Arnold Carton

My experience of attending discussions at Féile an Phobail has been remarkably encouraging. Some of the talks have been controversial, some have covered difficult subjects and despite being part of a unionist minority in the room, I have always felt the outlook of the discussions to be positive. I have in the past sent letters to the Belfast Newsletter advocating that we in the unionist community should be developing something similar within East Belfast to coincide with the week after …

Read more…

Significant changes are being made in education (when are they not) and the Northern Ireland Curriculum 2028 consultation has been announced by the DUP’s Paul Givan. See link at bottom. One change that has made the news is that teachers of History must teach the history of the N. Ireland Troubles at both KS3 (Year 8-10) and KS4-GCSE. Until now this has been optional and it was possible even to teach GCSE History without covering the events of the Troubles. Various …

Read more…

I have always felt that JFK got it wrong in 1961 when he advised people to “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”  I believe it is perfectly reasonable and proper for people to ask what their country can do for them, and this applies particularly in countries such as Northern Ireland, where there is a choice between two nationalities. I understand the point JFK was making about people working together …

Read more…

As a unionist, attending Féile an Phobail for the first time was a little daunting, but in general I have found the discussion and debate sessions enjoyable and welcoming to all viewpoints. (I think this year will be the fourth occasion that I have attended.)  Hence, I am surprised to see Féile cancelling an event organised by the Women’s Rights Network called Respect, Rights and Reality on the grounds that this event would “promote campaigns against rights for the transgender community.” In a …

Read more…

Every law restricts our freedom and it is right that people stop and consider whether additional laws are really necessary. I am old enough to remember when a law was introduced (1973) requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets and there were many motorcyclists who objected to this removal of what up to then had been freedom of choice. Some will remember seeing the ‘Clunk Click, Every Trip’ adverts in the days when wearing seatbelts was optional, but then in 1983, a law was …

Read more…

On so many occasions since the atrocities of 7th Oct and Israel’s genocidal response in Gaza, I have argued that our Good Friday Agreement peace process offered an example from which Israel could learn.  I argued that we in the unionist community, with our experience of suffering terrorism, were best placed to talk to the Israelis; I argued that we should be demonstrating that talking to elected politicians, despite their previous links to terrorist organisations, allowed us to end decades of …

Read more…

Wear Dark Clothing The TV footage from Belfast this week was striking. On TV news we watched wave after wave of young men, all dressed in black, wearing balaclavas, advancing on police Land Rovers to stone the PSNI. The choice of dark clothing was no accident and it serves a purpose In advance of the rioting on Tuesday, there was a call on social media and Whatsapp for “men of the age of 18 and over to wear dark clothing and …

Read more…

For older members of the community, watching the video from Scarva where unionists gathered at one side of the Newry Canal to shout abuse at a perceived enemy on the other side, will bring back unpleasant memories of the 1997 protests outside Harryville Church in Ballymena, or the dreadful scenes (2001–2) outside Holy Cross Primary School. Both events caused significant damage to the reputation of the unionist community around the world and embarrassed many unionists within N. Ireland. However, most …

Read more…

I understand the reasons for encouraging ‘politically correct language’ (today we would use the term ‘woke’) but have also been suspicious of the motives of some of its adherents. Correcting offensive language is necessary and takes courage, but sometimes those who know the politically correct phrases seemed to enjoy far too much their superior knowledge. In the 1980s they reminded me of the sort of dinner companion who would enjoy correcting you if you used the wrong cutlery during your …

Read more…

A consensus is growing that UK involvement in a war is becoming significantly more likely and that we need to spend more money on defence, but where should this money come from? On Saturday 11th April, Dr Rob Johnson, director of the Changing Character of Conflict Centre at Oxford University, warned that ‘Almost all warnings and indicators that a wider war is coming are flashing red and it is “breath-taking” that the UK government is failing to better prepare’. On the …

