Happy New Year

Posted on January 2, 2015 by fitzjameshorse

So folks …all the best for 2015.
Astute readers will note that I have not been blogging as often as previously.
Well I have been involved in other activities but in a way the title “Keeping An Eye on The Czar of Russia” says it all.
For Blogging is one of the most over-rated non-political activities known to Man and (more rarely) Woman. I blame the Baghdad Blogger who over a decade ago, convinced the world that we were all “citizen journalists”. We are no such thing. We are just pathetic non-entities who sit at keyboards keeping on eye on the Czar of Russia, President Putin and the most dangerous people in the Western Hemisphere…David Ford, Naomi Long, Stephen Farry, Chris Lyttle and Andy Muir. I am STILL keeping an eye on the LetsGetAlongerist threat to Civilisation.
Blogging is not what it was. Often hyped as the big new thing in politics, the Establishment has reacted by demonising “social media” and Academics and other elites have reacted to the democracy of the Blog by occupying the space.
Briefly the Vandals broke thru the gates of Western Civilisation and the academics have reacted by producing their own blogs…and complimenting each other at seminars and marginalising the anarchists.

“Keeping An Eye on the Czar of Russia” is of course a BLOG. Slugger O’Toole is a MESSAGE BOARD….very different. A Message Board encourages (at best) DEBATE and (at worst) ARGUMENT. I am a peaceable kinda guy which is why I dont really encourage comments from the most argumentative bunch of morons in the Norn Iron political spectrum…Alliance supporters.

I should note that Slugger O’Toole, revamped by Mick Fealty and Brian O’Neill is a much better Message Board than previously. Deputy Editor, Doctor Who may not be an obvious asset but he young and might actually say something sensible one day.
The site is helped by the fact that Sheldon is not contributing as often (thank Christ!) and although Dimbleby is still contributing some unionist-Tory shite, it is heartening that few people actually read him.
The total absence of Andy Pollak and only occasional appearances by serial LetsGetAlongerist “Mr Ulster” are both welcome developments. And the obligatory complimentary mentions pf Stratagem are now much rarer.
AlaninBelfast is still in obvious mourning for NI21. We have all experienced death bed grief but it really is time that one of Alans many friends led him from the bedside of NI21 “its gone Alan….its gone”.
So lets look forward to 2015…the Westminster Elections and more of the same.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 2 Comments

New Year “Honours”?

Posted on December 30, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

It is difficult to explain the British “Honours” System to my American friends. It is an undemocratic nonsense. But here goes.

Britain is a “monarchy”. The Head of State is Mrs Elizabeth Windsor. Now well into her eighties, she has been playing the part of the Queen even longer than Helen Mirren. The Monarchy is the worlds longest running soap opera. A Soap Opera you either love or hate. Elizabeth Windsor is an aristocratic, tweedy lady who is as conservative as anyone else in her social class. Yet the part she plays is of a political neutral.

This is not unusual in Soap Operas. William Roache (a dyed in the wool Conservative) has been playing Red Ken Barlow in Coronation Street since 1960. Coronation Street is the worlds second longest soap opera (unless you count some American show like Days of Our Lives).

Anyhoo in the “Royal Family” the part of Duke of Edinburgh (man with a kilt) is played by a Greek guy…Philip Somebody. Not a very convincing Scottish accent, to be frank….but Billy Connolly was unavailable.

And so to the rest of them. Alas soap operas say goodbye to old characters. The Old Queen Mum, the nations favourite Granny was good comic relief. Apparently she had strong opinions on black soldiers in the Grenadier Guards. And “Princess Margaret” was a bit of a slapper. And Soap Operas need new characters. “Lady Di” never really settled into the role. Neither did “Fergie” who left to take a part in slimming commercials and “Knots Landing”…..or am I confusing her with some lady from “Dallas”.

Anyway the British love the Royals. Well actually they dont love them at all. Guardian readers and panelists on “Mock The Week” hold them in contempt but even then, it is a safety valve for sensible republican thought.
The mantra is that an attack on the Royal Family is an attack on the basic institution of Britishness. And an attack on the Monarchy is a cowardly attack on an “ordinary” family who have served Britain well…and selflessly …for centuries.
In truth Britain…unlike France, Germany, Austria, Russia etc has not had a violent revolution since 1688 and the Royal Family has not been guillotined by republicans or forced to flee or faced a Bolshevik firing squad.

Indeed the British Monarchy (the most undemocratic of institutions) works alongside Democracy. I am of course a Republican and Irish Nationalist.
I have two enemies…..The UNITED Kingdom …and…the united KINGDOM.

So two nights in a year…in June and late December we have the farce …the news-embargoed farce of the Birthday Honours and New Years Honours.
Because it is not enough for Britain to have a Queen. Necessarily all “honour” flows from the Queen. While every Prince, Duke, Earl, Viscount (and the female equivelant) is hereditary and spoken for…there are lesser titles which are eagerly sought.
A “Lord” or “Lady”….well there are two types. One is hereditary. Reforms in the last decade means that only a proportion of these “hereditary peers” are entitled to vote in the House of Lords (the Legislature) but it still means that people, mostly party political time servers can be appointed to serve and vote in the House of Lords. They have no mandate.
Thus recently retired cabinet ministers like Gordon Brown and Alasdair Darling might find themselves honoured tonight.
And some other politicans, chief executives of banks and celebrities will find themselves on the Honours List tonight.
Heading a British bank or major British company such as Marks and Spencers practically guarantees a knighthood. Thats central to theBritish “establishment”. Yet they get away with it. Handing out baubles to bankers, businessmen, politicians and (seemingly) political donors is justified because the headlines will be made by celebrities and “ordinary people”.

