Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Funny who you bump into..
As spotted by esmereldavillalobos. A certain heir to the British throne and his wife are visiting Northern Ireland and today they stopped by the Fivemiletown Creamery in County Tyrone, where, according to the NIO statement, they went on to meet, among others, the Sinn Féin MP for the area, Ms Michelle Gildernew MP MLA [shurely shome mishtake? - Ed] Update A mistake it was. Red faces at the NIO? They’ve now removed Ms Gildernew’s name from the published list.
From the NIO statement -
Notes to Editors
On arrival TRH were met by His Grace The Duke of Abercorn KG, Lord-Lieutenant of County Tyrone and went on to meet;
Dr William Stewart, Sheriff for County Tyrone
Councillor Norman Badger, Deputy Chairman Dungannon District Council
Mr John Campbell, Chief Executive Dungannon District Council
Ms Michelle Gildernew MP MLA, Member of Parliament for Fermanagh and South TyroneMr David Cairns MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Mr Pat Toal, Permanent Secretary Department of Agriculture and Rural Development
Mr Ian McClure, Chairman Fivemiletown Creamery
Mr Mervyn McCaughey, Managing Director Fivemiletown Creamery
Pete Baker @ 02:10 PM
Michelle seems to be following in her grandmother’s tracks by ‘making history’… but would her grandmother not be turning in her grave.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 02:29 PMI bet that was the NIO’s guest list and not necessarily those who actually attended.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 02:55 PMBig deal...other members of her party (Sinn Fein) are hoping to form part of the government in the six counties, still officially under the jurisdiction of the crown...so this is very old, old news…
Acceptance of the Good Friday Agreement necessitated (for now) the acceptance of continued British interference in the affairs of Ireland, and with that the acceptance of its institutions and its leaders...unpalatable as that (or they!) may seem.
Do Unionists not realise what a big deal it was (is) for Republicans to have accepted Stormont, the GFA, etc.; what a swallowing of pride was necessary for peace to occur? This is just one (hopefully temporary) part of all that…Should she have boycotted them, do you think?
For what, symbolism? And at the same time her party colleagues take their seats in a parliament sanctioned by the crown’s govt…All the while the eye is distracted from the real stomach churning hypocrisy of Unionists. To deny a seat to Sinn Fein the UUP (for all its talk of decommissioning and not talking to terrorists) has hooked up with the PUP/UVF.
Far more damaging, I would think, the fact that the UUP now has an armed wing. This IS news. WHy not focus on this. The stench of hypocrisy is overwhelming…Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:01 PMBlather
“I bet that was the NIO’s guest list and not necessarily those who actually attended.”
Which is why I emphasised the according to the NIO statement, although it does claim that is who they “went on to meet”..
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:04 PMSS
The stench of hypocrisy is overwhelming…
I couldn’t agree with you more… ahem. The whole place is getting a bit whiffy, innit? If she can meet the future monarch, why not take a seat at Westminster - you can’t have it all ways.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:05 PMThis shows another weakness of bloggers, if its not online they can’t think of other ways to check facts.
Ring Sinn Fein and I’m sure they confirm no meeting took place. You know using that thing called a telephone.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:08 PMeh, its not on the website now folks..
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:08 PMSS
“Far more damaging, I would think, the fact that the UUP now has an armed wing. This IS news. WHy not focus on this. The stench of hypocrisy is overwhelming…”
You mean something like this? - “a real issue for Assembly members about the PUP’s links to the UVF”
Plenty of room for focus on both.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:08 PMPoor old Charles, eh? In the name of duty, he really does have to meet some dreadful people.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:09 PMCheck the link again, her name is now off the NIO list of meeters.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:10 PMrubbish
You’re missing the point of the emphasis in the original post.
The NIO issued the statement as was. It was their error that was being highlighted.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:10 PMMove on, nothing to see here. Never was but bloggers don’t fact check so you get the occasional bullshit post.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:12 PMSome Admin Assistant typing in invitees names instead of attendees? Big deal. Could have been cleared up with a phonecall instead of allowing the hard of thinking to go off down ridiculous rabbit trails.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:15 PMSheesh..
