Watching me, watching you

Another Earth Day has come and gone, and we're still spinning. At least that's what I'm seeing on my television. The satellite TV company, DISH Network have a camera set up on their broadcast satellite, 22,000 miles away in space. It is a strange phenomenon being able to watch the Earth 'live' on a television screen. Its even stranger when the network play easy listening music, James Taylor and such, whilst the Earth is there spinning in all its glory. As I sit here watching Ireland disappear into the Eastern clouds, and Hawaii comes into view, Van Morrison belts out his ode to a 'Brown Eyed Girl', and the World keeps on turning, and tuning in.

Obama and Gerry

As President Obama makes his way across the Middle East, I am wondering if he'll bump into Sinn Fein President, Gerry Adams, along the way. Mr Adams is on a trip to Gaza, and has spoken with the Hamas Prime Minister, Ismail Haniya. Unlike many of his Western counterparts, Mr. Adams has been open to dialogue with the Hamas leader, and "said he was encouraged by the dialogue. "Mr Haniya told me that Hamas wants a peace agreement" (BBC, 2009).
Meanwhile in Turkey, President Obama addressed the Turkish Parliament, and commented "In a speech to the Turkish parliament in Ankara, he said: "The United States is not and will never be at war with Islam"(BBC, 2009). So, now on his way to Israel with a unnanounced visit to Iraq, will the President encourage Israel to open dialogue with Hamas, so as to further Obamas's commitment to find a solution to the conflict? Maybe if Obama talks to Gerry, and finds out what Hamas are willing to do, then a broker of some sort could maybe bring Israel to the table.

BBC.(2009).Adams meets Hamas PM in Gaza. Retrieved April 9, 2009 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7991311.stm

BBC.(2009).Obama extends hand to Muslims. Retrieved April 9, 2009 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7985945.stm

Síocháin sna t-am ár?

Casadh an tUachtarán Obama leis an tUachtarán Rúiseach Dmitry Medvedev agus d'aontaigh siad le laghdaigh armlann núicléach. Ar an taobh eile, géaraigh an Tuaisceart Chóiré a tabhair amach a bhagairt do an tIarthar,roimh tá sé lainseáil roicéad i bfhad réimse más amhlaidh an tIarthar atá idiragairt sna lainseáil. "A statement from the North's official Korean Central News Agency warns "if hostile forces make any slight move to intercept" the planned launch, the North's military will retaliate with force" (VOA, 2009).
An rachaimid amach de phlab nó an rachaimid síocháin sna t-am ár?

Wear an Easter Lily

I wrote this poem a long time ago, and thought what better forum to share than this. I dedicate the poem to those who have died in the struggle for Irish freedom, and to those who are struggling to keep peace a reality in Ireland.

An T-oilean a Gcuireann Muid Eireann Air (The Island we call Ireland)

The day you were born the heavens rang with cheer,
they lamented when you died.
All Hell broke loose
FAMINE RAGED!
WAR DESTROYED!
POVERTY REIGNED!
DEATH TOLLED ITS BELLS!
But through it all,
through the barricades and boundaries,
the hate,
the lies,
the torture,
the sadness,
the weeping,
the senselessness,
you saw the beauty in your people,
and know that when you rise again, this pain will end.
With this hope they struggle on till that
day when Freedom comes.

Martin Devlin

Police and Thieves

What is it that drives young men to attack the elderly? Over the last two months the papers seem to be filled with headlines detailing atrocious attacks on pensioners. The victim in the latest of these attacks was a 95 year old man from the Beechmount area. I knew the man personally, and was shocked and dismayed that a man who has worked all his life to make a living is attacked by five thugs, who probably never worked a day in their lives, for what amounts to 'carry out' money stolen from an old man.
Over the last few years the people of Beechmount and other areas have been under attack, not from a foreign enemy, but a domestic one. The people have had enough and stood up in protest against the so called 'hoods', but their voices seem to be lost in the other more pressing matters of Government such as waging war in Iraq, and paying off their buddies in the banking industry. Now, if thousands of people marching across the North calling for an end to the violence over the last few weeks, is what it takes for the government to listen, can the same not be applied to calling for peace in the streets, and an end to the violence perpetrated against the elderly of the nation?

Cá bhfuil na daonlathas?

