We really should be more grateful, you know. We could have been born in Somalia and faced with death by famine or disease. Or we could have been born in Afghanistan or Iraq or Libya, where if disease didn't get us, NATO war planes might well have obliterated us. But we're relatively lucky - the good Lord saw fit to have us born in Ireland.
And that's another reason for gratitude - that the good Lord is the good Lord. Because He could have been anybody. He could have been Fintan O'Toole. Or Pat Kenny. Or Ed Moloney. Now that would have been worrying. A bit like the famous eighteen minutes of missing tape from Richard Nixon's recordings of events in the Oval Office, we could find on Judgement Day that parts of our life had gone missing. Big parts. We'd be set on the scales and Fintan or Pat or Ed would look down on us and say "I'm not a bit happy with your life - go to hell". It'd be useless for you or I to protest to Fintan or Pat or Ed, or try to point out that in OTHER parts of our lives we acted in truly good ways - Christian ways, in fact. When people insulted us we said nothing in return, when people ignored us we didn't hold a grudge. In fact we spent the major part of our lives doing what Christians are supposed to do - loving our enemies, doing good to those hate us. "Bollocks to that" Fintan or Pat or Ed would say, in their role as the Lord on Judgement Day. "I'm not counting that. Go to hell". And off we'd have to go, because Fintan or Pat or Ed would be the ultimate Judge of our lives, and being perfect as only the good Lord can be perfect, they'd do the thumb's down and pull the trapdoor to Hades.
Scary or what? Fortunately, Fintan and Pat and Ed aren't the good Lord, so we can add that blessing to living where we do. F and P and E may judge us, but ultimately their judgement won't count. Let's instead remember and follow the words of Margaret Thatcher, when told that her orders had resulted in the war-crime-chargeable deaths of over 300 Argentinian sailors on the Belgrano: "Rejoice in that!"
This really is desperate nonsense.
ReplyDeleteFor goodness sake Jude, they are paid to give their opinions and judgements, as you yourself did for many years.
ReplyDeleteA load of ad hominem rubbish topped and tailed with familiar, gratuitous digs about NATO AND Maggie.
Why not address what they have said and tell us why you disagree?
I hope you didn't teach your students to argue like this.
Anon 11:18 - Why bother reading rubbish?
ReplyDeletegiordanobruno - I reserve the right to comment on any topic I choose, any media guru or commentator I choose. You're entitled to find what I say rubbish; you may be right. But two quick points: (i) why bother etc (see above); (ii) because a name is used doesn't make an argument ad hominem. I could go on about 'gratuitous' but I'll resist the temptation. If you can't see from the article what I'm disagreeing with, then as Louis Armstrong said when they asked him what was jazz, "If you gotta ask, you'll never know". As to teaching my students, I didn't teach them to argue; I taught them to teach. Ask any of them.
Some of the comments from the chatterers would make one think that the "sticks" got into every part of the media available and they're not going to a miss having some pay back when it's presented to them.
ReplyDeletePresumably your sarcasm is directed at the 3 individual journalists because they have the temerity to ask awkward questions about Mr Mc Guinness and his alleged past.The cheek of them!Do they not know that they should be more compliant and accept everything that comes out of the SinnFein press office?We accept that you are a SF polemicist but surely the role of journalists is to ask the hard questions.Im sure all the other candidates will also be scrutinised in due course.Do you not support freedom of the press?
ReplyDeleteAnon 12.59 - freedom of the press, yes, most certainly. But if you care to read what I wrote rather than name-call, I was not objecting to their examining MMcG's past but that they ignored at least the past 20 years. That's not just unfair: it's a failure to meet the standards of journalism the public are entitled to demand.
ReplyDelete. The IRA killed 644 civilians, by far the largest category of its victims (by contrast, and contradicting its self-image as defender of the Catholic community, it killed just 28 loyalist paramilitaries).
ReplyDeletePoor Fintan sounds almost disapointed that the Provo's only got to kill 28 members of the UDA/UVF.Still his figures leave alot out for example:
British Army/RAF/RN/TA 454
RUC/RUCR 273
UDR/RIR 181
NI Prison Service 20
Garda/Irish Army 7
GB police 6
Martin McGuinness wins the RTE Liveline poll with 28% of the vote.
ReplyDelete22k votes ....
ReplyDeleteGallagher 1,290
Dana 1,424
Higgins 2,194
Davis 2,314
Mitchell 2,688
Norris 5,732
McGuinness 5,947
And this poll at the Irish Independent has Martin McGuinness at 48%.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.independent.ie/national-news/presidential-election-2881563.html
Jude, as you omitted any links or quotations, here is one from Fintan O'toole
ReplyDelete"Very few people would argue with the proposition that Martin McGuinness has been a crucial figure in the peace process. His personal transformation from diehard IRA leader to deputy first minister at ease with the Democratic Unionists is a remarkable story, requiring courage, skill and imagination."
I don't necessarily agree with his conclusions, but it doesn't look like ignoring the last 20 years to me.
giordanobruno - you're quite right - that was part of his article and I shouldn't have ignored it. However, the major thrust of his article was very directly aimed at McGuinness's past. I was Radio Ulster/Raidio Uladh this morning with him and again, he touched on McG's peace-making efforts but but his real weight was behind McG's paramilitary past. I plan to blog on it anon so I'll leave it there for now, ok?
ReplyDeleteJude, fair play. Keep 'er lit. I have a feeling change is coming to the banana republic. FF are kaputt. In a reverse of 1926 SF will pick up the remnants of them. It is very encouraging to hear the rats squeal as the barn door is prised open. These 'moral guardians' of a selective mind are hypocrites whose only interest is self serving. The presence of the genuine article in McGuinness scares the life out of them. The cosy relationship that the media and political classes share, which allows them to bankrupt generations of people without so much as a foot of protest on the street, is perhaps the biggest crime of all.
ReplyDeleteMichael D Higgins? Gay Mitchel? David Norris? The greatest joke of all is to even compare these men with Martin McGuinness.
Anyway, keep up the good work. You're an inspiration.
I see Ed Maloney decides who he debates with on RTE Radio.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.indymedia.ie/article/100573
http://www.scotsman.com/opinion/Duncan-Hamilton-Why-Martin-McGuinness.6842110.jp
ReplyDeletehttp://www.publicinquiry.eu/2011/09/29/mcguinness-not-good-enough-for-the-morons-who-destroyed-the-country/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+publicinquiry%2FhigN+%28Public+Inquiry%29
ReplyDelete