And what sweet Doves, their hour come ’round at last,
Flutter toward Belfast to be born?
{ ~ with Deepest apologies to W.B. Yeats :}
It being the day some swore they would never See, the Democratic Unionist Party-Sinn Fein coalition government has quietly & politely taken office :
Northern Ireland’s major Protestant and Catholic parties joined together Tuesday to form a power-sharing government, marking a “new era of politics” and an end to three decades of sectarian conflict in the province.
Protestant Democratic Unionist Party leader Ian Paisley was sworn in as the Northern Ireland assembly’s first minister and key player Martin McGuinness of Sinn Fein will take on the role of deputy first minister.
…Paisley, 80, and McGuinness, 56, arrived within minutes of each other Tuesday morning and both set an optimistic tone.
“It is a special day because we’re making a new beginning,” Paisley said. “I believe we’re starting on a road which will bring us back to peace and to prosperity.”
Paisley’s deputy McGuinness, said he was “increasingly confident” that the new government would work, saying it was a “good day.”
“The happenings here today are surely going to represent a fundamental change of approach with parties moving forward together to build a better future for the people that we represent,” he said.
(Tony Blair & Bertie Ahern, proud parents of born-again Fraternal twins Ian & Martin, looked on, beaming. :)
…Dr. Brendan O’Duffy, a senior lecturer with Queen Mary University in London, told CNN there was still a threat of political gridlock and a lot of work to do looking forward. But goodwill between the players and the “delicate power sharing” would allow people to “clash constitutionally instead of violently,” he said.
Read the whole miraculous thing. And here’s to the grand Orange & Green Coalition. May all Good luck and Wisdom attend* their deliberations.
(*Also may I occasionally, disguised as the proverbial Fly on the Wall. Ohhh the backroom Meetings are goin’ to be Fierce. ;)
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Categories: Ireland & the U.K., International News & Politics
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May 8th, 2007 at 12:27:28 pm
Pretty much off topic, but is anyone else pissed off at the media’s emphasis on the whole Bush/Queen gaffe? I don’t care for Bush and think he is a tool, but his winking at that old bitty over a gaffe doesn’t constitute and international incident. There’s a reason why we don’t have a Queen in this country (at least, when Elton John isn’t here). Time to give Her Majesty an Irish Whiskey enema to kill that bug that crawled up Her Majesty’s Ass.
May 8th, 2007 at 12:48:19 pm
I’m quite interested in this whole thing, but I’m not sure if “miraculous” is the right discription. Hitchens has a good article on this, in which he uses another, I think more appropriate, description as a subtitle: “Ian Paisley and Gerry Adams make me want to spew.” I take Hitchens’ line, not that it’s miraculous that this has happened, but that it’s about damn time.
The article is here:
http://www.slate.com/id/2163217/
May 8th, 2007 at 1:12:32 pm
what is it about Ireland that it’s politicians never die ? Who did Paisely beat out ? Charles Parnell and Michael Collins ?
May 8th, 2007 at 1:14:06 pm
should have said Eaomon De Valera. Collins was never really a pol, was he.
May 8th, 2007 at 1:15:22 pm
Again, I really Love his Random capitalization.
May 8th, 2007 at 1:23:30 pm
“…but that it’s about damn time.”
Well of Course it is. But remember, we’re talking Irish Time here :}. An otherdimensional continuum in which King Billy crossed the River Boyne a Year ago (1690), the Wexford Rebellion happened a few Months back (1798), the Famine was last Week (1845-’49), and the Easter Rising, Black-&-Tan Wars & Partition Treaty (1916-1922) all took place Yesterday. / Think of it as Erin’s “24″. ;>
May 8th, 2007 at 1:27:54 pm
4-7, yup, old Ian whupped ‘em all :). Anon, I never Knew that the Big fella Collins was A random capitalizer ;]. / Nonono: Thanks. :)
May 8th, 2007 at 2:28:18 pm
Loy Elder,
Is the capitalization really random or is there some point to it? I’ve always wondered.
May 8th, 2007 at 2:55:02 pm
“Well of Course it is. But remember, we’re talking Irish Time here :}. An otherdimensional continuum in which King Billy crossed the River Boyne a Year ago (1690), the Wexford Rebellion happened a few Months back (1798), the Famine was last Week (1845-’49), and the Easter Rising, Black-&-Tan Wars & Partition Treaty (1916-1922) all took place Yesterday. / Think of it as Erin’s “24″. ;>”
I don’t know about this. I think this notion of “Irish Time” is a bit of an outdated caricature of Ireland. Or, maybe better, as you alluded to, its Ireland made for an American action show. I’m not sure that most Irish kids today care about Robert Emmet; instead, they think its stupid to have to learn Irish in school. The Celtic Tiger, and globalization have made Irish history outdated and inapplicable. For instance, it’s pretty much impossible to imagine another Bloody Sunday happening today. So, I still think that it’s about damn time, not Irish time, just damn time.