During the Bush administration, the call for democracy in so called 'failed states', was a rallying excuse for the wars in the middle east, and elsewhere. So in 2006, the people of Palestine heeded the call, and went to the polling booths. The result of that democratic election was a victory for Hamas. Now, maybe I am biased in my belief that governments who have had an impact on my life so far, have elements of corruption, thievery, and trickery. But for a moment lets say I am wrong, and lets say GB actually won his Presidency, and democracy was working as it should, then why have Hamas been rejected outright by the Western Democracies, and their leaders arrested and imprisoned? I understand the frustration of the Israeli government over the kidnapping of one of their soldiers, but consider the frustation of the Palestinian people over the imprisonment of 11,000 of its people.

In the early 1980s the Irish people democratically elected political prisoner Bobby Sands to government, and the voice of the Irish people was heard around the world, Maybe in this time of change in America, the Palestinians voices could be heard, and Israel called upon to recognise the democratically elected officials, and cease its blockade of Gaza. If not then where is the democracy to be found? Cá bhfuil na daonlathas?

Hail, Hail, The Celts are here!

You'll Never Walk Alone!!

Bucky Bombs

I wonder if Frank Mitchell used this picture on his daily skit "Where in the North?", would you say Falls Road? Take a closer look at the improvised bombs these two fine wooly faced chaps are holding. There is one clue this is definitely not in the big smoke hey! And what gave it away is the, you guessed it, bottle of Bucky! Buckfast, the world famous 15%, red wine 'wreckahouse' tonic, made by monks at Buckfast Abbey in England, now availabe in molotov cocktail flavour, will be winging its way across the streets of Lurgan.I wonder if they drank the wine or just stuck a rag in the top. That stuff could stoke the fires of hell.

Not to be outdone by the tonic swigging rioters, even though assurances were given for no retaliation, Loyalists staged a cowardly attack on the Fountain Bar in North Belfast, throwing pipe bombs into the bar's beer garden. Luckily the pipe bombs did not explode, but in a separate attacks launched from the Tigers' Bay area, one of these devices did explode, and another two found by police in a follow up search of the area. No-one has been hurt so far, but if the attacks are allowed to escalate, we all know what the outcome may be.

Irish-American Month

In the days preceding the attacks in Ireland on the two soldiers, and the policeman, the President of the United States declared March 2009, Irish-American Heritage Month. Reflecting upon the suffering endured by the Irish people during an Gorta Mor, and the resilient nature of the Irish people to overcome hardship, President Obama declared, "NOW, THEREFORE, I, Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 2009 as Irish-American Heritage Month. I encourage all Americans to observe this month with appropriate ceremonies, programs, and activities" (The White House, 2009).

Martin McGuinness and Peter Robinson, once enemies, are now, together going to meet with the new President this week. Three men once separated by violence, and bigotry are meeting together to bring change to the country where their forefathers lived. Are their wishes, and the wishes of the thousands who marched in a rallying call for an end to the violence this week, going to be overshadowed by the hatred portrayed in the window from the past? Or will the changes in the past year in America influence the people of Ireland, like the events in the 1960s did when the marchers for freedom in America were mirrored by the Civil Rights Marchers in Ireland? Tá súil agam sin.

Cothrom an lae bás m'athair

My da always loved this song, and on his anniversary March 9th, anseo an Samradh o Tom Waits. Hope you enjoy!

Tom Waits - Summertime (1978)
Uploaded by revolution2

Celtic preab anios faoi chuimsiú!

Original Video- More videos at TinyPic

Flesh Gordon and the Attack of the Orangemen

Nior mise anseo ar feadh scathaimh ach mar gheall ar sin seo an sceal greannmhar!
Not to be outdone by the ever increasing popularity of the Irish language, Ulster-Scots enthusiasts have 'shot' back with the release of an t-Uladh na Albanach version of the 1970s cult soft-core porn Flash Gordon parody, "Flesh Gordon". My favorite part of this story is not the Flesh Gordon movie, though I did enjoy the movie (hmmmmmm), but rather the comments from Thatcher wannabe, UUP David McNarry. McNarry's use of the double-entendre,well makes 'fae a quare yarn'.
"Porn is porn, is porn, is porn - and whether it is done Ulster-Scots-style, well, it really doesn't come into it. This event has presumably been given funding and all this kind of thing does is make people look all the harder at an application the next time it comes round.said the UUP MLA.

