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| Oil on board, 44” x 34” |
⏩Geordie Morrow is a Belfast artist.
While it can't be helped and life has its own way of intruding on our best intentions, missing the vigil that Drogheda stands With Palestine has put in place since the onset of the Israeli genocide in Gaza, leaves a bad taste in the mouth. It makes me feel guilty, as if caught with my hand in the cookie jar: that feeling of having done something I shouldn't have.
That is why I try to make this vigil every week. Israel's Nazi like activity occurs every week, every day, every noon. This vigil, no matter how small, helps ensure that a speck of light reaches into the darkness at noon, every noon.
In truth, rather than make me feel guilty it should remind of the honour it is to be part of a body of people for whom genocide is anathema, from which they resile with every fibre of their moral being. Missing the honour of standing here should serve to remind me of just how honourable a stance is taken each Saturday at 12 noon.
Even when it is dry, warm and the sun bathing our faces with its rays, we can still think of the title of Arthur Koestler's renowned novel, Darkness At Noon. We gather to protest the darkness that has enveloped Gaza in gas chamber like-fumes every single noon for almost three years. We also gather to proclaim that even when governments act like little Mary Sun Shine, there is no amount of rays emanating from their corridors of power that are bright enough to herald the arrival of a new dawn. Western societies need to fumigate not placate the malignancy of the reach of the Israeli lobby. Effective measures alone can dispel the darkness. What sort of commitment to ending a genocide is to be found in banning Palestinian students from this country but allowing IDF war criminals to enter at will and unhindered?
While Steven Pinker in his book The Better Angels of Our Nature, makes the point that, if we are prepared to go back far enough in the past, genocide has been a regular feature in human history, for long the rule rather than the exception. Pinker was no in any way justifying genocide but rather trying to demonstrate that society has progressed quite some way to a point where genocide is very much the exception.
For we who gather here on a weekly basis, no matter how prevalent genocide was in the history of our species, or how rare an event it might today be, it has never been right, has always been wrong, and is as wrong in Gaza as it was in Eastern Europe when the Nazis perpetrated the most heinous crime in human history: the war of extermination against the Soviet people, part of which included the Holocaust against the Jews.
While evil sounds more like a religious concept than a secular one, there are instances where its use in justified by secularists. The Nazis were indeed evil but they were not uniquely evil. Hutu Power which carried out the 1994 Rwandan genocide of the Tutsis - which the West also denied was happening in real time - was also evil. Israel, like the Hutus and the Nazis, is not uniquely evil. But it is evil nonetheless.
This may be underscored by the recent activity of Israel's national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir. The Guardian columnist and author Owen Jones who has tried to refrain from comparing Israel to Nazi Germany - I am not really sure why - has relented and very pointedly labels Ben-Gvir a Nazi. His reason was simple. Ben-Gvir posted a Computer Generated Image video of emaciated, weeping Palestinian civilians being sent into a Nazi style death camp. Jones commented:What do you say? Not even any subtlety there . . . Look at it it. Look at it. It could not scream Nazi more loudly. Now look, I have shied away in general from comparisons with Nazis. But what else are you supposed to do when the National Security Minister is literally positing CGI videos of what are mocked up Nazi death camps and senior Israeli leaders are talking like Nazis, unequivocally, whilst committing every single war crime and crime against humanity there is to commit, indeed including genocide?
That is why I try to make this vigil every week. Israel's Nazi like activity occurs every week, every day, every noon. This vigil, no matter how small, helps ensure that a speck of light reaches into the darkness at noon, every noon.
The predictable howls from all quarters, bar a very conspicuous one, greeted the pronouncement from British direct ruler Andrew Burnham that a border poll is ‘off the table’. Like a theatrical cue card all the players in this political farce saw these remarks as their moment to take centre stage and deliver their shibboleths with suitable indignation or glee, only to realise that once they had done so, a cold reality dawned that they have zero control over the British script.
What was equally exposed was the vacuous nature of slogan politics, tribal politics, sectarian politics, partitionist politics and the greatest whore of them all, electoral politics. And all of that before we delve into the ignorant abyss of the implications of not studying in detail what you have irreversibly subscribed to.
In a carefully crafted and impeccably timed intervention Burnham was actually telling us what is on the table, only, and what is required of the principal actors (who have absolutely nowhere else to go) if the British and Irish governments are to treat them like grown ups. And the endorsement of this British position was confirmed by Dublin due to their strategic silence amidst the rhetoric and din.
