Comments on: “THAT ANGER THAT WE FEEL WILL FIND ITS TARGET”

By: sonfstan

sonfstan — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 21:11:36 +0000

the majority of public sector workers are never in conflict with the Gardai: most would see them as preferable to criminals.

The choice between criminals and government politicians might be harder to call.

By: Jimmy McNulty

Jimmy McNulty — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 19:27:14 +0000

It was a good speech, and it was also significant. It’s certainly not the revolution (who said it was) but it does show that there is a reservoir of bitterness about the government’s handling of the crisis, and the media’s campaigns in support of it. Jim, the majority of public sector workers are never in conflict with the Gardai: most would see them as preferable to criminals.

By: Jim Monaghan

Jim Monaghan — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 17:25:51 +0000

Sorry I meant to refer to elections as a barometer and a mobilising tool.I will do my usual moan for a left front here.

By: Jim Monaghan

Jim Monaghan — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 17:23:16 +0000

I think that when push comes to shove the State will make a necessary concession to the army and the Gardai and they will act on the streets to protect the state. I don’t remember a cop raising any demurs about the “heavy gang”. I think people should get a grip. We are a long way from a revolutionary situation. You would thoink from the back clapping over days of protest that soviets were about to be formed.I, alas, think that many adapt in a simple way Trotskys adage that “it a matter of leadership”, a sort of oust O’Connor, Beggs and co. and we will take power. The road will be a lot longer.Across Europe and now in the neighbouring isle the far left is no where. While not the only indicator of Class activity it is at least an objective barometer.In fact the awful right whether National Front in both Britain and France and the serious racists in Hungary who are making the running.
Time for the left to wake up from sectarianism and point scoring and help the creation of a serious force

By: Hugh Green

Hugh Green — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 10:24:54 +0000

One other thing on the guards. I have had some contact with them in recent months at different levels, and many of them are a lot more progressively-minded than, say, your average Irish Times editorial. Then there are others who are reactionaries. But there must be plenty of guards who in their dealings with the public could not help but see the effects of the recession first hand. And it must be pretty easy to deduce, when you’re in that position every day, that the idea that more domestics, more violent attacks, burglaries and so on is primarily the result of public sector workers making the country uncompetitive, which is what the government and its media cronies have been saying, is an utter lie. And then you hear the same people saying, and now we’re going to slash your pay. I reckon you’d need to be be pretty fucking thick-headed not to see from this standpoint that the real crooks and thieves are the ones at the top.

By: Donagh

Donagh — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 09:42:46 +0000

Well, you should never underestimate the self interest of a union using its collective power to seek special treatment. But the thought struck me as I walked past Copper-Faced Jacks after going to see The Fall last night, that level of solidarity is also based on the fact that Gardai are often married to other public servants. The cliche goes Nurses. It was Jim who mentioned it, as someone else wasn’t familiar with what Copper-Faced Jacks was like. He said if you’re a member of the Gardai and you want to meet a nurse…

But the attack on the public sector, and the cuts in wages means that both incomes are being cut which affects the family income. That is where the class element comes in I guess. Because they can see that the government’s economic policy is being dictated by a desire to ‘placate the markets’, that is, those who are speculating on bonds now that everything else has dried up. From a bankers point of view (for which read the governments) in the EU only austerity placates the bond markets. And we can see how swimmingly that is going.

By: Conor McCabe

Conor McCabe — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 09:31:08 +0000

The police aren’t a vanguard, but the issue here is that the economic crisis is so large that even the guards are protesting. If the guards go their own way with concessions, does that mean that the structural problems within the Irish economy have gone away? And if they haven’t gone away, what’s next?

The guards are doing this because they don’t have a choice. The reason why they don’t have a choice, that’s the issue.

And if all of this tells us anything it’s that a lot more people know that the Irish media is talking cock than is acknowledged by left bloggers and commentators.

People know that they are being fucked. Irish people may not be on the streets as in Greece, but this is still a fluid situation, one that is going to get worse, and if nothing else the GRA and O´Boyce’s speech show that the Sindo and Irish Times message of TINA is NOT getting though.

By: sonfstan

sonfstan — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 09:15:38 +0000

I agree that it’s extraordinary, but, as I think Jim Monaghan said on the CLR, it also remains to be seen if the cops and the prison officers are simply looking for for special treatment for themselves and whether the solidarity with other public service workers would survive if they do win some concessions.

By: Conor McCabe

Conor McCabe — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 09:06:25 +0000

I have some documents on an aborted Dublin police strike in I think 1919 or 1921. I must dig them out and put them up.

By: Donagh

Donagh — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 09:01:45 +0000

Was talking to somone last night who suggested that when you see the Gardai getting political you will see blood on the streets. While I demurred, there’s no doubt that its very significant when one of the enforcers of state authority challenge that authority, so who knows where it will lead.