Bad timing for Sinn Fein?

mike65 · 12-05-2009 10:07am #1

Two republicans, one of whom has strong SF connections have been arrested and are due to be charged today with laundering proceeds from the Northern Bank robbery. Both are Munster men. Will this have any measurable impact on SF candidates in the forthcoming elections?

I know the OP is suposed to have an opinion but I'm not sure if I do have one regarding impact. It should but will it?

Story here

Dyr · 12-05-2009 10:11am

Was'nt suprised when I heard it, the gardai usually lift a couple of shinners at election time. Not that it would be politically motivated of course

Joey the lips · 12-05-2009 10:18am

Bambi wrote: »

Was'nt suprised when I heard it, the gardai usually lift a couple of shinners at election time. Not that it would be politically motivated of course

Delighted someone else logical saw this! always happens every year! and guess what there will be no proof or something... Remember this brought down stormont years ago and still there was no proof, remember denis donaldson!No proof I can go on big fat yawn!!!!

Its blatent establishment electioneering and its sad but true it still goes on.

I could sit down and list the whole political theory behind it all but I have no doubt there is a gobsh1te waiting to tell me I am daft and they provide no proof to refute my facts!

Roll on June Fianna Fail is fcuked thank god!!!!

blinding · 12-05-2009 10:19am

Hopefully the Gardai will lift All of Fianna Fail for institutionalised corruption or will they just continue to turn a blind eye.

Joey the lips · 12-05-2009 10:25am

blinding wrote: »

Hopefully the Gardai will lift All of Fianna Fail for institutionalised corruption or will they just continue to turn a blind eye.

That will actually improve fianna fails vote surprising becuase of course the garda ombudsman would agree it was overhanded and the garda repremanded and they get the sympathetic vote. Holy sh1t there is a good streategy!!!!

Permabear · 12-05-2009 11:08am

This post has been deleted.

Jesus1222 · 12-05-2009 11:14am

I'm certainly no Sinn Féin supporter but haven't they decomissioned their weapons and formally announced that their war is over? They're at the step before disbanding.

Pontificating adds nothing to debates, imo.

nuttz · 12-05-2009 11:24am

Bambi wrote: »

Was'nt suprised when I heard it, the gardai usually lift a couple of shinners at election time. Not that it would be politically motivated of course

I'm not entirely convinced this was the motive for their arrest. The case against Ted Cunningham only finished last month, I would imagine that the Gardai were waiting to see how that case panned out first, before proceeding against these two. Is it possible that Mr Cunningham gave them some info?

Nodin · 12-05-2009 11:28am

donegalfella wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

'was', I think you mean.

irishgrover · 12-05-2009 11:39am

Bambi wrote: »

Was'nt suprised when I heard it, the gardai usually lift a couple of shinners at election time. Not that it would be politically motivated of course

In fairness to Sinn Fein members, they tend to get arrested for various alleged offenses throughout the whole year..., it's just more noticeable at higher profile times

Joey the lips · 12-05-2009 11:46am

donegalfella wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

:rolleyes: that olive branch is well and truly beaten. This is so old and so boreing its almost as trip as compareing Labour to the official IRA

Get back to topic you pooor pooor fianna failer

Joey the lips · 12-05-2009 11:50am

irishgrover wrote: »

In fairness to Sinn Fein members, they tend to get arrested for various alleged offenses throughout the whole year..., it's just more noticeable at higher profile times

In fairness, Examples! Is this afterhours! I think so! this has more speculation than the property market! I really love a daft thread on a tuesday!

mike65 · 12-05-2009 11:52am

Joey the lips, last time I checked you were not a Politics Mod.

Interyurauldone · 12-05-2009 11:52am

nuttz wrote: »

I'm not entirely convinced this was the motive for their arrest. The case against Ted Cunningham only finished last month, I would imagine that the Gardai were waiting to see how that case panned out first, before proceeding against these two. Is it possible that Mr Cunningham gave them some info?

I think you're right, Cunningham spilled the beans which led to these arrests.

