1169 And Counting.....

Saturday, October 14, 2006

30-cent-a-text Newstalk Radio , almost Nationwide .

This blog recently published a piece concerning what we consider to be the 30-cent-a-text rip-off charge by Newstalk Radio , and have now been contacted by a person called 'Clancy' who , rightly, used our piece on a Forum (Boards Ireland.com) in connection with the cost of a text to that station . A campaign is presently under way on Boards Ireland.com to encourage the station owners to drop the 30 cent charge - we wish that campaign all the best and would ask our readers to sign the petition .

Incidentally - our records show that ,on Monday 9 February 2004 , Newstalk 106FM (as it was then known) ran a recruitment 'advertisement' for the 'Queens Own Hibernians' , a British Army 'Regiment' : John , from this blog , contacted the station to complain about the fact that any Irish radio station should stoop so low as to assist a foreign army which continued to maintain an unwanted armed presence on Irish soil . On Tuesday morning , 10 February 2004 , the same advertisement was broadcast again on Newstalk Radio - before John could pick up a telephone to ring in a complaint again , his own mobile phone rang : it was Dan Healy , Newstalk Chief Executive at the time , on the line , and he apologised for the fact that John had taken offence at the advertisement. According to Mr Healy , the station had received "...hundreds of complaints.." in connection with that advertisement , which had now "...being pulled.." .
Dan Healy explained that that particular British Army 'regiment' was one which station management had made-up ,and ran an 'advertisement' for , simply as a way to gauge the attention paid to its ads by Newstalk listeners ! The whole thing was a 'joke' , in other words - an internal Newstalk campaign by way of which the station could 'prove' to potential advertisers that its listeners do pay attention to advertisements run on the station .

We can only hope that the 30-cent text charge is another 'internal campaign' by Newstalk , and one which they will 'pull' soon . Because we don't find it at all 'funny' .

Best of luck to all at Boards Ireland.com in their campaign against Newstalk's rip-off text charges . Sign their petition if you can .

Sharon .

Friday, October 13, 2006

PILLARS OF SOCIETY : MICHAEL O' LEARY .......
From 'Phoenix' magazine , April 1986 .

Having fallen in love with ministerial office , Michaeel O' Leary entered a new age , developing a passion for the Labour Leader's job : alas , his ardour was to remain unrequited . It was his arch rival , Frank Cluskey , bearded like the bard , who won the horny hand of the Parliamentary Labour Party .

An alternative career now began to develop with our hero appearing , if not as a Justice , certainly before quite a few of them , in his advocate's role - " Full of wise saws and modern instances?" Well , hardly . However , after four years of sulking in the shadows , Micko finally received the call to arms following Frank Cluskey's election defeat in June 1981 . Jealous of honour , quick in quarrel , the new Labour 'General' eagerly sought the bubble reputation in the cannon's mouth . But the bubble was soon to burst .

Fifteen months later he discovered far too many hostile cannons trained upon him at the 1982 Labour Conference : his reputation in shreds , his policy shot to pieces , the embittered lost Labour Leader abandoned his troops , if not entitrely his 'cause' - and so to his sixth and latest age as ' a lean and slippered pantaloon...' , dwelling uneasily on the Fine Gael backbenches . A strange history indeed.......
(MORE LATER).

PASSPORTS , PLEASE....... !
The latest passports for investment revelations involve a controversial £10,000 donation to Fianna Fail by US investor Gerry Lindzon .
There are grounds for suspicion that much of the money that changed hands in other deals was never intended for investment in the business but rather a 'facility fee' which accrued to the company for allowing its name to be used .
By Daire O' Brien .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1999 .

When it was put to Brian O' Carroll that the political connections of C&D Foods could have helped in that company's application , he said that he could understand how such a " ...conclusion.." was drawn . According to the Dublin consultant previously quoted , some "...political contact was a requirement . The deal would need a sponsor (effectively a serving government Minister) to make representations on the company's behalf and explain why it would provide employment or protect jobs etc .. "

After the Masri affair broke , the rules for the issuing of passports seemed to tighten considerably . One London firm , which provides service in offshore company formation and foreign citizenship , describes what it terms '...the Rolls Royce..' of Irish citizenship in its promotional literature.

However, further enquiries by this reporter into the feasibility of receiving an Irish passport for investment were not received enthusiastically - we were told that "... Ireland is now very hard.." , but that Brazilian citizenship was still very much a runner ....... !
(MORE LATER).

EMPIRES OF DUST .......
Britain's leaders talk about remodelling the world and its historians draw attention to the 'good side of the old empire' . But what about the reality ?
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 2003 .
By Edel Brosnan .

Britain is learning to love its multicultural present but , like a Marxist turned management consultant , the nation that once ruled half the world is embarrassed about its past . Pride in the empire gave way to a vague sense of guilt - the " sorry we shot your grandad , stole your land and enslaved your people' syndrome .

To the delight of 'Daily Telegraph' readers everywhere , that might be about to change : historian Niall Ferguson - flag-waver-in-chief for the good old days- recently unleashed a hefty tome entitled ' Empire : How Britain Made The Modern World ' ('1169.....' Comment - we presume the word 'Suffer' is missing from the end of that title....) . It is being marketed as a shock-the-liberals special , and even had its own TV series on Channel 4 . Guess what ? Subject nations prospered under the kind rule of British masters ; the imperial adventure was a 'Force for Good' !

Come again...? Niall Ferguson is an entertaining figure , enthusiastic as a puppy-dog and just as photogenic , but this is just silly.......
(MORE LATER).

Thursday, October 12, 2006

Abraham Lincoln .

Listening to various radio stations today , I could not help but to get angry over the amount of time which programme presenters and news bulletins dedicated to the so-called "historic" talks in Scotland between those who wish to further surrender and humiliate themselves and those they wish to surrender to (though the latter are in no hurry , having already drawn the military teeth from the former) .

