Posted by Jim on November 9, 2018
RALLY ‘ROUND ROBO
John Robilotti, Engine 243, has been part of the 18th Avenue family, protecting the Bath Beach/Bensonhurst community, for the past 14 years. Unfortunately, John was diagnosed with stage 3 testicular cancer in August. The members of John’s firehouse are hosting a fundraiser to show support for a brother in need. “The 18th Ave Crew” – ENG243, LAD168 and BN 42 – invite you to join tomorrow, Saturday, November 10, from 1 pm – 8 pm, rain or shine, as they Rally ‘Round Robo. Admission is $60 and includes beer, wine and soda, food, live entertainment, a free mug, free raffle ticket, bracelet and games. Children 14 and under are free. The fundraiser will be held at Hillside Swim Club, 151 Signs Road, Staten Island, 10314. Please contact Kevin McCole at 646-294-6357 or Mike Pecoraro at 917-279-4496 with any questions.
VETERANS DAY PARADE
Permission is granted for off-duty members to participate in the 2018 Veterans Day Parade on Sunday, November 11, 2018. Participating members of the Department should assemble on Broadway between 23rd and 24th Streets, Manhattan at 1000 hours. Dress uniform shall be worn. For more information, contact Adam Lessuck FDNY Office of Community Affairs, 347-263-1631 or adam.lessuck@fdny.nyc.gov.
HOLY NAME SOCIETY FATHER JULIAN DEEKEN MEMORIAL MASS
The FDNY Holy Name Society requests the honor of your presence at the Annual Father Julian Deeken Memorial Mass for Deceased Members on Sunday, November 11, 2018, at 9:30 am, at St. Francis of Assisi Church, 135 West 31st Street, Manhattan (between 6th and 7th Avenue, across the street from Engine 1 / Ladder 24). Light refreshments of coffee and cake will follow the mass.
TURKEY TROT
The 40th Annual Turkey Trot Run hosted by E-233/L-176 will be held on Tuesday, November 20, 2018, at 1130 hours in Broad Channel, NY. Assembly point is next to the American Legion, 209 Cross Bay Blvd. Pre-registration is $20, race day registration is $25. Make checks payable to: Ladder 176 Engine 233 Turkey Trot, 25 Rockaway Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11233. Proceeds benefit various FDNY charities. For sponsorships, donations or additional information, call 718-965-8233.
FDNY FOUNDATION NIGHT
Join the FDNY Foundation with friends and family at Madison Square Garden to see the New York Rangers take on the New York Islanders on Wednesday, November 21, at 7:00 pm. Discounted tickets are available to all FDNY members if you purchase tickets online via the link https://fevo.me/2P2aeOQ. A percentage of ticket sales purchased through the link will benefit the FDNY Foundation. For more information, please contact the FDNY Foundation at 718-999-0383 or email wippers@fdny.nyc.gov or gregory.insana@fdnyfoundation.org
Posted by Jim on November 7, 2018
At a time when republicanism seems to become detached from its historical and ideological moorings, it is perhaps timely to hark back to what used to constitute radical republicanism. Particularly when people like Jarlath Kearney, brother of leading Sinn Féin ideologue and Chairpersonl Secretary Declan, is claiming that Ireland being unified “need not mean any change in constitutional or sovereignty realities.” (Irish News, October 31, 2018.) Christ on a bike. Republicans died and killed others in pursuit of exactly that objective.
The recent Presidential election in the south again proved that Sinn Féin has long since jettisoned any pretence at being radical in a social and economic sense. “Social” has come to mean identity politics and issues such as abortion rather than anything to do with how society and its productive base are run in the interests of its people.
Socialism even as a soundbite no longer features in the new Sinn Féin lexicon, and seems to mean all sorts of strange things for those who do use it. I was once witness to the bizarre sight of a chap clad in a Che tee shirt telling a meeting of Sinn Féin staffers that lowering the corporation tax rate in the north was part of the “equality agenda.” When I asked why then would the Sinn Féin ministers in the Stormont Executive not argue for it to be increased to the same rate as in the south I was greeted by a few glares, some titters from other malcontents but mostly, incomprehension.
While the abandonment of socialist slogans is understandable given the collapse of state socialism as an economic system, the shinners have thrown out the baby of radical republicanism with the bath water of ill digested Marxism for Dummies. As did their predecessors in the social democratic wing of the Officials.
A good example of that is the manner in which the social and economic programme of the movement was replaced in the 1960s by a mish mash of Stalinism and constitutionalism that split the movement in 1969 and has led through various winding paths to the creation of yet another partitionist vaguely left of centre liberal party. Just in case we might run out of them.
The economic and social programme of the movement in the 1960s eventually saw the light of day as Éire Nua. It remained the centrepiece of the political programme of the “foundational Provos” until set aside by Gerry Adams and his allies as being too conciliatory to unionism. That was a reference to the proposal for a federal Republic that would have included the nine counties of Ulster as one of four regional administrations based on decentralised local and community councils.
