A Mission Statement
http://youtu.be/e8uOj02LI5U
Our goal is to connect with a broad audience of individuals who share the belief that Ireland should be reunified through democratic and peaceful means. By doing so we can create a greater global awareness and with your collective voice, the support of elected representatives at the local and state level bring forward resolutions calling for the Reunification of Ireland.
Together we can achieve “A United Ireland.”
If you agree that Ireland should be united there is no other choice....
"The Nineteenth century saw a great Springtime of Nations as the revolutions of 1848 saw new countries created the length and breadth of Europe. In our world today we are now seeing our own Spring Awakening with people and cultures that have long been dormant and subdued asserting their right to exist, their right to dream." Adam Price MP
Thursday, 27 October 2011
Tuesday, 25 October 2011
Voting in an Irish President
We have today opened Ballotbox.ie for voting in the 2011 Irish Presidential Election after so many people including those who registered their interest in the General Election earlier this year. We are contacting you as you were one of those who took part in our first poll and we would welcome you to do so again.
Remember that this is as much a petition as a vote as we feel that the only way to show our politicians back home that there is genuine demand is to show it. So please vote early and tell all your Irish friends and colleagues who like myself and yourself are not based in Ireland at the moment.
Get along to http://ballotbox.pointblank.ie/register.php and vote...
Remember that this is as much a petition as a vote as we feel that the only way to show our politicians back home that there is genuine demand is to show it. So please vote early and tell all your Irish friends and colleagues who like myself and yourself are not based in Ireland at the moment.
Get along to http://ballotbox.pointblank.ie/register.php and vote...
Saturday, 22 October 2011
News from the Land of Kernow (Cornwall)
MEBYON KERNOW NEWS
MK Conference It is only four weeks to Mebyon Kernow’s 2011 Conference, which will take place at Bodmin’s Shire House Suite on Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th November. All members are welcome to attend and we hope to see you there. The Saturday will feature leading members of MK and a range of guest speakers including Jonathan Edwards, Plaid Cymru MP for Carmarthen East and Dinefwrm and Kenneth Gibson, SNP member of the Scottish Parliament for Cunninghame North. In the evening there will be a buffet, bar and entertainment, with the cost of tickets set at £10 per person. MK’s formal AGM will be on Sunday, when there will also be a series of debates on party policy and sessions on campaign strategy. For tickets to the concert, contact Stephen Richardson at 39 Chariot Road, Illogan Highway, Redruth or 07711 587905 or via stephen.richardson@mebyonkernow.org. 2 Wendron by-election Mebyon Kernow will be standing in the Cornwall Council by-election for Wendron on Thursday 24th November. Our candidate will be Loveday Jenkin, who stood in this division when it was last contested in 2009. In that election she came second out of 7 candidates and is therefore well placed to win election to Cornwall Council if we all get behind her and campaign long and hard. If you can help with this important election campaign, please call Loveday on 07718 763566 or Dick Cole on 07791 876607. 3. Supporting MK via the internet You can also keep in touch with MK members via a range of blogs, including: Cllr Dick Cole (http://mebyonkernow.blogspot.com/) Cllr Stephen Richardson (http://illoganblogger.blogspot.com)robert/ Simmons (http://robscornishblog.blogspot.com/) Camborne and Redruth Constituency Party (http://camborneandredruthmk.blogspot.com/). The Cornish Republican (http://thecornishrepublican.blogspot.com/) See also the Cornish Zetetics site (http://cornishzetetics.blogspot.com/) Please support the hard work of MK activists and like-minded campaigners by visiting their sites on a regular basis and helping to promote them more widely. Thank you
MK Campaign Team
