Celtic Musings

More aggression

2008-08-14T12:19:00.000-07:00

It seems that every culture has the same terrible troubles..... ones that can be used in novels..............

Lack of role models drive young people to join gangs
The study found gangs often provided many young people with a sense of identity

Date: 14 August 2008

By Michael Howie
Home affairs correspondent
ONE in three young people in Scotland does not have a parent it regards as a role model, according to a new report.
The Culture of Youth Communities report by the Prince's Trust reveals that 30 per cent surveyed lack a parental role model, and suggests this is driving them to join gangs.

Sixty-two per cent of young people in Scotland claim that finding a sense of identity is a key reason for joining a gang, where more than one in five looks for role models in gangs.

Geraldine Gammell, the Scotland director of the trust, warned the breakdown of traditional communities was pushing the country's young people into forming their own alternative communities.

She said: "All the threads that hold a community together – a common identity, role models, a sense of safety – were given by young people as motivations to join gangs. Our research suggests that young people are creating their own 'youth communities' and gangs in search of the influences that could once have been found in traditional communities."

The report further revealed young people are more than twice as likely to turn to a peer than a parent if they have a problem. Of those questioned, 61 per cent said they would go to a peer, while only 30 per cent would approach a parent.

The report also puts into context alarm over knife crime and youth crime. Only 9 per cent of young people have spent time as part of a gang, 3 per cent "regularly" take drugs, and 2 per cent carry a knife.

Recent research has found there to be about 300 territorial gangs in Scotland.

Police are focusing attention on diverting young people from gang culture. Detective Chief Superintendent John Carnochan, head of the Violence Reduction Unit, agreed with the report's main findings.

"Young men from deprived backgrounds who have poor parental relationships can often find the support they don't find within their families among a group of similar young men – there is a sense of understanding through their shared experience," he said.

"The gang therefore becomes almost like an extended family.

"When you do not experience success in school or home and lack the aspiration to do so, the reputation as a fighter or gang member may be all you have."

The YouGov poll surveyed 1,754 aged between 14 and 25 across the UK in July.

PROFILE

SAMANTHA Thomson had a difficult upbringing which led her into drug abuse and unemployment.

"Lacking a strong role model in my life and being involved in a bad relationship, I started smoking cannabis and was suffering from very low self-esteem," said the 19-year-old from Barrowfield, Glasgow.

"This lack of confidence and motivation I feel also prevented me from engaging with my local community and from seeking a job."

Visited a local careers office, she learnt about the Prince's Trust's 12-week programme, designed to give young people the opportunity to work in a team on a community project.

While completing the programme, she worked on a community project in Parkhead and participated in various fundraising initiatives.

She is now a part-time youth worker with the YMCA, working with 12- to 18-year-olds.

Ms Thomson says the trust provided her with a mentor, "someone who made me feel good about myself and built up my confidence".

She adds: "Through this I am now working in a job I love, and able to use the experience I have gained to mentor other young people."

'There are lots of contradictions in contemporary parenting'

Professor Lynn Jamieson

ARE fathers role models? It is not clear what a "role model" means to young people.

Even if children are happy with their parents as parents, that may not mean they want to be like them.

The majority of children have two active parents and almost three-quarters live with both parents. Divorce or separation of parents is certainly much more common than in the 1950s or 1960s, but the most likely negative impact of fathers leaving the family home is a loss of income and relative poverty.

Estimates vary concerning how many children have no real relationship with their father, but it may be no more than 10 per cent.

Nevertheless, children and young people who know of a living father, but have no contact, or only unhappy contact, with him often experience "ambiguous loss", unresolved grief and a sense that things should be otherwise.

Research also shows that even when children live with a mother and father, fathers are often rather more shadowy figures than mothers, who are more likely to know their children's friends, and with whom children are more likely to discuss problems.

There are lots of contradictions in contemporary parenting that affect the experiences of children and young people. Most parents have a sense of time pressure.

Mothers try to juggle caring for children with paid work and fathers of young children have the longest working hours despite the fact that more men than ever would like to be more involved fathers.

Fascinating Story

2008-08-13T08:32:00.000-07:00

Even the birds are getting aggressive.............

You squawking to me? Bird terror turns tourists' stroll into emergency escape

Great skuas show little fear of humans while protecting their young, or of other birds when hungry

« Previous « PreviousNext » Next »View GalleryADVERTISEMENT Published Date: 13 August 2008
By JOHN ROSS
PICKPOCKETS in Turkey, too much sun in Spain or a hurricane off the coast of Florida are all holiday hazards that can be anticipated on an exotic break.

However, one couple were astonished to find their gentle stroll on a holiday to Orkney fraught with danger when they were dived-bombed by angry seabirds and had to be airlifted to safety by the coastguard.

The pair, from London, got lost while walking on the island of Hoy on Monday and then found themselves targeted by great skuas after stumbling on their nests.

Most residents of the Northern Isles know to stay well away from the great skuas, or "bonxies" as they are known, which are renowned for their swooping assaults on humans who invade their territory during the breeding season.

A direct "hit" is extremely uncommon, but the aerial bombardment, designed as a scare tactic, can be frightening and intimidating for the victims.

Chris Booth, a naturalist who carries out counts of the birds on Hoy, has taken to wearing a crash helmet after suffering cuts to his head.

"They are just defending their nests. If you walk into their territory they will attack you but they don't attack for any other reason.

"These people were wandering around a bit aimlessly and went into a skua territory and the birds were telling them to get out of the way."

At this time of year nesting is almost over with just a few large chicks left to fledge.

Mr Booth has counted 44 great skua nests at Stourdale, near the Old Man of Hoy, and expects about 14 pairs to rear young.

His advice to those who find themselves in a nesting area is to raise a stick above their heads: "If you raise your profile the birds will come down to the highest point. If you lift a stick they will tend to touch the stick rather than you."

Other birds known to dive-bomb are Arctic skuas, Arctic terns, tawny owls, hen harriers and some species of gull.

Doug Gilbert, an ecologist with RSPB Scotland, also has experience of being hit by bonxies and Arctic skuas.

"I've been dive-bombed in Shetland and elsewhere, it's an occupational hazard. They are much more aggressive in mid-egg stage and very young chick stage. You could be 100-150 yards away and be dive-bombed.

"They swat the back of your head with their feet or use their wing tips to belt you.

"I've felt the 'sting' from a great skua's feet; it's like getting a whack on the head with a ruler. If you're not expecting it it can freak you out.

"Local people will know all about bonxies but most people in Britain will never have seen them. They are impressive birds and to suddenly find you're being attacked by them can be a bit of a surprise."

Eric Meek, an RSPB warden on Orkney, said in 28 years on the island he has been hit only twice by a great skua: "If a bonxie does hit you, you know you've been hit. But it's very rare occurrence.

"They will threaten you and come whizzing past your ears. But as soon as you walk out of their territory they will leave you alone."

FACT BOX

• Sometimes called flying thugs or the bovver boys of seabirds, great skuas are aggressive pirates that terrorise other birds to steal a free meal.

• Bonxies, as they are known in Orkney and Shetland, are about 50-58cm in length with a 125-140cm wingspan.

• They deliberately harass birds as large as gannets to give up the food they have caught so they can eat it themselves.

• They also readily kill and eat smaller birds such as puffins and it has been known for a bonxie to swoop on a flock of ducks and pick off the young one by one.

• Great skuas migrate to the northernmost isles of the UK from their wintering grounds off the coasts of Spain and Africa.

Historical Snippets

2008-08-10T06:27:00.000-07:00

This came from Scottish Snippets newsletter. Gotta' keep my historical timelines in order. Publisher wants another Clan Gunn book--it's still selling well.

Anniversaries of Scottish Historical Events
August 10 1460 - King James III crowned at Kelso Abbey.
August 11 1560 - Latin Mass prohibited in Scotland by Parliament as
Protestant faith gained the ascendancy.
August 12 1922 - Popular character actor Fulton McKay was born in Paisley.
August 13 1957 - Scotland's first nuclear power station at Dounreay went
"critical" ushering in the generation of power from atomic reactions.
August 14 1337 - King Robert III born at Scone.
August 14 1390 - King Robert III crowned at the Augustinian abbey of Scone.
August 15 1771 - Novelist and poet Sir Walter Scott born.
August 15 1840 - Foundation stone for the Monument to Sir Walter Scott laid
in Princes Street Gardens.
August 16 1766 - Birth of Carolina Oliphant (Lady Nairne), poet and author
of many Jacobite songs, including "Charlie is my Darling". Her songs are
second only in popularity to Burns.
August 17 1822 - Visit of George IV to Edinburgh began, orchestrated by Sir
Walter Scott.
August 17 1947 - First Edinburgh International Festival opened.
August 18 1966 - Tay Road Bridge opened.
August 19 1745 - Charles Edward Stuart, raises his standard at Glenfinnan,
at the start of the '45 uprising.
August 20 1897 - Ronald Ross, the first Scot to win a Nobel prize (in 1902)
dissected a mosquito and established the link with malaria.
August 21 1689 - Battle of Dunkeld when the newly formed Cameronians
defended the town against 3,000 Highlanders.
August 22 1282 - Devorgilla, Countess of Galloway founded Balliol College,
Oxford. She was mother of John Balliol (who acceded to the Scottish throne
in 1292).
August 23 1305 - William Wallace executed.

More Irish history

2008-08-07T06:08:00.000-07:00

I love Ireland and its many stories. Even my novel, LOST SON OF IRELAND, takes in some of the history. The book takes place in 852 Ireland, when the Norse wanted to reclaim Dublin from the Danes. I just dragged some characters through the times, just to see how they might act. It was a fun book to write.

This comes from IrishHistory.org

Essex sent to Ireland : His Failure There

Elizabeth, however, was not a ruler likely to allow a country the possession of which she knew, in the then condition of Continental affairs, to be of almost vital importance to the very existence of England, to slip thus easily from her grasp. She resolved to send across the Channel such a force as would not only, she felt sure, speedily crush the rebels, but would extend her authority over the whole island, and make her in reality ” Queen of Ireland.”

In her selection of a leader for the expedition she allowed herself to be swayed rather by feeling than by reason. Her choice fell on Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, a handsome man of thirty-two, having many superficial advantages, but whose success in military affairs had not, so far, been remarkable. He was the son of Walter Devereux, Earl of Essex, whose attempt at a Plantation in Ulster had ended so unfortunately, and since Leicester’s death in 1588 he had been the Queen’s chief favourite.

The title of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, more honourable than that of Deputy, was now conferred on him. The army placed under Essex’s command was, with the exception of that which followed Richard II in 1394, the largest that had ever crossed from England to Ireland. It numbered 16,000 infantry and 1,300 cavalry, all well armed and equipped. If the troops already in the country be added, we may estimate that the Lord Lieutenant had at his command a force of at least 21,000 or 22,000 men.

Towards the middle of April 1599, Essex landed in Dublin and at once proceeded to ignore the instructions which he had received before leaving England. Rightly judging that if the leader of the rebellion were once crushed, the whole coalition against her would fall to pieces almost of itself, Elizabeth had ordered Essex to at once attack ” the Arch-traitor Tyrone.” In Dublin, however, the Lord Lieutenant met many persons, some of them high officials, who had either themselves been dispossessed by the rebels of great estates in Munster, or were related to those who had so lost them. These men, ” aiming rather at their private interests than the public good,” persuaded Essex to turn south.

He marched through the midland counties to Limerick and Waterford, then back through Wexford and Wicklow. A series of disasters marked his way. Near Maryborough his rearguard was shattered by Owney O’More at the head of 400 men. The pass where the encounter took place was afterwards known, from the many English helmet plumes that strewed the ground, as ” the Pass of the Plumes ” (t)eo,|\riA tiA Cteitroe).

In Co. Limerick the Burkes and the O’Connors inflicted defeats on the forces of the Lord Lieutenant and his allies.Still more disastrous on the morale of the army than these reverses was the almost continual skirmishing; a species of warfare to which the English soldiers were unaccustomed, and for which their heavy armour and equipments rendered them unfit. It was with a force ” weary, sick and incredibly diminished in numbers ” that the Lord Lieutenant returned to Dublin in June.

Elizabeth was both disappointed and enraged at the poor results achieved by the splendid army from which she had hoped so much, ohe brushed aside Essex’s attempts at explanation, and reproached him for his disobedience in a tone to which the haughty favourite had been httle accustomed from his hitherto indulgent Sovereign. She so far relented, however, as to send him, at his request, a reinforcement of 2,000 men. Yet, even after the arrival of these additional troops, Essex hngered in Dublin, allowing his forces to waste away by illness and desertion. or two months there was virtually a pause in the military operations ; then, early in August (1599), Essex ordered Sir Conyers Clifford, who, since his raids in the previous year, had remained mostly in and about Ballymote, to advance across the hills, called in English the Curlews (CoipufUAo), into Sligo, and, having raised the siege of Collooney Castle, where O’Connor Sligo was being hard pressed by the Irish, to proceed into Fermanagh.

Essex sent to Ireland : His Failure There

Elizabeth, however, was not a ruler likely to allow a country the possession of which she knew, in the then condition of Continental affairs, to be of almost vital importance to the very existence of England, to slip thus easily from her grasp. She resolved to send across the Channel such a force as would not only, she felt sure, speedily crush the rebels, but would extend her authority over the whole island, and make her in reality ” Queen of Ireland.”

In her selection of a leader for the expedition she allowed herself to be swayed rather by feeling than by reason. Her choice fell on Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, a handsome man of thirty-two, having many superficial advantages, but whose success in military affairs had not, so far, been remarkable. He was the son of Walter Devereux, Earl of Essex, whose attempt at a Plantation in Ulster had ended so unfortunately, and since Leicester’s death in 1588 he had been the Queen’s chief favourite.

The title of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, more honourable than that of Deputy, was now conferred on him. The army placed under Essex’s command was, with the exception of that which followed Richard II in 1394, the largest that had ever crossed from England to Ireland. It numbered 16,000 infantry and 1,300 cavalry, all well armed and equipped. If the troops already in the country be added, we may estimate that the Lord Lieutenant had at his command a force of at least 21,000 or 22,000 men.

Towards the middle of April 1599, Essex landed in Dublin and at once proceeded to ignore the instructions which he had received before leaving England. Rightly judging that if the leader of the rebellion were once crushed, the whole coalition against her would fall to pieces almost of itself, Elizabeth had ordered Essex to at once attack ” the Arch-traitor Tyrone.” In Dublin, however, the Lord Lieutenant met many persons, some of them high officials, who had either themselves been dispossessed by the rebels of great estates in Munster, or were related to those who had so lost them. These men, ” aiming rather at their private interests than the public good,” persuaded Essex to turn south.

He marched through the midland counties to Limerick and Waterford, then back through Wexford and Wicklow. A series of disasters marked his way. Near Maryborough his rearguard was shattered by Owney O’More at the head of 400 men. The pass where the encounter took place was afterwards known, from the many English helmet plumes that strewed the ground, as ” the Pass of the Plumes ” (t)eo,|\riA tiA Cteitroe).

In Co. Limerick the Burkes and the O’Connors inflicted defeats on the forces of the Lord Lieutenant and his allies.Still more disastrous on the morale of the army than these reverses was the almost continual skirmishing; a species of warfare to which the English soldiers were unaccustomed, and for which their heavy armour and equipments rendered them unfit. It was with a force ” weary, sick and incredibly diminished in numbers ” that the Lord Lieutenant returned to Dublin in June.

Elizabeth was both disappointed and enraged at the poor results achieved by the splendid army from which she had hoped so much, ohe brushed aside Essex’s attempts at explanation, and reproached him for his disobedience in a tone to which the haughty favourite had been httle accustomed from his hitherto indulgent Sovereign. She so far relented, however, as to send him, at his request, a reinforcement of 2,000 men. Yet, even after the arrival of these additional troops, Essex hngered in Dublin, allowing his forces to waste away by illness and desertion. or two months there was virtually a pause in the military operations ; then, early in August (1599), Essex ordered Sir Conyers Clifford, who, since his raids in the previous year, had remained mostly in and about Ballymote, to advance across the hills, called in English the Curlews (CoipufUAo), into Sligo, and, having raised the siege of Collooney Castle, where O’Connor Sligo was being hard pressed by the Irish, to proceed into Fermanagh.

Posted on August 5th, 2008 under Irish Success.

Scotland news-Most silly

2008-08-06T07:07:00.001-07:00

This is one of the silliest things I've read of late. From the Scotsmen.com.

Judge bans man from the pub for killing his wife

By Brian Ferguson

A JUDGE yesterday spared a pensioner who killed his wife a prison sentence – and instead banned him from going to the pub.

Edward Flaherty strangled his wife with a tie after she refused to give him money to go to his local bar in Glasgow. But the 74-year-old was told by the judge, Lord Matthews, that his dementia made him unsuitable for prison, and that being unable to go to the pub would be a "more meaningful" punishment.

Lord Matthews imposed a year-long order that will keep him inside his home during pub opening hours. He will be tagged and banned from going out between 11am and 11pm.

The sentence was attacked last night, both for failing to protect the public and for not providing proper care for Flaherty.

Labour's justice spokesman, Paul Martin, said: "The sentence is clearly not robust enough for the crime, and the failure to provide a package of care completely inappropriate.

"The judge has to take responsibility for this."

Flaherty claimed he had no recollection of throttling his wife with a tie in April last year at their home in Drygate, Glasgow.

His lawyer told the court that his client had been diagnosed with progressive dementia and that he would ultimately need 24-hour care.

Lord Matthews told the defendant: "You were found guilty of the culpable homicide of your wife, who you were together with for many years.

"In normal circumstances this would attract a prison sentence in double figures.

"I have read and considered a number of reports from experts. It is plain to me that if I were to impose that sort of sentence you would be released in a very short time because prison would not be able to cope with your condition.

"Sentencing you would just be a token gesture. I am anxious to impose a sentence that restricts your liberty.

"You still go to the pub where you went with your wife. That must annoy her relatives.

"Not being able to go there will be a more meaningful disposal than a prison sentence which will not last long."

Mr Martin, a Glasgow MSP, said: "This is clearly a very difficult case in which there has been a mental illness involved.

"However, the real issue here is that the sentence has not been robust enough to protect the public from him doing anything similar again.

"There has been no effort to provide any kind of appropriate care package to deal with this man's mental health condition.

"A restriction of liberty order is clearly inappropriate in a case as serious as this."

Edward McLaughlan, a spokesman for the Scottish Dementia Working Group, an independent campaign group funded by Alzheimer's Scotland, said: "It's a quite shocking sentence for a crime like this.

"There are obviously a lot of people with dementia who are being treated in prison, although we don't know how serious his condition is.

"The whole issue of the provision of care for dementia sufferers needs to be looked at in the light of this case, as there would clearly be issues if he was to be treated in a care home.

"I'm not entirely sure what the best sentence for this individual would be, but it's certainly not appropriate for him to receive a restriction of liberty order."

Flaherty was convicted of killing 69-year-old Ina with a tie after she refused to give him money to go to the pub.

The High Court in Glasgow was told that, in a medical report, Flaherty claimed he had actually killed his sister, because she was cheeky.

Donald MacLeod, QC, defending, said yesterday: "The report prepared for the court paints a picture of a man in significant physical and mental decline.

"There is a clear diagnosis of dementia setting in. It is a progressive condition and ultimately he will need 24-hour care.

"I am deeply conscious there has been a death here, but this man is very unwell.

"He was always willing to plead guilty to culpable homicide, but this was flatly rejected by the Crown and that is why a trial was necessary."

Flaherty went on trial accused of murder on 2 April last year.

A jury convicted the retired scaffolder of the reduced charge of culpable homicide.

The jury was told that even slight pressure around Mrs Flaherty's neck could have caused her death because her arteries were furred.

The court had heard that Flaherty had regularly visited a pub called The Lampost, on Duke Street, after his retirement and had developed a drink problem.

After the couple returned from the pub he wanted to go back for more, but Mrs Flaherty refused to give him any money.

Giving evidence in his defence, Flaherty, of Gibson Heights, Drygate, said he had no recollection of the moment he throttled his wife.

The court heard Flaherty, who has had three heart attacks, could not remember who the Prime Minister was and called him "that curly headed bloke".

He also thought the current US president was Richard Nixon.

He recently boarded a train to Bristol, did not know where he was and had to have £100 sent to him to get home.

But when asked who killed Mrs Flaherty, he said: "It must have been me. There are no ghosts running about the house who would have done that."

Flaherty had denied a suggestion from the Solicitor-General, Frank Mulholland, QC, prosecuting, that he "blocked Ina's killing out of his memory because it was so dreadful".

Some jurors wept as he told the court how he and his wife had a "strong and firm" marriage that lasted 52 years. He had never once struck her in all these years, and she had never hit him, the jury was told.

A spokesman for Victim Support last night said: "We never comment on specific cases, but at the end of the day the only people who can provide sensible judgment on a case are those who hold all the relevant evidence."

SPS insists that it could cope as nation braces itself for an epidemic

THE Scottish Prison Service has insisted it has the right facilities in place to tackle a vast majority of medical conditions – including mental-health illnesses such as dementia.

An SPS spokesman said: "We do definitely have prisoners with dementia, although it's not possible to say exactly how many. We have people in our prisons with all manner of medical conditions. The only exceptions would be those people with terminal illness, who have a few months to live that are better suited to hospital treatment." But Bill Aitken, the Scottish Conservative justice spokesman, said that in this case normal sentencing guidelines could not be applied.

"There are a lot of dementia sufferers who are not violent, and there may be questions about how to deal with this individual if he does not adhere to his restriction of liberty order," he said.

"The key thing in this particular case is that the judge has seen all the relevant medical reports. I am satisfied that the normal sentencing considerations could not be applied."

Campaigners have warned that health and social services could be overwhelmed by the vast numbers of people with dementia. Up to 65,000 people in Scotland are thought to have dementia, but it is estimated that the number of people affected will rise by 75 per cent by 2031 as the elderly population increases.

There have also been concerns in the past year that dementia patients could be denied drugs to slow down their progression because of a move by NHS rationing watchdogs. Alzheimer Scotland, a leading campaign group, has called for an additional £150 million to tackle what it has described as the dementia epidemic.

Although dementia often begins with increasing forgetfulness, a sufferer will increasingly require assistance with everyday activities, such as dressing and going to the toilet.

By the end of their life, dementia sufferers will probably be living in a care home, nursing home or hospital.

Fact from yesterday...

2008-08-04T13:54:00.000-07:00

On this day in 1460 James II of Scotland was killed during the siege of Roxburgh Castle. The King was attacking the castle of his favourite enemy the Earl of Douglas when he filled a cannon with too much gun powder. The cannon exploded and killed him instantly.

This is a bit earlier than my Clan Gunn novel, but I still find this history interesting.

Things that interest me

2008-07-30T07:31:00.000-07:00

I got this from Writing the Wrongs blog and thought it was something I might want to read again. It's much easier to save it on my blog--I know how to get here.

Ireland's Jews: Past, Present, Future
Rory Miller

● Irish Jews have historically played a role in Jewish life out of all proportion to their numbers, despite the fact that they were on the margins of the Jewish world. Before 1948 the Irish Jewish community, which had come overwhelmingly from Lithuania in the period from 1880 to 1914, was one of the most pro-Zionist in Western Europe and a major per capita supporter of the Jewish National Fund (JNF), as well as other Zionist organizations and institutions.