Thus we have SIR Patrick Stewart, SIR Anthony Hopkins, SIR Sean Connery and DAME Helen Mirren. And probably around twenty or so other actors. SIR Bruce Forsyth, SIR Cliff Richard, SIR Elton John.
Lets not mention the late SIR Jimmy Savile.
But below these ranks are the OBEs and MBEs …the “BE” in the title refers to the “British Empire”. Understandably some people from ethnic minorities dont like that very much and decline such an “honour”. And oddly in alleged multi-cultural Britain (SKY News are noting only 6% of those honoured will be from minority ethnic backgrounds).
And yet the farce continues and thrives.
Already …under rules of embargo…interviews have been taped and newspaper stories written to cover the knighthood of another actor or OBE for another soap star or a heartwarming story of a midwife who covers the Highlands of Scotland for forty years. Worthy as they are, they are the people who give credence to the unworthy.

And so to Norn Iron.
Six weeks ago, a letter to the Cabinet Office in London will have been delivered to about one hundred homes in Norn Iron. “Her Majesty wants to give you a knighthood/OBE/etc. Please reply indicating acceptance”. It will of course be a “balanced” list…but a disproportionate number of Catholics/nationalists will reply with a polite but firm “stuff your OBE up your arse”.
But around seventy people will have accepted the honour and held to secrecy until Official Announcement.
Thus we will see “Mary Johnson OBE…for services to charity fundraising at a local hospice” And I daresay ardent unionist “Mary” will have already ordered new business cards for “Mary Johnson OBE”.
“Paddy Murphy OBE….services as a Catholic Primary School teacher in County Fermanagh” might be more problematic. If his wife has not said that she will not speak to him again if he accepts the bauble”, there is that awkward moment for his friends. Do they congratulate “Paddy” or do they call him an “Uncle Tom”.

Of course the real meat and drink of Honours in Norn Iron is the “political”. We may well have parity of esteem but there is more “logic” in a unionist accepting a bauble than a nationalist.
Thus in a year when many local councillors have been forced into retirement or electoral defeat by new council boundaries, then there is a certain logic in veteran councillors being given a little momento. It would be politically impossible for any member of Sinn Féin to accept an honour and I think political suicide for any senior SDLP figure to accept one. And indeed even a minor SDLP figure would be marginalised within the Party. Maybe South Belfast is “different”.
Simply put, accepting a British or Royal honour is not possible for a nationalist or republican politician.
But arguably it is different for mainstream nationalist, republicans and Catholics …the midvives, the vereran schoolteachers, social workers…to accept recognition of their service.
They are not all of the “stuff your OBE up your arse” tendency.
Thus….we might have “SIR Liam Neeson, Actor”.
Liberal unionists would love that…Dimbleby-Walker on Slugger O’Toole would wet himself at that thought….or indeed the thought of any high profile Catholic taking the Queens Shilling.

So….LADY Anna Lo? SIR Mike Nesbitt ? SIR David Ford? SIR Peter Robinson?

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 10 Comments

“Captain Jack” ?

Posted on December 14, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

This is the withdrawn “Centenary of the Irish Citizen Army” stamp. Last month, this example sold for €676 on eBay. There is another example, currently on eBay.image

An Post issues a bulletin on “New Issues” on four occasions during the year. When, I saw the bulletin in early January, it did not make me think twice. It was issued on my wife’s birthday on 23rd January and I tried to buy it in two County Louth post offices at lunch-time.
Seemingly a History lecturer at NUIG (Dr Leo Keohane) who is one of the academics who knows about the Irish Citizen Army spotted that this is NOT Captain Jack White.

For nearly a year now, I have wondered where I had seen the photograph before. In a comment on another thread, “Ben Madigan” mentions a pamphlet by great Belfast socialist which has a photograph of Captain Jack White “looking dapper” in his Citizen Army uniform.
I wonder if this is the same photograph I have seen thirty odd years ago and the same one used by An Post.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

The Politics Of Irish Stamps.

Posted on December 12, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

The Decade of Centenaries.

The odd thing about Stamp Collecting (besides the eccentricity of people who collect stamps) is that it can be extremely “political”. In the case of Ireland this is hardly surprising.

An Irish Stamp Album is in fact, “Ireland’s Greatest Hits” Album. The History, Culture, Spirituality, Music, Fauna, Flora, Sport etc are all there. And yes…Politics. By any standards, the decision not to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Death of Michael Collins was an act of Fianna Fáil spite.

But the Politics is largely outside the Stamp Album.

The postal authority “An Post” has a committee which decides the new stamp issues. Most recently, people have been invited to submit ideas for 2016 and in a few months, we will be asked to submit ideas for 2017. And so on.

But the Politics of Stamp Collecting is not just about the historic events depicted. It is also about the manner in which these events are depicted. It is a form of “revisionism”.

Two examples. The 150th Anniversary of the 1798 Rebellion was marked by the issue of two, rather drab stamps, featuring Wolfe Tone. But in 1998, the Bicentenary issue of five different stamps featured  French involvement, Henry Joy McCracken and curiously but properly generic “Women of 1798”. And the 1803 Rebellion aniversary in 1953 was marked by a two stamp issue fea)turing Robert Emmet. But in 2003, the three stamp issue featured Emmett, Thomas Russell and (again properly) Anne Devlin.

The 1916 Rising is regularly represented on Irish stamps. In 1941 (25 years) there were shortages of paper and ink (World War Two was ongoing) which produced a two-stamp issue of a very temporary nature, followed later in the year by a single stamp.

In 1966 (50 years) a set of eight stamps was issued. There was a generic stamp and a stamp for each of the seven signatories of the Proclamation. Of course, I was 13 years old and I remember 1966, all too well. The extent to which the 1966 Events contributed to the Norn Iron “Troubles” which started in 1969 is a matter of debate but what is certain is that three Catholic deaths at the hands of a revived Ulster Volunteer Force can be partly attributed to Easter Commemoration and of course unionist sectarian hatred.