But I can understand where people are coming from regarding Sinn Fein members getting arrested. Martin Ferris was arrested in the run up to the GE in 2007 on a suspicion of drink driving, only to be found innocent when the blood/urine results came back.

Dyr · 12-05-2009 11:53am

irishgrover wrote: »

In fairness to Sinn Fein members, they tend to get arrested for various alleged offenses throughout the whole year..., it's just more noticeable at higher profile times

I demand figures on sinn fein members being tried or convicted on "official" business in the last calendar year

Joey the lips · 12-05-2009 12:01pm

mike65 wrote: »

Joey the lips, last time I checked you were not a Politics Mod.

Now with all due respect which translates to you support daft comments like that. Why dont you just retitle the thread! This is political discussion! Has the GFA been forgotten. Is everybody going to do an Ian Paisley and beat sinn fein with the IRA forever or start talking politics

By the way as I said, Proof has been lacking so far!

Permabear · 12-05-2009 12:04pm

This post has been deleted.

irishgrover · 12-05-2009 12:10pm

Joey the lips wrote: »

In fairness, Examples! Is this afterhours! I think so! this has more speculation than the property market! I really love a daft thread on a tuesday!

seriously Joey, do I really need to do a Google search, compile a list of dates, and complete an analysis on statistic clusters or otherwise of Sinn Fein members arrests for alleged offenses.... my point was that it would appear to me that members of Sinn Fein have in recent years been arrested more often than say members of the Greens, or any other 'mainstream' political party I know of in this jurisdiction, and that their arrests are not strictly limited to periods close to elections, and therefore the impact of the arrests will probably have limited impact on their core vote..
Members of Sinn Fein being arrested is nothing new..

Do you really or honestly think that this is not the case?

mike65 · 12-05-2009 12:12pm

Joey the lips wrote: »

By the way as I said, Proof has been lacking so far!

Well if they are charged then proof will need to be produced so we'll have to wait eh?

Joey the lips · 12-05-2009 12:37pm

donegalfella wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

It was a juxta position of methaphors ie beating a dead horse and that olive branch has been handed

I am not getting into the english language I am Irish after all thanks!

and I am not ordering anybody around and it was not me who went completly off topic

You must agree but what is this doing in politics for such a daft comment!

There is no where to go but argue!! why talk!

Joey the lips · 12-05-2009 12:38pm

irishgrover wrote: »

seriously Joey, do I really need to do a Google search, compile a list of dates, and complete an analysis on statistic clusters or otherwise of Sinn Fein members arrests for alleged offenses.... my point was that it would appear to me that members of Sinn Fein have in recent years been arrested more often than say members of the Greens, or any other 'mainstream' political party I know of in this jurisdiction, and that their arrests are not strictly limited to periods close to elections, and therefore the impact of the arrests will probably have limited impact on their core vote..
Members of Sinn Fein being arrested is nothing new..

Do you really or honestly think that this is not the case?

You said it!!!! and i say electioneering always thanks

irishgrover · 12-05-2009 12:43pm

Joey the lips wrote: »

You said it!!!! always thanks

Yes, I said alleged offenses, which is exactly the same phrase I used in my initial post, which I still stand over completely and still fail to see what your issue is with it?

the_syco · 12-05-2009 12:54pm

donegalfella wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

On the one hand, they support ex-terrorists, and the people who dislike SF remember this. On the other hand, the current freedom fighters reject them, as they've gone soft, and accept money from the crown, so they've lost some of te hardcore people. And the rest are sheep who thing that SF in power will be good, and not just f**k up the ecomony worse with their stupid corpo tax rates.

As for the lads arrested, Tom Hanlon got nabbed back in 2005 for more of the same http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ireland/1483878/2.3m-in-bags-linked-to-IRA-money-laundering.html

MikeC101 · 12-05-2009 2:24pm

the_syco wrote: »

On the one hand, they support ex-terrorists, and the people who dislike SF remember this. On the other hand, the current freedom fighters reject them, as they've gone soft, and accept money from the crown, so they've lost some of te hardcore people. And the rest are sheep who thing that SF in power will be good, and not just f**k up the ecomony worse with their stupid corpo tax rates.