MK Conference It is only four weeks to Mebyon Kernow’s 2011 Conference, which will take place at Bodmin’s Shire House Suite on Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th November. All members are welcome to attend and we hope to see you there. The Saturday will feature leading members of MK and a range of guest speakers including Jonathan Edwards, Plaid Cymru MP for Carmarthen East and Dinefwrm and Kenneth Gibson, SNP member of the Scottish Parliament for Cunninghame North. In the evening there will be a buffet, bar and entertainment, with the cost of tickets set at £10 per person. MK’s formal AGM will be on Sunday, when there will also be a series of debates on party policy and sessions on campaign strategy. For tickets to the concert, contact Stephen Richardson at 39 Chariot Road, Illogan Highway, Redruth or 07711 587905 or via stephen.richardson@mebyonkernow.org. 2 Wendron by-election Mebyon Kernow will be standing in the Cornwall Council by-election for Wendron on Thursday 24th November. Our candidate will be Loveday Jenkin, who stood in this division when it was last contested in 2009. In that election she came second out of 7 candidates and is therefore well placed to win election to Cornwall Council if we all get behind her and campaign long and hard. If you can help with this important election campaign, please call Loveday on 07718 763566 or Dick Cole on 07791 876607. 3. Supporting MK via the internet You can also keep in touch with MK members via a range of blogs, including: Cllr Dick Cole (http://mebyonkernow.blogspot.com/) Cllr Stephen Richardson (http://illoganblogger.blogspot.com)robert/ Simmons (http://robscornishblog.blogspot.com/) Camborne and Redruth Constituency Party (http://camborneandredruthmk.blogspot.com/). The Cornish Republican (http://thecornishrepublican.blogspot.com/) See also the Cornish Zetetics site (http://cornishzetetics.blogspot.com/) Please support the hard work of MK activists and like-minded campaigners by visiting their sites on a regular basis and helping to promote them more widely. Thank you
MK Campaign Team
Wednesday, 19 October 2011
England - the Last Bastion of Britannia?
The Perils of Identity Mapping
By Ray BellRecently The Guardian decided to tackle what it called “the disunited kingdom”, with a series of articles and an opinion poll. This is probably long overdue, The Guardian is one of the few major UK papers that doesn’t bother with a Scottish edition – even Metro pretends to have one. It seems to have taken an independence referendum, to wake the paper up to the notion of devolution, let alone parties in Scotland and Wales. However, just as The Guardian thought that it had got a grip on the complex identity issues in the UK (and IOM), it’s been blindsided yet again.
It was The Guardian’s recent survey on British identity that the journalists scratching their heads. The paper asked a number of people around the UK if they felt more British or more English/Scottish/Welsh/Irish/Northern Irish. People also had the chance to respond “other”, if they felt none of these particularly applied to them. They produced a map, with coloured dots, to plot these responses. Predictably, Northern Ireland was a hodge podge, and people in Scotland and Wales felt more Scottish and Welsh than British. Responses from each of the countries were noted, and unusual phenomena also got a mention in sidebars.
England was noted as “the last bastion – Britishness remained dominant”, and in London, the strong showing of “other” was because it is “unsurprisingly a melting pot”.
However, the map has a good many surprises. Corby retains a strong Scottish identity, decades after Scots migrated there to work in steel plants. Shetland had a few “other”s, and the Guardian suggested this was because people there “could… view themselves as more Nordic than Scots”. But while the Guardian worked out what was going on in Shetland, it noted that Cornwall had “a strong showing for the others”, without actually broaching the subject of Cornish identity. But it has to be said, if the Guardian can’t keep a handle on what’s going on here or in Wales, what hope has it to understand somewhere like Cornwall?
This isn’t, of course, the first time that Bella Caledonia has stolen a lead on The Grauniad. There are a few examples of that, even if I don’t recall an article on Shetland here. Bella has tackled the Cornish question at least twice [here] and [here]. Apart from the “comment is free” section, which is not written by non-staff writers, The Guardian journalists, continue to largely ignore the Cornish issue. A Cornish blog has made great play of this, saying [Cornish Terrify Guardian] .The Cornish have an ongoing campaign to be recognised as a national minority.*
There are certain other anomalies, which are not noted at all. Should we take these seriously? There appear to be “other”s in Pembrokeshire, people who feel “Scottish” in Berwick upon Tweed, pockets of “Welsh” people in East Anglia and one or two others in the Isle of Man (some of these presumably Manx). Neither the Isle of Man, nor the Channel Islands, are in the UK, although for some reason, the IoM was included but Guernsey and Jersey weren’t.
