Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Slugger Awards: Those late results…
For those waiting on results last night, I’m sorry for the late arrival of this post (behind the MSM for once, must be getting old or middle aged or something)... Martin McGuinness won best politician of the year. Although he only received one nomination in the comments zone, both the readers panel and the judging panel felt that the moment when he stood with Hugh Orde and Peter Robinson on the steps of Stormont after the Masserene and Craigavon killings was the one moment in the year when the need for political courage was both required and fulfilled. (Davy Sims’ podcast for good interviews and honourable of Ulster is Doomed, 1169 and Counting and other). UTV Report gives a strong flavour of the night…
Up and coming politician: Simon Hamilton, bright and literate and very good communicator… Tipped by one voice on the judging committee as future MP material…
Blogger of the Year: Alan In Belfast... Another non political blogger who nevertheless went the extra mile at the European election campaign and has been showing a few of us middle-aged old stagers a thing or two about holding the system to account..
Councillor of the Year: Cara McShane youngest ever chair of Moyle District Council she is an example of next generation of young councillors coming through
MLA of the Year: Dawn Purvis MLA her party’s lone MLA, she’s been a tough campaigner on issues like abortion (where there is a general omerta is almost (with exception of Alliance) total in the other mainstream political parties
Local Council of the year: Down District… For an impressive redevelopment programme in Newcastle and an ongoing project in Killough not simply for the results, but the quality of the consultation process it’s used in getting to that destination.
Campaign of the year: Employers for Childcare Vouchers campaign… A quickly assembled response to Gordon Brown’s plans to cut childcare vouchers category is a new one which incorporate a poll
Participation and Involvement: Public Achievement… For its successful WIMPS project working to get young people to engage directly with the Assembly and its institutions. Also for its lobbying to establish a permanent Youth Assembly.
Journalist of the Year: Julia Paul… journalist whose impacts are often underated by her audience precisely because of her capacity to deliver tight informative stories on complex issue in a way that that makes it easy for the audience…
Stormont Committee Chair: Fred Cobain MLA Can’t put it better it than this, by the commenter NI Water: Loved by his committee for being fair to them, hated by officials for being tenatious in questioning, he gets the mix right.
And thanks too to the Italian blogger who was there last night… who scooped pretty much everyone else…
Mick Fealty @ 11:17 AM
Mick,
Once again you have shown what a farce you have let Slugger become.
Facts -
Martin McGuinness - convicted terrorist and leader of IRA Army Council.
Down District Council - Why not go and look along the coast of Ardglass. Rubbish everywhere.
Bloody disgrace
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 12:25 PMWell, with that obvious ‘peace processing’ bias on the judging panel, I’m not surprised that my nomination of Anthony McIntyre for Blogger of the Year didn’t make the shortlist:
Watching him earlier this week stand with a British chief constable and British First Minister for a British-run North of Ireland, himself now a British micro minister, I ruminated on the crossover he had made. Standing alongside these implacable opponents of everything he had at one time fought for, he was now denouncing as “traitors” those who had believed him when for years he had proclaimed the IRA the cutting edge of republican resistance. Like a chastened moral dwarf in the land of the giants, there he was screaming “midget” at everybody else.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 12:43 PMI hear what you are saying, but the process was about as open as we could make it under the circumstances.
Next year, we MUST find ways to open it out even further and in particular we need to find some way of mapping out hyper local categories with good evidence, possibly in a competitive, wiki based way: ie, it’s not all based on positive advocacy, but a way in which we can map the beast more precisely.
That could take a lot of time and resources, but it might be worth trying in one or two categories (participation and council come to mind, where it’s less individual). The vote on the campaign categories by the MLAs was a new innovation.
Maybe we use platforms like Second Life to convene virtual meetings for several reader’s panels across Northern Ireland and beyond. That way distance would be less of problem. Though the learning curve on SL is pretty sharp, we could maybe build the Slugger O’Toole coffee house for that purpose earlier in the year.
Just ideas… but I’m happy to use these post awards threads to identify problems and see if we can’t find some way to respond to them.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 12:48 PMAny chance of posting the winner of the best local newspaper catergory?
