1169 And Counting.....

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

AN EXPERIMENT IN JAMES STREET : THE DEATH OF NIALL RUSH.......
From 'MAGILL' magazine , September 1984.
By Derek Dunne.

It is thus clear that the Board cannot force the pharmaceutical industry, or the individual testing centres, to submit their proposed trials for scrutiny. The Board estimates that 20% of all trials take place without their being informed but , since the death of Niall Rush , there has been an increase in submissions from testing centres to the Board.

One of the constraints on the Institute is the 'Ethics Committee' , which decides whether or not it is ethically correct to go ahead with a test in a proposed way. This Committee meets about once a month , sometimes twice a month, and pass about two to four protocols each time. Sometimes they turn back a test for alteration or modification and , invariably, the drug company involved will agree to the modifications.

If they don't agree , the Institute just would not do the job for them. The reasons why a protocol might be sent back can vary - the Committee might feel that too many blood samples were being taken , too many injections , the size of the dosage might be considered too large , or too frequent , or they might recommend that 'subjects' be kept for an extra day after their last dosage.......
(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.

" When Deputy Haughey was appointed Parliamentary Secretary he immediately sought blocks of work which he could process and bring to conclusions without having to refer to the Minister as his 'Overlord' , but the Minister was reluctant to let go and I was caught in the cross-fire. At the time and in the preceeding three years I ranked as 'Assistant Secretary' but had to carry the load for the Secretary who had long bouts of ill-health. The Secretary retired prematurely in February 1961 and died within three months.

Throughout 1961 , the Minister expressed uneasiness about his working arrangements with the Parliamentary Secretary whom he felt was undermining him both in his constituency and in the Parliamentary Party. In July 1961 , the Minister told me that it was not his intention to seek re-election , that there would be a general election towards the end of the year and he asked me to ensure that the memorial plot in honour of Kevin Barry , Frank Flood and other patriots who had been executed * in Mountjoy Prison would be ready for unveiling before his retirement. ( * '1169...' Comment : within months of those executions by the British , Fianna Fail , the hypocrites that they were (and are) themselves began the process of executing 77 men like Kevin Barry and Frank Flood.)

The general election was held in September , the memorial plot was unveiled by the President in the presence of political notabilities which included the Taoiseach , the Minister for Justice and the Lord Mayor of Dublin , Alderman Bob Briscoe, on Sunday 8th October and three days later , on the 11th October , the Dail reassembled and Deputy Haughey was appointed Minister for Justice , and held that position until 8th October 1964 when he was appointed Minister for Agriculture within an hour of the resignation of Mr Paddy Smith ....... "
(MORE LATER).

NO NEED FOR THE TEARS.....

..... WE'LL BE BACK ON CHRISTMAS DAY OR THE DAY AFTER!

NOLLAIG SHONA DAR LEITHEOIRI !
UP THE REPUBLIC - OUR DAY WILL COME !
NOLLAIG SHONA DAR LEITHEOIRI !

Ar eagle an dearmaid ….

Ba bhrea an rud e siocháin bhuan bunaithe ar an gceart a bheith againn in Éireann . Is i an bronntanas is fearr a d’fheadfaimis a thabhairt duinn fein agus dar gclann .

Coinniodh an ceart agus an tsiocháin uainn le breis agus ocht gcead bliain , de bharr ionradh , forghabhail agus miriaradh na Sasanach. Socrú ar bith a dheantar in ainm mhuintir na hÉireann agus a ghlacann le riail Shasana agus a dhaingnionn an chriochdheighilt , ni thig leis an ceart na an tsiocháin bhuann a bhunu .

Ni dheanfaidh se ach la na siochána buaine a chur ar an mhear fhada agus an bhunfhadb a thabhairt do ghluin eile . Tharla se seo cheana nuair a siniodh Conradh 1921 agus cuireadh siar ar mhuintir na hÉireann e in ainm na siochána . Is mór ag Sinn Féin Poblachtach Éire a bheith saor agus daonlathach , an cuspoir ceanna a bhi i gceist ag Wolfe Tone agus ag na Poblachtaigh uile anuas go dti 1916 agus an la ata inniu ann .

Rinne a lan fear agus ban croga iobairti mora , thug a mbeatha fiu , ar son na cuise uaisle seo .

CEART . SAOIRSE. DAONLATHAS .

—————–

A PEACEFUL CHRISTMAS TO OUR READERS !

Least we forget ….

A just and permanent peace in Ireland is most desirable . It is the greatest gift we could give to ourselves and our children . We have been denied justice and peace for more than eight centuries , because of English invasion , occupation and misrule of our country .

Any arrangement which , in the name of the Irish people , accepts English rule and copperfastens the Border , will not bring justice and lasting peace . It will only postpone the day of permanent peace , handing over the basic problem to another generation .