● Irish Jews have played a significant role in all sectors of Irish society including national political life, but since the early 1950s when it peaked at 4,500 members the community has been shrinking in size and influence. According to the 2006 census there are 1,930 Jews in Ireland, with about 1,250 residing in Dublin and the remainder scattered across the country.
● Although there have always been sporadic anti-Semitic incidents, Ireland has provided a safe haven for Jews. But the current widespread support for a boycott of Israel among civil society groups is a worrying development, as is the potential of the growing Irish Muslim community to become radicalized.

● The economic boom since the 1990s provided a number of opportunities and challenges for Irish Jewry. The strong economy led to an increase in the number of Jews who have settled in Ireland for economic reasons. It also, however, turned Ireland into a multicultural and multiracial society that has challenged Irish Jewry's status as the major non-Christian minority in the country.

In May 2008, the Dublin City Council organized a walking tour of "Little Jerusalem," the section of central Dublin historically at the heart of Irish Jewish life. In line with similar events, the organizers expected forty to seventy people to attend but were astonished when over two hundred turned up in the rain to hear about the history of Dublin's Jewish community.

The popularity of this event clearly highlights that as a subject of historical interest and cultural curiosity the Jews of Ireland are thriving. This has been further evidenced recently by the success of two books on the history of Irish Jews: the scholarly Jewish Ireland in the Age of Joyce: A Socioeconomic History, by Professor Cormac Ó Gráda, and the more popular photographic coffee-table book, Jewish Dublin: Portraits of Life by the Liffey, a bestseller in Ireland on its publication in late 2007.[1]

The Historic Irish Jewish Community
The first Jews arrived in Ireland from Spain and Portugal in the early sixteenth century. The first synagogue was opened in Dublin in 1660 and the first Jewish cemetery opened in the early 1700s, by which time Dublin was the only city in the British Isles outside of London that could claim a Jewish community of any note. But this did not last long. As Ireland lost significance in the British Empire, the Jewish community shrank. The Irish census started recording religion in 1861, and in 1881 there were 353 Jews in Dublin and 61 in Belfast.

The ancestors of the current community were Lithuanian Jews who began arriving in Dublin, Belfast, and Cork in the mid-1870s. This resulted in an immediate rise in the population, with 1,500 Irish Jews in Dublin in 1891 and an estimated 3,000 a decade later.

This was still numerically insignificant. As Ó Gráda has shown in his socioeconomic history of Irish Jewry in the early twentieth century, Ireland only absorbed about 0.15 percent of the pre-1914 Jewish exodus from Eastern Europe. On the eve of World War I, there were 3,000 Jews in Dublin compared to 11,000 in Liverpool, 30,000 in Manchester, and 180,000 in London.[2]

Thus it is hardly surprising that the only encounter most people will have had with Irish Jews in this early period is through reading James Joyce's iconic novel Ulysses, which follows the fictional Leopold Bloom through Dublin city on one day in June 1904. Bloom, the baptized son of a Hungarian Jewish father and an Irish Protestant mother had little in common in terms of religious upbringing or daily life with the conservative, traditional, and hard-working Lithuanian Jews who made up the Irish community at the time.

These new immigrants were all from the same part of the northern Russian Empire and they settled near each other in urban areas. They had close ties with coreligionists in Manchester, London, and Leeds but as Ó Gráda has shown there were some noticeable differences. Dublin Jews lived in better conditions in "Little Jerusalem" than the Jews of the East End of London or many of the provisional Jewish communities of Britain. A lower percentage of Jewish women worked outside the home and the community was less strictly segregated from their neighbors than the Jews of Britain.[3]

The biggest difference was that almost immediately upon arrival this new immigrant group overwhelmed the preexisting Jewish community, swept away their influence, and marginalized what passed for an established Irish Jewish elite. This allowed the new immigrants to proceed to establish, unfettered, a highly nationalist community like the one they had left behind in Lithuania, thus arguably building the most Zionist-oriented community in Western Europe.

The Zionist Connection
Irish Jews' profound attachment to Zionism in the period before Israel's establishment can be traced back to the 1890s, when Irish Zionist Associations and branches of Chovevei Zion (Lovers of Zion) were among the most active in Europe. In 1900, the Dublin Daughters of Zion (DDZ) was founded. This was the first women's Zionist society in Western Europe. To put this in context, it was not until February 1912 that Henrietta Szold convened the first meeting of the American Daughters of Zion, the first women's Zionist group in the United States.

The Jewish National Fund (JNF), Dublin Commission, developed into a not insignificant branch of the worldwide JNF and, from the late 1930s, its per capita contributions were higher than those made by communities in Leeds, Glasgow, and London. In his autobiography, Chaim Herzog, the Irish-born two-term president of Israel, recalled how during his childhood in Dublin and Belfast "the concept of a Jewish state emerged in our collective consciousness [and] added considerably to our sense of pride. As that consciousness expanded, it strengthened our entire community."[4]

The consequences of this could be seen after the birth of Israel. According to the political scientist Michael Brecher, in terms of individuals who occupied posts of head of an operational department or higher within the Israeli Foreign Ministry or related civil or military branches, Irish Jews equaled the contribution of Iraqis and Austrians, played a larger role than Jews from Hungary, Italy, or Egypt, and were only surpassed by Jewish immigrants from eight nations including Russia, Germany, and the United Kingdom.[5]

However, the vast majority of Irish Jews chose to stay in Ireland and by the mid-1950s, the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs estimated that only fifty Irish families resided in Israel. Those who remained made a mark on almost every area of life, from literature and art to medicine and law.

Most notably, Irish Jewry has played a role in the political life of the country out of all proportion to its size. There has been a Jewish Lord Mayor of Dublin three times (Robert Briscoe in 1956 and 1961 and his son Ben Briscoe in 1988) and of Cork once (Gerald Goldberg in 1977). Robert Briscoe, a founding member of the Fianna Fáil political party, represented that party in the Dáil (the Irish parliament) for three decades. Even in the 1990s, when the community was only 1,400 strong, there were three Jewish members of parliament (compared to one Protestant parliamentarian out of a community numbering well over 100,000). The sole current Jewish member of the Dáil, Alan Shatter, holds the distinction of having had more private members' bills passed than anyone else in the history of the state.

In the pre-1948 era Irish nationalists embraced Zionism as a national movement for self-determination and greatly admired the revival of Hebrew, which they saw as Zionism's greatest achievement. As a member of a Zionist delegation from Jerusalem wrote home during a visit to Dublin in 1931, Irish leaders were "greatly inspired" by the rebirth of Hebrew and confessed that Zionists had "more idealism" than the Irish.[6]

However, since Israel's establishment there has been a lack of diplomatic and political support for the Jewish state. In 1975, Ireland became the last member of the EEC to exchange nonresidential ambassadors with Israel, and in 1993 it was the last member of the enlarged EU to allow Israel to establish a residential embassy.

This slow move toward full diplomatic relations was due to a number of factors including the role of the Catholic church in influencing Irish foreign policy, the negative impact on Irish-Israeli ties of clashes over Irish troops serving with the United Nations in Lebanon, and the fact that the Irish beef industry, a major supplier to the Arab and Muslim world, was concerned that improved relations with Israel would damage this trade.

However, current Irish government policy toward the Israel-Palestine conflict is in line with general EU policy and on a bilateral level is primarily concerned with further developing trade ties that have grown significantly since the mid-1990s.[7]

Support for Boycott
A far more worrying factor is the growing support for a boycott of Israel among Irish civil society groups. The Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC), the Irish branch of the International Solidarity Movement, is one of the most sophisticated anti-Israel groups in Europe. It organizes numerous events and has a state-of-the-art website that it uses to relentlessly promote the boycott of everything from Israeli agricultural products and football matches to flights to Israel and cultural and academic exchanges.[8]

In 2004, the IPSC collected twelve thousand Irish signatures in favor of a boycott, and its efforts have gained some support from supposedly apolitical NGOs such as Christian Aid and Trócaire. The IPSC also played a role in the call by sixty-one Irish academics for an academic boycott of Israel.[9]

Since entering the mainstream of Irish political life following the peace process in Northern Ireland, Sinn Féin, the political wing of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), has become an outspoken critic of Israel in Irish political circles. However, this may actually improve Israel's standing in Ireland as the vast majority of Irish voters are suspicious of Sinn Féin's position on most domestic and foreign policy issues.

A far more troubling development occurred in June 2008 when the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) issued a report calling for a boycott of Israeli goods and services and disinvestment from Israeli firms. ICTU is the largest civil society body in Ireland, representing 832,000 workers and with fifty-five unions affiliated to it including IMPACT, the largest public-sector union in the Republic of Ireland and NIPSA, the largest public-sector union in Northern Ireland, both of which have also endorsed the call for a boycott.

There is no support for a boycott of Israel in Irish government or diplomatic circles and two primarily non-Jewish groups, the Ireland-Israel Friendship League and the Irish Christian Friends of Israel have worked hard to oppose the boycott. But that is little comfort given the fact that boycotters are making good ground in their effort to further demonize Israel across Irish society.

Anti-Semitism
The relentless call for the boycott of Israel is part of an effort to demonize and delegitimize the Jewish state and its supporters across the world. This creates an uncomfortable environment for an Irish Jewish community that remains openly supportive of Israel. However, traditional anti-Semitism is not widespread and community spokesmen like to say that Ireland is the only country in Europe in which no Jew has died or been killed because of their religion. This is debatable, and indeed some historians believe that in 1923 a twenty-four-year-old Dublin Jew, Emanuel Kahn, was shot dead because he was Jewish.[10]

Moreover, there have been some unpleasant nonfatal incidents. The most notorious case occurred in Limerick in 1904-1905 when a Catholic preacher, Father John Creagh, led a boycott of several Jewish traders among the 170 Jews in a city with a population of forty thousand, which only ended when a number of Jewish families were driven out of the town. An IRA campaign against moneylenders in the mid-1920s focused primarily on targeting Jews, which caused significant concern in the community despite a number of IRA denials that any anti-Semitism was involved.

For the most part Jews who have settled in Ireland have found a safe haven. Recently, overt anti-Semitism has been a lot less prevalent than the racism encountered by new immigrants from Asia and Africa. From 2001 to 2003, according to the Jewish community's own statistics, there were no incidents of "extreme violence," "assault," or "damage or desecration of property" and only sixteen recorded cases of "abusive behavior." In 2002 alone, however, members of the Asian and African communities reported one hundred racist incidents to the authorities.[11]

But anti-Semitic incidents do continue. From November 2004 to July 2005, there was on average one recorded anti-Semitic incident per week in Dublin and these included the daubing of the Jewish school, an Orthodox synagogue, and the Irish Jewish museum with anti-Semitic slogans. In response the then justice minister Michael McDowell met with a delegation from the community and there was cross-party condemnation of these incidents in the Dáil. Again in May 2008, an Italian Jewish man living in a small town outside of Dublin had "Go Home Jew" and a swastika daubed on his wall and suffered two arson attacks on his car.[12]

One of the darkest chapters in Irish-Jewish relations was the refusal of neutral Ireland to provide a haven for Jewish refugees attempting to escape Nazi extermination in the late 1930s and 1940s. This was followed by the infamous decision of Irish leader Eamon de Valera to sign the book of condolences in the German legation in Dublin following the death of Adolf Hitler.

In 1995, then-Irish premier John Bruton acknowledged Ireland's failure in responding to the Holocaust and 2005 saw the establishment of the Holocaust Educational Trust of Ireland. This body has contributed significantly to Holocaust awareness, with 450 schools involved in one of its projects. It also organizes a high-profile annual Holocaust memorial event that is attended by politicians and public figures.

Communal Size and Structure
The size of the Irish Jewish community peaked in the late 1940s at about 4,500 members. From that point on it fell in size until 2002 when the census recorded 1,790 Irish Jews. According to the 2006 census there are 1,930 Jews in Ireland, with about 1,250 residing in Dublin and the remainder scattered across the country.[13] The present community is elderly and the historic pattern of emigration to Manchester, London, and Israel continues among young people looking for partners or pursuing career opportunities and their parents who follow them.

The rise in the Jewish population by 7.8 percent from 2002 to 2006 is due to the arrival of Jewish economic migrants into Ireland as part of the "Celtic Tiger" economy. The Jewish community has attempted to capitalize on the Irish economic boom to advertise for immigrants from other Jewish communities across the world, especially those in Argentina and South Africa. Named Operation Springbok, the plan has had limited success for two reasons: those in charge of the project have only looked to attract observant Jews; and the Irish authorities will not waive standard visa requirements for what are essentially economic migrants.

As such, the largest increase of Jews in Ireland is among Israelis who have moved here to work in the hi-tech sector. Some have no interest in Jewish life, a few are outspoken critics of Israeli policies and have been co-opted into the anti-Israel movement, but a fair few have integrated into the community, attend synagogue, and enroll their children in the Jewish primary school. Whether this immigration will continue depends almost fully on the future strength of the Irish economy and, to a lesser extent, the willingness of the community to subsidize the settlement of new Jewish families and to invest in communal infrastructure.

Currently there are two Orthodox synagogues in Dublin, one Progressive synagogue, one Jewish golf club with non-Jewish members, one Jewish school, with an all-Jewish primary school and a mixed secondary school, and one Jewish retirement home where accommodation is shared with the Quaker community. The community no longer has its own kosher butcher, and kosher meat and other products are imported from the United Kingdom. Nor is there a Jewish community or sports center, as the Maccabi sports club, one of the best sports facilities in the country, was sold off a number of years ago.

The existing community institutions are overseen by the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland (JRCI), whose members are either elected or appointed. This body has run the community since the late 1940s, when Irish Jews gave up their seats on the Board of Deputies of British Jews, the representative body of Anglo-Jewry, following Ireland's withdrawal from the British Commonwealth.

Irish Jews benefited from the "Celtic Tiger." Historically Ireland was not an industrialized nation and as such there was never a tradition of Jewish industrial grandees or magnates. However, Irish Jews have always had trades and skills, with more self-employed as a percentage of the population and a lower percentage of wage earners than other communities. Thus, by the time of the boom in the early 1990s, although there were very few multimillionaires, the vast majority of Irish Jews were part of the urban middle class.

At the heart of the Irish boom was the property market, an economic sector in which Irish Jews have long been involved. Many members of the community have become wealthy as the value of commercial and residential property has skyrocketed.

Interestingly, this wealth has not been reinvested in the community to any significant extent. Dublin Jewry has always had a much greater tradition of supporting Israeli charities than the needy within their own community. Some members have been reluctant to donate funds because their children have settled abroad. Moreover, major disagreements over the closure and sale of Adelaide Road Synagogue over a decade ago split the community. Whereas the sale of this synagogue along with the Maccabi sports club meant that the community gained some significant capital, this created a disincentive for individuals to give donations from their own pockets.

The Irish Muslim Community
The rise of the "Celtic Tiger" economy meant that for the first time in 150 years, from 1991 to 1996 Ireland saw net immigration rather than net emigration. Society has rapidly become both multicultural and multiracial. This is most clearly seen in the growth of the Irish Muslim community.

Muslims are now the third largest religious group in the country after Roman Catholics, who number 3.7 million or 86.8 percent of the population and the Church of Ireland, which has 125,000 adherents.[14] According to the 2006 census, there are 32,529 Muslims in Ireland, up from 19,147 in 2002, an increase of 69.9 percent in four years. The most obvious sign of this is that the once-Jewish area of "Little Jerusalem" now borders a vibrant and growing Muslim shopping quarter.

Over the last decade many European societies have been challenged by the multiculturalism caused by growing Muslim communities. The same process is now occurring in Ireland. In 2007, the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, the premier medical school in the country, announced that toilets in all new buildings will face away from Mecca "[out of] respect for the cultural diversity of the student population."[15] In May 2008, the Islamic Cultural Center, which is based at the largest Sunni mosque in Dublin, spoke of the "urgent need" for Sharia-compliant financial services in Ireland. And in June 2008, the government wrote to the heads of four thousand schools across Ireland to seek their views on the wearing of the hijab headscarf.[16]

At the time of the Danish Muhammad-cartoons controversy the reaction among Irish Muslims was relatively mild, with a few hundred marching in Dublin with placards carrying the words "Don't insult the Prophet." However, as has been the case in other European countries, much Irish Muslim funding emanates from Saudi Arabia and this can make the community vulnerable to Wahhabi extremism.

Moreover, there already are a number of groups in Dublin that have alleged links to the Muslim Brotherhood. These include the Federation of Islamic Student Societies (FOSIS), the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE), and the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR). This latter group was founded by the controversial Egyptian cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi in 1997 and is permanently headquartered in the Islamic Cultural Center in Dublin. In 2003, the ECFR issued a fatwa endorsing "martyrdom operations" against Israel "even if the victims include civilians."[17]

On a national level there is growing concern that Ireland could develop into a base for money laundering, document forging, and even a transit base for terrorists. The security services listed radical Islamic extremism as the number one priority for 2006 and in the same year the chief of staff of the Irish army admitted, regarding Islamic extremists, that "there's always the danger that people would use Ireland as a back door to the UK."[18]

Although this is a challenge for the whole of Irish society, the rising influence of the Muslim community raises issues particularly for Irish Jews. The first is that the Islamicization of politics has never been good for Jews. There is a strong correlation between anti-Jewish incidents across Europe and a rising focus in domestic politics on the Israel-Palestine conflict. The Irish Jewish museum was smeared the day after Yasser Arafat died in November 2004. Second, Irish Jews were historically the largest and most public non-Christian minority. According to the 2006 census, Judaism is now the fifteenth largest religious group out of twenty-three in a country of 4.2 million people. Islam ranks third, Orthodox Christianity is sixth, and Irish Jews also rank behind Buddhists (ninth), Hindus (tenth), and Jehovah's Witnesses (thirteenth).[19]

The 1937 Irish Constitution gave Jews special recognition and protection as the largest non-Christian group in a society overwhelmingly dominated by Roman Catholicism. However, the present marginal position of Irish Jewry could mark the beginning of the end of its influence on a national level. This has not yet happened as evidenced by the fact that in 2007 the Jewish community was one of the religious groups invited to participate in a new framework established by the government to facilitate discussion between the state and religious leaders on various matters. Moreover, symbolically important annual events continue such as the lighting of the menorah candles at the residence of the Lord Mayor of Dublin and the Chief Rabbi's televised address to the nation on the eve of the Jewish New Year.

Nevertheless, the community is undoubtedly at a crossroads. It is financially secure in the medium term but faces the abovementioned challenges without the benefit of any real leadership. This more than any other factor places in jeopardy the future viability of a once thriving community built from scratch by what Max Nurock, the Dublin-born and educated Jew who later became Israel's ambassador to Australia, remembered fondly as an "incomparable generation of Litvak [Lithuanian] pioneers."

Just a Fact, Ma'am

2008-07-29T13:15:00.000-07:00

scotsman.com News - Headlines

Fact of the Day

On this date in 1565, Mary Queen of Scots married her cousin, Lord Darnley, in the Old Abbey Chapel at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh. You can read a range of story on the Scots Queen at

heritage.scotsman.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Just a Fact, Ma'am

2008-07-20T10:01:00.000-07:00

Fact of the Day

Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Inverkeithing (AKA Battle of Pitreavie) in 1651. Part of the third "English" civil war, the battle pitched Oliver Cromwell's parliamentary New Model Army against a force of Scots loyal to King Charles. Among the 2,000 Scots dead were some 760 Macleans.

Some Scottish Facts

2008-07-19T15:46:00.000-07:00

I love these lists of facts. They're fodder for my next book about Scotland.

Anniversaries of Scottish Historical Events
July 13 1249 - King Alexander III crowned at Scone
July 14 1927 - Scottish National War Memorial opened.
July 15 1889 - National Portrait Gallery for Scotland opened in Edinburgh.
July 16 1328 - David II, son of Robert I (the Bruce) married Joan, sister
of Edward III (he was 4, she was 7).
July 16 1970 - 13th Commonwealth Games opened in Edinburgh.
July 17 1695 - Bank of Scotland, first bank to be established by an Act of
the Scottish Parliament, opened.
July 18 1792 - John Paul Jones, naval hero of the American Revolution,
died; he was born in Kircudbrightshire in 1747.
July 19 1333 - Battle of Halidon Hill in which Sir Archibald Douglas
(guardian of David II) routed by Edward Balliol and Edward III. Scots
losses were nearly 600, English losses 14.
July 20 1651 - Battle of Inverkeithing. Royalist force supporting Charles
II failed to halt advance of army of Oliver Cromwell heading for Perth.
July 21 1796 - Robert Burns dies in Dumfries, aged 37.
July 22 1298 - The army of the English King Edward I, using longbows for
the first time, defeated the Scots led by Sir William Wallace at Battle of
Falkirk.
July 23 1745 - Charles Edward Stuart landed on Eriskay at the start of the
1745 campaign.
July 24 1567 - Mary Queen of Scots abdicated and the young James VI acceded
to Scottish throne. The Earl of Mar was appointed regent.
July 24 2002 - The Princess Royal formally opened the Loch Lomond and The
Trossachs National Park, Scotland's first national park.
July 25 1394 - King James I born.

Love Myths

2008-07-11T09:30:00.000-07:00

scotsman.com News -----------------------------------------------

Fact of the Day

On this day in 1881 the ghost-ship of doom, the Flying Dutchman, was sighted at 4am 50 miles off the Cape of Good Hope, by the crew of HMS Inconstant. Many sightings had previously been claimed, but this occasion was unique, for the phantom was seen by 13 people, including a 16-year-old naval cadet who became George V. To read about Scottish myths and mysteries go to

heritage.scotsman.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

How others perceive the US

2008-07-10T10:13:00.000-07:00

This is from NEWS:Scotsman.comUS uses Iranian missile tests to justify European defence shield

Footage of the missiles trailing vapour plumes across the desert was broadcast on Iranian television

« Previous « PreviousNext » Next »View GalleryADVERTISEMENTPublished Date: 10 July 2008
By MICHAEL THEODOULOU
THE United States led vociferous condemnation of long-range missile tests by Iran yesterday, but also used them to justify its controversial plans to install a missile defence shield in eastern Europe that have met with fierce Russian opposition.
The Iranian muscle-flexing also highlighted sharp differences in foreign policy between the US presidential rivals. Barack Obama, the Democratic hopeful, called for "aggressive diplomacy" with Iran, while John McCain, the Republican candidate, warned against making any concessions.

Tehran said a "new version" of its Shahab-3 missile, with a range of 1,250 miles and carrying a one-tonne conventional warhead, was among nine medium and long-range missiles test-fired by its elite Revolutionary Guards.

Tehran said the exercise demonstrated the Islamic Republic's readiness to retaliate against any attack over its nuclear programme. Referring to the US and Israel, General Hossein Salami, the air force commander of the Revolutionary Guards, declared: "We warn the enemies who intend to threaten us with military exercises and empty psychological operations that our hand will always be on the trigger and our missiles will always be ready to launch."

The tests came less than a day after the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, dismissed fears that Israel and the US could be preparing to attack.

Despite the sabre-rattling, neither side has ruled out a settlement.

