100,000 protesters in Dublin sound the death knell for the treasonous Irish government

by cm Sun Nov 28, 2010 02:42

I thought there was quite a few on the Irish Ferries march in -when was it- 2005? and then weren't there more than a hundred thousand people on the march against the pension levy last year?

Big marches. How quickly they fade from memory.

by TD - Galway Unites Against Cuts Sun Nov 28, 2010 02:48

Galway Unites Against Cuts video.

Caption: Video Id: hpHeLRhHpYY Type: Youtube Video
Galway Unites Against Cutbacks info stall (25-11-2010)

by Sandra - FEE (Free Education for Everyone) UCD Sun Nov 28, 2010 02:58

cm: The quicker you reboot your memory and get your facts right, the better for yourself and all of us.?

by Robot Sun Nov 28, 2010 03:20

Gobshites caused it.

Now the gobshites need to be removed from power without delay before they get the chance to do anymore corrupt secret deals with the bangsters who they are talking with in Dublin at the present time.

Related link: http://cedarlounge.wordpress.com/2010/11/27/irish-econo...bots/

by Didier Sun Nov 28, 2010 07:53

We were millions in the streets in France . Demonstrations are powerless confronted with the leading capitalist powers. Only a general strike can succeed.
French people have been betrayed by their politicians and unions. Hope you ‘ll learn the lesson
In solidarity
Didier (Brittany)

by Sceptic. - None Whatsoever Sun Nov 28, 2010 09:06

One wonders how Mrs Cowen & their children are coping , what with all the uncertainty re the financial crisis caused by her
husband (simply because he wanted to act the big fella) who allowed the banksters to losethe run of themselves by offering them loadsamoney, no questions asked .

One wonders how* Mr & Mrs Average & their children are coping , what with all the uncertainty re the financial crisis caused by
F.F.(simply because they wanted to improve *their lives) who allowed the banksters to lose the run of themselves by offering
them loadsamoney , no questions asked .

by TD - GUAC Sun Nov 28, 2010 09:52

Part 2: 100,000 protesters in Dublin sound the death knell for the treasonous Irish government

Caption: Video Id: cMdUPFjpQkI Type: Youtube Video
Part 2: 100,000 protesters in Dublin sound the death knell for the treasonous Irish government

by Stephen Cunningham Sun Nov 28, 2010 11:19

BBC and French TV are reporting in the last few minutes that a deal has been reached between the Irish Govt and the bailout bodies. We'll see what the interest rate is.

I estimated the crowd to be about 60,000, based on the space of people around town.
But yesterday's march was a waste of time. The union leaders and mainstream left politicians cries for it to be civilised / peaceful meant that it lacked any spine / teeth.

Like every other large peaceful march in the city centre in the last ten years, from the Iraq war F15 march, to the Irish Ferries dispute, to the pension levy, the Government can safely ignore it, and people will do nothing except sit back and take the sour medicine like obedient children.

Standing around outside the GPO listening to overpaid union fat cats bluster achieved nothing. Going to the Dail was even more pointless, when the people actually doing the deal were sitting in a hotel function room up the road hammering out the points of how to destroy society.

What happened to direct action in this city?
What does "taking the republic back" actually mean?
What is the point of knowing who the "1%" are and where they live if we dont confront them?

The opposition to the current situation will now transfer into votes for FG/Lab, who will saddle us all with the same shit.
Even if the United Left Alliance gets a share of the vote, what impact will they have?

Yesterday was a massive chance for the people to show their anger. Their real anger. But what does that mean? How angry were they, really? Angry enough to walk around a bit? Or angry enough to storm the place where discussions were taking place and disrupt the talks to stop the deal happening?

Revolutionary groups are always waiting... waiting... waiting... waiting for the time when the workers have a mass movement that will change society. Well guess what - IT ISNT GOING TO HAPPEN. The leaders of 1916 realised this was the case with the Irish people, and just said fuck it, lets go ahead and give it a shot ourselves anyway.
Do any revolutionary groups, of any stripe, have the same gusto, beyond words on placards, beyond talks in social centres, beyond calling for revolution on websites or twitter, to risk their own cosy lives to stand up for what they believe in - and possibly lose out?

Are people just too worried about getting a criminal record?
Are people not actually willing to step out of their comfort zone?

