Saturday, December 30, 2006
On the dawning of this next historic moment we are awaiting
A little tongue-in-cheek rebel music:
Everybody, sing!
The Impartial Police Force
If you’re in Andytown or the Creggan we’ll greet you with tiocfaidh ár lá,
Oh we’re nice and polite, by day and by night, we’ll answer to “níl agus tá”?
Don’t mind the machine guns and pistols we wear them now only for show,
And if ever they’re used - Orange men we’ll abuse and we’ll teach them the bigots own law
Oh we are the impartial police force, the guardians of Ulster are we,
We’ll protect you Sinn Feiners, yon Fenians and Taigs, we’re known as reformed RUC,
Now some of you Fenians may wonder, what a sudden conversion we had,
On the 12fth of July, a big flash in the sky - we were all drove impartially mad!
Now come all of ye Born Again Christians, oh ye’d better not give any jaw,
For we don’t give a hoot, the plastic we shoot, you’ll feel the long arm of the law,
And all you Sinn Feiners and Councils you’ll get a fair crack from the wand,
And don’t take any crap from those UDR chaps - we’ll teach them what’s right and what’s wrong!
Oh we are the impartial police force, the guardians of Ulster are we,
We’ll protect you Sinn Feiners, yon Fenians and Taigs, we’re known as reformed RUC,
Now some of you Fenians may wonder, what a sudden conversion we had,
On the 12fth of July, a big flash in the sky - we were all drove impartially mad!
There are some of our members now walking the roads in South County Armagh,
And sure up in the glens we’re all making friends - on the tricolour now there’s no bar,
Now some go unconscious for hours and then they go into a daze
Well they walk to the maze and they open the cage and release all the Prisoners Of War!
Oh we are the impartial police force, the guardians of Ulster are we,
We’ll protect you Sinn Feiners, yon Fenians and Taigs, we’re known as reformed RUC,
Now some of you Fenians may wonder, what a sudden conversion we had,
On the 12fth of July, a big flash in the sky - we were all drove impartially mad!
Now we’ve lots of friends down in Dublin - no pals of the Loyalists are we,
Oh never again will we shoot Fenian men, with Papists we’ll sit down to tea,
We’re just like the Garda in Dublin or the coppers in New York you see,
Oh we’re Herman’s brigade and we’re all well behaved - the impartial police force are we!
Oh we are the impartial police force, the guardians of Ulster are we,
We’ll protect you Sinn Feiners, yon Fenians and Taigs, we’re known as reformed RUC,
Now some of you Fenians may wonder, what a sudden conversion we had,
On the 12fth of July, a big flash in the sky - we were all drove impartially mad!
Rusty Nail @ 07:57 PM
lies
If you have some positive proposals for an alternative do feel free to share them.
I know unrelenting negativity is easier but rather than have you speak for the patriot dead when you are conspicuously not one of them it would be fascinating from a political and a psychological perspective to see an attempt at constructive thinking from you for once.
The opposition to the Sinn Fein strategy has nothing to offer. The wasted years of Adams-hating could have been used to come up with an alternative (can we agree that burning down furniture shops is not an alternative?) to put before the people.
But individually and collectively these people have nothing.
They won’t even come out in favour of armed struggle and they refuse to put forward the only other rational alternative which is to refuse to participate in government north or south. The boycott strategy that caused Sinn Fein to almost disappear in the past and which makes Ruairi O’Bradaigh such an irrelevence today.
You can spend the rest of your life telling the shaving mirror that you are the real government of Ireland or you can get involved in the most promising and exciting republican project ever.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 11:32 AMSolidarity and Greetings to all opponents of the Crown!(& PSF)
Sinn Fein want to address the 15 Members of their ruling circus who did not vote in favour of the PSNI
No word on the ragging arguements currently going on in South Derry & Tyrone - as it would appear that an independent Army is ready in the wings to take PSF on on both a Political & Defensive front.
Any chance the Shinners will take notice or is the brainwashing fully complete?
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 12:19 PMthe mettle of the ceasefire soldiers is wanting if mere online needling from a former fru sends them off with their tail between their legs, one understands why they are ceasefire soldiers, truceleers not volunteers. martin ingram goes ding-a-ling and they run to the moderators threatening to take their ball away with them if something isn’t done. boo hoo! how sad!
a bit of an overinflated sense of self importance there!
what is worse is that these ceasefire
whingerssoldiers want us to believe they will lead us to a united ireland via their great political acumen! if they cannot take a bit of stick online, what can they take in negotiations? perhaps that explains the pickle sinn fein is in!Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 12:20 PMHenry,
You shinners no longer make me angry, in one thing ‘ingram’ is correct, you have become a source of amusement, for if the dissidents are such an irrelevancy, why do you not just ignore us, why do you feel the need to reply when ever a dissident post up a criticism of SFs leaders.
