Brief video of Mary Lou McDonald's speech at the Gaza Solidarity march

by paul o toole Sat Jan 03, 2009 19:23 pauljotoole at eircom dot net

Bush condemns todays Palestinian rockets as terrorism. In his 'roadmap for peace' after 'shock and awe' he threw in 12 f-16 frontline fighter jets to Israels prime minister Sharon to sweeten the deal. Thats what you see in the sky over Palestine today -raining down terror on civilians. Gerry Adams and Martin Mcguinness shook hands with GW bush and Tony Blair on the 'last chance 'for the Good Friday Aggreement in Belfast as Anti-war activists got arrested and the Shinners on the ground diddnt know where to turn watching their leadership change coats and join Bush Blair et-al. in front of the worlds press. Was it a threat or comfort they wre offered?

Standing outside Dail eireann on weekends shouting at empyt buildings achieves nothing, no matter how loudly or passionately you shout at them. Especially in light of the fact that none of these political parasites will be back till mid Febuary.

Sinn Fein ideals were sold down the drain whe McGuinness and Adams publicly made nice with GW Bush and Tony Blair as they arrived in Ireland as 'peacemakers'.
If Mary Lou McDonald wants to be a peace maker she will have to seperate herself from SF-a,party that once stood for something and to day its leadership cant bring itself to condemn anyone. After all she said ... 'it takes courage to be a peacemaker'

Did she happen to mention the military harware passing through Shannon on its way to add to the genocide that the Irish State is involved in in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine...what were we to do with the courage she spoke of??...take the bus home

by PBPA - People Before Profit Sat Jan 03, 2009 19:34

For more images from today's protest visit: www.peoplebeforeprofit.ie

Richard Boyd Barrett (PBPA & IAWM) addresses protest

by Aileen Sat Jan 03, 2009 21:26 aaocarroll at gmail dot ie

In the freezing cold a large crowd marched in solidarity with the people of Palastine.

Photos under Creative Commons license (Attribution-NonCommercial)
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/

Throwing Shoes at Bush

by Aileen Sat Jan 03, 2009 21:28 aaocarroll at gmail dot ie

Photos under Creative Commons license (Attribution-NonCommercial)
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/

by grown up Sat Jan 03, 2009 22:01

Paul, do you think you give over the Shinner bashing for a minute? It's the weekend ffs... get over it.

by Ciaron - Ploughshares/Catholic Worker Sat Jan 03, 2009 22:34

Paul has a point.

I went along today out of obligation..have to do something at times like these... but dreading another cattle drive through the streets of Dublin (literally ending in a bull pen this time) with disengaged shoppers.

I dread all the political positioning by the small left groups at these events...which strangely strike me as exremely liturgical.... with the worst aspects of the alination of your average suburban Sunday masses

...as one punter remarked he would like to have heard more from the Palestinians present from their experiences and perspectives. I guess there was nothing stopping one getting a soapbox going on the edge of the crowd and opening up such a forum as the politicians (and aspiring politicians) did their thang centre stage!

The crowd was aprox 50% Irish and an older demographic of those, There was a lot of Arab folks (younger than the Irish) there and it was good to be there to support them in their grief....it is really a sad situation with Egypt supporting the siege and the split in the Palestinians and the Israeli overkill.

There was little focus on Irish complicity
-the cement company based in Dublin that profits from the apartheid wall
-Raytheon in Derry that makes the weapons that kill Palestinian kids
-Shannon Airport that is probably still used for the U.S. to resupply Israel.

Paul has a point when some serious nonviolent resistance was done on this issue...the Raytheon 9 they attracted little or no solidarity from the politicians going through the motions today. Well done WSM on a call for support for Israeli military resisters. I'm pretty sure they are listed on this website if you want to name them and writ them www.couragetoresist.org

I made my own poster on the way in "Caoimhe Butterly Rocks! Break the Siege on Gaza! NVDA" A celebration that people we know very much like us are finding ways to creativly intervene. If you watch the embedded clip interview with Caoimhe on the indy feature on this site
.she ends with a specific call call to go beyond potificating and to action.

If people take risk and act whether it be Caoimhe, the refuseniks, Raytheon 9 and the like we owe our proactive solidarity, not just ourmoral superiority/speeches etc

by ec Sat Jan 03, 2009 22:59

pretty much an arm of the Irish state

by Meath man Sat Jan 03, 2009 23:26

And off agin they go jumping on the band wagon what is it with SF. They should know by now they are a has been party gone with the PDs at least in Free Ireland. In a long forgotten part off our land they are happy to do Satins job and get big money for it MLAs MPs ect ect you ran so keep runing. As for Mary Lou she is good in some ways and a good Irish woman but is only let say what her bosses let her. I hope some day she will see this and become what she knows she can be. As for Gasa tonight I pray with and for you and may Allah be with you and may truth win out.

by Agyness Sun Jan 04, 2009 02:05

Here's an idea -why doesn't someone arrange a march in support of the zionist attackers, and see how many people show up? Maybe some of the friends of Israel in the Irish Labour Party or Fine Gael could speak at it, and nobody would say anything because they aren't Sinn Féin.

Caption: Video Id: X4i782NlJY4 Type: Youtube Video
Embedded video Youtube Video

by paul o toole Sun Jan 04, 2009 13:46 086-351-2469.

The civilians of Gaza are being exterminated in a holocaust. An Isralei/US/UK /IRL supported Holocaust. Im not SF bashing, Im pointing out a fact. If that is uncomfortable for you, that says more about your ability to see the truth than my expressing 'sour grapes'..as you so elequoently put it.
If change is to come then it must be based on fact. The fact is, that the Irish Government is responsible in part for the genocides in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine. I dont bash Sinn Fein in isolation, . It is my view that every single elected official in this State is responsible for the bloodshed it has involved itself in....AND almost every un-elected party hack claiming to be opposed to it.
It is an inescapable truth that herding people through the city on weekends to listen to mainly Irish political wannabee speakers achieves ZERO. It may be a romantic notion to think that something was achieved if it is to only allow you to feel that your concience may be eased some, then I would say that that is all that was achieved, along with an expanded profile for those attempting entering the political arena.
If the IAWM / SWP / People before Profit / Sinn Fein.. 'welcome ' Michael Martins 'Condemnation' of Isreels attack, and deliberately ignore his collaboration in support of this attack by providing facilities at Shannon, in truth they are FAILING to educate the masses they wish to co-opt into their various litle parties. And in failing to do so so, ensure the fulfilment of Israels Murderous attacks on civilians. Listening to the rhetoric from these party aligned political climbers about internationalism and international opposition, falls weak when we have the back door in our own country wide open un-opposed, un-mentioned, un-challenged (except by a handful) allowing the slaughter to happen seemlessly uninterupted as.

Shannon...January 6.'09. Anniversary of the Shannon Peace Camp. Giz a buz u wana lift from Dublin.

never miss an opportunity for sour grapes
by grown up Sat Jan 03, 2009 22:01
Paul, do you think you give over the Shinner bashing for a minute? It's the weekend ffs... get over it.

by Doire - sinn fein Sun Jan 04, 2009 15:35

Thats all they are no bodys with an axe to grind. Martin took Bush to the side and told him what he though of the war on terror he said this publicly. Don't forget that it was Martin and Gerry who bought peace to Ireland and took great risks to do so, now while they try and incourage other countrys to do like wise they get comdemned from no bodys with no mandate. If you think yous can do better put your mandate were your mouth is.

Great speach Marylou.