I
heard the news with no surprise. Sinn Fein had
"unanimously" supported policing in
the North of this Island.
I
got sad, then I got sick, then I reasoned with
myself, "what else would they do?" Sell-outs
must be complete. The enemy, now the master, will
accept nothing less.
I
had decided to go to the place of their Ard Fheis
to express my opposition. My children asked me
not to. "They will hit you mammy," they
said, and I could give them no guarantee that
that might not happen.
So,
everything has been sold out on. Partition, Free-State,
Stormont, R. U. C. (Remember the fun we had when
they came in to wreck our homes and drag one or
other of the family off to Castlereagh for a few
days "interrogation"?")
Now,
will Gerry Kelly and his members of the PSNI be
doing the same because we regard them as Republican
traitors? Will they be kicking in my door because
I refuse to acknowledge Stormont as anything other
than a sectarian parliament, created in times
of confusion and massive threat, as a "sop"
to the unionists of that time? As a geographical,
economic and political unviable entity?
And
I am right.
I
marvel, and fear, the hold Gerry Adams has over
his people. He is cute, in the sense that he is
politically wise, but he is also ruthless in a
way that I know myself. Then it was for the Cause,
now it is Self-seeking. He has an agenda and no-one
will be allowed to get in the way of that agenda.
He is above no sculdugarity, as old friends, he
would have me dead in the morning if it was needed
in his plan. Let me remind Gerry, we go far back,
farther than he would like to remember, but I
do. I went to gaol for eight long years, and endured
torture in English Prisons, so to him it may have
been a "phase"; to me it was life or
death and great pain in between.
Never
underestimate the knowledge of your Volunteers,
we are not ordinary soldiers, we think and believe
and trust and carry our principles well. Gerry,
loyalty is not to you, you are a disgrace, loyalty
is to the Green Book. One day the Book may say,
"enough is enough, expose them".
I
am me, and I now declare that you have brought
the Republican Movement back to the days when
Nationalism was the thing and my grannies windows
were put in by Nationalists because she was a
Republican. I note you now refer to your support
as "Nationalist, then Republican..."
I see the two horses you are attempting to ride.
You
will change little at Stormont. Perhaps you will
go to Westminster to take your seat. You will
have young men under the command of the Imperial
Police Master, Mr. Orde. Who will invade my home,
will harass me, will do all that has gone before,
and why? Because I am an unrepentant Republican
and abhor all that Stormont stands for and ever
stood for. And you, my once friend, will condone
it all. We are few, we are unrepentant, we are
still at war. Cope with that and like de Valera
you too might be hanging some of us. Reconcile
yourself with that and you can reconcile yourself
with the devil.
You
let me down Gerry, and I liked you.
Yes,
Ireland, today. Not a terrific place to live in
even if you live in the nice parts like Malahide
like I do. That was just to get me in the mood
for a long tirade but didn't really. I might have
to get serious.
You
know that a lot of us were brought up on the notion
of "freeing" Ireland. Getting back the
six "stolen" Counties, etc.
Turns
out they weren't stolen at all but given by a
craven crew who fell for the bluff of Lloyd George.
He who blinks first is lost, I knew that at a
very early age and did down the British Government
with my brinkmanship. Other factors but my oath
was true.
People
in this part of the island could not care less.
Sore but true. My son told me off today for disputing
the TREATY with my lecturer. I like them to have
their own thoughts but that was a hard one for
me.
So,
what contribution am I making today? I'm old,
trying to keep up with 120 nineteen year olds
(my son is 18!). We have a campaign going about
flying the flag at Trinity College. (I have suggested
that it not be flown beside the Catholic they
are entitled to hang in the quad once a year,
cause I think I might be the Catholic!) I mean
I'm not even a proper Catholic and I don't like
hanging.
The
truth is that despite any attempt at fun I feel
far away from humour at this time. It is, once
again the big transition. It is taking the stone
back to the bottom of the mountain and beginning
to push it back up. I have pushed, and thought
I was there, not so. I am gathering my strength
again, what else can I do? I will push the stone
as far as I can and hope that the young people
coming behind will take over my burden, otherwise
I will never stop pushing.
It
will be ours, it is ours, let them admit it.