This happened before when the Treaty of 1921 was signed and was forced on the Irish people in the name of peace . Republican Sinn Féin cherishes the objective of a free , democratic Ireland , as envisaged by Wolfe Tone and all Republicans down to 1916 and our own day . Many brave men and women sacrificed a lot , even their lives , for this noble Cause .

JUSTICE . FREEDOM . DEMOCRACY .
(From the ‘1169…’ Crew , December 2010. PLEASE NOTE : we are on a short break from normal posting , although we will post details of how the CABHAIR swim went and possibly a few other posts. We will return to ‘normal’ early in the New Year. Go raibh maith agat! Sharon.)

Sunday, December 12, 2010

NUMBERS THAT WILL MAKE YOU MONEY - AND NUMBERS THAT COST YOU MONEY....

GOOD NUMBERS....
We were present today in a hotel on the Dublin/Kildare border for the 'Monthly Raffle' , for which , as usual, over 600 tickets had been sold , with all profits going directly to the CABHAIR organisation.. The venue we were in was also hosting a golf club presentation and a local GAA Club 'Award Ceremony' , both of which would have been 'good for business' had there been any CABHAIR tickets left to be sold - but there wasn't ! Two of the CABHAIR Raffle organisers , Matt and Robbie , told me that they could have sold an extra fifty tickets 'in house' , had they got them to sell ! Victims of your own success , lads ;-) !
Anyway : congrats to the eight winners - Cathy , with ticket number 140 , Danielle (284) , Jay (579) , JQ (540) , Cóilín (444) , Paul (who won twice - 66 and 65!) and Gary (340). A nice wee bit of extra cash for Christmas but before ye think of spending it all on yourselves just be aware that we have notified all your partners.....!
Thanks to Matt and Robbie , Anto , Trev , Pat , Lucy , Maire and Breda for making us feel at home (and for the few pints!) and the next raffle will be held in the same venue on Sunday 9th January 2011 - and more than 400 tickets for same have already been distributed!

.....AND BAD NUMBERS -
This is the list that has been distributed to certain trade union members , by a trade union , with a request that the people named be lobbied in connection with the minimum wage cut and other such cutbacks. Mind you , it is also possible , of course , to ring them and wish them a 'Happy Christmas' , or whatever, if you want to :
Alan Kelly MEP - 087 6792859
Barry Andrews - 086 8361396
Batt O'Keeffe - 087 2508242
Billy Kelleher - 087 2580521
Brendan Howlin - 087 2314671
Brendan Smith - 087 9109452
Brian Lenihan - 086 2757358
Brian O'Shea - 087 2943292
Christy O'Sullivan - 086 8565582
Ciaran Cuffe - 087 2652075
Ciaran Lynch - 086 6033923/086 8562600
Conor Lenihan - 086 8145092
Dan Neville - 086 2435536
Dara Calleary - 086 2238810
Darragh O'Brien - 086 2519893
Deirdre Clune - 087 2447027
Dermot Ahern - 087 7788832
Dick Roche TD - 087 9978110
Dr James Reilly - 087 1200889
Eamon Gilmore - 087 2200495
Eamon O'Cuiv - 087 7711161/087 1251000
Eamon Ryan - 086 3886529
Eamon Scanlon - 087 6803660
Emmet Stagg - 087 6728555
Finian McGrath - 087 6738041
Jack Wall - 087 2570275
Jan O'Sullivan - 087 2430299
Jim O'Keeffe - 087 2591694
Joan Burton - 087 2369485
Joanna Tuffy - 087 6339077
Joe Costello - 087 2450777
John Browne - 087 2469234
John Cregan - 087 2679453
John Curran - 087 2501980
John Gormley - 087 2756135
John Maloney - 087 7563884
John McGuinness - 087 2855834
Kathleen Lynch - 087 2502035
Liz McManus - 087 2357369
Martin Ferris - 087 6380301
Martin Mansergh - 086 2239022
Mary Coughlan - 086 8330202
Mary Hanafin - 087 2855857
Mary Harney - 087 9417779
Mary Upton - 087 2456968
Mary White - 087 2707189
Michael Creed - 087 2424631
Michael D Higgins - 087 2774109
Michael Finneran - 087 2535993
Michael Kennedy - 087 2432995
Michael McGrath - 086 8393304
Michael Moynihan - 087 2745810
Micheal Martin - 087 2423322
Nessa Childers MEP - 087 2396396
Niall Collins - 087 2749659
Noel Dempsey - 087 6275888
Pat Carey - 087 2574393
Pat Rabbitte - 086 8178773
Peter Power - 087 2535993
Prionsias De Rossa - 087 2544644
Roisin Shortall - 087 2333580
Ruairi Quinn - 087 2621946
Sean Connick - 087 2564576
Sean Haughey - 087 9874676
Sean Sherlock - 087 7402057
Seantor Brendan Ryan - 086 8216176
Sen. Alex White - 087 2208533
Sen. Dominic Hannigan - 087 6418960
Sen. Ivana Bacik - 086 8133751
Sen. Michael McCarthy - 087 6481004
Sen. Phil Prendergast - 086 8555472
Senator Lisa McDonald - 087 9184034
Simon Coveney - 087 8321755
Tom Hayes - 087 8105016
Tom Kitt - 087 2431074
Tom McEllistrim - 086 1733487
Tom Sheahan - 087 2021661
Tommy Broughan - 087 2880777
Tony Killeen - 087 2525304
Trevor Sargent - 01 8900360
Willie O'Dea - 087 9193666
Willie Penrose - 087 8241933.

