Author: Anthony

The dreary steeples of Fermanagh and Tyrone forever and ever and ever…

RTEs obsession with all things Northern Ireland continues apace.

Apparently, we’re coming up to the 40th anniversary of the beginnings of the Civil Rights Movement that ignited all the ‘recent’ troubles. RTE is marking the event with a new website which, we are told, gives fascinating reports from the station’s archives – I’m overwhelmed with the excitement of it all.

On Today with Pat Kenny (Friday) we heard four veterans of the movement endlessly relate their experiences. I suppose there’s some small justification for this but what are we to make of the long and very boring interview with author Brian Rowan (Today with Pat Kenny, Thursday) who has just written a book entitled How the Peace was Won.

Rowan is a former security editor for the BBC in Belfast and this is his 4th book on the Peace Process – yes, his 4th book on the same subject.

It wouldn’t be so bad if it was his 4th book on world history or Irish history or the history of Northern Ireland or even the history of the recent troubles but no – this his 4th book on the god damned Peace Process.

Does the man have no other life, no other interests, does he have a woman, a family, does he drink a pint, does he collect bird’s eggs; is there anything else he can do? Surely the man is in need of some serious counselling.

And what about those who read these books, I mean, is there really anybody out there who has actually read all four books. Is there some lunatic out there who, having just put down book three is thinking, I just can’t wait to get stuck into book four.

Surely Rowan and his readers, not to mention certain RTE staff are all victims of the conflict, all obsessed with a piddley little part of the world that has imposed its piddley little squabbles on the rest of civilisation for centuries.

And there’s no end in sight, it’s going to go on forever. RTE has miles upon miles of archives in the cellars of Montrose. And when all the countless events that occurred in the 30 years of their piddley little war are commemorated the whole ritual will start all over again.

Churchill, that great man of history, a man who knew the difference between great events and the mundane got it right when he said the following about Northern Ireland during the House of Commons debate in 1922 on the Irish Free State Bill.

“Then came the Great War: every institution, almost, in the world was strained. Great Empires have been overturned. The whole map of Europe has been changed. The position of countries has been violently altered. The modes of thought of men, the whole outlook on affairs, the grouping of parties, all have encountered violent and tremendous changes in the deluge of the world.

But as the deluge subsides and the waters fall short, we see the dreary steeples of Fermanagh and Tyrone emerging once again. The integrity of their quarrel is one of the few institutions that has been unaltered in the cataclysm which has swept the world.”

And so it remains today – May Zeus save us all.

Now – I feel a lot better for getting all that off my chest.

Copy to:
RTE News
Pat Kenny Show

Honouring the corrupt Haughey

Every year the former corrupt politician Charlie Haughey is honoured by the organisers of Dingle Regatta and every year I write a letter of protest to the main national newspapers.

This year, for the first time, my letter wasn’t published. Perhaps the memory of the crimes that this man committed are beginning to fade or perhaps the editors thought my letter was too strong. I think myself it was perfectly reasonable.

There’s not a great deal that can be done about the annual farce in Dingle where the discredited former Taoiseach Charles Haughey is honoured by the organisers of the town’s regatta.

It is, however, a national scandal and a slap in the face to all compliant taxpayer’s that a State ship, the LE Orla, formed an integral part of the ceremonies for this major tax cheat.

Yours etc.
Anthony Sheridan

The report that isn't a report

The report on the review of the special passport facility for Oireachtas Members was published on the website of the Department of Foreign Affairs two weeks ago.

I was therefore surprised by the reaction I received from the DFA press office when I phoned yesterday to ask some questions regarding the report.

“The report is in the final stages of being finalised. Some of the key people who were involved putting the report together are currently out of the office so we don’t expect the final report to be signed off until the very end of this month or into early September, So, I’m afraid we are unable to answer question until that has taken place.”

But, says I, the report is finished and published – it’s on your website.

“No, the report isn’t published.”

I indicated to the spokesperson where, on their website, the report is published and, after a long silence, he replied.

“This isn’t the report; this is a report on the review itself but the review itself hasn’t been published. This is just updating to where it is, where we currently are on this but it isn’t the actual final report, this is a report on the review, it’s not the review. Do you follow me?”

He rang back later and we talked about the report but, not unexpectedly, he was unable to answer any of my questions.

Greencore sacks PwC

Greencore has sacked its external auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) following a €21 million fraud at its Campsie Mineral Water business in Scotland.

A review of the group’s financial controls by KPMG, who have taken over from PwC, has not identified any other problems. Greencore said the fraud was an isolated incident.

A few senior managers were sacked but of course there was no police investigation.