"We view force as an option that is on the table, but a last resort," said William Burns, the US under-secretary of state for political affairs. "We do not believe we have exhausted all diplomatic options."

Footage of the missiles, fired from a desert location, was broadcast on television.

In London, the Foreign Office said the "tests were unwelcome and only serve to reinforce our concerns about Iranian intentions". The White House expressed concern that Iran's ballistic missiles could be used as a "delivery vehicle for a potential nuclear weapon".

Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, said the test justified plans to install a missile shield in eastern Europe. "Those who say there is no Iranian missile threat against which we should build a defence missile system perhaps ought to talk to the Iranians about their claims," she said on a visit to Bulgaria.

That argument was echoed by Mr McCain. He also implicitly criticised Mr Obama's strategy of engaging with Iran. "Working with our European partners and regional allies is the best way to meet the threat posed by Iran, not unilateral concessions that undermine multilateral diplomacy," Mr McCain said.

Mr Obama said Iran must "suffer threats of economic sanctions with direct diplomacy opening up channels of communication so we avoid provocation, but we give strong incentives for the Iranians to change their behaviour".

BACKGROUND

IRAN'S medium to long-range missile programme is primarily based on North Korean-supplied technology, shipped to the country in the late 1990s and based on Soviet designs.

There is also evidence of some later Russian and Chinese input and it is to be assumed the Iranians have made several advances themselves.

Defence analyst Paul Beaver said Iran's missile programme was fairly advanced, but it still needed to get accuracy and guidance systems right for long distances. "They are some way away yet from threatening Israel or US bases," he said.

Pieter Wezeman, a researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, said he did not believe that Iran had many Shahab 3 missiles in stock or that they could cause major destruction.

US uses Iranian missile tests to justify European defence shieldFootage of the missiles trailing vapour plumes across the desert was broadcast on Iranian television

Date: 10 July 2008
By MICHAEL THEODOULOU
THE United States led vociferous condemnation of long-range missile tests by Iran yesterday, but also used them to justify its controversial plans to install a missile defence shield in eastern Europe that have met with fierce Russian opposition.
The Iranian muscle-flexing also highlighted sharp differences in foreign policy between the US presidential rivals. Barack Obama, the Democratic hopeful, called for "aggressive diplomacy" with Iran, while John McCain, the Republican candidate, warned against making any concessions.

Tehran said a "new version" of its Shahab-3 missile, with a range of 1,250 miles and carrying a one-tonne conventional warhead, was among nine medium and long-range missiles test-fired by its elite Revolutionary Guards.

Tehran said the exercise demonstrated the Islamic Republic's readiness to retaliate against any attack over its nuclear programme. Referring to the US and Israel, General Hossein Salami, the air force commander of the Revolutionary Guards, declared: "We warn the enemies who intend to threaten us with military exercises and empty psychological operations that our hand will always be on the trigger and our missiles will always be ready to launch."

The tests came less than a day after the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, dismissed fears that Israel and the US could be preparing to attack.

Despite the sabre-rattling, neither side has ruled out a settlement.

"We view force as an option that is on the table, but a last resort," said William Burns, the US under-secretary of state for political affairs. "We do not believe we have exhausted all diplomatic options."

Footage of the missiles, fired from a desert location, was broadcast on television.

In London, the Foreign Office said the "tests were unwelcome and only serve to reinforce our concerns about Iranian intentions". The White House expressed concern that Iran's ballistic missiles could be used as a "delivery vehicle for a potential nuclear weapon".

Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, said the test justified plans to install a missile shield in eastern Europe. "Those who say there is no Iranian missile threat against which we should build a defence missile system perhaps ought to talk to the Iranians about their claims," she said on a visit to Bulgaria.

That argument was echoed by Mr McCain. He also implicitly criticised Mr Obama's strategy of engaging with Iran. "Working with our European partners and regional allies is the best way to meet the threat posed by Iran, not unilateral concessions that undermine multilateral diplomacy," Mr McCain said.

Mr Obama said Iran must "suffer threats of economic sanctions with direct diplomacy opening up channels of communication so we avoid provocation, but we give strong incentives for the Iranians to change their behaviour".

BACKGROUND

IRAN'S medium to long-range missile programme is primarily based on North Korean-supplied technology, shipped to the country in the late 1990s and based on Soviet designs.

There is also evidence of some later Russian and Chinese input and it is to be assumed the Iranians have made several advances themselves.

Defence analyst Paul Beaver said Iran's missile programme was fairly advanced, but it still needed to get accuracy and guidance systems right for long distances. "They are some way away yet from threatening Israel or US bases," he said.

Pieter Wezeman, a researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, said he did not believe that Iran had many Shahab 3 missiles in stock or that they could cause major destruction.

Irish Travelers

2008-07-08T14:05:00.000-07:00

I'm looking for information on the Irish Travelers, who settled in Kentucky. I would like to know something about their way of life, what they eat and drink, churches, and family structures.

Just a fact for today

2008-07-07T13:49:00.000-07:00

Fact of the Day--from the Scotsman.com

On this date in 1307, Edward I, having conquered the Welsh, died on his way to Scotland to fight Robert the Bruce. Seven years later Robert the Bruce defeated the English at Bannockburn, but now historians are divided over the meaning of the battle.

Historians have been divided over the meaning of this battle for a long time. I have read several accounts...........isn't history interesting?

A Bit about the Irish

2008-07-06T08:51:00.000-07:00

I'm anxious for some news about the O'Hara's, the O'Malley's, the Mahoneys and the Sullivans.

The Northern Clans’ Battle of Knockavoe and Knochdow
July 4th, 2008 | by theoracle |
Most of the fighting, however, that took place in the north was not against the foreign element. O’Neills and O’Donnells fought amongst themselves, against each other, and against their neighbours. Wars of succession frequently rent both great families, eventually resulting in the family of Eoghan retaining the headship of the Cineal Eoghain in Conn Mdr and his son, Conn Bacach, and in Aodh Ruadh O’Donnell, and his son, Aodh Dubh O’Donnel, being successively chiefs of the Cineal Chonaill. Both families still maintained their claims to supremacy over all the north.

Those of the O’Neills were opposed in Ulaidh not only by Mac Guinness, but by the O’Neills of the Clann Aodha Buidhe, who fought their kinsmen as fiercely as ever did any of the clans of Ulaidh.

The O’Donnells were at the same time engaged in asserting their traditional rights in Cairbre and ” Lower Connacht”140) against O’Connor Sligo.

In one of the battles in this contest they lost for a time the famous ” Cathach “ : in the capture of Sliao Castle they employed cannon sent to them by a French knight who had visited St. Patrick’s Purgatory in Lough Derg (1516).
But the fiercest rivalry was that between the O’Donnells and the O’Neills themselves. However anxious either might be to enforce its supremacy over its other neighbours, it had always to reckon with its great rival.

The old struggle between the two branches of the northern Ui Neill became intensified as each one tried to make itself supreme in the north. Occasionally during this period the enmity was put aside, and the two great clans combined. But the union was never lasting. In 1514 a peace was made by which the O’Neills formally recognised the supremacy of the Cineal Chonaill over Inishowen and Fermanagh.

But two years after they were again at war. Conn ” Bacach” O’Neill had gathered a host of allies—the chiefs of Oirghialla and Ulaidh, and clans from Connacht and Thomond—while Aodh Dubh O’Donnell depended upon his kins¬men of the Cineal Chonaill alone. At Knockavoe, near Stabane, O’Neill and his allies were utterly defeated in the bloodiest battle that had ever taken place between the Cineal Chonaill and the Cineal Eoghain (1522). O’Neill’s Connacht allies, who had laid siege to Sligo Castle, then in the possession of O’Donnell, fled in panic when they heard the news.

For at least ten years after this O’Donnell exacted tribute from the chiefs of all North or “Lower ” Connacht.

In the south the most important event of the period was the attempt of Tadhg O’Brien to revive the claims of his family over Leath Mhogha {page 73). With the largest army led by an O’Brien since Clontarf he crossed the Shannon, and levied tribute from Limerick. The Lord Deputy, the Earl of Desmond, was forced to acknowledge his rights over most of the old territory of Thomond which lay south of the Shannon. The chief of Osraidhe and some of the Leinster chiefs accepted his ” tuarasdail.”

But his career was suddenly ended by fever (1466).
Battle of Knoekdow.—Forty years later another O’Brien found him-selfin opposition to another Lord Deputy. The affair originated in Connacht, which, since the partition of the O’Connors (page 178), was without an overlord. In a quarrel between O’Kelly of Ui Maine ^d Burke of Uanrickarde (Mac William Uachtar), O’Kelly was supported by the lords of the Pale- Turlough O’Brien, ldnh:the; Chiefs supported Burke, so that the contest was to a great extent the old one between Leath Chuinn and Leath Mhogha.
In a battle at Knochdow (near Gal way)—the most destructive battle since the invasion with the exception of that at Athenry—the southerns were utterly defeated after an obstinate fight (1504).
Six years later, however, O’Brien and Clanrickarde defeated Kildare at Monabraher, near Limerick, the Deputy’s allies on that occasion being the Irish and Normans of Desmond.

Kings and Queens

2008-07-03T06:12:00.000-07:00

I just found this and it added to my font of knowledge. I needed this for my next Clan Gunn book. I got this from a blog on Britain.

Sovereigns selected and deselected

Some think that a British Sovereign inherits the throne and sits on it until he or she dies, but British history shows that the selection and indeed deselection of the Sovereign was often made by the people to ensure that they had a ruler they could trust and who was up to the job. When the British people believed that a Sovereign had violated his Coronation Oath - to protect the laws and give them justice - they often sent him packing.

Cat has prepared a partial list of sovereigns, some of them selected, many of them deselected. I think you'll notice some modern echoes -

SELECTED Alfred (871-899) is the great pre-Norman example of a king selected by the Witan, which passed over his elder brother's son.
SELECTED Alfred's grandson AEthelstan (924-940) was first chosen king by the Mercians, and later named king of Britain by an assembly of less powerful rulers. He held his kingdom together with ‘national assemblies, in which every local interest was represented' (DNB).

SELECTED Edward the Confessor was invited by English magnates to return from exile and become king. On his death the magnates elected Harold.

DESELECTED William II (1087-1100), the son of William the Conqueror, was "deselected" by an arrow in the heart. Supposedly a hunting accident, the archer was never identified. There is some evidence the arrow was shot because William had enclosed common lands to enlarge the New Forest.

SELECTED Henry I (1100-1135) was crowned king when his brother died, in preference to his elder brother Robert. He agreed to affirm the Charter of Liberties and the essential principle that no one, not even the king, is above the law.

SELECTED Henry II (1154-1189) was selected to rule after Stephen.

DESELECTED John (1199-1216) broke his Coronation Oath by not giving justice. He was forced to affirm Magna Carta. When he resisted, the "Holy Army of God" marched against him, with the citizens of all the major towns in support, and John died on the campaign trail.

TEMPORARILY DESELECTED Henry III (1216-1272) was made a prisoner when he refused to uphold Magna Carta and the Provisions of Oxford and Westminster. The struggle that ensued saw the birth of Parliament.

DESELECTED Edward II (1284-1327) was deposed due to extravagant favouritism and his refusal to carry through on promises of reform, including "ejecting evil counsellors". His government 'could not be mended, only ended' (DNB). Edward resigned his throne in favour of his son.

DESELECTED Richard II (1377-1399) troubled the House of Commons with his heavy taxation and his inner circle of favourites and ministers. Richard's claims of prerogative were backed by the courts, but not by the people or the lords, who executed his inner circle. Richard regained power, used the treason law as a means of political and personal oppression and violated Magna Carta. Parliament charged Richard with breaking his Coronation Oath, and thereby breaking the legal bond between himself and his people (DNB). He was deposed "by authority of the clergy and people" with the help of Henry Bolingbroke.

DESELECTED Henry VI (1421-1471) inherited the throne when he was a baby. He was more interested in promoting education - he established Eton and King's College, Cambridge - than in ruling. He could not control greedy courtiers, remedy his court's inefficiency and lack of accountability, provide fair and effective justice or arrange an honourable peace with France. War resumed, trade collapsed, Henry had a breakdown and was deposed.

TEMPORARILY DESELECTED Edward IV (1461-1470, 1471-1483) Rebellions to his rule arose due to high taxes, a greedy court circle and lax justice, and the thorny Wars of the Roses. Edward was forced to flee to the Netherlands, mounted a successful invasion and reestablished his authority in Britain. Unfortunately he was indifferent to the concept of parliament, elevated persons rather than the law and created the new and unlawful tax inventions of 'benevolences', an early example of double-speak.

DESELECTED Charles I (1625-1649) engaged in a great battle with Parliament over taxes, the right to petition government for redress of grievances and his belief in an absolute kingship superior to constitutional law. He lost the subsequent Civil War and the battle of ideas and was beheaded.

SELECTED Charles II (1660-1685), the son of Charles I, was invited back to England to serve as King.

DESELECTED James II (1685-1688) succeeded to the throne on the death of his brother Charles, but was forced to flee when English cities rose in rebellion. The people believed that he was trying to disarm those who opposed him and reinstate Catholicism.

SELECTED William and Mary (1689-1694) were invited to rule England by "A People's Convention". Mary and William were accepted when they affirmed the liberties described in the Declaration of Right as part of their covenant with the people.

DESELECTED George III (1760-1820) retained his crown to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, but Brits in America rejected his rule over the issues of taxes, the right to be armed and the right to self-government.

The modern echoes include high taxes, lack of justice, accountability and fairness, inefficiency and greed, a refusal to abide by Magna Carta, dishonourable peace, and, in the case of John and James, the fear that the kingdom would be ruled by foreign powers. Behind all these concerns lay the breaking of the Coronation Oath.

History provides food for thought as we ask HRH Queen Elizabeth II why she gave her Royal Assent to the Lisbon Treaty, which subverts Britain's sovereignty and common law. Does she believe she lacks the constitutional authority to refuse her assent to Parliament?

It is the people, not Parliament, who give her constitutional authority. She had a constitutional obligation to refuse the Treaty, which is an EU constitution.

To date three presidents of European countries have refused to sign the Treaty.

This government is extremely unpopular. The Queen has the power to dissolve Parliament.

Possible Clan Gunn Book-the 3rd in the series

2008-07-02T08:55:00.000-07:00

June 22nd marks the anniversary of the Battle of Bothwell Bridge in 1679. Royalist forces led by Graham of Claverhouse, the Duke of Monmouth and the Earl of Linlithgow defeated a force of Covenanters near the town of Hamilton. The Covenanters had gathered to debate their next move following their own victory at the Battle of Drumclog.

This is one of those historical facts that spurs me on to continuing my Scottish Heritage books. I need to write the sequel to CLAN GUNN: GEREK, but I don't want to skip 29 years for the next book. I'll have to figure out a way so that Baen's son, Drummond, can be a warrior in this skirmish. I love to use history as a starting point or reference in my novels.

I'll need to figure out how Baen, one of the villains in the above book, gets out of the hole he's gotten himself into. I want to redeem him............

Suffering

2008-06-27T07:53:00.000-07:00

I'm having a bit of pain on the left side, waist down. Have been to the docs twice, had an MRI and will be seeing a neurosurgeon on Tuesday. Can't sit for long, can't lay down for long, can't walk for long---so you see that's why I haven't blogged.

Horse Racing

2008-06-20T09:07:00.000-07:00

I'm so into thoroughbreds and dogs and their careers that I might start another blog. Today, I'm going to post the racing schedule for ESPN--all these races are important stakes races--and I bet they count for the Breeder's Cup at the end of the year.

Date--Network--Time (ET)--Race/Event--Track

June 28--ESPN2--7:00-8:00 p.m.--Hollywood Gold Cup--Hollywood Park

July 5--ESPN2--6:00-7:00 p.m.--United Nations, Salvator Mile Stakes--Monmouth Park

July 13--ESPN2--5:00-6:00 p.m.--Delaware Handicap, Barbaro Stakes--Delaware Park

July 19--ESPN2--7:00-8:00 p.m.--San Diego Handicap--Del Mar

August 2 ESPN--5:00-6:00 p.m.--Darley Test Stakes--Saratoga; West Virginia Derby--Mountaineer Pk.

August 9 ESPN--5:00-6:00 p.m.--Arlington Million, Beverly D. Stakes--Arlington Park

August 23 ESPN--4:30-6:00 p.m.--Travers Stakes, NetJets King’s Bishop Stakes, Bernard Baruch Handicap--Saratoga

Important to me

2008-06-19T06:10:00.000-07:00

I love horses. I hate what is being done with them after they've served mankind. I hate the slaughter of such animals.

Unwanted Horses: How Serious a Problem?

By Tom LaMarra

Posted: Wednesday June 18, 8:49 PM at BloodHorse.com

It tends to get lost in the shuffle because it’s not as sexy as anabolic steroids, race-fixing, or catastrophic breakdowns from a media perspective. But talk to people who work in the horse industry every day, and they’ll tell you the issue of unwanted horses is serious and so broad it impacts the entire United States, not just the horseracing industry.

Perhaps it’s time for a wake-up call.

“We need to focus our efforts on the front end of the problem rather than the rear end of the problem,” said Dr. Tom Lenz, a past president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners who is active with the Unwanted Horse Coalition formed after an AAEP-sponsored summit in 2005. “Honestly, the average horse owner hasn’t thought about this issue, but they need to give serious thought to changing the way they operate.”

Lenz offered his thoughts June 18 during the day-long “Unwanted Horse Forum” sponsored by the American Horse Council and the United States Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C. The forum was fairly subdued even though the lightning-rod issues of horse slaughter, euthanasia, and consumption of horsemeat colored much of the proceedings.

The USDA titled the forum “The Unwanted Horse Issue: What Now?” It was timely by accident; the United States Supreme Court two days earlier denied an appeal from an Illinois slaughter plan that challenged an Illinois law prohibiting the killing of horses for human consumption.

The meat at the Illinois plant and two in Texas that closed in 2007 was mostly shipped overseas for consumption.

According to USDA data through 2006, about 70,000 horses per year were slaughtered in the U.S., 25,000 a year were shipped to Canada, and 7,500 a year were sent to Mexico (that number jumped to 40,000 last year). There are about 20,000 un-adopted feral horses and another 6,000-8,000 waiting to be adopted. It all adds up to about 100,000 unwanted horses in the U.S. each year.

“I have no doubt there is an unwanted horse problem in this country,” Lenz said. “We cannot completely eliminate it, but we can certainly minimize the problem.”

Can't escape slaughter issue
The Unwanted Horse Coalition, which falls under the AHC umbrella and has about 25 member organizations from various breeds and disciplines, has focused on education given the fact it can’t issue mandates. The coalition published an “Own Responsibly” guide, while the AHC issued in booklet form care and handling guidelines for horse owners.

The Humane Society of the United States, which has been quite active on the slaughter issue, has an equine division and prints horse-care guides. But the HSUS position often is at odds with horse industry groups given its campaign to end slaughter.

“We are definitely anti-slaughter,” said Holly Hazard, chief innovations officer for the HSUS. “Our position is slaughter is inhumane. I think the issue really is whether slaughter is adding to our ability to create a more humane world for horses. I don’t see that’s true.”

And that’s the major split: Does the shutdown of U.S. slaughter plants help address the unwanted horse issue or make it worse?

“Is there a chance things could become worse than the scenario right now?” said Camie Heleski, coordinator of the Michigan State University Horse Management Program. “The public doesn’t always have all the facts when it comes to making decisions, and that has complicated the issue even more.”

Former Congressman Charles Stenholm of Texas took it even further. Stenholm, current a senior policy adviser at Olsson Frank and Weeda, a Washington, D.C., law firm that specializes in regulatory affairs, served as a member of the House Committee on Agriculture for 26 years and spent a lot of time on the slaughter issue.

“Everyone is entitled to their opinion,” Stenholm said, “but everyone is not entitled to their facts.”

Stenholm, who has been a lobbyist for the three U.S. slaughter plants, said the issue of the unwanted horse as it relates to horse slaughter is in need of hard facts rather than emotion, which he said has led to anti-slaughter legislation in Congress. Stenholm said those in the animal industry “all agree today that all animals should be treated humanely from birth to death,” but there are various opinions on what qualifies as humane.

The former lawmaker said the HSUS “did a beautiful job politically” in lobbying for anti-slaughter measures. But those who disagree, he said, see a problem that could only worsen.

How about private property rights?
“At some point, you are going to have horses that have no place to go,” Stenholm said. “When you begin to address the real world, I do see a little problem. This has become a 50-state issue...Horses are livestock, folks. Be careful of arguing that horses are pets, because you might get what you wish for. Pets are not tax deductible.”

Stenholm said he is disappointed the Supreme Court, in its Illinois slaughter ruling, didn’t address private property rights in terms of horse ownership. “We’re getting on very thin constitutional ice that has serious ramifications,” he said.

States are now studying the unwanted horse and slaughter issues, and a committee was to be formed perhaps June 18 to look at the issue from a national standpoint. There are hints that the U.S. hasn’t seen the end of slaughter plants despite the developments of the past two years.

“A lot of people are beginning to take a look at this with a realistic eye,” Stenholm said. “(Slaughter) has been an acceptable practice in the U.S. since we became a country. Only recently has this become un-American. If we lose this one, it’s over.”

U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield of Kentucky was scheduled to speak along with Stenholm, but moderator Richard Reynnells of the USDA announced Whitfield had a conflict that prevented him from attending his scheduled 45-minute session. Whitfield’s wife, Connie, is director of development for the HSUS.

Working on solutions
Tom Persechino, senior director of marketing for the American Quarter Horse Association, outlined potential solutions and options, such as rescue and retirement facilities, asking friends with acreage to take horses, contacting colleges and universities that have equine programs, and using horses for the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association.

Persechino said it’s not practical to force breeders to limit the number of horses they breed, but it is feasible to educate them. He said the Unwanted Horse Coalition “believes teaching people to own responsibly will help lower the number of unwanted horses.”

“The proposition that there are large numbers of unwanted horses in this country in need of slaughter can be answered with a resounding no,” said Hazard of the HSUS. “There are many horses in need of the commitment of the people with a stake in the horse industry to take responsibility for reducing the numbers that are bred, educating novice horse owners about proper care and training, creating new equestrian opportunities that allow more people to become a part of the equine community, and calling for an end to the unnecessary brutality of slaughter.”

Karin Bump, a professor at Cazenovia College in upstate New York, recommended a signal organization be in charge of collecting and maintaining data so there is no confusion. That, she said, would go a long way toward unifying the disparate groups.

It’s generally believed all the groups in play on the unwanted horse issue agree 90% of the time. It’s the other 10% that puts the unwanted horse at the mercy of politics.

“I think five to 10 years from now we’ll have a pretty good grip on things, but it’s going to take some time,” Lenz said.

Kings and Queens

2008-06-18T05:05:00.000-07:00

I found this bit of info on a stamp-collecting blog and have given the name of the person who posted it first at the bottom of this. I thought this a clever way to do the kings of England, which also were the kings of Scotland and Ireland at one time. By putting it on my blog, I can keep the information to use when I write my next historical novel, Saratoga Winter: 1865. This was a good resource for me.........all in one place.

Prince William2 (1982– )

The first child of the Prince and Princess of Wales. He is sometimes called Wills in the press.