Ironically those who dismissed it as repartition have now placed all their eggs in the basket of Catholics outbreeding Protestants and thus allegedly laying the basis for a successful future border poll. Maybe in 2050 according to one Dublin councillor. In the meantime they are content to recognise unreconstructed partition and take part in Stormont which the IRA brought down in 1972. Even under the sectarian rubric of there being more Taigs than Prods a nine county Ulster would theoretically have had a pro unity majority years ago. Those opposed to Éire Nua also claimed that its social and economic programme was reactionary, and even “petit-bourgeois” for those who had imbibed the Readers Digest summary of Marxism. A dialectic which has led them to cunningly support Tory cuts in the north and having a corporation friendly tax policy.
The origins of Éire Nua and its having been set aside by our aspirant Gramscis, on not one but two occasions, are worth exploring. It provides not only a plausible path to resolving Partition, but its radical proposals for economic democracy and co-operativism and decentralised administration still offer an alternative to the totalising tendencies of statist socialism and the power of global corporations. And at the risk of being “Hiberno-centric” the ideas which Éire Nua contains also have relevance to the world beyond Irish shores.
The direct antecedent of Éire Nua was the republican programme drafted by IRA internees including Seamus Ó Mongáin in the Curragh during World War II. Its authors referenced it to what was claimed to have been the basis for pre Conquest Gaelic society, embodied in the concept of Comhar na gComharsán, the co-operation of neighbours. That was redefined in contemporary terms as a rejection of both capitalism and statism and the division of land and the establishment of co-operatives to “establish the wage earners of the towns and cities as owner-workers of the shops, factories and industries.” Political power would devolve upwards from 300 decentralised local councils (United Irishman, May 1948.)
An attempt was made to reinvigorate these ideas in the aftermath of the 1956-1962 IRA campaign. According to Seán Ó Bradaigh the draft which he and others worked on was to be discussed at the 1964 Ard Fheis but was set aside as Roy Johnson was given a major role in the formation of policy. Johnson had joined the IRA while still a member of the Irish Workers Party, the southern section of the Communist Party of Ireland. Another member who was a leading influence on Cathal Goulding was Anthony Coughlan. I deal with this in more detail in my books Rethinking the Republic (Manchester 2011) and The Communist Party of Ireland (Dublin 2012.) Ó Bradaigh and Tom Mitchell proposed that Coughlan be excluded from the Education Department in January 1966 because of his membership of the IWP/CP.
Johnson astutely referenced Comhar na gComharsán in his proposals as the real objective was not for the time being to change the social and economic programme of the movement, but to lay the basis for its absorption into the same organisation as the Communists, what was to become known as the National Liberation Front. Elements of the Labour Party were also seen as potential allies and members of the Wolfe Tone Society, which was a sort of ginger group for the planned alliance, campaigned for Michael O’Leary in his election as a Labour TD in 1965.
As the moves towards a merger with the Communists moved forward, a proposal in favour of this and to drop abstentionism at the 1968 IRA Convention had to be toned down in the face of opposition but Goulding and his allies circumvented the traditionalists through expulsions and referring measures they failed to get passed to committees on to which Goulding could appoint a majority. Far from the new “left” course propelling the movement forward, the number of cumainn with delegates at the 1968 Ard Fheis had fallen to 64 from 265 in 1966.
That still represented a prize worth attaining for the Communists whose membership in the 26 counties was less than 100. Seán Ó Bradaigh said that the reworking of the proposed social and economic programme set aside in 1965 became the alternative to the NLF strategy and formed the basis for Éire Nua published by the Provos in 1971 after the split.
The split was caused, as a statement from the first Provisional Executive of Sinn Féin said; by a combination of the recognition of partition and the infiltration by members of Communist organisations which had promoted totalitarian socialism and the disastrous strategy exposed by the violent state and loyalist reaction to the civil rights movement.
Interestingly, a 1982 Sinn Féin education department pamphlet on the split does not refer to the opposition to the Communists, and accepts that some of the “foundational Provos” were indeed the “apolitical militarists” depicted by their opponents. There has been an increasing tendency by Sinn Féin to rewrite history to the absurd extent that some leading members claim that the IRA campaign was fought to secure the demands of the civil rights campaign, reform within Northern Ireland. Everyone else thought it was for the establishment of a 32 county Republic.
Such is of course necessary in order to justify the de facto acceptance of Partition. Their former tirades against Éire Nua as “right wing” and a “sop to unionism” stand in stark contrast to their own embrace of the ultra centralist European Union, foreign capital and of course running the north on behalf of the Tories.
So perhaps it is time to revisit the ideas of radical republicanism as set out in Éire Nua, as I shall attempt to do in further contributions.
