February, 2025

by Joe McVeigh Like many Irish people who lived through the second half of the 21st century, I know about State violence. We in the Catholic/Nationalist community in the north were on the receiving end of State violence in all its forms here in the 6 counties. The State forces were well paid and well equipped […]

I detest the question “Would you or would you not vote for a united Ireland tomorrow?”. For the very good reason that you’d be trying pin a border poll tail on a UI donkey in a pitch-black cellar. There is, however , one area where a reunited Ireland is heartily disliked: Fianna Fail and Fine […]

It’s started already: should Irish politicians make the annual St Patrick’s Day pilgrimage to the White House, given that the present occupant of said White House is Donald J Trump? Maybe start by asking why have so many Irish politicians gone to the US – loads of places besides Washington – every year? Because of […]

      Ederney is the name of a townland and a small village in north Fermanagh. It is my native place. I was born and reared there and I have a huge affection for the place and the people. I was always told that the origin of the name was an Irish word ‘Eadarnaidh’ […]

  The way the British army saw it,  these four men were rebels,  just returning from attacking an RUC police barracks. They and the nationalist community needed to get it into their heads: if it was violence they wanted we, the British army, would give them violence. And so Kevin Barry O’Donnell, 21, Sean O’Farrell, […]

Dorothy Day is a woman I greatly admire. She died in New York city in November 1980. She was well- known in Catholic circles in the USA. She is not so well known outside the USA but she is much admired for her commitment to justice, to serving the homeless and to bringing about a peaceful […]

Clifford McKeown, who shot dead Catholic taxi-driver Michael McGoldrick  during the Drumcree crisis of 1996,  died on Tuesday. A member of the UVF, he had served  a long prison sentence for the murder of Michael McGoldrick whom he killed during the Drumcree dispute. Mr McGoldrick had graduated not long before with a degree from Queen’s […]

    My immediate reaction to Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza was, to a degree, one of admiration. There is no doubt that he is thinking about this terrible problem in ways not thought of before. My more considered reaction was that, if he’s serious about his plan, he should consult with a psychiatrist as […]

yHave we lost our focusUpon that other day.Upon Bloody Friday?For it sits on the dark side of the moon.While the sun’s rays, the raging coreAlways the IlluminationThe media attentionUpon Bloody Sunday.Well deserved, but . . .Should we think about that other dayNever mind Enniskillen and Omagh?Can we talk about that inconsistency?Can we walk awhile, with […]

    You have only to observe the way that the current leaders of FF and FG – Martin and Harris -speak about and respond to members of Sinn Fein in the Dáil to realise that the contempt for republicans politically opposed to Partition is still strong. The bitterness and hostility towards Sinn Fein since […]