin the more my thoughts darkened. The townlands would likely have to soldier alone for a while. The most interesting period in the story of a movement which eventually plays a dominant part on the national scene is the early days when the idea that gives it light is little more than a will'-o-the-wisp waiting on men to give it life. The first letters from Donegal concerned themselves with little things ; but then the bailiff struck , the sour, plucky man, and struck again. It made for uneasiness that he picked on Republican homes , isolated among Free State neighbours, and at hours when no member of the household was at hand , and escaped without a Free State neighbour as much as raising a shout. I got no word from my teacher friend. Phil McCauley wrote in his firm, calm way that the story would change once the bailiff struck at Croveigh or the Getins-Houston-Biddy Doherty countryside , but I had only one weapon to my hand - I could make 'An Phoblacht' as near as no matter the official organ of the agitation , and this I did. I gave headlines to the spate of decrees issued at sittings of the court in Dungloe , and I dealt with the troubles of the townlands editorially.....(MORE LATER).

THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.

From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" Mr Craig repeated , at this stage, that he had full confidence in the RUC, that he did not concern himself with details and that he must accept the police reports that a situation existed in which the IRA were active and that further precautions were necessary. I repeated that the Gardai stationed throughout the Border counties should be in a better position to know what was going on than the RUC who, presumably , were acting through agents. I suggested that somewhere along the line somebody was passing false information and I also said that it was strange , too, that before Mr. Craig's statement on the widespread IRA activities no suggestion had come from the RUC to the Garda Authorities. I mentioned that on 6th September Chief Inspector Smith of the Special Branch in Belfast had called to see Superintendent McMahon , the chief of our Special Branch in Dublin Castle , had discussed IRA matters with him and had made no mention of drilling in any particular place. Mr Craig and Stout expressed surprise at this which was obviously not known to them. I said that on earlier occasions Mr Smith had had meetings with Chief Superintendent Moore of the Special Branch in the Depot and with Superintendent McMahon and that at no time had he given them particulars of IRA activities , that he had only spoken in generalities. I said that within the previous 48 hours I had seen Chief Superintendent Moore and Superintendent McMahon and I had had the most categoric assurances that the Gardai were not aware of any activities in Border counties. I told them that the Gardai hadn't a shred of evidence which would lead them to think that a Border campaign would be re-opened this winter......"(MORE LATER).

TWO IRISH REPUBLICAN ICONS LINKED BY THE ONE DATE : 2ND OCTOBER.

Ruairí O Bradáigh and Dan Keating , pictured in January 2007.

Ruairí O Bradáigh and Dan Keating :

Ruairí was born on the 2nd of October (1932) and Dan Keating died , aged 105, on the 2nd of October (2007). I had the pleasure of meeting both men many times , at political gatherings and socially , and 'gelled' with both of them - Dan for the almost sixth-sense he possessed in being able to accurately judge character in a person and not going 'behind the door' , should the need arise, in letting you now what he thought of you , and Ruairí for the same reasons : both up-standing and committed Irish Republicans and Gentlemen , dedicated to the same Cause. We have , physically , lost Dan , but we still have Ruairí , and we are appreciative of that fact , and of the man himself. Happy (belated!) Birthday , Mr. O' B - and may you have many more of them. Míle Buíochas, Ruairí , for all you continue to do for Irish Republicanism !

"..... in Gods name, don’t let it come about that tomorrow, the next day or the day after, that Haughey, FitzGerald, Spring, and those in London and Belfast who oppose it so much, can come out and say, “Ah, it took 65 years, but we have them at last,” and those in Leinster House who have done everything, the firing squad, the prison cells, the internment camps, the hunger strike, the lot, and weren’t able to break this movement, that they can come and say at last we have them towing the line. It took us 65 years but they come in from the polls, they come in from the wilderness and we have them now. Never, that’s what I say to you — never." (from here.)

'When asked if he'd do it all again, there's not a moment's hesitation before he answers, "Oh Christ I would! You met great people and made great friends, you know. They were great times....." ' (From here.)

3RD OCTOBER 1981 : H-BLOCK HUNGER-STRIKE ENDS.

On this date in 1981 the H-Block Hunger-Strike ended , bringing the number of Irish Republicans who died on hunger-strike since 1917 to twenty-two :

Thomas Ashe, Kerry, 5 days, 25 September 1917 (force fed by tube , died as a result).

