Shannon Peace Protest 24th September 2005

by A10 Mon Sep 26, 2005 13:50

So THREEquotes one from a USMC SGTof it being used in combat.
Second a suggestion of use,not an actual use in combat.
third a quote from the first gulf action.
All three are military actions.

And where are the supposedly CIVILLIAN attacks???
I await to hear from you?

by Michael Mon Sep 26, 2005 11:08

To answer your claim, A10, that the blu-82 is used for clearing woodlands, here's another quotation from a U.S. military website:


Allied coalition psy-warriors captured the Iraqi soldier’s attention using dramatic methods.

"We would tell them that tomorrow we would drop on them the biggest bomb we had," recalls Jones. "Then, exactly as promised, we dropped a ‘Daisy Cutter’ (BLU-82) that looks like a small atom bomb detonating. The next time we said we were going to drop another big one like that, the defections increased dramatically.

"One Iraqi soldier came across clutching 343 safe conduct passes he had been collecting. We found over 52 percent of defectors had been listening to our broadcasts."

At the same time, American Forces Network’s radio broadcasts had the respect and credibility it lacked in Vietnam. Instead of doctoring the news by re-editing, the Gulf War AFN gave the troops exactly the same news civilians heard back home — rebroadcasts of AP, ABC, NBC, CBS and CNN news on the hour.

by Michael Mon Sep 26, 2005 11:02

A10, searching with the Google query "daisy-cutter afghanistan site:.mil" (no quotation marks) returned more than a few links to U.S. military webpages reporting the use of BLU-82 bombs in Afghanistan.

Example 1:
Document: A Year of Enduring Freedom
Military Operations
By Gunnery Sgt. Charles Portman, USMC
U.S. Central Command Public Affairs

Quotation:
In the battle at Tora Bora, “we are dropping earth-penetrating bombs,” Franks said. “We call them JDAMs (Joint Direct Attack Munition). We're dropping laser-guided bombs, and we have dropped what we call BLU-82, the daisy cutter-a 15,000-pound munition,” he said.

Link: http://www.defendamerica.mil/articles/oct2002/a100702a.html


Example 2:
Document: DoD News
DoD News Briefing - Deputy Secretary Wolfowitz and Rear Adm. Stufflebeem December 2001

Quotation:
Q: Mr. Secretary, why use the daisy cutter in Tora Bora? Is that a precursor to any larger U.S. presence there?

Wolfowitz: I'll let Admiral Stufflebeem take that one.

Stufflebeem: Well, I think General Franks would have a couple of good reasons why to use a weapon of that size. One is that there is a psychological effect of having a munition of 15,000 pounds of explosive capability that's brought into a very narrowly defined area. This cave complex is literally on the sheer walls of a valley, and therefore, the reverberation effect that goes up in those caves should have some kind of a negative effect. (Laughter.)

And the other -- the other would be just the obvious effect of the high explosive yield. It was -- it was at a target, at a cave target, and that cave target should no longer be usable for anybody to get in or out of.

Link: http://www.defenselink.mil/transcripts/2001/t12102001_t1210dsd.html


So again, A10, please take just a moment to check YOUR facts (it took me about 2 seconds to find those links using Google) before going on the attack against other Indymedia contributors.

by A10 Sat Sep 24, 2005 22:40

If that is all we can muster,compared with the three THOUSAND pre Gulf war 2.Maybe this is saying somthing...
Organised by Labour as well according to RTE news .Somone stealing everyones limelight.

BTW ED for somone who is supposedly concerned on facts you are remarkably ignorant of any knowledge of the military hardware that is supposedly going thru Shannon.As well as being remarkably ignorant of international law of arms transport and the ins and outsof moving mutions on international flag carriers of foregin countries.Not to mind the ignorance of what type of weapons are issued to the US GI. A perusal of some military manuals and knowledge of your "enemy" would give you more credence as to what you are talking about instead of emotive sweeping generalisations.

You quote that C130s have been used as bombers and have killed hundreds of children in Afghanistan,and then say the information is available for all to see.Well I guess I am thick as I cant find any of this could you give us a time,date and location to back up this spurious claim???
Also where has a C130 been used as a bomber??And please dont bring up the old "daisy cutter"nonsense.As not ONE of them has been used in Iraq or afghanistan ,as it is a JUNGLE clearing device.

by Mark C - Teacher Wed Sep 21, 2005 12:35

Does anyone have a name of someone at the newsdesk to contact about the above? I've emailed them, and not yet received a reply, but I'd prefer to email someone a little less anonymous than "To Whom It May Concern:"

Thanks,
Regards,
Mark.

by Dr. Coilín Oscar ÓhAiseadha Wed Sep 21, 2005 00:22

newsdesk@rte.ie

I have recently written to the above and to complaints@rte.ie to insist that RTE do its duty by people like me, current TV licence holders who are insulted and offended on several counts by the abuse of Shannon airport for inhumane and illegal purposes, including the transport of troops to the war in Iraq and of CIA abductees bound for various places of torture.

