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

I don't think they can, as he;s not convicted of anything.

He is a prisoner.

No matter what any of us think about Enoch he is definitely true to his beliefs and going to prison a second time doesn't seem to make him change his mind. Mad and all as we think they are they are still sticking to their guns. Martyrs to the cause. I'd love to be a fly on the wall in their house to hear the conversations.

I said it early on he wants to be the martyr, he wants to create noise. The fines are an irrelevance to Burke, jail is welcomed by Burke. He is doing this in the name of a cause. Considering the subject matter it is ironic.

As it is a cause that his own identity is wrapped up in his own religious beliefs. In his view he would not be true to himself, and how he identifies himself.

But in doing so how now made it extremely difficult for more sane voices to ask questions about the viability/practicalities and myriad of other issues of the supposed route cause of the issue at hand. Such as mental health, body image, psychology, confusion over sexuality and so on, even the simple use of everyday language for childen/adults/people - all this will be put on the back burner.

Because in Ireland any individual who attempts to even debate the issue will be called an 'Enoch Burke'. And discussion will be shut down.

It will completely negate any future discussion as a result, and instead people will nod and smile politely playing the game instead, just to be nice not wanting to cause any controversy wether they believe in the root cause or not.

But it is not be built on any solid foundations in my opinion. Which is more the pity.

Can't we just leave in Mountjoy or one of the other prisons until he purges his contempt?

If he doesn't... leave him there .. he'll soon be forgotten except by his cult like family and other ultra conservatives...

Much as I'd like to agree, there's unintended consequences to that approach.

Our prisons are at capacity, which means it's likely some other scumbag who beats up and robs an old lady will be given a suspended sentence, and let back out on the streets to continue scumbagging, as there will be no place in prison available.

If anyone is wondering why someone has been allowed to defy injunctions laid down by a court of law for so long with no repercussions (fines were an easy way out) the answer is simple.

While it is true that Mr. Burke was imprisoned for breaking the injunctions set over his behaviour at the school this cannot be divorced from the original cause of his behaviour, his belief that a boy cannot turn into a girl. With so many thugs/criminals/feral scrotes with hundreds of convictions walking the streets because there are no spaces left in the prisons the last thing the Authorities wanted is to have him back in prison. However, they now had no choice when the school finally decided enough was enough.

If ever a "cause" was handled very badly this is it. All Mr. Burke had to do, when the original instruction was given to teachers re the pupil in question, was to go quietly to the Head and explain that he would not be complying because he didn't agree with the idealogy and his religious beliefs didn't concur either........and then leave the room quietly. The ball was then firmly back in the school's court. The issue would not be in the public domain because they wouldn't have dared to sack him over that. I could be wrong but, if memory serves me correctly, the pupil was not even in a class he taught?

I'd love to know what dialogue took place between the headmistress of the school and Enoch after the main incident when he heckled her. Did she challenge his beliefs or just dismiss them? Has anyone challenged his beliefs? Is he the type of person that you could have a discussion with? The fact that he was described by many as a great teacher and had gone through all his training and college without any trouble doesn't really fit in with his reaction to this school directive on how the transgender child was to be treated.

I posted an IT article of him protesting outside of the Dail about 10 years ago along with his family - reading the reported quotes from Enoch will give you an idea of just what he’s capable of saying - don’t have time to find it right now but if you think hell fire and brimstone for homosexuals along with inferences to AIDS and whatnot and you’ll get the picture

here it is

https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/people/small-voices-that-go-unheard-1.620163

I guess that the core issue is that the family believe that their beliefs override the rule of law in the state so as someone mentioned before we are going to be in a "rince and repeat" cycle. Probably with more family members going down the same path...

I often get the feeling with this family that one will eventually break away from their brainwashed existence and perhaps things may change then...

I wish someone would buy him a new tie. I'm so sick of the stripey one. I've only once seen him wear a different tie.

He likes standing outside in all weathers so maybe he could camp?

Part of the problem is that the court has two mechanisms that it can use to enforce orders. Fines and imprisonment. We need to have greater leeway in this.

Indeed. Also this one:

There is a whole thread on the Burkes at NUIG here: