'SKIP' YOUR NEXT MEAL - THE POLITICIANS NEED TO BE BAILED OUT.

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

I was out of my depth for a short period after the arrest of Black James Duirnin , James Doran , Biddy Doherty and others : jail can be a frightening experience , especially for mountainy men with their free-striding ways, and their habit of standing on high ground to look around them under a great blast of day. Then, too , imprisonment in this case must affect elderly people , used to the comfort of their warm corners and often not too robust in health.

One courageous man who took many risks both in the Tan War and in the later period , told me he all but smothered when he was put into a cell in Sligo Jail - the walls seemed to press in against him and he just had to get out. All I could do for a time was look on and watch the casualties pile up.

The townlands got a whiff of encouragement when Biddy Doherty and James Duirnin were released , having served out their sentence to the last day - there is no remission of sentence for good conduct for people imprisoned for debt. Duirnin came out quiet and firm , Biddy Doherty happy and militant. At a gathering of neighbours to welcome Duirnin home, a good-natured busybody of the parish with a weakness for elbowing himself into view at any cheering gathering, and as likely as not genuinely concerned for Duirnin , collected a sum of £25 among his friends and before any of us knew what was afoot he was presenting it , making a speech that was water-logged with martyrdom, defeat and cheap advice. (MORE LATER).





THE BETRAYAL OF 1916 -



- REVISIONISM EXPOSED.....

From 'IRIS' magazine, Easter 1991.

By Martin Spain.

The outbreak of the current phase of the struggle for national self-determination in the Six Counties in 1969 brought the whole question of partition to the fore again - the situation of Six-County nationalists was emblazoned across front pages and television screens the world over as the Civil Rights protestors were beaten off the streets and thousands were burnt out of their homes in a renewed attempt by the loyalist power block to beat the croppies down. But this time the croppies would not lie down *.

The re-emergence of the IRA , firstly to defend its communities from attack and then moving to the offensive to push the British forces of occupation out of Ireland once and for all , left southerners in a quandary. There was a genuine feeling throughout the 26 Counties that something should be done in those early years but successive 26-County governments prevaricated and blustered as the world looked on with shock at Stormont's excesses against its minority community.

Jack Lynch vacillated in 1969 when he could have sent the troops in, preferring the embarrassing indignity of the arms trials. (*Some did , some won't!) (MORE LATER).



A SIGN OF THE TIMES.

From 'The Clondalkin Echo' newspaper , 25th April 2013.

Here's a handy tip if you are struggling to pay your property tax and/or your water tax etc : stop buying food and, if you must eat and attempt to feed your family, then do so by rooting in skips for food.

The above newspaper article tells of what happened after a local supermarket experienced a power failure and had to dispose of huge amounts of foodstuff - the affected meat , milk , yogurt etc was placed in three large rubbish skips for removal and, when word about the incident spread in the area , dozens of people descended on the skips to salvage what they could and a mini-traffic jam ensued, so much so that a security guard had to be placed in the immediate vicinity to ensure that some semblance of order was maintained. A reader of this blog was in that queue and reported that not one local politician was seen searching for edible throwouts in any of the skips , a fact that will not warrant a headline , article or picture in next week's newspaper as it's not news.

Meanwhile, a rumour is circulating in the area that Leinster House and the local County Council have joined forces to hire a temporary 'Food Police Patrol' which will be granted the authority to enter houses in that neighbourhood to examine the kitchen fridge in order that an educated guess can be made as to the value of the 'skip food' you managed to get , thereby facilitating the calculation of the amount saved , which the householder will be expected to hand over towards what they 'owe' for either or both of the above-mentioned taxes. Actually , that last part is not true , as far as we know, but it's all they are short of doing as they continue to make the 'little people' pay for the greed of the 'establishment'. Not quite what the political Class would consider 'eating out' , but it sums-up where they think we belong.



BALLAD SESSION AFTERWARDS !

A good night will be had after an even better day !

This ballad session will be held , this coming Saturday night, as stated on the poster (doors open at 8.30pm) but it's not the main republican event that will be held on that day : the annual Hunger-Strikers Commemoration will be held on the traffic isle facing the GPO in Dublin's O'Connell Street at 2pm , at which the 22 Irish hunger strikers will be remembered. The commemoration will be Chaired by Cork woman Líta Ní Chathmhaoil , Ard-Rúnaí , Sinn Féin Poblachtach, who tells me that admission tickets for the function that evening are all but gone, but a few of them have been held back for sale at the O'Connell Street commemoration , on a first-come-best-dressed (!) basis !



ACCOUNTABILITY ? BUT OF COURSE. TO MYSELF , THAT IS.....

Ivor 'I-sense-dead-companies' Callely : he's either still on the old '088 network' (using one of these) or the phone companies he deals with are making so much out of him that they no longer have a need to trade publicly....

His line may be busy at the moment , but he has previously got a better type of 'engaged' signal. However , he's not getting any younger and should perhaps consider a change of career , just like his fellow 'senatorial' Fianna Fail colleague has. The two of them could set-up shop under the name 'PHONES R' ELSE' , offering contracts and deals ya don't wanna say no to....



BLUE-SHIRTED W BANKERS.

High-rollers with friends in high places...

Thank God that Fine Gael re-engaged with its natural instincts before any long-term damage was done to those of us who are genuinely in favour of a fairer society , and not just at election time : after listening to this Fine Gael politician ("People were paying themselves obscene salaries and how anybody could claim they were qualified for the salaries some people were justifying is quite outrageous....") sure I was only a heartbeat away from canvassing for them (!) when , as stated , their natural instincts rose back again to the surface thus saving me from eating humble pie.

I should of course have remembered that Fine Gael , like every political party in Leinster House , are 'good politicians' in the sense that , once bought, they stay bought , despite making noise now and again to the opposite effect. My faith in the Free State political system has been restored.



€17,000 NOT LEFT UNTOUCHED : €13,000 AND COUNTING (DOWN).....

"Just doing what we said we would , Your Honour...."

At the time we wrote this (see 'SHOCK ! HORROR !') , we honestly didn't think that anyone would be stupid enough to return for a second bite of the cherry , but we really should have known better : out of the original €26,000 in cash , which was safely (!) under lock and key in Balbriggan Garda Barracks in Dublin , only €13,000 now remains (emphasis on 'now' !) , as €4,000 has recently gone out in sympathy with its bigger brother , €9,000 , which obtained its freedom earlier on this year.

The Garda authorities themselves practically forecast developments such as the above , a fact, which , we hope , will not be considered by their boss in Leinster House as 'aiding and abetting in the commission of a crime'. Or , if such charges are brought against those verbal perpetrators , we hope they are held for questioning in Balbriggan Garda Barracks where , apparently, they will be able to leave the premises once in the company of a uniformed member. And, whilst they are waiting to be walked out, the lads there can do a collection for them....



FINE GAEL ALMOST GET TOUGH WITH THE BANKSTERS !

Banksters Beware! Fine Gael have you in their sights/ Banksters Rejoice! Fine Gael have your best interests in their sights....

It made for a good and popular soundbite , secured column inches for the man involved and gave the impression that he and his Party were just as disgusted with the behaviour of the banking elite as we ordinary mortals are : "The capping of bankers' bonuses is well overdue. People were paying themselves obscene salaries and how anybody could claim they were qualified for the salaries some people were justifying is quite outrageous...." (from here) but, just to be sure that they didn't really upset their credit rating (!) with their business buddies , the Boss of the FG 'rebel' quoted above clarified the issue.

It's a classic example of what passes for politics in this State ie 'do-as-I-say-and-not as-I-do' and will have impressed some of those that heard it , whether or not they realise that it has since been 'corrected' by one of the Party bosses. Fine Gael will no doubt use those 'rebel' words on a brochure/leaflet in working/unemployed-class areas and will, at the same time, promote the 'We Abstained!' statement in the more affluent areas. It's having your cake and eating it, and it's getting them as financially fat as their banker pals. The bigger sin, however, is that it works for them.