*shakes head*
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:17 PM“why not take a seat at Westminster - you can’t have it all ways.”
A seat at Westminster is a seat in a UK, i.e., unionist, parliament and taking a seat there would be to acknowledge the union. Taking seats in an Irish parliament, albeit at Stormont, and albeit (for now) under the auspices of the British govt. (and hence crown), is different...it is a parliament in Ireland for Irish people.
It is not, as in Westminster, the situation where a few scattered Irishmen and women battle for attention amid 600 odd English, Welsh and Scottish MPs…
It can be considered a pragmatic, as well as principled stand not to take seats at Westminster. Far more useful to have MPs in Ireland, speaking for Irish people in an Irish parliament than be drowned out, and ignored in the parliament of a neighbouring country. If the de-facto acceptance of continued ‘union’ of the six counties with the UK is necessary for Irishmen and women to wield power in the six counties, then that is a price that Sinn Fein have obviously been willing to pay. It is called pragmetism, but it is not hypocrisy. Hypocrisy would be to speak words like ‘Republicanism’, ‘United Ireland’, etc., while doing nothing to work towards those aims. Sinn Fein cannot be said to not be working for unity, it is an absurd charge…Meeting the future king of England in Fermanagh in no way contradicts Sinn Fein’s support for a United Ireland but merely accepts the reality of the situation. As I say, should she have boycotted the event, while at the same time her colleagues take seats in Stormont? It would be absurd. It is not absurd to meet the representative of a foreign power, quite another to be expected to take an elected seat in their parliament (when you are working to build a working one in one part of your own country).
As I say, this is a smokescreen to take the heat of the true hypocrites, the UUP and basically all unionists for being willing to deal with one set of ‘terrorists’ but not another...sickening…
Definition of hypocrisy:
“The practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess”Pretty much sums up unionists when it come to not dealing with ‘terrorists’.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:24 PMhaha i love this wee site.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:25 PMMistake or not, it would have been a sign of maturity and pragmatism for her to have met him. It would have meant nothing…
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 03:27 PMKarl Rove
“Poor old Charles, eh? In the name of duty, he really does have to meet some dreadful people.”
This would be Charles the Fornicator, would it? :)
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 06:25 PMPete
I got it ;)
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 06:39 PM“Red faces at the NIO”
Why?
Who gives a monkeys about obvious administrative errors in NIO press releases?
I hope no jumped up arse sees fit to reprimand the civil servant making an understandable mistake due to this rubbish.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 06:51 PMUh, thanks to David Michael for his telling point that, ah, Prince Charles has had sex. I’m guessing this is also David’s way of telling us that he hasn’t.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 09:11 PM“Uh, thanks to David Michael for his telling point that, ah, Prince Charles has had sex. I’m guessing this is also David’s way of telling us that he hasn’t.”
Uh, I’m guessing that Karl Rove doesn’t know the meaning of “fornication” and the circumstances in which Charles engaged in it. I’m guessing that Karl is an ignorant shit.
But I could be wrong.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 09:54 PMGuys.
The ball?
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 10:10 PMYou’re right, Pete. I don’t think much of unprovoked personal attacks either. That’s why I don’t stand for them.
And less of the “guys” please. Tackle the culprit.
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 11:12 PMCome on, guys! I just happened to notice that C&C;were going to my wife’s home town and there they were supposedly meeting a republican MP!
Shome mishtake shurely
Take it in the fashion in which the point was made. The list was there, the NIO cocked it up, the point was valid at the time it was made. This isn’t about corroboration, the info was on the NIO website in black and white and I thought it was of some interest to you all. Personally I think it would be progressive for some informal meeting to take place but then again I think it would be progressive for SF to argue the cases of all their constituents in the House of Commons, not just the abstentionist majority that vote for them.
Then again, what do I know?
Sheesh, Pete ;)
Posted by on May 16, 2006 @ 11:14 PM