Terence McSwiney, Cork, 74 days, 25 October 1920.

Michael Fitzgerald, Cork, 67 days, 17 October 1920.

Joseph Murphy, Cork, 76 days , 25 October 1920.

Joe Witty, Wexford , 2 September 1923.

Dennis Barry, Cork, 34 days, 20 November 1923.

Andy O Sullivan , Cork, 40 days, 22 November 1923.

Tony Darcy, Galway, 52 days, 16 April 1940.

Jack 'Seán' McNeela, Mayo, 55 days, 19 April 1940.

Seán McCaughey, Tyrone ,22 days, 11 May 1946 (hunger and thirst Strike).

Michael Gaughan, Mayo , 64 days, 3 June 1974.

Frank Stagg, Mayo , 62 days, 12 February 1976.

Bobby Sands, Belfast , 66 days, 5 May 1981.

Frank Hughes , Bellaghy (Derry) , 59 days, 12 May 1981.

Raymond McCreesh , South Armagh , 61 days, 21 May 1981.

Patsy O Hara , Derry , 61 days, 21 May 1981.

Joe McDonnell , Belfast , 61 days, 8 July 1981.

Martin Hurson , Tyrone , 46 days, 13 July 1981.

Kevin Lynch, Dungiven (Derry) ,71 days, 1 August 1981.

Kieran Doherty , Belfast , 73 days, 2 August 1981.

Tom McIlwee , Bellaghy (Derry) , 62 days, 8 August 1981.

Micky Devine , Derry , 60 days, 20 August 1981.

A statement issued at the time by the Republican POW's outlined the reasons for ending the protest : "We, the protesting Republican prisoners in the H-Blocks, being faced with the reality of sustained family intervention, are forced by this circumstance, over which we have little control at the moment, to end the hunger strike.

After four years of continual protest, and after the failure of the Cardinal O'Fiaich/Humphrey Atkins talks, and having exhausted all other means of protest to bring about a settlement, we embarked on hunger strike on October 27th, 1980.That hunger strike ended on 18 December 1980, when the British government intimated to the hunger strikers that they would implement a workable and just solution which was forwarded to the hunger strikers on 18 December 1980.

In the course of the immediate post-hunger strike period it became increasingly clear that the British government had reneged on their commitment to implement that solution and so we were back in a pre-hunger strike predicament and thus forced to go back on hunger strike. On 1 March 1981 Bobby Sands embarked on hunger strike...."(continued here.)

Three days later it became clear that the hunger-strikers had achieved their objectives , albeit with certain British-imposed 'conditions' - "..... (it was announced) that all prisoners, including the ones protesting, would be able to wear their own clothes all day long. The only restrictions imposed were that this clothing could not be a form of IRA uniform and the clothing could not resemble the guards' uniforms. Additionally, prisoners would receive much of the remission they had lost while on the protest, and association between prisoners, while not "free," was reorganized to better suit the prisoners' wishes. The demands concerning mail, parcels, and visiting privileges, which had been conceded earlier, were formalized. Initially no concessions were made concerning prison work, but the actual work was re-defined in such a way that prisoners who refused to work for the prison system would not receive much of a penalty....."(more here.)

This poem explains what those of us who lived and campaigned through that period witnessed -

Freed — from grim barbed wire — girt hell brooding concrete oppression over green Antrim hills

Freed — but only in death

that others held captive

this sorrowing night

may see the day.

‘Continues to deteriorate’

Weaker’ ‘in coma’

terse relentless bulletins

batter, rouse,

a nationalist,

strangely, deeply stirred

from long assumed apathy

by that fatal hour.

Tricolour draped coffins

out of Long Kesh

God, how many more?

Black flags in dismal rain

stunned faces, silent

sorrowful crowds

grieving families

Furious anger, frustration

suppressed, seething,

rising, unleashed

Faces of deprived youth

pained, raging

Flashpoint erupts,

in ill-pervading darkness,

running feet, batons, petrol bombs

barricades, smash, flames, plastic bullets that, — explosions war.

Immovable, distant, middle aged

faces of power

clichés easily discharged

in English suburban tones

‘Terrorists!’

‘No concessions’

‘A crime is a crime is a crime’

Like letting Irish people die

slowly for eight hundred years

Criminals?

One elected to their own

Vaunted parliament

(sacrilege! disqualify!) democratically by thirty thousand

Fermanagh/Tyrone

After all

a majority

is a majority…..