The lynchpin of the Good Friday Agreement is the complete control ceded to the British government regarding issues of sovereignty and constitutional change. The British direct ruler has just exercised that control. What is left to domestic politics is the responsibility of administering devolved issues within the Stormont Assembly.
Their ability, and suitability, to do so will not be measured by their posturing on issues outside of their remit and control. And this is why Burnham’s remarks were as much aimed at unionists as it was nationalists. Some of the more astute unionist commentators recognised this fact and urged moderation over the usual triumphalism.
Both Provisional Sinn FĆ©in and the DUP face the same conundrum posed by Burnham’s intervention; Stormont not working will no more usher in a border poll than it will secure the union in a post-Brexit and Scottish Referendum environment. The only way they can be relevant to their electorate is to make Stormont work and that is wholly dependent on British funding, who simply cannot contemplate funding a failed entity.
Both parties stepped into the shoes of their respective predecessors, UUP and SDLP, and both now realise the shoes do not fit as comfortably as they thought they would. You can’t play opposition whilst in government. Stormont, regardless of its status, is an instrument serving British interests. And that is the trap closed.
But republicans were also caught short, the broad nature of the response falling into the ‘we told you so’ category. Like most others, republicans reacted to what they wanted to hear rather than sit back and listen to what the British and Irish governments intended everyone to hear.
It can be no coincidence that a former British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, and former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar should weigh in on the heels of Burnham with talk of the inevitability of Irish unity once agreement can be reached over a protracted period of time. That agreement is not confined simply between Unionist and Nationalist, it must also find agreement with the British establishment.
We can no longer entertain outdated notions of why the British remain in Ireland. The Six Counties are not as British as Finchley. The right to walk the Queen’s Highway was deemed silly by that very same Queen. The sacrifices and sufferings of Irish generations under their occupation mean nothing to a people who learn more about their history from Netflix than they do from their schools and universities.
The waltzing choreography of British long-term interests in our country are being played out in unison with Dublin’s incremental compliance. The political reasoning behind partition alters and adapts to the differing needs of the British establishment to preserve it. Those contemporary needs have a definitive international and security dimension to them as the world enters yet another cold war scenario.
Almost every day we see an assault on the neutrality of the Southern state, the primary weapon for which is ridicule. Its latest manifestation concerned the recent EU Defence Ministers meeting in Wicklow. Much was made of the fact that the security apparatus surrounding the gathering was dependant on a Royal Navy ship hovering outside of territorial waters.
Prominent Statist commentators call Ireland the ‘weak link’ in the European defence system and that we live a ‘charmed existence’ due to the benevolence of other EU countries who spend more on their defence budgets to ensure Ireland remains safe from the ‘threat of Russian aggression’.
This is the type of lens through which Westminster views her interests in Ireland. And what republicans need to urgently recognise is that the core issue of our national sovereignty may well find more strategic value in issues like neutrality to promote that sovereignty as a pragmatic and practical solution.
We cannot allow our position on national sovereignty to be constrained by simply defining it as an historic right and position ourselves as the gatekeeper of that stance but rather promote it aggressively as a solution to a range of issues that continually capture our people’s attention.
The kingdom of heaven comes in a way not foreseen by man: perhaps the same can be said for a sovereign republic.
⏩ The Fenian Way was a full time activist during the IRA's war against the British.
Ten links to a diverse range of opinion that might be of interest to TPQ readers. They are selected not to invite agreement but curiosity. Readers can submit links to pieces they find thought provoking.
Before We Conform, Or Condemn, Let Us At Least Be Curious
♜One recognizes one's course by discovering the paths that stray from it - Albert Camus♞
The government of the Narcos’ lawyer has been in power for only a short while and it has already shown its lack of administrative ability and at the same time its ironclad alliance with Narcos, right-wing paramilitaries and of course, Israel. What is coming down the road will be worse than any previous government. However, the response from the Left in Congress has been mild and as has happened in the past the history of the country is being rewritten to accommodate the truth to their political proposals.
