Outside The Box : Take 11

Sean Mallory has penned a few words regarding two of the articles on TPQ. That he felt made for enjoyable reading. Sean Mallory from Tyrone is a wry and sometimes caustic observer of politics both nationally and internationally. He provides TPQ with its own Outside The Box commentary.
 
 

 Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, ?????

 
On reading both articles, Hayes and Norris’ Policing after the Peace Process in Northern Ireland: The Continuing Dialectics Of State Coercion And Popular Consent and Hughes’ Dancing At The Crossroads, in which both provide intuitive contours on the road ahead for Irish Republican dissidents continuing with armed struggle, I find Hughes’, presently, to be more a reflection of the reality of the situation.
 
The Dissident campaign of armed resistance, besides being insignificant and a bloody bad joke, is futile and largely unsupported by a Nationalist population that is indifferent to their political aspirations. Aspirations now perceived as belonging to a far of bygone age.
 
Empathy to the social issues affecting those across the water and those south of the British border has taken on greater significance to people here than the romantic ideals of someone from Kilwilkie. And that is certainly not likely to change soon. The British, have with SF and their much needed help and assistance, successfully demonised the likes of well-known dissidents like Duffy and Co to the point where they are considered ‘persona non grata’ within a lot of Nationalist homes and so their likelihood of changing that perception, through gaol struggles, hunger strikes or armed conflict is doomed to failure.
 
Such is the success of such propaganda and the acceptance by a majority of Nationalists, not of the British rule of law but ‘the law’ in general, what a normalised society would expect it to be, that the degree of change in perceptions by Nationalists can be best summed up by one old Nationalist with a tinge of Republicanism who quipped to me recently regarding the Historical Enquiries Teams attempts at obtaining more of the Boston tapes:
 
Sure why wouldn’t they (HET) demand they (Boston Tapes) are handed over, those people committed murder and that is evidence.
 
But more to the point is that although Hayes and Norris refer to ‘agents’ operating within the Republican Movement, they, like Hughes, have failed to fully appreciate or state the impact that these agents have had on directing Republican policy.
 
How else can the complete U-turn of SF be logically explained? Men once supposed to be steeped in Irish Republican ideology, do not expound antithetical policies that completely contradict and antagonise what they stood for and what they bled for, for almost 30 years, irrespective of their planned route to a united Ireland. Mahoud Abbas and the PLO in the West Bank have had the same doubts and questions raised over thier policy decisions but they, like SF and Britain, find that their responses are in general publicly supported by Israel and the USA.
 
Hayes and Norris’ article, by and large is quite thought-provoking in that it targets the failures of SF with regards to justice, incorporating policing, by focusing the readers’ attention on how SF have now adopted and rigorously support what were once its bitter enemies.
 
Hayes and Norris’ article also re-awakens the reader to the blight of the Belfast cabal leading SF at the moment: a cabal that has changed very little over those 30 years. And judging by its policies and actions it is that very cabal that has been infiltrated by British controlled agents. Donaldson and Scappaticci, for various reasons, were thrown to the wolves to distract the lemmings away from scrutinising the cabal.

Scapaticci’s role was mainly focused on disrupting the armed struggle and not on influencing policy making. Once that went there was little use for an old soldiery tout. On the other hand, Donaldson being part of the think tank within SF was a greater loss but only in that he was sacrificed so others could continue. If he, undetected, can attain the heights of influencing policy decisions then why waste him if you don’t have another(s) to replace him with? 
 
What we have is an elephant stampeding around a room where the supposed keepers of the enclosure seem to be in the same room but appear to be in another dimension and thus oblivious and apparently blind to its destructive actions. Perhaps they would be more akin to supervising ostriches for at least sticking your head in the sand is a commonly accepted trait within that enclosure!
 
McGuinness, who’s presence seems to contradict the concept of a ‘Belfast cabal’, is only tolerated to the extent that his presence quiets the party lemmings in to believing that it’s not just them alone that is jumping over the cliff but creates the impression that ‘we’re all in this together’ even though the cabal never seem to make it to the edge. Now operating too long within the mechanisms of the British political infrastructure he has been fully converted and absorbed and wilfully tags along with the antithetical preaching’s of the cabal even to the point where he is perceived publicly as contradicting himself such as in the case of Tory cuts. All dutifully done at the behest of the cabal. Although doubt over his allegiance has lingered for quite a while prior to Stormont. 
 
The Belfast cabal is the catalyst that has allowed the British to pursue whatever anti-republican security policy they so wish. Through them, SF's symbiotic relationship of unequivocal support to British rule balances on retaining the support of the party lemmings whilst appeasing their new line managers. It is this precarious balance that is being maintained by agents within the organisation and directly from within the cabal.
 