What will it take for the first person to throw that rock?
How poor does society have to get?
How much money paid out to the banks will it take before people risk their own safety?

This whole country is full of shit. Everyone just talks a different shade of it.

by Jonny - WSM (pers cap) Sun Nov 28, 2010 11:28

As Didier pointed out above, marching is not enough to put pressure on this Government (or any subsequent government). Yesterday was a show of force, an impressive one, but it has amounted to nothing more than that.

Another previous post-er pointed out that the author of this thread has forgotten about the 120,000 person strong ICTU march against the pension levy in February 2009. I think this is very significant because it highlights how ineffectual marches alone are at generating any type of lasting impact.

If we seriously want to pressure the Government and the business leaders into withdrawing the cuts to social services and erasing the debt of the public of Ireland, then we need to act outside the bounds of what ICTU is willing to do. We need to utilise our main weapon as working people, our ability to withdraw our labour and hit employers in their wallets.

by Stephen Cunningham Sun Nov 28, 2010 12:11

Waiting for a general strike to happen is the curse of revolutionary groups with the 'workers' at their core.

Symbolic direct action (ultimately doomed to fail) is the only type of action that ever sparked this entire country into total rebellion.

The choice, IMHO, is everything: never, or something: now.

The something might spark others to do the same... if not, it was never going to happen anyway.

by Jonny - WSM (pers cap) Sun Nov 28, 2010 12:46

Stephen Cunningham (above), if you're referring to the Rising in your post (please correct me if I'm wrong), I think it's significant that you make that point. Taking the perspective that the Rising sparked this country into revolt completely ignores years of agitation and the growth of the nationalist and labour movements before that event took place.

Movements don't begin when some people decide to, for example, solely smash the windows of a bank, it takes a lot of real work to build a movement. And as regards your criticism of left groups advocating a general strike: The general strike is one of the most powerful weapons we can wield against the Government and business leaders. However, I understand that at this point (especially with the stance of ICTU) that it looks a long way off.

But, that's the crux of the situation: It will take a lot of work until we can get to the position of forcing the ICTU leadership to declare a general strike. This work can begin immediately with union branches taking action into their own hands. Workers need to use the example set recently by the workers at Thomas Cook or at Dublin Port (a workplace sit-in and a prolonged strike). With this type of direct action, it's possible create a groundswell of support for bigger and bolder actions like a general strike, which won't come about through 'symbolic actions' taken only by a few.

by opus diablos - the regressive hypocrite party Sun Nov 28, 2010 13:11

..to that ancient Irish invention, the selective boycott.

It would take time to organise, and serious discipline to make it work, just like the eponymous original. They have the march and demo outflanked, we need to show a wee bit more imagination.
But there is no use going off half fucking cocked and pulling the house down like spoilt kids whose playstation has been taken away. Be sure there is more than one Franco in the background waiting and hoping for just such a scenario, and the powers that be will certainly have contingency plans for such eventualities.They always do.
Keep your powder dry, educate yourself and others as best you can, and remember, when all else fails to organise the people, circumstances themselves conspire to that end. Hothead anger, and self-gratifying outbursts of violence or vandalism, are the excuse they WANT to roll out their security lockdown. Try not to oblige the bastards. Its a damn sight easier to wreck than it is to rebuild. It may be inevitable, but I'd prefer to try to avoid a thirty-two county Ulster.

And every time you think things are bad here, take check on conditions in Haiti and Pakistan. I shouldn't have to mention Iraq and Afghanistan. Get the heads out of the nationalist insular bucket they have fed us on and get the cranium into global spherical mode. Otherwise they've just diverted you up their cul-de-sac for a good kettling.

by Andrew Sun Nov 28, 2010 13:45

There is a WSM report featuring a slideshow with 60 photos from yesterday up at http://www.wsm.ie/c/ictu-demonstrate-imf-ecb-ireland

by Roz Sun Nov 28, 2010 16:46

Here are some videos I took at the protest -

YouTube - Man resisting Garda dogs ICTU PROTEST - Man resisting the dogs the gards brought out