But we can also say that the outbreak of the Troubles created something of a dilemna in Dublin. Successive Irish governments from 1969 faced the problem of denouncing northern nationalist “terrorism” and facing the reality that the Irish State was established by a previous generation of “terrorists”. Thus in 1991 (75 years) and 2006 (90 years), the single stamps issued were muted and almost apologetic.

Which brings us to the “Decade of Centenaries” . The period 1912-1922 was a traumatic period in Irish History…Home Rule Act, the formation of unionist and nationalist militias, the Ulster Covenant, The General Lock Out, World War One, The Easter Rising, The Somme, The War of Independence, anti-Catholic pograms in the North, The Treaty, The Civil War.

I have not been a fan of Conflict Resolution. But the Decade of Centenaries while very real, also has a degree of “manufacture” and “manipulation”. There is of course a need for historians to look at the History of the 1912-1922 period and certainly a need to de-construct myths. But the creation of new myths such as “shared history” with a view to creating a Post-Conflict world is not something historians should do.

Oddly…the treatment of History motivates me more than Politics. Why is that? Well, on retirement, I went back to Queens University to study a History degree. I graduated at 57 years of age and I tend to believe the words I heard in the Whitla Hall on Graduation Day. I have the skills to understand History. I dont like to see it as a tool of Politcians, especially LetsGetAlongerists.

So….Stamp Collecting and the Decade of Centenaries.

An Post has already issued stamps to commemorate the founding of the Irish Volunteers, the Irish Citizen Army (and copies of the withdrawn stamp now fetch prices in excess of €500) and Cumann na mBan. The General Lock Out has been recognised and Edward Carson and John Redmond appear on the Home Rule Act Centenary stamp. And two stamps, featuring “recruiting posters” have commemorated the outbreak of the First World War.

But 2015 is only a few weeks away and I have been sent details of the Stamp Programme for 2015. There will be three issues than cover the Decade of Centenaries theme…..the funeral of O’Donovan Rossa (Pearse’s oration), the Galipoli Landings and the sinking of the Lusitania. Has there ever been a greater example of…..”balance”?

The O’Rossa Funeral is for the Republicans. The Galipoli Landings is for the old “Ireland was/is British too” devotees and the sinking of the Lusitania off the southern coast of Ireland is one for civilians and pacifists.

But is there a LetsGetAlongerist dimension? Curiously yes. Incredibly…in my view….the 50th Anniversary of the Meeting of Seán Lemass and Terence O’Neill will be recognised in January. You couldnt make it up. I still have one of the snowballs that Rev Ian Paisley threw that day.

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Europe…More Racist Than UKIP?

Posted on November 2, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

It is hard to like the “United Kingdom Independence Party” (UKIP). Indeed the very name suggests a bunch of golf club bores, making their way upstairs on the Clapham Omnibus…to smoke a cigarette…only to be told by the Bus Inspector that it is now illegal because of a new law passec in Brussels.
Angry white men (and some angry white women) are familiar enough in United States. They are the bedrock of the Tea Party. And UKIP is a very British Tea Party.
It is common currency to believe that “rights”, maternity pay, minimum wage, equality laws etc affect some people adversely. Angry White Men, so long in positions of influence feel their situation is worse. The “Enemy” is ill-defined. Migrants of course (in both USA and Britain), the “New World Order” (USA), “Europe” (Britain). Ancient freedoms are deemed under threat by jihadists swimming across the Rio Grande or Ebola carrying feminists smuggled into Dover on French car ferries.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

All Political Careers End In Failure…Well Mine Certainly Did

Posted on October 28, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

I should start by declaring an interest. You all know that I am a member of SDLP and more so I first joined SDLP in 1973 and while I voted Sinn Féin from 1993 thru to 2009, I am at heart SDLP “gene pool” and really “socialist, republican, nationalist” says it all.

What you may not know is that just over a year ago, I applied (stop sniggering at the back) to be a SDLP Press Officer. As well as having a degree in History and Politics, a dissertation (supervised by Sidney Elliott) on electoral politics in West Belfast 1964-2007, a knowledge of SDLP that exceeds Wikipedia and not least, a pretty darn good blog, while independently minded is the only one that is actually supportive of SDLP. Throw in (I daresay) thousands of pro-SDLP comments on the likes of Slugger O’Toole (not friendly territory for SDLP) and I might have had reasonable expectations of making my case at an interview with SDLP. Alas not….YOU dear Reader might actually think that this Blog is pretty damned good…but the people in SDLP who drew up the shortlist aren’t nearly as enthusiastic as you are.

Let me emphasise …NOBODY who pays a £10 annual subscription, who attends some fundraisers and pays £20 for an Annual Conference “pack” is entitled to a paid post in a political party. That’s not actually the point I am making. The point is I might have had a reasonable shot at being short-listed.

Of course, a crazy person does the same thing twice and expects a different result on the second occasion. Being a certified lunatic, I applied to be Policy Officer with SDLP. Last week I received their “Dear John…….Thanks but no thanks” letter. Again I am not short-listed.

With respect to the person (my money is on a 15 year old PhD) who gets the job , SDLP Policy Officer is a piece of piss. Just write one word DECENCY…on a manifesto and you have the SDLP in a nutshell. The SDLP are simply more decent than Sinn Féin and the Alliance Party.

The SDLP are decent to an almost unreasonable extent…except of course with each other and their friends. That’s how it is. Born in the heat of battle and with a serious commitment to Peace and Justice, SDLP notoriously don’t get on with each other (although I would qualify this by saying that this is not necessarily the case at grass roots level).

