On Sunday 25 January 2009, what is probably a US Navy C-9B Skytrain logistics aircraft was photographed at Shannon airport in neutral Ireland, at about 11 am. Even though it had no obvious military markings, it was being guarded by an Irish army security patrol. The registration number it is obliged to display was incomplete. The only number it displayed was 0050. As far as we can establish its full aircraft registration number is 160050.

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We are urgently seeking more information on this aircraft, and wish to thank those who have provided research so far.

This plane is probably part of VR-52 (Naval Reserve Fleet Logistics Support) at Willow Grove Naval Air Station, Pennsylvania. It's US Navy C-9B "Skytrain", due to be phased out in the near future.

It has come to our attention over the past year that old aircraft, some of questionable air-worthiness have been transiting through Shannon airport, both with the US military and civilian airlines contracted to ferry troops and munitions through Shannon to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The civilian aircraft that have experienced mechanical trouble on these trans-atlantic flights include, OMNI Air, Kalita Air, and Murray Air. Old C130 Hercules military aircraft have also experienced mechanical trouble while making the US to Middle East trip via Shannon "neutral" airport.

The Irish government has called in as financial adviser Henrietta Baldock of the remarkable loss making machine that is Merrill Lynch

The Irish Times has reported that the government has taken on two outside advisers, Pádraig Ó Ríordáin of Arthur Cox solicitors and Henrietta Baldock of Merrill Lynch. Arthur Cox are one of Ireland’s premier firms of corporate lawyers. Merrill Lynch, formerly one of the big five Wall Street investment banks, is a much bigger fish. In 2008, however, they became a global laughing stock due to their regular quarterly announcements of billions of euros in loses.

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This is an opinion piece about the Supevalu 'Kids in Action" voucher scheme that gives "free" sports equipment to schools; this equipment is anything but free, and Supervalu, in their Terms and Conditions, admit that the vouchers are worthless.

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Contact.ie - Contact someone who can effect change in these matters.

Supervalu has admitted that its vouchers for the Kids in Action programme are worthless.

The recently launched Supervalu 'Kids in Action' voucher scheme claims to provide schools with free sports equipment. This is a fallacy. Simple maths will explain: in order for a school to claim a 'free' gymnastics mat that retails at about €280, customers will have to spend €32,840 in Supervalu (i.e. 3,240 vouchers at €10 each); in order for a school to claim a 'free' basketball (that you could buy for around €10) customers will be asked to add €1,570 to Supervalu's bank account, and so on. (Source: 2009 Supervalu's 'Kids in Action' Catalogue, available at supervalukidsinaction.com)

The death has occurred in London of Bob Doyle, the last surviving Irish soldier of the XV International Brigade of the Spanish Republican Army. Bob, whose health had been failing for some time had survived a recent double heart attack, before passing peacefully last night surrounded by his family. He was a few weeks short of his 93rd birthday.

Bob's career as an political activist has been recorded in his book Brigadista, which recounted his early life in Dublin as a Republican volunteer and later as a member of the Republican Congress, prior to his abortive first attempt to fight against Franco in July 1937, which saw him stow away on a ship to Valencia.

On his return to London (which he was to make his home for the remainder of his life) Bob contacted the CP and arrived in Spain by the more usual route, walking over the Pyrenees in a group of 15 volunteers, including the writer Laurie Lee. Bob was given basic military training and promoted quickly due to his aptitude and experience. Assigned to a training base behind the lines, Bob disobeyed orders and left with a detachment of British volunteers to take part in the second battle of Belchite in February 1938. He was captured at Calaciete with Frank Ryan and survived the concentration camp of San Pedro, before being released in a prisoner exchange in February 1939.

Bob joined the merchant navy on the outbreak of the second world war, where he received a medical discharge for an ulcer. He spent the remainder of the war as a firewatcher on the roof of the CP offices in central London.

He threw himself into political activity after the war and was one of the Communist leaders of a major printworkers' strike in 1959 and the fight for a 40 hour week. Bob was also undertaking more dangerous work, frequently travelling to Franco's Spain helping to organise the underground unions there.

Bob was an unusual Communist. This writer first encountered him in London during a Poll Tax demonstration, dressed in a top hat and tails. Bob was to be seen on many demonstrations in London throughout this period for a variety of causes and was not shy of confrontation with the bosses or the police. Bob was also a firm advocate of the legalisation of cannabis and was an enthusiastic grower of the herb in his north London greenhouse.

More recently, Bob has been in involved with Spanish Civil War commemorations both here in Ireland and in Spain and he was due to accept honorary Spanish citizenship in the coming months. He hadn't taken up an offer extended several years ago from the Zapatero government as it would have required giving up his Irish citizenship in exchange. Under a new law, however, non-Spaniards are entitled to retain their original citizenship.

Bob attended his last commemoration at Jarama last February where he delivered a a speech fired with passion and anger attacking global capital and the hold it still has on the world.

Bob's funeral arrangements are to be announced next week.

No Pasarán

'I am here to make you boil with anger; the powers that supported Franco in Spain are still active, and today their reach is global'
Report on Speech by Bob Doyle - September 2006 Some History of Irish Involvement in the International Brigades is Here.
Previous Indymedia Obituary of International Brigades Veteran James Maley.
Homage to an Anti-Fascist: Michael O'Riordan RIP.
Indymedia Article Marking 70th Anniversary of the Connolly Column NOTE: Indymedia Ireland invite those with memories of, or reminiscences about, Bob Doyle to use this page as a virtual tribute. We will endeavour to, after a period, print the page out and present it to his family.

The recent attacks on Gaza by the Israeli state have brought some strange bedfellows out of the Irish woodwork, marching together in lock-step. Almost to a man, and woman, those who were vitriolic in opposition to the Irish Peace Process have been four-square behind the slaughter in Gaza. Eoghan Harris, Kevin Myers, Tom Carew, and Ruth Dudley Edwards - please take a bow.

For Edwards, Myers, Harris and Carew - Sinn Féin equals Hamas (or previously, Sinn Féin equals PLO, when the PLO were the international right’s bad guys) . It is good copy for right wing politics. Unfortunately for the Gaza warmongers, ignorance of strange sounding foreigners in far away places has been replaced by pictures of slaughter in every living room in the country. We can see who is suffering and who is killing. Israel’s Irish friends would like us to focus on Hamas rockets, the ones Hamas started firing again when Israel deliberately broke a ceasefire that was working, in order to provoke the rocket firing, in order to provoke an excuse for the slaughter. It’s not rocket science.

Below is a short but sharp report on the recent role they played in support of the Israeli Defence Forces, and how that role relates to their Irish politics.