FREE STATE ESTABLISHMENT'S FAVOURITE 'CELEBRITY JOURNALIST' PRESSURED A COURT WITNESS INTO STATING AN UNTRUTH - TRIAL COLLAPSES.

Paul 'CNN' Williams : in this instance , 'CNN' stands for 'Cool Nick Names'.

He has 'introduced' his readers to , amongst other made-up Irish mafia-sounding characters, those he named 'the General' , 'the Viper' and 'the Don' , all in an effort to project himself as an 'investigative journalist with the inside track'. He is the first port of call when the 'security services' in this State want to muddy the waters in regards to an individual or an organisation and is never found wanting in that regard. In return , he is 'fed' 'EXCLUSIVES!!!' by his friends in those 'security services' and is treated as being 'in the know' by radio and tv journalists and programmes.

Sometimes , it appears, in order to get a 'good' (ie 'SENSATIONAL!!') story it helps if you can guide or encourage developments along a certain path , a maneuver which can occasionally backfire on the tabloid journalist involved - and now and again , although not often enough , in my opinion, such an attempted maneuver backfires in public on the tabloid writer involved : "....explaining his change of evidence, Simpson told how he made the false allegations after crime journalist Paul Williams warned him that he was going to be shot. He claimed Williams convinced him that, if he didn’t "go further" with the matter, his life would be in danger and he would have to leave the country for good. Mr Simpson said: "I felt I had to lie in the statement. I know it was wrong but that’s the reason....." (From here.)

It will be interesting to observe the 'spin' put on this issue by the State 'Establishment' as it rallies to the defence of one of its own - to wash their hands off him at this point , over such a small transgression (as his guardians would no doubt see it) is perhaps not feasible as doing so could open a can of worms in relation to previous articles published by Mr Williams in that maybe , after all, 'the Gofer' didn't actually 'go' do it or , God forbid, 'the Comedian' was only 'joking' when he pointed his finger at 'the Handler' ?


HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MAY YOU NOT SEE MANY MORE....

A Stately pile with an already-soiled flag.

We couldn't let this date pass without mentioning our chief 'mentor' , who is 306 years old today (1st May) , a fact that no doubt will be remembered by those affected by its "long and colourful history". 'Great Britain' was spawned on this date in the year 1707 and, try as we might, we were unable to find any equal catastrophe which took place anywhere else in the world on that date. And that would be because no such other foul happening took place. So enjoy your day in the sun, but remember that you no longer have an empire on which it never sets.



Thanks for reading, Sharon.

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'THEY HAVE US WHERE THEY WANT US...'

DON'T FORGET YOUR HOVEL IF YOU WANT TO PAY SOME TAX.....

From 'The Daily Star' newspaper , December 2012 : he was right then and he's still right, unfortunately.

"There’s no doubt they have us where they want us. We seem to have become a nation of docile, obedient shit-takers with a few exceptions the same galoots are in the driving seat, the banking elite have become, if anything, even more arrogant, the PAYE workers,the poor, the elderly, the infirm, the special needs, these are the ones paying for the sins of the greedy…for the laissez faire attitude of Bertie Ahern and his Government,the Ray (Dublin Bay) Burkes,the Pee Flynns and Ray McSharry’s and their team of lickers, the Brian Cowans, Mary Hanaffins, Mary Coughlans, Mary Harneys most of them, and many others, gone out to (the very long) grass with awesome pensions.

The Johnny Ronans, Bernard McNamara’s,Tom McFeeleys, and their numerous counterparts are still lingering at the trough.The nameless Banker Tycoons who fed these monsters endless millions to chase sick fantasies, to fuel helicopters and Maybachs, champagne swilling lifestyles, endless acquisitive ego-boosting and criminal behaviours....all these lauded by the same Bertie who suggested that those who tried to call a halt, would be better of committing suicide....what a dirty slur that was. What sort of a (repeatedly elected) leader cur would utter such a crass and low exortation to his electorate from the platform...at a time when thousands of families were suffering the pain of such loss and deprivation...they seem to have us where they want us alright...supine on the couches of the nation, hypnotised by Football, X Factor and Downton Abbey. We are back again at the same spot...countless thousands pay the price..."(From here.)

Christy Moore has had it 'sussed' for decades now - most of the people in this State have no limits when it comes to the amount of financial abuse they will take from the political class in Leinster House and/or local councils in relation to how and when etc they must pay new taxes (bin , household , property, water) even though those services are supposedly paid for already by taxes stopped from wages when you earn money, so-called 'Value Added' taxes when you purchase items and 'Deposit Interest Retention' taxes when/if you save some of your income.

The wealthy politicians that use or change State law to impose these restrictive , unjust and double taxes have cheapened a political format in this corrupt State that wasn't worth tuppence to begin with but , to give credit where it's due , they know their 'market' : most of the people in this morally and financially bankrupt State are apparently infected with what appears to me to be a strain of self-loathing and/or an inferiority complex whereby they believe they are powerless to challenge the system and effect change. Until that attitude changes , those that have not yet challenged both the system and those that operate the system can expect to be 'rewarded' by more new taxes and/or an increase in the present taxes , while those of us that are challenging the corruption in this State will continue to be misrepresented by the State , its agents and its supporters as 'troublemakers/dissidents/layabouts'.

If you haven't already done so , you can join or support the 'troublemakers/dissidents/layabouts' as we campaign to (re)introduce common-sense into the political sphere in this whole country or you can continue to allow yourself the easier option - to be temporarily distracted by "....football , X Factor and Downton Abbey.." . Incidentally , I have no interest in football (as readers of my raffle reports know!) and attempted (but failed) to sit through one episode each of X Factor , Downton Abbey and assorted other belly-fluff television , only to remove myself from the TV room , puzzled as to why anybody would choose to watch pretend drama when there is more than enough actual drama in the real world to keep us occupied ?

Finally , on a related note, we are working on a story at the moment (which we will have ready for our usual Wednesday night post, if not sooner) in connection with the real poverty experienced by those who , in fear, pay all that is demanded of them at the expense of actually feeding themselves and their families. Our story will relate what happened within hours of a local supermarket having to dispose of huge amounts of foodstuffs after an in-store incident....

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

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" KILLED ABOUT 30 IN 3 CABBINS , AND HANGED OUR GUIDE , WHO DIED A MOST OBDURATE VILLAIN...."

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

I was, therefore, all the more taken aback to get word, by telephone, that Black James Duirnin and Widow Biddy Doherty were in Sligo Jail - I was assured they were not imprisoned for obstructing the bailiff, but for debt.

I have always regretted I was not in court when Black James was asked if it was need exposed him to so great a hardship as jail at his age - he was over seventy at the time - or was he influenced in any way by politics. Duirnin was always slow to find words , but you felt that his delay was forced on him by the care he took to sort out his thoughts before he spoke. This time he was even slower than usual , and his neighbours waited in a tense silence.

He said he thought politics entered into it : all this began, he explained, a good few years back , on a Sunday, it was, and in the parochial hall. He minded the day fine. There were a number of young men in a line and they raised their hands and took an oath , but he himself took no oath for he was too old, although he was then of the same mind as those men. A resolution was put before the people that day, disowning rent, and he said his word on it and he put his hand up for it. "Some of the men who took an oath that day didn't abide by their oath, but my hand is up yet" , he said. (MORE LATER).



THE BETRAYAL OF 1916 -



- REVISIONISM EXPOSED.....

From 'IRIS' magazine, Easter 1991.

By Martin Spain.

