Adams: Safe at home, vulnerable away…
Worth noting in passing Squinter’s straw poll of sentiment in West Belfast suggests that Gerry Adams’ support is undiminished in his own political heartland… It’s a point I made myself on GMU last Thursday (about 8.20)… It, I would suggest, indicates there is no immediate threat to Adams in the Westminsters (the SDLP are nowhere and ‘other’ republicans have made zero progress in developing a functional alternative to SF’s strategy)…
The ‘political problem’ has more to do with wider party morale than Adams personal fortune in the short termn per se… (In East Tyrone and South Armagh, Slugger hears that people are much less impressed with the party leader’s response underfire than those in his own parish, so to speak)… And the democratic centralism of the party means the party will not bend easily to opinions of the media, new or old…
It remains to be seen just how (if at all) it will affect the party’s (ill concieved IMHO) attempt to rack up pressure on the DUP over the devolution of policing and justice…
Enabled = Allowed him to go on working in youth projects decades after becoming aware that he was a paedophile. A bit like the way the Catholic church moved priests around.
Promoted = Liam Adams was being promoted as a youth worker in APRN decades after GA became aware that he was a paedo. Dy’a think GA hasn’t content control over Provda?
Protected = Allowed for LA to live in various accommodations provided by the RM in Donegal and Dundalk when people guilty of similar crimes but not related to Gerry would have been exiled or shot.
It’s not rocket science, unless of course you are some form of rockethead.
Those around him certainly were, and with much evidence to prove it. However as Adams delivered quite poorly on republicanism, and what was wanted, he fell very short of some expectations, that is no reason to jump to conspiracy theories and believe he was compromised. I don’t think Adams was an agent nor an unthinking tool for the British, I do however think his options were limited as to what he could get. But this was always the case if one looks at this realistically. There was never going to be a military win maybe what he got was as good as it would get? The RM certainly held out for long enough over the arms issue. What did you expect he would come up with? Did you believe the RM could deliver a UI and when that didn’t happen look for someone to scapegoat as an agent who compromised it?
Paul McMahon, agreed re others needing to answer some questions, and it was right to question GA and his role in this. It took courage for the young mother to go public, and good luck to her in getting justice and closure.
Only Asking, you’re deflection is noted.
No deflection Nevin. Do you have an answer?
Kathy C, Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness and Jackie McDonald are and have been a protected species for quite some time so far as London, Dublin and, presumably, Washington are concerned. They are people they can do business with; they may also be people they have compromising information on.
I’d be answering a deflection – from my perspective, Only Asking
Enabled = Allowed him to go on working in youth projects decades after becoming aware that he was a paedophile.
As has already been noted the then RUc and social services have questions to answer.
I’d be answering a deflection – from my perspective, Only Asking
I’m still interested Nevin
Can’t be accused of letting someone else of the hook can I?
“The RM certainly held out for long enough over the arms issue”
IMO 9/11 brought about an RM ‘change of heart’. Pressure from Washington made the difference despite any claims made by the DUP.
“saying the orange order marches were akin to the KKK marching in harlem and theorange order was a hate organazation and then a few months stating the orange order had a right to march in a United Ireland (why the switch???)”
Kathy C:
You’re other examples are worthy enough for speculation, but the above is likely to be political posturing. SF went from a militant organization to a political one. From (trying) to drive the Brits out to trying to convince the “other” side that a United Ireland is in their interest and their traditions would be included.
Only Asking, and there was me thinking you sought to impale me on a deflection hook
IMO 9/11 brought about an RM ‘change of heart’.
Thats true.
Only Asking, and there was me thinking you sought to impale me on a deflection hook
never never never nevin
“SF went from a militant organization to a political one.” – IRIA
In reality, they went from rejecting the legitimacy of the constitutional status of Northern Ireland to accepting it because that is what those who are charged with defending the realm led them to do:
Here is the constitutional status of Northern Ireland as declared in the Ireland Act, 1949:
“It is hereby declared that Northern Ireland remains part of His Majesty’s dominions and of the United Kingdom and it is hereby affirmed that in no event will Northern Ireland or any part thereof cease to be part of His Majesty’s dominions and of the United Kingdom, without the consent of the Parliament of Northern Ireland.”
Here is the constitutional status of Northern Ireland as declared in the The Northern Ireland Act, 1998:
“It is hereby declared that Northern Ireland in its entirety remains part of the United Kingdom and shall not cease to be so without the consent of a majority of the people of Northern Ireland voting in a poll held for the purposes of this section in accordance with Schedule 1.”
No change. The only difference is that their supporters rejected the legitimacy of British Rule before the Provos but now they don’t.
Here is the constitutional status of Northern Ireland as declared in the The Northern Ireland Act, 1998:
“It is hereby declared that Northern Ireland in its entirety remains part of the United Kingdom and shall not cease to be so without the consent of a majority of the people of Northern Ireland voting in a poll held for the purposes of this section in accordance with Schedule 1.”
