Thursday, February 09, 2006
Unionist idiocy
Certain unionist politicians are losing it I'm afraid.The UK Unionist Party leader Bob McCartney (pictured left) has accused Irish President Mary McAleese of damaging relations between the North and the Republic.
Mr McCartney said the address on the Easter Rising at University College Cork was "a republican rant" and he denounced them in discussions with Irish Foreign Minster Dermot Ahern.
A possible sign that Mr McCartney is losing his marbles would be this quote on the President's remarks:
"They exposed the sectarian anti-Protestant, anti-unionist streak which lurks just beneath the surface in the Republic."
What the hell? Is this guy for real or what? Yeah we're real sectarian and anti-Protestant down here Bob. Even though we've let in 100,000 Poles to earn a living in Dublin we're still sectarian apparently!
McCartney's comments come on the back of comments from DUP leader Ian Paisley who said he did not like Mrs McAleese, that she was "dishonest" and that she was no friend of the North. He also claimed that she 'hated Ulster'.
It must have escaped the Doc's attention that Mrs McAleese is an Ulsterwoman! Not a friend of the North? She was BORN in the North!
The President had made a speech in which she defended the Easter Rising and certain unionists have taken offence at the President using terms like "imperial English gentlemen" and the "foreign class". Unionists like the angelic Ian Paisley who raised the issue with Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Dermot Ahern. According to the News Letter, Mr Ahern was 'irritable':
Mr Ahern said: "I said to him (Mr Paisley) that I, on behalf of the Irish Government and on behalf of the Irish people, categorically found his remarks unacceptable, unwarranted and untrue.
"I indicated that I found it very unhelpful. I indicated that the Irish Government, none of the Government members would do likewise with any head of state - not least the Queen of England."
Incidentally, the British distanced themselves from Paisley's view of the President with British Secretary of State Peter Hain stating: "The British Government holds President McAleese in very high regard. The Queen holds her in high regard. I personally am a great admirer of hers."
Still, Paisley retorted that he told Mr Ahern...
"in no uncertain language that when she made remarks about Northern Ireland and Ulster unionists (being like Nazis), that they were strangely silent.
"I said you're not refuting anything I said because you can't. What I said is the truth and you will just have to take it that those are the views that we are going to put forward."
I can't say I blame Mr Ahern for being "irritable". Is it just me or does anyone else find it surreal to hear Ian Paisley of all people taking issue with certain comments? After the things he has said in his career? Paisley's hypocrisy just makes me want to vomit.
Bob McCartney also raised the issue on Monday with Mr Ahern:
"I spoke to him and said 'do you approve of what she said?'
"He said he did." He continued: "Now this is the same man who was telling me we had to intervene to stop sectarianism in Northern Ireland.
"I told him he should take a look at his own country and the number of Protestants forced out of there.
"He said this was untrue. But it is a matter of historical fact.
"The burnings and killings of Protestants in west Cork, for example, has been well documented by nationalist as well as unionist historians.
"The number of Protestants in the Irish population has dropped from 12 per cent to two per cent. Yet he had the barefaced cheek to deny this text book fact."
Is this guy on crack or something? Why the hell is he bringing up events from eighty years ago?
Why is it OK for unionists like Bob McCartney to bring up events from eighty years ago, but when nationalists bring up discrimination from say forty years ago it's dismissed as 'MOPEry'?
Also, why is it OK for Paisley to keep banging on about the President's 'Nazi' analogy - which she apologised for - and yet no one brings up the things Paisley has said and which he has NEVER apologised for?
Doesn't it make you just want to tear your hair out?
What the hell is wrong with unionism? How are McCartney and Paisley elected representatives?
Surely unionism can do better than this? Surely unionism has more to offer than this?
# posted by United Irelander @ 1:17 AM 
© 2008 United Irelander.
