Wednesday, August 06, 2008
“…no longer share the belief…”
The Irish News reports Dungannon SF councillor, Barry Montheith has resigned from the party (subs reqd). He stated:
“This is due to an increased disillusionment with current Sinn Fein strategy. I no longer share the belief that this strategy will lead to Irish Unification....It is not just solely about policing. I am disillusioned with the current political strategy...”
He represents Dungannon Town DEA and intends to keep his council seat. Montieth was once SF’s youngest councillor and served a number of terms as Mayor. Michelle Gildernew said the resignation was not a surprise and challenged him to resign his seat to enable the co-option of a SF councillor.
Fair Deal @ 09:18 AM
Maybe Unification isn’t all its cracked up to be…
i mean in this day and age would it be such a big catch?
I hate the road signs down their too - bit too euro-ey for me… and there are tons of them too - every bend has like six signs encouraging you to take the corner.... strange…
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 09:34 AMdown ‘there’!! sorry
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 09:35 AMAll parties from time to time have councillors who resign.
Often the stated reason is idealistic, while sometimes the real reason is actually a failure to make career advancement within a party that draws in such a large pool of talented and enthusiastic people. Most people will be asking: Barry who?
There is, obviously, a role for everyone. But in all of the work in which Sinn Féin is engaged, nobody is on an automatic escalator to advanced positions of responsibility within the party.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 09:39 AMdublin sf supporter
quit the Barry bashing! The problem is you live in Dublin and therefore believe that soon your brave comrades from the North will be joining you. However the fact is that they are tied in knots in a system that means the will be servants of the British Crown for years to come.
Any truth in the rumours that Barry is joining a unionist party?
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 09:48 AMThank you, dublinsfsupporter, for that trenchant, detailed analysis of trends in political resignations which no doubt you have a bucket-load of data to support.
You conclude that while the stated reason for resignation is often idealistic, in reality it is often caused by frustration at lack of career progress. Very good.
Now can you tell us please how this might reflect upon Councillor Montheith’s resignation? Are we meant to conclude that he was lying when he stated his reasons which had more to do with his frustration at the lack of progress Sinn Féin was making towards its central aim of unification?
We could of course accuse him of political naivety but then that might reflect back on a party which attracts politically naive young people in the first place and propels them into elected office.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 09:54 AMBarry who?
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 09:57 AMThe interesting thing here is that Barry Monteith’s resignation follows the resignations of quite a number of long-standing and well-respected Republican activists from the east Tyrone area earlier this year. However, the media appear to be unaware of those earlier resignations and the SF organisation has been quite content that those resignations attracted no publicity, particularly given that some of those personalities were very well-known.
I’m just surprised that he didn’t resign earlier as his disenchantment with SF policy has been well-known for some time.
I imagine that this drift of good, hard-working personnel away from SF is going to continue albeit on a gradual basis. The real impact, however, is going to be at the grass-roots active supporter level, which SF is dependent upon at elections, as each resignation usually leads to the “local team” of such people also deciding to throw in the towel.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:00 AMa wile melee,
Dont worry you’ll get used to the km/h very quickly and is much easier to work with and makes much more sense than the out-dated imperial system that nobody else uses except the British and the Americans. I like the fact that they put too many rather than too few signs, but if i ever came off me bike I’d have a better chance of hitting one! Dont forget re-unification could mean we finally can change to right side driving in line with most of the world. That would be more difficult to get used to! I find roads in the republic much safer than in the north it was the opposite about 20 years ago, how things have changed.Regarding this thread, i find that Sinn Fein is bleeding its members due to dismal assembly performance, and this is a very worrying trend for unionists who wish to work the assembly and pro agreement nationalists. More and more nationalists feel that the unionists are still dominating the assembly and are blocking every Irish agenda even those that pose no threat to them such as the Irish language act. When the census can prove that the 10% of NI can speak or have some knowledge of Irish then it is a blatant show of sectarianism that this act was not allowed to pass. However bringing down the assembly is not the answer either i think both governments need to step in from time to time as mediators. Unionists have to understand that NI is not Finchley as one very stupid person once said it was, and unionists make up only half the population of NI. Unionism is beginning to understand that without the troubles they are no longer capable of justifying their poor behavior and the British are wising up to that fact.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:01 AMHe is well liked round Dungannon, though one wonders what the straw was, as the Shins have been slow for some time.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:10 AM“When the census can prove that the 10% of NI can speak or have some knowledge of Irish”
On a point of information, the census proves nothing. It’s based solely on what people claim.