No change. The only difference is that their supporters rejected the legitimacy of British Rule before the Provos but now they don’t.
Posted by Alias on Dec 29, 2009 @ 05:41 PM
This post is off topic.I think NI would now be better of in some kind of agreed Ireland.A fedral Ireland would suit me.The antics of the TUV and others really does turn me off
No man is indispensable. Be you Gerry Adams or an other.
Gerry is getting altogether too complex.
This complexity is not an asset to a politician or his/her party.
Neither is the complexity an asset to the Republican people over whom Adams assumes leadership. The complexity and the manner in which it opens up avenues of compromise would suggest that Adams has been an asset of an entirely different nature; to the detriment of Ireland and the Irish people.
Squinter brings to mind the words of Mandy Rice Davies, “he would say that wouldn’t he”.
Questioning whether Gery Adams will ‘survive’ ignores the logic of asking what he will ‘survive’ as. He will regain his parliamentary seat in London and will remain president of Sinn Fein for a while longer but how will he be seen outside West Belfast? Will he be viewed as solid and dependable in all circumstances or as a ‘bit dodgy’? Will he be viewed as the great ‘peace processor’ or as the great ‘coverer upper’? In the circles Squinter moves there may well be great sympathy for him and I’ve found some of that in the border area too but I’ve found far more disquiet and, among the older people, also a certain disgust that Gerry brought his dead father into the equation. It’s very noticeable that no leading Sinn Feiners are rushing to speak up for Gerry and maybe, just maybe, they are waiting to see how the wind blows before committing themselves.
We must remember too that Aine wanted us to know how she felt about Gerry when she said, “I ended up saying look do you know what it is, you have failed me again, when twenty years later I’ve asked you to do one thing.” How many will now feel that Gery is the man to turn to in a crisis?
“never never never nevin
”
Only Asking, are you by any chance called Paisley? …
posted by Kathy Collins
Hi Nevin, The Shah of Iran was a protected person and looked what happened to him.
Hi IRIA, here’s where gerr lost it RE: the orange order marches…it they are like the KKK political posturing or not…the KKK/oo has no place in the world let alone in Ireland. In the US…the politics of today…have members of Congress who were even members once of the KKK have to state they are evil. Gerr is trying to give the hardcore protestant unionist what they
want…eventually to say they are great and let them march….
Personally, I can’t wait for the holiday recess to be over…and let Gerr walk into rooms and meetings and let him look at allllll they eyes glaring at him….thinking…thinking…wonder how he’ll take it. Normally he doesn’t take or ‘allow’ any opinions other than his own…now people are going to be looking at him with alot of ….ick………
Kathy C.
I agree with you regarding the KKK. Yes, Senator Byrd (D-WV) was once in the KKK, but now he’s evolved…big time. I’m no fan of the OO and would like to see their marches stopped, but I don’t see GA’s evolution on that as being that drastic. If you want a United Ireland, you’ll need to appeal to Protestants.
posted by Kathleen Collins
Hi IRIA, thanks for your reply. I agree with you …that with a United Ireland …protestants have to be considered….but I wouldn’t want to appeal to their hatred of Catholics. There are many good things the protestants can contribute and have contributed…but the orange order marches…isn’t one of them.
I’m getting very frustrated at people trying to bring in other aspects of the troubles to discredit Gerry Adams when this contained story is enough. People who argue about his attitude towards the OO for example as evidence of his tendency to lie and backtrack do themselves a disservice.
Many supporters of GA will read these attacks on his character as attacks on the republican movement and will close ranks around their kingpin.
This story is disgusting enough as it is. Keeping digging as you know more is yet to come. The Dundalk story may give lie to Gerrys claim to have been estranged from the his brother but it’s the Clonard story that is most chilling.
Sinn Fein have shouted from the rooftops calling for the heads of bishops in the wake of the murphy report, in fact from the Ryan report. They’ve done so more than most in the hope of achieving some cheap electoral gains amongst a particularly angry working class. Now to have their leader know about and promote a suspected peadofile as a youth worker in a monastary, the hypocrisy is nauseating. Gerry may have been the only the person who knew of the allegations, to know what Liam was doing as late as 2006. He was certainly best positioned to advise those in Clonard. This is every bit as bad as a bishop moving around a suspect paedophule priest.
The point I’m making here is that this single issue needs to be driven home to the front rooms of his constituents. The testis a distraction
The rest is a distraction*
Apparently new allegations tomorrow in the Sunday Tribune that Liam Adams was more than a minor member of SF…..according to Suzanne Breen
Sinn Fein will go the same way as the Workers party though less rats will be able to jump onto a passing ship. When Adams goes, it will be the end of an era. And there is no one in the wings as the Republican Movement (remember that term) was democratic centralism on steroids.
This whole paedophile- Nutting squad thing will expedite matters. The next big political event is the Southern general election. Hopefully it will be bye bye pedos.