Read more…

The Americans like to remind us that they saved Britain twice during two world wars, but do not like to be reminded that they only joined the war against Hitler after they were attacked by Japan at Pearl Harbour. Their perception that the world should be more grateful to America is clouding their thinking. Several times recently, Marco Rubio (see here) has talked about the idea of pulling American troops out of their bases across Europe because the Europeans had not supported …

Read more…

Every UK Prime Minister feels obliged to talk up the ‘Special Relationship’ between the UK and USA. From Tony Blair to Boris Johnston and then Keir Starmer we see our Prime Ministers desperately seeking recognition from the USA President. Tony Blair’s regime was famously subservient to the USA and foolishly followed Bush into the Iraq war with disastrous consequences. Supporters of Brexit saw the move away from Europe as a move towards the USA and when Boris Johnston was forced …

Read more…

Most rich people own companies, they provide employment, they understand how our economy works. Should we give rich people 100 votes each at the next election, while restricting the rest of us to just a single vote? After all, they must be exceptionally gifted people to earn so much, so they must be better placed to pick our government, instead of ordinary people like us? [By rich, I mean earning £500k per year or more.] Anyone agree? I accept that …

Read more…

Over the St Patrick’s weekend my grown-up kids talked me into watching Louis Theroux’s report on “Inside the Manosphere” – available on Netflix. It was unpleasant and uncomfortable viewing, not because of any failing on the part of Theroux, but because of the cruelty and unpleasantness displayed. The “manosphere” is an umbrella term for a loose network of online influencers that focus on men’s issues (women, fitness, making money) and is often characterised by its attacks on women’s independence or …

Read more…

While announcing the introduction of the new post-16 V-Levels (Vocational Levels – available in England from 2027), Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said the “bold reforms” will end the snobbery in post-16 education, and support young people to build secure, future-proof careers. V-levels will sit alongside A-levels and T-levels, and be equivalent to one A-level, allowing students to mix and match academic and vocational subjects if they want to. At the moment these qualifications are not offered in N. Ireland but …

Read more…

John Taylor’s interview with Alex Kane in the Irish News last week is still causing ripples, particularly his claim that Irish unity is probably inevitable, and that unionists should prepare for it. On Twitter last week I posted a message stating that for John Taylor to make these comments was noteworthy.  For any unionist over the age of 60, John Taylor was a significant figure. None of the responses from unionists was positive. For those too young to remember, John …

Read more…

The DUP Education Minister, Mr Paul Givan, has announced changes to our examination system at GCSE and A-Level with first teaching in September 2029.  The main details are as follows: GCSE The two major changes are the switch away from modular assessment throughout the two years, with most courses assessed only by exams at the end of the two-year course. the removal of controlled assessment (coursework). GCSE English Language, Mathematics, and Science will remain modular, allowing some assessments during the course and …

Read more…

In December 2019 Choyaa wrote about the negative effect of the role that Lundy plays within unionism. Col Lundy did not want to fight to the last man back in 1689; he considered surrender during the Siege of Derry. Unionists still gather in Derry on the first Saturday of December to ceremonially burn an effigy of Lundy in Derry, with the message that we won’t tolerate traitors who would let the enemy in. https://sluggerotoole.com/2019/12/09/the-bogeyman-of-lundy-plays-an-extremely-damaging-role-today-within-unionism/ Over the decades, unionists who would …

Read more…

Do the events of 250 years ago, such as the American Declaration of Independence, have any relevance to life in N. Ireland today?  Let’s hope so, because the DUP Minister, Gordon Lyons, has decided to spend £425,000 of public finance to celebrate this event. Possibly the DUP will want to focus on the role of emigrants from Ulster who brought their sense of independence to America and played a role in rebelling against Britain.  However, the influence of this time …

Read more…

In our casual conversations, the choice of words is governed by habit, but when dealing with political issues where there is much at stake, we need to select our words more carefully. In 1946 George Orwell wrote an essay called Politics and the English Language, where he pointed out that careless use of language prevents clear thinking and can corrupt our political decisions. Later in his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four he wrote eloquently about how words shape our understanding, and about how a …

Read more…