Historians have a duty to be honest about where they themselves are coming from when promoting a historical interpretation ; the cardinal sin committed by the revisionists is in imposing their values on historical events. Their version of history promotes Britain as an innocent party , if sometimes clumsily arbitrary in its actions, while the militant republicanism through which the freedom of the 26-County state was achieved is put forward as the root of the 'Troubles' in the Six Counties today, which, of course, are entirely the fault of the PIRA and (P) Sinn Féin.

The history of republican endurance and sacrifice is derided as the actions of the fanatical few, not content to accept their situation but constantly harking back to the old enemy, Britain , as the source of all Ireland's ills.

The very people who were lauded as revolutionary leaders in 1966 during the state-sponsored 50th anniversary celebrations of the Rising are now dismissed as 'men of violence'. But why has there been such a revisionist push in Ireland ? To answer my own question, the reason there is such fertile ground for revisionist theorising and rewriting of Irish history * is precisely because of the horror felt by most Irish people about the present situation in this country.

(* Re 'rewriting of Irish history' : good example here!)(MORE LATER).



24TH APRIL 1916.

1916 Easter Rising , Ireland.

Too long a sacrifice
Can make a stone of the heart.
O when may it suffice?
That is Heaven's part, our part
To murmer name upon name,
As a mother names her child
When sleep at last has come
On limbs that had run wild.
What is it but nightfall?
No, no, not night but death;
Was it needless death after all?
For England may keep faith
For all that is done and said.
We know their dream; enough
To know they dreamed and are dead;
And what if excess of love
Bewildered them till they died?
I write it out in a verse-
MacDonagh and MacBride
And Connolly and Pearse
Now and in time to be,
Wherever green is worn,
Are changed, changed utterly:
A terrible beauty is born. (From here.)


The 97th Anniversary of the Easter Rising was commemorated in Dublin and throughout the country, and abroad, by the Republican Movement on Easter weekend last , 30th March - 1st April 2013 , where a pledge was given that the 'job of work' that was started then will continue until completed. A history of those events , 97 years ago, can be read here.



GREAT INITIATIVE BY CABHAIR ON BEHALF OF MARTIN COREY.

Martin Corey , political hostage.

'Martin Corey is a Republican from Lurgan, Co. Armagh. He was sentenced to Life Imprisonment in December 1973. At that time he was only 19 years old. He was to spend the next 19 years of his life in jail until he was finally released without signing anything in June 1992.

WITHOUT WARNING : on April 16th 2010 he was taken back into custody....

NO REASON : was given to Martin at the time or since his return to jail....' (More here.)

The CABHAIR Committee that organise the 'Annual Testimonial Dinner and Republican Reunion' are to be congratulated for including Martin Corey as the 'Ulster Honoree' this year : had this injustice occurred in any other country , groups such as 'Amnesty Ireland' would be amongst the loudest in their condemnation of same but , because that particular organisation (along with many other pro-establishment 'human rights groups') consider the Six County debate to be 'settled' , they 'play safe' and ignore it. Hopefully , this CABHAIR initiative will help to publicise Martin's case.



WOLFE TONE COMMEMORATION 2013.

The Republican Movement will commemorate Wolfe Tone on Sunday , 16th June 2013.

At 2.30pm in Sallins , County Kildare , on Sunday 16th June 2013 , the Republican Movement will be represented at the grave of Wolfe Tone , to pay its respect to its 'Founding Father'.

Incidentally , the claim that Tone "committed suicide" is not by any means a 'given' , and is challenged here (see 'Murder Most Foul' , Wednesday, March 09, 2005) and, as Irish republicans can verify , the British administration are capable of anything when it comes to anti-republican propaganda.



1,350 (=350) FOR THE 22 ON 4 5 13....

.....click here for more details!



" KILLED ABOUT 30 IN 3 CABBINS , AND HANGED OUR GUIDE , WHO DIED A MOST OBDURATE VILLAIN...."

British 'Sir' Fredrick Hamilton , an 'adventurer' let loose in Ireland.

Hamilton was a (Scottish/)British 'nobleman' who was 'given' Irish land during the Plantation of Leitrim in 1620 and, accompanied by his wife, they 'moved in' and almost immediately began to covet their neighbours land. His military 'adventures' took him to Germany and, at one point, he sued the Swedish administration for financial compensation after they disbanded the cut-throat mercenaries he had gathered around him!

He attempted to increase his fortune in Derry in 1643 by becoming Governor of that fine City (a position then held by his father-in-law and which he thought he should be entitled to!) and, to further prove his 'loyality' , joined the 'Covenanter Movement' in the hope that in doing so he would be better placed to receive 'favours' from the political establishment of the day. Whether he was recognised for the sleiveen he was or for some other reason, his new 'friends' decided they would be better off , politically, without getting too close to him and they placed him as a commander in Scotland of one of their regiments , from which duties he was discharged in 1647 , the same year that he died , practically penniless.

So proud was he of his military derring-dos in Ireland , he kept a diary which can be referenced to this day , and included in which are the following gems : ".... hurt drivers, killed three, brought home their heads to our Collonel, with a lusty prisoner who was hanged next day.....killed about 30 in 3 cabbins, and hanged our guide, who died a most obdurate villain....marched towards the Rosse, where we killed 60 of their ablest men with 2 of their famous priests.....sent a party of horse and foot upon them, where we had good sport in killing near 60 of them - with all three Captains, and Captain Teige O' Connor's wife.....burned and killed in the houses upwards of three score persons....took prisoner Charles Maguire after breaking his leg; to cure him had him carried on a barrow to the gallows, where he rayled at us for not getting a souldier's death after having served in France and Spain....in burning the Toune of Sligo where it confest by themselves was destroyed that night neere 300 soules by fire, sword, and drowning: to God's Everlasting Great Honour and Glory, and our Comfort...."

This man Hamilton was not by any means the first foreign gobshite to involve himself , militarily and/or politically, in Ireland , and most likely won't be the last. But they , too, will end up like Hamilton - leaving a dark stain on the history of their family name. And we Irish have long memories.



Thanks for reading, Sharon.

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ALEX MASKEY (PSF) DECLARES BRITAIN NO LONGER CLAIMS JURISDICTION OVER THE SIX COUNTIES !

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

Two car-loads of police came to Pat Harkin's door and Pat - tough , courageous man though he was - would as soon they had given him a bit more time to get organised , for 'wanted cattle' were grazing nearby among his own herd. But neither of the spotters gave any signal , neither the farmer nor the bailiff, for fear had hold of them by now.

The police took Pat on to the safe ground of accounting for his movements the night before , but they got nothing out of him. After a few days, the cattle were driven into Glendowen , sold, and the price got for them was put back into the defence fund. I was greatly encouraged by this spontaneous act by friends from the Tan days : this group of experienced men could be a great help and, if we suffered any serious loss, there was now no reason why we should not carry out an old-fashioned , seventeenth century cattle raid into Tyrone and Fermanagh to drive out a creacht of cattle that we could scatter over the hard-pressed townlands.

I even prepared the handbill we would distribute in those disloyal areas to explain why Tirconail made a raid , and was further encouraged when William Holmes , an IRA Battalion Commandant in my Brigade in 1921 who took the Treaty side without the personal friendship between us snapping, declared himself willing to bring reinforcements to our aid for the raid. It began to look as if , at long last , we could hold our own on Court decrees , and it never occurred to me - never once - that the government had any other weapon than cattle raids it could use against us effectively. (MORE LATER).


THE BETRAYAL OF 1916 -



- REVISIONISM EXPOSED.....

From 'IRIS' magazine, Easter 1991.

By Martin Spain.

Theirs is the history of the strong , acceptable to the 26-County establishment and to their friends across the Irish Sea in Whitehall. The reason revisionism is so popular and its advocates get so much space in the newspapers and on television * is that their view of history is one which suits the establishment (I should queue another PSF link here, but you get the picture....!) .