YouTube - Jack O Connor Booed ICTU PROTEST - Jack O Connor getting BOOED

YouTube - Fire ICTU PROTEST - Footage of the fire light on Kildare Street

YouTube - Fianna Fail get abuse ICTU PROTEST - Fianna Fail Abuse

YouTube - Crowd chanting OUT at ICTU PROTEST - Crowd chanting OUT OUT OUT

YouTube - Bottle incident at ICTU PROTEST - Footage of bottle incident outside government buildings

YouTube - Beginning of Dáil protest ICTU PROTEST - Beginning of the protest that took place outside the Dáil

YouTube - Angry crowds at ICTU PROTEST - Angry crowds

YouTube - Angry Crowd at ICTU PROTEST - Angry Crowds

by Proud Socialist Republican Sun Nov 28, 2010 17:33

Yesterdays demo was very important, if and only if, it marks the beginning of an intensive fight back. The trade union leadership are a disgrace but that doesnt take away from the fact that 50,000 people, ordinary people not trade union hacks like O'Connor and Beggs, took to the streets in appalling weather to oppose the cuts.

The Left initiative at the O'Connell monument was also well worth doing. I estimate that between 3000 and 5000 people listened to a very different message to one that was delivered on the main stage. Again it marks an escalation in the fight back. What is needed now is a series of protests across the country building towards a general strike and a mass campaign of civil disobediance. Building a campaign of this type will take time but it can be done.

There were however a number of aspects of yesterday's protest that did the Left and Republicanism no favours at all. In the middle of the left bloc crowd ot the O'Connell monument some idiot saw fit to let off fireworks, resulting in one middle aged woman getting hit in the eye with some sort of pyrotechnic. As she was frantically pouring water onto her eye the same gobshites were letting off more fireworks - right in the middle of the crowd! Who were these heroes? At least one of them is a very well known member of the IRSP in Dublin. That party need to move to discipline this same individual or they should be excluded by all other groups and parties from all future demonstrations.

With regard to the follow up demo at Leinster House people need to be very careful of the 'bottle throwing' agenda that is at play. As is often the case the heros that threw the bottles made sure to hide in the back of the crowd and in the process they nearly hit genuine protesters at the front - see video links above. They played right into the hands of the garda press office that have been briefing journalists throughout the week.

If they felt so angry about things why not go head to head with the cops instead of hiding behind others? Instead of the media focusing on a massive turnout of workers they are now able to show images of bottles flying through the air. The exact outcome that the state was hoping and planning for.

There most certainly is a place in the coming weeks for mass direct action but the behaviour of the yahoos on Saturday was a million miles from that. It strikes me that the 'action' at the gates of Leinster House bore all the hallmarks of a combination of agents, thugs and gobshites who the rest of the left and republicanism would do well to treat with considerable caution.

by richard whelan Sun Nov 28, 2010 17:36

youtube link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axZaoL4KFwI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYHvMKEGFgE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0s2MZyZiYE

by brix - none (yet) Sun Nov 28, 2010 17:51 rbrixl at hotmail dot com 33 glendale drive letterkenny co donegal

The protest march was a very good start and i hope that everyone that attended will instead of having a feeling of acomplishment have a feeling of determination. That protest was a good start but unless everyone takes the protest back home with them and begins a nation wide action i fear it will do little good, we need to make sure for the general election we have a massive turnout the likes never sen before in irish history and vote ALL sitting politicians out and only retun or place ones there that are anti imf and not locked into party politics, ones that wish to limit the amt a politicin and senior civil servants recieve and wants too persue the bankers and the senior civil servants ie the Irish regullator for criminal charges with hefty time to be served
In my humble opinon protests are good for only a few things (unless they turn violent or catalyse a revolution) 1 media coverage to spread the issues and beliefs of the group
2 recruitment of members to group/ and or creation of subgroups which then carry out more actions in thier home towns
3 a venus for organisers to get together and see what areas can be exploied for futher
4 radicalisation of the general puplic which attend event ie education on the issues and possible solutions
I know i seem long winded (i am) but this protest which has occured is only the first step if any think it is the solution and the crooks in charge of our country (ours till we give it to the imf) will pay heed u are deluding urself

no it is time for action now it is time for the ordiary citizen rise up in non violent revolt now it is time to shut the country down

by Sharon. - Individual. Sun Nov 28, 2010 17:58

Hi !
The group of RSF members and supporters , and the 'Community Sector' workers that I was with had no time for O'Connor or Begg and, thankfully, that seemed to be the general consensus of the majority present.
If it had a more 'worker-friendly' leadership , the ICTU could take this issue all the way.
More pics and comment at the 'Related Link' below.
Thanks!
Sharon.