They said there was electoral fraud, however, they continue as if it was a “normal” government. The so-called civil disobedience amounts to nothing. If there was fraud, then a complete break with the fraudsters is called for. Given the nature of the extreme right-wing government, even in the case of a legitimate victory it could not be treated as a “normal” government. But supposedly in the name of avoiding a bloodbath they accepted that the chainsaw lawyer govern the country and they stick to the rules of the game as if everything was normal. That could be seen in the votes in the new Congress. In order to prevent a candidate of the Narcos becoming president of the Senate they formed an alliance with the Democratic Centre, another narco-paramilitary party. It is not exactly the civil disobedience that they preached. They chose between the new well oiled, sharp chainsaw of the government and that of the Uribistas which only needs a few drops of oil, if even that.
The 'Historic Pact’ senators should be asked how many deaths did the Uribistas cause? How many disappeared, exiles, raped women, stolen lands? It is also worth remembering that De la Espriella was the lawyer for the paramilitaries, the Narcos and the Uribista landlords. They cannot be separated. They did the same thing with the choice for Comptroller General. Following that, the Senate allowed Petro to be absent from the country, as all ex-presidents require the permission of the Senate to leave the country in the first year. It is not known whether it was in exchange for the HP votes or just that friends help each other out. If it is not corruption in the legal sense, it is certainly in any moral sense.
On social media news regarding concerns about the possible return of the ESMAD (Specialised Riot Squad) can be seen. But it is fake news. The ESMAD never went away. Petro did not abolish the ESMAD. It was one of the first betrayals of his campaign. He limited himself to changing the name to UNDMO (Unit for Dialogue and Upholding Order) and asking them to behave a little better and show better manners during his presidency. And in fact there was a significant reduction in violent actions when comparing the Duque and Petro governments.
On social media news regarding concerns about the possible return of the ESMAD (Specialised Riot Squad) can be seen. But it is fake news. The ESMAD never went away. Petro did not abolish the ESMAD. It was one of the first betrayals of his campaign. He limited himself to changing the name to UNDMO (Unit for Dialogue and Upholding Order) and asking them to behave a little better and show better manners during his presidency. And in fact there was a significant reduction in violent actions when comparing the Duque and Petro governments.
According to the NGO, Temblores, there was an almost 70% reduction in cases of police violence between one government and the other.[1] It should be remembered that Duque faced the pandemia and the Social Revolt, so of course there was reduction in the number of cases of police violence in the Petro government. But the figures show that not only does social protest play a role in the number of cases but so too does the political management that is given at each point.
According to the Adhoc Committee for Clarification the violence carried out during the Social Revolt was systematic and moreover:
According to the Adhoc Committee for Clarification the violence carried out during the Social Revolt was systematic and moreover:
Lethal force was not used as a proportional response to a threat, but rather as a means of dissuasion and punishment, of a nature to explicitly make an example through the disproportional use of weapons and repressive tactics designed to fight organised armed groups.[2]
That being the case, the ESMAD should have been disbanded and not just have undergone a name change. Of course, the Narcos’ lawyer could have reestablished the ESMAD, but that is more complicated than changing the name and the entity now enjoys the legitimacy conferred on it by the Petro government.
Coming down the road is a wave of state and paramilitary violence (which is the same thing despite the discourses of various NGOs). The threats, murders, displacements, exiles and of course judicial repression through frame ups will increase. But before we think of the desolate future that awaits us on this point, we should be clear about what these last four years have been like. It is important, as significant figures in the Historic Pact, such as IvƔn Cepeda lied about the reality of violence in the country when Duque took over the presidency. At that time, Cepeda said that Duque had inherited a country without massacres when that was not the case. It is true that they rose dramatically after him taking power, but there had always been massacres because the paramilitary-state structure of violence had never been disbanded by the Santos governments.[3]
Without a doubt there will be an increase in the number of social leaders in Colombia murdered, of demobilised FARC members, forced disappearances, torture, threats and forced displacements. But neither is it the case that under the Petro government there was none of that. His policy of Total Peace failed on day one, poorly thought out, badly implemented, directionless and subject to the almost Trump-like whims and caprices of the president, who just like Trump communicated his changes via Twitter. So the violence never went away.
The NGO Indepaz published its balance sheet on the protection of the civilian population under the Santos, Duque and Petro governments. The figures for the Santos government only include those murders in the two years following the signing of the agreement with the FARC, so in this case they are just partial. Even so, 330 were murdered (Santos), 852 (Duque) and 705 (Petro). The decrease under Petro is not as significant as would have been hoped for and the NGO states:
The persistence of these homicides shows that whilst progress can be seen regarding the previous period, the preventative and protective measures have yet to structurally transform the conditions for violence [emphasis is mine] that affect the organisations and communities in the territories impacted by the armed conflict.[4]
It is important to remember those figures when they increase further still under the Narcos’ lawyer. Petro has not left a country in peace and the structural conditions are still intact. So it will come as no surprise that the violence continues or that it increases.
