The green seats of parliament in Westminster suddenly began to look very bare as uninterested ministers scuttled and clattered away like death-watch beetles, to the safety of the looming shadows and the hob-nailed soles of the Secretary of State for Norneverland as she rose to speak to the nearly empty, booming room.
The Secretary of State ,Theresa Villiers has finally published her report on the paramilitary groups , basically backing exactly what the Chief Constable has already said some months ago ,with a few extra long-winded ringing bells and piping whistles ,giving us much of the very same information that we already assumed or knew….albeit spread out interminably in the hopes that we might all fall asleep and think it was all some tortured dream. You have to ask yourself what the whole flap that unionism got itself into was all about .Given that they knew all this already. They all knew their own personal versions of it and were comforted that these versions were their reality. Given that TV Mike Nesbitt and also the entire DUP will once again go back to work as though nothing has happened, they may as well have all shared the same waking dream ; like that imaginary story in “Dallas” the old TV series , where Bobby Ewing awakens to find that the whole last series was only a dream and that everything could be re-written anew and another actress had assumed the role of his mother or whatever. A bit like a Doctor Who episode where anything goes if you twist the conundrums of time -travel until their breeches squeak {I nearly wrote something else just there!}….
They had surely assumed that they’d been sitting doing business with the IRA all these years in any case…so what’s the Big Deal? .M15 had no need making any of this report up in the first place .You might think that was more money wasted …all those hours and wages getting to this same, sad story. On the radio Edwin Poots of the DUP has been pulled in to try and explain the DUP’s actions on the “Nolan” show. I couldn’t imagine a man more unsuited to make the explanation.Then I suppose , in Norneverland , illogic is the accepted norm and form of discourse. I suppose they had to get it all off their collective chest. That need to throw a hissy fit for all the world to see…that explosion of wrath and lime -juice bitterness.Still they will always have a hard time explaining anything in this land of illogic.Nolan ate Mr.Poots and burped.
There is one extra little detail in the mix . Theresa Villiers has said that Sinn Fein is in the “nefarious” control of a mysterious “Army Council”. What we all want to know now is who or what alien presence in this pulp-fiction version of reality is this actual “Army Council”.This is all beginning to seem like one of those old Batman Chapter series from the 1940’s we used to watch at the ABC Cinema on a Saturday morning as children , with a villainous hooded presence like “the Scorpion”[ No…that was Captain Marvel!]… or “the Wizard”, lurking in the background, attempting to rule the minds and hearts of men with some mysterious mind-control machine…..down in some cellar with all those flashing and twinkling steampunk computers that hadn’t been invented yet.Who says a childhood spent immersed in science fiction doesn’t prepare you for a life in Norneverland? It’s almost a prerequisite.
Has it come to this? We now really want to know who Theresa Villiers thinks is the Puppet Master or masters manipulating Martin McGuinness and Gerry Adams….the man or actual men who are pulling their strings and making them walk and talk. Martin McGuinness looked askance at the idea that anyone would have the temerity to make him twerk and jiggle and said that there was only one republican party and that was Sinn Fein.In his version , what you see is what you get.He has already claimed that the IRA no longer exists….or is at best a band of imaginary friends of paranoid uselessness.
So before we all cast another vote in any future elections, the Chief Constable and Theresa Villiers would need to show us all the colour of their evidence. I would imagine it is news to many voters that there is an “Army Council” controlling their Sinn Fein ministers in Stormont. It seemed to be news to the leaders of the party itself . Maybe they really are their imaginary friends or possibly fictional creations dreamed up by the British Government in tandem with their Southern Irish counterparts to frighten potential voters away from Sinn Fein.Now that is a thought for the conspiracy theorists to ponder and develop. The alternative is that what the Chief Constable and Theresa Villiers are speaking a documented truth. In which case it’s about time they both shared that evidence with the rest of the population because I’m sure many want to see and hear it.It’ll make a great yarn.
“Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts and minds of men?”…….the Shadow knows…..
It’s more than a pity that we in the public haven’t been told what the Shadow seems to know….
What a waste of time and presumably money, the three people who allegedly drew up this report, the `great and good` of society (???) must have received a few quid for their hard work. The whole charade is a legacy of the Unionist parties` maintaining the myth that the `troubles` were caused by bad IRA men and women and the `security forces`(give me strength…) were noble and valiant, with the occasional bad apple (orange surely?) thrown into the mix. What utter nonsense, until the Unionists stop peddling this fairy tale we are going to see more hissy fits and hypocrisy. The IRA still exist? The UDA.UVF etc still exist? Well as long as they are not waging war, so what. The British army still exists, unfortunately, they might be terrorising a few Arabs here and there but they are no longer shooting people and beating people up over here so that`s fine with me.