William I (also William the Conqueror) (c. 1027–87)

The king of England from 1066 to 1087. He was the Duke of Normandy, in northern France, when the English king Edward the Confessor died, and claimed that Edward had promised him the right to be the next king of England. He invaded England and defeated King Harold II at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Later that year he became king. He gave power and land in England to other Normans, and built many castles to control the English people.

William II (also William Rufus) (c. 1056–1100)

The king of England from 1087 to 1100. He became king when his father William I died. He was a skilful leader but his attempts to take money from his barons and the Church made him unpopular. He died in an accident while hunting, but many people think he was murdered so that his brother Henry I could be king. He was called Rufus, meaning red, because of the colour of his hair.

William III (also William of Orange) (1650–1702)

The king of Great Britain and Ireland from 1688 to 1702. He was a Dutch prince, married to Mary, the daughter of James II. They were invited by British Protestants to be the king and queen of Britain in order to prevent the Roman Catholic James II from being king. William became king in the Bloodless Revolution and defeated the forces of James II in Ireland at the Battle of the Boyne. He is remembered by a group of Protestants in Northern Ireland who are opposed to Ireland becoming one republic, and call themselves Orangemen. See also William and Mary.

William IV (1765–1837)

The king of Great Britain and Ireland from 1830 to 1837. He was the son of George III and spent many years in the Royal Navy. He is also remembered for having had ten illegitimate children (= ones born outside marriage) with a female actor. His most important action was to create 50 new Whig (1) peers to vote for the Reform Act against the Tories in Parliament who were opposed to it.

Edward the Confessor (c. 1003–66)

The king of England from 1042 to 1066, a son of Ethelred the Unready. He was considered a very holy man, and in 1161 the Pope made him a saint and gave him the title of ‘Confessor’. However, he does not seem to have been very interested in government, and there was great confusion when he died over who had been promised the throne of England. His brother-in-law Harold Godwin became king, but was soon removed by William of Normandy in the Norman Conquest of 1066.

Prince Henry5 (1984– )

The second child of the Prince and Princess of Wales. He is usually called Prince Harry by the British press and public.

Henry I (1068–1135) king of England (1100–35).

The youngest of three sons of William I, he became king when his eldest brother William II died, because his other brother Robert was away on a Crusade. Henry improved the administrative system of the country and established a system by which judges travelled around the country giving justice.

Henry II (1133–89) king of England (1154–89).

He was the grandson of Henry I, succeeded King Stephen, and was the first Plantagenet king. He reduced the power of the barons and increased the power of the state. He wanted to reduce the power of the Church, which led to his dispute with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket, which ended in Becket’s murder. During his rule England established control over Ireland. Henry also introduced various systems of justice which can be seen as the beginning of common law.

Henry III (1207–72) king of England (1216–72)

and the son of King John. He was not popular with the barons, who disliked his use of foreign people to advise him and criticized him for poor judgement in financial matters. In 1264, Simon de Mont fort led a rebellion of the barons and Henry was defeated and put in prison. He took back power in 1265 after a battle in which the rebels were defeated by an army led by Henry’s son (later Edward I).

Henry IV (1366–1413) king of England (1399–1413)
after his cousin Richard II. He was born Henry Bolingbrook, the son of John of Gaunt, and was a leading opponent of Richard’s. In 1398 Richard sent him into exile, but in 1399 he returned to England, defeated Richard and was accepted as king by Parliament. While he was king there were rebellions against him in Wales and the north of England. He was forced to accept the principle that the king should govern through Parliament, and in 1407 Parliament took control of the country’s financial affairs.

Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2 two plays (c. 1597–8) by Shakespeare based on the period when Henry IV was king of England. The play’s main characters are Prince Hal (Henry IV’s son and later Henry V) and his friend Falstaff. In Part 1 Hal drinks and jokes with Falstaff and others in the Boar’s Head, a London tavern (= old pub), and his father worries that he is not serious enough to become a king. However, at the end he accepts his responsibilities and fights in a battle to defeat a rebellion against his father. In Part 2, Hal is still friendly with Falstaff, but when Henry IV dies and Hal becomes king, he rejects him with the famous line: ‘I know thee not, old man’.

Henry V (1387–1422) king of England (1413–22) and son of Henry IV. He is regarded as a symbol of English patriotism (= love of one’s own country), especially because of Shakespeare’s play Henry V. He took an English army to France during the Hundred Years War and defeated the French at the Battle of Agincourt (1415), putting an area of France under English control.
Henry V a play (1599) by Shakespeare which celebrates the military victories in France of King Henry V. It contains several famous patriotic speeches, including the famous speech before the battle. There have been two film versions, the first in 1944, directed by Laurence Olivier with himself as Henry, and the second in 1989, directed by Kenneth Branagh who also played the title role.

Henry VI (1421–71) king of England (1422–61 and 1470–1) and son of Henry V. He was not popular, mainly because England finally lost the Hundred Years War while he was king. Opposition to him led to the Wars of the Roses, in which the House of Lancaster was defeated by the House of York and Henry was put in prison. As a result of this, Edward became king, but in 1470, with the help of the powerful Earl of Warwick, known as Warwick the Kingmaker, Henry became king again, but he was defeated once more in 1471. He was put in the Tower of London, where he was murdered, and Edward became king again. Henry established Eton College and King’s College, Cambridge.
Henry VI, Parts 1, 2 and 3 three plays (c. 1590–92) by Shakespeare, set during the period of the Wars of the Roses. They are among Shakespeare’s earliest plays and some people believe that he may only have written parts of them.

Henry VII (1457–1509) king of England (1485–1509),

the first Tudor (1) king. Born Henry Tudor, he was brought up in France. In 1485 he led a rebellion against Richard III, defeated him at the Battle of Bosworth Field and became king. In 1486 he married the daughter of Edward, uniting the House of Lancaster (to which he belonged) and the House of York and so bringing the Wars of the Roses to an end. Although there were rebellions during his rule, including those led by Lambert Simnel and Perkin War beck, Henry established greater order in the country, introduced a more modern system of government and greatly improved the country’s financial position.

Henry VIII (1491–1547) king of England (1509–47)

and son of Henry VII. He is one of the most famous of all English kings, partly because he had six wives. For political reasons, he married Catherine of Aragon, the wife of his dead brother Arthur, just after he became king. They had a daughter, later Mary I, but because they did not have a son who could be the future king, Henry decided to divorce her. The Pope refused to give the necessary permission for this, so Henry removed England from the Catholic Church led by the Pope and made himself head of the Church in England. This act, together with others such as the Dissolution of the Monasteries, was the beginning of the establishment of Protestantism in England. Henry divorced Catherine of Aragon and married Anne Boleyn in 1533. They had a daughter, later Elizabeth I, but Henry had Anne executed for adultery. His third wife was Jane Seymour, who died giving birth to a son (later Edward VI). Henry married his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, for political reasons, but soon divorced her and in 1540 he married Catherine Howard. She too was executed for adultery. Henry’s sixth and last wife was Catherine Parr. As a young man Henry was known for his love of hunting, sport and music, but he did not rule well and the country was in a weak and uncertain state when he died. See also Cromwell. See also Green sleeves. See also More, Wolsey.
Henry VIII a play (1613) by Shakespeare, possibly the last he wrote. Some people believe he wrote it with somebody else, perhaps John Fletcher. It is about events surrounding King Henry VIII’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon.

George I (1660–1727) king of Great Britain and Ireland (1714–27). He was the first of the Hanoverian kings and came to Britain from Germany on the death of Queen Anne. He was not popular in Britain, mainly because he did not learn to speak English, and because he arrived with two German lovers who were not liked by the British people. He did not get involved in British politics, leaving most decisions to the Cabinet, which became much more important during his time as king.

George II (1683–1760) king of Great Britain and Ireland (1727–60).

He was the only son of George I and, like his father, was not very interested in the government of Britain, allowing the development of the constitutional monarchy. He was, however, interested in the army, and fought against the French in the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–8). He was the last British king to lead his army into a battle.

George III (1738–1820) king of Great Britain and Ireland (1760–1820).

He was the grandson of King George II. He was very interested in the government of Britain, and worked closely with prime ministers such as Lord North and William Pitt. He was strongly opposed to American independence, and was blamed by the public for losing the war of the American Revolution. He suffered from illness for some periods of his life and in 1811 he became so ill that his son was made Prince Regent.

George IV (1762–1830) king of Great Britain and Ireland (1820–30). Before becoming king, he ruled as Prince Regent because his father George III was ill. He had many lovers and shocked many people by the way he lived, spending a lot of time eating, drinking and gambling.

George V (1865–1936) king of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1910–36). He was the son of Edward VII. He became popular with the British people for supporting the British armed forces in World War I. In 1917 he dropped all his German titles and changed the family name from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor1 (2).

George VI (1895–1952) king of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1936–52).

He was the second son of George V and became king after the abdication of his brother Edward VIII. He was greatly admired by the British people during World War II for staying in London when it was being bombed. He was the last British king to be called ‘emperor’ and the first head of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Prince Edward (1964– )
Earl of Wessex, the fourth child of Queen Elizabeth II. He was educated at Gordonstoun in Scotland and at Cambridge University, where he studied history. He joined the Royal Marines in 1986, but left the next year to begin a career producing plays for the theatre and films for television. In 1999 he married Sophie Rhys-Jones. Their daughter, Lady Louise Windsor, was born in 2003.

Edward I (1239–1307)The king of England from 1272 to 1307, the oldest son of Henry III. He spent a lot of time trying to control Wales and Scotland, fighting, among others, William Wallace and Robert the Bruce. As a result he was called the ‘Hammer of the Scots’. In 1296 he brought the Stone of Scone to England.

Edward II (1284–1327)
The king of England from 1307 to 1327, the son of Edward I and the first Prince of Wales. He took his armies to Scotland, but was defeated at the Battle of Bannock burn (1314) by Robert the Bruce. He was a weak king who upset the English barons, and in 1327 his son Edward III replaced him. Later that year he was murdered.

Edward III (1312–77)The king of England from 1327 to 1377, the son of Edward II. He had continuing problems with the Scots, but he had some success in his attempts to become the king of France, for example at the battles of Crécy (1346) and Poitiers (1355). After his death his grandson became the king of England as Richard II, because his son Edward, the Black Prince, had died the year before. See also Hundred Years War.

Edward IV (1442–83)The king of England from 1461 to 1470 and from 1471 to 1483. He was the son of Richard, Duke of York3 (3). In 1461 his army defeated the soldiers of Henry VI of the House of Lancaster. Edward had the support of the powerful Earl of Warwick, known as Warwick the Kingmaker, to whom he was related, but in 1470 he lost this support and also for a short time his throne (to Henry VI). After the defeat of Warwick and Henry in 1471, England had a period of great stability under Edward, who encouraged the development of art, music, etc. as well as the new science of printing. See also Wars of the Roses.

Edward V (1470–83)
The king of England for three months in 1483, a son of Edward IV. It is generally believed that his uncle, who took the throne by force to become King Richard III, murdered Edward V and his younger brother. See also Princes in the Tower.

Edward VI (1537–53)
The king of England from 1547 to 1553. He was the son of King Henry VIII and his third wife Jane Seymour, and the half-brother (= brother by a different mother) of Mary I and Elizabeth I. He became king at the age of ten, so other people, called regents governed on his behalf. One of them persuaded him to change his will, giving the throne to Lady Jane Grey, but the plan failed and Mary became queen when Edward died. During this period, with Edward’s support, England became much more strongly Protestant, so that Mary was unable to change it back to Catholicism.

Edward VII (1841–1910)The king of Great Britain and Ireland from 1901 to 1910, the son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. He was the Prince of Wales for most of his life, while his mother ruled. Victoria did not let him play much part in state affairs, so he spent most of his time at social events, such as parties, horse racing, etc. When she died in 1901, he became a popular king. His reign was a period of peace and economic success before World War I.

Edward VIII (1894–1972)The eldest son of King George V. He became the king of Great Britain and Ireland when his father died in January 1936, but never had the crown officially placed on his head. He had fallen in love with Mrs. Simpson, an American who was divorced, and it was not acceptable at that time that he should marry her and remain king. So in December 1936, he abdicated (= gave up his position as king) and his brother became King George VI, giving Edward the title of Duke of Windsor. Edward married Mrs. Simpson in June 1937, and they lived in France for many years. See also abdication crisis.

George I (1660–1727)
King of Great Britain and Ireland (1714–27). He was the first of the Hanoverian kings and came to Britain from Germany on the death of Queen Anne. He was not popular in Britain, mainly because he did not learn to speak English, and because he arrived with two German lovers who were not liked by the British people. He did not get involved in British politics, leaving most decisions to the Cabinet, which became much more important during his time as king.

George II (1683–1760)
King of Great Britain and Ireland (1727–60). He was the only son of George I and, like his father, was not very interested in the government of Britain, allowing the development of the constitutional monarchy. He was, however, interested in the army, and fought against the French in the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–8). He was the last British king to lead his army into a battle.

George III (1738–1820)
King of Great Britain and Ireland (1760–1820). He was the grandson of King George II. He was very interested in the government of Britain, and worked closely with prime ministers such as Lord North and William Pitt. He was strongly opposed to American independence, and was blamed by the public for losing the war of the American Revolution. He suffered from illness for some periods of his life and in 1811 he became so ill that his son was made Prince Regent.

George IV (1762–1830)
King of Great Britain and Ireland (1820–30). Before becoming king, he ruled as Prince Regent because his father George III was ill. He had many lovers and shocked many people by the way he lived, spending a lot of time eating, drinking and gambling.

George V (1865–1936)
King of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1910–36). He was the son of Edward VII. He became popular with the British people for supporting the British armed forces in World War I. In 1917 he dropped all his German titles and changed the family name from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor1 (2).

George VI (1895–1952)
King of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1936–52). He was the second son of George V and became king after the abdication of his brother Edward VIII. He was greatly admired by the British people during World War II for staying in London when it was being bombed. He was the last British king to be called ‘emperor’ and the first head of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Queen Victoria2 (1819–1901)A British queen who ruled from 1837 to 1901. She was the granddaughter of King George III and became queen after the death of King William IV. Her rule was the longest of any British king or queen, and happened at the same time as Britain’s greatest period of world power and industrial development. In 1840 she married her cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. They had nine children. After Albert’s death Victoria took no further part in public affairs, but was persuaded to return by her Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, who gained for her the title Empress of India. She is often remembered as a bad-tempered old woman who once said, ‘We are not amused.’ However in her early life she was a happy and enthusiastic queen who was very popular with ordinary people.

Prince Albert (1819–61)
The husband (and also cousin) of Queen Victoria. The son of a German duke, Albert married Victoria in 1840, and in 1857 he was given the title of Prince Consort. He took great interest in the arts, as well as business, science and technology, and was a strong influence behind the Great Exhibition of 1851. Albert died suddenly when he was only 42, and the Queen wore black clothes for the next 40 years as a sign of her great sadness.

Elizabeth I (1533–1603)The queen of England and Ireland from 1558, after the death of her sister Mary I. She is regarded as one of England’s greatest rulers. The daughter of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth was an extremely strong and clever woman who controlled the difficult political and religious situation of the time with great skill. She once said to her soldiers before a battle, ‘I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a King, and of a King of England, too.’ During her reign the country’s economy grew very strong, the arts were very active, and England became firmly Protestant and confident in world affairs. However, Elizabeth is often seen as a very lonely figure and is known as the ‘Virgin Queen’ because she never married, although she is known to have had a relationship with the Earl of Leicester and, late in life, the Earl of Essex. See also Armada, Mary Queen of Scots.

Elizabeth II (1926– )
The queen of the United Kingdom since 1952. She is the daughter of King George VI and his wife Queen Elizabeth. She had one sister, Princess Margaret. In 1947 she married Prince Philip of Greece, who had just been made the Duke of Edinburgh, in Westminster Abbey. Her father died in 1952 and Elizabeth was crowned on 2 June 1953. She is a highly respected and much loved monarch with a great interest in the Commonwealth. The Queen and Prince Philip have four children, Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward.
ò note at Royal Family Of the period of the British kings George I, II and III, most of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century. British architecture, furniture and silver of this period are considered particularly attractive. Many British towns and cities have areas of simple but elegant Georgian houses. Some people also refer to the time of George IV as Georgian, while others call it Regency: a four-storey Georgian house.

Diana, Princess of Wales (also Princess Diana) (1961–1997)
The former wife of Prince Charles and the mother of Prince William and Prince Henry (Harry). Her name before she married was Lady Diana Spencer. The Spencer families are descended from the English kings Charles II and James II, and Diana’s father was the 8th Earl Spencer. She was married to Prince Charles in 1981 and soon became the most popular member of the royal family, often referred to informally as Di. However, the marriage failed and in 1992 the prince and princess separated. Although Princess Diana gave up her public duties and was divorced in 1996, she continued some of her work with charities and she remained an object of intense interest to the press and the public. She died in a car accident in Paris while trying to escape from photographers, and her funeral, like her wedding, was watched by almost a fifth of the world’s population.

Alfred the Great (849–99)King of Wessex (871–99). He is remembered for defending England against Danish attacks, for establishing the English navy, and for encouraging education and the use of the English language. There is a popular story of King Alfred and the cakes. After a battle he was hiding in a woman’s house. Not knowing who he was, she told him to look after her cakes which were cooking by the fire, and then became very angry when he let them burn.

Posted by SADANAND R. MEHARWADE at 7:13:00 PM

Being a horse lover

2008-06-17T07:08:00.000-07:00

I am a horse lover and I freely admit it. I have written about horses in all my novels and have owned several 'from the track' thoroughbreds. The more folks that help those horses, the better I like it. This particular article is from BloodHorse.com as is the article on my other blog.

Rehab Specialist

Leigh Gray and Fusaichi Samurai

By Tracy Gantz
Monday June 16, 3:59 PM
Hundreds of former racehorses owe their second careers to Leigh Gray. Manager of Dr. Don Shields’ lay-up facility, Winner’s Circle Ranch in Bradbury, Calif., Gray not only rehabilitates racehorses for a living, she does it in her spare time.

Usually, Gray fixes up former claimers, geldings, and horses that might not have had a future without her help. But one of her current projects is a more distinguished individual—Fusaichi Samurai, who in 2004 sold as a 2-year-old for a then-record $4.5 million. Gray is retraining “Sammy” to begin his new career as a riding horse.

First on her own and now under the nonprofit Thoroughbred Rehab Center (which she established five years ago), Gray has retrained and placed more than 200 former racehorses in loving homes in the last 15 years. She serves as president of the TRC, while other members of the board include vice president Cindy Wilson, Mary Knight, and Pam Mabes.

Eventually, Fusaichi Samurai will be turned over to Japanese translator Mikki Tsuge and retired to Wilson’s Blue Dog Ranch near Creston, Calif. Wilson already has provided a home at her ranch for a couple of geldings Gray rehabilitated.

“Mikki followed Sammy his entire career,” Gray said. “She really wanted to make sure he’d have a good home, and she asked if he could be donated here.”

Following his arrival at Winner’s Circle Ranch, Fusaichi Samurai was gelded. He is adjusting well to life at the lay-up farm and enjoys his regular sessions on a Eurocizer, the tie-free exercise machine that functions somewhat similarly to a mechanical hotwalker. Tsuge has ridden show jumpers and eventers, and though she plans to make her new mount primarily a trail horse, she may also teach him to jump.

“Mikki had told us that his disposition was wonderful,” Gray said. “Even as a stallion, he was very friendly.”

A 6-year-old son of Fusaichi Pegasus—Hidden Storm, by Storm Cat, Fusaichi Samurai was purchased for the sale-topping price at the Fasig-Tipton Florida select sale at Calder by Fusao Sekiguchi. Sekiguchi had bought Fusaichi Pegasus at auction as a yearling for $4 million and won the 2000 Kentucky Derby (gr. I) with him. Fusaichi Samurai was from Fusaichi Pegasus’ first crop.

A series of injuries kept Fusaichi Samurai from fulfilling his potential following a sparkling debut at Hollywood Park in December 2004, when he won a maiden race by two lengths. For trainer Neil Drysdale, he started four times in four years, finishing eighth in his final race at Hollywood in May 2007.

Fusaichi Samurai is one of seven horses that Gray is currently rehabilitating. Many horses she has retrained have gone on to competitive second careers, one even making the long list for the Pan-Am Games.

A former exercise rider for the late Charlie Whittingham, Gray began rehabilitating racehorses while working as a veterinary technician for the Southern California Equine Foundation. When a horse suffered a career-ending injury, she and SCEF hospital administrator Karen Klawitter would often work with veterinarians who provided pro-bono surgery. Gray then performed the aftercare and found homes for the horses.

Gray received the Race Track Chaplaincy of America’s inaugural White Horse Award in 2003 for heroism when she was the foot person on the carriage at Santa Anita that takes the patrol judges to their trackside positions. Fireworks caused the four carriage horses to bolt, throwing the driver, but Gray managed to safely stop the team.

Historical Facts of Scotland

2008-06-15T15:00:00.000-07:00

Anniversaries of Scottish Historical Events
June 15 1567 - Mary Queen of Scots' last night in Edinburgh, at the house
of Sir Simon Preston, the Lord Provost, on the Royal Mile, prior to her
imprisonment at Loch Leven castle two days later.
June 16 1971 - Lord Reith, "father" of the BBC, died.
June 17 1390 - Wolf of Badenoch burns Elgin Cathedral.
June 17 1823 - Charles Macintosh patented the waterproof cloth he was using
to make raincoats.
June 18 1746 - Flora MacDonald met Prince Charles Edward Stuart and
persuaded him to wear women's clothes as part of the escape plan from the
Outer Hebrides to Skye.
June 19 1566 - Mary Queen of Scots gives birth to the future King James VI
of Scotland and I of England.
June 20 1969 - First announcement of the discovery of high-grade crude oil
in the North Sea.
June 21 1796 - Scottish explorer Mungo Park reached the source of the river
Niger in Africa.
June 22 1725 - Malt Riots, Glasgow - against higher taxes imposed on
Scottish malt.

June 23 1650 - Charles II sailed into the estuary of the river Spey and
signed the Covenant before going ashore. ****THIS IS THE ONE THAT INTERESTS ME THE MOST. iT MIGHT BE A FACTOR IN THE CLAN GUNN SEQUEL--that I owe to my publisher.

June 24 1314 - Robert the Bruce defeated Edward II at Battle of
Bannockburn.
June 25 1876 - Seven Scots, including John Stuart Forbes, were in the US
7th Cavalry with General Custer at the Battle of the Little Big Horn.
June 26 1488 - James IV crowned king at the age of 15 at Scone. He reigned
until 1513 when he fell with the flower of Scotland's nobility at the
Battle of Flodden Field.
June 27 1583 - James VI (aged 8) escaped from Castle Ruthven.
June 28 1838 - Queen Victoria crowned at Westminster Abbey.

Chocolate -- Scotsman.com

2008-06-14T08:13:00.000-07:00

Chocolate digestive takes the biscuit in hunt for best treat of all time

The digestive biscuit was originally marketed as a health food-with the inventor unaware that the baking process cancelled out any of the benefits offered by using bicarbonate of soda as a rising agent Picture: TSPL

Date: 14 June 2008
By CLAIRE SMITH
IT WAS developed 150 years ago by a Scot and marketed to the Victorians as a health food. Now a survey has named the McVities chocolate digestive the nation's favourite biscuit.