A similar situation can be seen with demobilised guerrillas. There were 78 murdered (Santos), 277 (Duque) and 167 (Petro), though in Petro’s case those figures included the paramilitary drug trafficking group known as Front 33, whose members are “demobilised” FARC members. This violence will also continue. In both cases it is important to be clear about who is responsible. Those who make up the Historic Pact today, have in various instances in the past, particularly under the Santos government tried to absolve the state and the right-wing paramilitaries of responsibility. Following the peace deal they tried to blame the ELN for all the murders of social leaders - something which is totally harebrained - and tried to blame the ELN for murdering all the ex-FARC even though the first murders took place in the Department of CaquetĆ” where the ELN had never had a presence. They did this as a favour to the Colombian bourgeoisie in an attempt to clean up the image of Nobel Laureate, Santos. During Santos first government they did not hesitate in blaming the state, but following the agreement with the FARC it was no longer convenient.
Under Petro, forced displacement also increased. So much so that Petro far exceeds the previous governments. According to Indepaz’s report there were 23,585 displaced (Santos), 106,211 (Duque) and 231,776 (Petro). In fact, in just the year 2025, 107,079 people were displaced.[5]
USA
One of the paramilitary murderers and Narcos’ lawyer’s first measures was to authorise the participation of the US military in the country. IvĆ”n Cepeda denounced it, arguing that it was the beginning of the end of national sovereignty and that the US military would not respect Colombian legislation. It is unconstitutional as only the Congress can authorise that. But there are at least seven US military bases in Colombia and Petro did not shut down a single one, but rather promised to build a Yankee base on the Gorgona Island, a nature reserve which was awarded UNESCO world heritage status in 1984. Petro not only did not reverse this project, which he inherited from previous governments, but rather on various occasions he has tried to deceive people about the true nature of the installations alleging that it was not a military base. But it is, or rather it will be when its construction is finished.[6]
Furthermore, no sooner had his government began, he proposed handing over an area of the Amazon to the USA to supposedly “protect” it. In a meeting with General Laura J. Richardson he proposed setting up a military force to protect the Amazon.[7] The same arguments proffered by Cepeda in relation to the Narcos’ lawyer’s proposals apply in this case and Petro’s proposal was as unconstitutional as the proposal from De la Espriella.
The Earthquake
If there is anything that shows the Colombian Right’s contempt for human life is their reaction to the earthquake. According to the Narcos’ lawyer, the Christian god send the earthquake to put him to the test. It is a level of narcissism and contempt for life that is coherent with his work in favour of Narcos and those who dismembered peasants with a chainsaw. To him and them, human life is worthless.
In times of emergency, criteria for rescuing and protecting life should take precedent and should be the central axis of state policy. But De la Espriella had other priorities and had time to recognise the Golan Heights as a part of Israel and furthermore invited a Zionist delegation to the country and agreed to US interventions in the country as they saw fit. Moreover, he first rejected and the placed obstacles in the path of teams coming from other countries. He lied and said that Colombia had all the rescue teams it needed, whilst the people of Buenaventura were crying out for rescuers to be sent to the city, faced with a total lack of them in the city. The Topos Aztecas (Aztec Moles) that have helped 80 countries arrived from Venezuela without the government’s permission. Meanwhile the Narcos’ lawyer laughed, blew kisses, danced and organised fake videos in which people in those places with an insufficient number of rescuers praised him. And to make matters worse he invited Israeli assassins to the country to “rescue” the people and they ended up attacking them instead, which is their custom as the Zionists know how to kill but not rescue. They spent their time taking photos of themselves in a simulacrum of a rescue, whilst in other neighbourhoods, tanks from the state’s own forces arrived.
The people organised themselves and in addition to donations organised by the state and bodies such as the Red Cross, the communities themselves organised their own collection centres. The youths from the Front Line defied the state. Following a declaration of a curfew in Cali they went out in any case and took part in the rescue work. In that same city the mayor arrived in an area affected by the quake and he was welcomed with bricks, forcing him to withdraw. There is no room for the weak willed in questions of life and death, you have to face the state and the Narcos at all times and not obey the rules of the game that they like so much in Congress.
