Tomás Ó Flatharta

Looking at Things from the Left

Archive for the ‘Sinn Féin’ Category

The February 25 General Election changed something in Ireland

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The article below  – by John Meehan –

has been  published in the British Magazine Socialist Resistance :

http://socialistresistance.org/1775/70-votes-for-socialism

 

Writing in the North American online magazine Counterpunch Harry Browne zoned in on two key features on the Irish February 25 2011 General Election Result

 

 

Same Old at the Top – but Irish Election Makes Room for the Left

Same Old, Same Old at the Top, But – Irish Election Makes Room for the Left

The same old :

A Fine Gael / Labour coalition takes over the government after 14 years of Fianna Fáil rule. Since 1932, Fianna Fáil have been the governing party for 61 out of 79 years.  They have won 19 out of 25 General Elections. On the rare occasions Fine Gael dominated coalitions have come to power the smaller right-wing party never held on longer than one term in office.

That said, the scale of the 2011 Fianna Fáil defeat is without precedent Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Mar 10, 2011 at 7:30 pm

Posted in Fianna Fáil, Financial Crisis (September 2008 onwards), Fine Gael, General Election 2011, Green Party, Ireland, Labour Party (Ireland), Opinion Polls, People Before Profit, Sinn Féin, Socialist Party, United Left Alliance

Why Does The Irish Labour Party Seek Fine Gael’s Kiss-of-Death?

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In the last days of the 2011 Irish General Election Campaign Labour Party leaders and spinners are warning that the voters might choose a Fine Gael single party government. Their alternative? : Coalition – Fine Gael’s Enda Kenny for Taoiseach, Labour’s Eamon Gilmore the Tánaiste – that’s the message.

SIPTU leader Jack O’Connor, for example, claims “that a coalition government would be far preferable as the country imposes spending cuts as part of its EU and IMF bailout.

“If you look at the lessons of history, they (Fine Gael) haven’t been in government on their own since 1927 when their predecessor Cumann na nGaedheal was in government,”….

“They pursued policy which resulted in economic stagnation for 60 years. And that’s the kind of policy that’s being advocated by both of the centre-right parties at the present time.”

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/02/15/ireland-politics-union-idUKLDE71E2C620

First – is a single-party Fine Gael government possible or likely?

We will know for sure on Saturday February 26 – at the time of writing, if the polls are right, a single party Fine Gael government is possible but unlikely.

http://politicalreform.ie/2011/02/22/seat-estimates-for-irish-independent-millward-brown-lansdowne-opinion-poll-23rd-february/#more-2337

A second factor is political – many Fine Gael backers, for example the former party leader Garret FitzGerald, argue that coalition with Labour is a better tactical option for this right-wing party. Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Feb 23, 2011 at 12:32 pm

Posted in Fianna Fáil, Financial Crisis (September 2008 onwards), Fine Gael, General Election 2011, Green Party, Ireland, Labour Party (Ireland), Opinion Polls, People Before Profit, Sinn Féin, SIPTU, Socialist Party, Trade Unions, UNITE, United Left Alliance

Joan Collins to Offer Radical Alternative – RTE’s Frontline Programme, Monday February 21

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Message from the Joan Collins Site :

“I have agreed to go on panel on Frontline on Monday evening. It’s on after the  9pm news. Also last Friday I had a BBC Panorama crew with me for the afternoon in Drimnagh. They are doing an election special on Ireland, also on Monday evening.”

http://joan-collins.org/2011/02/19/appearing-on-panel-on-frontlines-rte-monday-night/

Joan’s campaign was featured in the Irish Times, Thursday February 17 :

Collins aims to offer radical alternative

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0217/1224290025041.html

Joan Collins Flyer :

http://irishelectionliterature.wordpress.com/2011/02/09/flyer-from-joan-collins-people-before-profit-united-left-alliance-dublin-south-central/

500 Words from Joan Collins :

http://www.drimnaghisgood.com/2011/02/16/500-words-from-joan-collins-people-before-profit-canidate-for-dublin-south-central/

United Left Alliance Prospects? Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Feb 20, 2011 at 3:42 pm

Posted in European Union, Fianna Fáil, Financial Crisis (September 2008 onwards), Fine Gael, General Election 2011, Green Party, Ireland, Labour Party (Ireland), Opinion Polls, People Before Profit, Sinn Féin, Socialist Party, United Left Alliance

Labour Leadership Offensive to the Left, Offensive Against the Left

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Thanks to Des Derwin for this article, also published here :

http://www.irishleftreview.org/2011/01/25/godsend-sinn-fin-left/

The Finance Bill stroke is the latest, but greatest, in a line of indications that Labour in government will be on the good ship Austerity.