Please send e-mail messages to the RTE newsdesk to emphasise - politely, please! - that hundreds of thousands of viewers will want to see and hear about the peace demo on the news on Saturday evening.

As a peace-loving citizen, a patriotic Irishman, a tax-payer and a medical doctor, I certainly will.

As the representatives of the vast majority of Irish people who detest the ongoing abuse of the facilities at Shannon, those demonstrating deserve coverage on the national channel.

Best regards,
Coilín.

by Michael Tue Sep 06, 2005 01:33

Hi there anarcho-type,
Something tells me you're either a journalist or a garda trying to stir shit up.... but just in case you mean what I think you're trying to say -- that you think SNN should be disrupted by force -- I'd ask you now PLEASE not to do anything stupid during the protest on Sept 24th.

If you want to do something at SNN involving direct action, please do so only once:
(a) You're not with people who might get arrested or hurt with you, and weren't prepared or even consulted first.
(b) You're so familiar with the place, with your own reason for being there, with your own limits (skill, risk, legal stuff, etc.), that you could almost work on "auto pilot".
(c) You're fully prepared.
(d) You're really, really fully prepared. :-)

There's been shamefully little resistance at SNN in years, and only a handful have kept vigil there off and on. Fair enough, about 30 or so activists are banned from SNN, the town, or even the entire county. But if only 5% of the Dublin anarchists and students against the war took more time to disrupt military refueling at SNN and other airfields, we'd be in much better shape. Most people have other important stuff to do, I understand, but 5%-10% surely isn't too ambitious?

Anarcho-type, if you're just a shit-stirring jerno/agent please give it a rest. If you're serious, then please just take the time on Sept 24th to scout out the area and improve your knowledge (and ours here please!!) of the current situation at SNN: Trade unions, foreign and Irish troop numbers, overnight stopovers, perimeter fence security, buildings, supplies, etc...

by anarcho-type Tue Aug 30, 2005 18:40

the continuing impotence of the anti-war movement in Ireland shows the need for militant direct action in the confrontation of the State's complicity in US imperialism.

As anarchists, we must show solidarity with the class-based resistance in Iraq (but not the jihadists or pan-Arab nationalists) and their desire to fight against the oppression of the US and of Islamic authoritarianism.

This means that we must directly challenge the use of Shannon as a warbase through militant action. This means that we challenge the State's monopoly on violence through our desire to protect ourselves and to fight with the exploited throughout the world.

Our militancy must be international and our willingness to confront the repressive apparatuses of the Irish must be thorough and consistent.

As we travel down to Shannon on the 24th we must be aware that a rock concerts, speeches and marches are impotent and disempowering. the only way to confront the violence of the State is by challenging its legitimacy and by refusing to submit to its brutality. we must be prepared to confront the war in Iraq and to fight with the exploited everywhere, against the ruling classes and their servants.

A call for militant solidarity against the war!

by roger cole - Peace & Neutrality Alliance Thu Aug 25, 2005 19:30 pana at eircom dot net 01-2351512

PANA organised its first demonstration at Shannon airport in May 2002 and have organised or participated in several demonstrations at the airport since.
It is not clear which deonstration refered to in which the estates were "invaded". But in the last one PANA helped to organise, we agreed to go door to door asking people to sign a petition calling for the use of Shannon airport in this illegal imperialist war for oil be terminated.
Asking people to sign a petition is up to now has been a perfectly legitimate political activity and I have helped to do so in many political campaigns over 35 years of political involvement. Never before had police followed us around as they did in Shannon on that occasion. It was a deliberate effort of the police to intimidate us and more particularly the residents. Apart from the Irish Examiner this use of state power to intimidate people involved in an exclusively peaceful and democratic process was completely ignored by the Irish media which virtually without exception is totally supportive of this imperialist war. Indymedia is one of the very few outlets though which anti-war activists can inform people of their political activities. Ed Horgan is leading the PANA contribution to the anti-war demonstration in Shannon and PANA hopes as many people as possible go there on the 24th of September.
However not verybody can make it so PANA is also organising a vigil outside the US Embassy in Dublin on the same day from 2.00pm.
The reason why we have picked the 24th of Sept is because on that day the United for Peace and Justice group in the US is holding a major demo in Washington. This is important because PANA is not participating in an anti-american demo. We are participating in an anti-imperialist demo in solidarity with Americans and may other people throughout the word on that day. It is only the supporters of Imperialism like Ahern and Harney that call PANA "anti-American" or "anti-European"