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:02 PMPortadown killing? you mean Craigavon killing, sober up Mick and congrats on the new sponsorship :)
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:07 PMre. “Like a chastened moral dwarf in the land of the giants, there he was screaming “midget” at everybody else”
Perhaps it was this woeful line that did it for poor Ant - maybe he rushed that bit as we was worried his large and eager audience couldnt wait any longer for his latest thoughts?
Dawn Purvis is an excellent choice and she would surely have won political quip of the year for “rabble-rousing politicians threatening to fight to the last drop of everyone else’s blood” if there had of been such a category.
Next year perhaps Mick?
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:10 PMThe Slugger Awards seem to be a few years behind Schedule!
Simon Hamilton was elected and up and coming in 2007. Next year at Slugger Awards 2010 i think we can expect the winner to be the up and coming politician of 2008.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:19 PMDownpatrick TUV,
On the first, that’s a big P political question, I won’t comment on that other than Jim Allister, for the second year in a row was pretty close runner up. No one can deny that he is the live political factor in Northern Ireland, whereas in terms of the general game and where it is going, McGuinness is not.
In the end, I am happy with the decision in the terms under which it was made.
You are entitled to take that view and express it here. On the second, Ardglass the panel was very well aware of that problem, it was one of the reasons why the vote was particularly tight between Down and Limavady. In the end it was the scale of the good work, not the inability to solve the difficulties in Ardglass that got them over the finishing line.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:19 PMDave if your choice isn’t picked theres bias?
hmmm…. ok.
Do try and be gracious to Alan.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:20 PMBiased is the word that sums up these awards!
I am very disappointed.
There are quite a few politicians who put their head above the parapet much sooner than Martin McGuinness.
There are also quite a few Councillors and MLAs who may not be too young but who do more than their fair share of hardwork. In Moyle there are three and in other Councils there are quite a few too.
Patsy McGlone of the SDLP springs to mind.
I hope you take a good look at these results Mick and work on a more open and transparent way of coming up with the winners. Possibly having a more inclusive of all political persuasions panel???
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:22 PMAbsolutely Disappointed. Tim Worstall has good point on this when he said that government always falls to those who don’t fall asleep in committees.
The probity of the process depends on the application of our readers. Not just in making the nominations but in boots on the ground committment and showing up at the readers panel evening.
As I say above, I think we can create extra capacity, but if we build it, will you come?
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:49 PMPray tell me how Martin McGuinness behaviour when he appeared along side Orde, etc has moved this process forward one iota. Did the DUP think now Marty is on side, it is time we got policing devolved, or did Peter and his homophobic wife conclude we really must sort out the road block over education.
Not a bit of it, his appearance set the process back, the DUP must have thought there is nothing this chump will not do, and we do not even have to concede an inch of ground.
Of course it is no accident that republican military activity has been stepped up since his appalling appearance with Orde when he cow towed to the main institution of Orange state.
Youngsters with a republican bent saw with their own eyes that Marty had sold them out, for there is no going back from what he did on that day. Thus I have no doubt some will have decided to throw in their lot with the RIRA, as dead an end as that is.
The whole purpose of having Martin McGuinness in his current position was to keep on side the more militant republicans, he was not placed in that job to demand support for the RUC/PSNI, or become a cheer leader for the orange state. But that is what he became that day when he decided to throw his weight behind the most reactionary political elements in the UK, including its most discredited police force and for what, fear of a bad media headline?
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 01:52 PMMick,
Thank you for a “reply”
For your website to name Martin McGuinness as politican of the year is scandalous to many unionist people. How can someone is on the IRA army council be awarded this? If it wasn’t for his role in the peace process and the subsequent blind eye turned by the Government McGuinness would be in jail.
Who is runner up?? Bomber Kelly?What did Down Council do to achieve the award? The work in Newcastle was funded by DSD and DRD.
Ardglass is a disgrace. Why not pick up a Down Recorder today and you will see why.Just when your in the mood for listening Mick I note your great friends with the political parties.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 03:43 PMDownpatrick TUV,
Have you read the post above that goes along way to explaining why Mc Guinness won the award.
Personally I would have gone with Jim Allister - wasnt he the runner up?
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 03:58 PMMr Ulster enjoyed the Slugger Awards:
http://www.mrulster.org/2009/11/slugger-awards-2009.html
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 04:16 PMWhen did Martin tow a cow? Did he use an official car? Is there a USPCA investigation?