Good news for the people of Cashel

Good news for the people of Cashel. An Bord Pleanála has rejected planning permission for a five storey, 83 bedroom hotel on land formerly owned by the Presentation Order of nuns.

The nuns had agreed, under pressure from the local council, to sell the land to the council on condition that it was to be turned into a park for the town. However, once the council got their hands on it they turned it over to a developer for a nice profit.

See here for previous posting

Children; pawns in a religious war

I see the Holy Cross ‘priest hero’, Father Aidan Troy, is being moved to a new position in Paris.

I’ve always had a problem with the events at Holy Cross where parents, with the active support of Fr. Troy, used their children as pawns in a religious war.

I remember seeing those terrified children forced by their Catholic parents to run a daily gauntlet through a Protestant tribal area.

Whatever about adults engaging in a primitive religious war, there is no justification whatsoever for abusing children in this manner.

The power of religion

I found it disturbing and even a little frightening to see two men who are campaigning to hold the most powerful job in the world prostrate themselves in front of the religious fanatic, Rick Warren, to be interrogated about their religious beliefs.

I know Obama and McCain have no choice given how important the religious vote is in American elections. Nevertheless, it is depressing.

See here for a lecture by Warren on his book; The Purpose-Driven Life.

See here for a brilliant critique of Warren’s book by the philosopher and scientist Dan Dennett.

Those fecking efficient Germans

What a novel experience it must have been for Irish police to find themselves raiding a bank as part of an investigation into suspected criminal behaviour by its board members.

No, silly, not an Irish bank. Irish banks are never, ever raided. No, it was a German bank and it was the German authorities who asked the Irish police to raid. Oh those fecking efficient Germans, why can’t they be like the Irish and just ignore suspicions of major white collar crime.

The German investigation is centred around a €17.3 billion hit on a German bank that originated in Dublin’s IFSC financial centre, an entity that the New York Times recently described as the ‘Wild West’ of European finance. Another financial expert referred to the Dublin operation as “A sloppily-run pig sty”.

Meanwhile, in a rare show of activity the so called Irish Financial Regulator issued a statement saying it was ‘aware’ of the raids – Dimly aware, I suspect.

Copy to:
Financial Regulator

Watery advice

Puzzlement was expressed on Liveline today (Wednesday) when a caller related how Dublin City Council is running an advertisement campaign encouraging citizens to preserve water.

Could it be that the council has a standing contract with a company that is triggered automatically every summer forcing citizens to listen to advice on the best methods of saving water as they sit marooned in their cars on the M50?

So, what's new?

Actor and broadcaster Joe Taylor was on the Marian Finucane Show last Saturday talking about his most memorable radio and television moments.

Here’s an edited account of what he had to say about the Irish Hospitals Sweepstakes.

The Irish Hospitals Sweepstakes was set up in the 1930s with the intention of providing Irish hospitals with funds to develop proper facilities. The whole set up was very impressive and was operated under the watchful eye of the Garda Commissioner

When I discovered actually what was taking place behind the scenes at the Irish Hospitals Sweepstakes I thought ‘oh my god, were we ever suckered into a feeling of delusion.

It was Mark Twain who said you can fool all of the people some of the time and some of the people all of the time but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. The sweeps fooled all of the people for practically all of the time – for 57 years.

If a quarter of the money that was raised through the sale of tickets illegally in America and Canada, because gambling was banned in both these countries, Prof Drumm and Mary Harney would be carried around the country today for having the best hospital service in the entire world.

But the money sort of disappeared; it was taken up in administration and so on. At one stage the mafia in the late 30s tried to muscle in on the Sweepstakes in America and the Sweeps sent over a couple of IRA men and also they had the ear of American cops and so the Mafia backed down and there was no more interference.

Then in 1947 the Mexican government decided they would try to sell tickets into America. The Mexicans were delighted when the Irish offered to supply them with consultants to help them but soon realised that they were being ripped off when all the money started to go back to Ireland.

So, let’s just review the main points.

1930s Ireland and the health services were of a Third World standard. A scheme to generate funds was set up by the Government and overseen by the number one policeman in the country. The scheme was corrupt from day one and everybody in power knew about it but did nothing.

When another corrupt organisation tried to take some of the action they were threatened with violence. When another country tried to set up the same scam they were ripped off by the Irish.

Very little money was actually spent on health services so Irish citizens continued to suffer and die needlessly because of greed and corruption.

Ireland still has a Third World health service; people are still suffering and dying because of incompetence and corruption and practically all of the people are still allowing themselves to be fooled.

So, what’s new?