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Attempt to kill police has shock value/media spin applied?

| Readers 11

The pipebomb left at a primary school in Antrim met condemnation from essentially everywhere – those that left it have offered no explanation. That attack was followed a few days later by what the PSNI describe as a viable device being found in Crumlin. Much, if not all, of the media coverage and condemnation of this treated it as another attack directed at children. However, the police station, where the device was discovered isn’t a primary school – that is …

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I’ve never been there but I can write the copy boss

| Readers 8

In recent years many media outlets have been pulling experienced reporters out of the north of Ireland and closing offices. While Dewi has highlighted today’s focus in the Independent on issues here, he missed a major factor that should colour any opinion on the value of much of the coverage now provided by English based media and their reportage/editorial – it had awful bullshit posing a journalism. Hence a ‘Real’- UFF attack on a Catholic school was given the headline: …

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Synchronicity? Or cribbing?

| Readers 2

A quick aside. I see Tommy Burns MLA quite regularly at our gaelic club and we have an occasional chat. We’ve never discussed Slugger to my recollection and certainly haven’t chatted about my posts on the costs of 11th July bonfires.

I’m surprised to see that completely independently he has asked the exact same questions on costs to the Fire Service that I had answered back on 19th August.

The Irish News, Belfast Telegraph and UTV all say;

The figures were revealed by the Assembly after a freedom of information question from the SDLP’s Thomas Burns

mmmmm…..

Update: As per Nevin’s comment below – it was synchronicity. What are the odds on that?

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Député Dodds – a voice for Euro fascists?

| Readers 41

The DUP are very proud of MEP Diane Dodds becoming a member of the European Parliament’s Conference of Presidents. The body while sounding very important is essentially a business committee come speakers’ office and is mainly concerned with timetabling parliamentary business. What the DUP did not point out is; Dodds is not a full member of this body. Indeed she has only been appointed on a 6 month term and has no voting rights. All other members are there as …

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Ask the right question! Dealing with the PSNI

| Readers 12

Today the PSNI Chief Constable has been plastered across the media bemoaning costs associated to dealing with public disorder in the Ardoyne during July. He has been very forthcoming with the sums involved and what thay could have been spent on otherwise. However, I recently asked the PSNI several questions under FoI legisaltion in relation to 11th July bonfire incidents and they have refused to answer a single one on the basis the first question ‘ how many bonfire related …

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‘Dead men don’t talk back’

| Readers 110

After the north of Ireland Police Ombudsman’s report into how the British state dealt with the Claudy bombings, the susequent furore/media focus has been on Father James Chesney and his later move to a parish in Donegal. This has been treated as acceptance, admission or proof of his involvement in events of that day. Nothing of the sort was shown in the report. This small truth, his moving parishes, has become an absolute demonstration for many of his involvement in …

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PSNI’s media message/massage/pummelling

| Readers 35

Last week Rusty noted how journalist Eammon MacDermott had property confiscated by the PSNI as part of an investigation into armed republican activity in Derry. While some may think the fact he was an ex-prisoner could have influenced the PSNI reaction, British policing has a long history of heavy handedness when it comes to freedom of the press in Ireland. Back in 1999 Ed Moloney faced gaol over refusing to pass on interview notes with William Stobie. Moloney won the …

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Can’t march? Er…can – M’kay

| Readers 10

Updated at 23:57 Last night’s band parade in Rasharkin was rerouted after a lengthy delay caused by a bomb scare. Daithi McKay seems to think this amounts to an illegal parade as the new time and route did not have Parades Commission approval and suggests this will end up in court: Parades Commission did not permit route that PSNI put the parade down. There was also no application for a parade on 21st August.. …ie when bands marched past midnight. …

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11th bonfires – what the Councils pay

| Readers 64

Yesterday I examined increasing expenditure over the last five years for the Fire Service in dealing with 11th July bonfires (circa £4 million in total) Today I will provide some figures showing the increase in Council funding for events linked to these bonfires over the same period. Unfortunately only half responded within the time limits set under Freedom of Information. I will follow up with the slackers for the grand total at the end of series. The figures for 2010 …