A prison poet that, writing

creatively of a lark,

Another who read at Mass

described as ‘religious’

A suicide?

or ‘greeter love hath no man’

Sands

Hughes

McCreesh

O’Hara

Thatcher leaves us our Fenian dead and Ireland still not at Peace....(from here.)

And Westminster still hasn't learned (...and neither have the sleeveens in Leinster House) : as long as the British continue to claim political and military jurisdictional control over any part of Ireland the conflict , and the justification for it, remains.

SATURDAY 27TH OCTOBER 2012 : INTERNATIONAL DAY OF ACTION FOR IRISH REPUBLICAN PRISONERS.

"We salute the prisoners in Maghaberry Prison, Co Antrim who have been on protest for political status. The British and the Stormont regime, which includes our former comrades who have accepted and now administer British rule in the Six Occupied Counties, entered into an agreement with the prisoners in August 2010 to end strip-searching.

They reneged on that arrangement. They never implemented the alternative of the BOSS chair and so the no-wash strike continues. Even the secretary of the prison warders’ union has stated publicly that the protest should be settled.

Meanwhile there is a publicity black-out on the plight of the prisoners while their comrades outside do their utmost to support them. The political status won at such great cost by the heroic hunger strikers was signed away as just another of the many surrenders to English rule in Ireland by the Provo leadership...." (From here.)

On Saturday 27th October next , Irish Republican groups in Europe and further afield will be holding a day of action to show their support for Irish Republican POW's : more information here , and we will be re-posting this event over the coming weeks. Get yourself organised now to either support an already-announced protest or organise one yourself in your own area. Our prisoners need your help.

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

Saturday, September 29, 2012

RSF CLONDALKIN , DUBLIN , POW PICKET , SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 29TH 2012.

P.O.W. PICKET , CLONDALKIN , DUBLIN , SATURDAY 29TH SEPTEMBER 2012 : BRIEF REPORT AND PICS.

Group pic of RSF members and supporters in Clondalkin on the POW picket.

Thirteen RSF members and supporters held a 75-minute picket on Saturday 29th September 2012 in Clondalkin , Dublin, in support of Irish Republican POW's. The event was well received by passers-by and motorists , who beeped their car horns in support , and a three-person team distributed 100 'leaflet/information packs' (comprising a total of 350 items ie 60 'packs' with four items each , 30 X 3 and 10 X 2) .

State 'Special Branch' men approaching those on the picket...

Two State Special Branch men , who had been observing the proceedings from a short distance away for about 15 minutes before they approached those on the picket, spent about ten minutes recording the names and addresses of the Republicans before returning to their car where , again, they continued to observe for another twenty minutes, before driving away (probably to a local hotel for a taxpayer-funded lunch).

Special Branch man Kieran Lunn (and his associate) 'on' the picket.....

Apart from the unwelcome above-mentioned 'interlude' , the 75-minute picket achieved its objective in that the plight of Irish Republican prisoners was highlighted , with particular emphasis on Martin Corey and Marian Price.

One of the RSF supporters on the picket in Clondalkin , outside the offices of SDCC.

A more complete report , with additional pictures , will be published in the October 2012 issue of 'SAOIRSE' , which goes to print on Wednesday 3rd October 2012.

Thanks for reading , Sharon.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

FAMILY - A POISON TREE ?

'THERE WILL BE ANOTHER DAY.....' By Peadar O'Donnell ; first published in January 1963.

De Valera had an easier road now, but he still felt his way carefully. His first proposal did little more than pose the question whether Republican TD's should declare themselves willing to enter the Free State Parliament , if the Oath were removed , but Sinn Féin did not take the proposal kindly and it was defeated at the Ard Fheis. De Valera withdrew to found Fianna Fáil , a decision which created new problems , as many members of the IRA favoured political action of this kind. There was sharp discussion on whether membership of Fianna Fáil was compatible with membership of the IRA. In these circumstances the IRA put forward a plan that Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin ('1169..' Comment : the two are practically one Party today...) should agree on a panel of candidates to go forward at the forthcoming general election with IRA support , 'to win a majority'. The majority should then meet outside the Free State Parliament to agree on the composition of the government , and on the steps 'progressively to restore the Republic peacefully'. The Republican TD's would enter the Free State Parliament to get control of the instruments of the State. The executive committee , senior officers and army council met at my place , 39 Marlborough Road , Donnybrook , Dublin, and held a long session on this proposal , finally recommending it to the army council. Jack Plunkett alone dissented. Sinn Féin resented IRA intervention into the political field which they looked on as their own but they agreed to go along, provided Fianna Fáil candidates pledged themselves not to enter the Free State Parliament as a minority. Fianna Fáil said the only way to win a majority was to declare willingness to go into the parliament as a minority and, when the discussions broke down, Sinn Féin leaders considered that they had been pushed dangerously near to 'the slippery slopes of politics' and many of them, justifiably enough, blamed me for it.(MORE LATER).

