Not Pro-Obama

THE recent news that President Obama will “halt” deportations against non-offending undocumented immigrants is a joke and a clear attempt to attract Latino votes next year.

Can this president do anything right? Can’t he just fight for what he believes in, instead of all the half-hearted measures he’s been putting forth since taking office? 


He promised comprehensive immigration reform, and could have worked towards that end during his first two years in office but he did nothing. Now he wants us all to believe that he is pro-immigrant.

The only “pro” thing Obama is is himself and his re-election campaign.  If you stand for nothing you’ll fall for everything, and that’s exactly what’s happened to him since taking office.

Robert Doherty
Watervliet, New York

North Revision Is Wrong

HISTORICAL revisionism generally begins after the passage of many years from the events in question.

Letter writer John Gregg started his revising less than a month after the latest invasion of the Short Strand in East Belfast, as is evidenced by his letter “A Call for Violence” (July 13-19).  No one, I repeat no one, has come up with a version of the events such as those of Mr. Gregg.

Everyone and, once again, I mean everyone with any interest in the situation -- and that includes community workers, politicians of all stripes, the police, the media and residents -- all agree on what happened at approximately 9 p.m. on the night in question.

Hundreds of individuals clad in semi-military clothing, including balaclavas and surgical gloves, invaded the Short Strand in the Lower Newtownards Road, Lower Albertbridge and Lower Ravenhill Road areas.

In the ensuing mayhem which lasted into the following night, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) reported that shots were fired by both sides.

According to the PSNI, the violence was the work of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) and was provoked by UVF displeasure at Historical Enquiries Team (HET) activities and the closure of the Belvoir bar which was allegedly owned by the UVF.

Mr. Gregg seems to confirm that Loyalists are tired of seeing Nationalists getting government jobs while, as he puts it, “ . . . working class Prods get nothing.”

The best way to seek redress of these “grievances,” it seems, is to resort to brute force and attack a small, vastly outnumbered Nationalist community.

Don’t go to school, don’t become politically active to develop a political base like the current Lord Mayor of Belfast, 26-year-old Short Strand resident Niall O' Donnghaile has done.

No. Instead go on the attack and hope that the politicians will pay you off.

On 11th night, in Pitt Park across from St. Matthew’s Church, erect a large bonfire 40 or 50 feet high, and on the top of it place an Irish Tricolor.

Just beneath it, put a large photo poster of the lord mayor and next to that a larger poster inscribed “KAT” which variously means “Kill All Taigs” or “Kill Any Taig.” Then set the whole thing on fire.

At nearby Cluan Place, which was involved in serious disturbances in 2002, erect a bonfire and put a poster on it proclaiming “F*** the Short Strand and the Parades Commission.”

Don’t get involved in trying to revive the disintegrating Progressive Unionist Party so as to gain a political voice.  That is definitely less exciting than rioting and setting fire to piles of pallets and tires while drinking copious tins of beer.

St. Matthew’s, the Short Strand parish church, is no stranger to attacks, and the one a few weeks back is just one of many over the years.

The original St. Matthew’s was dedicated on Sunday, March 13, 1831.  By 1883, the number of parishioners had grown so large that the new current church was consecrated in June of that year.

The Irish News reported at the time that the building of the new church was partially made possible by generous contributions from Protestants.  The church is of gothic style and measures 133 feet by 70 feet and has a tower and spire of 170 feet in height, topped by a large cross.

It has been attacked ever since, with major battles being fought in the 1920-1922 pogroms during which time 32 parishioners died as a result of the violence.  The chapel grounds are famous as the site of the events of June 27, 1970 when the Battle of St. Matthew’s took place resulting in a total of at least 3 dead from both sides to the melee.

So the recent attacks are nothing more than a long, sad history of similar incursions on the Short Strand by its neighbors.  Not much has changed.

Sectarianism is alive and well, and Mr. Gregg’s attempts to rework what recently happened for readers of the Irish Voice just isn’t so.


Stephen M. McCabe
Carle Place, New York

Celtic Junk

IRELAND’S government bonds have been assigned junk status as a result of those moody debt experts, Moody’s.