It is no great secret that there is some animosity at the highest levels in the Party.

Dr Alasdair McDonnell, the Leader is allegedly prickly. He lost the Leadership race to Margaret Ritchie in 2010, largely as a result of a”Stop Al” campaign. That should have been the end of the matter except for the fact that Margaret Ritchie was an unmitigated disaster her leadership saw SDLP lose two Assembly seats(down to 14) and saw Alliance (8 Assembly seats) overtake SDLP as the third Party in terms of Executive seats.

Ritchie had to go. And in November 2011 the “Stop Al” people had rallied behind Conall McDevitt but McDonnell won the Leadership. Already a man in his sixties, it could reasonably be anticipated that Conall (around forty) would succeed him. Indeed I think the period of the next eighteen months was marked by Alasdair addressing some organisational issues and Conall settling down as the “SDLP Dauphin” who would become Leader in a few years. Certainly that was my honest observation and I certainly sensed relief that things were very civilised.

I think that Conall’s sudden resignation from politics in August 2013 changed everything. It seemed to stun his supporters in the Party and left the “anti Al” faction leaderless with no obvious candidate to succeed a Leader to whom they had never warmed. Dolores Kelly the Deputy Leader is 55 years old. So is Alex Attwood.

If Attwood is to become Leader, it is less likely to  as a consequence of Alasdair succeeding as a Leader an retiring in glory. Logically it is more likely if Alasdair is pushed.

But why would he be pushed? Well his detractors might say that the Council Elections in May 2014 were bad for SDLP. But most reasonable people say they were bad for nationalists and good for Apathy.

The stark facts are that notionally SDLP lost just one seat. Sinn Féin lost ten seats and Alliance (from a much lower base) lost two seats. The fall in first preference vote share was mitigated by being transfer friendly. In truth, the Council results do not give comfort to either faction. The loss of one seat hardly proves the pro or anti Alasdair stance.
So where does that leave the people who make no secret of their distaste for the Party Leader?
Well it is a bit awkward for them.
I think most would analyse that SDLP will lose the South Belfast seat at Westminster next year. The Party Leaders seat. Alliance will be strong, a likely unionist agreed candidate and self publicist, O’Muilleoir for Sinn Féin should all mean that SDLP lose out. The mainstream party may not be so forgiving if they thought any votes were lost thru stabbing Alasdair in the back. Ironically in the unlikely event of Alasdair holding South Belfast, he would have to resign as MLA at Stormont and the Leadership. It would also mean the South Belfast members co-opting a new MLA. And that could be interesting. A likely consequence of Alasdair losing his Westminster seat is that he and Fearghal McKinney are Assembly candidates in 2016. Of course the only way his opponents can address that is to launch a challenge for Leadership at the Party Conference in 2015 but whether those most identified with being anti-McDonnell benefit is another question. Colum Eastwood might be a better option.
If there is a dream ticket Attwood and Eastwood, Who would be the Leader? Good question and it might hinge on the Party choosing the least troublesome path.

But all this cant be SEEN to be about Personality. There has to be an issue.
The issue is Opposition. Should the SDLP leave the five party coalition government and go into Opposition. Well the great problem with the Stormont institutions is that there is no constitutional place for Opposition. If the SDLP goe into Opposition, there is no support structure, no government money to finance an Office of Opposition. Staff will lose out. Yet it seems that these difficulties can be overcome. Where there is a will…there is a way.
For what its worth, I believe SDLP should have gone into Opposition in May 2011.
The Assembly Election produced 92,000 votes and 14 seats for SDLP…51,000 votes for Alliance and 8 seats. Yet the LetsGetAlongerists operating in a narrow base in suburban Belfast took two Executive seats and the SDLP just one Executive seat.
Since then DUP and Sinn Féin, aided and abetted by Alliance and a friendly media have sought to marginalise SDLP and UUP (also on one Executive seat).
I emphasise that was the point SDLP should have said that they wanted to part of the gerrymander.
It is an odd coincidence that we have coalition government at Westminster (Conservative and Liberal Democrat) and in Dublin (Fine Gael and Labour). Conventional wisdom says that in order to survive …the Lib Dems and Labour need to distance themselves from unpopular governments and re-connect with their core supporters. Surely before the 2016 Assembly Election and the current carve up being seen as a carve up and a farce, one or more of the smaller parties will jump ship and try to find the high moral ground. Frankly the party (SDLP, UUP or Alliance) who jumps first has a lot to gain.

Alasdair McDonnell is broadly in support of staying in Government. Those lining up against him are pro-Opposition. This is a position which has strong advocates in South-West Belfast. But there is at least two ironies. First of all Alex Attwood is not exactly in a good position to lead calls for Opposition. His position has to be nuanced,not least because he was Minister for the Environment from 2011 to 2013. It seems a bit contradictory to be pro-Opposition now. Dolores Kelly might be a better choice to call for an “internal party debate” with all options on the table.
SDLP meet in Conference in just three weeks time. Dolores delivers her Deputy Leader speech on the Friday night. Alasdair makes his Leadership speech on Saturday afternoon. The body language and standing ovations should be as interesting as anything actually said.
But the pro-Opposition faction have another problem. The current five-party coalition arrangement was deemed alright by SDLP when they had the lions share of nationalist votes and influence. They have to deal with the point that it is not just sour grapes. They can make the valid point that DUP-SF and their Alliance puppets have abused the system. But they might take notice of the fact that some of those retired party leaders, now loudly advocating Opposition got it wrong in the years after 1998.

They must be honest about the performance of SDLP Ministers in the first coalition. They ned to honest with the Party that the Party Leadership since 1998 has been poor (Mark Durkan is the only one I would not criticise). The SDLP needs to stop blaming the British and Irish governments for being too anxious to transfer real power to DUP and Sinn Féin.