Following a comment from a co-worker , I was reminded of the words of U. S. President Abraham Lincoln , who stated that the American Civil War (1861-1865) was fought to ensure "...that self-determination belonged only to the whole people of the nation.." Mr. Lincoln went on to say - " On what rightful principle may a State , being not more than one-fiftieth part of the nation in soil and population , break up the nation and then coerce a proportionally larger sub-division of itself in the most arbitrary way ."

Those that are "making history" in Scotland would do well to remember that the Six-County area , which was politically cut-off from the rest of this isle in the 1920's , had never existed before as an entity in history , or politics , or economically . Nor should it be allowed or , indeed , encouraged , to exist , regardless of whether its present 'owners' (Westminster) hand over the 'reins of power' to their 'newest' pets , the Provisionals , or not .
The only proper solution is for Westminster to withdraw politically and militarily from this isle - and that is the one issue which is not on the agenda at that particular meeting . Nothing "historic" there , so .

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

PILLARS OF SOCIETY : MICHAEL O' LEARY .
From 'Phoenix' magazine , April 1986 .

All of Leinster House is a stage and all the deputies (members) and senators merely players . They have their exits and their elections , and one man in his time plays many parts - that man is Michael O' Leary , former (State) 'Tanaiste' (ie 'second-in-command') , (State) Minister for Labour , Industry and Energy , and Leader of The Labour Party . The question is , when will Michael O' Leary change parties again ?

The career of O' Leary to date has certainly been , in the words of the Bard , ' a strange and eventful history' ! First there was the enfant terrible of the 1960's , mewling and puking on the otherwise staid and conservative Labour Front Bench . His infantile 'oats' having been sown , Micko began to develop rapidly .

The next stage was the whining schoolboy of the 1970's , creeping not at all unwillingly to his State Ministerial desk : on the whole, Micko didn't have a bad coalition , with various pieces of reforming Labour legislation to his credit , albeit with the assistance of an EEC gun to the Dublin Administration's head.......
(MORE LATER).

PASSPORTS , PLEASE....... !
The latest passports for investment revelations involve a controversial £10,000 donation to Fianna Fail by US investor Gerry Lindzon .
There are grounds for suspicion that much of the money that changed hands in other deals was never intended for investment in the business but rather a 'facility fee' which accrued to the company for allowing its name to be used .
By Daire O' Brien .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1999 .

Of course , there is no suggestion that the deal was anything other that a bona-fide investment in a successful Irish manufacturing company . And Albert Reynolds , who was a serving State Minister at the time , has stated that he had no knowledge or part in the transaction . However , as one of the few companies which have been confirmed beneficiaries of the scheme it would be interesting to know exactly what shape the "...ongoing.." relationship took and how it contributed to the growth of C&D Foods .

The Roscommon accountant , Brian O' Carroll was recently associated with an investment in a Cork pottery company - a deal in which it was revealed that one of the investors had also made a political donation from an account set up for the initial purpose of housing the investors' money ! The sum , £10,000 , ended up in an account where the signatories were prominent Fianna Fail members , including Bertie Ahern : this was in 1993 , when the scheme was run on an ad-hoc basis through the (State) Department of Justice .

Brian O' Carroll brought investors to four Irish companies and a number of passports were issued to the family of each investor - in all he delivered approximately fifteen passports : he stressed that each investor came up with a minimum of £1 million in each case and that no 'discounting' ever took place in any of his deals , although he was aware of such a process.......
(MORE LATER).

EMPIRES OF DUST .
Britain's leaders talk about remodelling the world and its historians draw attention to the 'good side of the old empire' . But what about the reality ?
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 2003 .
By Edel Brosnan .

The Tower of London dates back to AD 1070 but that does not stopit looking , on the outside , like a stone-clad knock-off monument - a 'Made-in-China' fake . You could buy a decent bottle of Chablis for the price of an entrance ticket . However , to understand the British Empire , and what it really meant , the Jewel House at the Tower is the place to start .

The gems , the gold - the sheer vulgar magnificence of it all - could bring out the forelock-tugging royalist in anyone . Anyone , that is , except my father . He took one look at the Star Of India , the Star of Africa and the Cullinan Diamond (317 carats - you don't find that in Argos!) , then he muttered "...stolen goods , the lot of it.." .

Stolen is probably the wrong word : let's go with extorted or commandeered instead . You cannot walk through central London without tripping over an imperial souvenir - a 'heroic' statue , a triumphal arch , the Tate galleries at Pimlico and Bankside (the Tate fortune has its roots in the Caribbean sugar-and-slave trade) . Until recently, though , the locals didn't like to talk about it.......
(MORE LATER).

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Homelessness .

" Education is an admirable thing . But it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught . " - Oscar Wilde .

In the same few days that attention was focussed on Bertie Ahern and the few shillings that this 'plain-man-of-the-people' received in Manchester - and at the expense of highlighting other dodgy deals and the continuing mis-conduct in this corrupt State's 'Health Service' , 'Allied Irish Bank' announced that none of its Officials will be disciplined in regards to its 'internal investigation' into the manner in which AIB customers were defrauded by over-charging . AIB management announced that they had discovered a further £21 million in illicit fees charged to customers during the late 1980's and early 1990's , bringing to £65.8 million the total (so far?) value of the banks rip-off ! However , no-one will be held accountable because , according to AIB bosses , there is a lack of evidence "...due principally to the passage of time.." So , presumably , if you can avoid paying back your loan to this bank for as long as possible , you will be in the clear ... !
Finally ,if , by some misfortune or other , you find yourself homeless , you may find that a bed awaits you courtesy of the Horsey Set - for it has recently been announced here that , from 2001 to date , €317 million of taxpayers money has been handed over to those that oversee the 'Sport of Kings' in this wee Statelet .
Jolly glad to see that our priorities are right.......

Monday, October 09, 2006

"Will no-one rid me of this troublesome priest...? "

Another day , another "historic" meeting - this one held in Stormont , one of the two British-imposed 'parliaments' in Ireland .
Fr.Brady spoke about 'creating a more stable and prosperous future (in the Six Counties)... ' :
"I firmly believe that such a future is within our grasp if each one of us can find the courage to take account of the needs of the other, and not just those of our own community .I think that real peace will come only when we focus on the common good of all of our society and not just on sectional interest."

