Latest from Spain

The first paragraph of John Spain’s column in the March 16-23 issue, “Groundhog Day or St. Pat’s Day,” was a sum up of his view and dislike of anything Republican.

Spain stated he would rather be writing about something else than the IRA or Sinn Fein. Yes, John, as the wee lad would rather be off to piano lessons than to stop in that candy store! 

His second paragraph had the IRA as the Mafia. It does not take him long to come out swinging. There was a lovely picture of Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness on the page, and there is Spain himself in the top corner looking more like a capo from The Godfather than the two of them!

I am amused at boundless blame he can always place on Sinn Fein or the IRA. So I would like to take the liberty of mimicking a John Spain column. Here goes:

News Flash! I was about to write on the pineapple production in Ireland, but the following over took my thoughts.

After my full investigation into the earthquake/tsunami, we can now state, without doubt, it was the work of the IRA. Because of the weather conditions in Ireland and the knowledge from years of these conditions, it has become fact that no one else in the world could have pulled this off.

There has been outrage from the Chinese people in West Belfast because in the past it is known that Gerry Adams has been buying Chinese food there. They now believe he was doing this at the same time he knew of the plans of the earthquake/tsunami.

My breakthrough came when I broke the code of the IRA. So you don’t think I am just picking on the Ra, let me go over this with you.

Okay, take the first part of the word earthquake, earth, change the position of the letters and there it is, THE RA. Now if that is not enough to convince you!

Further investigation came up with more evidence. Take the word tsunami. Did you ever wonder how that letter t got in the word itself? It was put there to fill the code message.

Take tsunami and rearrange the letters and you have I AM NUTS. Now we put these together and we have THE RA I AM NUTS. Ha ha!

Don’t miss my Easter column. I believe we can hang the Crucifixion (excuse the pun) on the IRA also. After all, there are three exposed ends on the cross, and how many letters in IRA! 

Bill Ashe. Corona, California

Same Old Story

SO it is the same old story over again. Keep on framing the Nationalist population. 

It is a very ancient ploy to keep the unsullied Aryan, Unionist one-party state in its fascist purity. And Ian Paisley is the resident Idi Amin.

The British forces are giving their lives to fighting fascism in every place but Ireland, where they support it by violence, lies and discrimination.

It occurs to me, as it should to any rational mind, that as the Nationalist areas are permanently saturated by the security forces, the Unionist paramilitaries, the PSNI, the intelligence services and others of that ilk, they could not possibly go about robbing banks with such facility.

Not unless they were helped by the security forces. Think of it. A Catholic in the ghetto cannot put salt in his porridge without the PSNI knowing about it. How could he go out and commit a major robbery without everyone knowing about it?

What is distressing about this dirty tricks project is that the Irish government is joining with it and supporting it in every way.

M. McGuinn. Donegal, Ireland

Let Irish Live in Peace

OVER the last few weeks it has been frustrating to see the family of Robert McCartney being used by politicians all over the world for their own selfish agenda. 

Members of the IRA murdered Robert in Belfast. Unionists, British, Irish and U.S. politicians are using this opportunity to criticize Sinn Fein and the IRA. The IRA did not sanction this horrific act and expelled the members responsible. 

Are these same politicians going to call for a disbandment of the New York Police Department because two members of the force are implicated in eight murders? Absolutely not, because blaming the whole force for two rogue cops is absurd. 

Are these same politicians going to call for the removal of George W. Bush because his government’s lies about Iraq resulted in the death of tens of thousands of people, or because U.S. soldiers abused prisoners in Iraq? I doubt it.

I am from the Short Strand and my sympathy is with the McCartney family. All the people who are supposed to be supporting them have absolutely no record of standing up for Nationalist human rights in Ireland. 

The McCartney family is being used for selfish political means. As soon as another agenda comes up to better serve these politicians the family will be dropped on their heads and left to lick their wounds.

If the British had not reneged on the Patten proposals on policing we would not have the problem that exists now. The people of the Short Strand do not need to be intimidated into not talking to police. 

This is the same force that murdered and maimed us for decades. It is a Protestant force for a Protestant people. 

All the usual politicians who kick and scream every time an IRA man breathes should be happy the IRA are still around. While the IRA exists there is a limit to Sinn Fein’s political potential. 

These same politicians will be kicking themselves if the IRA disband and Sinn Fein are in government north, south and eventually in a united Ireland. 

One last thing I would like to point out is that all the usual suspects who have called the IRA terrorists and murderers have said they are shocked that the IRA offered to shoot the killers. They are full of it. 

If they believe the IRA are murderers why would they be shocked that they would shoot someone? The bottom line here is that 800 years of British terror in Ireland has brought nothing but sadness and pain. 

It is time to go back to where they belong and leave the Irish to live in peace. Their murderous and manipulative ways have proven they don’t work. Time to go, Slan abhaile!

Eddie Gilmartin. Astoria, New York

Support Adams, McGuinness

I WAS relieved to read the Niall O’Dowd “Periscope” column in the March 23-29 issue in which he brings us back to some semblance of reality with respect to the current McCartney/IRA/Sinn Fein debacle.

While the McCartney family has suffered a grievous loss and the killers of their brother must be brought to justice, we (Irish, Irish Americans, the rest of the world) need to stop denouncing Gerry Adams and the Sinn Fein leadership as if they had committed or condoned the atrocity.

Adams is the best hope for the peace process in Northern Ireland, and we should be doing everything we can to support him in this current crisis. There will be no peace or justice for the McCartneys or anybody else if the Good Friday Agreement goes down the tubes.

I hope it has not been forgotten that justice has been denied so far to others besides the McCartneys — Pat Finucane’s family, for instance — and it is not the IRA that has denied or is denying it.

While the time has come for the IRA to give over to the political process, let’s try to remember that the IRA was once the best and only real hope for Irish independence from Britain, and that they have served their country well in that long struggle.

Yes, it appears that they now need to disband, and Adams has indicated that that is his goal. 

However, it will take skillful leadership to bring it about, and Adams and McGuinness, who have done such admirable work in the past troubled years in bringing the IRA into the new era and obtaining the 10-year ceasefire, are the ones who can do it.

These men have endured a great deal over the years in the cause of a united Ireland, and they have demonstrated a capacity to grow from rebel leaders to statesmen. Let us keep the real goal in sight and give them a chance to complete the process.

Mary F. McBride. Taos, New Mexico