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Thursday, September 3, 2026

Paul Ryan, a resident of Louth, with a poem from his collection.

Posted by Jim on August 7, 2019

Dundalk Remembers

The streets of Dundalk

Kissed by the sun.

A gentle May breeze,

Summer’s begun.

An old man salutes,

A tricolour flies

Memories of yesterday

Moisten his eyes.

Thirty eight years

Since his comrades passed,

In that Long Kesh hellhole

Just south of Belfast.


Bobby, Francis and Raymond

Went first,

Republican blood

Quenching Thatcher’s thirst.

Patsy, Joe and Martin

Were next,

The empire’s muscle

Now firmly flexed.

Kevin and Kieran

Lost in their prime,

Followed by Thomas

And Michael Devine.


Decades now passed

In peace we live

An old man tries his best

To forgive.

But try as he may

He can’t comprehend

How Dublin betrayed

These ten young men

Official Communication from the UFA

Posted by Jim on August 6, 2019


Member Benefits ICON PARKINGIcon Parking would like to extend a 25% discount to FDNY Local 94 members for parking at any of their garages in New York. Icon has over 300 garages, making them the largest garage chain in New York. If interested, sign up at https://www.cognitoforms.com/IconParkingSystems1/Local94. Once you sign up, you will receive an email detailing how to upload the discount code to your phone. Just show the code to the garage attendant when checking out to receive your discount. Please email mesposito@iconparking.com if you have any questions. WELLS FARGO UNION PLUS MORTGAGE PROGRAM Wells Fargo Home Mortgage offers the Union Plus Mortgage Program to our members. If you are preparing to finance a home, Union Plus can offer benefits to eligible members. Wells Fargo has offered to host a breakfast in their cultural center on 42nd Street around the end of the summer to inform interested members about the mortgage program. It can also be coupled with their first time home buyer program, which allows as little as 3% down on a purchase. If you would be interested in attending the informational breakfast, please email afatone@ufanyc.org. Members can also visit unionplus.org/mortgageassistance or call 1- 800-472-2005 for details, guidelines and application forms. SPLISH SPLASH WATER PARK DISCOUNT TICKETS Tickets are now available for Splish Splash (www.splishsplashlongisland.com). Located at Exit 72 West, Long Island Expressway, Riverhead, NY, the waterpark features 20 water slides, 2 wave pools, a lazy river, a kiddie area and more! Through the UFA discounted tickets, general admission price is $37 for adults and children over 48” and $30 for children under 48″ and seniors. Children 3 and under are free. For further info, please contact reception at 212-683-4832. Tickets must be purchased at UFA offices. Any unused tickets that are purchased through the UFA can be refunded if returned by September 5th. NY SPORTS CLUB The UFA and New York Sports Club have a great membership offer for FDNY members and their spouse/partner. New enrollments receive a special $0 joining fee and the rest of the month FREE! A $49.99 (passport) or $59.99 (regional) Annual Fee applies. NY Sports Club offers month-to-month membership, you may cancel with 30 day notice. Group exercise classes are included. Each new member receives one complimentary new member fitness assessment. Existing retail members can convert by paying the annual fee at time of conversion. The offer is not available for in-club enrollment. If you are interested, contact Claudio Guzzo at Claudio.Guzzo@tsiclubs.com or 917-877-1429 for more information and enrollment. Work ID/badge/Union card is required as proof of eligibility. WORKING ADVANTAGE CORPORATE DISCOUNT PROGRAMWorking Advantage is pleased to offer entertainment and travel discounts for both regional and nationwide attractions and events to all UFA Members. You will have access to exclusive savings on movie tickets, theme parks, hotels, tours, Broadway and Vegas shows & more. These discounts are not available to the general public and are exclusive to the Working Advantage Corporate Discount Program. Be sure to visit often as new products and discounts are constantly being added! To get started, visit www.workingadvantage.com and click “Register.” You will be prompted to create an account with your email address & company code: 99042621. Once enrolled, you will have access to all the savings nationwide. Please see the website for further details and restrictions.