Sunday, 16 October 2011
Buddhism - An Agent of Change
Christopher Titmuss
The Buddha addressed his talks to the Sangha of spiritual nomads who followed his teachings and equally to householders. He directly addressed a wide range of issues. He voiced his concerns to the major powerful influences in society and gave clear advice on their responsibilities as well as sought change in common beliefs. The Buddha established the world’s first major network for women to live a homeless way of life in the exploration of the spiritual - free from duties as wife, mother and daughter. He also addressed:
- rulers, kings and authority figures
- practices and privileges of Brahmin priests
- religious beliefs, including widespread belief in a personal God
- animal sacrifice and protection for all sentient beings
- caste system, humanitarian values
- responsibilities of rich to share their wealth
- yogis and sadhus for engaging in extreme, self punishing practices widespread in India
- consumerism – namely the pursuit of pleasure as the primary reason for existence
- warned against dependency on charismatic figures, reason, tradition and books.
- spoke of the importance of ethics beginning with a commitment not to engage in killing
- significance of love and compassion in all directions
- application of non-harmful livelihoods and lifestyles.
Monday, 10 October 2011
Sunday, 9 October 2011
"Ourselves" no longer "Alone"
Sinn Féin emerges as second party of choice in Republic
STEPHEN COLLINS, Political Editor
SINN FÉIN is now the second most popular party in the Republic, according to the latest Irish Times /Ipsos MRBI poll.The survey reveals a substantial increase in support for the party on the back of Martin McGuinness’s presidential election campaign.
Sinn Féin is now narrowly ahead of the Labour Party and Fianna Fáil, with the party attracting almost the same support as Mr McGuinness.
However, Fine Gael retains a commanding lead over all parties, despite the poor showing of presidential candidate Gay Mitchell. And Taoiseach Enda Kenny remains the most popular political leader in the Republic.
When people were asked who they would vote for if a general election were to be held tomorrow, the figures for party support – when undecided voters are excluded – compared with the last Irish Times poll on July 20th were: Fine Gael, 35 per cent (down three points); Labour, 17 per cent (down one point); Fianna Fáil, 16 per cent (down two points); Sinn Féin, 18 per cent (up eight points); Green Party, 2 per cent (no change); and Independents/Others, 12 per cent (down two points).
The survey was undertaken on Monday and Tuesday of this week among a representative sample of 1,000 voters aged 18 and over, in face-to-face interviews at 100 sampling points in all 43 constituencies. The margin of error is plus or minus 3 per cent.
The core vote for the parties (before undecided voters are excluded) compared with the last Irish Times poll was: Fine Gael, 29 per cent (down one point); Labour, 13 per cent (down one point); Fianna Fáil, 13 per cent (down one point); Sinn Féin, 14 per cent (up six points); Green Party, 2 per cent (up one point); Independents/Others, 10 per cent (down one point); and undecided voters, 19 per cent (down three points).
The advance in Sinn Féin support to almost twice that which it achieved in the February general election is the most dramatic change in party support. Sinn Féin is strongest among men and poorer voters and weakest among women and better-off voters.
The contrast between its level of support among the different sexes is startling, with 28 per cent of men backing the party compared with just 11 per cent of women.
The other three big parties have all declined since the last poll.
Fine Gael dropped three points but it is the leading party in the State and has consolidated its position as the leading party in Dublin.
Labour Party support has dipped marginally, despite the good showing of presidential candidate Michael D Higgins. The party continues to do well in Dublin where it is well ahead of Sinn Féin, but it has slipped in the rest of Leinster and Connacht-Ulster.
Fianna Fáil has also declined. The party continues to fare badly in the capital – a long-term worry given it has no TDs in Dublin.
Support for Independents and smaller parties has also slipped.
The Green Party remains on just 2 per cent and leader Eamon Ryan is having difficulty making an impact from outside the Dáil.
In line with the modest drop in support for the Coalition parties, satisfaction with the Government has also declined marginally, as has satisfaction with the Taoiseach.
Mr Kenny is down two points since July, with a 51 per cent satisfaction rating.
Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore is in second place, with a 42 per cent rating. He is also down two points.
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin has dropped nine points to 28 per cent. This follows the confusion over the party’s presidential election strategy.