Did Martin win the Slugger award because he is a mooer and shaker?
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 04:36 PMDownpatrick
Who do you think deserved it?
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 04:52 PMThis is my first post on here, and if all comments on here are like what is being displayed above then id imagine it will also be my last.
I bet if the late David Irvine had been alive, he would be in contention for some of these awards, as a young Nationalist myself, I had a lot of respect for Mr Irvine, and I am able to see past what he may have been involved with in the past - had he been around today, he would have well deserved an award, and I dont think you would have heard too many people crying about it if he had been.
The same will never be said for the dinosaurs who support the TUV, who are blindingly one sided and will never have the progressive thinking of the majority of the people in NI.
With comments like on this post by those stuck in the past, is it any wonder I decided to leave NI in search of employment across the water.
I Dont see any condemnation of the fact that Dawn Purvis was also recognised - and neither she should be, just because of the party she is linked to - she well deserves recognition for her hard work.
The bitterness on this thread is throughly depressing, and I would have hoped to have seen more people sticking up for the award winners.
Its time a lot of people grew up and stopped being so bitter - the vast vast majority of people in the North want to move on - God help us all if dinosaurs like Jim Allister and the so called “dissidents” get their way.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 05:04 PMOnly Asking, I’m sure Alan is a good blogger, and I didn’t declare otherwise (I couldn’t do, anyway, since I’ve never followed a link to his blog).
I made the point that if McGuinness is picked as Political Hack of the Year because of his declaration that anyone who does not support the British state should be regarded as a “traitor” to it, then it is pretty obvious that a blogger who has no loyalty to the British state (and who regards Mr McGuinness’ declaration of loyalty to Her Majesty’s United Kingdom with contempt) would not make the shortlist as Blogger of the Year despite his outstanding qualification for that award.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 05:25 PMIt may be comfortable to sit back and arrogantly chastise those “stuck in the past” but many are there because their loved ones died at the hands of the organistation represented by Martin McGuinness, and indeed the organisation associated with Dawn Purvis.
It can be difficult for them to let go and to many the public profile, and the lauding that goes with it, of those they see as having blood on their hands can be a daily torment.
Not everyone is a Gordon Wilson and not everyone who expresses their pain and anger to those who victimised them are looking to have the past revisited.
Victims do not deserve condemnation. A little bit of understanding would not go amiss
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 05:29 PMTrev, well said.
But part of the price for electing those most responsible for creating victims to Stormont is that the victims that they created should be ignored lest people be reminded of what and whom they voted for. That price, of course, was paid by the victims themselves.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 05:40 PMThe post award coverage has been crap to say the least, on Slugger anyway. On can only assume that the Slugger bloggers got locked on the night, lost their cameras and were too hungover today to function.
Mr Fealty, you need to get over to Mr Ulster’s blog to see how this type of thing it’s done. Well done Mr Ulster.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 05:54 PMTrev,
I agree with a lot of what you say, but it cuts both ways - those who do not want to move on for very understandable reasons, which should be respected, have to accept that others dont feel the same as them. That is what democracy is about and the GFA, which was carried in a referendum where it was made clear that those who had been actively involved in the ‘troubles’ would be allowed to move on themselves.
Also there are those, who for their own political purposes do not want to move on and use the victims as a political shield from behind which to attack those who do.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 05:57 PMReilly
It could be that few who have posted to this thread here on slugger go in for the self congratulatory crap that is an awards ceremony.
Some of us hoped the www and blogging would be innovative, not ape the worst of the mainstream media.When someone posted on the blog you mentioned “the do was all the better for not having to wear dinner jackets” or some such I thought oh f…. what am I doing here.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 06:23 PMYou know it’s easy to criticise decision making and lack of appropriate coverage etc, while failing to appreciate the taking part and the happenings of the night.
It is those complaining about the night and the also rans who remind me more of the commercial media and its outright negativity to almost everything than say people here who made the personal effort to go.
Which I didn’t, so fair play to them and that being the case, who I’m I to criticise and those who weren’t there but complain etc I imagine same applies to you.
Posted by on Nov 25, 2009 @ 06:50 PM