Posted by Jim on
By Irish Echo Staff. Monday, November 5, 2018
A new peace prize has been launched by the Washington, D.C.-based Irish National Caucus.
The prize, said the INC in a statement, is intended to honor and recognize individuals who have struggled for Irish justice over the past fifty years.
Said the statement: “It is not primarily focused on public figures, the rich or the famous, but rather on ‘the real people’ who spent many years in the background struggling to get America and Irish-Americans to stand
up for justice in Northern Ire- land/The North.”
The prize is being dubbed the “Irish American Peace Prize” and consists “of a beautiful plaque with an imprint of Irish National Caucus famous logo: the Dove of Peace super-imposed on the Shamrock.”
The citation declares: “Presented to (name): For dedication to the founding principle of the Irish National Caucus: “Ireland, too, has the right to be One Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
Caucus President and founder Fr. Sean McManus stated: “We believe this prize was needed to bring balance, truth and a sense of realism to the whole history of the past fifty years. And, I felt, as one of the persons who has been longest involved in the struggle (and still living!) that I had a duty to launch the Irish Ameri- can Peace Prize in order to honor real people who have been ignored: individuals who bore the heat of the day, who were not ‘sunshine patriots,’ and who were not afraid to take a stand when it was not fashionable or easy.
“The reality is that many Irish Americans were too scared or disinterested to take a stand, and some just emerged when it was easy and had no cost – as is always the way, and as the history of Ireland amply illustrates. So far, the common reaction of those to whom I’ve spoken is: ‘It’s about time such a prize was given.’”
Fr. McManus continued: “Anyone who did not struggle for justice, confronting British government oppression in Northern Ireland does not deserve this prize, because to me the only way to work for peace is to struggle against injustice.
“There is only one government in charge of Northern Ire-land, and that is the British government, and that is where the buck stops. To ignore that fundamental fact is to cover up government injustice and to be-
come complicit in that injustice. The Irish American Peace Prize will not cover up or be complicit.
“The Irish American Peace Prize places justice at the heart and center of peace because, as the maxim states, peace is, indeed, the fruit of justice. Or, as Pope John Paul II added, in his reflection on that maxim, ‘peace is the fruit of solidarity.’ The Irish American Peace Prize is all about justice and solidarity, about opposing state-sponsored racism, sectarianism, and inequality in Northern Ireland, and about unity and peace.”
He concluded: “We had considered such a peace prize for a long while. However, the idea crystallized and became more compelling through my work as chief judge of the World Peace Prize. In this work, we have presented the World Peace Prize to a number of labor leaders in the United States and we will be traveling across the country to present the same prize, so it seemed a very natural moment to institute the Irish American Peace Prize.
“I was, also, increasingly conscious if I waited much longer some of these great, dedicated and humble individuals would be no longer with us. The names of the winners of the Irish American Peace Prize will be announced at the upcoming World Peace Prize events in different cities across the United States beginning in November.”
Posted by Jim on
Wednesday, November 07, 2018
Conor Lynam shares his though on James McClean and the bloody poppy.
I thought that I had seen it all in relation to the annual Poppy hysteria that grips this part of the world in the lead up to Armistice Day on November 11th. Just like the Christmas season I’m used to seeing it arrive earlier and grow more ostentatious by the year. And just like the fattened Christmas turkey I look forward to it with as much enthusiasm as he does December 25th.
What I hadn’t counted on was the sight of the Cookie monster from Sesame St proudly adorning the bright red lapel on his soft blue coat whilst co-hosting a popular TV show.
Nor did I expect to see football mascots with their oversized heads and caricatured characteristics proudly displaying the controversial emblem.
Distinctly disrespectful or a brilliant display of deference for the fallen? I’ll let you decide that one.
What I’d like to try and do for this article is to make a contrast between the masses that do wear the small and divisive badge and the few that refuse to do so.
Particularly with reference to the growing hostility that they encounter for what should be an unopposed personal choice.
When you flick on your TV from the comfort of your home and you trawl through the masses of channels you instantly realise just how big the ritual has become.
A fine tradition it would appear on the surface, a commendable way to honour the poor men and women that fell protecting their freedom.
But dip a little deeper and question marks like the poppy itself begin to grow and multiply in the most unexpected of places.
Allow me to take you back to Derry, North of Ireland, the year is 1972 and the date is January 30th. Human rights protestors have the gall to gather en-masse to demand equal voting rights as their unionist superiors.
One man/woman – One vote, not a complicated or unreasonable demand surely?
They were also calling for an end to internment which was sweeping the city at the time.
Enter the Parachute regiment with live ammunition and orders to disperse the crowd by any means necessary. An order that came from the top and was filtered down to the rifled pawns below.
We all know what happened that day, I won’t bore you with details of mass murder or tell you tales of cover ups, spin and downright lies in the wake of the atrocity.