Tell them Sharon sent you....!
Thanks,
Sharon.

Wednesday, December 08, 2010

AN EXPERIMENT IN JAMES STREET : THE DEATH OF NIALL RUSH.......
From 'MAGILL' magazine , September 1984.
By Derek Dunne.

Dr Walker expressed the belief that there should be some way of checking up on people who were outside the ICP and due back in for another administration of a drug. He wished Joe Claffey all the best , told him that he's been a satisfactory volunteer , that they'd never had any reason to complain about his performance. Joe said he might come back if the money was increased - 83p an hour is not great for the sort of work involved. He turned the tape-recorder off when he got back to the car and , this time, he had pushed the button the right way!

For the past twenty years , clinical trials have been taking place in Ireland : responsibility for this area comes under the ambit of the State Minister and the State Department of Health however , specifically in relation to clinical trials, the 'National (sic) Drugs Advisory Board' acts on behalf of that State Department and on behalf of that State Minister. But that Board does not necessarily approve each trial that takes place and it is not necessary for the ICP to supply details of tests to the Board for approval. In the 'Guidelines' for the Board , set down in 1979, it states in relation to clinical trials -

"The two main objects of the Board's concern are :

(1) That no drug be made available for use until the Board is satisfied that it has passed reasonable tests for safety .
(2) That no drug continues in use if there is reasonable doubt of its safety.

In carrying out its tasks the Board is concerned to avoid providing a hindrance to the development , clinical trial and marketing of new drugs of acceptable toxicity."
(MORE LATER).

AMERICAN SUPPORT FOR CABHAIR.

Irish Republicans in America are , once again (for the 34th successive December!) rallying to the assistance of the CABHAIR organisation , and have issued the following statement :

"Annual Cabhair Christmas Swim Appeal -
Many thanks to everyone who over the past year has contributed to the Annual Cabhair Christmas Swim. The Irish Republican Political Prisoners held on both sides of England’s border in Ireland greatly appreciate your support and the help you have consistently given to their families.
This 34th CABHAIR Christmas Swim will be held on Christmas morning at the Grand Canal in Inchicore, Dublin. Over the last number of years, here in the U.S, we have had great success in sponsoring those brave souls who take the chilly morning plunge in support of the prisoners’ families.
This year we hope to have even more support for this worthy cause. The number of Irish Republican Political Prisoners being held in English and Irish jails, for their belief in a 32-county Irish Republic, is growing. Political prisoners and their families need our help.
The holiday season is fast approaching, and many more families will benefit from your donation of any amount. Your generosity means something truly special to them, especially in days such as these. If you have been meaning to donate and have not gotten around to it, this is the time to do so. Your support will raise the spirits of a family on the front line for Ireland's quest for freedom and unity.

Donations of $50 or more will receive a gift box of 10 finely crafted Éire Nua Christmas Cards designed in Gaeilge and English by Brian Mór Ó Baoighill.

Please note that all proceeds raised specifically for CABHAIR by the NIFC are sent directly to CABHAIR. Checks to be made payable to the National Irish Freedom Committee and mailed to:

P.O. Box 770549, Woodside, New York 11377.

If you prefer, you can send your donation directly to CABHAIR, 223 Parnell St., Dublin 1, Ireland."

CABHAIR swimmers - earning their 'keep' !

Regardless of where in the world you are reading this, we ask that you spread the word about this event to any media contacts you have and, if possible - send a few of these to either of the addresses mentioned above!
Thanks,
Sharon.

Thursday, December 02, 2010

AN EXPERIMENT IN JAMES STREET : THE DEATH OF NIALL RUSH.......
From 'MAGILL' magazine , September 1984.
By Derek Dunne.

There were 3 friends in a car waiting outside the ICP for Joe. They rewound the tape , but there was nothing but static on it - Joe had pushed the button the wrong way. He psyched himself up once again , and went back in. Dr Brick and Dr Darragh weren't around , but Dr Walker was. Under questioning , Dr Walker admitted that there were some good points being made , and said that he would take up the issue of examination of patients who were returning for the second part of a test, with the people in the ICP. He expressed a worry that volunteers might be having treatment from another doctor , which they would not disclose for fear of being refused for a course.

