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Books
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Hearing the Other Voice from the Grave: Why Should we Listen to David Ervine’s Stories?
Ed Moloney’s Voices from the Grave: Two Men’s War in Ireland has received considerable attention in the press and in the public realm since its publication earlier this year. Although the book relates the experiences of the Provisional IRA’s Brendan Hughes and the PUP/UVF’s David Ervine, much of the discussion has focused on Hughes’ stories [...] read our review » -
Help me with the West Wing: Essential viewing or Party Political Broadcast?
Having somehow managed to avoid watching a single episode of the widely praised West Wing TV series I was delighted to discover the entire Box set in my Christmas stocking – and with enough spare time over the holidays to give it a good lash. But with 10 episodes of the first series under my [...] read our review »
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Of the Old North and other Vanished Kingdoms..
I’m currently trawling through Norman Davies’s fabulous new tome – “Vanished Kingdoms” – Five stars in the (London) Telegraph’s review from Ben Wilson: All the nations that have ever lived have left their footsteps in the sand,” writes Norman Davies. “The traces fade with every tide, the echoes grow faint, the images are fractured, the human [...] read our review »
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Comment on Cameron’s decision on Finucane case insults family, betrays us all
on 15 October 2011 at 11:26 am
It seems that some of the orange rumpoles on this site who claim to have practiced law seem to have forgotten how it works . A ten year old with a box set of CSI has more understanding . There’s a little thing called lawyer / client privilege . Any lawyer / barrister worth their salt leaves the emotion out in the corridor . That’s what barristers do …..
If that hadn’t been man playing then perhaps Mark could have replied to this himself – this is not about the law and lawyers. Some lawyers do not separate themselves from their clients, one who did so on the loyalist side is still serving time for his role. Many on the nationalist side were able to do so (many lawyers on both sides including myself have represented clients from the “other” side).
Some however did not want to and in fact deliberately chose not to do so and as many of us were requested to do but refused went over and above the call of duty and indeed beyond the law to support their clients and their cause. That does not justify their murder but it does change it from an attack on the legal system (like the murder and attempted murder of judges where the nationalist community is remarkably silent in terms of inquiries or human rughts) generally to one on the republican movement which dies not warrant an inquiry. The murders of Finucane and Nelson no more warrant an inquiry than those of McBirney, Conaghan, Gibson, Travers (I think that is a pretty comprehensive list of the judges killed but there may be more) Why is this widow not as entitled to an inquiry as Geraldine Finucane irrespective of their religion or where they grew up?
http://victorpatterson.photoshelter.com/gallery-image/N-Ireland-Troubles/G00004uHYDFdRY48/I0000muZmVZx8BHE
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Comment on Cameron’s decision on Finucane case insults family, betrays us all
on 12 October 2011 at 8:18 pm
why does AI have a disproportionate focus on state involvement…
Is that a serious question?
Yes – does it have a serious answer?
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Comment on Cameron’s decision on Finucane case insults family, betrays us all
on 12 October 2011 at 1:25 pm
Patrick according to its website Amnesty’s purpose sates “We are ordinary people from around the world standing up for humanity and human rights. Our purpose is to protect individuals wherever justice, fairness, freedom and truth are denied.”
Surely statistically the vast majority of human rights breaches and denials of justice, fairness, freedom and truth in the Troubles were by the terrorists of all hues and murder is murder irrespective of the involvement of the agents of the state. How someone is murdered and who is involved is irrelevant to their human rights and to their families so why does AI have a disproportionate focus on state involvement and not on the other combatants who under international law also have standards which they have been persistently and consistently in breach of particulalrly now that many of those same combatants are now themselves agents of the state?
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Comment on Cameron’s decision on Finucane case insults family, betrays us all
on 11 October 2011 at 7:45 pm
As a currently practicing lawyer who endured the navel gazing forced upon the Law Society during the 1990s about this case it should be pointed out that Pat Finucane was one of a number of lawyers murdered during The Troubles (not the only one described as a human rights lawyer – Rosemary Nelson also appears to qualify for that honorary epithet also). With the exception of Rosemary Nelson all were killed by an organisation which at least one former member (who ultimately also paid with his own life for his openess) has stated publically Pat Finucane was an active member of. That does not excuse his murder which was as dastardly as all the others carried out by all sides but it does somewhat colour the calls for an inquiry into it – the state or at least agents of the state may have been complicit in his murder but surely the murder of law enforcers whether they be judges (or indeed judge’s inncoent daughters) prison officers civilan searchers or even police station cleaners and their families are all equally “a matter of great public concern” and there should be an equall allocation of resources expended into investigating who was responsible?
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Comment on Steven King’s been a very naughty boy (but plagiarism is not just what it seems)…
on 8 October 2011 at 8:51 pm
GT (and anyone else who is interested and the majority who appear not to be!)
Was King not credited with Trimble’s Nobel peace prize acceptance speech?
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Comment on GAA lacks sincerity…
on 14 August 2011 at 11:47 pm
“I am making notes, Turgon, and your name will go on the list; and when we win the war you will be brought to account.”
Only Dad’s Army was supposed to be comedy – not just comical
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Comment on Northern Ireland’s sport neuralgia continues…
on 13 August 2011 at 6:32 pm
There aren’t any Man U players on show at Croke Park either but plenty of Man U tops – your point is?
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Comment on Northern Ireland’s sport neuralgia continues…
on 13 August 2011 at 5:22 pm
I suspect there was as many Celtic tops at Windsor as there were Rangers tops at Croke Park – just to be even handed AO
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Comment on Internment bonfire closes Westlink…
on 9 August 2011 at 5:45 pm
“they simply engage in diversion, whataboutery, anything except condemning (loyalist) violence”
I’ll get back to you on that one Tacapall – it’s just I need to go and reset my Irony Alarm as something has just set it off. Can you maybe help me find out what it was?
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Comment on Blood and Thunder…
on 8 August 2011 at 2:10 pm
Damian
“Try not counter-attacking, try to convincingly point out the merit of this activity”
Has merit to whom? There is very little which goes on in the world (never mind here in Northern Ireland) which has universal approval and Quincey I think is saying we don;t expect everyone to like it but we would like everyone to be a little more tolerant of it. This like many if not most others in Northern Ireland is single identity but is critiqued / demonised depending on your point of view more than most others. What is the harm in letting the siginifcant number who wish to do so practice it in town centres at times which generally minimise the amount of disruption rather than going out of our way to be offended?
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