This fact should itself promote a healthy degree of suspicion , for theirs is a neo-colonialist view of history , encouraging the Irish people to feel ashamed of the roots of their state and engendering a degree of guilt and deference to our larger and by their reckoning, long-suffering neighbour, Britain. The past provides us with plenty of facts, but the interpretation of those facts and the choice of what events or personalities to emphasise , play down, ignore, commend or condemn , is up to the individual historian.

The study of history is by its very nature subjective ; where the revisionists are dishonest is in peddling their version of events as the objective truth, while dismissing the republican analysis at the same time as propaganda. Their use of language is very important too - the old cliché that one person's terrorist is another's freedom fighter is an appropriate analogy. (*This from the Party that has its Ard Fheis televised live by RTE television as, indeed, do all constitutional political parties that are deemed 'respectable' by the State!)(MORE LATER).



.....AND, TALKING ABOUT REVISIONISTS -

A sticky place for Irish revisionists!

As mentioned above, the PSF Ard Fheis last weekend was televised live by RTE TV , as has been the case for decades now , but one of the motions put forward for discussion which was 'withdrawn' before it could be put to the meeting was in connection with the Easter Lily badge.

The motion in question was put forward to the Ard Fheis by Provisional Sinn Féin's 'Charles J. Kickham Cumann , Tipperary' , obviously a group of Provisional 'republicans' who never had the opportunity to attend an education class re the 'Do's and Don't's' of Irish Republicanism , or perhaps their leadership prefer that their new recruits should remain ignorant of their past , and to know as little as possible about the incidents which led to their formation in 1986, when that group expelled itself from the Republican Movement: the Ard Fheis motion , Number 49 , stated - 'This Ard Fheis proposes that the Easter Lily be made into a sticker' , but was marked 'WITHDRAWN' , no doubt after one of their remaining pre-1986 members realised it was a short-cut to a sticky wicket for the overall group ! Incidentally , in 1967 , a Tipperary cumann was also responsible for an Ard Fheis motion which sought to 'adjust' the Easter Lily badge - 'At the 1967 Sinn Féin Ard Fheis a motion from the Tippearary Cummain calling for the Easter Lily to be supplied with a self-adhesive backing was passed. After the 1969/70 IRA split, which led to the emergence of the Provisional IRA, the Official IRA and Official Sinn Féin kept the Easter Lily with a self-adhesive backing while the Provisional's reverted to the traditional paper and pin Easter Lily....' (See 'Stickies versus Pinheads' , here.)

Finally , in comments she made from the speakers podium ,Mary Lou McDonald sneeringly highlighted the (outrageous) pay and/or pensions that 'retired' and/or serving (!) State politicians are in receipt of each week , from the State taxpayer , strongly suggesting that none of them are worth it. Which they are not, by the way , by which I mean any of them : see 'Dig Out' article , here. Pot , Kettle.

And this just in :

Alex Maskey , Provisional Sinn Féin : no longer willing to hold Westminster to account.

One of Provisional Sinn Féin's elected representatives in Stormont , Alex Maskey, is so comfortable with his political career in Stormont , implementing British law in Ireland, that he has apparently invented a whole new scenario for himself in which he attempts to convince his supporters that he , and they, are living in a liberated zone : " The fundamental difference between before the Good Friday Agreement and after the Good Friday Agreement is that the British Government, and the British State, no longer claim jurisdiction over this part of the island. That's very very important, and that's a very important building block...."

It's also "very , very" false and is a completely unhinged manner in which to view the actual political position of the Six Counties in relation to the Westminster writ, which continues to claim jurisdictional control over that part of Ireland. Mr Maskey has taken revisionism to the extreme , stating as 'fact' that which bears no resemblance to the true position. We can probably expect a tweet from him saying that his account was hacked and/or that he was mis-quoted or that he thought it was April 1st. But it's obvious who the real fool is.



AND THEN THERE'S REVISIONISM , FIANNA FÁIL STYLE - an attempt to 'revise' the objectives and characters of the 1981 hunger-strikers backfired on the perpetrator who then had to 'revise' his own Tweet and then 'revise' his standing within the political party he spoke on behalf of !

Tweeted by a Fianna Fáil 'republican'!

"Thatcher deserves our gratitude for ensuring Provo thugs and criminals who didn't like prison food deservedly died painfully" - tweeted by a Mr Stephen Kearon (stephen@kearon.ie / 087-2902996) who, at the time he composed it and pressed 'Send' , was PRO for Fianna Fáil in the Wicklow area.

His tweet was sent around the political sphere in this wicked little Statelet and the man was asked to 'clarify' what he meant by his remark , prompting him to re-think his words and to release this statement - "I deeply regret my comments and have apologised sincerely for the hurt and damage caused by my heated reactions on Twitter. Because of my error of judgment and more importantly for the sake of the party I have withdrawn from the Fianna Fail internal elections to the Party's Ard Comhairle and resigned from all positions I held in the party. I have no comment to add except to apologise again for the hurt and outrage I have caused."

That "hurt and outrage" (or, more likely, the fact that he made that comment 'in public') also 'hurt' and 'outraged' Fianna Fáil Head Office in Lower Mount Street in Dublin city centre which , in an attempt to 'revise' where it stood in relation to one of its own high-ranking members , issued the following statement to a Wicklow news outlet - 'Further to your article of the 10 April, 2013 which attributed remarks to Mr. Stephen Kearon: I am instructed as PRO for Fianna Fáil in Wicklow to correct the record in that no such remarks were made by or on behalf of Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party. The individual mentioned in the aforementioned article no longer holds any position within the Fianna Fáil organisation. Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party is a movement with people from many walks of life and in a true republican sense values all and continues to welcome all those interested in rebuilding Ireland through constitutional politics."

Well , that's just not good enough - but it might just be a wee bit more acceptable if Fianna Fáil were to 'revise' the term 'The Republican Party' out of their title and - two birds with the one stone here - thus make people like Mr Stephen Kearon more 'at home' with them. But best wait until after the funeral as Stephen and those like him will be otherwise engaged from now to then. And even then maybe allow them a week for mourning.....



NEIL 'PLUNKETT' O'BOYLE -

- 90TH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATION , KNOCKNADRUCE , COUNTY WICKLOW , SUNDAY 12TH MAY 2013 , 3PM (ASSEMBLE IN HOLLYWOOD AT 2.30PM).

Born near Burtonport, County Donegal in 1898 , he grew tall and thin , and was known to keep himself to himself as a teenager , but livened up as he grew older , and continually expressed an interest in the political affairs of the times he was witnessing and had a great interest in the Irish language. But he was not one for trying to impose his own beliefs , whether to do with politics , history , or the Irish language, on anyone else... "...because I believe these things I will always stick to them , but I do not want to force any other person to believe as I do. Let everyone be honest with himself and do what he thinks right. It is my duty to tell you what I believe should be done..."

He was known by now as a Sinn Féiner , but couldn't take his interest to the level he would have liked, as he was helping to look after his father , who was in poor health : the man died in 1917 , and 'Plunkett' , now 19 years of age, needed a secure job to assist the family - he got a position as a guard with the 'Londonderry (sic) and Lough Swilly Railway Company' but was forced to leave that job when he was 21 due to continued harassment from the RIC , a British 'police force' in Ireland , which knew of his Sinn Féin beliefs. He left Ireland for Scotland and got a job as a miner in the 'New Mains' Colliery , where he joined the IRA's 2nd Battalion Scottish Brigade , B Company. His IRA work included procuring weapons for Army use in Ireland and ensuring that same received safe passage home. At 22 years of age , he was caught by the Scottish police whilst organising a shipment of arms and was sentenced to five years hard labour in Peterhead Prison and was known to have been singled-out for particularly rough treatment by the prison authorities , including long periods of solitary confinement.