You seem to believe that good politics is based on always responding to whatever the power elite’s propose, no matter what compromise this may entail making. Which with respect is nonsense, some times it is far better to sit and await the outcome of events, the more so if you are not in a position to influence them favorable, which over policing SF is not, and the nationalist working classes understand this only to well, hence the laughter at your party’s expense.
Your Party should have stood back and demanded that your electoral mandate be respected, as it spoke for itself. Your MLAs were elected to office without administering the PSNI; and that should be enough in any democracy worthy of the name. What Adams has done is not only foolish but it is extremely dangerous, as he has accepted the right of a central government to cherry pick who can participate ‘fully’ in the democratic process after the polls have closed and the votes counted. In other words he has allowed Blair to decide who is fit for government, when only the electorate should be allowed to do so in a democracy.
Some time in politics it is better for all, if politicians batten down the hatches and endure, after all is this not what the DUP has been doing for decades only to come out on top due to Adams long line of miscalculations.
This has been Adams failure from day one of the peace process, his ego will not allow him to stand back and allow the British to role their dice without him having an input, he must be a player and it was this fact that so attracted him to the SIS in the first place.
Thus the British States gofers in the media have massaged Gerry’s ego at every turn with scraps from the masters table,
We were all told, not least by Gerry that it was his astute negotiations that got the prisoners out of jail, never mind that at the end of every campaign prisoners were released, as if the British were going to continue to bear the cost of keeping thousands of young people in prison when they posed no threats against the State and where they would hatch up countless further operations and become a focus of anti government protest.
What is important is what Adams did not get as none of it would have cost the Brits a dime, but as there was no gain in it for them they kicked it all into the long grass.
For example he did not get the prison records scratched, meaning many types of employment are still barred from ex prisoners, especially those who educated themselves whilst in jail.He did not get the Brits to ask the US government to take former volunteers off the no entry list, top SF politicians yes, plus the odd tout.
The list is bloody endless but I intend detailing it more thoroughly in an article, my point is the only things Adams got the Brit State to agree to is what they had in mind for the north and only then if the unionists rubber stamped it also.
The fact that dissidents point out the above and much more makes us a stone in SF shoe, get used to it, for unlike your man, we mean it when we say we are not going away. You really should stop judging influence by appearing on TV or getting invited to St Pat parties. By using such a criteria, the men and women of 1916 would not have appeared on your radar.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 12:33 PMJust what the debate needs. Cartoons.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 12:36 PM“the most promising and exciting republican project ever.”
Literally weeping with laughter.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 12:50 PMSorry, one more time: supporting a British police force which will execute British law in ‘Northern Ireland’ is the “most promising and exciting republican project ever.”
How low have you set the bar?! property88Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 12:56 PMWas Bobby Sands not in jail for attacking a furniture shop?
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 02:14 PMI know I’m a pesky Liberal and all that, but could we please ban the word ”historic” from our rhetoric?
And perhaps also ”seismic proportions” while we’re at it. We’re good enough at dividing ourselves up along metaphorical fault lines…
In the meantime, to all sluggerettes, I wish you all a very happy, prosperous and stable New Year. May your 2007 be filled with historic moments of seismic proportions…
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 02:29 PMMaybe that’s why he tried politics and won a great victory for republicanism?
This is an argument about tactics elevated to nonsense about non-existent ‘principles’. The republican equivalent to unionist personal abuse and sometimes it can be very hard to tell the difference.
The majority of republicans believe that freedom can be won by the ballot box. You can play at constructing a republican theology until you seem to have worked yourself into an identical position to the securocrats but please let the grownups talk politics in peace.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 02:36 PMIJP
Do you not feel that the recent events are indicative of a historic moment in Irish history? I genuinely believe this, you know, way beyond the rhetoric.And a happy, succesful New Year to you too
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 02:44 PMmickhall
if the dissidents are such an irrelevancy, why do you not just ignore us, why do you feel the need to reply when ever a dissident post up a criticism of SFs leaders.
First of all our posts crossed and my cartoons comment was directed at the two above you.
I would never ignore you because I think your are a thoughtful genuine and intelligent person. I also think your revolutionary socialist outlook in distorting your impression of the peace process.
You seem to believe that good politics is based on always responding to whatever the power elite’s propose, no matter what compromise this may entail making.
Quite the opposite. I believe politics is about the lives of ordinary working people like myself.
Which with respect is nonsense, some times it is far better to sit and await the outcome of events, the more so if you are not in a position to influence them favorable, which over policing SF is not,
That would have left us with direct British rule. I think sharing power with the unionists is much better than that.
and the nationalist working classes understand this only to well, hence the laughter at your party’s expense.