May 8th, 2007 at 3:31:42 pm
Condor - the resurgence of the Celtic language lines is happening in spite of the politicians rather than because of them … the true engime behind it is the young folk who have decided it is neat/coll/{fill in your own current word} to be able to speak both Celtic and English … and some of those same young folk are doing it even as their grandparents keep trying to discourage them …
Interestingly enough, Bloody Sunday IS happening today, and yesterday, and last week - it’s just that it’s happening in Iraq … the Irish, both Northern and Republican, have mostly realised that terrorism is a Bad Thing, and have decided not to do it anymore, and, even more importantly, not to even *help* it any more …
For that to happen, it took politicians with sufficient gonadal fortitude to keep a presence in Northern Ireland, even when polls would have suggested that the population of the rest of the UK was fed up and would cheerfully have pulled out …
I’m just waiting for Harry Reid and Nacny Pelosi to announce that the US has a timetable to pull out of Los Angeles after the May 1st riotlets …
What I would prefer to see is Reid and Pelosi learning from the history of Northern Ireland, and start putting as much effort into making US efforts in Iraq work (as compared with the efforts they are putting into trying to make Bush look bad) …
May 8th, 2007 at 3:46:58 pm
Alasdair,
1. I take it that almost everyone who learns Irish in Ireland does so in school, where it is required. I suppose there might be young people who learn it because it is “neat” (are you implying that it is self-taught in these cases?), but these people are hardly the “engine” behind learning Irish.
2. You seem to be using my point that “it’s pretty much impossible to imagine another Bloody Sunday happening today” to make your own political point about Iraq. Of course, I meant that Bloody Sunday is pretty much impossible in Ireland. I suppose it could happen elsewhere, though your particular political point seems pretty off-topic.
May 8th, 2007 at 5:38:14 pm
Alasdair, Bush makes HIMSELF look bad, as for the other side spending time being critical of a sitting president, well the GOP allready set the bar pretty low for that. Of course Clinton “not having sex with that women” is far far far better than Bush getting us into Iraq.
As for putting forth efforts into making Iraq work, um we’ve had years to do that under Bush and it hasn’t happened, and now in typical Bush-apologist fashion you are trying to shoe-horn the blame onto Reid and Pelosi, the ones who have the guts to stand up and say, ENOUGH, clearly the situation in Iraq isn’t getting better and its time we stopped throwing away the lives of OUR men and women for a country that largely doesn’t want us there and in a way that is making the situation worse, and not better. What i’d love is for people like you and Bush to be willing to consider that there might not BE a military solution to whats happening in Iraq, and that a civil war while unfortunate, might be inevitable. Sometimes you have to let people make mistakes and figure it out for themselves, and that could include the Iraqi people.
May 8th, 2007 at 8:05:35 pm
Condor - you seem to be intentionally ignoring *my* point that Northern Ireland has grown past “Bloody Sunday” , whereas Iraq is in full flower of it right now … and, even more invidiously, you are ignoring that what it took to get the Irish past their “Bloody Sunday” stage was people being willing to try to keep them in check … in spite of civilian casualties, in spite of the sectarian violence which is not based in theology and religion but is instead based in power-hunger and religion … Northern Ireland is most likely going to have peace, finally, because enough people refused to set a withdrawal date … and you, it would seem, like the current majority in Congress, would rather cut and run than try to achieve what we have just seen *can* be achieved …
Try this little thought-experiment … try to visualise the current majority leaders in Congress coming up with concrete constructive proposals that maintain Northern Ireland equivalent levels of engagement in Iraq so that Iraq can be helped to where it can move beyond its “Bloody Sunday” stage …
OK - what sort of proposals are you able to visualise them bringing forth ?
May 8th, 2007 at 8:22:08 pm
“I think this notion of ‘Irish Time’ is a bit of an outdated caricature of Ireland.”
Well in the way that I consciously Misused it :) ~ namely, as signifying a pervasive cultural remembrance of Grievances long Past as though they were Only Yesterday ~ yes it is, Condor. / Most (i.e. an estimated 5 out of the 7 :) regular readers of my occasional celtoidposts :> herein will have noticed that I Do tend to Do That: to deploy “a bit of an outdated caricature of Ireland.” (Some go so far as to say that I AM That but bad Cess to ‘em :) I do it because I Like it: weaselishly claiming, for P.C. Cover, the Privilege of Tribal Descent, albeit in the Diaspora. ;]
I think “Irish time” more properly refers to an allegedly endemic Loose Constructionist interpretation of Hibernian schedules. :) Somewhere I read of an Irish writer being interviewed on BBC along with a Mexican entertainer who was explaining the cultural connotations of the concept of “mañana”. The Irishman commented to the effect that ‘In the Gaelic we have no term whatever to signify such frenetic haste.’ :)
“The Celtic Tiger, and globalization have made Irish history outdated and inapplicable.”
All history is Outdated. Very rare is the history that is Inapplicable.
