Tomás Ó Flatharta

Looking at Things from the Left

Was Liam Cosgrave’s 1973-77 Fine Gael-Labour Coalition the worst-ever Dublin Government?

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On many occasions Gene Kerrigan has argued that the Bertie Ahern coalition elected in 2002 was the worst-ever Dublin Government.

Back in January 2006, this column argued in some detail that the then government, headed by Bertie Ahern, was the worst in the history of the State

http://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/gene-kerrigan/gene-kerrigan-they-just-never-tire-of-getting-it-wrong-2660584.html

Surely the Liam Cosgrave-led 1973-77 Coalition deserves this honour

https://cedarlounge.wordpress.com/2011/02/07/left-archive-the-bottom-dog-the-working-class-paper-of-north-munster-august-6th-1976/

Liam Cosgrave Shoots to Kill

The record speaks for itself : Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Dec 28, 2011 at 6:17 pm

Boston College Betrays Interviewees

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The legal dispute between Boston College and the British State over the “Belfast Project”, a series of confidential interviews with participants in Northern Ireland’s “Troubles”, has taken a dramatic turn in a foul direction :

Some background: Boston College sponsored the Belfast Project, an effort to secure interviews with former members of paramilitary organizations on both sides of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Because such a project would require people to speak frankly about their participation in acts of unlawful violence, the project’s researchers promised participants that their interviews would be embargoed until their deaths. Each tape and transcript of an interview with a former member of the Provisional IRA, for example, or the Ulster Volunteer Force, would be closely held in BC’s Burns Library, securely locked away from historians and journalists until the contents of the material could no longer cause legal harm or political retribution to the interviewee.

http://chrisbrayblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/boston-college-time-for-resignations.html

More news will follow.

 

Written by tomasoflatharta

Dec 28, 2011 at 5:41 pm

Internment of Marian Price, Attempted Extradition of Seán Garland

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Very Good News – it  seems Seán Garland, long-time leader of the Workers’ Party and a veteran of the Irish Republican movement since the 1950’s, has won his battle against the United States government, which wishes to charge him about accusations of currency forgery.

http://cedarlounge.wordpress.com/2011/12/21/sean-garland-extradition-refused/#comment-111337

Many people put their political differences with Garland and his party to one side, and supported the anti-extradition campaign.

One example is the United States socialist Gerry Foley: Read the rest of this entry »

Written by tomasoflatharta

Dec 21, 2011 at 11:28 pm

Gene Kerrigan: Austerity doesn’t work? No problem… – A superb article

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Occupy and the Tasks of Socialists by Pham Binh

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The Occupy movement is not as marginal as its Dublin manifestation might  suggest.  Here an  American socialist participant,  Pham Binh, long an advocate of the broad new left approach,  reflects on how socialists are relating to Occupy in the US:

http://louisproyect.wordpress.com/2011/12/15/occupy-and-the-tasks-of-socialists/

Written by tomasoflatharta

Dec 16, 2011 at 6:30 pm

The Red-Green Alliance in Denmark [from the Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières (ESSF) Site]

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http://www.europe-solidaire.org
/spip.php?article23199

Possible Lessons Here for the United Left Alliance in Ireland

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Dec 14, 2011 at 1:29 pm

Joe Higgins Warns Enda Kenny – Mass Boycott of New Household Tax in 2012

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKdjUMB1JGA&feature=player_embedded

Enda Kenny, the Mayo Deputy, the New Captain Boycott?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Boycott

A flavour of Irish Resistance in Mayo during the Nineteenth Century : Read the rest of this entry »

A Nest of Fine Gael Labour Highly Paid Neo Liberals

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Pay and Conditions Slashed for Little People – Government Handlers on Big Money

News : http://feeds.examiner.ie/~r/ietopstories/~3/GgYih_Sxfgo/

A little more detail from a Cedar Lounge Discussion :

Must admit I had never heard of Mark Garrett before following these comments – he gets a significant mention here :

https://namawinelake.wordpress.com/2011/11/15/time-for-a-technocratic-government-in-ireland/ Read the rest of this entry »

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Dec 10, 2011 at 10:48 am

ULA Anti Budget Rally December 13 Wynn’s Hotel 8pm

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image

All Welcome

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Dec 8, 2011 at 5:29 pm

Budget 2012 – Round-Up of the Real Left Response – “Death By a Thousand Cuts”

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Joe Higgins Speaking in the Dáil :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Ggu-mbY-xxI

The Spectacle of Defiance Inspires on the Streets of Dublin -“Arise Ye Risen People” :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58wZmRadHwk&feature=share

Death By a Thousand Cuts – Joan Collins Speaks :

http://joan-collins.org/2011/12/06/budget-2012-death-by-a-thousand-cuts/

The Dublin West Labour TD, Patrick Nulty, winner of the October 27 by-election, voted against the budget, managing to stay within his organisation’s parliamentary party a mere 6 weeks – prompting me to observe on the Cedar Lounge Blog : Read the rest of this entry »