The election will tell us who speaks for working class nationalists.
Your Party should have stood back and demanded that your electoral mandate be respected, as it spoke for itself. Your MLAs were elected to office without administering the PSNI; and that should be enough in any democracy worthy of the name.
Again, direct rule would be the outcome.
What Adams has done is not only foolish but it is extremely dangerous, as he has accepted the right of a central government to cherry pick who can participate ‘fully’ in the democratic process after the polls have closed and the votes counted. In other words he has allowed Blair to decide who is fit for government, when only the electorate should be allowed to do so in a democracy.
In reality the position is that if either unionists or nationalists stay out there will be no government. The British were happy to see Sinn Fein in power with the IRA fully armed if the unionists went along with it.
Some time in politics it is better for all, if politicians batten down the hatches and endure, after all is this not what the DUP has been doing for decades only to come out on top due to Adams long line of miscalculations.
In the end the DUP had to take the only possible deal just like Trimble did. We do too. It is the best that can be agreed by nationalists and unionists. The result of Sinn Fein staying out would have been a drift bak to the SDLP.
This has been Adams failure from day one of the peace process, his ego will not allow him to stand back and allow the British to role their dice without him having an input, he must be a player and it was this fact that so attracted him to the SIS in the first place. Thus the British States gofers in the media have massaged Gerry’s ego at every turn with scraps from the masters table,
Adams has a better political understanding than you do. Leave his ego and other such nonsense out of it and debate the issues. The media have subjecting Gerry Adams to unrelenting personal and political attack for his entire political life.
We were all told, not least by Gerry that it was his astute negotiations that got the prisoners out of jail, never mind that at the end of every campaign prisoners were released, as if the British were going to continue to bear the cost of keeping thousands of young people in prison when they posed no threats against the State and where they would hatch up countless further operations and become a focus of anti government protest.
This is a fine example of each-way bet Adams bashing. The release of prisoners is something that was part of the negotiations for the GFA. If it wasn’t included you would blame Adams but when it is he is accused of self-praise. In fact it was Gerry Kelly who did most of the negotiating about prisoners. And getting Unionists to agree to it was a notable achievement by any negotiating standard.
What is important is what Adams did not get as none of it would have cost the Brits a dime, but as there was no gain in it for them they kicked it all into the long grass.
For example he did not get the prison records scratched, meaning many types of employment are still barred from ex prisoners, especially those who educated themselves whilst in jail.Do you think your strategy of doing nothing will advance that cause?
He did not get the Brits to ask the US government to take former volunteers off the no entry list, top SF politicians yes, plus the odd tout.
Or that one? By the way why does a Socialist put such a high value on going to America?
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 04:10 PMThe list is bloody endless but I intend detailing it more thoroughly in an article, my point is the only things Adams got the Brit State to agree to is what they had in mind for the north and only then if the unionists rubber stamped it also.
A wish-list is fine. How to implement it is the tricky bit. Your position is that all should be for the best in the best of all possible worlds and it’s the fault of Gerry Adams for not making it so. Easy for you.
The fact that dissidents point out the above and much more makes us a stone in SF shoe, get used to it, for unlike your man, we mean it when we say we are not going away.
Don’t go away. Propose an alternative. Put a platform to the people and win support. I’d be delighted to see a strong republican alternative presence in politics.
You really should stop judging influence by appearing on TV or getting invited to St Pat parties. By using such a criteria, the men and women of 1916 would not have appeared on your radar.
As TV hadn’t been invented and the St Pats day party hadn’t either it would have been asking a lot. I’m not even sure radar had.
But what matters now is votes votes votes.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 04:12 PMHenry,
Thanks for your explanation about the cartoons thing, as my mind was spinning trying to get a handle on it. In truth I can understand where your coming from; and from your political stand point, as I judge, it your views are perfectly logical. But as you state, I come at politics from another direction and again you are correct when you say my revolutionary socialist politics are ‘distorting’ my impression of the Peace Process, although of course I would not use the word distorting, far from it in fact, illuminating might be a better word ;)
regards.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 05:34 PMif anyone wants to have a laff check out sevastapol street. there is ‘psni station’ scrawled all over it. how apt.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 05:45 PMDid Bobby Sands conclude that bombing furniture shops was wrong or did he die in defence of a republican right to bomb furniture shops and not be labelled a criminal for it?
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 05:57 PMIngram - are you going to tell us if you handled him or not? You are holding back on something here.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 06:12 PMMark
“I give up. The protection given to some and the utter acceptance of drunken trolling by one idiot. Every discussion ruined by the troll. Tedious, I’m off and I had lots to say. “
Why is it everytime you disagree with someone you always accuse them of being on the piss. Obsessed man, now put your head back into that brown bag and swig that Mundy´s the Ballymurphy nectar.