Republican Sinn Féin : "Brits Out , IMF Out!"

by TD - Galway Unites Against Cuts Sun Nov 28, 2010 18:51

Photos

by Madame Guillotine Sun Nov 28, 2010 21:11

share the pain now
it is time to raise corporation tax in order to have decent public services and some degree of taxation fairness. Michael Smurfit seems to have less tunnel vision on this than any existing political party so far.
The Irish people are looking for answers and alternatives to the current system of making the poor pay. Instead of cutting social welfare and levying workers Corporation tax should be increased from the current pittance in this country to a level closer to most other countries. This would allow us to have better public services as well as being fairer to the oppressed paye tax payer.

Michael Smutfit said last week that raising corporation tax a number of percentage points was feasible, so if Mr Smurfit can talk about it why are all existing political parties refusing to discuss it? Who are they afraid that they may upset? Is it the Irish Independent newspaper group that has them afraid to speak out and call for business to pay a fair share for a change?

Perhaps the new group of independents that was formed last week or the Left Alliance led by MEP Joe Higgins may have greater courage than we have seen up to now on this issue. If so I would like to hear their policy in relation to Corporation tax.

by newsmedia - Newsmedianews Sun Nov 28, 2010 22:06

Anyone with time to contemplate doesn't have to be George Orwell to see that we have far surpassed 1984. In fact Orwell's 1984 existed in reality long before the book ...

We are inexorably moving towards social anarchy - not anarchy brought about by the 'dissatisfied', the 'troublemakers' or 'dissidents' as those wearing the glove of dictatorship under the guise of 'democracy' would have us believe - but anarchy orchestrated by those holding the reins of that power.

Yes, marching is to all intents useless. Mao Tse Tung knew that. An all-out national general strike would have to encompass the armed forces and the garda, who would without doubt be asked to intervene against the 'anarchists' taking to the streets....

We are staring full into the face of The Day After Tomorrow and I don't mean the cold weather .

by Sceptic . - None Whatsoever Sun Nov 28, 2010 23:00

To The Electorate who voted in Fianna Fail , Greens & those pair of kunts Jacky Healy Ray ( gombeen ) & Lowry , i want to
put on record how much you also should be charged with high treason along with those collective kunts above.

You voted those kunts in for whatever reason you did , you overlooked the ' street talk ' which suggested the shaggin country
was on its way down a spiral staircase , you believed the greens were ' nice people ' and how much you would like to be part
of their ' Bill & Ben the flower pot men' policies which although you could'nt for the life of you understand what the fuck it was
about your voting patterns you still went ahead and voted gormless gormley & co in to assisst in the destruction of our once
proud country.

This country is rife with corruption from the top to the bottom , yes i include the bottom because those kunts at the bottom
would sell your soul in order to improve their own miserable existences at your expense , this country is where it is because
of its OWN PEOPLE and now the finale is about to be played out , you all fell at the first hurdle and dont think your ' progress '
was not being montored or your demise also , Now they have come in their droves ,the bully boys from the I.M.F. are to pick
the bones in order they should get their pound of flesh & as ye are all lying to yourselves tonight saying ' it could have been so
much worse ' but now we have the exact % rate lets start all over again . nothing about the homeless people has been even
mentioned considering the amount of' European Houses' now abandoned, and you think this will never happen to you ???

