Who’s a Terrorist?

We all know of the IRA. An infamous group that has over the past few decades been involved in multiple attacks on British and Northern Irish civilians and militants.

There has always been a “rocky” relationship between the Irish and the British, but before I go any further, I would like to point out that I have no opinion on the IRA.

Many see the IRA as a terrorist organization, and they have many good reasons to. They have killed many innocents, bombed many areas of England and Northern Ireland and robbed banks in Northern Ireland.

However, with today’s definition of a “terrorist,” anyone who the government decides to brand a terrorist is immediately one. What of the American patriots who rebelled against British rule in 1776? By our standards, are we not calling the men and women who died so America could be free terrorists?

It seems that whenever it is convenient for any nation, they will use that word over and over again to make someone feel as they are the bad guy.

The IRA leaders have, in some way, strayed from their original intention. In the 1970s, you couldn’t walk around anywhere in the North without having the fear of a bomb going off or a gun shot. The IRA was the cause of many deaths of innocents.

However, this does not excuse the British government, which killed 13 civilians on a peaceful protest in January, 30, 1972, otherwise known as Bloody Sunday. Also, the imprisonment of the famous hunger striker Bobby Sands, who died for the love of his country.

We are now told of famous generals such as George Washington or Robert E. Lee who fought for what they believed in. Why should we, as Irish Americans, be so soon to forget the famous Irishmen and women who fought for what they believed in- Michael Collins, Theobald Wolfe Tone and Eamon de Valera just to name a few.

Whereas these men’s idea of Ireland is now pushed into the background and feuds between the north and the south still remain unsettled, we still should remember that they paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

In any case, I guess what I’m trying to say is very simple. The IRA and the British government both have the blood of innocents on their hands. One fights for unity, and one fights to defend.

Wars are always inevitable. But when the slaughtering of innocents occur, you commit a war crime.

If the British government gave Northern Ireland to Ireland, perhaps the bloodshed would end. Perhaps it wouldn’t. In the end, it will never stop as long as Northern Ireland is property of the British.

Maybe people will learn to settle their differences and learn to get along. All Ireland, England, and I have ever wished for is peace, and as long as a small county remains in England’s hands, the “terrorist” will continue to fight for freedom.

Who is right and who is wrong? Well, I think it’s for you to decide.

Brendan Muckian-Bates
Valencia, Pennsylvania

Get Tough on Licenses

AS an Irish American candidate for New York City Council very concerned about the terrorism issue, my heart goes out to the people of London.

One way we can immediately improve New York security without losing any more of our freedom is to move up the implementation of the new federal standards for state driver’s licenses. We could wait as long as three years to implement this law if we choose to comply, but we should use some of our antiterrorism funds to comply within one year.

This is far more important than recent proposals to spy on the average citizen with cameras on our city streets.

Ed Price
New York, New York

Inquiring Idiots

I feel so silly. I have been concerned with such unimportant matters.

For instance, I have been greatly concerned with bringing peace with justice to Northern Ireland. Also, I wondered if Senator Edward Kennedy will ever get rid of that yellow streak down his back that prevented him from meeting Gerry Adams.

And after learning that Israel would not let a gay pride parade take place in Jerusalem, I questioned why the little mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, has not criticized Israel for such anti-gay bigotry. (Remember how he criticized Irish Americans for refusing to let gays march in the New York City St. Patrick’s Day parade?) I also wondered why Bloomberg doesn’t buy some lifts for his shoes.

I realize now these issues are very trivial. The June 22-28 issue of the Irish Voice, in the “Inquiring Photographer” column, enlightened me to the real burning issue of the day, something that should profoundly concern all of us. We should be holding public seminars and discussing this issue at dinner with our children.

That issue — what do you think about the Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes engagement? Yes, that is the burning issue of the day, according to the Voice.

Somebody at the Voice should be fired (and receive a good butt kicking) for making that the question of the week. Every reader of the Voice was insulted by such a ridiculously juvenile question.

Phil Doyle
Washington, D.C.

What About Ethiopia?

Understandably the response by the international community, the international media and decent rank and file people to the London bombing has been one of outright revulsion.

The hope of all is that the perpetrators of this heinous crime against humanity will be brought to justice and treated appropriately. Over 50 people have lost their lives tragically in this senseless act of brutality.

The same number were massacred three weeks ago on the street of Addis Ababa by the Ethiopian armed forces. Yet the president of Ethiopia claimed last week his soldiers were entitled to shoot the protesters dead.

Sadly, there has not been any condemnation of this act by the international community, no media exposure of the killings despite the fact that pictures are available. But decent rank and file people throughout the world are largely ignorant of this latest act of barbarity and genocide by the Ethiopian government.

This same Ethiopian government can expect to receive in excess of Œ30 million of Irish taxpayer money in the current year. It’s a situation that must be addressed.

John O’Shea, Chairman, GOAL
Dublin, Ireland

What a Hypocrite

I’VE been reading the quotes attributed to Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams about the London bombings last week, about how sorry he was and how he condemned the attacks.

He’s such a hypocrite. Why couldn’t he do that when his own IRA was doing the same thing all over England before the IRA ceasefire? He never said a word during all of that carnage — remember Canary Wharf, Gerry? — so his words are completely hollow now.

Adams and his ilk should take clear note of what happened last week in London. It is time for the IRA to get on with things and announce that they are going out of business.

The world is a much tougher place now than it was when the IRA were causing mayhem. There is no place for terrorism or those who support terrorists, and that’s exactly what the IRA are — professional terrorists.

It’s time for the IRA to call it a day, or else we can lump them in with al-Qaeda and all the other fanatical groups intent on destroying the world, and innocent civilians, in the process. And Irish Americans should completely shun Adams and Sinn Fein/IRA until this happens.

John T. Darby
Hartford, Connecticut