Enoch Burke turns up to school again despite sacking - read OP before posting

It's down to what his mother thinks about this. When you watch the way the family interact with her, it's obvious that she's very much calling the shots. Her kids are her envoys being sent out into the world to fight against the ills of modern living. If Enoch came home some day and said he didn't want to "turn up for work" any more, I don't think it'd go down well. We'll probably never know what his real thoughts are on this because he's still a puppet of his parents. They're egging Enoch, Ammi and Simeon on, despite all three needlessly destroying their careers.

It's a bit like Garda Vetting... if you've never been caught yet, your record will be clear!

Is Simeon still in prison?

The injunction is to stop him attending the school premises which isn't quite the same as being ordered to stay away. There's nothing that specifies a distance etc. that he has to stay away from the school. Can he be considered to be attending the school if he's standing outside of the gate? If outside of the school gate is a public place, he may not be attending the school as he is 'outside of the wall' so to speak. Again, as I've said earlier, that depends on whether outside of the gate is a public place or not.

I agree with most of the rest of your post such as the school playing the long game and letting the law deal with him. I think that's the correct way to play it.

What I don't agree with is your paragraph about the fear element. It's a stretch to say that Burke is the reason there's increased aggression towards trans/non binary people or the inspiration for the guys that beat up the kid in in Navan. Burke has never once hinted at violence towards trans people so while I disagree with Burke's actions, I can be objective enough to say that Burke is nothing like the people who beat up the kid in Navan because Burke has always been non-violent. There's been no reports whatsoever that he ever made any threats towards trans kids, never shouted at them, harassed them etc. The only people Burke got stroppy with were adults.

As an aside, trans people/gay people/most people that are a bit different have always been picked on. It's not right for sure and needs to be stopped but it was always there, Burke didn't create it. In the broad scheme of things, there's very few people supporting Burke's actions. Look at this thread for example, there's hardly 1% of posters supporting Burke. The vast vast majority don't agree with his actions.

Another point about attacks on trans people. The fact that there's far more trans people now than 30 years ago is probably why more incidents are happening, or at least coming to the public's attention. 30 years ago the only trans person I knew was Lydia Foy but now I know several. I'm saying this in jest (to make a serious point) but 30 years ago if I wanted to kick the crap out of a trans person, my only choice would be Lydia because she was the only trans person I knew. Nowadays, I'd have loads to choose from. Another way of putting it to further make the point is that there's far more muslims in Ireland now so attacks in Ireland on muslims is way up on what it was in 1066.

Anyway, what did you have for your tea? I'd mince meat, potatoes, peas and carrots. It was lovely.

Does whatever church they belong to have an equivalent of a bishop or whatever who might have a quiet word with him and tell him to cop himself on, or is the mother basically the supreme leader?

They are - as far as I know - members of the evangelical wing of the COI. Given their behaviour it may very well be the mother who is the "supreme leader"

There's an interesting interview with Mike Garde from Dialogue Ireland in the Sunday World. It's from last March but I've only seen it now. The gist of it is that they're a closed unit and a family group who aren't open to listening to outside opinions

What Penn said.

You'd need to look at the exact terms of the injunction to see what it forbids, but its very unlikely that its effect is in any way tied to exactly where the land boundary lies, or where the road reserve ends.

But an injunction is granted on application by someone (in this case, the school) who has a legitimate right or interest that needs protecting. It's then up to that someone to initiate enforcement of the injunction, if and when it's breached. If the person who it was granted to protect isn't looking to get it enforced it, the agents of the state aren't going to rush to enforce it.

So, if Enoch continues hanging around the school gate, the school has a decision to make; do we try to get a stop put to this with all the resultant fuss and attention and expense, and giving Enoch all the publicity and attention he craves, or do we put up with it as the lesser evil? It's a pragmatic decision for them to make, and which they are entitled to make with their own interests, and those of their students, in mind.

It'll be the summer holidays soon sure, Enoch will get a break. Or perhaps he'll continue to sit outside an empty school?

I hope he has been using sunblock these last few days!

I imagine it would not be unlike those evangelical services in the States; plenty of praying and banging on about how righteous they are and how they must serve God.

I often heard stories of a Mayo group of nuns who would head off to Dublin for the day. The passengers saying the rosary all the way, probably a good idea given the abilities of the driver.

(they were a teaching order and the beans were spilled by a lay teacher who got a lift the odd time).

Strike me as more akin to the Baptist Church, or Plymoth Breathern or some of the "Dippers".

What do you mean by the same sect? My understanding is that the school is a Church of Ireland school but that Enoch doesn't have any ties to the religion. The Burkes are a standalone religious cult who don't have any dealing with any other religious folk. He probably got the job there because he was a non-Catholic, rather than because he was some way connected to the C of I.

SFAIK the Burkes are not members of any church.

Alternatively, they have set up their own independent church, of which they are the only members.