Comments on The Pensive Quill: Grave Desecration

Could be worse Larry you could have been an electi...

2011-02-24T19:10:05.597Z

Could be worse Larry you could have been an election register worker in Derry early 80,s

marty im glad i wasnt a postman in the 'Ogram&...

2011-02-24T16:45:32.409Z

marty
im glad i wasnt a postman in the 'Ogram' stone-age of communication!!

Interested its in the tradition of our ancestors ...

2011-02-24T10:09:36.992Z

Interested its in the tradition of our ancestors they erected cairns and stone circles,built New Grange in memory of the ancestors, so the question I would put to you is should the actions of a few thugs break atradition that goes back to the stone ages

Interested, probably the greatest reason is to h...

2011-02-24T08:20:54.090Z

Interested,

probably the greatest reason is to honour someone they cherished dearly. For them it is a marker as a mark of respect.

Thanks, AM and clan, for a moving tribute. Not muc...

2011-02-24T04:08:09.892Z

Thanks, AM and clan, for a moving tribute. Not much to add to the chorus of outrage at such petty vandalism, just a great sigh and &(*&%.

For chrissake Interested its only a small bench in...

2011-02-24T00:31:17.645Z

For chrissake Interested its only a small bench in the middle of the Cooley Mountains, what possibly could be so offensive about that?

AM My question or query was why do some people fe...

2011-02-23T22:34:52.227Z

AM
My question or query was why do some people feel the need to erect monuments in the first place

Interested, the reason Brendan's bench was p...

2011-02-23T20:37:01.881Z

Interested,

the reason Brendan's bench was put in the Cooley's is because his ashes are there. If the logic is applied that monuments are kept away from people who will take offence there is virtually nowhere they could be put. The North would be out of bounds for sure.

Jim,

that could be so. It never really struck me that the Shinners were behind it. The history of vandalism might point to an explanation.

They can smash monuments but never his legend. Per...

2011-02-22T21:57:18.423Z

They can smash monuments but never his legend. Personally I find The Dark a total inspiration. I'm always going back to Voices and reading bits from it. Essential reading to see how the once great republican movement was undone by political artifice

I completely and utterly condemn anyone anywhere t...

2011-02-22T18:35:29.197Z

I completely and utterly condemn anyone anywhere that desecrates any memorial to any person or persons.
But why do people feel the need to put up these type of monuments is something I would have trouble understanding. As most people on here would know that Brendan Hughes was and is very proud of being a member of the IRA. That said not everybody would support him or his actions. But why or for what reason was the said monument erected in the Cooley Mountains in an area were Jean Mc Conville and Tom Oliver was brought to their final resting place which would be seen by many as rubbing salt into the wounds of the already hurt people . Many people would see the erection of the monument as distasteful as Gerry Adams running for TD. Amazing how life has brought these two men back into the spotlight of the Cooley Mountains, now they want to be remembered were as 40 years ago they would have dealt severely with anyone who had any thoughts about using their name.

As I said on another thread would it not be better...

2011-02-22T17:01:54.207Z

As I said on another thread would it not be better to make it harder for the scumbags by placing the monument on up where the present one stands?

I would someday like to see that plot cleared and a garden of remembrance, which incorporates the wee ruined cottage, put in place with proper fencing.

Much as it saddens my heart to hear of such an act...

2011-02-22T12:43:54.738Z

Much as it saddens my heart to hear of such an act , I find it incredibly naive that anything erected or placed in memory of "The Dark" would not have at sometime been vandalised.The hatred has not gone away you know.It will be many a year before such memorials can be openly displayed throughout the country and not only in the ghettoised areas of the Occupied Six Counties.

Marty the need for a sledgehammer might indicate l...

2011-02-22T11:49:34.516Z

Marty
the need for a sledgehammer might indicate local resentment. On the other hand, those 'socialising' between Newry and Carlingford may have slung a sledge into the car before heading out for the night, with the bench in mind. There are plenty of provo haters all over the place, those that did it may have had no idea of Brendan's more recent stance and probably care even less.
Probably the same louts that wreck the 'viewpoint' regularly.

Larry mo cara I doubt drink is the reason for thes...

2011-02-22T09:14:58.279Z

Larry mo cara I doubt drink is the reason for these acts of vandalism, anyone well pissed isnt going to be luggin a sledge around with them, the destruction which Jim speaks of strikes me like a premeditated act of wanton destruction. and if its a continuing problem then in this high tech age it would be easy to observe and identify these vandals,and then they should be dealt with in a suitable manner,

Agree Jim pure vandalism by drunks on the trawl i&...

2011-02-22T01:08:05.225Z

Agree Jim
pure vandalism by drunks on the trawl i'd bet.

Disgusting.

2011-02-21T22:44:44.440Z

Disgusting.

Last week's Argus newspaper in a front page ar...

2011-02-21T21:43:11.363Z

Last week's Argus newspaper in a front page article on the destruction made the point that Sinn Féin may not have been all that pleased when the bench was erected because in reminding people of Brendan it was reminding them of Adams and some of the more unsavoury moments of our republican history.
There Are also families in the general area who would be less than enamoured with republican iconography but the real answer may well be more stark and in line with your last point ,"Hardly the benchmark of meaningful lives." because not far away is Flagstaff, above Fathom, and there, fine granite tables and benches are smashed to bits on a regular basis for sheer vandalism. I take people up there on occasions throughout the year to show them the beautiful view of the Cooleys, the Mournes and Carlingford Lough in the middle with the hills of South Armagh behind and the Belfast hills away to the north. A lovely spot which conjures up the Tain as well as Narrow Water and a wealth of stories old and new but I always wonder will it be a smashed site or a refurbished site.
There is a serious strain of vandalism throughout the country which is difficult to explain.

Nothing much more I could add to that thoughtful...

2011-02-21T11:07:49.172Z

Nothing much more I could add to that thoughtfull piece Anthony.do they fear him that much that even his name on a bench has to be destroyed. I hope it is replaced,and left alone,but I somehow doubt it.

A disgraceful act which says more about those who ...

2011-02-21T09:48:24.684Z

A disgraceful act which says more about those who carried it out, rather than the Irish Pariot it represented!