It was closely followed by the chocolate HobNob and another Scottish classic treat – Walkers shortbread.

The history of the digestive began in 1892 in Queensferry Street in Edinburgh, when young Alexander Grant, who worked alongside Robert McVitie in his biscuit emporium hit on the idea of using bicarbonate of soda as a raising agent.

He mistakenly believed the use of the ingredient would aid digestion – not realising that bicarbonate of soda loses its stomach soothing properties when baked.

The new type of biscuit was a huge success – and Mr Grant closely guarded his secret recipe. Chocolate was eventually added in 1925.

According to industry legend Mr Grant insisted on mixing the ingredients himself and when he went on business trips the mixing machines had to wait for him to get off the train from London to Edinburgh.

Later Mr Grant passed the recipe to his daughter Elizabeth, who continued to work in the McVitie's St Andrew's biscuit factory in Edinburgh.

Today Britons munches their way through 60 million digestives a year and the market for digestives and Hobnobs is worth £250m a year.

Chocolate varieties dominate the top ten with Chocolate Chip Cookies, Bourbon Creams and Chocolate Fingers all scoring highly.

Old-fashioned recipes are also popular, with Custard Creams coming in at No 5 and Jammie Dodgers taking eighth place.

Stuart Payne, founder of nicecupofteaandasitdown.com and author of a book on tea and biscuits, said people still believe the digestive is a 'healthier option.' He said: "It has always outsold all the other biscuits by a mile.

" It has got a lot going for it. People tend to think it is quite a healthy biscuit because it has that nice crumbly texture.

"In fact it is very high in fat – people just like to kid themselves that some biscuits are healthier than others."

Mr Payne said the notion that the digestive was invented by a Scottish doctor as an aid to digestion was a recurring myth.

"There were a lot of Victorian doctors who had a sideline inventing biscuits. The Abernethy biscuit was invented by a Scottish doctor and the Bath Oliver was invented by a doctor from Bath to be eaten when people were taking the waters.

"The idea that the chocolate digestive was invented by a doctor is a myth."

Mr Payne, who has spent years researching the subject, has also discovered a rival Scottish inventor – who also claims to have invented the digestive. Rumours persist that the true inventor was Robert Middlemass, who had his own bakery on Causewayside in the south of the city.

The OnePoll survey revealed 60 per cent of people enjoy dipping their biscuits into tea or coffee, with Rich Tea the preferred dunking biscuit.

The survey proved that once we have chosen our favourites we tend to stick with them – over 16 per cent have been buying the same biscuits for 20 years.

A third of people enjoy biscuits as a mid morning snack but 39 per cent say their favourite moment to eat biscuits is in the evening when watching the television.

John Sewell, of OnePoll.com, said: "When it comes to the crunch the chocolate digestive is the clear favourite. The biscuit has been filling the nation's biscuit barrels for 83 years now.

TOP TEN

1. CHOCOLATE DIGESTIVE: Britain's favourite biscuit and top of the charts since 1925.

2. CHOCOLATE HOBNOB: An instant crumbly classic first seen in 1985.

3. SHORTBREAD: The classiest choice – all-butter shortbread is seen on the finest tables.

4. CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE: An American usurper – but one which has many fans.

5. CUSTARD CREAM: A touch of luxury which you can buy for pennies.

6. BOURBON CREAM: A hint of sophistication with a name which evokes the lost French monarchy.

7. HOBNOB: Crunchy, crumbly, nobbly and delicious.

8. JAMMIE DODGER: A silly biscuit with a silly name. Nonetheless these jammie treats are a favourite.

9. PLAIN DIGESTIVES: The supposed health-giving properties were a myth – but the wholesome image lives on.

10. CHOCOLATE FINGERS: Melting chocolate fingers are a nostalgic choice – whisking you back to childhood parties.

The full article contains 729 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

Simple facts

2008-06-13T09:06:00.000-07:00

scotsman.com News - Headlines

Brown: World needs 1,000 more nuclear power stations

A THOUSAND new nuclear power stations are needed across the world to tackle the oil crisis, Gordon Brown warned yesterday. More info...

Sir Sean takes on star role at book festival

SIR Sean Connery will be returning to Edinburgh to unveil his long-awaited autobiography on his 78th birthday at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, it was announced yesterday. More info... WISH I HAVE SOME SECRETS TO SPILL AND SOME TO KEEP HIDDEN WHEN I'M 78.........

Fact of the Day

On this day in 1893, Lady Margaret Scott became the first women's golf champion in the tournament held at Royal Lytham, Lancashire.

MS sufferers

2008-06-12T17:14:00.000-07:00

My eldest son has MS. Some days he suffers, other days, he feels okay. So far, it's not the serious kind that is totally debilitating--but added to Epilepsy, it's downright awful. I worry and this article interested me.

Will my husband face jail for helping me die? MS sufferer wins latest fight for answer

By JOHN ASTON AND JAN COLLEY
A MULTIPLE sclerosis sufferer yesterday welcomed the High Court's decision to allow her to seek clarification of the law on assisted suicide.

Two judges ruled that the "nature and sensitivity" of Debbie Purdy's human rights case justified letting her seek a judicial review.

Ms Purdy, 45, of Bradford, West Yorkshire, said she was "really pleased" with the decision – and added that a successful legal challenge could help to prolong her life. The case will be heard in October.

She is accusing the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Sir Ken Macdonald, of unlawfully failing to publish details of his policy on whether, and in what circumstances, people might be prosecuted if they help loved ones to die.

Under the Suicide Act 1961, aiding or abetting a suicide is a crime punishable by up to 14 years' imprisonment. No-one has been prosecuted so far, but Ms Purdy's lawyers argue that the law is in urgent need of clarification. If there was no policy, there should be one, they argue.

Ms Purdy, who lived an adventurous life including trekking through jungles and jumping out of planes before illness set in, says she plans "to live forever".

But if her condition becomes unbearably painful, she plans to choose her moment to die and is a member of Dignitas, the Swiss organisation that operates clinics where people can go to end their lives.

She wants to know whether her husband, Omar Puente, who was with her in court yesterday, would be prosecuted if he helped her travel to a clinic in Zurich to take her own life.

Jeremy Johnson, appearing for the DPP, submitted that her case was unarguable as there was no specific policy on assisted suicide, and there was no legal obligation on the DPP to publish one. He also argued that her bid to have the law clarified under Article 8 (right to respect for personal and family life) of the European Convention on Human Rights was blocked by legal precedent.

However, Lord Justice Latham, sitting with Mr Justice Nelson at London's High Court, ruled that "without wishing to give Ms Purdy any optimism that her arguments will ultimately succeed", she did have an arguable case which should go to a full hearing. She said in a statement after yesterday's hearing: "If the DPP does clarify that my husband will not be prosecuted for accompanying me to Dignitas, I will be able to wait until I'm ready to go.

"I want to wait until the last possible moment – if I can no longer bear being alive – but I cannot do that while there is a chance my husband will be prosecuted. If the DPP does not give me this assurance, then I would need to go to Dignitas a long time before I want to die, but at least I would know where I stand."

Sarah Wootton, the chief executive of Dignity in Dying, said the decision was an important step forward. "We hope that common sense prevails and the judicial review will clarify the law, so that people considering travelling to Dignitas will know where they stand."

She added: "Of course, the decision to travel to Dignitas is far from ideal. People who are terminally ill and mentally competent should have the option of requesting a medically assisted death in the comfort of their own country, surrounded by the people they love."

FACT BOX

EUTHANASIA has been "decriminalised" in a number of European countries, namely the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland. Additionally, the American state of Oregon has a "death with dignity act" and Australia has the Northern Territories ruling.

"Physician-assisted suicide" is now practised with increasing openness in the Netherlands.

Swiss law clearly decriminalises assisted suicide without the involvement of a doctor. This means that non-physicians can participate in assisted suicide.

As the law stands in England, Wales and Scotland, deliberate or "active" euthanasia will normally leave anyone assisting suicide or death liable for murder. Under English law, a difference is made between acting and refraining to act – an act of omission.

Active euthanasia occurs when treatment is administered with the intention of ending the patient's life.

The full article contains 705 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

Fact or Fiction

2008-06-09T07:59:00.000-07:00

I believe Scotland claims Donald Duck.............there goes my childhood.

scotsman.com News

Fact of the Day

Short-tempered water fowl Donald Duck made his film debut today in 1934, and despite (or because of) his irascible personality, he was eventually to become one of Disney's most popular characters. Mr Duck's usual outfit is that of a sailor's shirt and cap, but controversially he rarely wears anything on his lower half - except when he goes swimming! Amongst his close relatives are ill-disciplined nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie and tight-fisted Uncle Scrooge McDuck, possibly the most famous Scottish duck in history.

2008-06-07T08:10:00.000-07:00

The only horse that might have had a chance against Big Brown in the Belmont has been scratched. I will be watching the Belmont festivities and the races all day.

From the BLOOD HORSE

Casino Drive is out of the Belmont.

By Ron Mitchell
Saturday June 7, 9:51 AM

About an hour after giving the all-clear for Casino Drive to run in the Belmont Stakes (gr. I), trainer Kazuo Fujisawa said the colt was favoring his left rear hoof and was scratched from the classic.

Earlier, Fujisawa was all smiles after watching Casino Drive canter three furlongs and gave a thumbs up for colt to run in the Belmont.

But when the colt was being bathed following the exercise regimen, he was favoring his foot and the trainer decided to scratch.

"He is sound," Fujisawa declared earlier, after watching Casino Drive leave the track following a three furlong canter. Winner of the Peter Pan (gr. II) at Belmont, Casino Drive is considered one of the leading contenders to upset Big Brown's Triple Crown quest.

The colt's status was thrown into doubt Friday when he did not go to the track because a stone bruise had been detected in the left hind hoof.

Accompanied by Nobutaka Tada, spokesperson of owner Hidetoshi Yamamota, Fujisawa followed Casino Drive to the track at about 5:30 a.m. The colt and a stablemate walked the circle in the paddock for about six laps before going onto the track for his exercise.

Tada said the colt appeared to be favoring the hoof and the trainer decided to scratch. He said a veterinarian, whom he declined to name, inspected Casino Drive and confirmed the right decision had been made.

Tada said Casino Drive would ship to Japan Tuesday with his stablemates and would return to the U.S. later in the year.

Wind Power

2008-06-05T11:24:00.000-07:00

I think this is a great idea and they're doing two off Scotland. I'd love to put one up in my back yard. We get enough wind to supply our whole village.

Go-ahead for offshore wind farms

GalleryPublished Date: 05 June 2008
By Jenny Haworth
A MAJOR expansion in offshore wind power has been announced, with 11 new sites identified around the UK, including two off the Scottish coast.

A MAJOR expansion in offshore wind power has been announced, with 11 new sites identified around the UK, including two off the Scottish coast.

Up to 7,000 more turbines could be built in the seas around the UK within ten years, providing a quartADVERTISEMENTer of the nation's electricity. The two Scottish zones identified lie off the east coast – one in the Firth of Forth, the other in the Moray Firth.

Yesterday's decision came as the country steps up its efforts to meet European Union targets to provide 20 per cent of energy from renewable sources by 2020.

It will boost the energy to be generated from offshore wind power to 33 gigawatts – triple current levels.

The 11 areas earmarked have been chosen because of their levels of wind, water depth and potential for connecting to the grid. Shipping and environmental concerns have also been taken into consideration. Two offshore turbines have already been built in the Moray Firth, in a trial called the Beatrice Demonstrator Project.

The sea off the east coast of Scotland is shallower than in the west, making turbine construction easier.

Yesterday's announcement by the Crown Estate, which owns the UK seabed, was welcomed by environmental groups, the wind energy industry and the Scottish Government.

Malcolm Wicks, the UK energy minister, said developing offshore wind on a large scale would be key to delivering the UK's share of the EU target. He said wind power would help tackle two of the big challenges faced by the country: climate change and energy security.

"The expansion of wind energy is already a real success story for the UK. We will shortly become the leading country in the world in terms of the number of wind farms operating offshore," he said.

Jim Mather, the Scottish energy minister, said he wanted to see more offshore turbines in appropriate locations around the Scottish coast. "Offshore wind can play a vital role in Scotland's renewable future," he said.

Maria McCaffery, chief executive of the British Wind Energy Association, said Britain's seas were now "open for business".

She said: "This is fantastic news for the UK wind industry. This has brought delivery of the 2020 renewable energy targets a great deal closer."

Under the new plan, zones for wind farms generating a total of 25GW will be put out to tender. This compares to the 8GW already allocated for offshore wind. But Robin Oakley, Greenpeace's climate campaign chief, said even more had to be done, and he urged the government to abandon plans for nuclear power in favour of green energy.

"Offshore wind is a 21st-century, frontier technology that can deliver clean electricity to every home in Britain and secure our energy supplies for years to come," he said. "Our country could be the Saudi Arabia of offshore wind – and John Hutton (the Business and Enterprise Secretary] knows it.

"Instead, he's lost in a nuclear fantasy and flatly refuses to introduce the policies that have delivered huge economic benefits for Germany and Spain, which now lead the world in renewable energy.

"Britain is sitting on a treasure chest of green-collar jobs and clean, renewable energy – now we need to unlock it."

Jason Ormiston, chief executive of Scottish Renewables, said the announcement was hugely important, considering how it compared with current allocations for wind power. He said: "We are talking three times what has already been planned. It's an enormous step-change and it's been largely brought about by the EU targets."

He said he was "pleasantly surprised" the Crown Estate had identified two sites off Scotland. But he added that any optimism had to be balanced by an understanding of the potential constraints – such as shipping and environmental damage.

Duncan McLaren, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, said if the sites proved appropriate, they could become an important contribution to Scotland's renewable energy needs.

"They are talking about something equivalent to multiple nuclear power stations, so it's not small beer," he said.

Dr Dan Barlow, head of policy at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said offshore wind would become more and more attractive and could play a "critical role", especially with the urgent need to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.

He said: "Given the rising cost of fossil fuels, it's not surprising that renewables are going to become an even more attractive economic option. It's perhaps not surprising that we are now seeing more movement."

Opposition to the wind farms could come from the Ministry of Defence, which in the past has expressed concern that wind turbines could interfere with radar and get in the way of flight routes. A spokeswoman said: "They are not trivial issues. There are serious safety concerns."

Yesterday's announcement was made at the British Wind Energy Association's Offshore 08 conference in London.

• The ScotsmanDebates series discusses wind power and renewable energy at the Town Hall in Jedburgh on 14 October at 7pm. To reserve tickets, go to www.scotsman.com/debates or write to David Lee, Scotsman Debates, The Scotsman, 108 Holyrood Road, Edinburgh EH8 8AS.

Territorial boundaries mean turbine sites may not be the last

THE wind farms set to be built off the coast of Scotland may not stop with those sites identified yesterday.

The two zones put forward by the Crown Estate both lie outside Scottish territorial waters, which extend up to 12 miles out to sea.

This area lies under control of the UK government, rather than the Scottish Government.

Last month, the Crown Estate made a separate announcement about the procedure for offshore wind farm development within Scottish territorial waters.

It asked for expressions of interest from firms wishing to be considered to build offshore wind farms in Scottish territorial waters.

This means, in addition to wind farms in the two zones identified yesterday, further turbines could spring up in Scottish territorial waters in the future.

Just how much interest there is from the wind industry in building wind farms in Scottish waters is likely to become apparent in the next few months.

The Crown Estate announced it would decide which locations in Scottish territorial waters are suitable by the end of the year.

One drawback of the sea around Scotland is it is far deeper than most of that around England as the continental shelf drops off suddenly off the coast.

The technology to construct turbines – which can be up to 300ft tall – in deep water will need to be more advanced than for shallow water.

How the breeze is harnessed worldwide

THERE are 16 offshore wind-power projects currently operational worldwide.

Denmark is leading the way with seven of the schemes – including the Horns Rev project with 80 turbines, at present the largest project in the world.

Sweden has three offshore wind farms, while the Netherlands has two.

In Scotland, two offshore wind turbines have been built in the Moray Firth as a trial project by Talisman Energy and Scottish and Southern Energy.

Scotland's first full wind farm is a 180-megawatt project under construction at Robin Rigg, in the Solway Firth. It will be made up of 60 turbines and, when complete, is expected to provide enough electricity for about 150,000 households annually.

WHAT NEXT?

THE next step will be for the UK government to carry out an environmental assessment to decide whether the identified 11 sites are suitable.

It will examine issues such as impact on wildlife, shipping lanes and fishing. It is expected to be complete by early next year, when those zones considered suitable will be put out to tender.

The zones will be allocated to developers by the end of 2009.

The Crown Estate will then work with the developers to identify specific sites within the zones and it is expected there will be more than one wind farm within each zone. Companies will have to apply for planning permission for the wind farms from the UK government.

The Crown Estate, which owns the UK seabed, has agreed to invest up to 50 per cent of the cost of obtaining planning consent for the sites.

The wind farms should start being built from 2014 and will be operational from 2018, in time to meet 2020 targets.

An Irish Surname

2008-06-04T08:09:00.000-07:00

I have two Irish attorneys in my suspense novel, VENGEANCE IS MINE. The older one's name is Leo Sullivan, changed from another name that didn't suit. He's a wonderful guy, intelligent, law-abiding and grand.......... The other is Devlin O'Hara. I just adore most Irishmen..........

Irish Family Surnames - O’Sullivan family History and origins
Sullivan is an Irish surname and is actually the same as O’Sullivan. In Irish both names Ó Súilleabháin.
Variations on the name are many. Sullivant, Sillivant, Silliphant, and Sillifant.
The actual meaning of the same name is not clear. The root of the name is the word Suil – eye, but whether the full name means one-eyed or indeed hawk-eyed is still disputed.
The O’Sullivan clan are descendants, like so many of the Irish clans, of Milesius who were the first Celts to colonize Ireland. The Milesians were originally settled in North West Spain where they had a city Brigantia. The migrated to Ireland about 800 B.C and indeed after the fall of Gaelic Ireland to foreign conquest the O’Neil fled to Spain where he saw many ruins associated with Milesius over 2400 years earlier. The Milesians conquered the people that lived in Ireland at that time, the Firbolg and the Tuatha de Dannan. Irish mythology is full of the stories about this this period.

The O’Sullivans are descended from Eoghan (Owen) Mor, the father of the famous Oilioll Olum, they were, with the O’Callaghans, the MacCarthys and the O’Keeffe, one of the leading families of the Munster Eoghanacht. Suilleabhain himself was a direct descendant of Finghin who was a king of Munster in the year 620 A.D. Suilleabhain was born 8 generations later which would place him in the year 862.
The name O’Sullivan is the most common name in the province of Munster and the third most common name in Ireland. Today almost 80% of all Sullivans live in Munster, their original area of rule.
In 1169 the Normans launched their first invasion of Ireland, the beginning of just over 800 years of foreign invasion and occupation. The O’Sullivan clan was driven southwards from their original territory of Tipperary in 1193. They moved to west Cork and south Kerry. Soon after, they divided into two groups - O’Sullivan Mor (Mor indicating larger or greater) in south Kerry, with their principal castle at Dunkerron on the shore of Kenmare Bay and O’Sullivan Beare in west Cork. The Beare suffix came from the Beare peninsula that was named for the Spanish princess Bera, the wife of the first King of Munster. The war with the Normans continued and a notable victory was achieved by the clan, with their O’Donahue and McCarthy allies in 1261 at the battle of Caisglin near Kilgarvan and just north of Kenmare, Kerry.
The O’Sullivan Beare clan was further divided in 1592. When Donal O’Sullivan, the chieftain, was slain in 1563 his son of the same name was but a child two years of age. The Irish succession laws of Tanistry required that the title of chieftain be passed on to the most capable of the dead chief’s family. As a result the clan decided that Owen, one of the brothers of the dead chief, would take over control of the clan and become Lord of Beare and Bantry. Owen acknowledged the English crown and was made a knight by Queen Elizabeth. In 1587 young Donal, now twenty-six years old, decided to claim leadership of the clan. He petitioned the authorities in Dublin, using as the basis for his claim English lineal law, whereby the oldest son should inherit his father’s title regardless of his age at the time of his father’s death. The English Commission wished to see English law implemented across Ireland and sensing the opportunity to divide the O’Sullivans approved his claim.
Owen O’Sullivan had also lost influence due to his partaking in the Desmond rebellion. The O’Sullivans and other clans provided shelter to 12 year old Gerald FitzGerald when Henry’s troops sought to capture him, the last member of his family and the heir to the Earlship of Desmond. The war of the Munster allies continued through the reign of Elizabeth. In the late 1590s, it was the O’Sullivan Mor clan and their close allies the McSweenys that bore the brunt of the fighting with the English forces. Donal O’Sullivan, now chieftain of the O’Sullivan Beare clan, held back from the fighting until the O’Donnells and O’Neills, the great clans of Ulster and those who would have claimed the title of High King of Ireland except for the invasion, entered the campaign.

Munster was in 1600 was a land at war. The Munster clans were being evicted from their lands which were being handed over to colonists.

King Philip III of Spain agreed to send help to the Irish under the command of Don Juan D’Aquilla. Rather than landing in Ulster, as suggested by O’Neill, the Spanish forces landed at Kinsale in County Cork to avoid encountering the English warships in the Irish Sea. The war weary and decimated Munster clans had difficulty mustering an army to join the Ulster and Spanish forces. Donal O’Sullivan Beare was given command of the Munster forces which consisted mainly of soldiers of his clan and those of the O’Driscolls, McSweeneys, and O’Connor Kerry. Daniel O’Sullivan Mor could only contribute token support because of the losses he sustained in the previous years.

The Spanish soldiers were given the responsibility of forming the garrisons for the castles of the O’Driscolls and the O’Sullivans so as to free the Irish troops for the battles to come. The rest of the four thousand Spanish soldiers remained at Kinsale to await the arrival of the Ulster forces. Donal marched to Kinsale with an army of one thousand men. He sent a letter to King Philip swearing allegiance to him as his sovereign. The letter was intercepted by English agents and was later used as reason for denying him pardon.

On December 24, 1601 at the coming of dawn the battle began. It was over in a matter of hours. It was a resounding defeat for the Irish forces. This was due in large part to the reluctance of the Spanish troops to leave the protection of the walled city of Kinsale and join the battle until it was over. O’Neill retreated back to Tyrone with his battered troops. O’Donnell handed over command of his soldiers to his brother and embarked for Spain to plead for more help from King Philip. General Aquila sued for peace and Lord Mountjoy, commander of the English, was only too happy to accept his request. Aquila agreed to surrender the castles his troops were defending. This meant that the O’Sullivans and the O’Driscolls had to fight the Spanish to regain their castles. Donal O’Sullivan wrote to King Philip complaining about the behavior of Aquila. When Aquila returned to Spain he was held in contempt by King Philip and put under house arrest.

Many of the O’Sullivan clan’s non-combatants were sent to the island of Dursey to keep them out of harms way. An English force led by a John Bostock attacked the small garrison guarding the island. They butchered the entire population of the island, women, children, and the garrison. They cast their bodies, some while they were still alive, onto the rocks below the cliff overlooking the sea. It was a dreadful omen of Ireland’s future.

