27 November 1997 Edition
Editor's desk
PUP man David Ervine has a well-deserved reputation for using flowery and often inappropriate language. He is, for example, the only person in the world who uses the word `cognisant' in everyday conversation. But last week, at a public meeting in London (see report), David made a startling admission using down-to-earth and, some would say, entirely appropriate language.
During a question and answer session, the audience was giving David a bit of a rough ride. So when he described those in the Six Counties still engaged in ``paramilitary activity'' as ``back-street boys, clayheads and arseholes'' he was asked whether he was not himself one of these people. ``I am,'' he told the stunned audience, ``yes, I am an arsehole''.
A smiling casually dressed Branchman was photographed by Martin Ferris outside the graveyard in Ballyheigue, Co Kerry. He was monitoring the Jack Lawlor commemoration held earlier this month.
And why was he smiling? Wouldn't you be if you were getting paid taxpayers money at the overtime rate for standing about with your hands in your pockets?
Talking of the Branch. Sinn Féin Head Office has a semi-permanent Branch car parked opposite their front door, just outside the entrance to the Rotunda Maternity hospital. With money to be earned doing nothing, it doesn't seem to matter that it is always illegally parked.
Anyway, earlier this week the car was missing and a visiting father had parked where the Branch car normally sits. No matter that the car had flowers and all sorts of baby accessories, these are days of zero tolerance so the couple and their new-born baby came out to find that the Gardaí had slapped a parking ticket on their windscreen.
Nowhere in the programme for all those prestigious events organised for the Waterfront Hall did the name Saoirse appear, until last Tuesday when four intrepid demonstrators landed on the roof and waved their Saoirse banners and tricolours to their hearts' content.
Disgruntled peelers looked askance. Bemused Waterfront employees hadn't even heard of Saoirse, at least not until the bosses' secretary unwittingly directed the four protesters, representing West Belfast, Coalisland and Portadown Saoirse groups, to the Dome.
And on the blustery day that was in it the peelers thought better than to mount an Entebbe type raid; they just stood on a lower roof looking glum. They also had to endure a series of Jimmy Cagney impersonations as the protestors shouted, ``look at me Ma, I'm on top of the world''. And when invited to, ``come and get us, copper'', the RUC just had to grin and bear it.
Here are photographs of our four angels with dirty faces scaling the Waterfront Dome and hanging out their brightest colours in the white heat of revolutionary politics.
During a question and answer session, the audience was giving David a bit of a rough ride. So when he described those in the Six Counties still engaged in ``paramilitary activity'' as ``back-street boys, clayheads and arseholes'' he was asked whether he was not himself one of these people. ``I am,'' he told the stunned audience, ``yes, I am an arsehole''.
A smiling casually dressed Branchman was photographed by Martin Ferris outside the graveyard in Ballyheigue, Co Kerry. He was monitoring the Jack Lawlor commemoration held earlier this month.
And why was he smiling? Wouldn't you be if you were getting paid taxpayers money at the overtime rate for standing about with your hands in your pockets?
Talking of the Branch. Sinn Féin Head Office has a semi-permanent Branch car parked opposite their front door, just outside the entrance to the Rotunda Maternity hospital. With money to be earned doing nothing, it doesn't seem to matter that it is always illegally parked.
Anyway, earlier this week the car was missing and a visiting father had parked where the Branch car normally sits. No matter that the car had flowers and all sorts of baby accessories, these are days of zero tolerance so the couple and their new-born baby came out to find that the Gardaí had slapped a parking ticket on their windscreen.
Nowhere in the programme for all those prestigious events organised for the Waterfront Hall did the name Saoirse appear, until last Tuesday when four intrepid demonstrators landed on the roof and waved their Saoirse banners and tricolours to their hearts' content.
Disgruntled peelers looked askance. Bemused Waterfront employees hadn't even heard of Saoirse, at least not until the bosses' secretary unwittingly directed the four protesters, representing West Belfast, Coalisland and Portadown Saoirse groups, to the Dome.
And on the blustery day that was in it the peelers thought better than to mount an Entebbe type raid; they just stood on a lower roof looking glum. They also had to endure a series of Jimmy Cagney impersonations as the protestors shouted, ``look at me Ma, I'm on top of the world''. And when invited to, ``come and get us, copper'', the RUC just had to grin and bear it.
Here are photographs of our four angels with dirty faces scaling the Waterfront Dome and hanging out their brightest colours in the white heat of revolutionary politics.