He talked for a while about the difficulty of getting the truth out of would-be patients about their medical history and so forth , stating - "But how do we get the truth out of them? You know? We're not policemen. We're not here to beat people up. We're not..." , to which Joe replied "That's right, yeah..." , and Dr Walker continued - ".....and I try to be as sympathetic as possible to anybdy who comes in here because I know that....that the money end of it.....and that's why I keep away from the money end of it , that I don't get involved at all. If a fellow is fit at all I would recommend him for admission , but if somebody has a past history of illness of any sort, or a psychiatric admission to hospital, how the hell am I going to get that info out of them if they deny it..."

When Dr Walker was pushed on the issue of testing for specific drugs that present in the bloodstream of a patient, he replied that the usual drugs had been looked for , the ones that could be bought on the street - cocaine , heroine , morphine etc but, in coming in for the second part of a test, he admitted that the patients "....could be on anything..........".
(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.

" Charles Haughey (and here) became Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Justice in the following circumstances : In 1960 the Minister , Mr Oscar Traynor, piloted two Bills through the Dail and Seanad and early on it became apparent that he was in difficulties with the omnibus 'Intoxicating Liquor Act', partly because of deafness of which he was secretive and sensitive , and partly because of the complexity and conflicting nature of the measure. On that account, the Taoiseach , Mr Lemass, directed that Mr O Morain , Minister for Lands at the time , sit in with him.

Again he was in some difficulties with the 'Criminal Justice (Amendment) Bill' which opened the way for new developments in penal reform : for instance, it enabled the implementation of the 'parole' system and the 'sleep-in-work-out' system for which Mr Haughey was to be given credit for initiating. In the aftermath , Minister Traynor informed me that the Taoiseach had offered him the assistance of a Parliamentary Secretary and he asked me to draw up a panel of Dail Deputies whom I considered would be suitable. After consultation with my senior officers I submitted the names of Deputy Seán Flanagan (later Minister for Health) , Deputy Michael Carty (later Parliamentary Secretary) , Deputy Honor Crowley and one other which I now forget.

Later, Minister Traynor told me that Deputy Flanagan had been offered the post and had refused , that the Taoiseach did not consider the other Deputies ripe for appointment to the Department of Justice and , instead, had put forward the name of Deputy Charles Haughey , his own son-in-law , who was a Dail representative in Mr Traynor's constituency and for whom Mr Traynor had a decided aversion........"
(MORE LATER).

MARY BYRNE-THE NEW VERA LYNN,'FORCES SWEETHEART'?

From 'The Clondalkin Echo' newspaper , 25th November 2010 , page 7 : 'X Factors singer Mary Byrne has revealed that meeting injured British soldiers was one of the most inspirational moments of the show. Mary Byrne......told 'The Echo' that although she had met her idols Tom Jones and Robbie Williams , nothing compared to those young injured soldiers : "We went to see the heros from Afghanistan and I met a young guy who was 20 years old and had no legs but his spirit is just electric . They embraced us and I must have kissed about 70 million of them that evening - that has been the highlight for me." '

Mary Byrne - the new Vera Lynn ?

This woman is either politically clueless or she is prepared to do or say anything to advance her singing 'career' : either way , she has publicly disgraced herself by associating with those British thugs and has , by her foolish actions in relation to voicing support for terrorism, actually politicised a large number of people in the Clondalkin and Ballyfermot areas of Dublin and, we hope , further afield. Those who, up to now, had considered her escapades as 'harmless fun' etc are now looking at her in a different light.

And win , loose or draw in the competition she is in , some people will no longer view her simply as an 'aspiring/successful singer' - she has tainted herself as a politically ignorant airhead and/or a scheming , calculating wannabe 'Diva' , prepared to go to any lengths to gain fame and fortune. Just another disappointing stage act , with no moral safety net.
What a shame ; good voice , pity about the politics.
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

Wednesday, December 01, 2010

14 PHOTOGRAPHS FROM RECENT EVENTS : 2 FROM THE 'FRANK DRIVER COMMEMORATION' IN KILDARE (SUN 21ST NOV 2010) / 2 FROM THE 'KEVIN BARRY COMMEMORATION' IN CARLOW (SUN 21ST NOV 2010)/ 10 FROM THE ICTU PROTEST IN DUBLIN ON SATURDAY 27TH NOV 2010 (thanks to Joe H for same!) -

Thanks for the visit!
Sharon.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

ICTU PROTEST MARCH , DUBLIN , SATURDAY 27TH NOVEMBER 2010 - BRIEF REPORT AND PICS.

"Brits Out , IMF Out!"

Republican Sinn Féin had two different 'teams' out in Dublin yesterday , Saturday 27th November 2010 , at the ICTU-organised protest march in Dublin : one 'team' assembled at 10.45am on the traffic isle facing the GPO , while the second one assembled at 11.15am at Wood Quay , the main assembly point. Incidentally , members of both RSF 'teams' were present on the 'secondary' march , which made its way to Leinster House after the main event to continue the protest and was bullied , en route and once there, by uniformed 'guardians of the State' , as expected.