So is all lost for SDLP? No. The May Elections basically stopped the rot. But there are warning signs. Realistically the only Election that matters is The Assembly Election. There are contradictory messages.
The starting point is fourteen seats. On the evidence of May, the third SDLP seat in Derry, the second seat in South Belfast, the North Belfast seat and West Belfast seat are vulnerable. The Election might give the SDLP just ten seeats. But Fermanagh-South Tyronðe is likely to be regained and there were positive signs in South Antrim, Newry-Armagh and South Down. Far too early to write off SDLP on worst case scenarios. Attwood will hold West Belfast, Nichola Mallon currently starring as Mayor of Belfast should take North Belfast and Derry …the third aeat is marginal.
The second seat in South Belfast will probably be lost. And an irony here. South Belfast is very much divided into pro and anti McDonnell factions. They may not like it but they need each other.
Really its not about POLICY.
Policy is the space between POLITICAL ETHOS and ELECTORAL POLITICS.
The SDLP has a good ethos and it needs to translate that ethos into a manifesto. It also needs to tell the people that SDLP represent best…the disadvantaged, the low paid, the public sector workers, migrants…that SDLP NEEDS and DESERVES their votes. The Trade Union leaders, Victims Support Groups need to get off the fence and involve themselves.
The SDLP, especially the Youth Group need to start thinking clearly and avoid grandiose statements calling for big social change on esoteric matters. DONT ROCK THE BOAT!?

So best wishes to the new SDLP Policy Officer.
Clearly he or she is better at this game than I am.
But alas…my own political career is behind me.

Posted in Uncategorized | 18 Comments

Edwin, Mairtín And …Jim…And Peter Robinson!

Posted on September 25, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

Congratulations if you are old enough to know that the headline is a tip of the hat to “Abraham, Martin and John” and Smokey Robinson.

So just to be clear…Edwin is Edwin Poots, DUP MLA for Lagan Valley and until earlier this week, Minister for Health in our power-sharing Executive. Jim is Jim Wells, the DUP MLA for South Down who has replaced him. Peter “Smokey” Robinson is our First Minister. And Mairtín is Mairtín Ó Muileoir who was Sinn Féin Mayor of Belfast from 2013 to 2014.

This blog is not so much about the open war between factions in DUP…it is actually about “social media”.

It was always known that Robinson would “rotate” his team during the term of the current Assembly and generally assumed that Poots would be replaced by Wells. Indeed Poots has been hanging on for a while now. I think he was unsackable because he was under so much criticism, not just for his handling of the Department of Health (arguably the worst brief to have in the Executive) and more generally his image as a fundamentalist Christian and more broadly a lack of charisma.

In other words Poots is a target for entirely justified criticism of his handling of the Health portfolio (including a stupid and cruel ban on blood donations from gay people), entirely justified criticism of remarks that appear homophobic. The fact remains that Norn Irons leading political party is made up of fundamentalist Christians…but IN ITSELF there is no problem with that. Like it or not, a large number of people share these views…the only problem arises when these views are used to hurt other people.

But much of the criticism of Poots seems to be levelled against him on the basis of his (fundamentalist) religion. I am a little uncomfortable with that. I declare an interest…I have met him once…at a Health Service “achievement” event. He was perfectly pleasant and genuine. So many of these events, a Minister can show up, make a patronising speech (drafted by civil servants), have some photographs taken with award winners, before being whisked away in the Ministerial car. To his immense credit, Poots engaged with nurses, social workers, hospital kitchen staff etc. Not the sort of people that Norn Irons twitterati and blogging community would even notice. I was even more impressed to learn that Edwin Poots is a man capable of personal kindness.

Actually the fact that ANYBODY from ANY background is capable of personal kindness should not surprise anyone.

Of course there is a nice sub-text to this weeks comings and goings in DUP this week, not unlinked to divisions in the Party and a general crisis in the future of the Assembly.

Jim Wells…I have never met. I heard him speak once on a non-political issue and he seemed perfectly reasonable. Based on TV and Assembly appearances he seems assertive to the point of aggression. Of course he is also a fundamental Christian and I would expect him to the same negative political force that Poots was. I expect him to be more “in your face” about his beliefs.

Yet the criticism levelled at Wells this week is not so much about his politics but rather the fact that he has “blocked” so many people…his metrotextual critics on Twitter. It is suggested that he has no right to block his critics. “How dare he?” “How VERY dare he?” makes the metrotextuals realise that they are not nearly as important or relevant as they think they are. He challenges their belief in their own entitlement.

Ah but ” he is a politician” and he “should be accountable”. Indeed he IS accountable …to the electors in South Down. Not accountable to slightly obsessed “progressive” bloggers and tweeters in South Belfast.

A new Twitter game is in progress. People take a screenshot showing that Jim Wells has “blocked” them. The hashtag “BlockedbyJimWells” is a badge of honour. So much so that it has appeared on Slugger O’Toole, the house message board of Norn Irons “progressive” (letsgetalongerist) elite.

A small declaration here. I follow about one hundred people on Twitter and am followed by roughly two hundred. I have “blocked” a lot of people, mainly because I am not interested in what they have to say. It seems entirely reasonable. Nobody has a right to engage with me and I don’t have an obligation to engage with anybody.

Alas I have been TRYING to get Jim Wells to “block” me. But he does not seem to have got round to it.

I am of course criticised for not publishing comments on this Blog…if I believe them to come from members of the Alliance Party, which is a Party I believe to be anti-democratic and beneficiaries of (too uncritical) media coverage.

But Slugger O’Toole…now heres a thing.