No mention from Barry on what strategy he thinks would deliver Irish unification (if any). Back to the bomb and the bullet?
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:13 AM“That would be more difficult to get used to!”
when i was in Italy i found the driving fine - that is largely down to driving a left hand drive car though.. the transition was smooth…
back here that would be a lot of cars to sell/replace with lhd and who would buy them? Think of the carbon footprint of replacing every rhd car with a lhd car!!!
its hard to get an argument for reunification isn’t it… lol :)
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:18 AMIn fact I would like to indulge in a bit of Barry bashing, why has this scoundrel not got his tie done properly?! disgraceful
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:20 AMThe SDLP thrived electorally for decades without a serious party machine. No reason for PSF not to do the same, even though they are a very long way away from having that problem.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:30 AMpoor gerry; since his dismal performance in the southern election last year and his balls-up of negotiating the triple lock mechanism which allows the dup to run rings round him, he hasn’t been a very inspirational person.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:33 AMWhen the census can prove that the 10% of NI can speak or have some knowledge of Irish
I once read Dominic Bradley’s website and learned the words Dia duit, am I one of this 10%.
Perhaps I should form a pressure group called “Irish speakers against the Irish Language Act”
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:38 AM“poor gerry; since his dismal performance in the southern election last year and his balls-up of negotiating the triple lock mechanism which allows the dup to run rings round him, he hasn’t been a very inspirational person. “
Gerry’s position is secure. The Lisbon strategy has given the party a real boost in the 26 counties and the strategy of using Mary Lou McDonald in 26 county campaigns is paying handsome dividends. Expect her high and strong profile to win Sinn Féin a Euro MEP seat for Dublin in 2009. It’s all about opposing the European Union.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:40 AM“using Mary Lou McDonald in 26 county campaigns is paying handsome dividends. Expect her high and strong profile to win Sinn Féin a Euro MEP seat for Dublin in 2009.”
Should that not be retaining her seat, dsfs?
Although its unfair to try and claim credit for the NO vote as a victory for the ‘Lisbon strategy’ as there were a myriad of reasons why people rejected Lisbon. Even the majority of Labour voters against it, something which that party’s leadership will have to come to terms with if it too expects to make advances.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:54 AMWhere Next? I would describe a retention as a win, moreso, given that we will be in a context where the number of Euro seats in Dublin is being reduced from 4 to 3, and Sinn Féin will have to win against a party that currently has a seat.
Sinn Féin was the only major party to support a NO vote in the 26 counties and this has emeerged as something about Sinn Féin that sets it apart from all other major parties. It’s all about opposing the EU.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:58 AMBut PSF policy is not to oppose the EU. Nor even the Treaty. Which they wanted renegotiated and not scrapped.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 11:10 AMGaribaldy, yes, renegotiation.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 11:11 AMS.F,s strategy appears to be ‘sowing confusion wheneve possible’, so it is no wonder Barry is disillusioned.
In todays Irish News councillor B Curran who is also chairman of the Newry and Mourne D.P.P.(which he has presented as being an important and powerful position) describes the recent arrests in the Paul Quinn murder case as “heavy handed” and “politically motivated”. He goes on to say that “There has been an unparalled level of support for the investigation into Paul Quinn’s murder.”
Then he tells us that the “community” believe the arrests are as a resut of finger pointing rather than police work by the Gardai.(despite their ‘unparralled’ support)
Therefore, according to Brendan, the police forces he and his party support are rotten to the core, arrest people just to embarrass Sinn Fein, arrest on innuendo and “finger pointing” and so on. Perhaps some shinner , maybe the Dublin person will explain this, should we support these rotten forces or not, if not haven’t S.F. got it badly wrong?Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 11:15 AM“Any truth in the rumours that Barry is joining a unionist party?”
Doubtful considering he’s just resigned from a Unionist party :)
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 11:28 AMdunreavynomore: Sinn Féin support the police investigation, but obviously this does not mean that Sinn Féin cannot hold the police to account, or criticise aspects of police performance; it should be remembered that Sinn Féin joined the policing board preciecly to carry out the important job of holding policing to account.
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 11:29 AMWhy did he stay for so long. A blind man could see that sf’s current position will never lead to a UI. How could someone who studied politics not have realised that from the beginnig?
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 11:40 AMAre SF really so desparate that they’re claiming the No vote as *their* achievement? As opposed to the achievement of an, in essence, smooth-talking British millionaire, gifted a win by Bertie’s terminal, toxic reverse-Midas touch?
Posted by on Aug 06, 2008 @ 11:51 AM