Like others that sat in similar chairs , at similar tables ,at similar meetings before them , both men , and the 'camps' they represent , no doubt fully realise that "...real peace.." in the troubled Six North-Eastern counties of Ireland will only materialise after Westminster withdraws its military and political presence from this isle and drops its jurisdictional claim over those six Irish counties . But it would not only hurt the 'Establishment' should they say so - it would also place both men , and their supporters , outside said 'Establishment' . And political careers are not furthered by being outside the tent pissing in . And becuse of that fact , the conflict continues .

LOTTERIES AND OTHER HOLD-UPS .......
From 'New Hibernia' magazine , April 1987.

Joe McGrath and Jack O' Sheehan are dead : Archie Doyle went , though not before telling us how they had shot Kevin O' Higgins : Eamonn Duggan is no more , nor Uncle Jack and Aunt Molly .

Maybe it's time to think about the living , for I believe that there is still some twelve million pounds in the Irish Hospitals Trust account : why not divide it between the sacked employees who , over forty years , have done as much as anybody else for the good of medicine in this State ?
[END of 'LOTTERIES AND OTHER HOLD-UPS']
(Next - 'Pillars of Society - Michael O' Leary' : from 1986)

PASSPORTS , PLEASE....... !
The latest passports for investment revelations involve a controversial £10,000 donation to Fianna Fail by US investor Gerry Lindzon .
There are grounds for suspicion that much of the money that changed hands in other deals was never intended for investment in the business but rather a 'facility fee' which accrued to the company for allowing its name to be used .
By Daire O' Brien .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1999 .

There is an unconfirmed account , related by one source who successfully operated as a go-between for investors and Irish companies , that a bank could give 'letters of comfort' to the investor , effectively guaranteeing the return of his/her money in exchange for a " discounted " facility fee . If this is the case , the 'Passport For Investment Scheme' was abused and no 'investment' , in the sense of risk , was ever made .

In the most 'famous' case , that of the Masri's investment* in C&D Foods (*by Munib R. Masri) , no information has ever been forthcoming on what exactly the Palestinian businessmen got for their investment , or even how much the investment was. The man who is regarded as the facilitator for the Masri deal , Roscommon accountant Brian O' Carroll , spoke to 'Magill' magazine : we asked him three questions regarding the transaction -
A) The size of the Masri's investment ?
b) What class of equity was issued in return for the investment ?
c) If no equity was invested , what did the Masris receive from C&D Foods ?

Brian O' Carroll confirmed to us that the investment was £1.1 million : he stated that he did not negotiate with the Masris on the shape of the investment - that he just effected an introduction - but that the money was a "...loan.." and did not involve equity changing hands . On what the Masris received in return , apart from two passports , he says that there was a promise of "...ongoing.." trade links between the Reynolds and the Masris.......
(MORE LATER).

THE YOUNGER BREED : TONY GREGORY .......
From 'The Phoenix' magazine , February 1985 .

Tony Gregory was proved wrong in not running Mick Rafferty in the by-election caused by the death of Fianna Fail's George Colley - (Provisional) Sinn Fein's Christy Burke , who was also involved in the anti-drugs campaign, outpolled the (State) LabourParty and gave the Workers Party a run for their money .

With Fianna Fail and Fine Gael now set to throw all their resources into winning Dublin seats at the next election , Tony Gregory's position is in danger : unlike the days when he held the aces , he can no longer deliver . Crumbs from 'the deal' still remain , but that may not be enough . He is still popular , but with Charles Haughey and Garret Fitzgerald offering the sun , moon and stars , Gregory may fall down on the vital first preference vote.

He could then find himself battling for transfers , which was how he came to Leinster House in the first place .
[END of 'The Younger Breed : Tony Gregory']
(Next-'Empires Of Dust' : from 'MAGILL' magazine , 2003)

Saturday, October 07, 2006

Charles Haughey and Dermot Desmond - solving world problems.....

As we in this corrupt wee Statelet lurch from one potential/possible/probable political scandal to another , it is only fitting that we take a look back at previous potential/possible/probable political scandals :

When he was State Minister for Energy, Fianna Fail's Michael Smith agreed to hire NCB Stockbrokers to sell off the 25% of Tara Mines which the State owned : NCB's fee of £530,000 was also agreed on .
A Senior Executive at Morgan Grenfell , one of the top two British merchant banks , said at the time - " The fee was definitely very high . NCB got 1.5% for what was a straight-forward deal ." An executive at Kleinworths , another of London's top merchant banks , said at the time - " It is hard , looking at the deal , to see how NCB could get the fee - £250,000 would have been more like it ."

It should be noted that the sale of Tara Mines was not put out to tender , and that NCB's founder and then Chairperson was Dermot Desmond who , at the time , also acted as an 'Adviser' on economic and financial matters to Charles Haughey .
Coincidence , of course : as such , we would like to apologise for our misleading 'potential/possible/probable...' comment of earlier on . This blog will , hopefully, publish as usual on Monday October 9 - we are heading off now on our flying pigs for a little break.......

Friday, October 06, 2006

LOTTERIES AND OTHER HOLD-UPS .......
From 'New Hibernia' magazine , April 1987.

" Charity? " said Aunt Molly , " is that what you call it ? You're so naive . It's big , big business . Selling Sweep tickets is easier than robbin' banks , and you can't be arrested for it . Except in England ! Less than thirty per cent of what the Hospital Trust makes goes to the hospitals and less than half of what's left is paid to the prizewinners . As for the ordinary staff ? God help them , but a tinker would make more selling lucky white heather in Merrion Square ! And ya say 'Well , I always thought that they were doing all that for charity' ? Aye , that'll be the day ! And Joe McGrath is getting his racehorses on credit ! "

By the time I was a nipper the three biggest men in finance were Joe McGrath , Jack O' Sheehan and Eamonn Duggan . Archie Doyle , even worse at ' the business of business ' than Uncle Jack , was still robbing banks for the IRA well into the 1940's .