At a Slugger-organised event some months ago. y third old friend Mairtín (Mairtín ÓMuilleoir) then Mayor of Belfast was guest of honour. He shook hands with every attendee. He was introduced as many attendees including Sluggerites will recall by Slugger apprentice, Doctor David McCann.

McCann introduced him as I recall “a man we like on Slugger” which was I think outside the brief but McCann is young. And a look thru Slugger archives would have shown that Ó Muilleoir and his media firm were not always flavour of the month on anti-nationalist Slugger O’Toole.

Indeed I don’t think it was entirely political. Journalists in Norn Iron are publicly neutral. It is a fiction in which journalists and politicians conspire. But Ó Muilleoir broke the code by being both journalist and (Sinn Féin) politician.

What changed?

Well Mairtín uses social media to a truly heroic extent. He has 16,000 followers on Twitter and follows 6,000. Certainly in the early months of his “mayoralty” I satirised his over-use of social media. While I acknowledge his outstanding success as a Mayor of Belfast, some of his tweets are truly risible. “best cup of coffee on Lisburn Road is at…” , “best soda bread on Falls Road”…”by old cycling mate….”, “my old jogger mate….” and the always bizarre “pictured with Clyde and BobbyJo Kaminsky of Boise Idaho outside City Hall”.

In other words……..his tweets are complete and utter shyyyyte. But eagerly seized upon by Belfasts bloggerati and twitterati. His handle is “newbelfast” and frankly the 16,000 followers include people who would not look at Gerry Adams or Gerry Kelly. Mairtín is the acceptable face of Sinn Féin…erudite and middle class. And if on occasions he had to break away from a cup of coffee with a local artist at the Cathedral Quarter to attend a rally in support of (arrested) Gerry Adams on the Falls Road……then the Belfast artistic, business and academic elite are remarkably forgiving.

I have always taken the view that Mairtín was little more than a shameless self-publicist who provides respectable cover for the hairy arse types in Sinn Féin, who scare off ordinary people. So Mairtín will probably be coming to a Westminster or Assembly ballot paper in the not too distant future.

But……..his speech to Sluggerites acknowledged the role of social media and he is a devotee. But how does he deal with negative comments on his Twitter feed. Simple. On the advice of his Buddhist chaplain (born on Falls Road and resident in San Francisco???) ………..he deletes them.

So in Social Media terms, Mairtin ÓMuilleoir is not that different from Jim Wells. Oddly nobody at Slugger remembered this.

See that’s the problem….being “good” on Social Media excuses everything. The MetroTextuals love being taken seriously.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Clan Cameron

Posted on September 19, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

History is a funny thing. I have been an active student for more than fifty years. Thru the standard text books, the TV Dramatisation of “Culloden”, (which led me to read the book by John Prebble) adventure stories like Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Kidnapped”, songs like “The Skye Boat Song”, I became fascinated by Jacobite History…that period between 1688 and 1746 and the massacre at Culloden Moor.
I have been to Glencoe, where the Government Campbells massacred the MacDonalds.
I have been to Carlisle Castle, visited the dungeons where Jacobite prisoners were held and I have seen the “licking stones” where these unfortunates, deprived of water to drink were grateful for the rain water, which trickled down.
I have been to Clifton in Cumbria, the last battle (actually a skirmish) fought on English soil.
I have been to several towns in Lancashire associated with the Jacobites. Burnley, Preston, Lancaster and Wigan. And of course Manchester, where the Jacobite army invading England, picked up their only English recruits. I have followed the road where they marched lut of Manchester.
I have been in the square in Derby, where there is a statue of Bonnie Prince Charlie, said to be the best likeness of him. This is the furthest point south the Jacobites came. Fear of being outflanked and French assistance not arriving and an English population which was indifferent or hostile, caused the Highland Chiefs to vote to go back to Scotland. A sullen Bonnie Prince Charlie barely spoke to them again.
Arguably London was in panic and the Jacobites MIGHT have been rewarded had they pressed on. It is one of the great unknowns.
I have been to Falkirk, Nairn and to Inverness, where the victorious Government troops went on an orgy of plunder, murder and rape, after their bloody victory at Culloden.

Of course, I have stood on Culloden Moor, at the spot where fourteen troopers of a Franco-Irish cavalry regiment, called Fitzjames Horse provided the personal escort to Charlie, who cracked up at the battle and had to be escorted off the field.
Catch me on a good day and I will tell you the Jacobite Order of Battle, where each Clan stood and where the “French” regiments (actually Irish and Scots) stood, providing the covering fire that allowed a lot of Highlanders to escape …rebels could expect no quarter …but to the “French” it was just the fortunes of war. They surrendered and were later repatriated back “home” to France.
And I have been close to Ruthven Barracks, the place where the defeated Highlanders were supposed to rendezvous with Charlie.
Of course, Charlie had already begun his escape thru the heather…his followers only got a message to “look to their own safety”.
Some would end up dead or transported or pressed into service in “British” Highland Regiments.
Meanwhile, back in European palaces, serial drunk and serial abuser of women, Bonnie Prince Charlie would forever curse and blame his followers for his defeat.
Never in human history did brave men and women follow such a dastardly “leader”.

Of course I could bring you to the place in London where the officers of the Manchester Regiment were hang, drawn and quartered and I could bring you to Essex Street in the Strand where Charlie visited (incognito) four years after defeat at Culloden. He got himself baptised as an Anglican in a pathetic attempt to get new followers.
I could bring you to the spot near Marble Arch, which was once Tyburn…the gallows where people, often for political or religious crimes were publicly executed.
The last execution of a Jacobite leader took place there in 1753. He had foolishly made a trip to Scotland and was betrayed.

His name…Dr Archie CAMERON.
History is indeed strange.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Scotland

Posted on September 18, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

The polls close in a few minutes.

