Vol. XII — No. 142

The

Of

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Politics Does Not Make Saints Out Of Sinners,

But Sinners Out Of Saints

When the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) party in the six counties finally came to the conclusion to “dethrone” and her sidekick, , the damage had long been done.

Foster could throw a knuckle fist punch at her opponents as hard as anyone else. She was far from being a polished politician trained in diplomacy. Her response to most issues — NO COMPROMISE. Was Foster ever a saint? Not at all under the description of most political observers.

When her last day came one day before the partition centenary; there was no cake, no champagne, no grand speeches, no hugs and kisses. Abandoned by her party she quietly walked away into the foggy night. Her approach to unionism had paralleled that employed for decades by her predecessors.

If one looks to the ceiling of the house that unionism built you can see the paint is cracking and peeling, exposing the weathered old oak timbers used by the British Commonwealth in 1921. WWII brought an end to the Commonwealth and should have brought an end to the partition as well. The denial of equal freedoms to ‘secondary’ citizens, and all power and control of trade in the hands of the primary citizens chosen by a declining royalty no longer was acceptable.

Years ago Arlene Foster was asked if she could live in a . Her response was she would rather move to Canada. Just recently she was asked the same question, and preferred not to answer. But she did declare that in a United Ireland her UK Passport would not get the ‘respect’ it deserved. So it is a strong possibility that now she could up and move from to some other location. Would England accept Arlene Foster?

2017 On Top of the UK

It was June 2017, PM had suffered a devastating defeat with the Tory party. Along came Arlene Foster with her 10 MPs in parliament to sign a coalition agreement with PM May offering her support from the DUP. Desperate, Theresa May agreed to it and she agreed to pay the DUP and six counties £1B pounds ($1.3B US). The DUP took the money, the glory and in return gave Theresa May zero, nada, zilch in supporting votes.

In London, May became a laughing stock finding no support from Foster and her party. In fact, Foster became so giddy with power she started demanding how was to be written and agreed too.

Power went to the heads of Arlene Foster and Nigel Dodds. With their ‘no compromise’ approach to politics they were soon exposed as the weak link in the coalition.

Overplaying their DUP hand, on the sideline watching was . He watched as they made a mockery of the confidence and supply agreement and the destruction of Theresa May.

When Boris came to power he showed the DUP the same level of respect they had earlier shown the Tories. The DUP received little support from him. The glory days were now over for Foster.

©MMXXI Ireland Ascending.com

Jane Paddy Adams Cunningham Picture by Tom Honan/PA Wire

3,000 Antrim Gaels sign Open Letter calling on Irish government To start planning for 'Agreed Shared Ireland' by Suzanne McGonagle and Brendan Crossan

08 May, 2021 | The Irish News

A group of Antrim Gaels have written an open letter to Taoiseach Micheál Martin calling on the Irish government to "take the lead" in plans for an "agreed shared Ireland".

Former hurling All Star Terence McNaughton and ex-footballer and MND campaigner Anto Finnegan are among more than 3,000 players and supporters of Antrim GAA who have signed the letter.

Published in today's Irish News, it calls for the establishment of an All-Island Citizens Assembly "reflecting the views of citizens north and south to achieve maximum consensus on a way forward".

"It is the responsibility of the Irish government to ensure that the democratic rights of all citizens are respected and protected, regardless of where they live on the island," it states.

The campaign has been spearheaded by former Antrim senior footballer Paddy Cunningham and All-Ireland winner and former camogie (female hurlers) All Star Jane Adams.

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In an interview, Ms. Adams said the Irish government "needs to take a lead role in this, it is their responsibility to begin the planning for a border poll and constitutional change".

The initiative has been backed by many of the county's footballers, hurlers, camogs and ladies footballers, including Conor McCann and Áine Tubridy as well as solicitor Niall Murphy.

In the letter, the group states they are writing "as Gaels who are involved in Gaelic games in County Antrim".

"As Irish citizens, we believe that the future prosperity and well-being of all citizens on our

island will be best upheld living in equality together in an agreed shared Ireland.

"Conversations are taking place across society regarding what shape our island will take in the coming period. They are also happening at every level amongst the GAA community.

"We want the Irish government to take the lead in planning these discussions and planning for the future.

"We are asking the government to establish an All Island Citizens Assembly reflecting the views of citizens north and south to achieve maximum consensus on a way forward."

The group say "Gaels are uniquely well-placed at the very heart of local communities to contribute constructively to the conversation on the future of this island ".

"We want to encourage citizens from all traditions to be part of this discussion.

"It is the responsibility of the Irish government to ensure that the democratic rights of all citizens are respected and protected, regardless of where they live on the island.

"This is important at all times. But it is especially so now, in the wake of Brexit.

"We urge you to start this process, based on the vision of democratic change set out in the .

"The planning needs to start now. We are committed to playing our part."

Ms. Adams said the campaign "came out of conversations that we both had and once we started to talk to other Gaels, we realized those same conversations were already taking place through the communities of Antrim".

Mr. Cunningham said they hope the letter is "a starting point to encourage and develop meaningful debate amongst Gaels and to encourage the Irish government to plan for constitutional change".

An Antrim GAA spokesman said: "The Antrim County Board will read the letter, signed by Antrim Gaels, upon publication and discuss the development at our next meeting."

Original article published in the Irish News ©MMXXI Ireland Ascending.com