As for the Wolfe Tonnes, I once saw them play at Castle Bellingham (I think) and wanted to kill them, my ex girl was a mis guided rebel at the time (but great in bed). The Tonnes where shit then and by the sounds of this mopery shit they have got worse.
Why do republicans feel it neccesary to write a fu¡’¨¨¨song for everything.
Feliz ano nuevo amigos
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 08:19 PMJoe.
I have a golden rule mate. Thout shalt protect the good ones and thout shall expose the bad ones.
I doubt very much whether Patsy would be my kind? I tended to compete in the smaller but more exciting pool and from a soldiers point of view more important. The active volunteer.
Shinners were never my cup of tea. I Once Co Handled McGuinness Sinn Fein treasurer in Derry until Bethaney touted on him. He drove me fecking mad with ballot papers and Sinn Fein strategies.
This was in the days when Martin was finding his feet in the political world. All his (public and otherwise) meetings had to be transcribed. I hated that job, it could be 2 O`clock in the morning drinking coffee and having to listen to boring election impersonation issues etc. What I and the rest of the lads in Derry FRU wanted was to stop the gunmen and Bombers not fully understanding how the game was changing.
How naive was that.
Happy New Year To All.
Martin
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 09:08 PMThe Adams-bashers have a very limited view of what Gerry Adams and Sinn Fein are trying to achieve. They think that because SF may support PSNI and go into power-sharing with Unionists ie (shock-horror) the DUP, that the apparent goal of the 30 year war for a united Ireland has been abandoned. So we get nyah-nyah “give Gerry a New Year CBE” from people such as Ingram.
I am puzzled by this view because SF have not abandoned their aim for a 32-county Ireland. Working with Unionists as equals is just an interim step, and an important one. I think that the last election result was the best possible because it gives the loyalist extremists within the DUP an opportunity to engage with their opponents, very reluctantly at the moment, but the time will come when they will have run out of excuses. This would not have happened if the UU had been the major Unionist party.
Durkan is outraged at what he claims is SF’s dilution of the GFA, but to me it seems that SF’s view is that ultimately the GFA does not matter, it is just a temporary agreement. What is important is to get loyalists/unionists to accept that nationalists/catholics/whoever-else-they-perceive-as-a-threat-or-beneath-them-and/or-hellbound-sinners are their equals - and to accept the equality peacefully. Gracious acceptance is not essential.
So while negotiations with the Unionists proceed, SF is also making moves towards a United Ireland. Some SF-dominated councils have already passed motions supporting this and I am sure there are other moves which I haven’t noticed. Some will not happen until after joint power-sharing is achieved.
So I say to you SF-bashers: “Get the broader picture”. Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness have already got it.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 09:09 PMZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 09:24 PMMerrie,
I have never recommended any award for Gerry Adams. I can say with all honesty that I worked hard and long for a team that saved his life on more than one occassion. To which he now acknowledges.
Quote merrie."So I say to you SF-bashers: “Get the broader picture”. Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness have already got it.Unquote
My point in respect to your above statement is why he and Martin did not get the point twenty five years ago when the SDLP were saying exactly what he is today. I have some memorable tapes of Martin calling the SDLP the Super doopers and the stoopes etc and that political elections would not win the war.I remember him directing targetting against Mr John Hume from Sinn Fein Offices in Cable street.
My regret is that a lot of good decent loyal people on ALL sides lost their lives in this conflict needlessly.That saddens me.
That said. A new Year is Dawning shortly Merrie!. It is perhaps time for a moments reflection upon the last thiry odd years by ALL of us. I intend to make this New Year resolution a requirement that I temper my contempt and revulsion at certain Sinn Fein members corruption and be more constructive with my comments.
I will leave the rest to Sinn Fein.
A very Happy New Year To All.
Martin Ingram
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 09:32 PMSheila
As Father Dougal memorably said to Father Ted: “I’m very cynical as you know"…
Conflict fatigue will only get us so far down the road. Real vision is needed for the last stretch. I see little of that among our political leaders - indeed, I see little of it in our society at large.
But to end the year on a positive note: we’ll get there one day, and the prize will be great indeed.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 10:16 PMIngram
I intend to make this New Year resolution a requirement that I temper my contempt and revulsion at certain Sinn Fein members corruption and be more constructive with my comments.
In gerneral I think a constructive approach gets you a hearing while abuse just get peoples backs up.
A Happy New Year to all those who care enough to post.
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 11:45 PMAh, the tout is snoozing
Posted by on Dec 31, 2006 @ 11:51 PM