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No water – just the cost of (bon)fires

| Readers 45

Slugger can’t handle much more water. So I will start what will be a series of blogs attempting to discover an absolute figure for public expenditure on 11th July bonfires. First up is costs to the Fire Service. Reports for the last five reporting years show callouts on the 11th night alone have consistently fallen across all areas. However, the total number of calls to what the NIFRS classify as a ‘bonfire incident’ between May and July reached its highest …

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Mark Townley – con artist with an extensive portfolio

| Readers 200

At the start of August NIVCA warned community/voluntary/charity groups of potential difficulties that could arise if they dealt with Mark Townley of NTF. As the cached link shows NTF displayed Social Enterprise Coalition, Give with Confidence, ICO, Learn Direct and  DEL logos on their website so could easily have been accepted as an organisation with integrity. NICVA is advising voluntary and community organisations and sports clubs not to hand over any money to NTF or to their Director Mark Townley, …

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Collins chooses freelance intelligence over politics

| Readers 28

For several years rumours have come and gone on the possibility of Tim Collins entering political life. It seems he has finally bitten the bullet and will enter political life in numerous countries in a quasi-military capacity for a fee. Most recently the claim was: A rumour going around that Tim Collins was rejected as the UUP candidate for South Antrim in favour of Adrian Watson. Though that idea had been floated back in February with him running as a …

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Sometimes the ‘Vision’ statement isn’t quite the reality

| Readers 9

Groundwork NI has a really nice sounding Vision statement and I’ll be returning to them in a lot more detail in coming weeks; Our Vision – the kind of world we want to live in Our vision is of a peaceful and inclusive society made up of vibrant, healthy and safe communities, which respect the local and global environment and where people and enterprise prosper They are a well funded body but more on that in coming weeks; We receive …

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Sometimes even 3 bins aren’t enough

| Readers 3

This was at the top of my street until today (3 months after it should have been binned – by Neil Johnston of the UUP). It made a better attempt to stay out of the dustbin of history than the ‘party’ did.

Decency vs. necessity and that big river in Africa

| Readers 11

With the discovery of what seem to be the remaims of Charlie Armstrong almost 30 years after his disappearance,  Gerry Adams has persisted with a claim the IRA had no involvement in his death. Well, there’s no evidence to suggest that the IRA was involved Of course Adams and the IRA have form for denying involvement in ‘disappearing’ people. Despite (very belatedly) admitting other killings and disposal of bodies, until recently they denied anything to do with Joe Lynskey’s disappearance …

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Republican protest doesn’t need or seek permission

| Readers 26

This afternoon saw a large enough gathering of republicans in Lurgan (500+ seems a reasonable estimate). For those attending their intention was to demonstrate support for republican prisoners and protest against the conditions/regime they face in gaol. It also exposed an entirely different issue, a problem that could present an increasing challenge to the Parades Commission, PSNI, Stormont Justice Minister and the Assembly as a whole. The first large scale republican challenge to state structures on parading came with éirígí’s …

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“This story could end very badly indeed”

| Readers 5

The No Wash protest in the Long Kesh during the late 70s and early 80s never really created an impact outside groups already sympathetic to republican prisoners. No matter how hard families, committees and republicans tried the prison struggle did not influence broader public consciousness until well into the 2nd Hunger Strike. So it is hardly surprising very few are aware of an ongoing no-wash protest and battle over human waste being carried out by republican prisoners in the reincarnated …

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Ardoyne violence: Some of those kids have real potential

| Readers 97

A lot has been written on the claimed apolitical nature of rioting in Ardoyne and allegations many/most of those involved were motivated by thuggery, anti-social behaviour and sectarianism. Like a lot of those commenting, I wasn’t there and am in no position to fully judge who was doing what, why or through whatever motivation. However, as former IRA members joined the queues to lambast the young people at the forefront of the violence I picked up ‘Voices from the Grave’ …

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What a difference 5 months make

| Readers 6

Sinn Féin were very annoyed when Killian Forde left the party and took his Dublin Council seat to Labour: “the seat he won as a party candidate, on a party policy platform, with the support of the party locally and nationally” He was one of a long line of Councillors leaving during their current term, circa 20 making up 10% of the party’s elected representatives at that level. Five months later, for SF poaching a former Green councillor is a …

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