by Gerard Murphy Sun Nov 28, 2010 23:04

I agree with your base argument, however the power structures of our society do not even allow a debate on the issue. Is it not ironic that the question of sovereignty recently raised never mentioned the fact that multi national organisations as well as our own companies dictate our taxation policy ie what rate of tax they will pay, and where the shortfall in taxation shoud be made up for ie cuts in government expenditure! When these large corporations decide to move on, they will do so regardless of what the tax rate is, just look at Dell! At the moment the policies being pursued by government are a rehash of failed policies of the past that got us where we are today. The recent reduction in the minimum wage and the cuts in welfare and the pay of public servants is a reflection of who runs the country, that is IBEC and ISME and other wealthy elites. The debate in the media therefore is orchestrated by these employer organistions, government and other elites, as Greg Philo of the GUMG reflected on how the reporting of news had become the reporting of ‘someone’s’ opinion of the news. He comments that news is a procession of the powerful, characterized by the orthodoxy of views and the lack of critical voices, as example shows “when the credit crunch hit, we were given a succession of bankers, stockbrokers and even hedge-fund managers to explain and say what should be done, but these were the people who had caused the problem” (Philo 2008). In the past the news media either refused to investigate or looked the other way when the property bubble was being inflated by greedy banks aided and abetted by government policies that had their origins in a tent in the Galway races. There is no doubt that there were people sounding alarm bells concerning the neo-liberal orientation of Irish economic policy during the 1990s (Meade 2005: Kirby 2002: O Hearn 2003: Allen 2003 ), but it seems the media either disagreed or perhaps ‘looked the other way’. As an example, the concerns raised by a television programme aired on RTE in 2006 entitled Future Shock-Property Crash, were rejected by the printed news media. In fact the ‘expertise’ journalists at the Irish Independent branded the programme an exercise in generating fear in the market (Ruddock 2007), others even sought to calm nerves by stating that that “if (and that is a big 'if') the market is going to crash it will do so in a patchy, selective way which will not impact to any great degree on many of the existing homes in Ireland” (O'Donoghue 2007). The Irish Times (2007) property supplement simply dismissed the claims of impending doom in the property market as “lurid predictions”. Today the media are up to their old tricks including RTE, now we are told that our masters are 'the markets' but never told who exactly the markets are, we are told that the rating agencies have reduced our bonds to junk status but do not inform us that these are the same rating agencies that David Drumm referred to in the Anglo Irish Banks annual report of 2007 and I quote"The success of the Bank’s funding and liquidity management strategy means it has a balance sheet with the underlying strength and flexibility to take advantage of opportunities and to successfully meet the challenges of changing market conditions. This strength was recognised in March when Standard & Poor’s initiated coverage of the Bank with an ‘A’ long-term / ‘A-1’ short-term rating. This strong rating is in addition to those of Moody’s, Fitch and Dominion Bond Rating Service, our other rating agencies" The evidence points to the greatest swindle of all time, the Irish citizen is being ripped of not by 'a rip of republic' but by a consortium of bankers and speculators affectionally aka 'the markets' but then again the media will not tell you that!

by TD - Galway Unites Against Cuts Mon Nov 29, 2010 00:36

Part 3 is strong footage of Cowen being symbolically burned with much anger and contempt by enraged citizens outside the rubber stamping mockery that is now Leinster House where gardai on horses and Alsatian dogs were brought in to grossly intimidate and suppress the hitherto, relatively peaceful protest (ok, some knucklehead threw a bottle); an obscene display of state repression and a sword of Damocles hanging over all of us who want to resist further, tooth and conscience, the obscenity that is presently being visited upon the most vulnerable in Irish society by the craven, hollow Cowen and his über meisters in the form of the unconscionable Irish power elite, the IMF and EU.?

At least, one no longer needs to ask the rhetorical question: Who dares to break a butterfly on the wheel.?

No more crucifixions! Let's fight the fuckers!

Caption: Video Id: YV94LNQsye0 Type: Youtube Video
Part 3: 100,000 protesters in Dublin sound the death knell for the treasonous Irish government

by Didier Mon Nov 29, 2010 07:23

Jonny , you’re right " begin immediately with union branches taking action into their own hands ".
Unions leadership will follow.
In France, regular general assemblies were organised in the workplaces, schools, universities, on plazas... in order to democratically coordinate the struggle, and to let the rank-and-file workers, trade union activists, students, ordinary people, have their say and exert real control over the strategy and organisation of the movement.
People set up programming and organizing committees like Interprofessional General Assemblies
(about 40 still active through a national coordination)
Actions are conveyed through various independant media, or through ad hoc blogs on the net locally and nationaly
And Unite! Unite! Unite!
Ireland, Ireland
Together standing tall
Shoulder to shoulder
We'll answer Ireland's call
And to be discussed later on , a coordinating european movement

by puca Mon Nov 29, 2010 07:51

No doubt the sale of ESB and any other profitable state assets will be next on the agenda. This has been a holy grail of the Irish ruling class since the emergence of the PDs 25 years ago. Harney has managed a reasonably good job of prising open health care to the privatisers but there are plenty of other opportunities for rent seeking in Ireland, and thats the kind of living that rich Irish people and their reps in the dail understand. So that is the next stage of the battle and one that can be fought in the mainstream.