THE PETER BERRY PAPERS....... The Top Secret Memoirs of Ireland's Most Powerful Civil Servant : Dirty Tricks, Election '69/ Spying on a Unionist Politician/ Keeping the (State) Taoiseach informed/ The Garda Fallon Murder/ Advice to Jack Lynch- 'Fire the pair of them...'/ Vivion De Valera's advice to O'Malley/ Rumours of a Coup D'Etat/ The Internment Plot, November 1970/ Secret Meeting with William Craig.

From 'MAGILL' magazine , June 1980.

" Mr Craig said that he would give this matter serious concern and stated that he was greatly relieved to hear what I had conveyed to him from my Minister. He referred to the impending visit of a member of the IRA to America and asked me were we aware of and concerned about that . I was already aware that the FBI had told Scotland Yard who told the RUC that information about the visit had emanated from Dublin. I admitted awareness and said that that was taken care of. Scotland Yard are already aware from the FBI of the steps to be taken. Mr Craig referred to the leniency with which our Courts treated the IRA and referred to the very short sentences given to the men armed with machine guns who were arrested near Cappoquin. I explained that under our Constitution our summary courts could only try minor offences , that if we had charged the men with indictable offences they would have been entitled to trial by jury and that, from bitter experience, we could not hope to get a jury unanimously to bring in a guilty verdict. In reply to an inquiry I explained that the Special Criminal Court could only function when the Government made a proclamation that the ordinary courts of justice were not sufficient for the maintenance of law and order and that before such a proclamation could be made , incidents would have to occur which would demonstrate to the public that the ordinary Courts were inadequate. Mr Craig said that he appreciated the sequence but the people in the Six Counties did not and they were only concerned that, somehow or other , effective steps should be taken so that they could live their lives in peace and safety....."(MORE LATER).

DON'T FORGET.....

......this coming Saturday (29th September) the Clondalkin-based Cumann of Republican Sinn Féin (the Maire Drumm/Kevin Barry Cumann) will be holding a picket in Clondalkin in support of Irish POW's : details here.

This hour-long picket will start at 12.30pm : bus info here or, if you're driving to the event , you can avail of free parking in the carpark of the Mill Shopping Centre , which is less than ten metres distance from where the picket will be taking place. All genuine republicans welcome !

" I WAS OUTTA ME HEAD WHEN I DONE IT...."

'AMPLIFIED' : A powder, containing dimethocaine, a local anaesthetic with stimulant properties similar to cocaine. Also sold as Mind Melt.....

Well, that explains it : why Doctor Reilly so blatantly broke one of the 'values' of Fine Gael ("Fine Gael believes in being truthful and courageous in what we do....we stand for integrity in public life...") - the man just wasn't himself when he done it . He was 'tired and emotional' as opposed to being just another Free State 'Stroker'. However , this 'JR' - like his equally obnoxious tv-namesake - claims to be 'the innocent bystander' in developments that have nothing (much) to do with him and that he acted above board and in good faith at all times. Well , doctors differ , Mr Reilly , and not all your 'patients' will swallow that particular medicine.

A POISON TREE : YOU CAN CHOOSE YOUR FRIENDS BUT YOU CAN'T CHOOSE YOUR FAMILY.

This type of post is a first for us. The blog in question is 'doing the rounds' in the area where I live (Clondalkin, Dublin) and has left those that have read it in an angry mood - sad , yes , and feeling disgusted, but angry , too. And no wonder. I actually cried having read it - a mixture of disgust , sadness and anger brought tears to my eyes and I just can't get the subject matter out of my mind. It's very hard to believe that people could do this to each other , but all the harder to think that family members could do it on their own parents. But read the blog yourself (I'll give you the link before I finish this post) and the proof seems to be irrefutable. For some reason , it brought William Blake's poem to mind :

I was angry with my friend:

I told my wrath, my wrath did end.

