Profile for son of sam
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son of sam has commented 223 times (17 in the last month).
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Books
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Do Words Matter?: Book Review of Political Discourse and Conflict Resolution – Debating Peace in Northern Ireland
Tweet I share many of the concerns of Andy Pollak, whose recent post ‘My Response to the Slugger Begrudgers’ zeroed in on the ‘relentless flow of negativity’ of some Slugger commentators. Pollak’s post was largely concerned with the medium of the blog. Indeed, I think the anonymity of the online world encourages extreme discourse and [...] read our review »
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Well meaning though it may be, I’m against teaching history to promote a shared identity
Tweet The historian Tristram Hunt has given a cautious welcome in the Times to Michael Gove’s controversial plans for the history curriculum in England, (£) a topic I raised last month. This is interesting because Hunt is also a Labour MP and pro-Labour reaction to the Gove proposals was generally hostile. Hunt writes: At the [...] read our review » -
Stay out of Libya: counterinsurgency doesn’t work
Tweet A moment of some significance in journalism perhaps, as the New York Times reviews the current talked about book, The Wrong War: Grit, Strategy, and the Way Out of Afghanistan by Bing West. The author is no bleeding heart but a former assistant Defense Secretary from the Reagan era who stomped his way round the [...] read our review »
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Comment on According to Question Time, SF=IRA, DUP=Goodies
on 24 May 2013 at 5:01 pm
Apart from Sinn Fein’s hissy fit about their labelling on the T V camera notes,it would be interesting to learn what local input there is on the selection of panel members for Question Time.It seems to be a given that D U P/Sinn Fein will always have a representative on the panel while S D L P/Ulster Unionists rarely feature.Indeed I recall that when the programme last came from Derry,local M P Mark Durkan was excluded .Without wishing to be too parochial , do we need “personalities” such as Peter Tatchell parachuted in to appear on the panel.I suppose the B B C would say that the target audience is primarily English and that there needs to be some clearly identifiable figure to pronounce on current issues.
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Comment on Sinn Féin: Hyde Park bomb charges “vindictive, unnecessary and unhelpful”
on 22 May 2013 at 11:25 pm
Keano10
“There is considerable potential for destabilisation in such cases” Please elaborate .
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Comment on Sinn Féin: Hyde Park bomb charges “vindictive, unnecessary and unhelpful”
on 22 May 2013 at 9:40 pm
Time for a “spontaneous ” protest by outraged Sinn Fein members in London!Except that ,given the events today,this might not be the best of times to remind Londoners of previous terrorist happenings.It will be interesting to see if light emerges at the trial on any side deals between the British Government and Sinn Fein.
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Comment on The PUL Community and the Peace Process: An Audit
on 21 May 2013 at 9:30 am
Alan
You mention that there were strong views on the Social Investment Fund.I haven’t had time to listen to any of the Audio-Boos but what in essence were those “strong views”?
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Comment on 55 Hours Part Four: Wednesday 8 July 1981
on 20 May 2013 at 1:22 pm
Terry B
“Adams and Morrison should hang their heads in shame”. Don’t hold your breath waiting on that! Sadly they and their cohorts know they can get away with almost anything so why should they break the habits of a lifetime .
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Comment on Gerry Adams (and Sammy Wilson) putting on a Poor Mouth over £4 Billion of ‘elusive’ cuts?
on 17 May 2013 at 8:55 am
Wonder if Gerry knows what happened to the £26 million from the Northern Bank heist?Must have disappeared into thin air!!
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Comment on 55 Hours Part Two: Monday 6 July 1981
on 15 May 2013 at 6:08 pm
If memory serves me right,I seem to recall that Sinn Fein in Tyrone complained to the Diocesan authorities about the appointment of Monsignor Faul to the Carrickmore parish.Obviously old resentments die hard.Yet the local Assemblyman was quite visible in the usual S F way at Msgnr Faul’s funeral.Another case of a decent man acting for the greater good and receiving Republican vilification .
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Comment on Beware politicians shutting down their own public accountability mechanisms
on 15 May 2013 at 5:33 pm
“Parties losing the capacity to act powerful in the broader public interest and for that public good”. When was the last time a political party did that? Ah yes— John Hume and the S D L P.Did the public reward them.I don’t think so! There seems little incentive in the current Stormont set-up to act in the common good.Suppose it depends on your interpretation of the “common good”.
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Comment on 55 Hours Part One: Sunday 5 July 1981
on 14 May 2013 at 12:53 pm
There has been a strange dearth of responses from the usual sources to this blog from Riusty Nail(apart from the ever faithful Mr Mc Ivor!).One might have thought that such an assault on the credibility of Mr Adams&Co would lead to a flood of rebuttals.Does silence indicate consent to the daming points made?
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Comment on It’s Derry again – with London and Liverpool, commemorating the Battle of the Atlantic
on 12 May 2013 at 10:15 pm
Well said,Malcolm Redfellow.Your last sentence above sums up very adequately.Mr Flashman seems rather coy when asked to substantiate his claims!
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