Our estimate as to the numbers present - and we are 'old hands' at street demos! - is between 100,000 and 150,000 people : at one stage , protestors , banners and placards could be seen to have secured all available space between O'Connell Bridge and the old Ambassador Cinema , with the main concentration gathered around the GPO area and, in our opinion, even more would have turned-out had it not been for the heavy snow and ice that we woke-up to here that morning. The mood was one of anger , and not only at the politicians and bankers etc that have thieved from the State purse and bankrupted this State , but also at some trade union leaders - Jack O'Connor and David Begg were , once again, poorly received by the crowd and, at points throughout their speeches, they could not be heard, such was the level of 'cat-calls' for them to stand down. In contrast , singers Christy Moore and Francis Black were well-received, as was the pensioner and the now-unemployed apprentice plumber who was let go just before his time was up.

For its part , Republican Sinn Féin distributed 2,000 leaflets (including '90th Celebrations' leaflets and 'CABHAIR SWIM' leaflets) and sold almost 100 copies of its newspaper , 'Saoirse'. As we have mentioned on our 'Sister Site' (linked to , below - with more protest pics on view, as well) protests like this are necessary and welcome but, on their own, are only a stop-gap 'solution' : it is not simply those that 'run' this State that need to be changed, but the very State itself , which must be re-organised and changed dramatically, on a 32 County basis, in favour of its citizens, rather than- as is the position now- in favour of its so-called 'elite'.
However : RSF more than held its own in Dublin City Centre yesterday, and was very well received by the crowds, and is to be congratulated for the two 'teams' it managed to put out there. We publish some pics from the protest, with a link to more of same at the bottom of this post :

A Dublin RSF member on the protest march - "Get Up , Stand Up...."

Some of the RSF members and supporters at the protest.

RSF 'Community Sector' placard.

Some of the 100,000-150,000 crowd.

Cowen the Reaper.

RSF 'Community Sector' headstone placard.

Well done to RSF and all the other organisations and individuals that were present at the protest and, hopefully, the ICTU will take comfort from the turn-out and take this issue to the next stage : an all-out strike , on a regular basis, with those on strike being bussed to the city centre of their nearest town to hold a sit-down protest. The support is definitey there , but the determination to do so is lacking on behalf of the trade union leadership . Shame on them.
As stated - more pics from this protest can be viewed on our 'Sister Site' , here (with thanks to TC, our camera person on the day!).
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

AN EXPERIMENT IN JAMES STREET : THE DEATH OF NIALL RUSH.......
From 'MAGILL' magazine , September 1984.
By Derek Dunne.

On the Saturday when Niall Rush was buried, Garret FitzGerald broke off from Ronald Reagan's visit in Galway to attend the funeral and Barry Desmond , the State Minister for Health and, therefore, the person ultimately responsible for clinical drugs trials , was also there. Hundreds turned up to the small church in Dalkey , Dublin.

The day before the funeral Joe Claffey was discharged from the White Cross unit at Stillorgan - he was a friend of Niall Rush's and had become clearly upset when he heard of the death on the previous Tuesday. A week later he went to the Institute of Clinical Pharmachology in James Street to collect his paycheque and undergo a post medical examination. When he got there he was told that Dr Brick would like to speak with him , so he waited around for about half an hour. But no sign of the doctor and no word on him appearing anytime soon , and it was suggested that he might come back the following morning.

Later on that night , Joe met some friends and told them about Dr Brick wanting to see him - they thought that the fact that he was a close friend of Niall's might have something to do with the doctor wanting to see him. His friends told him that , for a variety of reasons, it would be best to tape the interview. Sometime around ten the following morning , Joe went to the ICP , wearing a combat jacket in which he carried an old legal dictaphone in the left breast pocket and, as he came through the door of the building, he pushed the 'Record' button. He was alone in the room with Dr Brick for a while and shortly after that Dr Darragh and Dr Walker came in and began a friendly conversation. He was asked how he felt about Niall's death and about how they knew he was upset and how shocked they were as well.

At some point, they were asking him about whether or not he was aware if Niall used any other substances , that they had done a full spectrum test on Niall which had not revealed any suspicious substances. Niall's heavy smoking was discussed then and, after about twenty minutes , the discussion came to an end. As Joe stepped outside the door, he turned the dictaphone off.......
(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 Haughey told me that he had appointed 'X' and he then literally flung the file in disarray at me , and I walked out leaving the file strewn on the floor. Subsequently , the Commissioner told me that the appointment of Mr Haughey's man , 'Number 4' , was such an obvious ready-up that the clerks in Garda HQ had spread the word and that Haughey's name would stink throughout the garda force. I said that I hoped that he would spread the word that I was not a party to Mr Haughey's decision.

