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24 Jun 2005, Marian's last show ever, from [color=darkblue]Galway[/color], and arguably her most important!
She announced the "Nation's Greatest Woman" (well, 2nd best for me) and much more. And yet...
The most often asked question posed on RTE News in the last decade(s) was whether [size=7][color=darkred]GERRY ADAMS is /was in the IRA[/color][/size]. This question was usually asked in at least 3 different ways on each occasion. It was about the most boring question as the answer was never accepted. I expected that he was in the IRA but it didn't effect my opinion of him. I'm old enough to remember the days when I saw ADAMS as a shadow with a 'dead' actors voice. If RTE News had it's way, we'd still be at the same.
To me the only thing that matter was if he the influence to achieve PEACE with honour. The game of trying to catch ADAMS out in a lie was childish. By asking another commentator or reporter who always believed ADAMS was in the IRA, then RTE News proved that obviously ADAMS was lying. The purpose was it seemed to me to show if he was lying about IRA membership, then we could not believe him on anything else. TG, the average Joe saw through this constant barrage and it didn't effect our opinion. When Marian was wondering again on the show about how Michelle Smith came 3rd in the "Nation's Greatest Woman" perhaps RTE would learn to listen outside the box.
When RTE News dumps on politicians, garda, banks, priests, not-so-honest Joe's etc, do they ever query that they and the other lazy journalists had a part to play in not exposing the various scandals. Other than a very few notable exceptions like Vincent Browne, all they seem to be up to is note-taking at tribunals and regurgitating the same old gunge, except of course the Morris Tribunal, when they hardly to reported on at all. It must not have been conveniently located!
Who benefited out of this constant doubting of ADAMS? It certainly did nothing to aid the peace process. To me it seemed like some perverted game between the journalists to trip him and score points. They hardly ever came out even. Maybe on reflection it was more than a game. The constant haranguing struck me at time as more intent on sabotaging the peace process, which would be in line with RTE News sanitizing of our history.
Am I mad. Not yet. The NUJ is a total restrictive monopoly trade union, so this should anything surprise us. Well how many other trade unions conspire with the employer, RTE to sack a good employee on trumped up charges of double jobbing, because her face did not fit with her 'green' image in an 'un-green' environment!!! So none of this is new - until Marian's show this morning produced the "Downing Street Memo" on the Adams affair. When demanding honesty from all our 'characters', the 'caste the first stone' is always on my mind. Even Pat knows.
28.29 MARIAN: "[color=blue]But there was one man who quietly in the chambers of monasteries going back way way back and over the peace line went back to the very genesis of the process that has undoubtedly saved many many lives. In the early years he was known as the priest from Belfast. He was involved to what to the outsider, looked like cloak and dagger negotiations, that paved the way for people of very different beliefs could live side by side. Although he spent 40 years at Clonard Monastery in republican west Belfast, he says he has been all round the world and several other places beside. Fr. Alec Reed you are very welcome indeed to the program[/color]."
Fr. Alec Reed, I have often heard of him but don't remember ever hearing him. WHY? This is the man who was there from the beginning. He says he met the Army Council. All side trust him. [size=7]He says ADAMS is NOT in the IRA. I BELIEVE HIM. Why should he lie??? Its not because he's a priest that I believe him - I'm not religious - but I believe I know an honest man!!! He has nothing to gain by lying. If he thought ADAMS was lying to him, how could they work together for decades for peace. My heart believed before. Now my head is convinced. Why?[/size]
50.54 MARIAN:[color=blue]At that stage when you were talking to Gerry Adams, did the IRA know, did the Army Council know?[/color]
Fr. Reed: Ye, I presume, ye I presume it would. Oh ye, I mean. [size=7]Basically, now there are 2 organizations and Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness certainly for years are not members for years of the Army Council and I have meet the Army Council[/size]. I met them. And I know they are not even although they are accused of being. There is a definite, if you work in that there is a situation, you can see there is a clear distinction between SF and the IRA because SF would talk you me about what they were going to have to say to the IRA, how if you like, persuade them, who they were friendly with they knew the people who were if you like more flexible more willing. They had to persuade the IRA leadership. And the problem with the IRA leadership is as with the ETA leadership in the Basque country. [size=7]If you were in charge of a military organization like that, you have to be very careful that you don't do anything that is going to split the organization because then you have a worse situation and the Republican movement has split in every decade of the last century, including 1990 when up in Omagh.[/size] So the leadership, and if you were on the leadership, Marian, you'd be very conscious, you'd you'd well we'll have to be careful, not that you wouldn't agree that we should stop but you'd have to maneuver it so, I'm only saying that to show you that there are 2 constitutions there, 2 leaderships and there are 2 different dynamics at work.
Marian: [color=blue]I'm going to have to stop you there. I have take a break. I'm talking to Fr, Alec Reed the RTE studios in Galway this morning and join us again after the break[/color].
There's much in the interview indicating that ADAMS was NOT in the IRA. I'll add more later.
Will RTE News give my head peace now and at least STOP asking this stupid question, which hinders peace.
Don't get me wrong about RTE. I love take radio and listen to RTE One nearly 12 hours most days. I believe RTE TV makes the best programs of all except Judge Judy and West Wing. There sports is the best, but in the News. The adds on TV and Radio are very witty.
The men are very rude, constantly interrupting. They are always pressed for time yet get more than 5 hours programming. I DO NOT want Fox New sound bite crap. I want to be informed. If I want to be confused and boddered, I can turn on one of those US sitcoms where everyone appears to be talking at the same time. No thanks. Interviewing is NOT a blood sport. Could Olivia not give lessons. That O'Rourke interview of the CORI priest about the Budget submission was a disgrace.
The RULE where the same guest cannot be heard on 'competing' following news shows is ridiculous. It is certainly not for the benefit of the listener.
WHY was Fr. Reed not on radio before now. It couldn't be that he knew too much and wasn't tamable. He was excellent from my point of view. Marian was as good as ever. For now I'll accept that the occasion caused her to let slip by the most important info on Gerry Adams in a long while as if embarrassed to be offered this rebuttal of a common RTE News notion.
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