The five-point increase in Gerry Adams’s rating to 36 per cent clearly owes a lot to Sinn Féin’s impact on the presidential election campaign. It may also be a response to the party’s aggressive performance in the Dáil.
Friday, 7 October 2011
Uniting Ireland Conference
Martin McGuinness to speak at Galway Uniting Ireland conference
Presidential candidate Martin McGuinness will be in the west on Friday and will speak at the major conference in Galway on Friday evening October 7th.
The diaspora living in the USA, Canada, Australia and elswhere around the world will be able to watch the conference live as it will be available on the internet.
It will be live from 7.30 pm to 9.45 pm approx Irish time:
Local time PST: 11:30am to 1:45pm
To watch live visit:
http://unitingireland.ie/?
or just log into > http://unitingireland.ie/
click button top right to access UI TV
Presidential candidate Martin McGuinness will be in the west on Friday and will speak at the major conference in Galway on Friday evening October 7th.
The diaspora living in the USA, Canada, Australia and elswhere around the world will be able to watch the conference live as it will be available on the internet.
It will be live from 7.30 pm to 9.45 pm approx Irish time:
Local time PST: 11:30am to 1:45pm
To watch live visit:
http://unitingireland.ie/?
or just log into > http://unitingireland.ie/
click button top right to access UI TV
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
A New Beginning
McGuinness calls for "decade of reconciliation"
Speaking at the launch of his presidential campaign in Dublin tonight in the Pillar Room of the Rotunda (1st October 2011) Martin McGuinness has called for a "decade of reconciliation". The full text of the speech follows.
It is a pleasure for me to be here tonight amongst so many friends and well wishers. It is a great honour to stand before the Irish people seeking their support to lead this great nation.
I believe in Ireland. I believe in the Irish people.
Traveling around the country in recent years I have become more and more outraged at the greed and corruption which has given rise to the greatest economic crisis we have ever faced. It is a scandal that ordinary people up and down this island are paying for this every day while at the same time trying to keep a roof over their heads and food on their tables.
Who would have thought 150 years after the great land battles in Ireland after Davitt and the Land League that the prospect of eviction is looming again for Irish families.
Who would have thought 100 years on from the Dublin lock out when Connolly and Larkin stood with the people, that workers like those in Talk Talk in Waterford are once again being thrown on the dole queue without so much as a thank you in the Ireland of 2011.
The greed and selfishness that dominated so much of political and business life in Ireland in the Celtic Tiger years is responsible for the financial mess we find ourselves in today.
Those responsible for this state of affairs are not patriots. Patriotism is about country and people. It is not about self aggrandizement.
But greed and selfishness is not the Irish way — local identity, community and sense of place is what defines us as Irish people, knowing and helping your neighbour, being tolerant to those who are different.
As President I will be at the forefront of an Ireland reclaiming its true sense of identity. I want to give the Irish people back their confidence. We have seen the greed of powerful and wealthy groups dent the Irish spirit. We need to see genuine values replace a culture of individualism.
As President I want to see every citizen regain a sense of pride in their Irish identity. I want to highlight the importance of community and inclusion which are the cornerstones of Irish life. Ireland can and should be a place of positivity where creativity and innovation are nurtured.
Too many cynics stand in the way of our country reaching its true potential. I want to see Ireland reclaim the greatness of the tens of millions of Irish people across the world who are the leaders and innovators in the countries in which they now reside. I will be a President for all the Irish people including the Disapora. As a father and grandfather, I refuse to be part of the first generation of Irish people to hand this society on to the next in a worse economic state than it was given to us.
As President I will work tirelessly to fix what has been broken and to inspire everyone who is Irish or who has links to Ireland across the world to work together to make our country great again. If the Irish people vote for me as their President they know what they will get. Throughout 40 years and more of political activism, on the streets of Derry, in Downing Street, in the White House, in the Assembly and on Good Friday I have sought to bring a set of basic principles to my work – commitment – leadership – patriotism – endeavour – selflessness and a deep commitment to Ireland and her people.