Mr Haughey had not come to an understanding yet, apparently, that the Secretary was an Office holder in his own right , appointed by Government under the Minister and Secretaries Act 1924 and that the Secretary should not be obliged to act as a rubber stamp for the Minister in official matters. It would make for chaos in administration and would not serve government or parliament if senior civil servants were not free to brief their Ministers and government according to conscience and their specialised knowledge and judgements.

There were occasions in the years to come where I and my colleagues were subjected to this kind of pressure but I always encouraged my colleagues by word and example to record their true arguments without in any way questioning the Minister's authority to make the final decisions . Even from the Cabinet , itself, we heard occasionally of particular views which would be advocated to the detriment or exclusion of alternatives. When the Devlin Commission of Enquiry into the functioning of the Public Service was set up in the mid sixties I gave oral and written evidence as to this form of mal-administration......."
(MORE LATER).

ICTU-ORGANISED PROTEST MARCH , DUBLIN , 27TH NOVEMBER 2010.

THE 'PEOPLE'S VOICE' NEWSPAPER , PRODUCED IN NOVEMBER 2010 BY THE ICTU , TO PROMOTE THE ICTU-ORGANISED 'ANTI-BUDGET/CUTBACKS' PROTEST MARCH , TO BE HELD IN DUBLIN ON SATURDAY 27TH NOVEMBER 2010.

As stated ,the authors of this blog will be taking part in this protest,with other supporters and members of Republican Sinn Féin and, as such, we have assisted JI and CE workers in parts of the Dublin Mid-West area with the distribution of several hundred copies of that ICTU newspaper. However , once again, we want to make it clear that our assistance must not be misinterpreted as support for the ICTU or the trade unions affiliated to it, as that is most certainly not the case - in our opinion, those unions are far too closely linked , morally and financially, to the 'establishment' institutions it claims to oppose. The old adage that 'the enemy of my enemy is not necessarily my friend' definitely applies here.

We will be taking part in the November 27th protest to show solidarity with JI , CE and other low-paid workers , the unemployed and other overburdened citizens of the corrupt and failed entity that is this mockery of a 'republic' and we view the ICTU leadership , and the leadership of the trade union movement, to be as complicit in the destruction of living standards in this gombeen shambles of a 'republic' as are the so-called 'establishment' that that trade union movement professes to be fighting against. And, given the opportunity, we, along with RSF, will make that fact clear on the 27th.....
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

Monday, November 22, 2010

"Distant and out of touch, the IMF ruins economies great and small......the transparency problem is that the IMF never reveals the strings it attaches to loans......the IMF has 2,300 experts who can rationalize any sort of mischief....a far more serious problem is the IMF’s long history of doing much harm and no good......any list of countries "helped" by IMF programs reads like a casualty list.....to obtain a two-year IMF loan in 1982-83, for example, Chile deeply devalued the peso, raised tariffs from 10 percent to 35 percent, and raised income-tax rates. The economy collapsed, and inflation soared...."
(From the Washington-based 'Independent Institute')

The calling-in of the IMF by those in Leinster House should be seen as simply the natural progression of events , when the track record of the morally ill and politically incompetent halfwits in that institution is taken into account : despite their many fine words , their main objective has always been one of self-preservation - to ensure that they themselves will never experience what it is like to be financially strapped , never know what it's like to be in pain on a trolly in a hospital corridor and never have to worry about what tomorrow will bring. They have used and abused EU and State taxpayers money to insulate themselves and their family members , and other cronies, from the above concerns , and can now afford to 'retire' in comfort , with a 'Golden Handshake' and a large pension.
Fianna Fail , the Greens , Mary Harney and the so-called 'Independents' will in all likelihood be out of Office shortly , to be replaced by a slightly different crowd of morally ill and politically incompetent halfwits , of whom we will write about on this blog.
Depressing , isn't it?
See you on Saturday 27th November 2010 , in Dublin, at the protest march.
Thanks,
Sharon.

Sunday, November 21, 2010

IN REMEMBRANCE OF A NUMBER OF NOTABLE EVENTS IN OUR HISTORY.....

ON Sunday, November 28th , 2010 , Republican Sinn Féin will remember the 90th Anniversaries of a number of notable events in Irish history:

90th Anniversaries - Wynns Hotel , Dublin, Sunday 28th November 2010.

The venue is Wynn’s Hotel, Lower Abbey Street, Dublin , from 11.30am to 4pm, with a break for lunch. All are welcome to this day of commemoration which will take the form of narration of the events, followed by readings from the works of participants and songs connected with the event -

90th Anniversaries :
Terence MacSwiney
Kevin Barry
James Daly
Bloody Sunday
Kilmichael.

Clár :
11.30am: Cathaoirleach will open proceedings.
11.45: Narration by Seán Ó Brádaigh.
12.45pm: Terence Mac Swiney
Biography
Reading from Principles of Freedom:
Shall my sold pass through old Ireland .