Daniel O’Connell , ‘The Liberator

Posted by Jim on

On August 6, 1775, Daniel O’Connell , ‘The Liberator,’ one of the most influential men in Irish history was born near Cahirciveen, County Kerry. Raised by his uncle, Daniel learned the Irish language and Irish lore in Kerry. O’Connell did part of his schooling in France during the revolution and later practiced law in Dublin. The violent excesses he witnessed in France, the slaughter of the ’98 Rising and finally his own killing a man in a duel in 1815 led him to renounce violence forever. Moving into politics, O’Connell founded the Catholic Association in 1823, creating one of the first massive political movements in Europe or the Americas. When he was elected to Parliament in 1828, a position still forbidden to a Catholic, fear of the reaction of his millions of followers led to the passage of the Catholic Emancipation Bill. O’Connell worked for Home Rule for Ireland for the rest of his days but never achieved it. The British banned his mass Repeal (of the Union) rallies in ’43 and jailed him for a time. The movement lost momentum at that point and the long years of hard work wore ‘The Liberator’ down. He died in Italy on May 15, 1847. Daniel O’Connell had failed in his greatest ambition, but he had reawakened the nationalist soul of Ireland.

SENATOR COTTON AND HIS LACKEYS

Posted by Jim on August 5, 2019

These are the Senators, along with Senator Cotton, who are selling out the Good Friday Agreement 0f 1998 and may cause the “Troubles” to flare up again. Please call your Senators and advise them to pull back their support for this “Snake Oil Salesman’s” letter to Boris.

The letter was also signed by Senators Barrasso (WY), Blackburn (TN), Boozman (AR), Braun (IN), Burr (NC), Capito (WV), Cassidy (LA), Collins (ME), Cornyn (TX), Cramer (ND), Crapo (ID), Cruz (TX), Daines (MT), Enzi (WY), Ernst (IA), Fischer (NE), Graham (SC), Grassley (IA), Hawley (MO), Hoeven (ND), Hyde-Smith (MS), Inhofe (OK), Isakson (GA), Johnson (WI), Kennedy (LA), Lankford (OK), Lee (UT), McSally (AZ), Murkowski (AK), Perdue (GA), Portman (OH), Risch (ID), Roberts (KS), Rounds (SD), Rubio (FL), Sasse (NE), Scott (FL), Scott (SC), Sullivan (AK), Thune (SD), Tillis (NC), Toomey (PA), Wicker (MS), and Young (IN).

SENATOR COTTON AND HIS APPALLING LETTER TO BORIS JOHNSON

Posted by Jim on

 In effect, an anti-Catholic and anti-Irish declaration signed by 44 other Senators


CAPITOL HILL. Sunday, August 4, 2019—— The British Embassy has been busy. Not since the MacBride Principles—a corporate code of conduct for American companies doing business in Northern Ireland— launched by the Irish National Caucus on November 5, 1984,  have we seen such on assault on the US Congress. Then, the British Embassy tried to block the MacBride Principles from making sure US dollars would not subsidize anti-Catholic discrimination in Northern Ireland. Now the British Embassy—because of Boris Johnson’s irresponsibility—is attempting to stop the campaign to make sure the United States will not subsidize the destruction of the Good Friday Agreement and the Irish Peace Process, which the United States and former British prime minister Tony Blair, God bless him, did so much to bring about.
Fr. Sean McManus—president/founder of the Capitol Hill-based Irish National Caucus—said:” I was hoping the bad old days were over and that we would never again see the British Embassy embark on what will be seen as an anti-Irish, anti-Catholic campaign in the Unites States. Now, sadly, the Embassy has been forced to recruit Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) to lead this deplorable charge. He has co-opted 44 other US Senators to sign his appalling and irresponsible letter to British  prime minster Boris Johnson, pledging to ‘support whatever course Britain takes’— even, apparently,  if that course destroys the Good Friday Agreement and Irish Peace Process, as many fear.” (Full text of letter and names of signers below, as posted on Senator Cotton’s website).
Fr. McManus continued:”Many responsible people in the EU, Ireland, north and south, and in the Unites States have expressedreal and deep concern about the dangers a ‘no-deal Brexit’ and the return of a ‘hard’ Border across the face of Ireland can do. ButSenator Cotton and the 44 blithely ignore all this—never even mentioning it. In effect, this appalling letter will be seen by many Irish-Americans as both anti-Catholic and anti-Irish—no matter the intention of the 45 signers, or that some have Irish names, or may, indeed, be Catholic.The letter demonstrates, in the context, either profound ignorance or indifference to the danger posed to both parts of Ireland, which overwhelmingly is opposed to Brexit, hard or soft. What were the other 44 Senators thinking!” I hope these 45 Senators will now clearly and unequivocally state their support of the Irish Peace Process and the Good Friday Agreement.”END.