by Brian & Brian . Mon Nov 29, 2010 09:00

Everything in Ireland is for Sale , even its people have been sold as slaves, to the I.M.F.

by Shay Mon Nov 29, 2010 14:29 murphy.shay at gmail dot com

http://www.flickr.com/photos/xshayx/sets/72157625353422577/

by Andrew Mon Nov 29, 2010 15:38

Many of the hundred thousand plus people who took part in Saturday's demonstration against the IMF/ECB four year plan would be disturbed to know that mixed among them were a number of secret police disguised as protesters. And it appears these Special Branch operatives were among the small breakaway march to the Dail that occurred after the main protest and which some media outlets seized on as 'proof' of the violence the Garda and that section of the media had been hyping in advance of the protest.

read on at
http://www.wsm.ie/c/secret-police-dublin-protesters-ictu

by Terry K - Socialist Party Mon Nov 29, 2010 16:10

Below is the US based Democracy Now report on last Saturday's demonstration.

100,000 Protest In Ireland Over EU/IMF Bailout

European Union nations have signed off on a a proposed $113 billion emergency loan for Ireland. The bailout was approved a day after an estimated 100,000 people took to the streets of Dublin on Saturday to oppose the plan to rescue Ireland’s banking sector. Irish trade unions have announced plans to launched a campaign of civil disobedience in the coming weeks.

Tom Coleman, Irish protester: "We don’t want to pay for private business, private industry and corrupt government. And the people are going to pay. And we are not happy, we don’t want the IMF [International Monetary Fund] in here. The IMF created this situation and they are in for money and they don’t care about the future, they don’t care about Ireland."

Meanwhile in Britain, tens of thousands of students took the streets last week to protest planned budget cuts.

Mark Bergfeld, student organizer: "We must say that the damage done by thousands of young kids does not anywhere come close to the damage which is being done by the Con-Dem government in this country. The Con-Dem government in this country is decimating higher education, is decimating the welfare state, and is imposing an austerity agenda. They have no mandate to cut, and the broken futures, the broken futures of generations to come is in no way compared to a few broken windows."

by Sandra Cambell - Free Education for Everyone Mon Nov 29, 2010 16:25

Fintan O' Toole's website is now live with petition for radical political reform.

by Seán Ryan Mon Nov 29, 2010 16:27

The ICTU call a protest march. The people are pissed and mostly boo the wasters that give speeches from the stage.

I get annoyed with fascist stewards, talk to members of the public, Joe Higgins, The Republican Socialist Party, Daithí Mac An Mháistír of Éirígí and end with a gentleman who is rightly upset.

Caption: Video Id: 17292048 Type: Vimeo
The voices of dissent

by Mairtin - ASTI Mon Nov 29, 2010 16:52

As far as I can make it out the dis-affected of this land need to agree on one basic principal and that is nonviolent resistance to the powers that be in this land....violent protests while completely understandable are counter-productive as has been mentioned already as they justify the violence of the State against it's own citizens and polarise public opinion....at the minute there is a wave of consternation against the government and the financial system- for this to be harnessed I believe it would be very helpful for all groups to unite on the idea that whatever direct action is taken that it be nonviolent- as Terence MacSwiney wrote, "It is not those who inflict the most that will win, but those who are able to suffer the most".

We need to look at nonviolent struggles in history and build the movements here in a similar vein....this is a slow process and can look like an impossible task but it is the most powerful weapon at the disposal of the mass of people who want to effect real improvements to the lives not just of this country but the global population, most of whom have it much worse due to even greater and severe repression caused by the alliance of the IMF, opressive government, rich elites, World Banks, multinationals etc...