It has to be made clear to the people that there are no fundamental differences between today’s Narcos and those of yesteryear, the chainsaws of one group are as vile as those of the other. The HP believes there is some way of taking advantage of minor disputes between them for the booty. No! As the youths of the Front Line have shown, they only listen when you stand up to them, not when you seek partial accords to hand out jobs. The struggle in the next four years is of life and death and not about which child or which member of M-19 or other sectors in the HP gets a post. There is no room for social climbers and the half-hearted.
The Earthquake
If there is anything that shows the Colombian Right’s contempt for human life is their reaction to the earthquake. According to the Narcos’ lawyer, the Christian god send the earthquake to put him to the test. It is a level of narcissism and contempt for life that is coherent with his work in favour of Narcos and those who dismembered peasants with a chainsaw. To him and them, human life is worthless.
In times of emergency, criteria for rescuing and protecting life should take precedent and should be the central axis of state policy. But De la Espriella had other priorities and had time to recognise the Golan Heights as a part of Israel and furthermore invited a Zionist delegation to the country and agreed to US interventions in the country as they saw fit. Moreover, he first rejected and the placed obstacles in the path of teams coming from other countries. He lied and said that Colombia had all the rescue teams it needed, whilst the people of Buenaventura were crying out for rescuers to be sent to the city, faced with a total lack of them in the city. The Topos Aztecas (Aztec Moles) that have helped 80 countries arrived from Venezuela without the government’s permission. Meanwhile the Narcos’ lawyer laughed, blew kisses, danced and organised fake videos in which people in those places with an insufficient number of rescuers praised him. And to make matters worse he invited Israeli assassins to the country to “rescue” the people and they ended up attacking them instead, which is their custom as the Zionists know how to kill but not rescue. They spent their time taking photos of themselves in a simulacrum of a rescue, whilst in other neighbourhoods, tanks from the state’s own forces arrived.
The people organised themselves and in addition to donations organised by the state and bodies such as the Red Cross, the communities themselves organised their own collection centres. The youths from the Front Line defied the state. Following a declaration of a curfew in Cali they went out in any case and took part in the rescue work. In that same city the mayor arrived in an area affected by the quake and he was welcomed with bricks, forcing him to withdraw. There is no room for the weak willed in questions of life and death, you have to face the state and the Narcos at all times and not obey the rules of the game that they like so much in Congress.
It has to be made clear to the people that there are no fundamental differences between today’s Narcos and those of yesteryear, the chainsaws of one group are as vile as those of the other. The HP believes there is some way of taking advantage of minor disputes between them for the booty. No! As the youths of the Front Line have shown, they only listen when you stand up to them, not when you seek partial accords to hand out jobs. The struggle in the next four years is of life and death and not about which child or which member of M-19 or other sectors in the HP gets a post. There is no room for social climbers and the half-hearted.
References
[1] RCTV (30/05/2026) Violencia policial cayĆ³ cerca del 70% durante gobierno del presidente Petro, segĆŗn informe de Temblores ONG.
[2] ComitƩ de Esclarecimiento Adhoc (2006) Informe Final: Que protestar no (nos) cueste la vida ni la dignidad. p.235
[3] Ć Loingsigh, G. (28/08/2020) Las masacres que nunca fueron.
[4] Indepaz (2026) Balance de ProtecciĆ³n a la PoblaciĆ³n Civil. p.6
[1] RCTV (30/05/2026) Violencia policial cayĆ³ cerca del 70% durante gobierno del presidente Petro, segĆŗn informe de Temblores ONG.
[2] ComitƩ de Esclarecimiento Adhoc (2006) Informe Final: Que protestar no (nos) cueste la vida ni la dignidad. p.235
[3] Ć Loingsigh, G. (28/08/2020) Las masacres que nunca fueron.
[4] Indepaz (2026) Balance de ProtecciĆ³n a la PoblaciĆ³n Civil. p.6
[5] IbĆd., pp 14 y 15
[6] GonzƔlez Posso, D. (04/12/2025) En quƩ va el proyecto militar en Gorgona?. Indepaz.
[7] El PaĆs (07/09/2022) Presidente Petro le propuso a EE.UU. crear una fuerza militar que proteja el Amazonas. Natalia LondoƱo.