The 'Treaty of Surrender' was signed in late 1921 and 'Plunkett' was one of many who qualified for early release under its terms and conditions (even though he was opposed to that Treaty) and , in 1922, at 24 years of age, he was released and he returned home to Donegal, but was arrested a few months later and placed in detention in Dungloe and then moved to Drumboe. Finally , he was put 'on hold' in Finner Camp until arrangements were made to move him to Dublin. From the moment he was first arrested he was determined to escape : he had intended to jump from the Free Staters lorry that was transporting him to Drumboe but another prisoner beat him to it , in Finner Camp he had started a tunnel but this was discovered and he and others planned to seize the tug boat on which they were to be taken to meet the ship that was due to transport them to Dublin. When this didn't work, they then planned (unsuccessfully) to try and take control of the ship itself!

When 'Plunkett' and his comrades landed in Dublin , they were taken to Newbridge Barracks , where they almost immediately began work on a tunnel , but this plan was soon improved on when one of the men got his hands on a Board of Works map , which highlighted the sewerage system and the existing tunnel was then re-directed towards those pipes. They soon reached the buried pipes and in October that year (1922) approximately 160 IRA prisoners effected an escape through the sewerage system and came out the other end in the Kildare section of the River Liffey , from where Neil 'Plunkett' O'Boyle got to Dublin and was placed in command of the Dublin No. 2 Brigade, 3rd Battalion, and was stationed in the Wicklow area : it was now November 1922 and , for the next six months , his IRA Unit operated and lived rough in a mountainous area between Tallaght and Glenmalure.

The Ceasefire Order of April 1923 was adhered to by 'Plunkett' and his men but they stayed in hiding , as did many IRA Units, until the general situation became clearer - but the Free State Army still hunted them and , indeed, his Unit was attacked by the Staters on 8th May 1923. Michelle Boyle , a relative of 'Plunkett' , put the following account on the record at the time : " Around 5am Rosie Kelly was out with (----) when she seen Free State soldiers in the vicinity. She told the volunteers. They went into the woods and hid behind a wall. As soon as Free State Soldiers came looking, Plunkett and the column opened fire. The Free State Soldiers sheltered behind Kelly’s house. It wasn’t long until another band of Free State Soldiers came from Moin a’ Bhealaigh and they shot into the woods. They hit their own men but none was hurt seriously. Some volunteers were in Free State soldier’s clothes and managed to escape quickly across the hills. The Column was all very tired and was glad to rest that night. At around this time Plunkett was after getting a shipment of arms from Belfast. That night in Kylebeg they had 2 Thompson guns and 7 rifles. The soldiers had Lewis guns and rifles and there were about 80 soldiers. .Plunkett was a good leader, he was hot-headed but you couldn’t frighten him. He had a sharp mind, knew what time to attack and what time to retreat. And when they were escaping, Wicklow men could guide him to safe houses and over the hills..."

In mid-May 1923 , 'Plunkett' and his men were in a safe house in Knocknadruce, County Wicklow when , in the early hours of the morning, they were surrounded by Free State forces , under the command of a Belfast man, Felix Mc Corley. IRA man Tom Heavey, who was in the house at the time, explained what transpired : " Plunkett wanted the mother and daughter to be let out of the house. The Staters wouldn’t hear of that and threatened to bomb them out. That was a favourite trick throwing grenades through the window. This put Plunkett in a spot as he couldn’t let the women be injured. So he said, 'Let me come out'. Out he came with his hands up and walked slowly towards a stone stile, then at the right hand corner of the house. When he got there he spoke a few words with this Free State Officer named McCorley, a Belfast man perched on a stone ditch above him. Suddenly McCorley raised his revolver and shot Plunkett in the eye, the bullet passing through his upraised hands. For good measure he shot him again through the head. He just shot him. I saw it all. It was cold blooded murder. The others in the house were rounded up and taken away..." (More here.)

The 90th Anniversary of the State execution of Neil 'Plunkett' O'Boyle will be marked in Knocknadruce , County Wicklow, on Sunday 12th May 2013 at 3pm : those attending are asked to assemble in Hollywood at 2.30pm.



MARGARET THATCHER -

Margaret Thatcher and Augusto Pinochet. That's Pinochet on the right (even though they both were).

- IRELAND'S SECOND CROMWELL.

"She said, if the northern [Catholic] population want to be in the south, well why don't they move over there? After all, there was a big movement of population in Ireland, wasn't there? Nobody could think what it was. So finally I said, are you talking about Cromwell, prime minister? She said, that's right, Cromwell....." - the words of 'Sir' David Goodall, then a British diplomat who was one of the most senior British officials negotiating with the Dublin Leinster House administration. He told a BBC four-part documentary, Endgame in Ireland, that Margaret Thatcher made the "outrageous" Cromwell proposal during a late night conversation at Chequers. (More here.)

Thatcher would not have seen her 'Cromwell Proposal' as "outrageous" for the simple reason she didn't consider Cromwell's actions in Ireland to be "outrageous". When the two of them meet up in Hell , they can reminisce about the times they bullied and tried to terrify the Irish people , as well as their own people , and perhaps one will remind the other that , despite their best efforts, Irish opposition to British interference in this country is still alive and well. And will be, for as long as it takes.

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

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CABHAIR , STREET BOWLERS AND CHELSEA FANS !

CABHAIR RAFFLE ADDS TO THE MAYHEM OF A SPORTS-MAD SUNDAY AFTERNOON !



The Dubs and Chelsea , Spurs , Man United , Sunderland , Stoke City , Newcastle United , Man City and the local street bowlers (apologies if I've left out any teams etc but ye are all the same to me !) were out in force on Sunday last as were their many supporters , which allowed standing space only in the hotel where we were trying to run a 650-ticket raffle : I have no idea whether the Dubs beat the street bowlers or even if that's who they were playing against (!) or if New City beat Strokeland (!!) but I do know that CABHAIR were the real winners on the day - plus , of course, those eight lucky punters that pocketed a nice few bob in between all the madness !

A chap called Anthony , from the Kildare area , was there with a bunch of his mates, all of whom were crazy Chelsea fans and, being Chelsea fans , were well used to taking a gamble (ha! ha! Tony - take that !) so they sent Tony over to us with a tenner and we sold him five tickets. And two of those tickets were winners - Chelsea Jimmy won the 1st prize , €200 , on ticket 146 whilst his buddy , 'Hammer' , won the 5th prize , €20, on ticket 550 : that was our drinks for the day sorted (!) and swear to God it was like they had won the mug. Or cup, or whatever it is that those soccer teams win , such was the cheering and slagging that went on !

A quiet , unassuming and gentle young lady from Ballyfermot , in Dublin - and her to be dressed in her 'Dub Colours' and blue and white hair (!) , Marion Sullivan , bought her ticket from us about half-an-hour before the raffle began , as did her pal , Robbie Molloy , also from Ballyfermot - Marion won 2nd prize , €100, on ticket 658 and Robbie collected €20 ,4th prize, ticket 322. A Spurs fan , Luke, from Meath, had ticket 422 which won him 3rd prize, €40, and his fellow-Spurs fan, Gerry, from Roscommon, collected the 6th prize of €20 with ticket 501. County Westmeath weren't playing that day but Clare , from Mullingar , got herself 'on the pitch' by collecting 7th prize , €20, with ticket 353 and our last winner was Dáithí , from Wexford , who won 8th prize with ticket 434.

It was a loud ,colourful and hectic few hours for us , the sports fans and the hotel staff , but it was the craic for us all and a good time was had by the lot of us and, more importantly , the CABHAIR organisation was the overall 'Winner'. And we now have a few weeks to get ready for the next one!

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

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TRICKLE IT DOWN FOR THE TROOPS.

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

The stationmaster at Fintown risked a 'phone call to me in Dublin to tell me I must do something about this at once, else "this other man who has come over to us " would think himself let down. I promised him that we would make an example of "the man from without" , but it turned out that by the time I was free to go to Donegal the matter had already been taken care of.

