O’Conall Street

It is hard to believe that Iris Robinson MP, MLA, should find herself in the eye of the storm again but today, on the Nolan Show, she is reported as asserting that it was the ‘Government’s role to uphold God’s law’.

Iris is entitled to her beliefs and entitled to protection from persecution for what she believes in.  

The fact that she can make such statements on air is because we live in a liberal secular society. Secularism is the assertion that governmental practices or institutions should exist separately from religion or religious belief.

It asserts the right to be free from religious rule and teachings, and freedom from the government imposition of religion upon the people, within a state that is neutral on matters of belief, and gives no state privileges or subsidies to religions. It allows for the proper separation of Church and State.

This is not an anti religious principle. Quite the opposite. It asserts the freedom of religious belief and the right of churches to organise and promote their faith without interference or intimidation from the state or society.

The Government has an altogether different role and duty and that is to legislate for the freedom to follow all beliefs and none. I know where I stand on this issue. It will be interesting to see where the majority of people on this island stand. 

Great debate on the radio this morning about the now infamous front page of the current edition of the New Yorker. I am inclined to come down on the side of free speech although If I were in the Obama campaign I might feel this one could be far too easily exploited by opponents. You can appreciate that they will want to do everything possible to ensure the most electable democrat in a decade gets his cigar in November.

Kathleen Parker has a good piece on RealClearPolitics which is worth a read.  She argues that satire must be protected for free speech to be strengthened:

“The intent of the illustration should be clear to anyone attuned to current events. Cartoonist Barry Blitt was poking fun at all the rumors and fearsome phobias circulating about the Obamas among a certain contingent. We know who they are.

Viral e-mails claim, for instance, that Obama is a Muslim; that Obama was sworn into the Senate using a Koran instead of a Bible; that Obama isn’t a patriot because he refuses to wear a flag pin or put his hand over his heart during the national anthem; that Michelle Obama is militantly anti-American. And so on.

All these claims have been clarified and/or refuted for anyone curious enough to seek the truth. Even so, a certain percentage of people will continue to believe what they choose no matter what.

In any case, those about whom the outraged presumably are most concerned are: (1) unlikely to pick up a New Yorker; (2) unlikely to be swayed or disabused of their preconceptions. So what exactly are they worried about?

That yahoos just passing by a newsstand will see those images and have their paranoid suspicions confirmed?

Such is elitism at its most self-destructive. Art Spiegelman, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist and former New Yorker staffer, put it nicely to the San Francisco Chronicle: “The essence of what they’re saying is, ‘I get it, but I don’t trust the people in Kansas to get it.’”

Sanitizing satire either to buffer the sensitivities of those who consider themselves more highly evolved — or to withhold kindling from those deemed less sophisticated — is all of a piece.

Ignorance is the common denominator.

While one strain of ignorance likely springs from misinformation or a lack of educated knowledge, the other is more virulent by virtue of its opposite circumstances”.

They are debating the new Belfast Logo on the radio as I speak. Reaction is generally positive.

Russell Brand claims to have coined MILF in tribute to the very elegant Sadie Frost. Now US political blog, Wonkette, has taken the sexual fantasy a step further with GILF (Governors I Love to ….) and the top GILF is none other than Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. This darling of the conservative right and now officially America’s hottest governor, is being tipped as a potential running mate for John McCain in November. And just to reinforce her home town credentials she is a former beauty queen too.

This is, I know, a very sad excuse to put pictures of good looking politicians on O’Conall Street but in the Twelfth week anything to lighten the mood.

With the French Cabinet also brimming with attractive ministers of a centre right persuasion I am reminded of a question which has dogged me since adolescence.

How come conservative parties always have better looking ladies?

Are Fianna Fail Social Democrats? That’s the question which is being posed today by SDLP MLA, Patsy McGlone.