⏩ GearĆ³id Ć Loingsigh is a political and human rights activist with extensive experience in Latin America.
Anthony McIntyre ⚽Tonight's game in the FAI Cup quarter final might prove better for Drogheda United than last week's local derby clash with Dundalk.
Galway. however, are no pushovers and will be determined to brush aside what opposition they might come up against this evening at Sullivan and Lambe Park in their bid to march on to the semi finals.
Poor displays have become so commonplace for the Drogs that going to a game in full anticipation that they will not win has become just as frequent. Yet, last week despite losing to visitors Dundalk, the Claret and Blue were not found wanting in determination. Lacklustre, so often a feature of Drogheda games, was absent in this one.
Jay made it this time, although parted company with us as soon as we reached the ground. He is of an age now where he doesn't want to hang out with his auld fella and an even older friend, preferring instead to share the experience with his own buds. We didn't let him go without getting his prediction. 1-0 to the home side. Not quite how it worked out but Jay is a long way off the age where scepticism is the first port of call.
On the way into the ground we came across a man helping a woman who was hopping on one leg while at the same time trying to hold onto a child. If they were heading to the hospital as seemed probable given her inability to walk, it would be a long time before the three of them made it. We asked if we could help. The guy spoke good English so communicating was never a problem. Her foot looked seriously swollen and discoloured. He asked if we could accompany the child while he would carry the woman on his back. That worked. Between myself and Paddy carrying the youngster, then holding his hand while he walked, we eventually covered the few hundred metres from the car park to the hospital.
Then into the Windmill where Paddy treated me to an Irish whiskey. The last time I drank whiskey there a few games back it was Glenfiddich but they had run out of it. Irish works just as well. As I had a few in the house before I left, I was in merry mood for the duration of the game. Made easier by the sun not bothering us. It glared at us when we took our seats but soon obeyed the laws of physics and disappeared from view before the kick off.
As soon as the match started a woman right behind us began instructing the players how to play the game, who to pass it to, what sort of tackle to make. The thing is - none of the players can hear a word: myself and Paddy unfortunately can hear every utterance and grunt. I resorted to sound blocking ear pods that my daughter gifted to me some time back. It reduced the assault on my ears but then I couldn't have a conversation with Paddy. Maybe this is just the way we get as we approach 70 - grumpy and cantankerous, irritated by the slightest inconvenience.
On the pitch, initially, there was little to lighten the mood given the need for all three points to land in Drogheda, but a lot to give our unwanted companion cause to shout about. The game was evenly balanced for the first 25 minutes before the visitors pounced on an error by Edwin Agbaje. Trying to shepherd the ball to safety in his own box he was dispossessed, allowing an easy finish from Cian Dillon. But the young defender refused to let his head drop and with what seemed like some encouraging words from coach Kevin Doherty, some beautiful playmaking by him provided the assist for Keegan Ancelin to surgically convert the equaliser.
On the pitch, initially, there was little to lighten the mood given the need for all three points to land in Drogheda, but a lot to give our unwanted companion cause to shout about. The game was evenly balanced for the first 25 minutes before the visitors pounced on an error by Edwin Agbaje. Trying to shepherd the ball to safety in his own box he was dispossessed, allowing an easy finish from Cian Dillon. But the young defender refused to let his head drop and with what seemed like some encouraging words from coach Kevin Doherty, some beautiful playmaking by him provided the assist for Keegan Ancelin to surgically convert the equaliser.
Three minutes later the Drogs took the lead through a fine Brandon Kavanagh chip. 2-1 at the break, things were looking up.
For much of the second half Drogheda were the better team but failed to convert their chances, at one point coming close when a Conor Keeley header crashed off the crossbar. It was to prove costly. Approaching the 70 minute mark Dundalk were level through half time sub Ronan Teahan. In the 89th minute Daryl Horgan prepared himself to take a needlessly conceded free kick. I took my ear pod out to catch Paddy's view. This was Horgan's speciality he explained. And so it proved to be. A brilliantly executed free kick curled its way home leaving Luke Dennison with no chance. Truly, a great finish, worthy of a matchwinner.