The Scottish Referendum. It FEELS Historic. It feels like the Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. Or maybe it isnt.

Back in the 1960s, Scottish and Welsh Nationalism was confined to the “Celtic Fringe” …Highlands and Islands, sending an occasional MP to Westminster.

The fact is…or WAS …Scotland and Wales are Labour strongholds. In the 1960s there was actually a Conservative presence in both these nations. What happened? Margaret Thatcher happened.

And effectively the Conservative Party began a slide to near oblivion.

Another fact. The Labour Party took Scotland for granted. In a bad General Election, Scottish Labour MPs can make up a quarter of its Westminster party. In a good General Election, Scottish Labour MPs can make up a fifth of the Westminster party. Therefore Scots can make up a disproportionate number in the Labour leadership….Gordon Brown, Robin Cook, John Reid, Alastair Darling etc.

Labour NEEDS Scotland. But as always the case, Labour can stand accused of taking its strongholds for granted. But increasingly, British politics is about the “middle ground”. The Conservatives take their base support for granted to court the mythical ” Worcester Woman”. Scotland felt neglected. Scotland…in devolution turned to the Scottish Nationalist Party.

SNP takes control of the newly devolved Scottish Government and presses for a Referendum. This os where we are.

It was assumed that the Scots would vote NO but over the past two weeks the opini

on polls are showing that the gap between the two sides has closed to the extent that Westminsters parties have panicked to the point of offering concessions….more powers …to the Scottish Government.

It is now 10pm and the polls have closed. Seemingly a victory for NO.

But comments here on the Campaign. The YES Campaign was energetic. The NO Campaign wS lack lustre. Saved possibly by the speeches of Gordon Brown, former British Prime Minister. The nominL leader of the NO Campaign, Alastair Darling was simply awful. The Westminster leaders, Cameron, Miliband and Clegg were inconvincing.

I am of course a nationalist. The Vote itself was an act of Self-Determination. That should be enough. But of course I am an IRISH nationalist. To achieve Irish unity, I must necessarily seek the end of the United Kingdom. Necessarily my feelings for my own nation is an animosity to another one. For my own nation to succeed, another must fail.

Are those who believe in a United Kingdom as entitled to love their country as much as I love mine. Well again….an English person in Surrey who feels diminished by the threat of the United Kingdom ending, has to recognise that many Scots, Welsh and Irish feel diminished rather than enhanced by the existence of the United Kingdom.

Arguably, English people use the words ” England” and “UK” as transferrable words that carry the same meaning. They fail to recognise that Scots are much more aware of the nuance. The English love the UK so much that they dont seem to realise that Scots can feel diminished or even humiliated by its very existence.

For the United Kingdom is little more than Greater England. And that is resented by a lot of Scots. And the English dont get it. Yugoslavia was little more than Greater Serbia. The Slovenes, Bosnians, Croats  (and Montenegro, Macedonia and Kosovo) resented it. And the Serbs still dont get it. And USSR was little more than Greater Russia and the Ukrainians, Latvians, Georgians and a lot of others resented it. The Russians still dont get it.

Does anybody seriously doubt that Greater England will go the way of Greater Serbia and Greater Russia.

Have the UK media, particuarly the British Broadcasting Corporation been fair to the YES Campaign. I dont think they have. There has certainly been bias. But I ask a bigger question. Is it reasonable to expect a UK broadcaster, publicly funded by UK taxpayers to be neutral on the existence of the Nation.?

Of course…for me this goes to the heart of the nature of the Union. A Union that I hold in contempt.

The role of BBC in London is one thing. But the role of the BBC Scotland is a bigger question. Is there a “unionist” bias in BBC Scotland? Did the BBC staff vote in much the same way as the general population? The role of the Media will come under intense scrutiny but if BBC News and BBC Scotland are going to be investigated, can we ask that it be extended to BBC Norn Iron? It might be interesting to know if BBC Belfast is truly reflective of the Norn KIron electorate.

Of course the BBC in Belfast might well be LetsGetAlongerists and LetsGetAlongerists have oft taken this blog to account for suggesting that their philosophy is at heart “unionist”.

If you have any doubt about this, just look at the tweets from our better known LetsGetAlongerist commentators and their avowed and occasionally bitter unionism during the past few weeks when the polls were suggesting a close result. LetsGetAlongerists can be remarkably vitriolic.

Look at Slugger O’Toole. Is it anti-nationalist? And did its anti-nationalism go international?

But how is it that the nice liberal newspapers were as pro-Union as the Tory press. Well of course Labour needs Scotland and the “Union” is a basic part of Conservative philosophy.

The nature of Imperialism and the “Union” was the earliest imperialism is that both fundamentalist Socialists and Conservatives are unionist. The Imperialism of McAuley was at heart pseudo liberal. It was bringing “civilisation” to the unfortunate. The Imperialism of Cecil Rhodes was unapolgetically exploiting the natives.

At its best, unionism is patronising and at its worst its a relic of the worst aspects of  Imperialism. At least thats how its seen by nationalists.

If the Exit Polls are right, then is everything lost for an Independent Scotland.

No.

The aftermath will be bitter. Very bitter. The Role of the Media. The normal embargo on hard news and speculation during voting. The role of the banks and big business appearing to bully the Voter. The effect might well be that Scotland is a one party state…controlled by the SNP. Labour will not be forgiven quickly and will take a hit in next years Westminster Election. SNP will gain a lot of seats and could well stop Labour getting a majority to form a Government. Even foreign interference from Barak Obama and Bill Clinton will backfire.

It is unlikely the Tory press or Tory backbenchers will be happy about the concessions that David Cameron was forced to make to get that NO vote. Scottish MPs will probably be excluded from “English” issues. Confrontation is inevitable.

So how is Bitterness and Confrontation good for Scottish nationalism?