Just a week after Mark Durkan said the party was not for sale and Brian Cowen said there was little chance of FF organising North pf the border in the short or medium term, the Mid Ulster MLA has come up with an interesting proposition - that FF and the SDLP enter into a ‘contract for social democracy’ .

According to the Sunday Business Post, McGlone said the SDLP had to consider realigning on an all-Ireland basis, as the economy, culture and sport were all coming together on that basis.

”On a personal level, it is a widely-held view of many of us in the SDLP that the natural alliance is on social democratic grounds with Fianna Fáil,” he said. ”Quite clearly, Fianna Fáil is representative of the same body, socially and economically, as ourselves, because we have a common inheritance of constitutional republicanism.

”There is a commonality of spirit with the parties in the Republic, but to a greater extent with Fianna Fáil.”

McGlone is in favour of a ”contract for social democracy” with Fianna Fáil, ensuring economic growth and protection of the least well-off. The link would mean a strong nationalist alternative to Sinn Fein, capable of putting Sinn Fein and the Democratic Unionist Party under pressure.

”People are saying to me that it’s good there is an executive, but what legislation have we seen? What investment? Young mothers are asking what is happening with the education system,” said McGlone.

But he said that, while a linkup was needed, laying down a time-scale would be wrong. ”There is a progression of negotiation, of talks, of different emphases within different parties in any dialogue,” he said.

He is open as to whether the SDLP should merge completely with Fianna Fáil, or have a looser alliance. ”There may be something radical out there in terms of structure which has not been considered.”

This interesting intervention from the Mid Ulster MLA is not without difficulty. As a social democratic party the SDLP is a sister party of the Irish Labour Party and a full member of the Party of European Socialists. Is Patsy suggesting that Fianna Fail should also become part of this international fraternity? 

Mark Durkan’s remarks last week were clearly designed to close this debate and a response to the growing view within the Party that the SDLP and its principles are not for sale. If you ask very, very many members they will tell you that they want to be in a strong SDLP, not FF, FG, Lab or the PDs.

One thing for sure. The endless discussion about the SDLP’s future lying in the hands of others is a distraction from the real challenges facing the party, to reorganise, recruit new members and renew its policy platform.  All three of which are surely a prerequisite for successful future realignment.

Mr McGlone is right. The SDLP need to become more of an opposition in the North. That is something they can achieve themselves if they put their mind to it.

As for his offer of a contract with a social democratic FF, the ball is now in the soldiers of destiny’s court. Many will be very interested to hear their response, particularly given their commitment to private sector involvement in the southern health service.

 The Belfast Telegraph asked me to write a short article about the shifting sands of the Orange Order’s reputation for today’s paper . Mine is below. Nick Garbutt who runs ASITIS PR here in Belfast has a piece in too, as does William Logan of former Sovereign Grand Master of the Orange Order (i’ll post a link to both when they appear on the paper’s website).  

June and July used to be dominated by parading, civil unrest and ‘street politics’ which forced many to flee on early holidays, damaged business and did Northern Ireland’s reputation abroad no good what so ever.

This year the first parading story came with a relatively minor spat between the Orange Order and Larne Council over bunting, yes bunting!

Over the past year the Orange Order have began a gradual process creating a more positive public perception of the organisation. There was real progress in the early part of the year as the Order worked closely with the Northern Ireland Tourist Board and Tourism Ireland to develop the Twelfth as a tourist proposition and more recently with the launch of the all Ireland Williamite Trail. Both welcome initiatives which over time could help shift perceptions.

The jury may be out in many minds about Diamond Dan, but I am not going to belittle a serious attempt to engage young people in the positive aspects of orangeism.

Yes, progress at a strategic level but communications need to relate to experience before perceptions are changed. In other words you need to walk the walk as well as talking the talk.

Back to the Twelfth. 