by Hdward Eorgan Wed Aug 24, 2005 16:32

Ciaran,

Were u there when RBB decided to invade the housing estate and bring cops on horses, on bikes, in vans on foot in the air etc up to peoples doorsteps, where u there when "protesters" shouted vile abuse at the gardai for doing their jobs even when one of the speakers told the crowd that the cops were only doing their jobs and we shouldnt abuse them. Were u there when the shannon industrial estate rang with the cries of "all we are saying is give bush a chance"

I live down here, support for the war in iraq is non existent, support for whats happening is shannon is divided but support for demos like the one which will take place this week is absolutely non existent, just count the number of shannon residents who will take part, face up to it, intimidation on demos will not get u anywhere

by Ciaran - iawm Wed Aug 24, 2005 16:14

Sorry HDWARd but i was also there at shannon the last time and support was split about 50-50 between those shannon residents who supported the anti-war cause and those who were hostile. Not so different to anywhere else in the country.

by Hdward Eorgan Wed Aug 24, 2005 16:05

Sorry for the post earlier but in reality there is no interest and any protest will alienate ordinary people, I was at a protest in Shannon this year where the organisers (RBB IAWM) decided to decend on a housing estate in shannon brining all the cops in clare with them. We lost all our public support, at the garda barricade the foul mouthed abuse delivered by some people was disgusting and the only comment we got from a shannon resident was someone singing "all we are saying is give bush a chance"

i rest my case, sure go ahead with the demo and alienate yourselves again in reality u r only doing the governemnt a favour

by clockwatcher Wed Aug 24, 2005 15:01

If you have any further details, time of protests, etc. please put those details here.

by Edward Horgan - PANA, MAMA Tue Aug 23, 2005 18:57

Thanks Damien and Mark for your input.
A CW peace camp at Bunratty sounds a good idea. MAMA group in Limerick will assist with event on Friday 23rd.
Please make contact with other groups around the country and ask them to initiate plans for the Shannon weekend around 24th Sept also.

by Mark C - Teacher Tue Aug 23, 2005 14:14 mark at markconroy dot net

I'm prepared to drive from Portlaoise if anyone would like to be picked up on the way email me.

Mark.

by Damien Moran (Personal Capacity) - Dublin Catholic Worker/Pitstop Ploughshares Tue Aug 23, 2005 02:00 ploughsharesireland at yahoo dot ie Bunratty Castle c/o Durty Nellies 087 9638398

Thanks for the above Ed and your continuing vigilance and challenge to us all.

The three Pitstop Ploughshares currently in Ireland, Damien, Deirdre, and Ciaron, will hold a solidarity vigil from 12 noon at the main Bunratty Castle bridge on Saturday September 24th.
Why not SHannon itslef? To have easy access to toilets and a cup of tea at Durty Nellies?

No!

Unfortunately we cannot join you folks at Shannon as we are still banned from a 5 mile radius after having our initial ban from the whole County of Clare overturned last year. We continue to sign on once a week at our local Garda stations.

On previous occasions when the Peace Movement have returned to Ireland's pitstop for the US military, we have gathered in a public space on the Limerick-Ennis dual carriage-way island to greet demonstrators en route and to display our clear opposition to the imperial-logistics supportive shenanigans occuring nearby.

We would like to co-host a day/evening event in Limerick on Friday, Sept. 23rd, and hope it could give an opportunity for locals to engage this issue and also to show all or some of our 35 minute trial documentary, produced after our trial collapsed last March at Dublin's Four Courts. We have a re-trial Oct. 24th. (See www.peaceontrial.com)

Are there any groups/individuals who would be interested in helping out with this event? Have college folks returned to studies by then?
This may provide a good forum for people to gather and discuss possible tactics/strategies for the demo. the next day or minimally build a sense of community and solidarity in the event of any arrests before/during the demo.

I will make further inquiries as to an appropriate venue and post in due course our options.

