Thursday, June 15, 2006
Northern Ireland
The more things change, the more things...well they don't change:
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An Ardoyne Protestant says of his neighbours across the peaceline: “I would love to burn those bastards out. The soap dodgers (derogatory name for Catholics) breed like rabbits. All you ever hear from them is whinge, whinge, whinge. Why don’t they get jobs and live like decent people?” Another says: “If I knew my neighbour was shopping in Fenianville, I’d take a pounder (hammer) and knock his head of his shoulders.”
One Ardoyne Protestant who shops in west Belfast has to hide such ‘disloyalty’: “We shop in Curley’s. It’s so cheap and who is going to know we are Prods? But we take Tesco bags with us and put the shopping in them before we go home. If I walked up that path with Curley’s bags I’d get my windies (put) in.”
An Ardoyne Catholic says: “One of my neighbours bought a suite of furniture from a place in the Shankill. I told him I wouldn’t be in his house as long as that furniture was there. He was giving money to people who (had) attacked us.”
Shirlow found much of his research depressing: “You’d see a playground on one side of the fence, and it was out of bounds for the kids on the other side of the fence. Generation after generation is growing up like this.”
Friday, June 09, 2006
Murtha's Masterstroke
I have a feeling this was planned in the highest Dem circles:
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Rep. John Murtha, an outspoken opponent of the war in Iraq, unexpectedly announced on Friday he will run for the No. 2 leadership post in the U.S. House of Representatives if Democrats regain control of that chamber in elections this fall.Of course, the Dems have to take over the House for this to happen, which is no easy task, but the highly decorated Murtha as Majority Leader whould help shed theweak-in-National-Security- image the Dems have. I don't think Pelosi and Hoyer are all that close, so this would be a good way to get Hoyer nudged aside-how could he compete against the well liked Murtha? Even if it never happens, it shows that Murtha would have a big impact in a Dem House majority. Sort of like a Presidential candidate announcing early who his cabinent would be to entice general election voters. We'll see what happens.
"If we prevail as I hope and know we will and return to the majority this next Congress, I have decided to run for the open seat of the majority leader," Murtha, a Pennsylvanian, said in a letter sent to House Democrats.
"I would appreciate your consideration and vote and look forward to speaking to you personally about my decision," Murtha said in the letter.
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
Michigan GOP Strawpoll
Interesting results:
Favorites McCain and Allen are way pretty far back. I wouldn't be surprised if Tancredo makes an Independent bid to be President. He'd take a lot of right-wing votes, especially in border states, that might tilt things in the Dem direction.
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Candidate Votes Percent
Tom Tancredo 60 18.5%
Rudy Giuliani 45 13.8%
Mitt Romney 40 12.3%
Condi Rice 39 12.0%
Newt Gingrich 38 11.7%
John McCain 38 11.7%
George Allen 21 6.5%
Mike Pence 15 4.6%
Ron Paul 14 4.3%
Mike Huckabee 6 1.8%
Bill Frist 4 1.2%
Alan Keyes 2 0.6%
Candice Miller 2 0.6%
Sam Brownback 1 0.3%
Favorites McCain and Allen are way pretty far back. I wouldn't be surprised if Tancredo makes an Independent bid to be President. He'd take a lot of right-wing votes, especially in border states, that might tilt things in the Dem direction.