As President I will defend and promote Ireland. I will uphold the constitution. I will stand up for sovereignty and freedom. Titles have never been important to me. Political office has never been about perks. The only thing about seeking or reaching high office which motivates me is how that office can be used to make a positive contribution to people’s lives.
That is why I have already said I will only take home the average wage and return the rest to the Irish people. It is high time those at the top shared the pain and showed a bit of empathy with the rest of us.
I reject the notion put forward by some that the President of Ireland is somehow a meaningless or powerless role. This does a grave disservice to the Presidents who have gone before – particularly I have to say both Mary Robinson and Mary McAleese – whose work as President has inspired and motivated so many Irish people both here and abroad. People have asked me in the course of recent weeks why I want to be President — that surely it would have been easier for me to simply continue as Deputy First Minister in the North. And there may well be some truth in that.. But this isn’t about me – I am standing because ordinary people the length and breath of this island have inspired me to run and in turn I want to inspire them as their President.
I want to be a President that stands for working families; for those struggling to pay mortgages; for parents fighting for better support for their children; for those with disabilities; for those lying on hospital trolleys; for elderly people fearful in their own homes at night or making a decision this winter on whether to heat their home; for those talented young Irish people being forced to emigrate to far flung corners of the world.
What Ireland needs now is investment and jobs. As Deputy First Minister, I have, along with Ministerial colleagues brought thousands of new jobs to the north – I want to use my international reputation – my influence and skills to go to the boardrooms of major US corporations and elsewhere and help bring new jobs to these shores.I want to act as an ambassador for all those indigenous firms who have, despite the massive challenges, provided employment and generated wealth.
The period during the next Presidency will see the centenary of many defining moments in our history. It would be my intention as President to use the next ten years from 2012 and the centenary of the formation of the UVF, the Home Rule campaign and the signing of the Ulster Covenant and the anniversary of the 1916 Rising to transform this decade of commemorations into a Decade of Reconciliation.
The Decade of Reconciliation would celebrate the diverse nature of our society, celebrate the peace we now have and commemorate the events of 100 years ago which defined the direction of Ireland up to the present generation. I believe that this is what the signatories of the 1916 Proclamation would have wanted.
We must continue to reunify the people of Ireland through reconciliation and respect. That is what will lead to an Ireland that is truly united. I am very confident in my Irishness. As President I will attend any relevant event to celebrate the different cultural views and political identities that exist in Ireland. There is a need for political maturity and tolerance of the differing views on this island throughout this sensitive period.
Outreach is not something that is confined to the North. There are many sections of Irish society who have felt excluded over many years. As President I want to reach out to them and make the Office of the President and the Aras institutions that they identify with and feel welcome in. This election is about leadership. I am willing to stand up and be counted and this juncture in our nation’s history. I will bring passion, patriotism and pride to the Presidency. I want the Irish people to stand with me.
Speaking at the launch of his presidential campaign in Dublin tonight in the Pillar Room of the Rotunda (1st October 2011) Martin McGuinness has called for a "decade of reconciliation". The full text of the speech follows.
It is a pleasure for me to be here tonight amongst so many friends and well wishers. It is a great honour to stand before the Irish people seeking their support to lead this great nation.
I believe in Ireland. I believe in the Irish people.
Traveling around the country in recent years I have become more and more outraged at the greed and corruption which has given rise to the greatest economic crisis we have ever faced. It is a scandal that ordinary people up and down this island are paying for this every day while at the same time trying to keep a roof over their heads and food on their tables.
Who would have thought 150 years after the great land battles in Ireland after Davitt and the Land League that the prospect of eviction is looming again for Irish families.
Who would have thought 100 years on from the Dublin lock out when Connolly and Larkin stood with the people, that workers like those in Talk Talk in Waterford are once again being thrown on the dole queue without so much as a thank you in the Ireland of 2011.
The greed and selfishness that dominated so much of political and business life in Ireland in the Celtic Tiger years is responsible for the financial mess we find ourselves in today.
Those responsible for this state of affairs are not patriots. Patriotism is about country and people. It is not about self aggrandizement.
But greed and selfishness is not the Irish way — local identity, community and sense of place is what defines us as Irish people, knowing and helping your neighbour, being tolerant to those who are different.