That’s it AJ …it’s always about the money in Norneverland. It’s always the first thing that pops into my mind when they start with all the bullshit about new forums or new deals or new quangos….. i immediately think …hang on a minute …what were we arguing about five minutes ago ? …oh that’s right …we’ve no more money for this and that.The health service is failing but let’s just buy a few more missiles….or …no we have no more money to give you to save Stormont from falling ….but let’s spend another few millions on a report about the existence of paramilitaries which we already know exist and if they don’t , sure we can make them up ,then.Let’s give a few worthies a pile of the people’s cash to tell us something we might know already …..what better way to spend all our cash .Never mind refugees or starving children. let’s spend it on some more hogwash instead ….As Bob said …”you don’t need to be a weatherman to see which way the wind blows”….
Well stated. The Unionists will never(IMO) stop peddling ‘the fairy tale” . Only when all people of Ireland open their eyes (including working class loyalists who have been ignored by their ‘leaders”) can real change occur
“The whole charade is a legacy of the Unionist parties` maintaining the myth that the `troubles` were caused by bad IRA men…”
Perhaps not any more AJ. In the report, under the section of the UVF, this statement is made:
“The UVF was responsible for the first three murders of the Troubles in 1966.”
It is settled now; even Britain believes it: the UVF started the conflict.
What it doesn’t say is that in 1965, the IRA were planning to disband.
That unionists smelling victory stirred up trouble and encouraged the UVF to help drive out nationalists. The RUC were involved as much as the UVF and also murdered before PIRA existed.
In 1969, the PIRA took over the IRA to defend their communities. When the British army came into the mix and shot women in the back trying to get their children into the house as they were under military curfew. That is what started the troubles.
Initially the British army treated it as a training exercise in how to deal with urban guerrilla warfare.
With help from other nations the IRA became the most sophisticated and efficient paramilitary organisation on the planet.
For a second time in the same century, they fought the British to a standstill.
That history cannot be rewritten by anyone but it seems some will try.
Love the Dallas analogy, ha perfect. It was all a dream… except this is a bad reality. Well timed pseudodrama for the run up to elections and it just may take Peter and NAMA off the front page. My dog is a better class of being than Villiers et al.
Ah ..yes Paul , we can all see the political choreography from a mile away but it is depressing to think that the likes of Theresa can still stand up and prate away as though the subleties of our history and story were totally lost on her and also by the government. All they want is the recorded myths of their own making to stand as an official record. All that nonsense of this past few months has just been written away to allow Peter Robinson to step back in and be replaced within these next few months in a more amicable way.Let him slip this political coil with just a tiny wee bit of dignity, eh? That’s what is coming up , possibly before we slip into a cleansing period of Direct Rule and a reshuffle of the deckchairs for the next stirring chapter. Of course , they hope that nationalism will also be a little dented by their “revelations” that it might just become as fragmented as unionism and in the end hold back the Sinn Fein story….north and south…
“All they want is the recorded myths of their own making to stand as an official record”
So true. See the latest episode in the long-running saga of britain’s dysfunctional family of nations https://eurofree3.wordpress.com/2015/10/19/mayne-meediar-and-britains-dysfunctional-family-of-nations-4/
PS…. Apologies for the odd typo or “dropout” in the above piece…a few sometimes get through the editorial net…!
Don’t look at me, PK – I only work here…
My fault entirely oh Mighty Blogmeister ……
I think there is an important point being missed here.
We all knew there was no evidence as the allegations were false and hardly something that could have been kept from the community in which the IRA live regardless of what the media think.
We also knew the official records came from moles within what used to be the PIRA and other paramilitaries.
Since the leadership of the IRA ordered all units to stand down and pursue solely peaceful means, we assume these moles are now involved with criminal elements who are pursuing their own self-serving agenda and as Sinn Fein continuously say, are not republicans but are criminals that should be dealt with by the PSNI.
I agree with Sinn Fein, that it is not their responsibility to deal with these criminals, especially those obviosly still on the payroll of the British state.
British intelligence has made an ass of itself, but we must ask what criminal acts are the remaining British state moles committing and why are the British still engaging in paramilitary activity.
We can guess what the reasons are for the lack or progressive thinking from the British, my belief is MI5 have too much autonomy and the British suffered the embarrassment to help smooth things over, hence the backing of their agencies but failure to deliver any evidence promised to the public.
There is an opportunity to end this conflict permanently, but it will require the British to end their nefarious activities and act responsibly.
It is time the people were given a chance to remove the British scourge from this island and made a self determination on this matter.