For much of the second half Drogheda were the better team but failed to convert their chances, at one point coming close when a Conor Keeley header crashed off the crossbar. It was to prove costly. Approaching the 70 minute mark Dundalk were level through half time sub Ronan Teahan. In the 89th minute Daryl Horgan prepared himself to take a needlessly conceded free kick. I took my ear pod out to catch Paddy's view. This was Horgan's speciality he explained. And so it proved to be. A brilliantly executed free kick curled its way home leaving Luke Dennison with no chance. Truly, a great finish, worthy of a matchwinner.
Results from elsewhere were a mixed bag. Bohemians as expected trounced Sligo which keeps the Drogs one step above the bottom rung. Unexpectedly, Waterford won 0-2 at St Pat's, leaving Drogheda in the play off position. Waterford have to be the story of the season. Favourites for the drop up until a new coach arrived they have since clawed their way to safety and look destined to stay there.
If Drogheda were to play like that every week, they would win more matches. But even if they lose, the fans could leave the ground knowing that they had watched a team rolling forward rather than rolling over.
If Drogheda were to play like that every week, they would win more matches. But even if they lose, the fans could leave the ground knowing that they had watched a team rolling forward rather than rolling over.
Christopher Owens ✍ “The grist that curtails will make us strong/And you'll be dead before I'm born/Puh!” - The Fall
31st August.
A memorable date for a variety of reasons: the terror of knowing that summer was over and that a new term of school was coming up still takes up space in my psyche around this time. It’s also a time whenever Seasonal Affective Disorder can kick in for many.
However, two anniversaries occur on this date that, for many, helped to shape the world we currently live in.
***
On this day 32 years ago, it was announced that the Provisionals had declared a ceasefire.
I vividly recall the euphoria and mistrust in the air. We were in uncharted terrain. Looking back at the process that began in October 1982 and would only be concluded in July 2005, this was a major milestone that had come about through sheer bluff and deception on the part of Gerry Adams whose personas of 'man of war' and 'peacemaker' became a high wire balancing act and, remarkably, he pulled it off while avoiding a major split within the IRA (although he was nearly deposed during an IRA convention in 1996).
Was it worth it?
For republicans, it meant they could call the Provos an undefeated army (although how they square that with British rule still in place is a different matter). For loyalists, it meant that they were still British (although the next 30 years would throw up many an ideological quandary that haunts them today). For the ordinary people, it was the first step on a road to normality that is not finished but does at least offer a way forward.
In some ways, globalisation has now given the situation in this country a wedge that has pushed both sides even further apart: nationalism/republicanism (generally) has gone Eurocentric while unionists/loyalists (generally) has gone in a Brexit style direction. Both of these, combined with a decaying infrastructure, loss of common bond within communities, disconnect between elected representatives and the voters and stagnant wages, has added an extra layer of gunpowder onto a tinderbox (as we saw in Belfast a few months ago).
But the road to peace must continue.
***
Undoubtedly a preventable death given an added layer of sordidness thanks to the knowledge that paparazzi snapped pics of the aftermath without offering assistance, it was undoubtedly a shock to wake up that morning and hear the news.
However, what was unprecedented was the public display of mourning which veered into mass hysteria. Even William and Harry have talked about feeling bewildered at what was unfolding.
Of course there were other factors at play, ones that you could trace from Gazza's tears at the 1990 World Cup. With the fall of the Soviet Union, the launch of the Premier League, Britpop, the rise of New Labour, the pre-millennium optimism and the 'end of history' euphoria that would be further emphasised by the IRA ceasefire arguably contributed as well. Britain was seemingly ready to throw off the shackles of its recent past and wanted to party like it was 1966 but at the same time demonstrate that the old stoicism was gone, to be replaced by emotional vulnerability.
Thus, the caring 90's was born.
And Diana fitted in perfectly: a wronged woman who was seemingly going against the aloof and staid royal family by not only divorcing but also with her choice of partners. Don't believe me? Bea Campbell wrote of Diana’s Panorama interview that, to the ‘chagrin of the establishment’, Diana had:
joined the constituency of the rejected – the survivors of harm and horror, from the Holocaust, from the world war and pogroms, from Vietnam and the civil wars of South America and South Africa, from torture and child abuse.
Mourning her death not only allowed you a chance to have a pop at the royals but also show just how much of a good person you are. And woe betide anyone who dared step out of line with the prevailing sentiment.
This included the likes of:
š“Private Eye, with Ian Hislop later told The Independent that “The fact is that is that this supposed deep grief expressed itself in terms of self-righteousness.”