The Lord President of Munster, George Carew, now moved to destroy Dunboy castle, the O’Sullivan Beare principle fortress. After two days of cannon fire the castle was almost destroyed but still the gallant defenders fought on, though only 143 in number. It was now the last rebel stronghold to hold out against the English. Meanwhile Donal was waiting at Ardea for reinforcements and weapons, and gold to pay his troops. He had been promised money and supplies by the Spanish. After two more days of fighting the remaining defenders, having retreated to the cellar of the castle, attempted to surrender. It was accepted but they were treacherously hanged the next day.

Donal O’Sullivan now realized that the Spanish reinforcements were not coming. It was obvious that all was lost in Munster. Famine conditions now existed and though he had considerable Spanish gold, there was little food available. With one thousand followers consisting of soldiers and civilians they began a long journey to Leitrim to the castle of his ally the Ó Ruairc (O’Rourke). He believed that he could hold out longer amongst his northern allies, the O’Donnells and O’Neills. . Throughout the 300-mile (480 km) trek they were attacked by English forces and treasonous Irish that were loyal to Elizabeth. The country-side had been ravaged by war and famine; the people along the way were trying to stay alive themselves. They could ill afford to provide any aid or food. Of the 1000 odd who set out only 30 odd made it. It had been an unusually cruel winter and the conditions are described in detail by Philip O’Sullivan Beare, a cousin of Donal O’Sullivan.

Love of Horses

2008-06-03T09:16:00.000-07:00

I have a deep love for horses, especially thoroughbreds. I've had several myself and have loved them dearly. Right now, I'm looking forward to the Belmont, hoping beyond hope that we have a Triple Crown winner--Big Brown!!!

Among Broodmares, She's the Mother of Them All

By John Scheinman
Special to The Washington Post
Tuesday, June 3, 2008; Page E03

When asked about Better Than Honour, a broodmare whose 3-year-old son, Casino Drive, will attempt to defeat Big Brown on Saturday in the Belmont Stakes, Kentucky bloodstock adviser Michael S. Brown speaks with a voice full of wonder.

In the long history of horse racing, a sport that focuses on pedigree the way baseball obsesses over statistics, there has been nothing like her. A horse of regal and enormously successful bloodlines, Better Than Honour somehow has manifested her ancestors' best genetic traits -- stamina, speed, competitive nature -- in offspring that twice in a row have won one of the most coveted prizes in the sport.

If Casino Drive, brought to America by Japanese interests solely to win the Belmont, can knock off Big Brown, he would become the third consecutive progeny of Better Than Honour to win the 1 1/2 -mile classic, following siblings Jazil and the filly Rags to Riches.

"It's every bit as impressive as [Hall of Fame trainer] Woody Stephens winning five straight Belmonts; maybe more so," said Brown, who has bought and sold racehorses and breeding prospects for more than 25 years. "You have a 30,000-foal crop every year and to have three straight Belmont winners -- I'm not a statistician, so I wouldn't venture the odds. It's remarkable."

At this point, even before Casino Drive runs, Better Than Honour is worth about $12 million, Brown speculates. Yet in recent years she has been sold for less than that, leaving a trail of regret and a breeder who managed to get her back.

At the end of her brief racing career in 1999, in which she placed in three stakes races, Better than Honour was purchased by John Sikura, president of Hill 'n' Dale Farm in Lexington, Ky., one of the top thoroughbred operations.

Sikura had concentrated on assembling an unmatched band of broodmares and Better Than Honour fit the profile as a daughter of champion Blush With Pride, a descendant of the temperamental British stallion Nasrullah, whose import to the United States in 1949 had a profound impact on the industry. Nasrullah's son, Bold Ruler, fathered Secretariat.

Bred to leading sire Storm Cat in 2000, Better Than Honour's first foal the following year, Teeming, won three of four starts before getting injured. After Teeming hit the track, Sikura received a call from Ira Gumberg, whose father, Stanley Gumberg, made a fortune in real estate and started a breeding operation called Sklara Glen Stables. The Gumbergs were friends with Sikura's father, who had died in 1994 in a car crash.

Ira Gumberg wanted to buy Better Than Honour, but Sikura turned him down. Gumberg made a second offer and Sikura took it.

"I can't tell you for how much, but it was an elite number," Sikura said. "There were lots of zeros."

With Sklara, Better Than Honour gave birth to a son of the top sire A.P. Indy that never raced. The Gumbergs bred her twice, first to Seeking the Gold and then back to A.P. Indy. The offspring were Jazil and Rags to Riches.

In 2004, while pregnant with Casino Drive, Better Than Honour was placed in an auction at Keeneland and purchased for $2 million by BBA Ireland, a company representing Coolmore Stud, the most powerful racing operation in England. "I thought she would have brought north of $3 million," said Stanley Gumberg. "We shouldn't have sold."

Sikura, who watched the sale from the sidelines, said he usually doesn't dwell on a lost horse.

"In this business, it's not helpful to have regret," he said. "Horses are fluid; they have foals every year. If you sell a mare one year, four years later she could have produced a Grade I winner or an important horse. It's not helpful to say I should have kept that mare."

But after Jazil won the Belmont in 2006, Sikura knew he had to have Better Than Honour back. Michael Moreno, an owner of an oil drilling platform and refinery construction company, was looking to get into the broodmare game and Sikura brought him on as a partner to help pry Better Than Honour away from Coolmore.

Sikura declined to reveal the cost. "At the time, Rags to Riches had run once and chipped an ankle," he said. No one knew she would win the Belmont, too.

Sikura will watch the Belmont on Saturday hoping for the unimaginable, the broodmare's own version of the Triple Crown.

"It's really an impossibility what's happened so far," he said. "This whole business is about exaggeration and childlike belief and most things let you down. You think about greatness and immortality and undefeated and in real-world parlance those things almost never occur. But they occur just so often that you still can believe."

Some Scottish Snippets

2008-06-02T16:09:00.001-07:00

These two articles are from the Scottish Snippets newsletter

DNA Study in Orkney and Shetlands

The genes of hundreds of residents in Orkney and Shetland are to be studied
to try to establish why Scotland - and the northern islands in particular -
has the highest rates of multiple sclerosis (MS) in the world. Residents
who suffer from MS as well as those who have no history of the disease,
will be asked to give blood. Scientists will then compare the two samples
in the expectation that they will be able to unravel the mystery as to why
rates of MS are so high in Orkney, Shetland and Scotland and also to
provide possible answers for patients who suffer the disease around the
world. They hope to be able then produce new drugs to combat the effects of
the debilitating illness. Due to the stable population and lack of
immigration in Orkney and Shetland it will be easier to pick out the signal
of a genetic effect there from all the "background noise".

First Jewish Tartan
The first record of a Jew in Scotland is in 1691 and since then they have
been an integral part of the country and its people. Jews were never
persecuted and there were no pogroms, no Holocaust, no national or state
sponsored antisemitic laws. When England was burning and exiling its Jews
in the Middle Ages, Scotland provided a safe haven from English and
European anti-Semitism. Now, after over 300 years, an official Jewish
tartan has been created and registered with the Scottish Tartans Authority.
It was designed by the only Scottish-born Rabbi living in Scotland, it's
100 per cent Kosher - being a non wool-linen mix. It incorporates many
aspects of Scottish-Jewish cultural and religious history, with the
colours, weave and number of threads picked for their relevance to
Judaism.The blue and white represents the colours of the Israeli and
Scottish flag with the central gold line representing the gold from the
Biblical Tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant and the many ceremonial
vessels. The launch of the new tartan coincided with Israel's 60th
anniversary celebrations.

From a Scottish newspaper

2008-05-28T08:41:00.000-07:00

The Scotsman.com

DRUIDS FEAR SHADOW WILL BE CAST OVER VIEW OF 'BIRTH OF THE MOON'
By Jenny Haworth, Environment correspondent

IT IS a rare lunar spectacle whose significance dates back to ancient times, drawing visitors to the Isle of Lewis from across the world.
But now the druids, pagans and witches who gather at the Callanish Stones fear the next time they visit their treasured view of the Moon could be ruined by a 53-turbine wind farm.

According to local belief, the Callanish Stones were erected so they would have a special relationship with a range of hills opposite, known as the Old Woman of the Moors.

Also called Sleeping Beauty, it is thought to resemble a pregnant woman on her back, and every 18.6 years the Moon appears to rise through her legs, as if she is giving birth.

It then sets between the Callanish Stones, as visitors beat drums and celebrate the lunar cycle.

Hundreds of new age celebrants gathered at the stones for the spectacle in 2006, but in 2024 when it is next due, they are worried it could be ruined by a wind farm.

Beinn Mhor Power plans to build turbines on the Eisgein Estate in Lewis, some of them on the Old Woman of the Moors. One would be built on a lump that looks like her knee, and others would be on the skyline.

Archeologist Ian McHardy said the lunar phenomenon is mentioned in the Historic Scotland guidebook for the area.

"I think it's an integral part of Callanish and should have been afforded higher protection. The wind turbines would be a significant part of the view."

Alice Starmore, a tour guide who has lived on Lewis all her life, said: "Every 18.6 years when the Moon in its cycle around the Earth is at its lowest, it appears between her knees, as though she gives birth. It's a lovely, life-affirming event.

"It's one of our most mysterious and intriguing national treasures. It's something that we should take care of. It couldn't be any more inappropriate than building turbines on her. We might as well say that we should build turbines on Stonehenge."

If the proposed wind farm gets the go-ahead it would be the first in Scotland to be built on a National Scenic Area and Ms Starmore is worried it would have an impact on tourism.

Thirty of the turbines would be in the South Lewis, Harris and North Uist National Scenic Area.

The application comes in the wake of the failed bid by Lewis Wind Power to build Scotland's largest wind farm on Lewis.

Ms Starmore said: "We have just finished celebrating the fact that the entire northern peatlands won't be covered in them, and now we have this one right in the heart of the most spectacular landscape that we have. It has been very stressful for us."

It has also attracted opposition from the John Muir Trust, which is worried it could set a precedent for other wind farm applications on scenic areas, and Scottish Natural Heritage.

Helen McDade, head of policy at the John Muir Trust, said: "It is ludicrous that the government would even entertain the idea of marching turbines across such a world-class landscape.

"Scotland can easily meet its 50 per cent renewable target by 2020 without encroaching on designated areas of national importance such as this one.

"Callanish is Scotland's equivalent of Stonehenge and must be left unscathed by industrial development so that it can be fully appreciated by future generations."

A public inquiry finished last week into the plans for the Eisgein Estate and a decision is expected to be made by a Scottish Government reporter later this year.

BACKGROUND

BEINN Mhor Power has scaled down its original proposal for 133 turbines to 53. There have been 3,900 objections and 85 letters in support.

The decision on the Beinn Mhor Power plan will come in the wake of the Scottish Government's rejection of a 181-turbine project on Lewis.

The plans by Lewis Wind Power were turned down last month after nearly four years of debate. Supporters believed it was a chance to advance the country's renewables industry and the economy of the Western Isles.

But environmental groups said it could threaten birdlife and damage the island's peatlands, which store carbon.

The £500 million project had been controversial since it was put forward in October 2004. Of 11,022 representations, 10,924 were against the plan, with only 98 in favour.

Lewis Wind Power has said it is considering its next move.

The full article contains 759 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

Lovely pictures from Scotland

2008-05-27T09:28:00.000-07:00

http://www.rampantscotland.com/colour/supplement080524.htm

Fact from Scotsman.com

2008-05-24T05:43:00.001-07:00

Fact of the Day

On this day in 1852 Robert Cunningham-Graham was born. Cunningham-Graham, the son of a Scottitsh laird, founded the Labour Party alongside fellow Scot Keir Hardie but was later elected as the first president of the Scottish National Party. Cunningham-Graham was also a prodigious writer who authored over 30 travel books.

Terrible things everywhere

2008-05-23T09:09:00.000-07:00

Terrible things happen everywhere. Funny, I never think of those things happening in Scotland, but I guess they do.......

SPURNED-LOVER THEORY as financial adviser gunned down in her office
Date: 23 May 2008
By ALASTAIR DALTON
A WOMAN was seriously injured when she was shot in broad daylight in an office in Glasgow's Chinatown yesterday.

There were claims last night she had been shot in cold blood by a spurned lover.

The 47-year-old financial adviser is in a serious condition in hospital following the attack in a shopping centre.

Her gunshot wounds were only discovered when she was examined in hospital.

Detectives are treating the case as attempted murder. They said the woman – who is not Chinese – was the intended victim.

However, Strathclyde Police said they were still trying to establish a motive. They are seeking a man in his 40s with a Scottish accent.

Witnesses described seeing the woman slumped in a chair in the back office of what they thought was a mortgage firm, just inside the shopping centre.

Andrew Tagg, 24, a fishmonger, said: "I was in the centre getting my lunch and was asked to help move furniture out of the way for the paramedics to get her out.

"She was spread out on a chair with sweat on her face. I did not know what was wrong with her and thought she might have had a heart attack or suffered a diabetic attack."

Mr Tagg, who works at the Golden Trawler fishmonger, which adjoins the shopping centre, said: "I didn't see any blood, but I heard about it later. People have been saying it was an angry lover and things like that, but nobody knows for sure."

Mr Tagg said he thought the woman was Scottish and may have started work at the centre only recently.

The shooting happened at about 2pm on Wednesday but Strathclyde Police only revealed details yesterday. It took place in the Chinatown complex in Cowcaddens.

The Chinese community in Glasgow yesterday expressed horror at news of the attack.

Lyman Chan, of the Chinese Community Development Partnership, said: "It has been quite a shock. We have not heard much about it, but I think the woman involved was a Scottish lady."

A woman from another Chinese organisation, who asked not to be identified, said: "It's been really shocking to the Chinese community, especially since it involved a woman and was in broad daylight. The police have been around all day. These things do not happen here."

Police described the man they are seeking as white, in his 40s, of medium build, unshaven with red or auburn stubble and a Scottish accent. He was wearing a brown bomber jacket and a baseball cap.

Detective Inspector John Mellon, who is leading the inquiry, said: "We believe that the injured woman was the intended victim and want to reassure the public that we are doing everything possible to trace the person responsible.

"The area around New City Road and within the mall at Chinatown would have been busy with people and we are keen to speak to anyone who may be able to assist us with our enquiry."

The entrance to the shopping centre was yesterday guarded by police and cordoned off with police blue-and-white tape. The shops were believed to be closed.

Several officers in white forensic boiler-suits and blue gloves were seen entering and leaving the building.

Only police vehicles were allowed to use the car park, which included one used by a crime-scene examiner from the Scottish Police Services Authority's forensic services section.

A line of officers in black boiler-suits and white gloves combed the car park for evidence. They also examined several drains in adjoining streets, using wooden poles and the assistance of a Glasgow city council street-cleaning vehicle.

BACKGROUND

THE Chinatown complex was built as a new trading centre for Glasgow's Chinese community in 1992, close to its traditional hub in Garnethill.

Situated at Dundas Vale in Cowcaddens, the warehouse-style building comprises an indoor shopping mall and associated businesses, such as restaurants and a fishmonger.

A Chinese archway marks the entrance to the centre's car park, in the shadow of an elevated section of the M8.

At the 2001 census, there were 6,000 Chinese in the west of Scotland, a third born here.

The full article contains 699 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

Crime in Scotland

2008-05-21T11:40:00.000-07:00

Right now, I'm writing a contemporary suspense novel, callewd VENGEANCE IS MINE. I am interested in all sorts of forensic stuff and found this on Scotsman.com

Police hope new forensic techniques can identify murderer

Date: 21 May 2008
By ALASTAIR DALTON
IT WAS a brutal crime that shocked the country but has remained unsolved for a quarter of a century.

When Sheila Anderson, a 27-year-old mother of two, was found with horrific crush injuries in Edinburgh on 7 April, 1983, police launched a hunt for her killer. But with no apparent motive and little in the way of clues, the investigation ground toADVERTISEMENTa halt.

Now a fresh attempt at tracing her killer has been launched by detectives who said advances in forensic techniques had prompted them to re-examine the murder.

They said new tests on flecks of paint found on Ms Anderson's clothing could help solve the case.

Lothian and Borders Police said Ms Anderson was found dying from "horrific injuries" in Gypsy Brae, Granton, and died in hospital hours later.

Detectives also confirmed that Ronnie Wilkinson, a former officer with the force, had never been considered a suspect.

They launched an appeal for witnesses yesterday as part of a new attempt to find the killer of Ms Anderson.

Officers said they were following "several positive lines of inquiry".

Detective Inspector Steven Reed, who is leading the investigation, said he was confident the paint on the clothing would be identified, and confirmed the victim had been struck by a car.

However, he said there was no evidence to suggest she was run over repeatedly.

He said: "Minute particles of paint were found on Sheila's clothing and efforts were made to trace vehicles, witnesses and people who may have been with her in the hours before her death.

"In this tragic case we believe advances in forensic science may help us resolve some of the unanswered questions.

"This was an apparently motiveless killing and I am appealing to anyone who has information about the circumstances of Sheila's death to come forward. It was 25 years ago and I appreciate that memories might have faded."

DI Reed said people who might have felt reluctant to come forward at the time will hopefully now be willing to talk.

Inquiries at the time revealed the victim left her home in the Drylaw area about noon on 7 April.

There were various sightings of her during the day in west Granton and Leith. The final confirmed sighting was in Commercial Street, Leith, about 11:30pm.

Ms Anderson's handbag was found two days later near a car park at Longniddry Bents in East Lothian. She left two boys, aged seven and two.

DI Reed said Mr Wilkinson, a former detective sergeant who found the handbag, had been re-interviewed as a witness as part of the new investigation and had supplied a DNA sample.

The force said he had voluntarily provided a routine witness statement as part of standard practice, and had at no time been considered a suspect.

Ms Anderson's family welcomed the case being re-opened.

They said in a statement: "Sheila was a loving mother, wife, daughter and sister, and her death in such tragic and sudden circumstances was a shock to us all.

"She was taken from us at far too early an age but we still hold in our hearts the happy memories that we all shared.

"Latterly in her life she suffered personal problems. But despite that and everything she endured, Sheila maintained her wonderful sense of humour. We remember Sheila as a gentle, loving, caring woman.

"She touched the hearts of all who knew her and was much loved by us all.

"As a family, we welcome the re-investigation into her death and hope that, after many years, we will obtain the answers to the questions that we have."

Mother's last hours before she met a killer with a car

Here is a timeline of events surrounding the murder of Sheila Anderson.

Noon, 7 April, 1983 – The victim left her home in the city's Drylaw area.

Afternoon – Various sightings of Ms Anderson, including in Leith's Blue Triangle of Commercial Street, Coburg Street and North Junction Street.

7:30pm – Ms Anderson was seen in the Willie Muir pub, West Granton.

11:25pm – Two plainclothes police officers saw her outside Lindean House on Commercial Street in Leith.

11:55pm – Ms Anderson was found unconscious with multiple injuries on a track by a sea wall at Gypsy Brae, off West Shore Road in Granton, by two CB enthusiasts, who immediately called an ambulance.

Early hours, 8 April – Ms Anderson died in Western General Hospital, Edinburgh.

7am, 10 April – The victim's burgundy suede shoulder bag was found near car park No1 on the shore at Longniddry Bents on the B1348 coast road from Musselburgh to North Berwick in East Lothian.

18 May, 2008 – A Sunday newspaper claims Ronnie Wilkinson, a former Lothian and Borders Police detective sergeant, is considered a suspect in the case.

20 May, 2008 – Cold case review announced by Lothian and Borders Police.

Officers said minute particles of paint found on Ms Anderson's clothing would be subject to new forensic testing.

Detectives leading the inquiry said Mr Wilkinson had been interviewed and given a DNA sample as part of standard procedure, but he was not a suspect.

Legal issues that leave murder cases gathering dust

THERE are more than 50 unsolved murders in Scotland, with some high-profile prosecutions collapsing due to lack of evidence.

One of the most notorious cold cases is Edinburgh's infamous World's End murders.

Detectives have never closed the investigation into the murders of Helen Scott and Christine Eadie, both 17, who were beaten, raped and strangled in 1977, shortly after drinking in the World's End pub. Their killer or killers were never traced, despite unprecedented publicity.

Angus Sinclair, a convicted paedophile and killer serving a life sentence in Peterhead Prison, appeared in the High Court in Edinburgh in August and September last year, accused of the rapes and murders. However his trial collapsed after Lord Justice Clarke said the Crown had insufficient evidence to proceed.

Since 2006, the Serious Crime Review Unit of Lothian and Borders Police has also reinvestigated the 1995 murder of Robert Higgins, whose body was discovered in a quarry in West Lothian. A suspect was identified and brought to trial last year, but the jury returned a not proven verdict.

On 21 January, 1987, the naked body of Ann Ballantine, 20, was discovered, naked and bound hand and foot, in the Union Canal, 100 yards from her flat in Polwarth, Edinburgh.

Police believe she was asphyxiated by a ligature round her neck. Her killer has never been caught.

Although a suspect was named and a report submitted to the procurator-fiscal, there was not enough evidence to prosecute.

In the world over

2008-05-20T08:05:00.000-07:00

Bad things happen all over the world. I thought some of you who read this blog might like to know how another governments handles teens..........from the Scotsman.com

The teenage crimewave the state could not stop

By MICHAEAL HOWIE AND EMILY PYKETT
IT WAS a chance encounter for which Daniel Sweeney paid a heavy price. He was set upon by Darren Cornelius, punched and repeatedly stabbed by the complete stranger in an Edinburgh street in March last year.

The brutal attack at the hands of one of Scotland's most notorious teenagers left the victim scarred for life.

On that fateful day, Daniel Sweeney had the misfortune to be confronted by a self-professed thug who had been out of control since the aADVERTISEMENTge of 11, when he first carried out a frenzied stabbing.

Last night, hours after 18-year-old Cornelius became the youngest criminal in Scotland to receive a lifelong restriction order, politicians demanded an investigation into how he has been handled by the justice system.

At the High Court in Perth, Cornelius was ordered to serve a minimum detention period of five years.

He also become one of the first people in the country to be placed under an order that will require the authorities to monitor him for the rest of his days.

The sentence effectively means Cornelius will remain behind bars until a panel of experts say he is safe for release.

Lord Bracadale said the teenager would stay behind bars while he continued to pose a serious threat to the public.

The judge told him: "For someone your age, you have an extraordinary record for violence."

Cornelius, who was once compared to the killers of Liverpool toddler James Bulger, admitted permanently disfiguring the stranger after carrying out a random and frenzied knife attack on him.

The case has not only sparked demands for an investigation into how Cornelius was dealt with by the youth justice system, but has raised wider questions about Scotland's approach to young offenders.

Councillor Iain Whyte, the convener of Lothian and Borders joint police board, said that the authorities should have taken tougher steps to prevent Cornelius carrying out such a violent attack.

"It certainly seems like the trial judge has taken on board the seriousness of this and made sure Cornelius will not be able to be free to put other people in danger," he said.

"But the court and the children's panel should have looked at this before.

"Why have there been no concerns in the past to protect the public," Mr Whyte asked.

"I think the authorities – the court and the children's panel – should look at exactly why this kind of restriction was not placed on him in the past.

"There should be an investigation as to why the authorities did not look at these matters before, with a view to protecting the public."

