THE POINTLESSNESS OF SILENCE
Wednesday, March 11, 2009 at 08:26AM It's not that silent protests cannot be effective, it's just that I believe that the silent "vigils" that have been organised by the Irish Congress of Trades Unions for this lunchtime are pointless. For starters, the killers and their support group in the republican community will not be listening.
I also believe that since the ICTU is a creature of the Belfast Agreement, a creature which argued for the destruction of the RUC and the elevation of terrorists into government, I treat this latest NIO inspired move with some disdain though do not dispute some genuine people will get involved .
We do NOT need silence. There has been too much silence.
We need the sound of those at ensior level in IRA/Sinn Fein providing the Police with lists of all their former members, killers the IRA trained, who have moved across into other terror groups. We need the sound of politicians explaining why it is acceptable for some terrorists to be rewarded whilst others should be punished. We need the sound of police investigators announcing that those butchers behind La Mon, Enniskillen, Claudy, Oxford Street - behind ALL the grotesque acts of terror, are brought to justice.
However all you will today is silence. It's enough to make you scream.
Will I be there today to join in this silent vigil? No. I have been speaking up publicly for years on the sheer wrongness of tolerating and rewarding terrorists and I take no lectures from ICTU on this issue.
Northern Ireland 
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Reader Comments (29)
I think people should go to the rallies as it's about the only opportunity for a collective expression of revulsion.
But the ICTU are also endorsing a boycott of Israel for responding to Hamas attacks so they should clarify what they consider to be the differences between Hamas and the rira.
David:
The silence is not the point. The point is the spectacle of solidarity. The media will cover these events and give prominence to them. The pictures and footage will show that thousands in NI are against the murderers.
This is always better than a house divided against itself. You could say that ATW during the past days is this division in microcosm. This divisiveness plays right into the hands of the dissidents. It's precisely what they wish to achieve.
They'd have loved to see the DUP and Sinn Féin at loggerheads over the shootings. That didn't happen. A disappointment to them. Possibly that's why Constable Carroll had to die.
If we don't show our faces today how else can we voice our protest? With angry words heaped upon angry words? I don't think so. Angry words are what got NI into the mess in the first place. Ian Paisley anyone?
It comes as no surprise to me that you refuse to participate.
The ICTU are absolute scum for bringing their agenda regarding another conflict into this.
James:
What do you mean?
Never mind, I'm too angry to write properly.
James:
Sorry, but you don't get off that lightly. We're all angry but we don't call people "absolute scum" for no reason. The ICTU are trying to help here.
>>But the ICTU are also endorsing a boycott of Israel for responding to Hamas attacks<<
That's not true, Henry. It is endorsing a boycott of Israel (ill-advised IMO) for killing hundreds of civilians. Your attempt at propaganda can't conceal those dead.
Noel
I don't want to divert this thread so this will be my final comment on the ICTU here. If you want to reply Noel you can have the last word. No doubt it will come up again.
There is a case for the ICTU staying out of the issue altogether but by boycotting Israel they are supporting Hamas. We all know when we were boycotting South Africa that we were supporting the ANC. They spoke for the majority and I was proud to support them. But Hamas speak for the Palestinians so let's not kid ourselves about what's going on.
Henry:
You're overreacting here, as is David. I have little time for unions, having had a run-in with a couple in the early 1970s. But today is a time to set aside differences and come out in solidarity against a common enemy.
No more, no less. See you there.
Mass rallies rarely achieve anything. There were large turnouts at peace rallies of one sort or another throughout the worst of the troubles and they made no discernable difference. The IRA only gave up when it finally decided that its terrorist campaign was not going to lead to military victory.
A more recent mass rally which achieved nothing was the one on London in March 2003 just before the Iraq war. Despite a huge turnout against his policy, Blair continued on regardless.
Peter:
Blair knew he had support from other quarters. He could turn a blind eye to the will of the people.
If you think mass protests don't work I give you Gandhi.
IB
I said rarely. Gandhi was an exception, as were the mass protests that overthrew the Shah of Iran. But protests on that scale are not seen in our society.
Peter:
But why be negative about it? Why not go along, do your bit? Better than sitting on your arse angrily posting to blogs.
The involvement of the ICTU makes the Belfast event unacceptable, there is a fair chance it will be hijacked as a pro-Pali terror supporters.
NRG:
In that case who do you think should be organising it? And are they?
What's a "Pali" BTW?
The 'involvement' of the ICTU? Didn't they help organise the event?
And regardless of their involvment in other issues, this is a protest against the recent murders. So far, 2 posters here have implied they won't attend. Why not? Don't you think protesting against murder is a good thing?
I think if a person condemns it verbally then they ought to be prepared to stand over what they say, otherwise they are hypocrites. People ought to go to their nearest rally and defend their words of condemnation, and show by their physical presence that these people have no support.
Otherwise its empty rhetoric.
Flibbertijibbet:
"Otherwise its empty rhetoric."
Also known as "blogging".
David,
You simply can't break a wall of silence with a bulldozer, you need to employ tact.
>>There is a case for the ICTU staying out of the issue altogether but by boycotting Israel they are supporting Hamas. <<
Henry, you still haven't got it.
The ICTU is endorsing this boycott because Israel killed hundreds of innocent civilians in Gaza. If no civilians had been killed, there would be no calls for a boycott - a fact that doesn't fit in with your propaganda, I admit, but nonetheless the truth, and a far cry from your melodramatic and silly "ICTU are also endorsing a boycott of Israel for responding to Hamas attacks".
I also think it's tasteless to say the least to try to discredit the ICTU with cheap propaganda on a day when it is taking a public stance against these recent murders in NI.
Yes, shut up about Israel and Hamas already. There's a time and place. Honestly, some people...
Civilians die when a war is declared and the elected government in charge lead them into it. When they then don't protect said people from the war they started Noel. Where were your precious Gazans when it came to taking a public stance and protesting their own government's kat 'policy' towards Israel huh? A different sort of silent protest?
Shut up. Just shut up with your Hamas excusing bullsh*t all the time.
Your pseudo concern for this issue here is heartwarming. Here you are issuing smackdowns to Henry for being 'tasteless' in expressing an opinion? You were dismissing it all as not even a problem a few days ago. At least be consistent. You should be condemning this protest as over the top.
"the ICTU is a creature of the Belfast Agreement"
Retrospectively?
Jimmy:
"Retrospectively?"
Indeed. In the deathless words of an Irish statesman: "What has posterity ever done for us?"
Proactively. It argued for it. It supported the release of terrorists from prison. It supported terrorists in government.It urged the acceptance of Patten which led to the demise of the RUC, a key IRA objective. Repeat; proactively.
David:
Not quite the same as saying "ICTU is a creature of the Belfast Agreement" is it?
It's like saying cigarettes are a creature of lung cancer. However, I've noted a tendency among certain Unionists to confuse cause with effect.
Opposition to Nice is also a key provo objective. I suppose that makes you their ally too.
Jimmy:
Now you're looking for consistency of argument, you naif little fellow you.
I strongly disagree with David re the Silent protest, I was at the City Hall today.
I thought it was very important to do something. The protest was extremely dignified and Im glad I made the effort.
Despite your negativity I came away feeling that it was alot better than doing nothin!
Power 2 the People!