Cotton, Colleagues Pen Letter Pledging to Back Britain After Brexit

August 3, 2019

Contact: Caroline Tabler or James Arnold (202) 224-2353

Washington, D.C. — Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) and 44 of his Senate colleagues have sent a letter to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledging unwavering support for the United Kingdom as it exits the European Union in the coming months. The letter calls for a new bilateral trade agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom. It also reiterates the importance of U.S.-UK cooperation within the NATO security alliance and the “Five Eyes” intelligence partnership. The full text of the letter is below and can be found here.
The letter was also signed by Senators Barrasso (WY), Blackburn (TN), Boozman (AR), Braun (IN), Burr (NC), Capito (WV), Cassidy (LA), Collins (ME), Cornyn (TX), Cramer (ND), Crapo (ID), Cruz (TX), Daines (MT), Enzi (WY), Ernst (IA), Fischer (NE), Graham (SC), Grassley (IA), Hawley (MO), Hoeven (ND), Hyde-Smith (MS), Inhofe (OK), Isakson (GA), Johnson (WI), Kennedy (LA), Lankford (OK), Lee (UT), McSally (AZ), Murkowski (AK), Perdue (GA), Portman (OH), Risch (ID), Roberts (KS), Rounds (SD), Rubio (FL), Sasse (NE), Scott (FL), Scott (SC), Sullivan (AK), Thune (SD), Tillis (NC), Toomey (PA), Wicker (MS), and Young (IN).  The Rt. Hon. Boris Johnson MP

Prime Minister

10 Downing Street

London SW1A 2AA Dear Mr. Prime Minister,

We write to congratulate you on your election as prime minister. We also want to assure you and the British people of our continued, unwavering support for the special relationship between our two countries as Britain leaves the European Union.

In 2016, the British people voted to leave the European Union. While we don’t necessarily agree among ourselves about that decision, we recognize and respect your nation’s sovereign right to determine its future. It is for your government to decide the terms of a Brexit deal with the EU. In your victory speech last month, you pledged “to get Brexit done on October the 31st,” a date just around the corner. We wouldn’t presume to recommend the right policy, but we will support whatever course Britain takes. First, if Britain leaves the EU with no deal, we will work with our administration, your government, and our friends in the EU to minimize disruptions in critical matters such as international air travel, financial transactions, and the shipment of medicine, food, and other vital supplies. Second, irrespective of how Brexit occurs, we recommit to the NATO security alliance and the “Five Eyes” intelligence partnership. We also will advocate for a new bilateral trade agreement, as early as your Brexit terms would allow, that reflects the centuries of open commerce between our nations. Finally, we pledge our friendship in the future to the United Kingdom. Our soldiers have fought together from the beaches of Normandy to the mountains of Afghanistan. Together, we have toppled tyrants and liberated the oppressed. The shared story of our special relationship is a great one indeed, and we look forward to adding more chapters still. Congratulations again to you. Your great predecessor once averred that the British people had the heart of a lion, and he “had the luck to be called upon to give the roar” during their finest hour. Best wishes in the days ahead for every success in giving the roar for what we’re confident will be another very fine hour in the long history of your lion-hearted people.