This is a very unwelcome development for Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Enda Kenny and company, who have yet another impediment to get through with this announcement.

How will this affect the Irish economy?

Junk status means that the interest rate on a bond increases as the rating agencies -- and there are three, Moody’s, Standard and Poor’s, and Fitch -- present a detailed analysis that the risk of a default is higher.

Typically there are three letter ratings, A, B and C, with double combinations of these letters. An A rating conveys a very low risk and therefore a tiny probability of a default.  But a C (or junk status) conveys high risk and thus a higher rate of interest to attract investors into the bond.

Celtic junk will have a negative effect on the Irish economy because the government will have to offer higher interest rates to bondholders, and this will necessitate an increased pressure on interest rates in Ireland in general. Ordinary people will then have to pay higher rates on their mortgages, car loans and credit cards.

Such a scenario will act as a double whammy on top of the already struggling Irish economy, creating an atmosphere of bleakness across the land.

We as a nation will become a tourist driven economy with and a place where tax loopholes for corporate headquarters will attract investment in the coming years. As the tourists stream through the new terminal in Dublin Airport, an opposite flow of passengers will be departing the country through the same terminal.

Last December I saw the new terminal, and I commented to my father as we drove past that the only reason the terminal was built was to facilitate the massive increase in immigration numbers anticipated by the Irish government as the economic catastrophe continues.

In previous letters to this newspaper and in an opinion piece, I predicted interest rates increasing over the next few months and years, and the ratings development by Moody’s augers badly for the Irish economy.

Investors typically listen to and observe the ratings agencies, even if they’re way off (as they were when it came to subprime mortgages and complicated derivatives that bundled crap mortgages with good ones). Should we trust the analysis presented by such institutions?

Unfortunately for Ireland and its Celtic junk, Moody’s and their buddies wield much more economic power than Kenny et al.

Ultimately the taxpayer will be forced to repay these junk bonds as they mature with whopping interest rates attached.

Meanwhile immigration will continue to ramp up creating another brain drain, and terminal two will be buzzing with traffic flowing the wrong way!

A.P. O'Maille
New York, New York

Cormac Is Right

I LOVE when Cormac MacConnell comments on the state of American politics, despite the readers who wrote in protest in last week’s issue.

He has every right to analyze the influence of Sarah Palin on our political scene because, as Cormac says, what the U.S. does affects every country in the world.

And let’s face it, anyone who thinks that Sarah Palin has even an ounce of what it takes to lead our country after 2012 must have rocks in the head bigger than the ones that reside in Palin’s head.

This woman is a traveling trashy reality show. She is simple and under-educated but very dangerous because she seems to have a spell-binding influence over a large swathe of voters.

I predict she will never run. I have watched the GOP debates and she would be totally out of her league. She knows nothing about the economy, foreign policy or anything else.

Yes, it’s fun to watch and listen to all of her gaffes. But she won’t run for president. Even she knows that she’s way out of her league, but she’ll keep the charade running for as long as she can.

Why? Money of course. The more she’s out there the more she can make.

Even her daughter who just left her teen years is hawking an autobiography now. This girl is uneducated so she doesn’t have much to say, but like her mom she’s good at attracting headlines – when you have nothing else going for you bash the McCain family, which unfortunately brought the odious Palins out from under their Alaskan rocks into the national spotlight.

Cormac MacConnell clearly sees that Palin is a moron. And he’s far from the only one who thinks so.

Margaret Carey
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Bad PR Nomination

THE bodies representing public relations in Ireland should consider hiring one of the PR gurus they represent.

In the space of a few weeks, they have managed to spectacularly tarnish their own images and infuriate a large portion of the public.

The short-listing of an animal cruelty campaign for a PR Excellence Award saw the Public Relations Institute of Ireland and Public Relations Consultants Association disregarding overwhelming opposition to deplorable activities such as hunting and coursing.

The RISE campaign mysteriously made it on to their shortlist despite being criticized for spreading misinformation and showing disrespect towards public officials, both contrary to PR codes of conduct.