As President I will be at the forefront of an Ireland reclaiming its true sense of identity. I want to give the Irish people back their confidence. We have seen the greed of powerful and wealthy groups dent the Irish spirit. We need to see genuine values replace a culture of individualism.
As President I want to see every citizen regain a sense of pride in their Irish identity. I want to highlight the importance of community and inclusion which are the cornerstones of Irish life. Ireland can and should be a place of positivity where creativity and innovation are nurtured.
Too many cynics stand in the way of our country reaching its true potential. I want to see Ireland reclaim the greatness of the tens of millions of Irish people across the world who are the leaders and innovators in the countries in which they now reside. I will be a President for all the Irish people including the Disapora. As a father and grandfather, I refuse to be part of the first generation of Irish people to hand this society on to the next in a worse economic state than it was given to us.
As President I will work tirelessly to fix what has been broken and to inspire everyone who is Irish or who has links to Ireland across the world to work together to make our country great again. If the Irish people vote for me as their President they know what they will get. Throughout 40 years and more of political activism, on the streets of Derry, in Downing Street, in the White House, in the Assembly and on Good Friday I have sought to bring a set of basic principles to my work – commitment – leadership – patriotism – endeavour – selflessness and a deep commitment to Ireland and her people.
As President I will defend and promote Ireland. I will uphold the constitution. I will stand up for sovereignty and freedom. Titles have never been important to me. Political office has never been about perks. The only thing about seeking or reaching high office which motivates me is how that office can be used to make a positive contribution to people’s lives.
That is why I have already said I will only take home the average wage and return the rest to the Irish people. It is high time those at the top shared the pain and showed a bit of empathy with the rest of us.
I reject the notion put forward by some that the President of Ireland is somehow a meaningless or powerless role. This does a grave disservice to the Presidents who have gone before – particularly I have to say both Mary Robinson and Mary McAleese – whose work as President has inspired and motivated so many Irish people both here and abroad. People have asked me in the course of recent weeks why I want to be President — that surely it would have been easier for me to simply continue as Deputy First Minister in the North. And there may well be some truth in that.. But this isn’t about me – I am standing because ordinary people the length and breath of this island have inspired me to run and in turn I want to inspire them as their President.
I want to be a President that stands for working families; for those struggling to pay mortgages; for parents fighting for better support for their children; for those with disabilities; for those lying on hospital trolleys; for elderly people fearful in their own homes at night or making a decision this winter on whether to heat their home; for those talented young Irish people being forced to emigrate to far flung corners of the world.
What Ireland needs now is investment and jobs. As Deputy First Minister, I have, along with Ministerial colleagues brought thousands of new jobs to the north – I want to use my international reputation – my influence and skills to go to the boardrooms of major US corporations and elsewhere and help bring new jobs to these shores.I want to act as an ambassador for all those indigenous firms who have, despite the massive challenges, provided employment and generated wealth.
The period during the next Presidency will see the centenary of many defining moments in our history. It would be my intention as President to use the next ten years from 2012 and the centenary of the formation of the UVF, the Home Rule campaign and the signing of the Ulster Covenant and the anniversary of the 1916 Rising to transform this decade of commemorations into a Decade of Reconciliation.
The Decade of Reconciliation would celebrate the diverse nature of our society, celebrate the peace we now have and commemorate the events of 100 years ago which defined the direction of Ireland up to the present generation. I believe that this is what the signatories of the 1916 Proclamation would have wanted.
We must continue to reunify the people of Ireland through reconciliation and respect. That is what will lead to an Ireland that is truly united. I am very confident in my Irishness. As President I will attend any relevant event to celebrate the different cultural views and political identities that exist in Ireland. There is a need for political maturity and tolerance of the differing views on this island throughout this sensitive period.
Outreach is not something that is confined to the North. There are many sections of Irish society who have felt excluded over many years. As President I want to reach out to them and make the Office of the President and the Aras institutions that they identify with and feel welcome in. This election is about leadership. I am willing to stand up and be counted and this juncture in our nation’s history. I will bring passion, patriotism and pride to the Presidency. I want the Irish people to stand with me.