Oooh Matron!

Hail, Hail!!

I'll make this quick: 7-0

Badgers, we don't need no stinkin' badgers!

At least thats what a lot of the people who were caught in a 'Badger Baiting' sting think. "The Ulster Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said its [secret]blog proved crucial in uncovering the secrets of badger baiting"(BBC, 2009).In other words the USPCA has been badgering the baiters, and they took the bait. It goes to show how much of an eejit you would have to be, not only to set dogs on small animals, but also to post pictures of the event on a web-site. I will not add to the cruelty by posting a picture of the 'baiting'; instead I provided a picture link of the badges scene from Blazing Saddles, enjoy!

p.s. I see Sammy is trying to get his credibility back by jumping on the badger bandwagon.

Falls Park

Its been a long time since I was in the Falls Park.I remember going to the 'Cooler' and there was a burnt out car at the bottom of an empty pool. I remember playing football on one of the, I think, three pitches in the park. I remember traversing the river(sewer) that ran up the side of the park with my mates.

I remember people playing bowls in the fanciest part of the park: the green by the clubhouse. Its funny to think in the middle of all that was going on during my childhood,people were playing bowls on a perfectly cut,luscious green,bowling pavilion. Hmmmm! Reminds me of a WWII war movie, where Brits keep that stiff upper lip, as the Luftwaffe bombs are dropping all around. I remember good times in the Falls park.

Anyway this reminiscence was brought to you by Sean McLaughlin's photo published today on the BBC news site.

Some days are better than others

So I was elated yesterday with the Obama/Spiderman comic,and about to forget how cruel cartoonists can be, consider the english tabloid depictions of Irish people throughout the centuries, and then I saw this New York Post cartoon. Spiderman needs to swing by the post and show the cartoonist what happens to friends of superheroes.

With great power comes great responsibility

I was so disgusted by yesterday's blog entry, I thought we all needed a pick-me-up to show the world is not all bigots and union jacks. I picked up a copy of the latest edition of "The Amazing Spiderman" comic from Marvel comics. Comic number 583 is a special edition covering the inaugaration of the United States first black President, Barack Obama. I will not give away the plot, but I love the scene where Barack calls Spidey "Partner".

According to Marvel's Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada,President Obama is a comic book collector.
"When we heard that [President] Obama is a collector of Spider-Man comics, we knew that these two historic figures had to meet in our comics' Marvel Universe."
(Marvel, 2009)

Its refreshing to see a world leader with hobbies that extend beyond the usual activities of some leaders we have come to accept as the norm: Warmongering, invasion, thievery, torture, internment, summary injustice, kangaroo courts, shoot-to-kill, atom bombing; the list could go on forever, and include many different leaders from every corner of the world. But just for now we can delight in the partnership of your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman, and the United States President Barack Obama.

True Colors

Once again fans, of that other team in Scotland, have shown their true colors, by chanting the so-called 'Famine song', at the game against Celtic on Sunday.

"The song, which includes the line "The famine's over, why don't you go home," was heard during Sunday's 0-0 draw. It refers to events that killed an estimated one million people in the 1840s and led to a mass migration from Ireland and has drawn condemnation from the chairmen of both clubs, Sir David Murray of Rangers, and Celtic's Dr John Reid"(BBC, 2009).

In some countries, singing this type of song would lead to mass demonstrations, fatwas, and denouncements from governments about the 'Nazi-like' nature of these amadans. So are the SPL going to keep their word,fine the team, or deduct points?

Milk Snatcher

Whilst looking for some Christy Moore videos, I came across this interesting snippet of Christy speaking about the Anti-Christ. I think the sound bite speaks volumes about the reign of terror and the subsequent fallout of greed that has had ripple effects to this day. The current worldwide economic crisis, job losses, and growing divide between rich and poor has a lot of causes, many of which can be found rooted in the policies of the english Conservative Government of the 80's.

Hail, Hail.

Tomorrow Celtic take on their Glasgow rivals, and once more along with millions of other displaced Tims, I'll be up at 5AM to try catch the game. I hope the game will be available and Ii wont be stuck reading the scroll on the Sporting life site.