Condemned as malicious and despicable, the behavior of supporters included throwing eggs at a state car, jeering politicians, telling a minister to go to hell and sticking threatening leaflets on vehicles outside a church.

Claims made during the RISE campaign were variously described as nonsense, wrong and completely erroneous. The same could be said for the decision to shortlist it for an award it thankfully failed to win.

Philip Kiernan
Irish Council Against Blood Sports
Co. Westmeath, Ireland

Verbal Threat

THE greatest threat to mankind is not communism, socialism, sexism, Catholicism, Judaism, fanaticism or any of the myriad “isms” you can conjure up as you lie awake at night pondering the fate of the Earth, our last place of refuge in this universe.
To better understand the word “ism” look up ”schism” in the dictionary.

No, the greatest threat will forever be verbal diarrhea. It is the single most terrifying threat to the human race.

We are all aware of the power of the spoken word and how the way in which words are delivered can greatly influence the way that they are received. An old adage comes to mind.

When I was a first year apprentice carpenter my boss at the time, Pat Rogers, said to me, “Measure twice, cut once.”

It’s the same with words. Think twice before you speak. If you don’t, a terrible case of verbal diarrhea is guaranteed. When that happens, no amount of toilet paper will help you!

How many of you can remember the feelings of sheer disbelief/boredom/shock and horror as you sat in a bus, or a car, or a plane or a park bench, or in that holiest of holies, the bar, and listened to someone ramble on and on about something totally ridiculous? That’s right! All of you.

Another example of this comes from the leader of the free word President Obama.  He is asking the Israelis to give back land to the Palestinians.

What mankind is failing to grasp is the simple fact that we own nothing.

I think that that may be the worst case of verbal diarrhea ever witnessed by mankind since that other great orator once said “Read my lips”!

John A. Brennan
Garden City, New York

Sailing With O’Dowd

WHILE opening The Irish Times on the Internet on Monday morning, June 20 and fully expecting to see a photo of Rory (what a story) McIlroy, there on the front page was none other than Niall O'Dowd, Irish Voice publisher, and the news that he might well throw his hat into the ring for the Irish presidency.

My immediate thoughts were, why not?  As the world is all too aware at the moment, Ireland is going through the worst financial crisis in its modern day history, and here is a man with all the credentials, and know how, to help the country in its attempts to get back on an even keel.

About 90% of foreign investment in Ireland comes from the U.S., and without it I dread to think how much worse off Ireland would be.

O'Dowd would be the perfect choice for president in the present economic climate, as he is probably on first name terms with the majority of the top Irish American business leaders in the U.S.

The fact that he has lived more than half his life in New York is a huge plus rather than being a deterrent.  This man has done more for the peace process and Irish immigrants than all of the Irish politicians in the south (with the rare exception of Albert Reynolds) in the past 25 years or so, and he never once forgot where he came from.

It's just that he keeps a very low profile and, like Rory's dad, prefers to stay in the background. But he is in fact, one of the chief architects behind all things that have helped the Irish, both here and in Northern Ireland.

If he should decide to run, I think the Irish people would be smart to give him their vote. They have nothing to lose in that regard but everything to gain.

From its first president, Douglas Hyde, to the present one, Mary McAleese (who by the way has done an admirable job as indeed did her predecessor Mary Robinson in changing the role), the Irish president has been more or less a figurehead who entertained foreign dignitaries at Aras an Uachtarain and wielded little or no power, similar in fact to the British monarchy and Ireland's present government.

Ireland can no longer afford this, especially now, with the country on its knees and practically groveling to the Germans and French, with absolutely no one in the present coalition government seemingly having a clue what to do about it, other than blame the previous administration for its woes.
When it comes to the blame game Irish politicians are tops. What's needed now is someone who can help Ireland attract jobs by the thousands, not the paltry few we read about.

There is nobody in Ireland with the credibility, chutzpah or knowledge, that O'Dowd possesses on that front. I say, especially to the young Irish working class, "Give O'Dowd your vote, and there'll be no need for the boat."

Sean McPhillips
College Point, New York