You again can draw your own conclusions from the horrors of that day and the fact that it took almost 40 years for any semblance of an apology from the British government.
Now fast forward to the year 2016, the centenary of the 1916 rebellion and a time when a young Irish man from Derry has refused to be complicit in the faux floral folly.
A move which in my opinion took a huge amount of guts and determination to see through considering where James McClean plies his trade.
His right not to wear the poppy has not only been rejected by the mob but it has been the focal point for unmerited, unwelcomed and unnecessary vitriol. Each November James McClean’s name is resurrected by the rule Britannia brigade that cannot accept his decision.
The absolute irony in all of this of course is that the men that they purport to remember by pinning that flower to their clothes were fighting against the fascist ideals that they have so wholeheartedly adopted.
Why should the British demand that an Irish man wear a poppy? Particularly one that was born into a city that has seen such atrocities as mentioned above.
I would not expect any British person plying their trade in Ireland to wear an Easter lily, so why do the bully boys vociferously demand the same from James and the scant few that refuse to bend the knee?
For me the resurgence of the far-right in England and the dissipation of the once omnipotent United Kingdom go hand in hand. The evolution of this poppy fascism has been intertwined with the UK’s demise.
It’s a case of scrambling for the perceived idiosyncrasies that define how to be British, thereby isolating the rest that don’t subscribe. It is for this reason alone that the referendum on “Brexit” was ratified.
Scotland have had their first referendum on their future in the “mighty” kingdom and although she did not gain its independence this time I am sure their time will inevitably come.
Britain rather than settling into a more integrated and open Europe has decided to hit the eject button and has quickly scrambled into the refuge of the impenetrable panic room.
James McClean is the epitome of someone that doesn’t quite conform to the new rules and is almost a pariah as a result.
His decision is his own and should be respected by all on that basis alone. It is courageous for such a young man to stand up like that in the face of such open and unchallenged hostility.
He has been on the receiving end of the feral packs detestation for the last number of years. Just like Aiden McGeady’s years of abuse in Scotland whilst playing for Celtic the outward pouring of hate has been swept silently under the carpet.
I suspect that next year will be similar with only a few minor changes. The “celebrations” will be longer, the abuse that James will get will be louder and the Cookie monster will most probably make another appearance.
Maybe big bird will stand beside him next year though, in the cause of gender equality of course.
Me personally, I’ve no problem with those that wear the poppy, just like I have no problem with those that wear an Easter lily.
My problem lies in the growing intolerance for those that refuse to conform to the annual and over the top charade that the poppy wearing weeks have sadly become.
To the prejudicial, the xenophobic and the intolerant I simply say:
More Blacks
More Dogs
More Irish.
➽Conor Lynam is a Dublin Republican
Posted by Jim on
PLAQUE DEDICATION
On Tuesday, November 13, 2018, at 1100 hours, a Plaque Dedication will be held honoring the memory of Lieutenant Edward J. McDonagh, E-37, who died on November 12, 2017. The dedication will take place in the quarters of E-37/L-40, 415 W.125 Street, New York, NY. All off-duty members and their families are invited to attend. Members are requested to attend in dress uniform.
HOLY NAME SOCIETY MEMORIAL MASS
The Brooklyn and Queens FDNY Holy Name Society Memorial Mass will be held Thursday, November 15, 2018, at 10:30 AM. The Memorial Mass will be held at Resurrection Church, 2331 Gerritsen Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11229. Come to remember and pray for the deceased members of the Holy Name Society and all our brothers and sisters of the FDNY who have died this past year.
PLAQUE DEDICATION
On Tuesday, November 20, 2018, at 1100 hours, a Plaque Dedication will be held honoring the memory of Lieutenant Raymond W. Alexander, E-70, who died on November 21, 2016. The dedication will take place in the quarters of E-70/L-53, 169 Schofield Street, Bronx, NY. All off-duty members and their families are invited to attend. Members are requested to attend in dress uniform.
FREE QIGONG AT FRIENDS OF FIREFIGHTERS
Friends of Firefighters invites any interested members to attend a free Qigong class tonight, Wednesday, November 7th, from 7 – 9 PM at 199 Van Brunt Street, Brooklyn, NY 11231. Qigong is a Chinese form of gentle movement and still meditation that uses breath and the mind to work with energy in the body. The class will be led by retired FDNY firefighter and certified Qigong instructor Jonathan Henderson, who will be sharing his inspirational story of healing from his 9/11-related illnesses, anger issues and use of prescription medications. There is no experience necessary to reap the benefits of Qigong. No special clothing or props are needed. All exercises can be practiced seated or standing. This event is FREE of charge and open to the public. Childcare will be available upstairs for those who need it. For more information, email Marlo at info@friendsoffirefighters.org or call 718-643-0980.