The Letterkenny bailiff , a boastful , innocent man who made too much noise , and felt safe once he had got a seizure out of the way into the law-abiding big-farmer countryside , had some big-mouthed government supporters in Letterkenny who encouraged him in his noise. Therein lay our salvation , for Pat Kelly of Bonagee , an old friend of mine from the days of my work in the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union , hearing the talk, went on the war path and had no difficulty in finding out who had bought the seized cattle.

Pat was as radical a Fenian as the countryside ever grew and, even though I don't know along what avenues he spread the word, John McMonagle and Jim Harkin came together with him to sneak the seized cattle from their new owner's farm and, driving all night, they landed them with Pat Harkin of Drumkeen in the grey of the morning. The police hunt for the cattle broke on such a scale that it scared both the farmer who bought them and the bailiff who seized them : this was war. (MORE LATER).

THE BETRAYAL OF 1916 -



- REVISIONISM EXPOSED.....

From 'IRIS' magazine, Easter 1991.

By Martin Spain.

Revisionism arrived at a timely moment to legitimise Dublin's inadequacies as the internal contradictions * of the Northern state became too much and British troops arrived amidst the debris to supposedly 'stabilise' the situation **.

This revisionist school prefers to see 1916 in terms of an anti-democratic blood sacrifice which achieved nothing, pre-empted the achievement of Home Rule by 'constitutional' means and was itself the wellspring of today's 'murderous campaign of the Provisionals'. Such people as Conor Cruise O'Brien , Garret Fitzgerald , Ruth Dudley Edwards , John A Murphy and Ronan Fanning are peddling what is fast becoming the accepted version of history in the 26 Counties.

Peter Beresford Ellis , in an article in the previous edition of 'IRIS' , made the point that these historians could be better described as "unionist fellow-travellers" : these respected academics masquerade as providing a 'balanced' view of Irish History , and claim that they can step back from the 'unhelpful' nationalistic emotions which surrounded the struggle for independence. But theirs is as subjective an analysis of history as any socialist's or nationalist's , and is tailored to support the establishment and the status quo ***.(* - "internal contradictions" , such as, perhaps, the Provisional Sinn Féin outfit administering British misrule in six Irish counties whilst at the same time professing their objective to be one of ending British misrule in those six counties! / ** re 'to stabilise' - that, ironically, is the same type of language that Mr Spain's colleagues in Provisional Sinn Féin are now using, to 'explain' the British military and political presence in six of our counties! / *** 'supporting the establishment and the status quo' must have had a different meaning then than it has now, as that is exactly what the PSF organisation is doing now!) (MORE LATER).


AND SPEAKING OF 'REVISIONISM'....
Attempting to re-invent the past , Provo style.

Picture the scene : It's 1988 and you are in Belfast , one amongst tens of thousands of mourners attending the funeral of three PIRA members who were killed in Gibraltar : you are aware that the British Army , the RUC and their (and other) various 'Special Units' are watching proceedings even though, for the most part, they are not visible.

Suddenly a loud explosion sends clay flying through the air and debris bounces off people, knocking them over, injuring them - panic ensues , as nobody is yet sure what is happening. Then you hear gunshots and more explosions, as people dive for cover , with those trying to flee tripping over them. The elderly can't dive for cover or run and small children are equally as helpless. Three mourners are killed and about fifty injured , but the perpetrator is caught : Michael Stone , a loyalist paramilitary , is caught running from the scene by mourners and taken away by his comrades in the RUC.

At the funeral of one of those killed by Stone , the procession is again attacked , this time by two armed men ,in plain clothes, in a car. Obviously fearing the worst, some of the mourners , at great personal risk, surround the car and block it from travelling anywhere, and remove the two armed men from inside it. Quickly identified as being members of the British occupation force , the two men are disarmed, subdued and taken from the scene by the PIRA. They are then executed.

Now , however, in an effort to 'excuse' and/or 'apologise' for this exercise in self-defence , and to integrate themselves further into the 'establishment' from which they draw their financial and moral succor , those that represented the PIRA at that time have declared that those two armed undercover British operatives were "courageous" and "decent" ! By implication, the apologist Jim McVeigh has practically stated that those resisting oppression are as guilty as the oppressor , the British government, and have thus insinuated that that whole period of resistance and self-defence was somehow 'wrong'. A poacher turned gamekeeper , stopping off along the road to Damascus to 'revise' the path he himself has left behind. Won't be long now until McVeigh and his Provisional Sinn Féin colleagues blame nature on the 'Troubles' in this country, having placed Ireland too near to England !


10TH APRIL 1923 - NO COMPROMISE ACCEPTABLE.

- IRA General Liam Lynch , 29, shot dead in Tipperary by Free State forces.

On the morning of 10th April , 1923, Free State Army General Prout , Divisional Commander of the State Army in Waterford, ordered his British-armed troops to scour the South-West Tipperary and West-Waterford area for an IRA unit which he knew to be in the vicinity. That IRA unit was led by General Liam Lynch , who was a particular target for the then new anti-republican Leinster House institution , as he had laid down a marker for them : "We have declared for an Irish Republic and we will not live under any other law....the war will go on until the independence of our country is recognised by our enemies, foreign and domestic."

In a gunfight that took place in the Knockmealdown Mountains in South Tipperary, Liam Lynch sustained a bullet wound which incapacitated him and, with the Free Staters moving in on their position, he ordered his unit to proceed without him , as they were carrying important intelligence documents : as armed Free State troops cautiously approached the dying man , he identified himself to them by name , telling them that he was the Chief-of-Staff of the Irish Republican Army , and asked that they get him a priest and a doctor, as he knew he was dying. The Staters assembled a makeshift 'stretcher' out of their rifles and carried the dying rebel to Nugents pub in a town called Newcastle from where he was taken to the hospital in Clonmel , where he died shortly after 8pm that night , the 10th April, 1923 , 90 years ago today. You can read the finer details on the life and death of this brave Irishman here.


10TH APRIL 1998 : A LINGERING COMPROMISE.

RSF 'VOTE NO!' leaflet from 1998.

The Stormont Treaty (aka the 'Good Friday Agreement') was signed on this date (10th April) 15 years ago after almost two years of talking (or 'negotiations' , as those involved would have it) . For Irish republicans to engage genuinely with Westminster , a British military and political withdrawal would have to be on the table and negotiations proper could then be entered into in relation to the date of same ; the document that was signed 15 years ago today was a bad , weak compromise on behalf of nationalists (not republicans , who had no hand , act or part in this event , save to campaign against it) but it suited the British and their colleagues in Leinster House as it took the pressure off them and allowed them to try and present a 'peace achieved' scenario re what they term 'the Troubles'.

As with the 'Treaty of Surrender' , Sunningdale and Hillsborough , the Stormont Treaty is not what Liam Lynch gave his life for nor is it acceptable to republicans today.


A FAMILY HOUSE DOESN'T EARN AN INCOME , SO WHAT IS THERE TO PAY TAX ON ?

Property tax ? No Way.....

The denizens of 'The Big House' in Kildare Street in Dublin are in agreement with their employers in regards to squeezing extra money out of the unemployed and those who still have a job , in order that their own privileges be maintained and , despite the skin-deep 'objections' of the IMF's man in this corrupt State , it was agreed between them that a tax should be levied on the dwellings where those who pay tax on their earnings , their spend and their savings (if any) live , and 'bills' for same have already been dispatched.

Those of us who are genuinely opposed to this unjust tax will give a lively 'welcome' to the 'Big House' people and their friends this coming Saturday , 13th April 2013 , as they gather for croissants and wine in Dublin Castle : thousands of us will assemble on that day at 12.30pm at the Garden of Remembrance in Parnell Square and will march to their 'Castle'/Ivory Tower to deliver our message-'Property Tax ? Can't Pay , Won't Pay , Don't Pay , No Way !'