Well Nationalism NEEDS Resentment and is never satisfied by Concession.

Just look at Ireland. Talk to any Irish Nationalist long enough and you will hear about Oliver Cromwell and Drogheda, The Wild Geese, Father Murphy in 1798, the execution of the 1916 Leaders. We are not impressed by Catholic Emancipation, the British faciliating literacy and Gaelic language or Land Acts.

We simply take all and want more. Alec Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon, the astute SNP leaders know how Nationalism works. Luckily no British Government has a clue.

But there is a bigger truth. The “United” Kingdom has never been more “disUnited”. It has never been less homogenous.

Norn Iron is already semi-detached. The residents are fully entitled to Irish citizenship. The Good Friday Agreement ensures power sharing between unionists and people who want the Union to end. Indeed 40% of the voters dont want the Union. A figure now matched or bettered in Scotland. And SNP in power for decades to come.

And of course, increased powers in Scotland will cause agitation for more power for English regions, maybe even an English parliament. UKIP (United Kingdom Independence Party) will snipe at Conservatives over migration. There will be pressure over European Union. And too many inner city areas seem controlled as fiefdoms by tribal elders, to whom the Labour Party have cosied. The tribal elders deliver the votes and Labour looks the other way.

And of course, young British men go off to Iraq and Syria to appear on YouTube, executing other young British men.

So….the “United Kingdom”?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 18 Comments

SDLP: Getting With The (Feile) Programme

Posted on August 7, 2014 by fitzjameshorse

Odd thing. No mention of SDLP in West Belfast’s Annual Festival. It almost looks likr they (we) dont exist. Are we even mentioned in the great big glossy brochure?

As West Belfast invites the world to celebrate the diversity of West Belfast…the SDLP are strangely absent. Curiously Feile organisers are very fond of Sinn Fein. Indeed people associated with Sinn Fein seem to closely associated with Feile.

Last year, SDLP hosted a very successful event on Victims. Among those on the panel, Mrs Quinn from Crossmaglen and Catherine McCartney from Short Strand. The audience were mostly SDLP members, victims and neutrals. In the front seat sat Danny Morrison (and his hat) in his capacity of Festival Director. Danny is a former Sinn Fein MLA and the Sinn Fein Chief Press Officer. He is now a journalist and author.

There was one other “republican” apologist sitting beside Danny. While Danny had the good sense to not open his mouth, the guy beside him decided to tackle Catherine McCartney. That was a big mistake.

For those who dont know Catherine, she is the sister of Robert McCartney. And a pretty formidable lady. Her fellow panelist Mrs Quinn, lost a son a few years back. Both Robert McCartney and Paul Quinn were post-ceasefire victims…and their murders closely associated with (then) current or former members of the IRA. The perception of the victims families is that those associated with the IRA in East Belfast and South Armagh have been less than helpful in bringing those responsible to Justice.

So the SDLP-hosted event was a success. Was it actually TOO successful. Why is there none this year?

Well…I was at the launch of this years Festival. And I asked two organisers and ….got two answers. 

The first reason is that the SDLP did not submit an event for inclusion in the programme. But that does not make a lot of sense…why would SDLP want to marginalise itself in West Belfast? 

The second reason…party political parties are not allowed to put on events. Well that makes no sense either. What about 2013? What about the fact that the Catholic Church hosts events? or that so much of the programme reflects a Sinn Fein agenda. When the Festival kicks off with Gerry Adams TD unveiling a bust of Bobby Sands (RIP) in the Felons Club….the reasoning that SDLP cannot host an event is a bit hard to defend.

But Feile apologists will claim that the political events at the Festival ARE diverse.

Look at “West Belfast Talks Back” the annual political panel Q & A Session. A showpiece event. Last nights panel …John O’Dowd MLA (Sinn Fein), Danny Kennedy MLA (UUP) , Fr Tim Bartlett (Catholic priest) and Rev Lesley Carter (Presbyterian Minister and LetsGetAlongerist).

Look at the junior version “West Belfast Youth Talks Back” and a panel that includes Stevie Corr (Sinn Fein), Anna Lo MLA (Alliance) and Julie Ann Corr (PUP).

Diverse? Well Noel Thompson and Yvette Shapiro (respected BBC and UTV journalists) bring their professional skills to the proceedings by chairing the events. But would these panels actually pass BBC or UTV scrutiny as being truly representative of West Belfast. 

Diverse? Well lets make this clear. UUP, Alliance and PUP are no threat to Sinn Fein in West Belfast. The only other Party to have sufficient support in West Belfast to elect a MLA is….SDLP. It is not simply a matter of SDLP being on the panel at such things.It is a question of their voice being heard at all….after all it is West Belfast Talks Back.

But what does SDLP say? Well I asked some SDLP people. 

First of all…the hosting of an event at Feile. The line the SDLP was given is that “a political party” cannot organise an event.

And “West Belfast Talks Back” where it has been years since a SDLP person was on a platform. Well…SDLP have asked the same question. And been told that SDLP people have been aproached but not accepted an invite. On the other hand, SDLP people say that their HQ and Press Office have not been asked to put someone up. 

Who do I believe? Well…more importantly who do you believe?

To me Sinn Fein diversity and outreach is a bit of a sham. They are trying to ensure that West Belfast is a one party enclave and out of the other side of their mouths spewing about an “inclusive society” in Norn Iron.

Sinn Fein …and seemingly Feile will not facilitate a voice which offers an alternative in West Belfast. UUP, Alloance and PUP are absolutely no threat to them. 

So I have concentrated on SDLP. You expect that. I am a member.

But actually the same is true for dissident republicans and leftist alternatives in West Belfast.

They/We will never be allowed to get with the Programme.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 5 Comments