Queen is greeted by President Mary McAleese

As Elizabeth Windsor's visit moves into history it is time to analyse the reasons for the visit and what happened during it: the small protests, the massive restrictions on movement in Ireland's capital city, the huge violations of the right to protest,

Related Links: Protests Greet the British Queen in Cork – Report & Photo Essay | Republican Response to English queen | Citizen's Rights Suspended Because of Queen's Visit | AUDIOLINK-"Opposing theBritish Queen's Visit to Ireland"- Radio Interview with 4 Anti-War Activists | Lockdown for Queen's Visit | James Connolly, Monarchy & Labour Party Hypocrisy

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Obama greets the US embassy staff (photo Lawrence Jackson)

Related Links: OBAMA - The Emperor has no clothes, his wars have no end! | Obama: A Presidency of Hope or Failure? External Links: Obama's Private Killing Machine Sibel Edmonds Bin Laden Death Script & the Needed Trigger for Next Step-Pakistan | Assassination Nation: Are there any limits on President Obama's license to kill? | Economy Obama’s Bushism | Mr. Obama’s Most Recent “2%” Sellout is his Worst Yet | Peak Oil OilDrum website The Speech Obama Need(ed) to Give | Still Obama says nothing After peak oil, are we heading towards social collapse?

"Posters are a vital political tool"

In a blatant and outrageous act of political censorship Dublin City Council is attempting to impose an unprecedented ban on posters advertising political protests. This poster ban represents a very real attack on the right to political expression, the right to organise politically and the right to assembly.

The ban is due to come into effect from May 15th to May 25th, during which time both the 'British Queen' and US president Barack Obama are to visit Dublin. Those applying for permission to erect posters have been sent the following email by the council: 'I wish to advise you that your application has been refused. This decision has been taken on the basis that no postering applications for events between 15th and 25th May are being granted in the interest of promoting a clean environment for Dublin City during forthcoming State visits.'

Related Links: These links relate to when the change occured so that you had to get permission to put up a poster. Before that you did not need permission. -i.e another bit of our basic democratic rights were lost then.
Joan Collins Puts Virus Into Protocol For Ban On Public Notices | Motion on Poster Ban passed at DCC | The poster ban That Never Went Away is Back Again | Dublin City Council officials ban anti-war poster Leafleting Ban?

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CACI - Providing Software for the Irish Cencus
(and lots of other "defence software")

The people of Ireland should consider a Boycott in relation the upcoming Census in April 2011. The reason I say this is that the company contracted to carry out the Census is CACI UK who are a subsidiary of CACI international which through its various outsourcing has been accused of contributing to the torture of prisoners in Abu Ghraib in Iraq, something I myself am not happy about, and it will be one of the reason's why I will not be completing the Census form this time.

Related Links:
CACI's website
Graphic Video Displaying CACI Crimes (Irish Census Contractors)
Cencus Alerts - UK
This Lockheed Martin contract tarnishes the census - from The Guardian
Lockheed Martin Awarded £150M Contract to Support 2011 Census for England and Wales, and Northern Ireland

Apologies the related links are to stories about the English census (and Lockheed Martin), but the Irish media seem to have missed the relevance of CACI in getting the contract to develop the software for the Irish cencus

Tarhrii Square, Egypt

Nazly Hussein speaks from outside the military courts which this afternoon (Friday 12th March) was supposed to address the people the army harrassed and arrested last Wednesday during a brutal attack on those occupying Tahrir Square. Nazly describes how several hundred plain clothes thugs was deployed against people in the square on Wednesday, who set about pulling down tents and beating people up. The army, under the pretence of ‘protecting’ those remaining in the Tahrir then began beating, arresting and electrocuting people within the the pro democracy movement. Over 170 people where arrested, most of whom where later released without charge. Many had been beaten and tortured with electrocution.

An interview with Nazly Hussien:

Interview with Nazly Hussien 27.6 Mb

Soundmigration's Blog
Ongoing protests in Dublin in solidarity with the Egyptian people