I don't go in for anniversaries , but I thought that with the winding up of the Irish Hospital Sweepstakes it would be as well to remember it affectionately , for it meant a great deal to some folk.......
(MORE LATER).

PASSPORTS , PLEASE....... !
The latest passports for investment revelations involve a controversial £10,000 donation to Fianna Fail by US investor Gerry Lindzon .
There are grounds for suspicion that much of the money that changed hands in other deals was never intended for investment in the business but rather a 'facility fee' which accrued to the company for allowing its name to be used .
By Daire O' Brien .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1999 .

The 'consultant' claims that his job was to find the 'right' businesses to liaise with the US investors ; he claims that he had no direct dealings with politicians as this was done by the middleman , who is from North County Dublin . According to the 'consultant' , the 'discounted' sum was never "...represented as an investment.." to those looking for a passport .

Although the source successfully completed a number of deals which saw US investors receive Irish passports in return for injecting cash into small Irish manufacturing firms , he claims that the investments in these cases were real . The problem is that we don't know how many of the investments made in the 1990's were fictional - there is a strong circumstantial case building up that at least some of the passports were issued on the basis of false financial information .

While any political administration can hide behind the need to protect 'investor confidentiality' , surely a cost-benefit analysis of the scheme should be available ? How do we know that the money that was lodged in Ireland was ever actually invested in the business stated.......?
(MORE LATER).

THE YOUNGER BREED : TONY GREGORY .......
From 'The Phoenix' magazine , February 1985 .

By the time the Nicky Kelly campaign was drawing to a close , the Concerned Parents Against Drugs (CPAD) were mounting their battle against pushers : although it began on the southside of Dublin , the CPAD soon spread to the northside and Tony Gregory began backing it when other politicians were more cautious .

The drugs campaign posed a number of problems for Tony Gregory and his supporters - some of his activists had doubts about Sinn Fein involvement , but the drugs epidemic is a major issue for Dublin's inner-city and if Sinn Fein members play a dominant role in the campaign , Gregory does not seem to mind .

But Sinn Fein's emergence in Dublin at a political level may yet pose difficulties for the 37-year-old Gregory : when Fianna Fail's George Colley died , Tony Gregory and his strategists considered running Mick Rafferty in the by-election , but eventually reckoned such a move would not pay off . This left the field open for Sinn Fein.......
(MORE LATER).

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Bertie Ahern , Peter Hain and Tony Blair - three failures , as expected.......

......."failures" because all three shared the sentiments as expressed by one or other of them in relation to the 12th report of the British and Free State established (and financed) 'Independent Monitoring Commission' which , once again , cheered-on and congratulated the Provisional's for selling out in such an upfront manner . Between them , the three stooges spoke about the report as a "...unique opportunity (which)....opens the door for a final resolution of the conflict.." , and other such nonsense in a similar vein . However , a lazy media will continue to propagate bullshit like that because it will be seen as 'trouble-making' to do otherwise : not only do the media ask the wrong people (career politicians) the wrong questions , but they then push those wrong answers as gospel .
Instead of asking suited 'statesmen' and other well dressed thugs if the latest 'developments' will 'bring peace...' or '....end the conflict..' , the media , and others , should be looking for those answers by asking the more relevant question - 'When , and why , did it all start ?' . The conflict on this isle has being on-going , in one form or another , for more than eight centuries and will not be resolved by any puppet 'Commission' announcing that some of those who once opposed Westminster's 'writ' in Ireland are now prepared to work that 'writ' on behalf of Westminster . An end to this conflict will come when the British Administration remove their political and military presence from this isle , and denounce their jurisdictional 'claim' , and not before then . Our history teaches us that that is the only solution which will end this conflict , regardless of how many Irish turn-coats they purchase . Irish Republicans are in this for the long haul , even if it takes another 830-odd years . And to hell with your 'compromises' .......

LOTTERIES AND OTHER HOLD-UPS .......
From 'New Hibernia' magazine , April 1987.

" Yeh'll never believe what they're doing in there ! Honest to God ! " said the taxi driver , " The customers are lying on the floor , Archie Doyle has a gun on them . The staff are lying on the floor laughing ! Jack O' Sheehan is counting the money and Jack Corr is making out a receipt ! Sure the way they're going they won't have that bank robbed for weeks ! "

But that was Uncle Jack for ya ! One of the old sort who confused politics with principles and principles with ethics . Aunt Molly never let up . When the Hospitals' Trust started and the first directors were Joe McGrath and Jack O' Sheehan , Aunt Molly told my mother - " There they are , his ex-comrades , and them being paid more in a week than my fella gets in a year . Joe McGrath and Jack O' Sheehan ! Livin' like princes ! Riding out every morning so as to show the English that anything the old gentry could do , the new gentry can do better ! Sweet God , instead of backing horses , had my poor eejit only learned to ride wan ! "

Ma made excuses . It seemed that she always had to make excuses because Uncle Jack didn't think that Irish aspirations were there to be auctioned - bought and sold , as if every principle had a market value , and every prize a price . " Besides , " said my mother , " charity was never in his line ! " But Aunt Molly had another word for it - and 'charity' wasn't part of it .......
(MORE LATER).

PASSPORTS , PLEASE....... !
The latest passports for investment revelations involve a controversial £10,000 donation to Fianna Fail by US investor Gerry Lindzon .
There are grounds for suspicion that much of the money that changed hands in other deals was never intended for investment in the business but rather a 'facility fee' which accrued to the company for allowing its name to be used .
By Daire O' Brien .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1999 .