There is undoubtedly still a perception gap between what the Order says and what people see on the ground. Take my own experience for example. I live off a major arterial route in South Belfast. I am not going to take the position that Orange feet have no right to be on that road but I do believe that with rights come responsibilities. Ours is a little cul-de-sac which means we are ‘locked in’ during the parade.

Last year we were at home for the day. The morning procession passed off without too much ado but on the return walk back into the city things were pretty bad. I counted 56 people (many in sashes) using our little street as a toilet. All in all the parade took two hours to pass. After about an hour I gave up on the toilet count and retreated to the back garden but had to confront reality when a group of young girls from a band came knocking on the door begging to use the loo. I would love to have spoken to the adult responsible for these young ladies. They are entitled to access to basic facilities from the parade organisers.

If the Orange Order is serious about shifting public perceptions then surely the time has arrived when it should provide portaloos, litter points and properly marshal its flagship parade. Most of my neighbours have the economic means to leave on the Twelfth. This is a major reason why this part of Belfast has to date been happy to live and let live. That is no excuse for bringing tens of thousands on to the streets and making inadequate arrangements for them.

Next year I might put the Twelfth to the experience test but on Saturday I will be heading off as I suspect will the vast majority of my neighbours and by the time we return the council will have tidied everything up again - at our expense.

The much written about crisis in the Executive hit the BBC today and all the fingers are pointing at Sinn Fein who appear to be on a political version of a go slow over the DUP’s refusal to agree to an Irish Language Bill and the devolution of policing and justice.

There is an Executive meeting scheduled for July 24.

Will they meet to discuss the future of the eleven plus, water charges, PPS 14, Social Housing or gambling to mention just a few. Or will they place an Irish Language Bill in a category above all other policy and one which must be addressed before anything else can happen?

I cant believe I am writing this.

Off to worry about house prices!

Wondering if anyone in the Executive is?

Advocacy has broken out in the Lakeland county ahead of the Ulster Final showdown with the other orangemen - Armagh. Two songs, two you tube videos and all from a county with a pretty small population. 

Last week the French Ambassador to the UK may have described his president as a political force of nature but this summer a man who has not even been elected to the highest office will cross the atlantic like a a great warm wind. Obama is coming to Europe.

The media tell us he intends to make a major foreign policy speech at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, an honour normally reserved for American presidents. He may be the presumptive nominee in the US but in Germany it appears he is already the presumptive president.

According to the International Herald Tribune:

Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit said the capital would be thrilled to welcome Obama, wherever he wanted to speak.“Of course the Brandenburg Gate is an important symbol and we would be delighted if one of the most promising presidential candidates, namely Barack Obama, would use Berlin as a platform, either before the Brandenburg Gate or elsewhere in the city,” Wowereit told N24 broadcaster.

Wowereit diplomatically added that Berlin would also welcome Republican candidate John McCain.

The prospect of an Obama presidency has excited many in Germany, where trans-Atlantic relations have cooled significantly during the tenure of President George W. Bush. A poll of 501 Germans conducted last Thursday for the Bild am Sonntag newspaper found that 72 percent would like to see Obama win the presidency, with just 11 percent preferring McCain. Bild am Sonntag did not give a margin of error.

In the past, only sitting U.S. presidents — not candidates — have had the honor of addressing a crowd in front of the Brandenburg Gate, which has symbolized both a divided and later a united Germany.

Ronald Reagan memorably stood on the former West German side of the Brandenburg Gate in 1987, exhorting Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev to “open this gate” and “tear down this wall” — referring to the Berlin Wall that for decades divided the city in two.

In 1994, Bill Clinton symbolically spoke from the other, formerly Eastern, side, declaring “Berlin is free!” In 2002, the former U.S. president addressed a crowd of 1 million at the formal unveiling of the newly refurbished monument.

Although John F. Kennedy did not speak at the Brandenburg Gate, his declaration in Berlin of solidarity with besieged West Berliners in 1963 — “Ich bin ein Berliner” — is deeply remembered here.