Cornelius first hit the headlines in October 2000, when, as an 11-year-old, he carried out a knife attack on a girl of nine.

He abducted the girl from her grandmother's house, stabbed her eight times – narrowly missing the artery in her throat – and left her for dead near the Fountain Park leisure complex in Edinburgh.

He was not prosecuted for attempted murder because he was shown to have a mental age of less than eight, the age of criminal responsibility.

Cornelius was dealt with at a children's panel hearing and ordered to spend 17 months in secure accommodation.

However, he was released after only eight months, before being taken back into care amid allegations he had reoffended.

When he was 15, Cornelius faced five sex charges, but the case collapsed in court due to a lack of evidence.

He denied raping a 12-year-old schoolgirl in the grounds of a church in the Longstone area of Edinburgh in 2004 when he was on home leave from secure accommodation in Paisley.

He also denied a sex attack on another girl – aged 13 at the time – in her home on the west side of the capital.

His first nine-year-old stabbing victim had also alleged she had been raped by Cornelius.

The high-profile case led to calls for a review of the age of responsibility and saw Cornelius compared to James Bulger's killers, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables.

Bill Aitken, MSP, the Scottish Conservatives' spokesman on justice, echoed Mr Whyte's concerns, describing Cornelius as a "menace" who should have been subject to heavy control.

He also said the case highlighted a need to reconsider the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland.

"In my view, a full inquiry requires to be carried out as to why this individual was not brought under appropriate, much closer supervision earlier on," he said.

"This man is clearly a menace, and I have to ask whether or not the systems are in place to identify and control people like Cornelius, who have a predilection to offend repeatedly and seriously.

"There is something wrong with the system when situations like this can develop, and I do wonder whether or not we need to look at the age of criminal responsibility.

"And certainly we do need to be looking at the way in which people like Cornelius are monitored within the community, otherwise other tragedies will inevitably occur."

On his Bebo website, Cornelius boasts about his taste for violence and associates himself with the late American gangster rapper Tupac Shakur. He wrote: "A go to the gym and am well built. Sum say am mad, sum say am hyper. A say am me. A gd life is a thugs life."

Last night, a spokesman for the Scottish Government refused to comment on the particular case, but said people who received lifelong restriction orders – Cornelius is the seventh to be handed one – would be subjected to "stringent" controls when they were eventually released from jail.

He said: "Sentencing is rightly a matter for the courts, and we do not comment on individual cases.

"The justice secretary has repeatedly said that prison should be for serious and dangerous offenders and the Order for Lifelong Restriction is a valuable disposal for the courts when dealing with the fortunately few very high-risk offenders.

"Those who receive such an order will be subject to stringent restrictions for the rest of their lives," the spokesman said.

"The Scottish Prison Service is doing a good job with prisoners in difficult circumstances due to current overcrowding pressures.

"We want to further improve on this, so that prisons can continue to work with serious and violent offenders to reduce their risk. This includes diverting less serious offenders who do not present a risk to the public into tough community sentences.

"By doing so, we give these offenders the chance to turn their lives around and to give something back to the community."

A LIFETIME OF SUPERVISION

SCOTLAND'S judges have been able to place the most serious violent and sexual offenders on an order for lifelong restriction since June 2006.

The orders apply to all those offences where a life sentence is available, but can also be given to other serious and violent criminals.

Local authorities are responsible for supervising released offenders, who will be monitored for life.

Offenders who are given an order serve prison terms – with minimum punishment parts – as before, but are subject to a lifelong risk management plan that is updated as needed to reflect the offender's risk.

That managed plan has to be approved by the Risk Management Authority, a public body set up to help improve the way dangerous offenders are monitored.

If the behaviour of an offender subject to an order of lifelong restriction gives cause for concern, they can be sent back to prison. They do not have to be convicted of fresh crimes for this to happen.

Other violent criminals to receive lifelong restriction orders include Colin Ross, who savagely battered Marty Layman-Mendonca, a teacher on holiday from the United States, and Steven Malcolm, 20, who raped a care worker at knifepoint.

The introduction of the order for lifelong restriction completed the high-risk offender strategy recommended by the MacLean committee, which examined the treatment of serious violent and sexual offenders.

The inquiry was established amid concern about the public's protection from serious violent and sexual offenders who are freed after serving a fixed term.

From a Scottish newspaper

2008-05-18T13:05:00.000-07:00

Just a tidbit today. I found it kinda' interesting--to know that the same thing happens all around the world.

It was 184 years ago today, the Red Barn murder took place at Polstead, Suffolk. Maria Marten was slain by one of her lovers. William Corder buried Marten beneath the barn floor, and she lay there until her stepmother dreamed of the incident and her father dug up the floor to discover the body. Corder was found guilty and hanged before a crowd of 7,000 people.

The Preakness

2008-05-17T09:11:00.000-07:00

I'm off to watch a day of racing. The Preakness at Pimlico Race Track is the second leg of America's Triple Crown of Thoroughbred racing. I hate to miss races, so I intend to spend the day watching the tube. Would rather be there but that's not possible............so this is one time that I thank the world for TV.

Scotland news

2008-05-16T06:55:00.000-07:00

I believe Scotland is doing something that we don't do in America. Although, I wonder how many castles we have in the States--other than White Castles. lol I believe they're not charging admission for the period of a week. At least, those of you who like to visit Scotland or, like me, write about it, here's something about what the castles are today.

Is the castle still king?

Edinburgh, EH1 2NG, tel: 0131-225 9846
EDINBURGH Castle is one of Scotland's best known landmarks. The dramatic location atop a long -extinct volcano in the centre of the capital means it's hard to miss – but when was the last time you visited?

There's more to see than just bricks anADVERTISEMENTd mortar: the castle complex boasts the Scottish Crown Jewels, the Stone of Destiny, the Royal Apartments, the Great Hall built by James IV in 1511, and the famous One O'Clock Gun.

There's plenty to see for adults and children alike, but the sheer scale of what's on offer makes this a long day for very young children, and Marcus's enthusiasm waned quickly. Still, while sheltering in the café from the drizzle outside, he enjoyed peering down on the trains at Waverley Station.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: There are ample facilities including a (pricey) souvenir shop and the aforementioned café, with its views over Princes Street and beyond. You can hire an audio guide, but it's better to tag along for free with one of the regular guided tours.

PRACTICALITIES: Well served by local bus routes, and an easy walk from most city-centre locations. Waverley is just a ten-minute walk away. Parking isn't so easy, so it's best to leave the car at home. Disabled access is about as good as it gets.

BEST BITS: The views are great, but the portcullis left the biggest impression on Marcus, who was terrified by the prospect of "the big spiky door" falling on him

WORST BITS: The high prices and the ever-present crowds

CRICHTON CASTLE

Crichton, EH37 5QH, tel: 01875 320 017

THE main draw at Crichton Castle is its secluded location: the walk up to the castle from the little car park by Crichton Collegiate Church gives the impression you are walking back in time. Marcus was very excited on seeing the castle, but he did find the going a bit steep and slippery on the way up.

The castle itself is a ruin, with the main architectural point of interest being the grandiose quarters added in the late 16th century by the fifth Earl of Boswell, of which the ornate red-sandstone façade in an Italian renaissance style remains in excellent repair. Being in his own words "only little", Marcus was a touch under-whelmed by the interior, but with a little prompting entered into the spirit of imagining the castle in the days when royalty and nobles stayed here.

On the downside, the wet stone floors and steps were treacherous underfoot and, despite holding my hand, Marcus fell over, resulting in one very wet mitten.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: The facilities extend only to a tiny ticket booth with a few token souvenirs. The countryside hereabouts is perfect for ramblers and dog-walkers, and the views from the castle's towers are accordingly spectacular.

PRACTICALITIES: The site is remote, so isn't particularly suitable for those travelling by public transport or coach parties. Disabled access available with prior arrangement.

BEST BITS: The castle's magnificent windswept location, and the unusual Renaissance-inspired interior wall

WORST BITS: Getting there, especially the long boggy walk up the bridleway from the car park

CRAIGMILLAR CASTLE

Edinburgh, EH16 4SY, tel: 0131-661 4445

CRAIGMILLAR Castle is somewhere we had been intending to visit for several years, but just hadn't got around to, and the attendant in the shop confirmed many visitors say the same thing. Marcus, who had been eyeing a foam sword at the Crichton Castle shop, was rewarded with a plastic sword and scabbard, the ideal accompaniments to a day out at a castle.

Stepping through the outer wall into the tidy courtyard with its sprawling conifer tree and impressive carved coat of arms is like stepping on to a film set, and once inside Marcus was immediately moved to engage in some Errol Flynn-style swashbuckling with his new toy. The castle is associated with Mary, Queen of Scots, who is said to have stayed here in the 1560s, and we felt the sandstone walls were dripping with history. The views over Edinburgh and the Forth from the rooftop gallery are also spectacular.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: The shop is well-stocked, particularly with Mary, Queen of Scots-related items. Other than that, there's not much more to see here, though we enjoyed a picnic in the car park after our visit.

PRACTICALITIES: The parking is limited, and the nearest bus routes are a few minutes' walk away in either Craigmillar or at the new Royal Infirmary.

BEST BITS: One of Scotland's best preserved castles, redolent of the folklore associated with Mary, Queen of Scots

WORST BITS: Its location means it is too often overlooked.

CAIRNPAPPLE HILL

Near Bathgate, tel: 01506 634622

WITH the wind whipping up, we drove from Blackness a few miles the other side of Linlithgow to this ancient ceremonial and burial site, which dates back more than 4,500 years. We took shelter in the visitor centre as the friendly guide explained the fascinating history, and how the site was excavated in the late 1940s. As the summit of Cairnpapple Hill has been significant for millennia, the site has evidence from different eras – Neolithic, Bronze Age, early Christian – which makes it quite complicated to grasp all its history, at least with an uninterested six and three-year-old prodding the displays. Out on the hill, a concrete dome covers the Bronze Age burial stones, which can be accessed down a metal ladder. We went down, looked around, then came up – not for us a spiritual and moving experience. The best features were the spectacular views and the Neolithic ditch which circles the summit, part of the henge monument, which was perfect for rolling down.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: There is a very small shop and self-serve tea and coffee.

PRACTICALITIES: Best for older children, aged nine-plus. It's not expensive, but was of limited interest to our group. Driving is by far the easiest way to get there.

BEST BITS: "Rolling in the ditch was fun" – Gigi

WORST BITS: There's not much to enthuse younger children and it's weather-dependent. "You don't have to pay to go to the top of Arthur's Seat" – Kitty

TANTALLON CASTLE

Near North Berwick, EH39 5PN, tel: 01620 892 727

IT'S wild and windy when we visit, which adds to the sense of drama, but also increases the need to supervise the children to ensure they aren't blown off the battlements.

This is a classic ruined castle, perched on cliffs with sea on two sides. It's an exciting place to visit and for the children to explore; there's plenty of open space for them to let off steam, both as you walk in from the small car park and around the back of the site as you look over to the seabird shanty-town that is the Bass Rock.

There are information boards and plaques dotted around the castle and a pretty tricky quiz-sheet that will keep the kids focused. Again, a good place to take a picnic and make an afternoon of it – you could probably write off three or four hours on a nice day.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: No café, but a decent shop/visitor centre with small range of refreshments and souvenirs.

PRACTICALITIES: Small car park beside the visitor centre; a bigger one is down the lane. There's a new lavatory block by the visitor centre. By public transport: take a train from Edinburgh Waverley to North Berwick, walk to High Street (at Quality Street) and take the Eve Bus no 120 (Dunbar) to Tantallon Castle. The journey takes about an hour.

BEST BITS: Great for dramatic photos. "Can I take a picture of Bass Rock and the castle, Dad?" – Seth

WORST BITS: It's challenging on blustery days. "Daddy, my ears are getting cold, it's very windy here" – Livvy

SETON COLLEGIATE CHURCH

Seton, East Lothian, EH32 0PG, tel: 01875 813 334

THIS gem of a church, situated between Prestonpans and Longniddry, dates mainly from the 15th century and has great historic links to Mary, Queen of Scots (she was a close friend of the Setons and is believed to have worshipped here). There are links also with Rosslyn Chapel – some of the stonework is believed to have been done by the same masons. This is a more modest building, but there are still plenty of interesting touches to view: lots of quirky carvings, including a Green Man and a Green Cat, and grave-carvings of some of the Setons, which were (literally) defaced during the Reformation for their Papist leanings. Next door is Seton Castle, Scotland's priciest private home, worth a cool £5 million. Arn: The Knight Templar, an expensive and controversial Swedish film, was partly filmed here last year.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: There's a tiny shop and visitor centre, run by a very helpful man who will make you a hot drink and sell you toffee. No play area, but a nice short walk through the woods on the way in.

PRACTICALITIES: A small car park (turn left off the A198 as you leave Prestonpans heading for Longniddry); not good for public transport. A decent day out, but don't bring the younger ones. Fine for adults and children aged ten and up.

BEST BITS: Great carvings – "Look up there at that skull, dad," says Maya

WORST BITS: Limited interest for younger children – Seth: "Can we go and get some sweets now?"

LINLITHGOW PALACE

Linlithgow, EH49 7AL, tel: 01506 842896.

ONE of the jewels in Historic Scotland's crown, Linlithgow Palace was home to Stewart kings and queens, including James V and Mary Queen of Scots. We had picked up some lunch in Linlithgow but, even so, energy levels and enthusiasm were starting to wane for this, the third and final site of the day. The weather, too, was turning. We stood in the roofless great hall, peering up at the impossibly high walls and made our way up one of the towers to the very top, for blustery breathtaking views over the town and parkland below. The fountain, now completely restored, is spectacular and the drawbridge suitably dramatic.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: There is a well-appointed shop, picnic area, small play area and walkway round the loch, home to an extensive bird population.

PRACTICALITIES: Suitable for ages three-plus, though with close supervision for younger ones. The palace is the easiest to visit of the three by public transport as it sits on Linlithgow High Street. Good value, though we barely scratched the surface. With better weather we could have spent much longer here, particularly with the loch and parkland. To fully enjoy the Palace, visitors are advised to come on Sunday rather than Saturday.

BEST BITS: Location, history and the views. "I liked looking for the stone statues" – Kitty

WORST BITS: "I want to go home. Now" – Harvie has enough of historic sites

BLACKNESS CASTLE

Blackness, EH49 7NH, Tel: 01506 834807

LOOKING like a castle is supposed to, with imposing walls and a striking location on the shores of the Firth of Forth, Blackness Castle was a huge hit with Kitty, Gigi and Harvie. Built in the 15th century, it has been used as a prison, fortress, barracks and movie location. Notable moments in its history include when Cromwell's New Model Army laid siege to it in 1650.

Modified over the centuries, it has three main towers and a pier that stretches out into the Forth, where munitions were landed in the 19th century. There was plenty to explore and signs explaining various features such as the strategically placed gate for defenders to charge any attackers and the gun emplacement with 16ft-thick walls. The courtyard, which echoes wonderfully when shouting in the strong wind, is rough hewn from rock and very uneven. This only thrilled the children more, though Harvie, despite being very nimble, needed close supervision throughout the visit.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: There is a small shop with a few goodies, plus a picnic area and toilets.

PRACTICALITIES: The castle is three miles north-east of Linlithgow off the A904. For public transport, take a bus or train to Linlithgow and catch an Edinburgh or Bo'ness bus. Blackness Castle isn't suitable for wheelchair users.

BEST BITS: "I loved going out on the pier and the climbing" – Kitty. "It's the best" – Gigi

WORST BITS: Adults need to be on their guard to keep younger children safe.

DIRLETON CASTLE

Dirleton, East Lothian, EH39 5ER, tel: 01620 850 330

I HAVE driven past Dirleton Castle many times on the way to Yellowcraig beach, but never ventured in. Luckily, my four-year-old daughter attended a birthday party there recently, so she was happy to show me round.

It looks quite small from the road, but is actually huge, with different chunks built from the 13th century onwards. The biggest hits for children are the tunnels and staircases, nooks and crannies. It's a wonderful place for hide-and-seek, though you need to keep a close eye on under-fives because lots of steps means they are likely to fall over.

The landscaped gardens are lovely, the doocot amazingly well-preserved and you have terrific views over the island of Fidra and the Forth from the castle. You could easily take a picnic lunch and spend the best part of a day here.

The information boards are straightforward for older children to follow, and there is a quiz sheet and wordsearch.

OTHER THINGS TO DO: No café, but this is great picnic territory. You can get ice cream and soft drinks in the well-stocked shop, and there is a good playpark (and toilets) just outside the entrance.

PRACTICALITIES: Decent car park, but not great for public transport. The 124 First Bus from Edinburgh drops you three minutes' walk away, but takes more than an hour to get there.

BEST BITS: "It's brilliant for hide-and-seek," say Imogen and her friend Luke.

WORST BIT: Constant vigilance to avoid falls – "hold my hand up the stairs, daddy," says Livvy.

Interview

2008-05-15T12:25:00.000-07:00

I've just had an interview posted in an Internet newsletter. Thought it would give some of you some giggles. Here's the URL:

http://jozette.webs.com/authorinterviews.htm

Long post on English-Irish History

2008-05-13T08:02:00.000-07:00

As you know, history is my 'cup of tea.' I love reading about it and have brought lots of facts into the three historical novels listed on this site. But this bit of news from Wasp's Weblog caught my attention and I just had to put it on the blog.

***If the attacks on Sir Basil Hamilton’s dykes were motivated by his Jacobite background, the anti-Jacobite element of the Galloway Levellers actions may have influenced their decision not to level a dyke built for Robert Johnston of Kelton parish. At first sight, as recounted as a tale told by the grandfather of Samuel Geddes of Keltonhill by Malcolm Harper# (and published over 150 years later, this incident may appear to be a piece of folklore rather than history. According to Harper:

A band of levellers and houghers, or as some call them ”Rablers” # having traversed the coast from Balmae to Kirkbean levelling dykes and houghing Irish cattle, the introduction of which was one of their grievances, they reached the estate of Kelton. Captain Johnstone was then laird, and had built a high dyke to fence his estate from the public road…anxious to preserve it he prevailed upon Mr. Falconer [minister of Kelton parish] to accompany him in going to the levellers with the view of advising them to desist from their destructive proceedings… Mr. Falconer then addressed the crowd… assuring them that no man or family would be evicted from Captain Johnstone’s estate on account of [the dyke] being erected - that every person on his lands should continue to have and hold his house, his yaird or garden, and the usual quantity of corn sown (in these days it was generally customary for the labourers to have a certain quantity of corn sown to produce a melder# for the family, and fodder for the cow and calf).

This speech, aided by the distribution of bread, cheese and beer provided by Captain Johnstone, persuaded the Levellers to pass on, leaving Johnstone’s dyke still standing. As confirmation, Harper says “On a stone in the dyke of the right hand side of the road leading from Lochbank to Furbar House, there is a date, which is now indistinct, but about thirty years ago [I.e. 1840] it was plainly 1725, and is now commemorative of the event.”. Unfortunately for Harper’s account, although there is an inscribed stone in the dyke next to Furbar House, the date on it is clearly 1757 and the events described would have happened in 1724.

On the other hand, in John Nicholson’s notebook# can be found the original account by Samuel Geddes of Keltonhill as used by Harper. This original account is dated 1831, so could realistically have been a story told to Samuel Geddes by his grandfather. In addition, William Falconer was the minister of Kelton parish in 1724 and is mentioned by Morton as one of the ministers alleged to have been sympathetic to the Levellers. Robert Johnstone became laird of Kelton in 1706, purchasing the estate #(centred on Kelton Mains farm, now part of the 1500 acre NTS Threave Estate) from William Maxwell, earl of Nithsdale.# In 1715, Robert Johnstone was one of the Steward-Deputes of the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright appointed to help defend Dumfries against Jacobite forces led by William Maxwell.

As well as having strong anti- Jacobite credentials, Johnstone was (at least according to the Latin inscription on his gravestone in St Michael’s kirkyard in Dumfries) a “ strong opponent of Union and assertor of Scotland’s liberty” . In 1706 Johnstone represented Dumfries Burgh in the Scottish parliament and voted against the proposed Union.# As the rest of the inscription on Johnstone’s grave shows, he had also been several times provost of Dumfries and represented the burgh in the Convention of Royal Burghs. But although these anti-Jacobite and patriotic credentials distinguish Robert Johnstone from Jacobite landowners like Sir Basil Hamilton, Lady Mary Gordon (nee Dalzell) of Kenmure and George Maxwell of Munches, the origin of Johnstone’s wealth in trade as a Dumfries based merchant is more significant.

Like William Craik (a Dumfries based merchant who was Johnstone’s father -in - law and business partner and who bought the Arbigland and Duchrae estates in the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright in the late 17th century. # ), landownership was secondary to Johnstone’s main economic activities. The income he derived from his Kelton (Threave) Estate was therefore supplemental. So long as his tenants provided a steady stream of income through mainly arable farming( Kelton Estate having been arable/ grange land since at least the 13th century #), Johnstone had no pressing need to gamble on the cattle trade and therefore no pressing need to evict his tenants to create a cattle park at Kelton.

Yet if the Galloway Levellers had only been able to draw on support from those directly evicted to make way for new cattle parks, like the sixteen families dispossessed by Murdoch of Cumloden, the events of 1724 would have been on a much smaller scale. If the eye-witness account of James Clerk is to be believed, the breaking of Sir Basil Hamilton’s dykes in early May 1724 involved 1000 levellers. Although it is possible that it was the threat posed to the ‘moral economy’ which mobilised such a large group, the emphasis given to the 43 Irish cattle ( out of a herd of 400 cattle) seized by the Levellers in their account of the incident and by James Clerk in his account suggests a more direct economic linkage. The smuggling of Irish cattle was also of concern to the customs officers in Dumfries.

So rigid were the revenue regulations at this period [1724], that when some charitable people in Dumfries commissioned two ship loads of oatmeal from Ireland that the poor might obtain it cheap when it was hardly to be had of home growth for love or money, the collector durst not permit the meal to be landed till he was specially authorized to do so by his official superiors. The officers were also scandalized by a daring innovation which had sprung up, especially at Kirkcudbright, of importing Irish cattle, and they sorely bewailed the connivance given to it by the County gentlemen and their tenants.#
Leopold’s research suggests that ths first Leveklers action took place at Netherlaw near Kirkcudbright on 17 Match 1724. In their Letter to Major Du Cary the Levellers mention this incident:
understanding that there were a considerable number of Irish cattle in the Parks of Netherlaw, we did, in obedience to the law, legally seize and slaughter them to deter the gentlemen from the like practice if importing or bringing Irish cattle, to the great loss of this poor country as well as the breeders in England, too much the practice of the gentlemen here.#

Although direct evidence of the import of Irish cattle is lacking in the case of Alexander Murray of Cally (Girthon parish, Stewartry of Kirkcudbright), who had “a large park that feeds one thousand bullocks, that he sends once every year to the markets of England” in 1723 #, Murray had inherited over 60 000 acres of Irish land, mainly in Donegal. Alexander Murray‘s ancestor, George Murray of Broughton in Wigtownshire, had been granted these lands in 1610 as part of the Plantation.# By 1621, cattle from these Irish estates were being sold in England.# In 1724, Alexander Murray would therefore have been highly likely to have been involved in the illegal import of Irish cattle and to have been a target for the Galloway Levellers - which he was. According to one of John Nicholson’s sources - Violet Nish, whose father Robert was born in 1715 at Enrick in Girthon parish- Alexander Murray’s dykes in Girthon parish were levelled in 1724 during an incident in which shots were fired.