'Magill' magazine contacted the 'consultant' involved in the above 'passport deal' , who agreed to speak on the basis of anonymity : he detailed his relationship with a middleman who claimed to be on the political inside track - " At the time (1991) I was involved in organising commercial finance for small business . I was approached by a man who claimed that he had strong political contacts and could organise finance for small companies through the ('Passports For Investment') Scheme . "

The same source says that one of Ireland's largest accountancy and consultancy firms was instrumental in the introduction - " This man claimed he had a 'partner' with access to a panel of wealthy US clients who wished to secure Irish citizenship for tax reasons . He would provide the necessary political 'stance' for the deal to be approved . The proposal was sold to me on the basis that it involved 'discounting' - a nominal £1million investment would be 'discounted' to £250,000 ." The term 'discounting' was a euphemism for facilty fee .

Needless to say , officials in the State Department of Justice would not be told of this creative accounting and the offical documentation would show that £1 million had changed hands . As well as the 'discounted' sum which the investor would pay , the standard fee payable to the middleman was 3.5 % "...on both sides of the Atlantic....... "
(MORE LATER).

THE YOUNGER BREED : TONY GREGORY .......
From 'The Phoenix' magazine , February 1985 .

The people around Tony Gregory were all local activists , and while most shared common ground on local issues , some , especially Mike Rafferty , had fundamental differences with Gregory on the 'National Question' and related issues : Rafferty subscribes to the pro-loyalist 'two nations' theory which Gregory , as a republican , rejects . With the inner-city as their main plank , it is an issue which has never really threatened to split them .

Tony Gregory's unwillingness to row in behind the Anti-Amendment campaign was greeted by genuine dismay ; when he said he would first have to consult his constituents before deciding his stand , it seemed he was kicking to touch . Despite the criticisms and attacks , he maintained his position , or the lack of one.

On the other had , he threw his weight behind the Nicky Kelly campaign , which soon gathered momentum . Kelly was a member of the IRSP and Tony Gregory well remembered the days of the Sallins mail train round-ups . Indeed , civil liberties are a major issue for him , hence his entering the recent fray over the use of the Prevention of Terrorism Act against Dr. Maire O' Shea.......
(MORE LATER).

Monday, October 02, 2006

LOTTERIES AND OTHER HOLD-UPS .......
From 'New Hibernia' magazine , April 1987.

Anyway , while Uncle Jack and Jack O' Sheehan and Archie Doyle went to free the bank of its bread , Joe McGrath sat holding a forty-five on the taxi-driver . The others were in the place for what seemed like an age : Joe , despairing of ever seeing them again , was getting a bit edgy . The cabman was even more so , as he had a wedding to attend - " Christ !" says he , " it didn't take as long as that to get rid of the money changers! "

The taxi driver argued with McGrath that one of them should go to the bank and find out what the hell was delaying the robbers : Joe said that if he went the cabby would drive off and leave them where Jesus left those same money-changers , but the cabby asked Joe was he daft - when did he ever hear of a taxi-driver going without his fare ? " Funerals , ok " , said the driver , " nobody ever minded a delay , but folk are touchy about being late for their own weddings . It's all very well for ye people , who do this sort of thing for a cause , but I drive for a living . And I've a reputation to think of , do ya understand .... "

Eventually it was agreed that the driver should find out what was keeping Uncle Jack and the others , while Joe minded the store , so to speak . After a minute the driver returns and his eyes streaming with tears of laughter - " Yeh'll never believe what they're doing in there ! Honest to God ....... ! "
(MORE LATER).

PASSPORTS , PLEASE !
The latest passports for investment revelations involve a controversial £10,000 donation to Fianna Fail by US investor Gerry Lindzon .
There are grounds for suspicion that much of the money that changed hands in other deals was never intended for investment in the business but rather a 'facility fee' which accrued to the company for allowing its name to be used .
By Daire O' Brien .
First published in 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1999 .

In the early 1990's the owner of a small but successful Irish business was approached by somebody with a proposal . His visitor , a financial consultant with expertise in providing capital for small businesses , claimed that he had the power to deliver to the businessman a cash injection of approximately £250,000 . In return , the businessman would have to issue a share certificate for over £1 million in his business . On the surface , a poor deal - why give £4 worth of equity for every £1 ?

However , as with much pertaining to the Passports For Investment scheme , what you see is nothing like what you get : what actually would happen is that the investor , a US businessman , would be satisfied with a meaningless class of share which would have nothing but a 'peppercorn' value: the Irish business would , to official eyes , appear to be receiving over £1 million and a passport would be issued to the US citizen in return for his apparent munificence and faith in the then slumbering State economy !

The businessman was intrigued : he recalls - " The scheme was sold to me on the basis that the consultant would be able to deliver politically . The application would not be questioned . Obviously I didn't ask the consultant if money was going to be paid to a politician .... " The consultant worked for a well-known Dublin insurance broker which is still in existence as part of a larger group . As things transpired the deal never took place - it was sidelined by political changes and a new media interest in the Passports For Investments scheme provoked by the revelation that former (26 County) Taoiseach Albert Reynolds' family business , C&D Petfoods , had benefited from it.......
(MORE LATER).

THE YOUNGER BREED : TONY GREGORY .......
From 'The Phoenix' magazine , February 1985 .

When the counting was done , Tony Gregory found himself holding the cards of the next Government (ie State Administration) , and it wasn't long until those seeking a hand were calling to the Gregory HQ at Summerhill Parade : 'Sir' Garret Fitzgerald , Fine Gael , and Charlie Haughey , Fianna Fail , put their cards on the table but , as usual , Haughey took the gamble . Tony Gregory , his brother Noel , Fergus McCabe and Mike Rafferty played for high stakes : the multi-million pound 'Gregory Deal' : funds for the inner-city and a full house for Haughey ! This deal put Tony Gregory into the centre-stage of State politics and left him in a position to topple the State government if the need arose .

But that need didn't arise - for those blissful eight months , Tony Gregory only had to lift the telephone , say the word and pronto ! The job was done ! He had the power . When luck finally ran Garret Fitzgerald's way , Tony Gregory's chips were called in . But still some aspects of the Gregory Deal survived ; the much-needed new housing for the inner-city was already underway .

