-
Books
-
Philip Orr’s New Perspectives – Politics, Religion and Conflict in Mid-Antrim, 1911-1914: Book Review and Website Launch
Tweet A valuable resource on local history went digital last week with the launch of a new website called ‘New Perspectives’ on Home Rule,hosted by the Braid Mid-Antrim Museum in Ballymena. The content of the website is based on a book by Philip Orr, New Perspectives: Politics, Religion and Conflict in Mid-Antrim, 1911-1914, published last [...] read our review » -
Graphic portrayals: Northern Ireland, graphic novels and the peace process
Tweet Dr Gordon Gillespie, a researcher at the Institute of Irish Studies at Queen’s University Belfast, gave a presentation on “Graphic Portrayals: Northern Ireland, Graphic Novels and the Peace Process”, at the Linen Hall Library. Gordon started with a clarification that he was going to talk about graphic novels/comic books, not cartoons, and material that [...] read our review »
-
Breakthrough on Ireland’s bank debt?
Tweet This looks like a breakthrough on the Republic’s bank debt problem: According to a statement issued at 4am (Irish time), eurozone leaders pledged to “examine the situation of the Irish financial sector with the view of further improving the sustainability of the well-performing adjustment programme.” read our review »
-
Comment on After the political victory of the GFA is Northern Ireland slipping back into another ‘big sleep’?
on 21 May 2013 at 3:30 pm
FFS, comment on Slugger (and much of the rest of the media) these days has become so incredibly out of touch that no wonder the only “Unionists” commenting aren’t actually Unionist. As SonofStrongbow said the other day, some of these people claiming online to be “liberal Unionists” are not Unionists at all, more likely rabid Republicans posing as Unionists, or the most weak-minded and pathetic of people lacking the self-respect to overcome their Stockholm syndrome instigated by the endless and unwarranted aggression by Republicans
Alex Kane’s point on stating that the core constitutional source of the conflict was supposed to be resolved is the core of the issue. Yet, at a time when poll after poll after poll shows the population to be dominantly Unionist across the board, Alex Kane can’t see that he and other media commentators are part of the problem. In this very Slugger post Mick even complains about Sammy Wilson placing new flag poles (as did Alex Kane on the BBC) to display the agreed symbol of our sovereignty. Media commentators making absurd judgements like this, somehow don’t see that it is THEY who are keeping us in a state of limbo by somehow making out that the agreed solution must not be spoken of or stood behind with pride. The flags issue highlights this perfectly, with media commentators continually getting in line to bash those supporting the agreed sovereignty in agreements (and placing symbols of it where you would expect to see them in any country in the world), but being rather mum about those such as Sinn Fein, SDLP and the Alliance Party who are keen to initiate the aggressive and antagonistoic contradictions of agreements in the first place.
Go to comment
Comment on Team Jasil – that’s John and Basil – say: “Get off your backsides and vote for people that are trying to make a difference”
on 12 May 2013 at 8:42 pm
“I think a lot of people can draw the subtle difference between ‘unionist’ and ‘pro-union’. I have come to reject the idea of being a ‘unionist’ as it is a term narrowly defined by DUP ulster nationalist dinosaurs.”
What a lot of nonsense.
I’ll leave it to the OED:
“(Unionist) a person who is in favour of the union of Northern Ireland with Great Britain.”
Recent polls therefore show at least 3/4 of the population of Northern Ireland as Unionist.
That is what it means, no more no less. If you want to differentiate yourself from other Unionists, how about coming up with new words along the line of yourflavourgoeshere Unionist instead of trying to change the definition of existing words.
This mistake seems to be common because of the farcical designation system used in the assembly between “Nationalist” and “Unionist”, when really they meant to say is “Catholic” and “Protestant”. Better to make a fool out of that system instead of adopting its absurdity.
Go to comment
Comment on Origins of the Northern Irish conflict: Gerrymandering and mistrust…
on 8 May 2013 at 4:44 am
I got as far as the bit only a few minutes in where the narrator stated how awful it was for British propaganda to, SHOCK HORROR!, stand up for its own citizens but mock the traitorous south, and then the bit where he implied how the Queen should somehow be.. “offended” by the fact that she was greeted by a Lambeg drum (FFS!, eyes are rolling here). That’s as much as I need to hear to know that this is simply a documentary where the goal of the producer/narrator is simply to look at the PIRA and try to show how wonderful and “balanced” he is by trying to justify their position, with the end result being an IRA propaganda video. Maybe I am wrong, and I will come back and try and watch the whole thing when I have more energy, but as it stood it was so cringe-worthily bad and biased that I couldn’t stomach any more.
