Comments on The Pensive Quill: A Shifting Narrative

Nothing 'cept the memory and status of the striker...

2009-05-30T05:38:17.311+01:00

Nothing 'cept the memory and status of the strikers is in the gutter.

That is a rather oblique view of a tragic period I would venture to say that the prison struggle from 1976 to 1982 held the entire republican movement together.
The ongoing argument does not tarnish the memory or conviction of the hunger strikers and their comrades.
The political leadership and their

What now? A bunch of people got together and bust...

2009-05-29T20:47:59.031+01:00

What now?

A bunch of people got together and busted wide open the hunger strike story. Alas we all know the sordid details.

What is changed?

Nothing 'cept the memory and status of the strikers is in the gutter.

Just an observation! "The sacrifice of Kevin Lynch...

2009-05-27T12:51:28.934+01:00

Just an observation!
"The sacrifice of Kevin Lynch and his comrades - their determination and their spirit - has been printed indelibly on our history like no other event. For the impact of the hunger strike went beyond what they had set out to do.
The hunger strikers had sowed the seeds of significant change in the republican struggle. The election of political prisoners sent shock

Thanks for your response to my posts there Mackers...

2009-05-27T12:50:08.645+01:00

Thanks for your response to my posts there Mackers, and there's nothing there I would disagree with. You are right to say that my acquaintences are not really questioning the integrity of the hungerstrikers themselves, it's just that there's a huge 'BUT' hanging over every conversation now. I have to be honest and say, yes, there is a part of me would rather this debate had not entered into the

Kate, Outside was always in control. Whoever clai...

2009-05-26T20:23:16.546+01:00

Kate,

Outside was always in control. Whoever claims otherwise is talking bullshit

I think Richard said this rather than me.

Nobody could be ordered on a hunger strike. They could be ordered off one.

What specifically did fall the blankets way?

For the most part it has been eclipsed by the recent revelations. It merely supported O’Rawe’s

Seán Mór I think you may be confusing legacy wit...

2009-05-26T19:52:17.208+01:00

Seán Mór

I think you may be confusing legacy with integrity. The debate is certainly impacting on the legacy of the hunger strike but not the integrity of the hunger strikers. I think they are still viewed as they were. What is shifting is a perception of where culpability lies for their deaths. Things are not so clear cut as they used to be. So the legacy of some of the actors of

AM "I am not sure this is correct – taking on the ...

2009-05-26T10:33:14.455+01:00

AM
"I am not sure this is correct – taking on the identity of mere unfortunates in a bigger political row - or at least it has not truck me that this is the case. I think they are too monumental in their own right for that."

I think they will always have a special place in the minds of motivated republicans. However, I certainly detect a sea-change in any discussions about the

Kasey, thanks a lot.

2009-05-25T20:59:19.141+01:00

Kasey, thanks a lot.

Seán Mór ‘I can see no positive outcome from thi...

2009-05-25T20:58:43.833+01:00

Seán Mór

‘I can see no positive outcome from this whole debate, only an increase in bitterness and sense of futility. And that's even if the whole truth is established.’

But what can be done? This is how history is constructed. Narratives compete and often suppress one another. The truth is not always the fact. A ‘regime of truth’ succeeds in becoming a regime to the

Posting and forwarding Kate's video on Youtube.. t...

2009-05-25T18:41:20.099+01:00

Posting and forwarding Kate's video on Youtube.. thank you is a big help here in the states providing information and educating people

Once again Anthony, thank you for this blog.. Have read the new book.. was great..posted all the reviews and many of your blogs on Myspace which forwards them to facebook. getting positive responses and reposts by many.
kasey

I think it is important that the full facts about ...

2009-05-25T17:46:03.664+01:00

I think it is important that the full facts about the Hunger Strike come out, although there is probably no such thing as an uncontested set of facts. I get the feeling that some Sinn Féin people are getting very defensive about this whole subject, although I also get a sense that some people are really hoping for some juicy nugget of information that will forever condemn Gerry Adams to the

I attended the public debate on Saturday night and...

2009-05-25T11:34:01.203+01:00

I attended the public debate on Saturday night and I have to say that I have never, in my life seen such a large audience captivated by every word spoken. For me as an independent thinker, I was absolutely floored by the revelations which totally vindicate Richard O'Rawe's claims that the Provisional leadership on the outside over-ruled the prisoners desire to accept the British offer and end the

Thanks for videoing and posting this Kate, it does...

2009-05-24T16:49:47.731+01:00

Thanks for videoing and posting this Kate, it does look like the dominoes are finally falling into place.

Kate, your putting together of this is an excellen...

2009-05-24T14:37:26.396+01:00

Kate, your putting together of this is an excellent contribution to public discussion and understanding of the events. I just viewed the Gerard Clarke intervention and found it powerful. The sense I got was the following. If I was up against Richard O'Rawe trying to defend the SF position on the matter I would have this awful feeling of 'slipping, slipping, slipping ...' It is only a matter of