As for the lads arrested, Tom Hanlon got nabbed back in 2005 for more of the same http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ireland/1483878/2.3m-in-bags-linked-to-IRA-money-laundering.html

Some good points.

I think it's a big problem for Sinn Fein in trying to become a truly legitimate political party this side of the border. On the one hand some of their support does seem to be people (I know a few) who like saying things like "Up the Ra" and "get the brits out of our country" and don't really seem to think any further than that. On the other there's also a young, socialist element to their support too. It's got to be hard trying to reconcile the two.

In my opinion it'll take a few more generations before Sinn Fein have moved far enough away from the PIRA for me to even begin to consider giving them a vote.

Joey the lips · 12-05-2009 2:39pm

MikeC101 wrote: »

Some good points.

I think it's a big problem for Sinn Fein in trying to become a truly legitimate political party this side of the border. On the one hand some of their support does seem to be people (I know a few) who like saying things like "Up the Ra" and "get the brits out of our country" and don't really seem to think any further than that. On the other there's also a young, socialist element to their support too. It's got to be hard trying to reconcile the two.

In my opinion it'll take a few more generations before Sinn Fein have moved far enough away from the PIRA for me to even begin to consider giving them a vote.

IMO that has been my experience too.But you have to admit those canvassing for votes obv feel they are in with a chance.

nesf · 12-05-2009 3:03pm

Joey the lips wrote: »

:rolleyes: that olive branch is well and truly beaten. This is so old and so boreing its almost as trip as compareing Labour to the official IRA

Get back to topic you pooor pooor fianna failer

Joey the lips wrote: »

In fairness, Examples! Is this afterhours! I think so! this has more speculation than the property market! I really love a daft thread on a tuesday!

Less of the backseat moderation please. You don't have the right to dictate how others post on here.

FTA69 · 12-05-2009 3:42pm

MikeC101 wrote: »

Some good points.

On the one hand some of their support does seem to be people (I know a few) who like saying things like "Up the Ra" and "get the brits out of our country" and don't really seem to think any further than that. On the other there's also a young, socialist element to their support too. It's got to be hard trying to reconcile the two.

The former crowd are a very small minority and the vast majority of them don't even bother voting. Sinn Féin's core support comes from normal working class people in urban and border areas, the whole "Celtic supporter in the pub" thing is simply an ignorant stereotype.

MikeC101 · 12-05-2009 4:02pm

FTA69 wrote: »

The former crowd are a very small minority and the vast majority of them don't even bother voting. Sinn Féin's core support comes from normal working class people in urban and border areas, the whole "Celtic supporter in the pub" thing is simply an ignorant stereotype.

Based on the people I know who vote for, and are members of (one is a councillor) Sinn Fein there seems to be some truth in it, at least in the areas I'm familiar with. While I haven't done extensive research on it, it does seem to hold up fairly well in my area.

However, dismissing that with a claim of "ignorant stereotyping" is a nice and easy way to to finish off an argument without any need for factual input on your behalf.

nesf · 12-05-2009 4:13pm

FTA69 wrote: »

The former crowd are a very small minority and the vast majority of them don't even bother voting. Sinn Féin's core support comes from normal working class people in urban and border areas, the whole "Celtic supporter in the pub" thing is simply an ignorant stereotype.

I've known three types of SF supporter. The "Celtic supporter in the pub", the young socialist and finally the moderate Republican who genuinely wants to see a peaceful progression to a 32 country State.

Whisko · 12-05-2009 4:27pm

The 32 country state is the solution to all our problems. Id never want to share a country with u cork ones

Can'tseeme · 12-05-2009 4:31pm

Since the ceasefire and the GFA, Sinn Fein have pulled in huge numbers of SDLP supporters in the north who became disilusioned with the party, especially young nationalists.

Bad timing for Sinn Fein?

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