Hope you'll join us !


THATCHER'S BEQUEST.

The genuine 'Iron Ladies' - made so by Margaret Thatcher.

IT.

I curse the wretched evil

That makes me feel this way

That forces me to think of it

With every passing day.

It makes me hate and wait and wait

To hear it's dying breath

For that I'm sure it must endure

A slow and painful death.

It's loathed in Buenos Aires

Likewise in Crossmaglen

Despised in every closed down pit

From Kent to Bilsten Glen

It deprived men of their livelihood

It stripped them of their pride

It took their coal and gave them dole

Their dignity denied.

It tore apart communities

It devastated lives

It made enemies of neighbours

And left husbands without wives

It disregarded consequence

It killed both young and old

It privatised our heat and light

And left us dark and cold.

It undermined democracy

Sold council homes for votes

It hid the truth on Hillsborough

As history denotes

It robbed the poor to pay the rich

With unjust, unfair taxation

The price of which is being paid

By another generation.

It murdered Argentine conscripts

In the South Atlantic seas

Outside it's own exclusion zone

It let them drown or freeze

It delegated evil

From it's Whitehall ivory tower

It kept Mandela in prison

And Pinochet in power.

It wreaked it's trail of terror

'cross Ulsters rolling hills

It ran the Loyalist death squads

It sanctioned shoot to kill

It took three 'out' without a shout

In cold blood upon the Rock

And let ten Irish martyrs die

Of hunger in the Blocks.

But when it's day of judgement comes

As all things come to pass

We'll shed no tears nor mourn it's loss

Among the working class

Instead we'll meet on every street

In every town and city

And tramp it down into the ground

Without remorse or pity.

© Pakie Baker 8th April 2013.

"There is no such thing as Society" - Margaret Thatcher, 1988. "There is no such thing as Margaret Thatcher" - Society, 2013.


RAKING IT IN FROM HAVING SURRENDERED YOUR PRINCIPLES.

"This new 'republicanism' lark pays much better than our old jobs, eh, lads...."

Back in 1998 , when the Provos had let it be fully known that they and their 'republican objectives' were for sale if the price was right , Adams and McGuinness had come to realise from other 'poachers turned gamekeepers' that if the enemy offers only to bribe those at the 'Top Table' of the organisation attempting to sell itself , the project will fail. The biggest share of the financial gain will , obviously, be hoovered-up by the leadership of the prostitute party in question but, in order to give the 'new build' a steady foundation, funds must also be offered to the grassroots of the party being purchased.

And so it came to pass : one of the many 'community-based organisations' that was established at that time in order to occupy the thoughts, amongst other things, of some of the then recently demobbed activists was an organisation which named itself 'Coiste Na N-Iarchimi' , a beast which quickly grew to contain about 25 connected groups which required some 90 full-time staff to service. However , the Brits - having been down this road many times in other countries they 'kept the peace' in, before buying it - were experienced enough to bring in others to help share the financial cost , but those 'outside financial backers' (including an EU body , the 'Special European Union Programmes Body') , did not fully appreciate the manner in which such business is done here and actually expected - ha! ha! - accountability (and maybe ever concrete results, God bless their innocence!) as the cost of keeping this 'trickle-down' fund breached the £1 million (Sterling) mark. The whole set-up was examined and it was discovered that the company in question had been struck off the companies register as it had not filed accounts and returns etc (after being told twice that it would have to file the missing paperwork) , prompting one of its Directors to claim that they did not have to file accounts like that to the Companies Office (!) and after which another Director , a prominent Provisional Sinn Féin member, resigned her seat as a Director.

Cynics amongst the readership of this blog would be of the opinion that the financial 'powers-that-be' in relation to the funding of this organisation have reached the conclusion that those in receipt of this 'trickle-down' money are not now likely to return to their previous militant incarnation and therefore the days of paying them to be elsewhere are over or , at the very least, numbered. More information on this issue can be had here , and all ye cynics and non-cynics can make up your own minds. Just don't expect to be paid for doing so.....


CABHAIR TO TAKE ON CHELSEA , SPURS , MAN UNITED.....



....SUNDERLAND , STOKE CITY , NEWCASTLE UNITED AND MAN CITY !

Or so the Events Manager in the 'Hotel Raffle' informed us , anyway ! That kind Gentleman has put us poor minions from the raffle committee 'on notice' that, on this coming Sunday (14th April 2013) , all the above-mentioned soccer games will be played , plus some GAA fixtures , horse racing and a local game of road bowling and that all of them (except the latter, apparently) will be televised. Normally , we could gladly get through our Sundays without knowing that information (!) but the Manager is only too aware that a guaranteed full house for him and his staff means a busier day than usual for those of us that run the monthly raffle for the Movement and, as that raffle is due to be held on that same busy sports day, we , too, are going to be run off our feet.

He actually rang looking for more tickets to sell to his customers , as the forty we had left him to sell are all sold already , but we had to disappoint him : there are no spare tickets for this raffle and we are not expecting any returns before the actual raffle or on the day of it. Which means that myself and the other girls , on top of running a 650-ticket raffle, will have to apologise repeatedly on the 14th to literally dozens of soccer and GAA supporters why it is that not only did their team lose (!) but they have no chance at all in winning on the raffle because they haven't got a ticket for it nor will they be able to get one. Should we get out of there in one piece , we'll list the winners on this blog and give a quick report on the event as soon as we can!


BEEN THERE , DONE THAT - DOING IT AGAIN !

Central Park , surrounded by the city of New York!

I have been there before , in great company , to meet great company - and before this year makes it to the half way mark , I'll be there again ! The same gang of us that wrought havoc (!) on the shops ,bars and residents of that gentle city in 2009 and 2011 will shortly be doing so again! We have everything arranged (we believe...) , from the 'baby'-sitters to the milk cancelled and all the way back 'round again to the house-sitters : holidays booked from the jobs , credit unions squeezed to within an inch of our lives and the partners and kids already assured that , yes, of course we'll miss them....!

In February last , our friends and colleagues in New York that provided apartments , transport and storage space (for our mini-mountain of shopping bags!) for the five of us in 2011 asked if we were thinking of visiting again (and we were , but we didn't want to appear too 'greedy' in asking if we could have use of the same apartments etc!) and they suggested that , if we were, we could help ourselves to the same lodgings as before , and transport around the city and to New Jersey etc would be available to us , no fee, no strings attached ,come and go as we please etc, as before - so naturally we jumped at the opportunity and in the last few days it all came together for us and the final arrangements were made !

As I mentioned before , the five of us are very closely matched , socially and politically , and, whilst I'd be lying if I said that 5th Avenue and the Diamond District etc doesn't interest us , it's not where we spend most of our time : we explore , and try and get a feel of the real New York, the gritty side and, although it's only a short-term 'solution' , we help out , financially , when we encounter such scenes , which is often, unfortunately. Anyway - I'll keep you posted about when it is that I'll not be posting : (MORE LATER !).

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

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THE 'IRON LADY' CAN NOW RUST IN PEACE.

MARGARET THATCHER : AN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF HER DEATH.

Thatcher - "A bounder , a liar , a deceiver, a cheat....."

Not forgetting that even Margaret Thatcher had parents and , therefore, was loved at one time or another by at least those two people and will be missed by at least two others (her children) , the air seems cleaner for her passing and almost all seems to be now right with the world , despite her best efforts to fully foul the air and the planet.

Her arrogance and her misjudged sense of self-worth was plain for all to see in her dealings in her own country with the trade union movement and in this country with, amongst her other failings, the 1981 Hunger-Strikers ; she despised both organisations and the representatives of same, the former because she realised that 'ordinary Joe Soaps' had to be kept down (ie 'in their place') if her vision of a fully capitalist society was to come to fruition and the latter because such principled fighters for justice were not only alien to her political belief system but courageous people like Bobby Sands and his comrades also threatened her preferred society.