“I think there is an important point being missed here”.
maybe this, Jesssica?
https://eurofree3.wordpress.com/2015/10/21/time-for-truth/
You make some good points and obsevations ,Jessica.Many things are missed as we discuss and chew over the bones of this. What should be noted as I say in the very first paragraph..
.”The green seats of parliament in Westminster suddenly began to look very bare as uninterested ministers scuttled and clattered away like death-watch beetles, to the safety of the looming shadows and the hob-nailed soles of the Secretary of State for Norneverland clacked as she rose to speak to the nearly empty, booming room.”…is the fact that there is scant , if any interest in any of this in the rest of the uK parliament or anywhere else except on blogs like this one or a handful of articles on radio , television and the newspapers that are hardn’t even read.Interview someone at random in the streets and the chances are very great that they’ll know very little about the intricacies of our politics and care even less.It’s a bit like trying to follow any world conflict .If you don’t get it at the get go , the chances are you’ll not be able to keep up with the ongoing story. Many have no idea .They might have a vague feeling of “us and them” but that ‘s about it .
As for the Secret services like M15 …what can any of us know what they are doing? I haven’t a clue other than what I might read of someone’s “opinion”. How would anyone know? I don’t live in a “republican” area so I wouldn’t know what is actually happening on the streets either. I’m sure the people living there have a better idea and could spot an interloper easily enough , given that everyone gets to know someone who ‘s related to someone else……
As you say if the likes of M15 are operating within communities , they’ll be now operating with criminals and as criminals …giiven that the IRA is no longer “operating”……Doesn’t that make M15 operatives criminals too?
I doubt there is anyone knows the full story PK.
I can only offer my opinions also, based on personal experience and from conversations.
There does seem to be a lot of info drip feeding into the public domain so it is going to come out in the end, I would be confident about that.
There should be a museum at the maze offering an official evidence based account of the history here. Not only would it bring in billions in tourism revenue, help rebuild our economy but if developed as part of an open truth and reconciliation process I think if everyone knew the reality of what happened here, it might make the current stench to the noses of unionists if not easier to bear, at least the knowledge that the stench might not all be from one direction, it can only help the reconciliation process to know the truth.
And Mike Nesbitt does want the truth to be established, although supporting cover up of state actions on the basis of national security doesn’t quite go along with that.
If the museum was officially evidence based, why are unionists and the British so terrified of an uncensored truth of our history coming to light?
sorry, replied to the wrong email
Is this an ethic thing or do all Unionists aspiring to be Little Englanders and all English politicians suffer from congenital brain defects ?….How much more of this inane ,vacuous ,tripe can any sane ,perfectly well-balanced person take?…are they trying to grind us down and make us all as air-headed and mittyesque as themselves? We are ultimately governed by a harlequinade of pompous clowns ,playing in the Westminster circus ….playing to the highest bidder to remain in power…..why am I paying taxes , why are we allowing this charade to continue…..No more …pull the whole corrupt stinking shambolic mental institution down.
Seeing as we are on the topic monitoring what group may or may not exist. Could someone draw up a report of the antics of MI5 and other various strands of British intelligence? Specifically if they are still involved in collusion with various anti republican agencies? Perhaps the Army Council could oversee that report in the interests of balance of course.
There have been plenty of reports and evidence over the years WT, most of it has been censored for national security reasons and wont be released to the public before 2060.
In ‘Pulp Fiction’, Quentin Tarantino’s movie meisterpiece, ‘arry, there’s a not altogether irrelevant exchange of dialogue between the character Jules (played by the phenomenal Samuel L. Jackson) and the minor character called Brett:
Brett: What?
Jules: What country you from?
Brett: What? What? Wha-?
Jules: ‘What’ ain’t no country I’ve ever heard of. They speak English in What?
Brett: What?
Jules: English, M.F.., do you speak it?
Brett: Yes! Yes !
Jules: Then you know what I’m saying?
Brett: Yes.
That puts Brett one up on a lot of people down here in the Free Southern Stateen when it came to listening to the after-spinner speech of the Proconsul (to employ Iolar’s fine coinage) in Westminster.
Yes, the one which emptied the chamber and revealed the mountain greenery of the benches.
Not included in this overwhelming lot were those exceptional Snotty Whats in the Irish Parliament and their Puppet Masters of the Press. Who were effortlessly able to parse ever single syllable painfully pushed through the plush tush of Therese V.
Call them West Bretts.
-What?
-What does the M.F. stand for?
-M. Fifteen.
-What’s that?
-You mean MI5?
-What?
Know what I mean, ‘arry?
And still they gazed, and still the wonder grew…You surpass yourself, Perkin. Ah, Samuel L Jackson – that scene – truly unique in film at the time.
Yes the Mighty Perk barms matures like the finest brew, Jude.