I was angry with my foe:

I told it not, my wrath did grow.

And I watered it in fears

Night and morning with my tears,

And I sunned it with smiles

And with soft deceitful wiles.

And it grew both day and night,

Till it bore an apple bright,

And my foe beheld it shine,

And he knew that it was mine -

And into my garden stole

When the night had veiled the pole;

In the morning, glad, I see

My foe outstretched beneath the tree.

I don't know the author of the blog (a teenage girl, I think...?) , nor do I know the family involved , although I would like to find out : the author deserves a hug and could do with someone to share his/her justifiable anger with, whilst his/her cold-shouldered uncle should be highlighted as a role-model. But his two sisters should be shunned by all humans and exiled to a place where they could only hurt , disappoint, vex and irritate each other. The mother and her late husband deserve sympathy and an understanding of the distress that has been forced on them by two of their own daughters. I feel quesy having read it because I know and visit all the places mentioned in the various blog posts and the thought that I might have actually rubbed shoulders - even breathed the same air - as one or other of those two women makes me uneasy and leaves me feeling unclean.

The author has asked his/her readers to publicise the blog (".... I am asking readers that have a Facebook page or a Twitter account or their own blog or website , or if they have contacts with journalists, if they could please help publicise my blog as I know from the experiences that my immediate and extended family are going through just how divisive theft like this can be for all concerned....") and whoever you are that is reading this now - and wherever you are - I'm asking you to please do the same : spread the link , share it with your contacts on Facebook , Twitter etc , highlight it on your own blog or website , bring it to the attention of print journalists , pass it on to radio presenters etc - anything you could do in that regard would be appreciated. It is truly a worrying and disgusting occurance and it disturbs me that it has happened. Read it for yourself , and feel the anger.

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

'EVE RALLY' , DUBLIN , 22-9-12 - BRIEF REPORT AND SOME PICS.

RSF ANNUAL EVE OF ALL-IRELAND RALLY , SATURDAY 22ND SEPTEMBER 2012.

Lectern front , 22-9-12.

The Republican Sinn Féin-organised 'Eve of All-Ireland Rally' was held , as advertised, on Saturday 22nd September 2012 , in O'Connell Street , Dublin , and was observed by approximately 200 people. The event began at 2pm outside the Garden of Remembrance in Parnell Square when those present assembled behind an RSF Colour Party , uniformed representatives from Na Fianna Éireann and Cumann na mBan : and the 'Pride of Erin' Republican Flute Band from Portadown in County Armagh. The parade marched from there and arrived on the isle facing the GPO at 2.15pm and the Chairperson , Diarmuid Mac Dubhghlais , RSF Ard Chomhairle, introduced himself to the crowd and began proceedings. The speeches delivered by the three Republican speakers - Des Dalton , Róisín Hayden and Fergal Moore - all highlighted the prisoner issue , mentioning in particular Martin Corey and Marian Price. The full text of each speech will be published in the October 2012 issue of 'Saoirse' , which goes to print on Wednesday 3rd of that month. We publish with this short report a few pics from the event and , if you have a 'Facebook' account , more pics and videos can be seen here.

Pride of Erin Republican Flute Band , Portadown , County Armagh , at the 'Eve Rally' , Saturday 22-9-12.

Chairperson , RSF Colour Party and Na Fianna Éireann.

RSF Colour Party and Cumann na mBan.

Des Dalton , RSF President , 22-9-12.

Fergal Moore , RSF Vice-President , 22-9-12.

Young Na Fianna Éireann member....

...and the same young NFÉ member , pictured with a member of the RSF Colour Party.

The whole event went like clockwork , and even the weather was on our side ! All involved are to be congratulated for their contribution - RSF and the Colour Party , the Pride of Erin Flute Band , NFÉ , Cumann na mBan and the crowd that stood with us in O'Connell Street. The only 'downer' was in regards to the leaflet 'packs' , 300 of which were distributed at the Rally (these 'packs' had five items per pack , meaning that a total of 1,500 leaflets were distributed) : the problem here was that we hadn't enough of them. Myself and the rest of the 'leaflet team' could easily have distributed another 150 'packs' between us , had we had them, but I suppose that's more of a good thing rather than a 'problem', as it shows that there is , thankfully, a healthy interest in the Movement and in Irish republicanism, in general. And events like this Rally help to promote and encourage that interest!

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

BS=UDR + RUC=PSNI.