1-2pm: Lunch
2pm: Kevin Barry
Biography
Reading
Kevin Barry

2.20: James Daly
Biography
Reading of letters
Lay him away on the hillside

2.35: Bloody Sunday
Biography
List of those killed
Song:

3.15 Kilmichael
Narration
The Boys of Kilmichael

3.45pm:
Summing up by Ruairí Ó Brádaigh.

Free admission , All Welcome!
Thanks,
Sharon.

Friday, November 19, 2010

ETHIOPIA TO HOLD 'LIVE AID CONCERT' FOR THIS STATE ?

No truth in that , as of yet - that we know of , anyway - but plenty of truth in this -

"The arrival of the IMF and EU into the 26 Counties is a damning indictment of the capitalist policies pursued by Fianna Fáil and clear evidence of the abject failure of the State as a whole. The IMF and EU officials will set about creating a capitalist dictatorship without any of the façade of democracy that used to prevail in the Free State. It is expected that there will be massive cuts in the public sector imposed and the probability of the selling of the family silver such as the ESB and Bord Na Mona looms.

The solution to the current economic woes is to create a new Ireland based on sound socialist principles with all banking and financial institutions coming under social control. Rather than offer a multi billion Euro loan Britain should declare her intention to withdraw from Ireland so that the Irish people can set about building this new Ireland. Republican Sinn Féin’s Éire Nua (A New Ireland) policy proposes the establishment of a 32 County Federal Democratic Socialist Republic with maximum devolution of power to local levels to help address both the power and economic imbalance in Ireland.

Only by the destruction of the current system that relies on gombeenism, clientelism and pandering to the capitalist classes is it possible to build an Ireland that truly cherishes all of her children equally. Only a socialist solution will be able to solve this Capitalist-caused problem. "
(Statement by Republican Sinn Féin Vice-President Fergal Moore.)

Incidentally , a lot of commentators on radio and television today have shared a common viewpoint regarding the IMF political take-over of this State yesterday, and have asked , in one form or another , 'is this what the men and women in 1916 fought and died for...' , to which Irish Republicans reply - 'No , it's not: whether the IMF are here or not, not one person fought or died , in 1916, for the establishment of a 26-County so-called 'republic'...."
And even those who, a short few years after the 1916 Rising, shouldered weapons in a campaign to ensure the establishment of just such an entity must surely be equally sickened to see that their political 'cousins' in Leinster House could not maintain the falsehood represented by a false and immoral 26 County 'Ireland'. This pathetic State was built on sand by short-sighted people ,and is now owned by business representatives based in Washington. As RSF VP Fergal Moore stated -
"Only a socialist solution will be able to solve this Capitalist-caused problem...."
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

AN EXPERIMENT IN JAMES STREET : THE DEATH OF NIALL RUSH.......
From 'MAGILL' magazine , September 1984.
By Derek Dunne.

The 'Eproxindine 4/0089' test is a 'split test' , with a gap of three weeks between two sessions. One of the other participants had been in three weeks before Niall Rush and , on the first session, he says, they were taken in at night , some days after their pre-medical. The following morning they were given the drug and about one hour later he experienced numbness of mouth and lips , taste distortion and loss of balance. Another participant suffered an acute attack of nausea.

Niall Rush's father was an Ambassador , and the family spent time in the United States , Nigeria and Portugal. He was born in 1953. Later on , he was sent to Gormanstown College and , sometime in the mid 1970's , he was diagnosed a schizophrenic - he was still under treatment at the time of his death. Over the last six or seven years he worked at a variety of odd jobs , including one as a porter in a hotel. He lived in different parts of Dublin , moving to England and the Continent to stay with friends from time to time. Occasionally , he did clinical drug tests in James Street , as did many of his friends , and was not the healthiest of individuals , smoking up to 50grms of 'Duma Roll-Your-Own' cigarettes a day.

Under the 'Coroners Act', when somebody dies and a medical certificate is not forthcoming , there is an investigation by the gardai , as agents of the Coroner. Following the death of Niall Rush , there was a post-mortem , performed by John Harbison , the State Pathologist. Detective Inspector Connolly of Kevin Street Garda Station and Garda Joe McGarrity from Kilmainham were put onto the case.......
(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.

" When he became Minister , Mr Haughey sought to appoint his man to a minor position which carried payment of a second capitation grant where one 'suffered in the public interest' : he could have sacked the person who was already working in that minor position , but that would have brought down on his head the wrath of the local Dail Deputies who had approached Mr Traynor , the other Minister. I told Mr Haughey that I couldn't make payment (to the second appointee) and when he insisted I should , I said that of course I would obey his direction but that I was requested under the Rules to report the matter to the Minster for Finance and to the Committee of Public Accounts. The matter was not pursued but I thought it prudent when leaving on my annual holiday to acquaint my Assistant Secretary of the facts involved.