Gregory came home comfortably in the last election and settled down as an independent Leinster House member . Hardened by his years in Official Sinn Fein and later the IRSP , he knew his influence would be limited . He left Official Sinn Fein when Seamus Costello formed the IRSP , as he admired Costello , but soon became disillusioned with politics within the IRSP . In the mid 1970's he began to build a community base in inner-city Dublin , which led to his election as a councillor in 1979.......
(MORE LATER).

Sunday, October 01, 2006

Bertie 'The Borrower' Ahern : the man who co-signed most of the 1,615 cheques drawn on the Fianna Fail 'Leaders Allowance' account from 1984 to 1992 - 'The Haughey Years' !
Our Bertie said he had no recollection of a cheque for £25,000 made out to cash and signed by him and Charlie Haughey on 16 June 1989 , the day after the State-wide election : that cheque was discovered in an account linked to Charles Haughey !
Only another 1,614 to go ....

...........meanwhile , as Bertie sifts through the cheque-books , the rest of us can dwell over his fine words in response to the publication of the McCracken Tribunal findings - " We owe it to the least fortunate of our citizens to ensure that public decisions affecting everyone's welfare are taken only on the grounds of equity and the public good , and to ensure that possession of wealth can never purchase private political favours . "
But what's a man to do - the rest of us are not allowed to "purchase political favours" (even if we had a mind to and could afford to do so in the first place!) and asking for them is , apparently , shag-all use as well : following one of his 'conferences' with that other global Statesman , Tony Blair , hapless Bertie was asked if he had raised the issue of British intelligence activities in the Six Counties with Tony Blair ; Blustering Bertie replied - " I have raised with members of the British government , including the British prime minister , many times , MI5 and MI6 . I say , with the greatest of respect , I am usually less wise after I have asked the questions than before ." (Source- 'The Sunday Business Post' newspaper , May 18 , 2003)
Indeed , Bertie . And it suits you to stay like that .

In her book 'Politicians And Other Animals' , Olivia O'Leary recalled how Bertie Ahern explained his Code of Ethics' in a Leinster House reply to Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny -
" Deputy Kenny , you and I are around a long time . The code of ethics here is that people get in here , and try to stay in here!"
A 'Code Of Ethics' to please any bank manager . We best leave Bertie alone for now ; he has a shit-load of cheques to sort through.......

Fianna Fail : pictured as they are now , and have been for most of their existence - a political mafia .....
..... but , at one stage , some of their confused members still considered themselves somewhat 'republican' :
On the 16th of February in 1954 (a Tuesday , if memory serves...) , British Lieutenant-General 'Sir' John Woodall was 'entertained' in the Curragh Free State Army Barracks by the Free State Administration - 'Sir' Woodall was given a grand tour of various Free State Army barracks , and was dressed in full British Army regalia as he was followed around by State lackys . He was driven on his 'tour' in a British Army staff car .
Fianna Fail were in power at the time , and the 'Roger Casement Cumann' of that party , based in Kimmage , in Dublin , resigned because of Woodall's visit : in a statement , that Fianna Fail Cumann stated - " The invitation to and entertainment of General Woodall , Chief of the British military forces occupying portion of our national territory , by the Fianna Fail leadership , left us no option but to resign from the Fianna Fail organisation . "
'Sir' Woodall was the then General Officer Commanding the British Army of Occupation at its HQ at Thiepval Barracks , Lisburn , County Antrim .
The issue of "...British military forces occupying portion of our national territory.. " is a taboo issue as far as the political careerists in Leinster House are concerned - it may very well be revived from the back-burner and dusted off now and again but overall it is an embarrassing issue for them , as it reminds them of a time when those that went before them at least put some type of a weak-hearted effort into occasionally reminding those listening that this isle is not completely free of British interference .
That message still goes out today , but not from those in Leinster House . Those sleezebags are soley concerned with enriching themselves financially and will happily , and just as quickly , fleece each other as well as the taxpayer . Their moral compass is buried in their bankbook . They will , no doubt , die rich and comfortable . And , we hope , roaring.......

Friday, September 29, 2006

Newstalk State-wide Radio , 106-108FM.
It began as a Dublin-only talk radio station in 2002 , and has , from today (Friday 29 Setember 2006) commenced broadcasting to the 26 Counties .
Its transmission may 'leak' into the Six Counties ,but it apparently has no licence to broadcast to that part of this island . The operators of this blog were avid listeners from day one but we hardly ever tune in now . The reason ? A few months ago ,the powers that be in Newstalk management decreed that its '086' text number was to be replaced with a '53***' number , at a charge of 30 cent to the texter - a charge payable whether your text is read out or not , although that , to us , is not the point . The listeners were not asked their opinion on an issue which was going to effect them financially - the change was simply implemented overnight .

John from this parish (who incidentally had been invited into the Newstalk studios on two occasions to discuss political developments , and accepted the invites on both occasions) sent an e-mail of complaint to the station management and its presenters within hours of its 'text charge' policy change-over, and same was read on air by Eamonn Dunphy and Sean Moncrieff : Dunphy agreed with the sentiments expressed while Moncrieff sneered at those sentiments and attempted to make light of the issue . Perhaps Mr. Moncrieff can afford 30 cent a text , but not everyone can .

Today , Newstalk Radio 'unveiled' some new slogans - " Your Opinions , Your Call " , " Radio By The People , For The People " , " Interactive Radio - Your Call" and other such like , in a similar vein . Against his better judgement , John sent in two texts (one to Orla Barry and the other to Brenda Power) asking will there be any change regarding the 30 cent text charge in order to attempt to encourage potential new listeners to "interact" with the 'new' station . Neither text was read out , nor did John receive a reply from anyone at Newstalk in connection with his query . Our little boycott continues , only now it has the chance to become a 'bigger' boycott .

LOTTERIES AND OTHER HOLD-UPS .......
From 'New Hibernia' magazine , April 1987.

The bank robbing was a bone of contention with all the relations : going out with the late Joe McGrath and Jack O' Sheehan to collect donations at the point of a revolver , and leaving some bank manager with a receipt signed by either de Valera or Michael Collins on behalf of the Irish Republic - ' When the country takes her place amongst the nations of the earth , then , and not till then , will you get your money...'

