Tuesday, March 27, 2007
“We did get the promise that something would be done.”
Whilst we wait to see if the DUP MP William McCrea follows through on the implications of his comments in the Commons, and joins MEP Jim Allister in resigning from the party, there was an even more intriguing comment - lacking a response, so far - from the DUP leader Ian Paisley in the middle of this BBC report
He said they had raised with Sinn Fein the issue of the killing of Belfast man Robert McCartney, and said: “We did get the promise that something would be done.”
Previously the McCartney family had rejected a particular, offered, action.
Pete Baker @ 08:39 PM
Pete,
an optimist would say that in the Belfast Telegraph article McCrea only accuses his future Deputy First Minister of “having been” a “terrorist” and a “murderer”.Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:19 PMGeorge
I’d have thought that the implications of sharing government with someone so described, nevermind sharing the joint offices of First and Deputy First Ministers, would cause even an optimist - if that’s what Willie McCrea is to be described as - to hestitate.
But I’m more interested in what Ian Paisley claims to have secured.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:27 PMPete,
the word “optimist” wasn’t ascribed to McCrea, it was to those who will pick up on his use of “having been”.As for Paisley, at a rough guess he has secured a statement from Adams or another Sinn Féin MP calling on everyone who has information or has given a statement to their solicitors to go to the PSNI and give a statement and/or repeat said statement.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:34 PMDespite the attempts of the family and their unionist supporters this is still not an IRA matter but a local community problem
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:38 PMGeorge
Regardless of what McCrea does - and I’m ambivalent on that - those who are interested might want to watch that comment.
As for Paisley..
“As for Paisley, at a rough guess he has secured a statement from Adams or another Sinn Féin MP calling on everyone who has information or has given a statement to their solicitors to go to the PSNI and give a statement and/or repeat said statement.”
Yeah.. that kind of statement would really break the mould..
Which is kinda the point.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:42 PMYeah, Sean
That’s why the PIRA had previously offered to shoot those responsible..
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:43 PMSurely such a statement is no different than Mc Guiness saying the Provos caught battering the dissident in the van in the city centre should give themselves up? Didn’t Adams say at the time they should give themselves up? I really think that there is no significance in terms of originality.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:46 PMMalachi’s nonsense and a hopeful quote from Paisley. It is becoming increasingly hard for the begrudgers to find something to spin.
Sluggers passing The Sun on the way down. (H/T Henry)
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:47 PMGaribaldy
If it’s no different, and it may well be, then that in itself is a worthwhile point to note in the circumstances.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:50 PMIt’s just I think that where we are today has been clearly inevitable for some time, and that a careful analysis of the language of both sides has made that obvious for such time. There is an attempt on some issues to offer old wine in new bottles.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:53 PMThe most important witness in the case is in jail for armed robbery and stabbing a doorman
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:56 PMPete,
If Paisley and the DUP are now of the belief that Sinn Féin have reached a stage where they can share power in Northern Ireland then they of all people will be fully aware that there is nothing more Sinn Féin can do on this matter other than to ask for those with information to go to the PSNI.What the IRA suggested X number of IMC reports ago is neither here nor there.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:57 PMGaribaldy
I’ll continue to examine all the issues presented in the same light as before.. and even when a new Executive is presented, I’ll continue to do the same.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 10:58 PMGeorge
The statement made by Paisley is about what would happen.. future tense.. not what has already happened.
Again, though,
“If it’s no different, and it may well be, then that in itself is a worthwhile point to note in the circumstances.”
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:02 PMRegardless of the above spin and how the DUP wish to build confidence in the 6 week period granted to them by SF. There is only one thing that counts, the unconditional and binding resolution of the DUP:
“On Saturday the DUP executive overwhelmingly endorsed a motion committing the party to support and participate fully in Government in May of this year. This is a binding resolution.”
Spin bowlers on Sluggers can partially quote what they like. The above is the only thing that counts.
Begrudgery is just begrudgery.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:03 PMI’m glad you’ll do that Pete. It wasn’t actually you I was suggesting was prsenting the old wine in new bottles, but the politicans involved.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:07 PM“Regardless of the above spin..”
SS.
Quotes would be welcome, as well as explanations of what the alleged spin was..
In the meantime, the original post quotes a couple of prominent DUP members. And what they had to say about what they expect SF to deliver..
Whether that delivery is made is a different matter.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:12 PMGari,
Pete can’t deliver old wine. They got rid of his arch-nemisis Hain without him and the orange one will walk away with a huge boost to his future plans.
We now get the begrudgers hope for failure.
A Pakistan or India version of spin, like Malachi, while Ireland delivers wickets.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:16 PMPete,
You missed the binding resolution part? The unconditional bit? The May bit?
Spin away.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:17 PMGetting the most hateful person in British politics to be our secretary of state certainly was a success. Blair’s touch for political manipulation seems still superb.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:20 PMSS
You should have registered your displeasure at my criticism of Hain’s manoeuvres when I flagged them up.. rather than claiming that, now, you were always opposed to them - I’m still opposed to his manoeuvres, btw.
As for spinning.. I’ve linked to the statements made.. you obviously have a different idea of what spinning is.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:25 PMPete,
Hain delivered. He walks away with greatly improved standing within Labour.
I didn’t contribute to your Hain bashing entries as I found them tedious and obsessive.
Maybe that’s the reason they are all the least commented on threads here?
Now you are reduced to hoping you can find a way to nitpick a binding resolution that will lead to devolved government away along with a very few obsessive begrudgers.
You’ll fail. Just as you wasted all our time with Hain.
Posted by on Mar 27, 2007 @ 11:38 PMDo the shinners on Slugger even notice how wearisome their incessant whinging has become to those of us who don’t share their belief that all media should take its copy and editorials from An Phoblacht, producing the sycophantic, unquestioning, and myopic coverage that they find so comforting as opposed to the impartial analysis that upsets the poor dears so much?
Posted by on Mar 28, 2007 @ 02:40 AMPete
As Slugger’s most comprehensive linker you neglected to make the obvious connection to Willie McCrea’s terrorist associations.He was a member of the Shankill Defence Association and in 1971 he was convicted of riotous behaviour in Dungiven. In 1975 he led a prayer service at the paramilitary funerals of Wesley Somerville and Harris Boyle, who were responsible for the Miami Showband killings.
He shared a platform at a Portadown rally with the loyalist paramilitary sectarian murderer Billy Wright in September 1996 and conducted a service for Wright after his death.
On his claim that the dissidents have brought in weapons we have no basis for accessing the merit of that. If his information is good then it must have come from security force sources and will therefore be mentioned in the next IMC report. We’ll see.
On your third point I’m not sure what you are getting at. You have linked Dr. Paisley’s claim that Sinn Fein have promised to do something on the McCartney case to an IRA offer to shoot the perpetrators. Are you suggesting the Sinn Fein have made a similar offer to Dr Paisley?
The contrast in linking policy between the McCrea story and the Paisley one is remarkable.
Posted by on Mar 28, 2007 @ 03:57 AMWhat a load of bollix, its a simple as this. SF now dine at a table of higher moral value. To establish themselves worthy of such, they must bring with them a gift. That’s all there is too it. The only thing interesting is the wrapping on the gift.
Posted by on Mar 28, 2007 @ 05:05 AM