On my return the Assistant Secretary told me that he had received a Ministerial directive to appoint the second man to the post in question , that he had informed the Minister that he was aware of the Accounting Officer's refusal earlier and that the Minister would be liable to personal surcharge. He said that the Minister was furious with me , not alone for my refusal but for forewarning the Assistant Secretary , thus causing the Minister to lose face.

I had a second disagreeable clash with Mr Haughey in 1962 ; a vacancy occurred for the appointment of a semi-civilian semi-police post as immigration officer at Cork Airport. The Commissioner of the Garda decided to have a selection board to decide which of the immigration officers serving at Dublin Airport , Shannon Airport and Cobh seaport would be most suitable for promotion. Meanwhile , Mr Haughey told me that he had representations from Mr Jack Lynch for appointment of the Cork based man and to convey that to the Commissioner. But the Commissioner put forward the names of four candidates in the order of merit assigned by the selection board in which the Corkman was fourth.

I supported in writing the Commissioner's recommendation that the number one should be appointed but the Minister , Mr Haughey, sent for me and, purple in the face and in a hectoring voice , said 'Didn't I tell you I wanted X appointed?' , so I pointed out that to appoint X in the teeth of the selection board's choice and the Commissioner's recommendation would be open to grave criticism and that I could not lend my support to it......."
(MORE LATER).

NATIONAL GRAVES ASSOCIATION FUND-RAISER.

The National Graves Association will be holding a fundraiser in the Milestone Inn, Balbriggan this Saturday night (20th November 2010) at 8.30pm. The Druids will be playing. Tickets are available at the door for €10.00 and all funds raised will go to the upkeep of Republican graves. As we stated here recently in relation to the NGA - "They are a tireless bunch , totally dedicated to their objective , and deserve any assistance you can give them....". If you can't come along yourself try and spread the word to those that might be interested , and maybe even buy a ticket or two anyway!
Thanks!
Sharon.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

106th RSF ARD FHEIS , NOVEMBER 2010 : BRIEF REPORT AND A FEW PICS.....

9am , Saturday 13th November 2010 - the Ard Fheis begins.

Although we had a two-day 'Visitors Pass' , we could only stay at the Ard Fheis for the Saturday morning session , as we had volunteered to assist in the collection of 650 raffle tickets from various locations around Dublin , and to attend the raffle itself , which was to be held in a different hotel to the Ard Fheis venue , on that Sunday afternoon. More on that raffle later.

Some of the Republican items for sale at the in-house Ard Fheis Shop......

....and more of the Republican items for sale. Such was the level of sales and orders placed that the two-day Shop practically paid for the hire of the Ard Fheis venue!

An assembly of seven 'Special Branch' operatives were kept busy at the entrance to the hotel and, as usual , they didn't distinguish between the hundreds of Republicans that attended the Ard Fheis and the hotel guests , and were observed 'talking to' the UTV camera crew that covered part of the proceedings today , Sunday 14th.
Messages of support for the Republican Sinn Féin organisation and for Des Daltons leadership of same were read out from the speakers lectern by representatives from CABHAIR , Cumann na mBan and Na Fianna Éireann , and similar messages were either delivered in person or read out on behalf of affialiated support groups and organisations in England , Scotland , Canada and America , to loud applause from the assembled Republicans.

Seán Sabhat bodhron.....

....and the 2011 Republican calendar , over a thousand of which were sold during the two days , with more than twice that amount being ordered.

The RSF Ard Chomhairle announced that new RSF/Saoirse websites will be launched in the next few days , which should be better able to deal with the volumes of traffic being received -

'Web Development' talk.....

...and 'PowerPoint'......

...presentation!

And the reason we had to leave early-

The raffle drum used in the Monthly Raffle, which was held today , Sunday 14th November , in a different venue to the Ard Fheis.

A fund-raising raffle like the one held today has been held every month , by the same Raffle Crew , since the mid-1970's. As is usually the case , the full compliment of tickets (650) was sold. Please note that this was not the 'RSF National Draw' , for which thousands of tickets were sold , which was also held today , but in the Ard Fheis venue. For the record , here are some of the details of the eight winners of the monthly draw : 1st - Winnie , ticket No. 374 / 2nd Cathy , 10 / 3rd Anthony 144 / 4th Paul 123 / 5th Joe 473 Joe / 6th James 15 / 7th Sharon 410 and 8th Alana 445.

We'll finish this post by congratulating Republican Sinn Féin Poblachtach on a successful Ard Fheis, and by stating our belief that the 'Raffle Crew' we worked with today at the monthly raffle are a sincere and dedicated group of Irish Republicans ,as are those that were at the Ard Fheis , the RSF leadership and the many people that work 'behind the scenes' in ensuring that the whole operation works. They are a credit to themselves and to Republicanism !
Thanks for reading,
Sharon.