Jack could rob a bank as well as McGrath or O' Sheehan , but he didn't have the same head for business : Aunt Molly used to rock with laughter to recall the time four of them , McGrath , O' Sheehan , Archie Doyle and Uncle Jack , rolled up to rob a money shop in Dame Street in Dublin . Jack had been told to 'commander' a car , and the only one in Westmoreland Street that day was owned by a chap who said he would get the sack if the IRA took his motor .

" Well , " says Aunt Molly , " yeh know the soft touch yer uncle was . Good for any ould sob story . Lets yer man get away , so as he wouldn't lose his job , do ya understand ? In those days automobiles in Dublin were as rare as Christians in Belfast . What does he do ? Yer Uncle Jack ? What does he do ? He orders a cab ! Joe McGrath was fit to be tied . Couldn't believe it . Nobody in the history of the trade had ever hired a taxi to rob a bank . McGrath told yer Uncle Jack that he should have shot the other fella , that it would serve him right for not donating the loan of his car to the Cause . Joe always thought that people who didn't want to be free would be better off dead . "

And God knows , patriots haven't changed a great deal.......
(MORE LATER).

THE HEAVY HAND OF THE LAW .......
Allegations of Garda brutality only hit the headlines intermittently . But the problem may be much more widespread than most people imagine . Last year out-of-court settlements of cases involving members of the Garda cost the taxpayer over €1 million . What's going on ?
From 'MAGILL' magazine , April 2003 .
By Mairead Carey.

Robbie Dawson (25) was brought to a room in Buswell's Hotel to be examined by a doctor : " A doctor took drawings of the bruises on my leg . They went from my knee to my hip . He wasn't impressed , let me tell you , " said Robbie . The report from the CPT was sent to Leinster House in December - they have been asked to respond to it within six months . Whether it is ever published is entirely within the discretion of Leinster House .

Michael McDowell says he has had "...a quick look.." at the report . " A number of things struck me , but I am not going to comment on them at this stage , " he says . He expects to bring the report to (the Free State) Cabinet between Easter and the summer recess . " The number of claims for damages against the Garda is not an insignificant problem by any means . It is pointless denying that there have been assaults . Gardai in executing the law have to act within it , that is a fundamental proposition . If you can't accept that you should not be in the force at all . "

Fr. Peter McVerry doesn't think "...that every garda is bashing up suspects in stations . But where it does happen , it's not seen as significant . Sadly , there is a culture of silence in the force . Other gardai are not going to rat on their fellow officers . May Day showed that there is a strong sense that the garda no longer see themselves as accountable . "

Grainne Walsh (scroll to Comment #18) feels "...braver.." for the action she took against the gardai - " I always remember when I was at school there was a guy in the class who was bullied . I never did anything about it . I was too scared myself . It is something I will always regret . I can't just turn a blind eye anymore . "
[END of 'THE HEAVY HAND OF THE LAW']
(Next - 'PASSPORTS , PLEASE' : from 1999)

THE YOUNGER BREED : TONY GREGORY .
From 'The Phoenix' magazine , February 1985 .

The collapse of C.J. Haughey's Administration in November 1982 was about the worst thing that could have happened to Tony Gregory : barely eight months as a TD (sic - he was then , and remains to this day , a member of the Leinster House partitionist assembly) he was wielding more power than anyone would have believed possible before the election the previous February .

For several years , Gregory and a closely-knit team of inner-city activists had been cultivating a political base ; the issues were stark - massive social problems , compounded by official disinterest .

Back in November 1979 , a local community worker , Fergus McCabe , had been jailed following a housing protest in Gardiner Street , Dublin : at that time , street protests were about the only way of highlighting issues . But Tony Gregory's election in February 1982 changed all that - even if only for a while . He just about scraped in on the fifth count on transfers from Workers Party candidate Michael White , in the Dublin Central constituency.......
(MORE LATER).

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

LOTTERIES AND OTHER HOLD-UPS .......
From 'New Hibernia' magazine , April 1987.

My Aunt Molly would say about my Uncle Jack - " And there's a strange thing about that man - he never seemed to meet rich people who are good company . Maybe such folk don't exist , but if they do , you'd imagine that , surely , for once in a lifetime , your uncle might share a public house stool with somebody who owes less that himself. " But she was never really bitter about it .

Jack was Jack , and not for anything in the world would he ever be anybody else - except on Friday , after a few jars , when he was Rockefeller! Aunt Molly just thought that it might be nice if the working class didn't always have to mix with people poorer than themselves . It was alright for folk like the Good Samaritan or Antoine Ozanam who founded the Society of St. Vincent de Paul : they were rich to begin with , helping the poor was only a kind of slumming . And Uncle Jack's 'outlaws' , our rich relatives , didn't help a great deal . One or other was always stirring the muck .

As one of the 'outlaw' relatives was fond of saying , " Mark you my words , Molly Carr , that fella of yours has more principles than is decent in any man . A union official who does it for nothing ! A bank robber who does it for the Cause ! What sort of an eejit have ya married at all....... " The bank robbery ! Now theres a story.......
(MORE LATER).

Monday, September 25, 2006

Sir Pat 'The Cope' Gallagher , Free State Junior Minister of State for Transport , pictured in happier days !

This up-standing example of all that is good within the political elite in this State was born on the 10 March , 1948 , in Burtonport , County Donegal . He was educated in Roshine NS , in Dungloe , then travelled to Luinnagh NS in Gweedore , Donegal and almost finished his schooling in St. Enda's College , Galway before realising it would be unfair to deprive University College Galway of his vast knowledge , so he graced that institution with his presence for a few years !