Until fairly recently I would have counselled my friends on the left against rejecting calls for an all-left alliance out of hand and, instead, for saying to Labour and Sinn Féin, ‘reject coalition and austerity and we can all ally’. The clarity of Labour’s intentions makes this position redundant. More, the Labour leadership has now gone on the offensive against the ULA and Sinn Féin, against the rest of an all-left alliance.

http://cedarlounge.wordpress.com/2011/01/25/talk-away-mister-higgins/

Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Jan 25, 2011 at 6:57 pm

Posted in Abortion, Feminism, Fianna Fáil, Financial Crisis (September 2008 onwards), Fine Gael, General Election 2011, Ireland, Labour Party (Ireland), People Before Profit, Sinn Féin, Socialist Party, Trade Unions, UNITE, United Left Alliance

Kill the Finance Bill – Burn the Bondholders!

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See discussion here :

http://cedarlounge.wordpress.com/2011/01/23/so-what-happens-next/

Line of Action :
Kill the Finance Bill
Dissolve the Dáil and announce a new General Election date before March 11

The Green Party/Fianna Fáil policy – apparently supported by Fine Gael – of passing the Finance bill this week should be rejected out of hand.

Call the bluff of the right-wing – do not tolerate hypocrites pretending to oppose the government, but in fact hoping the austerity package is passed – and after a General Election Fine Gael and their Labour coalition colleagues will say they are in “a straitjacket”, their “hands are tied”, and so on.

Kill the Finance Bill – Burn the Bondholders! Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Jan 23, 2011 at 7:57 pm

Posted in Fianna Fáil, Financial Crisis (September 2008 onwards), Fine Gael, General Election 2011, Green Party, Ireland, Labour Party (Ireland), Sinn Féin

2011 General Election – the United Left Alliance Prepares

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The United Left Alliance held a supporters’ meeting on Monday January 10 at 7pm in Wynn’s Hotel, Abbey Street.

Tomás Ó Flathartha reports.

Arriving on time – for a change – this reporter came across a few grumblers wondering why there was such an early start – these events in Dublin usually start about 8pm.

As usual most punters arrived late, but the room filled up quickly – maybe 110 – 130 people attended, though many left before the official end shortly after 9pm – by that time there were around 60-65 in the room.

It seemed many people had read Brendan Young’s Paper

Building the ULA:

reflections on the past and proposals for the future

(published on this blog and the Irish Left Review) and support for the practical proposals was widespread.

https://tomasoflatharta.com/2011/01/07/building-the-ula-reflections-on-the-past-and-proposals-for-the-future/

Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Jan 11, 2011 at 2:17 am

Posted in Abortion, Financial Crisis (September 2008 onwards), Ireland, Sinn Féin, United Left Alliance

Donegal South-West By-Election – isolated example or pointer to the future?

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I agree with Paddy Healy’s analysis

http://paddyhealy.wordpress.com/2010/11/27/analysis-of-donegal-sw-by-election/#respond

– it now appears that Donegal may not be an isolated regional example, following publication of the most recent Red C Poll placing Fianna Fáil in fourth place behind Fine Gael, Labour, and Sinn Féin.

This suggests many supporters / voters of the Labour Party and Sinn Féin may be open to the argument of rivals who are further left – the United Left Alliance – that coalition with Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael should be ruled out in principle.

Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Dec 4, 2010 at 11:56 am

Posted in Abortion, Ireland, Sinn Féin, United Left Alliance

Pearse Doherty TD Sinn Féin – A Lifer?

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Full marks to the Socialist Party irritant Mark P for winkling out important information –

===========
This came to our notice via a Cedar Lounge Revolution discussion :

“Pearse Doherty was unusually up front in expounding SF’s pro-life position on abortion:

Sinn Féin – Senator Pearse Doherty has given a written personal commitment to oppose any legislation that would make abortion available in Ireland and supports a law to protect the human embryo from deliberate destruction”

http://prolifecampaign.ie/?page_id=520

Note also the statement by independent left Thomas Pringle. Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Dec 1, 2010 at 7:20 pm

Posted in Abortion, Ireland, Sinn Féin

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