With his message of hope, his relative youth and his trim figure, Obama has often been compared to Kennedy, especially in the eyes of many Germans.

Also on the trip will be visits to London and France. It is a terrible pity he is not coming here. I am quite sure the streets of Dublin and Belfast would fill to welcome a man who has put hope back into politics.

The BBC’s Dublin Correspondent Shane Harrison has posted an reflective article on the BBC websitesaying Brain Cowen has now put on the backboiler any suggestion that Fianna Fail will organise north of the border in the short term. This comes only days after SDLP Leader Mark Durkan said his party was not for sale, a move seen by many as distancing the the northern party from an early realignment with a southern one.

According to the BBC:

Taoiseach Brian Cowen has said there is no imminent possibility of his Fianna Fáil party organising in Northern Ireland.

His remarks are seen by many as putting the idea on the backburner, but the idea was never really on the front-burner.

Even before Mr Cowen took over from Bertie Ahern as Taoiseach and Fianna Fáil leader, there was speculation he was less keen than his predecessor on the idea of his party organising in Northern Ireland.

This assumed that Mr Ahern was the main man pushing for Fianna Fáil, which translates as the Soldiers of Destiny, marching north.

But I suspect it was never the case.

In a BBC interview shortly after he announced his intention to quit as Taoiseach but before he left office, he advised his party “to be careful” about not making any major decision on Northern Ireland without “reflecting a good bit” on standing for elections and considering its relationship with the SDLP.

He said that while he was “glad” Fianna Fáil was recruiting in Northern Ireland there was “no rush” on organising north of the border.

These comments were echoed by Mr Cowen on a recent visit to Belfast.

June and July used to be dominated by parading, civil unrest and ’street politics’ which forced many to flee on early holidays, damaged business and did this island’s reputation abroad no good what so ever.

This year the first parading headline came with a very minor spat between the Orange Order and Larne Council over bunting - yes bunting!.

Instead of Drumcree, Ormeau, Ardoyne and Dunloy today’s headlines are dominated by banks, builders, liquidity and the now properly listed in the Oxford Dictionary - credit crunch.

The papers make unpleasant reading. The Daily Telegraph reports that Bank of Ireland in GB has frozen commercial lending and is closing its doors to new business for three months. The same paper also carries an interesting story about  Royal Bank of Scotland (NatWest) paring off senior managers with experience of previous recessions with small business customers who are carrying significant debts. There is concern in business circles that many of the new generation of bankers are too young to have experience full blown recession and are having to learn quickly about trading in a very different context.

The Irish business correspondents are reporting on the need for the banks to introduce liquidity (release cash) into the residential property market. This has received the backing of Construction Industry Federation. 

Back to the Twelfth.  

Things are moving along a pace and in the right direction, but can I make a very personal point. I live off a major arterial route in South Belfast. I am not going to take the position that Orange feet have no right to be on that road but I do believe that with rights come responsibilities. Ours is a little cul-de-sac which means we are ‘locked in’ during the parade.

Last year we were at home for the day. The morning procession passed off without too much ado but on the return walk back into the city things were pretty bad. I counted 56 people (some girls) using our little street as a toilet and the litter was simply unacceptable. All in all the parade took two hours to pass. After about an hour I gave up on the toilet count and retreated to the back garden to get away from the bands but had to confront reality when a group of young girls from a band came knocking on the door begging to use the loo. I would love to have spoken to the adult responsible for these young ladies. They should have been given access to proper facilities by the people who were leading them.

Surely the time has arrived when the Orange Order should be required to provide portaloos, litter points and properly marshall their flagship parade. Most of our neighbours have the economic means to leave on the Twelfth. This is a major reason why this part of Belfast has to date been happy to live and let live. That is no excuse for bringing tens of thousands onto the streets and making no arrangements for them.

We will be heading off again this year as I suspect will the vast majority of our neighbours and by the time we return the council will have tidied everything up again - at our expense.