To do this we need to educate people on nonviolent methodology of struggle and its merits...Gandhi used 'Satyagraha' meaning soul force and this helped overthrow the authority of the British Empire...it calls for discipline and a commitment to try not to coerce the opponent but convert them....the system is rotten but it is people who are ultimately responsible for its implementation....we need to change their minds and appeal to their common humanity, we need to increase empathy and decrease apathy for human suffering

The conditions are here for civil resistance, we just need to work hard in all our social groupings from the unions to the local community groups to reclaim the power from our co-opted leaders and build person to person the new society free of the dominating power that governs the dominant culture.

by Jerry Cornelius Mon Nov 29, 2010 19:37

I agree that we should never initiate the violence but we do have a right to protect ourselves if we are attacked by Gardai. You may be happy to have your head beaten in but I am not. Any defensive actions we take should be measured but there is no place for pacifism when mounted cops are charging into a crowd or when cops are batoning people who are peacefully sitting on the street.

by Seán Ryan Tue Nov 30, 2010 00:53

Apologies, I forgot to add a link to the video above:

by TD - Galway Unites Against Cuts Tue Nov 30, 2010 12:17

Andrew. I went through all the footage I took outside Leinster House again hoping to get the lowdown on the Special Branch dude; for instance, inciting the protesters in agent provocateur mode, throwing fire crackers or worse, but zilch.

It would be helpful, if Darren Googled Google images or Facebook and posted a photo of this fellow, if there is one in the public domain?: Darren who had travelled up to Dublin for the protest told WSM.ie that "I saw an old classmate called E. D. (full name with author) from Ballinasloe who had joined the Garda so I was surprized to see him outside the Dail in a black parka with a scarf over his face."

by Sharon. - Individual. Wed Dec 01, 2010 00:50

Hi !

A few more photos from the ICTU-organised protest in Dublin on Saturday 27th November 2010 can be seen at the 'Related Link' below.
Thanks,
Sharon.

by occupy + resist Wed Dec 01, 2010 13:18

There are currently around 100 student activists occupying the grounds of the Department of Education, on Marlborough St., Dublin!!!!At the time of writing there is an open space discussion happening on the subject of "alternative education".Gardai have locked the gate and are not allowing additional participants to enter. However the...... atmosphere inside is peaceful and constructive.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/1201/education.html

Surprise Conference at the Department of Education!
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=162794360429299

by Des - None Wed Dec 01, 2010 22:40

The 'death knell' of the establishment is still some way off, the present 'government' are in line to be replaced by the other side of the same coin. As has already been pointed out, we have had large scale protests before. For once I agree with the WSM re a general strike but sadly, that is just a dream at the moment. Incidentally, the infiltration of protests by the branch is nothing new, its being going on for decades.

by Let's lynch O'Connor and Begg Thu Dec 02, 2010 11:56

SIPTU general president Jack O'Connor told the Irish Independent last night the trade unions would cooperate with reforms. He said it was likely that progress would be made by the time of the deadline.

However, he warned if there was a "unilateral departure" from the agreement when staff were compliant, "we'll have to respond".

by Celia S Thu Dec 02, 2010 14:25

Sean Ryan

That's a great video documentary. Fantastic work comrade

CS

by Jason Michael Sat Dec 04, 2010 14:42

A review of the evidence from the ICTU protest and the witness of gardai purchasing their disguises shows that protesters on December 7th must expect garda dirty tricks. These are vicious tactics designed to cause violence, the end of which shall be the harm of innocent people. Protesters must consider a response to these underhand actions.

by Jason Michael Sun Dec 05, 2010 22:28

Acht, William, we may have to agree to disagree. Certainly for the moment you appear to be in the minority in favour of smashing some ban garda's face with a bottle. For my part, I am content to see the humanity even in the oppressor. This maybe comes from me not being fourteen any more. Your desire to see the end of the violent structures etc of the present socio-political reality sounds like revolutionary rhetoric to me, but we must realise that this comes with planning - not from some wannabe Che with an empty beer bottle in his hand.

by Let's lynch O'Connor & Begg Mon Dec 06, 2010 18:28

Firefighters and paramedics have joined forces with psychiatric nurses to form a new trade union for frontline staff in the public service. Skip related content

More than 700 members of Dublin Fire Brigade have already signed up to join the alliance, headed by the Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA).

Protecting premium pay and prevention of, and compensation for, injuries sustained in work will be among the issues tackled by the union leaders.

Des Kavanagh, general secretary of the unnamed group, revealed hundreds of fire and ambulance personnel have signed up, leaving the country's largest unions Siptu and Impact, and he said he expects to have more than 2,500 new members in the next six weeks.