Anonymous: it’s really random Only in replies to Remarks (favorable or condemnatory :) about it. Otherwise there Is usually a point. / Now what that would Be, exactly, is harder to say :>. It’s sort of Intuitively done, you see. But it has to do partly with translating spoken Emphasis to the Written word ~ and partly with typographical Aesthetics. I try to do it in such a way that I just like the way it Looks. / Thanks again btw.
May 8th, 2007 at 8:35:44 pm
Alasdair, I think you make some sound points But, in addition to the Nerve to keep the SAS and Regular Army on post despite discontent on the Home front, a Norn Iron solution Also took ~ to put it Plainly notwithstanding all the brave Sloganization to the contrary ~ a willingness to Negotiate with Terrorists.
Would that we could just send George Mitchell to Baghdad and just Start Over with the whole Constitution business. / Hammer out The Ramadan Agreement or somesuch. / Too late, I fear. Too late. :(
May 8th, 2007 at 8:38:24 pm
Alasdair,
1. You have no way of knowing whether or not I intentionally or invidiously ignored your points. I did not. So now I will intentionally and invidiously ignore your accusations.
2. Your use of the example of terrorism in Northern Ireland as a way to LEGITIMATE the Bush administration’s terrorism fighting tactics is odd. Northern Ireland is usually taken as a test-case which shows that fighting terrorism can be effective through police tactics, like the war on drugs, and does not require military invasion. Now, this doesn’t make your view wrong, but you’re certainly swimming upstream.
3. As for Iraq, I actually think we have committed ourselves there through our actions for at least twenty years, and I don’t believe in, as they say, “cut-and-run.”
4. As for the method of your post, you seem to have some underlying assumptions that are unstated in the post itself. For example, you seem to ascribe to me some views about Iraq withdrawl that I don’t actually hold. I’m unable to make out the rest the assumptions you seem to ascribe to me, largely due to your unorthodox use of elipses. Perhaps this can explain why you believe that I am intentionally ignoring your points. Your writing style is not well-suited for communication.
May 8th, 2007 at 9:08:32 pm
Joe,
I just wanted to let you know that whenever I can get clear on what you’re saying, I always find it pretty brilliant. It’s like you write in riddle, or somthing!
May 8th, 2007 at 9:12:08 pm
Madame Speaker, I rise to defend the unorthodox use of Elipses. This Unorthodoxy of the Right Honourable Gentleman from Edinburgh may be ill-Suited for communication but let us at the least acknowledge that the distinguished Member is customarily very Well-suited, albeit perhaps Draftily so, in his Kilt. Indeed if Heterodoxy be his doxy, let Orthodoxy be Another man’s doxy. Communication is all Very well but we ought not start down the Elipsery Slope of regulating those Eccentricities which have made our made our Kingdom Great. / For the rest I refer the House to my remarks upon Capital punishment, of some moments ago.
:)
May 8th, 2007 at 9:13:28 pm
thankyouAgain, Condor! / What has it Got in its Pocketses? :)
May 8th, 2007 at 9:16:35 pm
Man, you’re like the Sphinx of the blog, or something!
May 8th, 2007 at 9:27:29 pm
hee hee :) you Honor me, sir / of course all these millenia-worth of Sand in me arse is rather Abrasive, but still :) In the immortal lryic of Great Big Sea, “Ah-ha, me boys, a-Riddle-aye-day.”
May 9th, 2007 at 4:31:47 pm
Condor
1. True - the best I can do is go by the words you use, and what they seem to convey …
2. Show me, if you can, where I said anythig about “to LEGITIMATE” anything … Northern Ireland terrorism wasn’t fought by “police tactics” - it was fought with a combination fo Police and UK Military - and, yes, some of the locals considered the UK Armed Forces to be an “Occupation Force” … and it *worked* …
3. I’m glad to see you willing to be upfront and say that ou are not a believer in “cut-and-run” …
4. See 3. And then consider, if you would, whether or not my “writing style” is the rpoblem, or might it not be your own “reading style” which perhaps may be a tad less-than-fully-flexible ?
Which brings me back to my question to you, which was asked, ellipsis-less, at the end of my most recent comment …
“OK - what sort of proposals are you able to visualise them bringing forth ?”
May 9th, 2007 at 4:44:11 pm
Venerated Joe …
“a willingness to Negotiate with Terrorists” - except that such negotiations didn’t take place until the terrorism had been being dealt with, militarily, for how many years ?
You do raise an interesting potential, and that would be the potential for the US to dissolve the Iraqi Parliament, until the sectarian violence stops … I don’t see it happening, however …
(grin) You also, yet again, have managed to be confused as to my origins … I am a warm and fuzzy Glaswegian, not some cold aloof Edinburgher …
Oh - and would you not agree, Sirrah, that the unorthodox use of “elipses” is a crime of which I am Not Guilty - whereas the eccentric use of ellipses is something of which any cunning linguist (such as either of Ourselves) can be proud ?
Personally, I freely admit that I consider your uses of Upper Case to be quite Capital !