š“Christopher Hitchens, who described the whole thing as being fuelled by “…a deferential mass media that became an echo chamber and feedback loop to the blubbering classes.”
š“Fabio Piras, who was attacked by a former builder because he stole a teddy bear from outside the palace. The builder was later quoted as saying that he “…did it for Diana. She was the Queen of everyone's hearts. How dare he come over and do this.''
***
All these years later, seeing a defanged Sinn Fein get upset by Andy Burnham’s comments re. a border poll while celebrating Kieran Nugent and downplaying reports they had defaced a mural for Brendan Hughes, I can’t help but marvel at how the revolution has gone.
Likewise, seeing various politicians and political commentators use the suicide of Jason Arday as an opportunity to batter their enemies and regulate the press goes to show how dissenting voices are needed now more than ever.
August 31st. The end of summer but also the beginning of post-truth.
⏩ Christopher Owens was a reviewer for Metal Ireland and finds time to study the history and inherent contradictions of Ireland. He is currently the TPQ Friday columnist and is the author of A Vortex of Securocrats and “dethrone god”.
Ten links to a diverse range of opinion that might be of interest to TPQ readers. They are selected not to invite agreement but curiosity. Readers can submit links to pieces they find thought provoking.
Before We Conform, Or Condemn, Let Us At Least Be Curious
♜One recognizes one's course by discovering the paths that stray from it - Albert Camus♞
It could be viewed as a 'Freudian slip' by him. But it is more likely that his 'handlers', the 'Deep state actors' like, MI5, Ml6 and others, had a hand in his choice of words. Maybe they wanted to say to Sinn Fein ' stay in your box, we hold all the cards here'.
The other question is: Were the Shinners really shocked? If yes, that would show a serious level of political naiveity and misjudgment.
But, l suspect that the Shinners know the craic. They cannot but know that the English ruling class and the deep state actors, will decide, when or even if, a poll on Their (an English) united Ireland will be called at all. In fact, that's written in 'black and white' in the, so called, Good Friday Agreement (GFA).
Not alone that, the British will decide the wording of such a poll. The poll will Not be an all-Ireland poll. But two separate polls, one North and one South. That is their stated plan. And ultimately, even if the poll result is in favour of their united Ireland, it will need a certain percentage majority, which will, again, be decided as appropriate or not, by the said, English ruling class.
And when all those 'hurdles are jumped through', the English rulers will then decide If or How the result in favour of their united Ireland, will be implemented. Baile Ćtha Cliath, America and the EU will hold a 'watching brief', favourable, to the English of course, throughout all of these political shenanigans.
All that said, I have no doubt that when the British 'deep state', imperialism and capitalism, decides that an all-Ireland arrangement (their united Ireland) suits their needs better, they will do just that; no matter what is said, not said or written . . . ever. Unionist protests or not. We know that from the 1922 Free State arrangement, to this very day; but now with BaileĆthaCliath, Yankee and EU backing.
That's what article 3.2 of the IRA Constitution was designed to ensure; a 32 County Socialist Republic; clearly stated. But that has been abandoned, long ago by the careerist Sinn Fein leadership, in favour of going along with the Imperialist and capitalist, status quo.
The 'United Ireland' that the ruling class i Baile ĆthaCliath, the Brits, the Yanks and EU are talking about . . . a shared/agreed island et al, will be a retention of the capitalist and imperialist system we presently exist under. And Dublin, via it's NATO and EU Army preparations, is lining itself up for just such a settlement.
It will be an Ireland controlled by the minority 'powerful and wealthy ' for the benefit of that powerful and wealthy elite; and at the expense of the majority, the poor and working poor. Unaffordable homes, a two tier health service, an underfunded and expensive education system; combined with poor wages and conditions for the majority, the working class. The poor and working poor will continue to struggle to exist and not live a decent life or benefit fully from the wealth they always create. No change there.
This is where the SF project has went and it will fail. They had many opportunities in the last 60 years, to build a people powered, decentralised democratic system; and utilise Revolutionary politics, as opposed to the politics of the powerful and wealthy, at council level, Stormont, Teach Laighean and Europe.
I really put no value on polls, laws, promises or otherwise, that emanates from those in power or their servants. Eight hundred years + of English/British occupation, their laws and false promises, tells us all we need to know. As does the three hundred years of the life of capitalism.
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| MicheƔl Choilm Mac Giolla Easbuig is an independent councillor on Donegal County Council. |
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