Queen Elizabeth to visit Croke Park

[Gaffer]

Can't we all just get along lads?

You wouldimagne she will make some sort of statement when she goes to Croke park in terms of acknowledging Brithish wrongdoings in thepast but you can'tplease everyone, n matter what she does.

All thistalk of head of the British army but the royal family are a joke, a bitof a circus TBH. Did they saction goinginto Iraq?

Was the queen alive in 1920?

No one has a problem with the Britsh PM coming to Irleland so why get concerned about an uneleced figurehead?

Are you for real?

[Hardy]

They never invited us Royals to Croke Park but we went anyway.

[Lar Naparka]

Can't we all just get along lads?

You wouldimagne she will make some sort of statement when she goes to Croke park in terms of acknowledging Brithish wrongdoings in thepast but you can'tplease everyone, n matter what she does.

All thistalk of head of the British army but the royal family are a joke, a bitof a circus TBH. Did they saction goinginto Iraq?

Was the queen alive in 1920?

No one has a problem with the Britsh PM coming to Irleland so why get concerned about an uneleced figurehead?

Are you for real?

Gaffer, I'm coming back in here to ask you a question?
I don't do coat trailing or insult swapping with anybody so you can take it that I genuinely would like to know why you are so sceptical about her reasons for visiting Croke Park.

Just to get my reasons for asking you my question out of the way, I'd say this:
I don't really expect her to unreservedly apologise about anything. One does not do that sort of thing.
When she did apologise for the murders in Derry, she choose to do so through the head of her government, ie the Prime Minister. That's the way the Brits choose to do things and I can't see her changing tack when she comes down Jones's Road.

But she also knows the strong cultural, emotional and historical links GAA members have with this place. She can't possibly be coming to deliberately insult the whole of the GAA, north and south, and the rest of Irish nationalists as well.
Our President knows the reasons for her visit and so does our government. Christy Cooney & Co. have to know as well and, collectively, would hardly allow the visit to take place if the sole purpose of it was to stick up two fingers to the great majority of the Irish people.

I don't see any unreserved apology forthcoming for anything but I think Whitehall feels such a bridging exercise is in the interests of Britain. There will be ample time to react after she has said her piece.
Keep in mind that the invasion of Croke Park and the shooting of Michael Hogan got damn all publicity in England at the time.. The assassinations of the previous night got all the headlines.
IMO, second guessing is a futile exercise. I'd really like to hear what she has to say and I will make up mind afterwards.
Why not like her come and say her piece?

[Hardy]

Peter Quinn on "This Week" after the news in a few minutes on the role of the GAA in reconciliation. RTÉ Radio 1.

It's looking as if there's very interesting choreography going on and impressive footwork by the Dept. of Foreign Affairs. It's a bit of a tightrope for the GAA. Of course it's wonderful if we can play a role in reconciliation, normalisation of relations, creating the future - call it what you will. But we'd need to be vigilant against being over-politicised.

[mayogodhelpus@gmail.com]

Peter Quinn on "This Week" after the news in a few minutes on the role of the GAA in reconciliation. RTÉ Radio 1.

It's looking as if there's very interesting choreography going on and impressive footwork by the Dept. of Foreign Affairs. It's a bit of a tightrope for the GAA. Of course it's wonderful if we can play a role in reconciliation, normalisation of relations, creating the future - call it what you will. But we'd need to be vigilant against being over-politicised.

Ya those pro-IRA rallies up in Ulster about a year back, pretty uncool.

[Rav67]

What's the point in a queen?

Or Mary McAleese?

This is.

Didn't bother reading. Is there a bit about what would happen if there was no queen or Mary McAleese?

Read it and you'll see. It'd be a bit hard to have a state without a head of state.

I agree with Hardstation, they do not provide any sort of check or balance to the chambers and governments anyway and rightly so.  In USA the President is Head of State and Head of Government- there is no good reason the PM and Taoiseach couldn't straddle both roles surely.

[mayogodhelpus@gmail.com]

What's the point in a queen?

Or Mary McAleese?

This is.

Didn't bother reading. Is there a bit about what would happen if there was no queen or Mary McAleese?

Read it and you'll see. It'd be a bit hard to have a state without a head of state.

I agree with Hardstation, they do not provide any sort of check or balance to the chambers and governments anyway and rightly so.  In USA the President is Head of State and Head of Government- there is no good reason the PM and Taoiseach couldn't straddle both roles surely.

Well actually we better be careful removing both the Seanad and the President, we can remove one as long as we strenghten the other. I am for getting rid of the Seanad, so we need the President IMO.

[Hardy]

Some of Peter Quinn's statements:

- We cannot be prisoners of our past or allow that past to constrain our future.