La lutta continua

by w - exDissent Mon Aug 22, 2005 23:18 dissentireland at yahoo dot com 0877412431

if anyone is interested in helping to do a libertarian bus to this from Dublin get in touch.

by Ciaran - IAWM Mon Aug 22, 2005 12:46

Hi
We're orgnising bus transport for the sept 24th protest from Dublin and elswhere. Here's a list of contacts for the buses so far but we are also hoping to be running buses from other towns and cities. You can ring our office at 8727912 to book a place for anywhere not listed or any of the numbers below

Cheers

Ciaron
iawm



North Dublin: Tel 087 2839964
Dun Laoghaire: Tel 087 2703564
Dublin South City: Tel 087 6650442
Dublin West: Tel 087 6838746
Belfast: Tel 004477 425 31617

by Michael Mon Aug 22, 2005 11:18

On the ball as usual indeed. Great work Ed.

Anyone care to hazard (the almost impossible) guess at numbers for Shannon??

It would have been much bigger in Dublin but I guess having it in Shannon is overall more effective.

The governments continued poster/democracy ban is not helping the publicising of Shannon but I know great publicity work is being done regardless around the country.

Lets hope we can a large crowd down there with plenty of media attention. Spread the word everyone.

Every single person counts.

by Eoin Sun Aug 21, 2005 18:16

Good man Ed, on the ball as usual. I'll do my best to make it to the demo.

by Mark C - Teacher Sun Aug 21, 2005 17:21 mark at markconroy dot net

This will not be an anti-American protes? Of course it is an anti-American protest. Isn't that who started and continues the occupation of Iraq (and Shannon)? This will be an anti-Irish government protest as well as, and must be, an anti-American protest.

See you on the 24th.

Mark.

by Edward Horgan - PANA Sun Aug 21, 2005 13:03

Each soldier passing through Shannon carries on M 16 automatic rifle or its equivalent. and an automatic pistol. The ammunitiion for these weapons, amounting to tens of thousands of bullets are also carried on the chartered aircraft that pass through Shannon daily. Check out the weight of these items and do your sums. I know these facts because of documents I discovered from the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs during the high court case Horgan v Ireland et al, in March 2003. Incidentially the judge in this case, Judge Kearns, found that Ireland was contravening international laws on neutrality due to US use of Shannon airport.
In addition to the individual weapons carred by over 300,000 US soldiers through Shannon, cargo aircraft, both military and chartered civilian aircraft are also carrying of munitions through Shannon. This was also confirmed by Brian Cowen, in January 2003 in a Dail statement. A warplane is a munition of war, particulalry when it is carrying explosive devices, or is being used for war making purposes. How much does a Hercules C 130 weigh, of a Globemaster C 17, and how many of these are passing though Shannon each week? I know this because I was arrested for taking a photograph of a Hercules at Shannon on 4th March 2005, even though I was in a public place when arrested.
Hercules aircraft have been used as bombers and close airsupport ground attack aircraft in both Afghanistan and Iraq, and have been know to have participated in the killing of innocent children in isolated villages in Afghanistan. All this information is there to be found for those who do not walk around blindfolded. I have specificaly requested the Gardai at Shannon to search several different US aircraft at Shannon airport for munitions and dangerous weapons. The tone of your anonomous question suggests you may be one of those gardai, or an apoligist on their behalf.
I have not had the opportunity to weigh the munitions passing through Shannon, but does matter much whether it is one bullet that kills one two year old child, or one hundred tons of munitions?

by Michael Sun Aug 21, 2005 12:55

Good luck -- I'll be looking out for you!

Ed's call to action deserves a proper response from activists here on Indymedia, and on Sept 24th at Shannon Airport. The great protest at Rossport is a sign that solidarity, energy and vision are in no short supply. We can make a difference!

This is about IRELAND'S role in the so-called "war on terrorism", and the Iraq war in particular. At another level it's also about US foreign policy, but first and foremost it's about our country, our airports, and our ability to change.

I have the feeling that the airport authorities at Shannon are determined to stop at nothing until there is a bomb or armed attack against them. Judging from the recent record, the terrorists will most likely strike first at an easy target like innocent civilian workers or tourists.

Peace activists shouldn't accept the accounting of either Aer Rianta or Al Qaeda -- but if we don't organise again, it'll be blood money (U.S. war) or blood (terrorist attach victims) at Shannon Airport.

by Curious Sun Aug 21, 2005 08:23

Mr Horgan, I would like to know what proof you have that there is as you say hundreds of tons of munitions passing through Shannon every week ?