That Margaret Thatcher , the politician , was a complete hypocrite was perhaps best illustrated in November 1989 when , during an interview she gave to BBC Radio 4's 'World At One' programme , in connection with the 'opening up' of East Germany, she brazenly declared : "You cannot stifle or surpress a people's desire for liberty" , which, of course, is exactly what she was attempting to do in Ireland , amongst other countries. Three years earlier , during the Westland Helicopter Affair (which led to the resignations of then British Defence Secretary Michael Heseltine and Trade Secretary Leon Brittan) British Labour Party MP Thomas Dalyell Loch described Thatcher as "....a sustained , brazen deceiver : I say she is a bounder , a liar , a deceiver , a cheat and a crook." Well qualified , then , to sit in Westminster.

As stated , her two children will miss her but , with a bit of practice, their aim will get better before she goes six feet down.

Thanks for reading, Sharon.

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3RD APRIL 1925 : THE UNIFORM CHANGES BUT THE ATTITUDE REMAINS.

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

I woke PH O'Donnell out of his bed, and he told me that I was the greatest fool of a man that ever walked the roads - he said I would hang and it would be the price of me and he hoped he would live to see it. The silent men around me who packed the hallway and overflowed into the large kitchen listened in bewilderment. PH noticed the water dripping from their clothes and ordered them into the shop , but it was only with a nod from me that they went.

He gave every man a complete set of underwear and a pair of corduroy trousers and he got his household to cook a meal and he himself helped. Ever since the campaign against land annuities became talked of, PH spoke his own views : ' it was all a piece of rascality, the man at the back of it was touched.' PH and I lived in that sort of noisy, warm relationship - it was he now who passed on the word to Hughie O' Donnell , and I had invoked his help.

The raid on Croveigh was a great piece of theatre : the bailiff and his escort were cheered and jeered from empty byre to empty byre across empty fields , women giving the civic guard escort a bad time. I expect Colmcille got credit for the whisper that saved the glen! It is likely that the sheriff's office got suspicious of our local bailiff who sent back decrees marked 'No Goods' , for out of the blue a bailiff from Letterkenny side came into the townlands on a day before a fair and he got clear away with most of the stock of one of our fighting families....(MORE LATER).

THE BETRAYAL OF 1916 -



- REVISIONISM EXPOSED.....

From 'IRIS' magazine, Easter 1991.

By Martin Spain.

De Valera concentrated on removing the last vestiges of overt British rule in the 26 Counties , for instance running down the office of Governor General , provoking the 'Economic War' by refusing to pay any more land annuities and abolishing the Oath of Allegiance. On the substantive question of tackling the very real British presence in the northeastern corner of Ireland, de Valera copped out.

His republicanism was one with a very small 'r' , and he proved just as adept as his Cumann na nGaedheal predecessors at repressing republicans. He accepted the de facto partition of the country * while making pious claims of sovereignty over all of Ireland in his 1937 Constitution **.

The revisionist school owes much to the latent sense of guilt felt by the Irish establishment in relation to the Six Counties ; the 'I'm all right Jack' approach taken by the leadership in the South to the pogroms , gerrymandering and paramilitary oppression of the likes of the B-Specials suffered by nationalists ruled by the Unionist ascendency from Stormont left the ground ripe for the revisionist school in the 1970's.....

(* - At the time he wrote that piece [ie 1991] , the author and his party, Provisional Sinn Féin, were five years in to having recognised partition by stating , in 1986, their intention to operate within the political parameters of the 26-County partitioned State / ** - a State Constitution which the author and his party abide by!)(MORE LATER).


MY FRIEND , THE ENEMY....



In 1922 , former Irish republicans requested assistance from the British Army in an action intended to secure a military and political position for themselves in the 'pecking order' of a then new British-supported Statelet. At the time, those that called-in ex-'enemy' equipment did so, they claimed , 'to save lives in the long run'.

And now , 91 years after that fact, former republicans with that same Free State mentality have done it again : they requested that "....the (British Army) Ministry of Defence send helicopters.." but, this time, it was to 'do battle' against the weather. For humanitarian reasons , of course, but doing so begs at least two questions : why, up to now, did Provisional Sinn Féin consider it taboo in the past to request such assistance from those they would then have regarded as 'the enemy' (and, indeed, would have defended and excused attacks on people like that) and however did we manage in the past in such bad weather before it was deemed 'acceptable' to request aid from the British Army ?

By their actions in this instance , Provisional Sinn Féin have set a precedent with which they can integrate themselves further into the 'establishment' (and not only in the Six Counties, but in Westminster, Dublin and Washington, too) and have greatly assisted the British in their 'Normalisation' process. But then, as history has shown, it is only 'normal' behaviour for 'poachers turned gamekeepers' to behave like that, in their rush to exorcise their past.


LABOURING UNDER AN ILLUSION.

The State Labour Party's Death Warrant - irrevocable.

They are worried , and rightly so : they cheered , slagged and slow-hand-clapped from the sidelines both in Leinster House and outside of that IMF HQ as the Greens were being wiped out , assured by comments from ex-Sticks Rabbitte and Gilmore that the same fate would never be encountered by their State Labour Party , as it was 'a bottom-up policy-led fully democratic party that listened to and was guided by its membership and voters...' etc etc.

Well , if they are listening to their membership and voters then the leadership of the farce that is the State Labour Party will know that the game is up - there is nothing they can do now to reverse the trend. That leadership should now overtly (instead of covertly) go all out to feather its own nest and place 'its people' on even more State Boards and quangos in the hope that , in the next few years or so, those so placed will be able to return the favour by at least spinning some 'good news' stories about that Party , thereby helping to ensure their return to Leinster House. Or, at least , to some county councils around the State, for starters.

Those who still doubt that the 'colour' of that Party is red will have their doubts dismissed at the next election , local or 'General' , by the splattering of blood in the count centres. And that's a pretty picture : red on a Green background ! And , while we are on the subject of the doomed State Labour Party , what do Eamonn Gilmore and Tom Cruise have in common ? They are both facing 'Oblivion'.


3RD APRIL 1925 : THE UNIFORM CHANGES BUT THE ATTITUDE REMAINS.

From this.....A member of the Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP), a British creation in Ireland.

...to this -

A member of the State 'Garda Síochána' , a Free State creation in Ireland.

A history of the former (DMP) will show that between 1836 and 1925 , approximately 13,000 men passed through its ranks , some of whom were 'awarded' the 'King's Police Medal' whilst others transferred to the DMP from the 'London Metropolitan Police'. Other like-minded colleagues joined the gang , having developed a taste for it in the RIC. This group changed uniforms again on this day (3rd April) in 1925 , and again changed its name - to that of the 'Garda Síochána' , but kept its by-now infamous attitude : to defend the State - whether British or the Westminster-permitted 'Free State' in Ireland - by the same methods.

And these are the methods that Irish republicans and other 'Lefties' , as the State see us , have experienced from that State militia , whatever it may call itself. Since their inception , the State 'Police Force' have attempted to present themselves as a 'neutral' body , dedicated to 'keeping peace' in society , regardless of the circumstances : the truth , as those of us who have 'dared' to challenge this unjust system , is (as per those four links) much different - they see their position as one in which to preserve the status quo , whether same is dictated to them from Westminster or Leinster House. They may not know it yet but one day (hopefully!) soon, they will have to change again , but this time it will be more than just a change of uniform.


MORE PICS FROM THE GPO , EASTER MONDAY 1st APRIL 2013....



...can be viewed here. There are more 'out there' , and videos , and if I get links to them I'll post them on this blog as soon as possible and, whilst searching around this interweb thingy for them , our 'Junior' came across this -



- the Memorial Card issued for Pádraig Pearse. Similar items can be viewed here.


Thanks for reading, Sharon.

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