Having said that, the acknowledgement that the pre-Provo IRAs were constantly “chipping away” against the NI state right from the very beginning of NI until many decades later is one that many revisionists need frequent reminding here of.
Go to comment
Comment on Poots’ residential care home fiasco shows risk aversion brings its own troubles
on 8 May 2013 at 1:12 am
The problem with promoting “independent living arrangements” is that not all elderly people are capable of living independently. Having had an elderly grandmother in her 90s with dementia recently move in to my family’s home recently, she has lost all desire to do almost anything independently (despite encouragement) and we have been told that she needs 24 hour supervision. This has put an absolutely massive strain on the family, and have asked for the help of external carers whose endless coming and going severely disrupts family life (and while they do an excellent job, they also seem extremely inefficient given the number of carers involved, the amount of bureaucracy involved, and amount of petrol used by them traversing up and down the country).
It really isn’t the optimum arrangement, but in our local area they are refusing new admissions to the local NHS home, a home which the Northern trust has earmarked for closure (as they have all). There are also no private homes convenient to the local area for visiting, so another relative has completely changed his career and retirement plans just to be able to cope and keep our grandmother close to home.
This situation is only going to get worse as more people start “living” into their 90s, so it seems madness to close homes entirely. I really don’t think Poot’s obsession with en suite bathrooms is the up-most of concern when compared to not having a home at all!
Go to comment
Comment on Futile Border Poll campaign to launch
on 7 May 2013 at 12:34 am
Am Gobschmact, “1/ It’s NOT the Northern Ireland flag any longer (officially), hasn’t been for a long time”
The UK doesn’t do “officaldom” when it comes to things like flags etc. The Union Jack isn’t even the “official” flag of the UK, St. George’s isn’t the “official” flag of England etc. etc.
Sounds to me like you’ve been reading too much of the Republican propaganda twisting reality on sites such as Wikipedia etc.
Go to comment
Comment on “the British Government, and the British State, no longer claim jurisdiction over this part of the island”
on 2 May 2013 at 8:18 pm
“Unionism had 50 mostly peaceful years to build agreement and consensus”.
Dream on Comrade and stop writing fantasy history as if you had attended some sort of Republican propaganda camp. Those years most certainly:
1. Were not peaceful given the constant militant threat of various IRA factions and the Dublin government.
2. The fact is that the olive leaf was offered generously by Craig in the early Stormont regime, but you can’t “build agreement and consensus” with people who point blank refuse to cooperate and participate. The fact that Republicans had been treated so leniently is probably why we are in the mess we are.
Go to comment
Comment on Futile Border Poll campaign to launch
on 2 May 2013 at 8:06 pm
Am Ghobsmacht, meant to say “FDM” and not you (though you’re close). Whatever, so much boring Republican drivel to ignore in the posts above (as any sane person should do) that the only way to find the quote was to skim-read.
Same old same old zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz….. Republicans moaning about the Northern Ireland football team flying, SHOCK HORROR!!, the Northern Ireland flag. Don’t blame the IFA if you want a new flag, as that isn’t their responsibility. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
tacapall, maybe you can stop speaking in riddles and spit out what you are actually trying to say. Here’s a map that might help you: http://www.wesleyjohnston.com/users/ireland/maps/historical/map650.gif
Go to comment
Comment on Futile Border Poll campaign to launch
on 2 May 2013 at 12:17 pm
I always have to laugh at the irony of likes of “Am Ghobsmacht” getting upset going hysterical insisting that the definition of Ulster (of which there have been many) must correspond to the one defined by the military strategists for the Tudor conquest!
Go to comment
Comment on Are we settling for a society where the dominant communities are going to remain separate?
on 20 April 2013 at 1:15 am
On the actual question, as long as the SYSTEM continues to encourage it, award will always be given for encouraging separation.
Go to comment
Comment on Are we settling for a society where the dominant communities are going to remain separate?
on 20 April 2013 at 1:14 am
Old Mortality, the only “unique phenomenon” of such statistics here is the perfect illustration of the number of porkie pies being told by those droning on about their “oppression” and “persecution”.
Go to comment