The contradictions, lies and deceit of the leadership, so often exposed and debunked, have now become the mainstay of SF public relations. To the critical eye of those who don’t play the British game, they, SF, continually appear to be bouncing from pillar to post without any real direction, verging on organised chaos. The anomaly of which is the paradox of their success on both sides of the British border especially the extent of their rise in popularity in the South which the mainstream parties are now throwing all the rocks they can find at. Perhaps there are agents in other political parties/organisations /institutions for surely MI5/6s activities were not restricted to the Falls Road.
 
Nevertheless, without the need for agents, would there have even been a ceasefire? Their input into policy making and their disruption of the armed struggle lead directly to the negotiating table but of course, in favour of the bully. SFs rise in the South should at least see them participating in some form of government even if in a limited manner, but once ensconced, will they put weight behind their call for a referendum or will they with finger on lip, meekly whisper its call and thus fulfil their manifestos pledge? Once again the lemmings will jump. From another angle, without the need for agents, is there a genuine need for a united Ireland?

5 comments:

  1. On the other hand, Donaldson being part of the think tank within SF was a greater loss but only in that he was sacrificed so others could continue.

    Of course its a matter of conjecture, but given the course SF have traversed since his outing/death (like policing,meeting the queen..), is it not more likely his role was as over seer, to ensure what MMG & Adams were saying in private was their true position?
    Also, if Stakeknifes roles in the army was as reported, that he had access to every ASU, and had reports on every mission, are you sure Donaldson was a greater loss? Stakeknife ensured there was no military alternative to the surrender.

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  2. Sean in your article you've got a couple of things right.

    Yes, the dissidents militarily and politically are running out of road. They in reality are fast becoming yesterdays' men and women.

    Yes too, there is a move towards normalisation of policing and broad cross community support for the PSNI.

    That many CNR's continue to support SF is nothing more than a little bit of tribal triumphalism (as is indeed PUL support for the DUP). As relative 'peaceful' and 'normalcy' trends become even more solidly embedded and a sizeable majority of citizens mature into a tolerable acceptance for differences there will be even less support for re-unification. I predict that a recognition of the 'adaptiveness of forgetting' will lead to less and less concrete measures for addressing the past.

    Despite occasional pretences from SF and the DUP the centre continues to gain mass and will hold.

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  3. Interesting read, thoroughly enjoyable and the kind of response that opens up genuine thoughtful debate. Donaldson being killed was a tragedy, surely he should have been 'water-boarded'/debriefed for a very long time instead? Though I am of the feeling the 'cabal' refered to are rotten to a man and have been for decades and the lemmings and voters are both aware of the fact and approve of it. That is why republicans continuing their 'war' are lemmings merely of a different colour, unable to halt the pull to self destruction rather than worthless political 'office'.

    People on both sides of the border are happy and do not want upheaval. That is perfectly obvious. If SF members, many decent friends of my own among them, require the continued self-delusion that there remains a bigger plan in order to burry their consciences or preserve some semblance of republican alter-ego, so be it.

    Martin McGuinness tweeted congratulations to his friends in the Royal family on the birth of their latest child. Is he to Irish republicanism what Mayweather is to world boxing....'the greatest ever'?The 'tactic' continues!

    Great review, very much appreciated.

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  4. Nevertheless, without the need for agents, would there have even been a ceasefire? Their input into policy making and their disruption of the armed struggle lead directly to the negotiating table but of course, in favour of the bully.

    Did agents actually disrupt the armed struggle or did they help fuel it. Lots of murders could have been stopped but were allowed to go ahead because agents were involved. I don't think agents brought around the armed struggle, maybe it is the opposite and the violence would not have escalated to the point it did and it would not have dragged on for as long as it did if it had not been for all the agents on both sides being allowed to murder by the police and MI5.

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  5. "the acceptance by a majority of Nationalists, not of the British rule of law but ‘the law’ in general, what a normalised society would expect it to be, that the degree of change in perceptions by Nationalists can be best summed up"

    It is my recollection that the vast majority of nationalists here always supported the rule of law. The SDLP most certainly did and they were overwhelmingly the most popular political party in nationalism for the duration of the troubles.

    It is a mistake to equate the opinions of republicans in places like Ardoyne with the opinions on nationalists in general.

    On McGuinness isn't it the case that The Fisherman ran down the Provo operation in his home town long before the ceasefire? Surely all the blame cannot be placed on the Belfast cabal?

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