- President McAleese is steeped in the GAA and was the first woman member of Queens GAA club. She has the interests of the GAA at heart.

- It's not a question of what the queen says. She's making a symbolic gesture. That's probably at the prompting of the president. If the President thinks this is a good thing, I trust her.

[Tubberman]

Some of Peter Quinn's statements:

- We cannot be prisoners of our past or allow that past to constrain our future.

- President McAleese is steeped in the GAA and was the first woman member of Queens GAA club. She has the interests of the GAA at heart.

- It's not a question of what the queen says. She's making a symbolic gesture. That's probably at the prompting of the president. If the President thinks this is a good thing, I trust her.

Mary Mc to become first bean-Uachtarán CLG?? 

[armaghniac]

- It's not a question of what the queen says. She's making a symbolic gesture. That's probably at the prompting of the president. If the President thinks this is a good thing, I trust her.

I think that Mary Mac's or Peter Quinn's judgement in the matter is likely to be sound. 

[Eamonnca1]

What's the point in a queen?

Or Mary McAleese?

This is.

Didn't bother reading. Is there a bit about what would happen if there was no queen or Mary McAleese?

Read it and you'll see. It'd be a bit hard to have a state without a head of state.

I agree with Hardstation, they do not provide any sort of check or balance to the chambers and governments anyway and rightly so.  In USA the President is Head of State and Head of Government- there is no good reason the PM and Taoiseach couldn't straddle both roles surely.

Who would you rather have had representing the country in a diplomatic role over the last few years? Biffo or Mary?

I think the last thing Ireland should be doing is concentrating more power in the hands of fewer people in the interests of "saving a bit of money".

And I don't know of any parliamentary system where the Prime Minister is also the head of state. Somebody has to have the final say over whether or not parliament is dissolved.

[Applesisapples]

I am quite impressed with the GAA administrations ability to wind up the Nordies. They take it to a whole new level 

Not all "Nordies" are wound up just as not all "Freestaters" will welcome Liz. I for one think it is a sign of maturity if GAA people North and South can welcome the Queen to Croker. It also offers the hand of friendship to those Irishmen North and South who hold her in high esteem.

What a load of shit.

Why is it a load of shit? Because it offers an alternative view to your own?

[Applesisapples]

Whilst this is clearly a sensitive subject, is it not likely that she's going there to mark or apologise for what happened there? It would be interesting to know who initiated this, but i'd doubt the Irish diplomats were forcing the visit.

As for the general opposition, primarily coming from the SF side of the house, how does this opposition fit in with the whole 'Unionist outreach' agenda? Is such opposition not perhaps counter-productive to the principal aims of the republican agenda?

Well said Maguire, I don't think SF are opposed, just not vocal in support...that will take a few more years.

[cadhlancian]

Interesting article in this months Irish herald Eamnon I see you like to use that term "Neanderthal , knuckledraggers at that also! Also, you say in this article that the queen is the head of state of a "friendly neighbouring country"? Since when?And to say that they apologised for various atrocities over the years is an understatement to say the very least! The great famine in ireland was genocide and had it happened in more recent times then the consequences would have been more difficult to live with. I wonder if other countries tried this approach i.e apologising for mass state murder/ genocide/ ethnic cleansing, would it would be as acceptable? Methinks not! And trust me , I saw as much as you did growing up, and while forgiveness is definetly the way forward, branding people with a "different" oppinion than your good self as being "cavemen" is wrong.

[Eamonnca1]

Interesting article in this months Irish herald Eamnon I see you like to use that term "Neanderthal , knuckledraggers at that also! Also, you say in this article that the queen is the head of state of a "friendly neighbouring country"? Since when?And to say that they apologised for various atrocities over the years is an understatement to say the very least! The great famine in ireland was genocide and had it happened in more recent times then the consequences would have been more difficult to live with. I wonder if other countries tried this approach i.e apologising for mass state murder/ genocide/ ethnic cleansing, would it would be as acceptable? Methinks not! And trust me , I saw as much as you did growing up, and while forgiveness is definetly the way forward, branding people with a "different" oppinion than your good self as being "cavemen" is wrong.

I didn't say that people with a different opinion to my own are cavemen. I said that the republican fundamentalists, including the people who shot Ronan Kerr, are "knuckle-dragging neanderthals" which I happen to think is a fair enough description. Please do not misrepresent me.

To answer your questions, Anglo-Irish relations were a bit rocky during the Thatcher/Haughey years but they improved a great deal after Tony Blair took office and took a more neutral approach to fixing the problems in the north. Today I would say that Anglo-Irish relations are pretty damn good and I'd be interested in hearing any evidence that you might have to the contrary.

You don't think it would be acceptable for any other country to apologize for genocide? I'm not so sure about that.