He worked as a fish exporter before becoming the inheritor of the title 'The Cope' from his grandfather , a founder-figure of the co-op movement in County Donegal . At 15 years of age he joined with like-minded members of the local political elite by throwing his lot in with the local Fianna Fail gang , a move which brought him , today , to the county of Monaghan , to open a by-pass . His fame preceeded him so much that between eight and ten thousand well-wishers turned out to welcome him to the county , no doubt hoping to rub-up against the legend that is Pat 'The Cope' , and perhaps become members of the 'elite' themselves ! Indeed , even the very State car that this champion of the dispossessed travelled in was transformed by having the great mans bum in it into being something which the peasants desired to rub up against . However - there being such a large crowd of fans present , those at the back could not even get close enough to Sir Cope's carriage , never mind the man himself and , there being a severe shortage of laurel leaves to hand , decided to pay homage instead by throwing pebbles at the car , in a quaint display of servitude . Sir Pat then realised he was hungry and was immediately rushed to a near-by hotel for shel.... food .

And that , readers , is the gospel according to Saint Cope. Anyone who claims otherwise is a communist/dissident/malcontent/has a political axe to grind/begrudger/and/or a Blueshirt . And we know where you live......

LOTTERIES AND OTHER HOLD-UPS .
From 'New Hibernia' magazine , April 1987.

No , no regrets . Nor none belonging to me . No anniversaries . Ireland has had more than her fair share of the past . No expecting her to think of the future . Let her catch up with the present . Happenings , not dates , are important in life .

Whenever anybody asked Aunt Molly to buy a Sweepstakes ticket , she'd cluck her tongue and look reproachfully at Uncle Jack , or in his general direction . Mention some fella like the adenoidal compere , Bart Bastable , or tell a story about a winning ticket being flogged by Lucky Coady's , and me poor uncle's name was taken in vain . Lost mass , he did . Always lost mass . Uncle Jack must have lost more mass than Martin Luther!

Aunt Molly used to say - " Don't talk to me about your Uncle Jack ! He's as useful as a hole in a bucket . He'd take a sieve to a well . Like Larry McHale's dog he'd walk a step of the road with anyone . And he never meets anybody but beggars . If he went out with a gypsy he'd come back with a tinker . Never knew anybody but dossers and tramps . 'Molly' , he'd say to me , ' I was in a fella's company tonight and honest to God , how he's not on the stage ! Such gas ! You'd have paid to hear him . An honour to buy him a drink .' " And of course Uncle Jack did . Buy the drink , that is.......
(MORE LATER).

THE HEAVY HAND OF THE LAW .......
Allegations of Garda brutality only hit the headlines intermittently . But the problem may be much more widespread than most people imagine . Last year out-of-court settlements of cases involving members of the Garda cost the taxpayer over €1 million . What's going on ?
From 'MAGILL' magazine , April 2003 .
By Mairead Carey.

Dublin North-Central competes for its place at the top of the complaints league with Dublin South Central , which includes Pearse Street , Kevin Street and Donnybrook Garda Stations . Until this year (ie 2003) the Garda Complaints Board compiled statistics to show complaints per head of population . The two Dublin central divisions 'won' hands down ! In 2000 , Dublin North Central had 27.6 complaints per 10,000 people compared to 1.5 in Waterford/Kilkenny .

Less than one per cent of all complaints to the Garda Complaints Board , according to its last report , resulted in a criminal prosecution , although the figures will show an increase this year as a result of the May Day riots: seven gardai are facing charges as a result of clashes with protesters .

In 2001 , almost 200 complaints were passed on to the (State) Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) but because of delays in processing the complaints the vast majority were never acted upon . Summary prosecutions must commence within six months of the date of the offence . Even the Garda Complaints Board itself admits that increasingly it is failing to provide completed investigation files to the DPP within the time limit . In its latest report it acknowledged that "...in these circumstances the right of the DPP to consider whether a member of the Garda Siochana should be prosecuted arising from a complaint has effectively been removed . The situation cannot be regarded as satisfactory....... "
(MORE LATER).

THE STRANGE STATE KILLING OF MAURICE O'NEILL .......
James Gogartys Tribunal reminiscences about the shooting dead of a Garda colleague have resurrected a long-lost story of justice miscarried .
From 'MAGILL' magazine , March 1999 .
By ANTON McCABE .

Harry White dived through a window into the night and shot his way through a garda cordon : hit twice in the leg , he collapsed in a clump of whins half-a-mile from the house . For two cold October nights he lay wounded under the stars . (Free State) Soldiers scoured the area ; a sympathrtic soldier found him , fed him , got him to shelter and finally escorted him by bicycle to Dublin .

It was October 1946 before Harry White was finally captured on a lonely mountain farm on the Derry side of the Sperrins . Four days later , he was 'released' from Crumlin Road Jail , bundled into an RUC car and driven to a bridge on the Armagh-Monaghan road : a Garda car stopped on the other side , and he was bundled across the border without the slightest pretence of judicial process .

Six weeks later , at the Special Criminal Court in Dublin , he was sentenced to death . Sean McBride was defence counsel . Under cross-examination , a detective admitted he and his companions had fired on three men in the passageway . Of thirty to forty bullets fired in the lane , only two were ever produced - neither of those was the bullet that killed State Detective Mordaunt . Instead , a pathologist claimed that the hole in Mordaunt's skull was too small to have been made by a shot from any of the Gardai's .45 revolvers , despite the fact there was evidence some had weapons of smaller calibre . Evidence was produced that Garda fire had hit targets well away from the lane.......
(MORE LATER).

Sunday, September 24, 2006

US Marines at Shannon Airport .

In a continuation of the policy in which they hang their back-bones up with their coats in the morning , our 'leaders' in Leinster House profess ignorance of there being anything amiss in facilitating , on Irish soil (Shannon Airport), a foreign army on its way to use force of arms in a resource war in a country it has no business in .

In 1935 , when Shannon Airport was being built , the British government made what was then a secret offer of a £50,000 'gift' (said to be worth about £3 Million in 1994 , when this story was published in 'The Evening Press' newspaper) towards the capital cost of £600,000 , but the offer was refused on advice from senior State civil servants , who advised that the 'gift' was for political reasons. The fact that the 'offer' got that far through the system speaks volumes .

Will future generations be reading of a similar 'offer' from Washington to those worthless , non-productive leeches in Leinster House ?