Ambrose Uprichard They CAN agree, even if, as I suspect, it’s mainly because they would rather be the big fish together in our little pond than small fish lost in the European lough. Sinn Fein and DUP join forces in voting against EU Constitution Ambrose Uprichard
I’ll dip my toe into overtly political waters once more. The Belfast Telegraph carries a call by Ian Paisley Jnr for Sinn Fein’s assets to be frozen.It is also reported: Because the IRA has been blamed for the robbery, Ian Paisley junior said Sinn Fein’s funding should be locked down on both sides of the border, followed by “a thorough forensic examination” of their accounts. Is this not going too far ? Even if the call for “parliamentary and local …
Update on PIRA9 from the Belfast Telegraph which reports that the police in Derry have not yet received a warrant for his arrest and that John Kelly, brother of one of those killed that day, has called the decision to impose a 3 month jail sentence “outrageous”. Ambrose Uprichard
Republic’s badger cull ‘not effective’. While people were getting all hot and bothered over Foxes, research being carried out in the Republic Of Ireland has led to the conclusion that “Although feasible, we acknowledge widespread badger removal is not a viable strategy for the long-term control of tuberculosis in the Irish cattle population.”What did this “Study” involve ? Dr Elaine King, chief executive for the National Federation of Badger Groups said: “Even if you exclude the moral and political implications …
Saddened to hear of the dreadful atrocity in Ward Park, Bangor. My earliest memory is falling into the pond when I was about three chasing a duck. What should we do with the ‘people’ responsible for events like the Horror as vandals slaughter park birds ? Ambrose Uprichard
Lindy McDowell on that centennary, that statue, that robbery and rightly pointing out that SF will be celebrating hatred. Rally round the flag, boyos, to celebrate 100 years of hate Ambrose Uprichard
Man jailed over refusal to give evidence at inquiry. PIRA9 has stuck to his principles and been sent to jail for 3 months for contempt of the tribunal, in that he refuses to attend and give evidence to Saville.He shouted “I`m the only man to be punished for Bloody Sunday. It`s a disgrace.” Although his evidence is needed in respect of Mr Ward’s testimony, it does seem unfair that this man is being sent to jail when Martin McGuinness attended …
David McKittrick seems to expect trouble when Adair is released. Belfast braced for new loyalist feud as ‘Mad Dog’ Adair nears jail release. Is this fair comment or does this sort of article itself contribute to the possibility of trouble?While McKittrick writes that Belfast is ‘bracing itself’ he doesn’t quote any sources to back up his claim that trouble is expected. I don’t consider this to be one of his better pieces. Ambrose Uprichard
Sinn Féin website carries a report on Ms McDonald expressing her concern at the level of Irish involvement in the International Arms Trade. Report on arms exports reveal Irish complicity in trade.However they finish with the alarming quote “Sinn Féin is working towards both a demilitarised Ireland and European Union, we will continue to make this a priority in 2005.” What does she mean by this ? No armed forces ( goodbye to the present army of the Irish Republic?) …
And now for something completely different…. “The Defence Minister of Dubai, Sheik Mohammed Al Maktoum has won the Al Wathba Cup 160km long distance race on a horse he bought in Northern Ireland last September.” NI Horse Gallops To Dubai Success Ambrose Uprichard
Arthur Morgan, SF TD, is reported by Politics.ie as criticising government decision to “change retail and planning guidelines so as to allow Swedish furniture giant IKEA open an outlet several times larger than current maximum permitted”. He raises several excellent points, one being that this is more to do with job transfer than job creation. Another is that Ireland does not need huge out of town facilities whose staff tend to be on minimum wage and that the loss of …
The Times today reports on the first documents released under the Freedom Of Information act. Contrary to popular belief, and Gerry Adams’ writing, it seems that the decision to let hunger strikers die had been taken as far back as December 1975, as Officials foresaw the 1981 Hunger strikes.Whitehall’s secret plan to let the IRA hunger strikers die.Also revealed is that passports for travel between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK were proposed by six MPs including Ian …
The Times yesterday carried a story on attempts by Séan Lemass to solve the thorny problem of Nelson’s Column by replacing the controversial statue with a statue of Saint Patrick. Several years later the statue was destroyed by a bomb. In today’s Observer Henry McDonald reports that the controversial Dublin statue of Sean Russell , nazi ally, has been badly damaged by an unnamed group in memory of the victims of the holocaust. Ambrose Uprichard
Ryle Dwyer in tomorrow’s Irish Examiner takes a frank look at the role played by politicians in the Republic in respect of attitudes to partition, northern politics and the British Government. Sunningdale’s history lessons still have warnings for slow learners. Ambrose Uprichard
How did we all get on with the Crimbo Pressies ? I got the socks and sweets and a 25 years of Viz book.(Rude link) The late presents are arriving – yesterday a copy of what looks to be a fascinating book, Oracles of God by Patrick Murray, reviewed here by Fern Lane in AP/RN.Today two excellent cds by Irish artists new to me, O by Damien Rice and the especially wonderful Season of the Hurricane by Juliet Turner, reviewed …
The Stage Online announces that Bertie Aherne has spoken out in support of plans to erect a statue to the late, great Luke Kelly, of the Dubliners, in Dublin’s north inner city area. Ahern lends support to Luke Kelly memorial. Sadly plans to erect a bronze memorial plaque, in the shape of a replica Fender Stratocaster, to Rory Gallagher has been opposed by the Irish National Library.Elsewhere in the Stage is reported that the government of the ROI is considering …
The Irish news today carries an interesting story, 1974 talks for peace ‘scuppered’, in which Republican Sinn Fein president Ruairi O Bradaigh claims that peace talks with senior Protestant clergy in 1974 at Feakle, Co Clare, were disrupted, he believes, by Liam Cosgrave’s FG-Labour Coalition sending in “60 armed Special Branch officers and 120 uniformed Gardai”. He claims that the talks led to to a six-month IRA ceasefire and, more interestingly, discussions about withdrawal of the British government from Ireland.On …
While mass graves are being filled after the catastrophic events of the weekend, Mark Durkan has confirmed that he has written to the two Governments to Call for more help to find ‘disappeared’. Unfortunate timing, insensitivity or opportunism ?The British and Irish Governments were today urged to do more to help locate the burial sites of people abducted and murdered by the IRA during the Troubles. SDLP leader Mark Durkan confirmed he had written to both governments urging them to …
The Scotsman reports that Dr Paisley has lashed out at the way passengers flying from Edinburgh to Northern Ireland are segregated and made to wait in the cramped conditions of Gate 14 because of security arrangements that date back to the 1980’s. “Heathrow and other major airports have abandoned their special arrangements for flights to Northern Ireland. Of 20 airports in the UK with flights to Belfast, only five segregate Northern Irish passengers: Newcastle, East Midlands, Blackpool, Stansted and Edinburgh. …
Mr Adams’ claim that Republicans don’t commit crimes looks to have fallen on deaf ears in the media. While it was to be expected that the usual culprits in the Sunday Telegraph, Sunday Independent and the Sunday Times would rush to blame the Provos, even the Sunday Business Post gives credence to the theory in a story,Heist puts heat on Sinn Fein,which while having the obligatory dig at PSNI competence, focuses on Garda Special Branch belief that this was the …