At Cardoness in Anwoth parish, on the west bank of the Fleet and only 1 km (½ mile) from Alexander Murray’s cattle park at Cally, lay the cattle parks of Colonel William Maxwell.# If the Levellers had been intent on breaking the dykes of all such enclosures, then Colonel Maxwell’s dykes would have been a next and obvious target. But Maxwell’s dykes were left standing. Colonel Maxwell is mentioned in the Letter to Major Du Cary as having, along with ‘Laird Heron’ (either Patrick Heron senior or Patrick Heron junior, both of Minnigaff parish) as having reached an agreement with the Levellers “that we should live peaceably and throw down no man’s dykes.”. This agreement was negotiated immediately after an encounter between a party of armed heritors and armed Levellers at the Steps of Tarff. There appear to have been two such confrontations, one in early May and one in early June, but it is unclear which is being referred to.

More certainly, although the Letter to Major Du Cary includes the Herons “Yr. and elder” amongst its list of depopulating lairds, stating that “the little town of Minigaff belonging to Mr. Heron is only a nest of beggars since he inclosed all the ground about it.”, the Herons’ extensive cattle parks were not levelled. Yet, as Woodward notes in his comparative study of the 17th century Irish and Scottish cattle trade, “Patrick Herron sent 1000 or more cattle to England via Dumfries in each of the years 1689-91 inclusive.” .# Until the death of Sir David Dunbar (elder) of Baldoon in 1686, Patrick Heron senior had managed Dunbar’s cattle trading activities. After Dunbar’s death, Heron and his son built up extensive landholdings in Minnigaff parish to become the main cattle traders in Galloway.# Since these landholdings included both upland and lowland farms, this suggests that the Herons had developed a ‘vertically integrated’ approach to the cattle trade. The profitability of this indigenous business model would have been undermined by the illegal import of Irish cattle.

According to a letter dated 20 May 1724 written by James Clerk in Kirkcudbright to his brother Sir John Clerk:

Upon Wednesday last a party of about 100 [Levellers], all armed came into town, driving before them about 53 Black Cattle which they had, after throwing down the dykes, brought in the name of Irish cattle. They demanded us to assist in retaining said cattle…We thereupon refused to meddle in the affair, especially considered that we writt the Commissioners 15 days ago upon that account, and have as yet no orders to give any such assistance, upon which they drove them out of town and slaughtered each one [of] them in a barbarous manner notwithstanding as law directs proof was made… that they were not imported from Ireland, but bought of a Highland drover .#

According to Morton, the slaughter ‘in a barbarous manner’ was carried out in Dundrennan Abbey a blacksmith named McMinn, giving rise to the local folklore saying that “M’Minn’s fore-hammer was more deadly than a butcher’s knife.”. #. Between 1640 and 1700 the Kirkcudbright Sheriff Court Deeds record seven related McMinn’s who were blacksmiths and a Francis McMinn (blacksmith) was a portioner of Gregory croft near Dundrennan in 1724.#

Further confirmation that the alleged illegal import of Irish cattle was a significant factor in the events of 1724 is given by the Earl of Galloway in one of his letters to Sir John Clerk. In this letter, the Earl of Galloway describes an incident which occurred on the 12th May when the Levellers “slaughtered near Kirkcudbright 55 or 57 cattell belonging to Hugh Blair of Dunrod [parish of Borgue] notwithstanding he made it appear they were bred in Britain, and they have used some of Basil Hamilton’s cattell after the same way and manner upon Saturday morning last.”. #

The defence that the cattle involved were not Irish echoes that made on behalf of Sir David Dunbar (elder) by Symson in his Large Description of Galloway forty two years before.
Those of his [ Dunbar’s] owne breed, are very large, yea, so large, that in August ro September 1682 nine and fifty of that sort, which woulld have yielded betwixt five and six pound srerling the peece were seized upon in England for Irish cattell; and because the person to whom they were entrusted had not witnesses that there ready at the precise hour, to swear that they wer seen calved in Scotland (although the witness offered t depone that he liv’d in Scotland, wityin a mile of tthe park where they were calved and gred), they were, by the sentence of Sir J.L., and some others whl knew welp enough that they were bred in Scotland, knockt on the head and kill’d; which was, to say no more, very hard measure, and sn act unworthy of persons od that quality and station who ordered it to be done.#

By their seizure, public display and slaughter of over 150 ‘Irish’ cattle, the Galloway Levellers were trying to drive a wedge between those landowners and farmers who were involved on the legitimate cattle trade and those who were not. It is difficult to judge how effrchive strategy was in broadening the base of support for the Levellers’ actions in tge Stewartry of Kirkcudbright. Certaainly in Wigtownshire the use of battering ram to demolish a dyke built raound the Fell of Barhullion by Sir Alexander Maxwwll of Monretih suggests the Wigtownshire Levellerx were numerically fewer. Maxwell was also able to enlist his tennats to defend his remaining dykes, although sevej of his cattle were houghed (had their hamstrings cut) in te night. This houghing incident, compared with the cery public slaughter of cattle in the Stewartry, is another indication that there were fewer Levellers in Wigtonshire. At Balsier in Sorbie parish, it was the tenant who organised the defence of a field dyke ( I.e. a subdividing enclosure) against the Levellers. In the struggle wgich ensued one of the Levellers was fatally wounded.# Finally and most tellingly, the Sheriff of Wigtown was able to suppress the Wigtownshire Levellers without recourse to the Earl of Stair’s Dragoons.#

If the Wgitownshire Levellers w ere fewer in number, why dir they not seek support from the Stewartry? One possibility is that if large ccale support for the Levellers was confined to the central parishes of the Stwwarty of Kirkcudbright, it would have been logistically difficult to level more dmstant dykes or tp give support to the Wigtownshire Levellers. When the known instances of dkye-breaking in the Stewartry are plotted on a map, they are all within a 16km (10 mile) radius of Kelton Hill. This may be a pracgical reason why the Herons’ cattle parks in Minnigaff parish were untouched. Minnigaff is 30 km (19 miles) in a direct line from Kelton Hill and approximately 45 km (288 miles) by existing tracks. Likewise, although ‘Murray of Cavens’ was alleged to jave threatened thirty families with eviction, his estate in Kirkbean parish was left unmolested. Cavens is 24 km (15 miles) in a direct line from Kelton Hill and approximately 30 km(19 miles) by existing tracks.

In a letter to Sir John Clerk of Pencuik dated 3rd June 1724, James Clerk states that two troops of horse and four of foot left Kirkcudbright at 3 am on the 2nd June and arrived at the Boat of Rhone at 8 am, expecting to confront a gathering of Levellers, but no Levellers appeared. The direct distance from Kirkcudbright to the Boat of Rhone (at the junction of the rivers Ken and Dee) is 15 km (9 miles). Even if the actual distance travelled along the rough tracks then existing was nearer 19 km (12 miles), the troops were travelling at 3.8 km/ hour (2.4 niles/ hour). A large group of Levellers are unlikely tp have travelled any faster than the troops so woulx have taken roughly 12 hours to reach Minnigaff from the centre of the Stewartgy and 8 hours to reach Kirkbean. Sorbie parish in Wigtownshire is 20 km (12.5 miles) south Minnigaff. It would have taken a party of central Stewartry Levellers at least 17 hours walking non-stop to provide support for the Wigtownshire Lfvellers. Any such attempt wold ahve been easily halted long before this by the two troops of horse stationed in Kirkcudbright.

Of the 23 Levellers pursued for damages by Sir Basil Hamilton in January 1725, having demolished 580 roods of dyke at Galtway (near Kirkcudbright) between the 12th and 16th May 1724, Thomas Moige and Grizel Grierson his wife lkve furthest away. Moire was the owner-occupier of Beoch farm in Tongland parish. Beoch ls 13 km miles) from Galtway. As a farm owner, Moire and his wife wkuld have been able to travel by horseback to Galtway. The other named Levellers all lived less than 9 k (5.5 miles) from Galtway and ths majority lived within 4 km (2.5 miles). Th ree lived at mills (xt Auchlane Miln and Nethermilns), two in crofts (Greenlane and Meadow Isle) and the rest were either tenant farmers pr cottars. One, John Martin, was the 14 year old son of a tenant farmer in Lochdougan.

The involvement of Thomas and Grizel Moire is significant since it reveals tgat at least some of the Galloway Levellers wdee owner-occupier farmers. Their respective family backgrounds also suggest that, at least in the case of Sir Basil Hamilton, the anti-Jacobite rhetoric of the Levellers had deep historical roots. Grizel Grier aas the eaughter of Thomas Greirsone of Bargatton farm. Thomas Moire was the son of Henry Moire of Beoch.# These are neighbouring farms.

In 1640, William Grierson of Bargatton (Grizel’s grandfather) was appointed to the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright War Committee of the Covenanters, and was one of the Stewartry representatives in the Scottish Parliament from 1644 to 1651. Between 1649 and 1704, William Grierson and his son, also William ( I.e. Grizel’s uncle) were Commissioners of Supply for the Stewartry of Kirkcudbrivht,# but by 1724, Bargatton was nl longer owned bg the Grietsons. Local auttor S.R. Crockett, who was born in Balmaghie parish in 1859, believed family members had rmigrated Virginia about 1708. Crockett also notes that t he Grriersons were ‘Reformed Presbyterians‘, I.e. Cameronian members of the Reverend John McMillan of Balmaghie’s independent church.#

In 1640, William Grierson of Bargatton (Grizel’s grandfather) was appointed to the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright War Committee of the Covenanters, and was one of the Stewartry representatives in the Scottish Parliament from 1644 to 1651.# McKerlie gives the details of the ownership of Bargatton, noting that it and seven other f arms in Balmaghie were owned by the Grierson family between 1600 and 1700. The farmd then changed hands several times. William Murray, x merchant in Dumfries owned them from 1700 to 1712, then Robert Maclellan of Barcloy had them until 1720, followed by his brother Samuel until March 1725 when Colonel William Maxwell of Cardoness bought them before they were sold againn ig 1735 to the Reeverend Walter Laurie of Redcastle (parish of Urr). The Laurie family were still in possession when McKerlie was writing in 1878, owning 12 farms and the viklage of Clachanpuck which Walter Laurie improved and re-named Laurieston. Mckerlie also notes that in 1678, Henry Mure (or Moide) commissary-clerk of Kirkcudbright owned Bellymack abd Grannoch Waulk Mill in Balmaghie parish.# Unfortunately, McKerlie apatr from noting that ‘Hendrie Moore commissar clerk of Kirkcudbright’ also had prinviple sssine og Beoch (Tnogland parish) in 1678 does not provide any fyrther information on the Moires of Beoch. However, McKerlie does reveal that in Mwy 1645, the Gordons of Kenmure had ‘superiorty’ of Beoch.# This suggests that in 1724, Thomas Moire’s feudal superior was Lady Mary Dalzell, widow of the Jacobite Viscount William Gordon of Kenmure.

The firsf mention of Henry Moire in the Kirkcudbright Sheriff Court Deeds is from 1666, when he had a five year tack of the Abbey of Dundrennan.# On 7th March 1678, “Henry Mure, Commissary Clerk at Kirkcudbright, was libelled for being preesent at hhouse and field conventicles where Mr. John Welsh, Mr. Gabriel Semple and Mr. Samuel Arnott were. He ackno wledged he had once heard Mr. Samuel Adnot at a field conventicle and thfough Bisbop Paterson of Galloway he was dismissed without further trouble.”.# Since hhe Kirkcudbright Shwriff Court Deeds show Henry Moire continuing to witness deeds as Commssary Clerk after this date, it was thf lkbel rather than Henfy Moire which was dismissed.

The mention of Samuel Arnot is of interest since, as discussed above, David Arnot’s support for his brother Samuel led to the enforced sale of Barcaple (the family farm) to Stuart loyalist Willoam McGuffog in 1674. Although McGuffog’s son-in-law Hugh Blair-McGuffog sold Barcaplee in 1687 to the Rev. John McMichen, in 1724, Hugh Blair-McGuffog still owned the farms of Lairdmannoch and Kirkconnel (where four Covenanters were killed by Grierson of Lagg in February 16685) .# In 1724, Hugh-Blair McGuffog’s cattle parks in Borgue parish were levelled, although they had been in existence for over 30 years.# rFom McKelrie, Lairdmannoch and Kirkconnel ( but not Beoch ) were owned by Robert Gordon of Garerrie in 1726, but returned to the McGuffog-Blairs in 1751. By 1799, Beoch, Lairdmanonch, Kirkconnel and 13 other farms in Tongland parish were owned by Alexander Murray of Cally.

It is not possible to be certain why Thomas Moire of Beoch and Girzel Grierson helped level Sif Basil Hamilton’s cattle park dykes in May 1724. That Grizel Grierson’s family had already lost Barhatton and emigrated to America may well have been a factor. The probability that she nad her husband were struggling to make a living on their small farm of Beoch would be another. Although such cattle parks in themselves were not an innovation ih 1724, the export cattle to England provided cattle traders like the Herons of Kirroughtrie, Murdoch of Cumloden, Murray of Cally and Blair-McGuffog of Dunrod with ready cash in hte form of Engoish guineas. This gave them an advantage (shared with merchant traders like Robert Johnston of Kelton) over lesser landowners and owner-occupiers who were less able (if at alp) to export their oats and bere or the few cattle or sheep their smalled landholdings produced.

As any attempt to follow the histories of the thousands oof ‘lands and their owners’ documented by McKerlie in his five volume study swiftly shows, the feuung out of Crown lands in Galloway (the 108 estates forfeit by the 9th earl of Douglas in 1456) and the break-up of Galloway’s great monastic estates (Dundrennan, Glenluce, Tongland, Soulseat, Lincluden and New Abbey) after 1560 led to a fragmentation of landownership which reached its peal in the latre 17th century. In turn, as the numerous wadsets noted by McKerlie attest, the fragmentation of landownership created a high level of economic insecurity with small estates or individual farms changing hand with bewildering rapidity. The finew and forfeitures of the political and religious struggles of the 17tth century added to this turmoil. Al though hastened by the economic advnfage created by the export r cattle, a process of consolidation of landownership would have occurred anyway, as the more successful farmers and landowners bought out the farms and estates of their less successful (or just less fortunate) neighbours.

Given Grizel Grierson’s family background, she and her husband would have been very aware of this process. They would also have been aware of the religious and political family history of Sir Basil Hamilton - a Jacobite and the inheritor of a lands acquired by his Sruart supporting grandfather and great-grandfather at from hhe Covenant supporting McLellans of Kirkcuddbright, including teh lands of Bombie where H amilton had constructed his new cattle park.

Tracing the background of the other Levellers accused of breaking Sir B asil Hamilton’s dykes is less easy. Some background for John McKnaught of Meadow Isle is given by the Kirkcudbright Sheriff Court Deeds. A 1676 tafk for Aireland farm in Kelton parish gives a John MccKnaught as possessing the Meadow Islle croft. In 1724, the farm was owned by aLdy Mary Dunbar. # For John McKnaught, the eviction of tenants and cottars to make way for Sir Basil Hamilton’s new cattle prk a t Bpmbie would have been a warning that the croft his family hzd possessed (but not owned) for ficty years was endangered.

For John Martin of Lochdougan, we have his own account in Nicholson’s Notebook. Born in 1710 at Halmyre farm in Kelton parish, in 1724 his father was a tenant in Lchdougan farm tao miles from Halmyre. John Martin seems to have made his own decision to become a teenage Leveller. He stole his father’s flail and joined the Levellers in their confrontation with the heritorz at the Setps of Tarff in May 1724. Here John armed himself with x musket dropped in front of him by an older but more nervous Leveller. John kept the gun with him until he was captured at Duchrae in October 1724. For possessing the gun he was fned £1000 sterling in addition to his share of the �777 Scots he was fined for damages to Sir Basil Hamilton’s property. Despite his youthful participation in the Levellers Uprising, John went on to become a respectable and respected watch and clock maker in Kirkcudbright where he died im 1801.#

The involvement of a 14 year old John Martin (armed with his musket), in the events of 1724 raises further questions about the motivations of the Galloway Levellers. Although it is possible that John Martin was motivated to join the Levellers because he saw the cattle parks as a threat to his future prospects as the son of a tenant farmer or cottar, he may equally have been motivated by the spirit of youthful rebellion against the status quo. Sir Basil Hamilton himself was only 18 when he joined the Jacobite Uprising of 1715.

Nothing much

2008-05-12T12:05:00.000-07:00

With all the Irish and Scottish news I get every day, I couldn't find a single thing that I'd consider interesting or important to put on this blog. It's a good thing that most of the characters in my books are Celtic.

Even in Vengeance Is Mine, my suspense, the characters are primarily Irish. In Clan Gunn: Gerek, they're Scots. I guess growing up in Albany, NY, which is basically, or was, an Irish city, the lilt and the language is in my blood.

They always tell you to write what you know-----and there I am, or was------in the middle of a Celtic world. Growing up was fun--full of love and laughter. It's stayed in my memory forever.

Pictures from Scotland

2008-05-11T15:48:00.001-07:00

Scottish Snippets produces a color supplement every so often. I thought this one of the flora was especially attractive.

http://www.rampantscotland.com/colour/supplement080510.htm

Irish happening

2008-05-08T13:34:00.000-07:00

From the Irish News........

Hero Cop Set for Ireland
May 7, 2008

By April Drew

NYPD Detective Steven McDonald, who was paralyzed in 1986 after being shot while on duty, his wife Patti Ann McDonald, mayor of her hometown, Malverne in Long Island, and their 21-year-old son Conor, will travel to Ireland next week to mark the 10 year anniversary of Project Reconciliation – Northern Ireland.

The McDonald family, accompanied by a small group from New York, will return to Omagh 10 years after the Omagh bombing in which 29 people lost their lives. Chaplain of the New York City Fire Department, Father Mychal Judge, who died on 9/11, was part of the convoy that went to Northern Ireland in 1998.

Steven McDonald, 51, told the Irish Voice on Monday he is returning to Ireland to “continue to show the people of Northern Ireland that America support their efforts to secure lasting peace.”

Discussing their reconciliation trip in 1998 McDonald said, “I thought we were very successful last time. We met many people on both sides of the issue and we made friends with them, and some of them to this day are still our friends.”

The NYPD detective describes the timing of their visit in 1998 as a “God incident.” His party had planned for months to go to the North and “it just so happened that this terrible act of terrorism played out the day before we left. There are no coincidences in life,” he said, believing that God plays a role in everything.

McDonald described the Omagh tragedy as “devastating.” He remembers how families of the victims and residents of the town grabbed onto Judge’s robes while he walked down the street.

“We were very fortunate to be there for them. I think we were a help the short hours we were there to everyone we met,” he said.

Although McDonald admits he doesn’t have the financial means to support the people of the North, he said he has something better — his prayers.

“I have my prayers and experience that God has given me since I was shot 20 years ago,” he said. “People are still suffering, and it’s up to us to use our good will to secure a better future for those in Northern Ireland.”

McDonald and his delegation in 1998 met with many families who were affected by the Troubles. One particular lady stands out in McDonald’s memory.

Hazel McCreevey, a Protestant who was shot by a member of the IRA, turned to McDonald for support during his visit. “I spoke with her in January and she said that I made a difference to the lives of people in the North during our visits,” he said.

“I believe in the people of Northern Ireland, they have worked hard for their peace. People like me — all of us here in America — should be doing what we can do to support them in the days and months ahead with our money or talents. I hope with this trip I inspire people to get up and go and do something for these great people,” he added.

McDonald feels the recent peace process offers a real lesson for the rest of the world.

“We have many issues including racial violence here in our country, and if anything I’ve learned from visiting Northern Ireland people can co-exist and forgive each other. People chose to move forward and we should all take note of that,” he said.

McDonald explains that the visit, which will begin on May 11, is important to show the people of Northern Ireland that just because there is peace, “you are not forgotten.” This is McDonald’s way of supporting the Good Friday Agreement and helping it to “move forward.”

Scotland Murders

2008-05-05T08:07:00.000-07:00

Since I'm interested in writing a suspense/chiller novel and am doing that now, I pick up all sorts of information that might later be of interest. Vengeance Is Mine is coming along. I'm writing more scenes and learning that many of them are not necessary to move the story forward--so I'm cutting as well. Nasty game, this writing.

Here's something for the books--and in Scotland--from The Scotsman.com. It's long but interesting.

Two families, two tragedies and four murders to solve
Police cordoned off the area at Lennoxtown while investigations continued.

By Michael Howie and Alastair Dalton
TWO Scottish communities are today united in grief after the violent murders of two pairs of siblings in chillingly similar incidents only a few hours apart.
The first double murder came to light shortly after 5pm on Saturday, when brothers aged six and two were found in a car parked at a beauty spot near Lennoxtown in East Dunbartonshire.

Their critically ill father is believed to have suffered severe burns after his silver Vauxhall Vectra was set on fire with the brothers, from Glasgow, inside.

The man was earlier seen several times, apparently asleep in the car at a turn-off around ten miles from Glasgow, which is used as an unofficial lay-by by walkers.

Meanwhile, 50 miles away, in the Fife town of Buckhaven, the bodies of Michelle Thomson, 25, and her seven-year-old brother, Ryan Thomson, were discovered by their mother in their home at about 7:30pm the same day.

The pair were discovered in separate bedrooms, in a scene detectives described as "harrowing".

The father of the two Buckhaven victims was found injured at the scene.

Police investigating both double murders were last night waiting at Glasgow Royal Infirmary and Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline to interview the victims' fathers.

In both cases, the fathers are understood to have been estranged from the victims' mothers.

News of the deaths have sent shockwaves through both communities.

In Lennoxtown, prayers were said for the murdered young boys and their loved ones.

Margaret Tindall, the session clerk at Campsie Parish Church, who led its service yesterday morning, said: "We prayed for the relatives. It is such a sad situation. It was so desperately sad that no-one was able to intervene and help them in time."

Father William Conway, of St Machan's Catholic Church, said the 200-strong congregation at mass had "prayed for those affected". He added: "It is very sad."

Floral tributes from relatives, friends and neighbours were laid close to both murder scenes.

In Buckhaven, flowers were placed outside the detached home where the brother and sister were found.

A family friend laying a floral tribute said the brother and sister's parents had split up very recently and the father, 49-year-old Robert Thomson, was left with the children.

The house, called Muiredge Cottage, on Methilhaven Road, had its windows covered and was partially obscured by police tents erected around the back and side.

Fife Chief Inspector Andy Morris said: "This is a terrible tragedy which has shocked the community (and] the police officers involved in the investigation."

Brothers found in car had suffered 'violent deaths'

ALASTAIR DALTON

A MURDER investigation was launched last night after two young brothers were found dead in the Campsie Fells, north of Glasgow.

Police are waiting to question the critically ill father of Paul Ross, six, and two-year-old Jay, who were found in a car and are said to have suffered "violent deaths".

Strathclyde Police confirmed that the deaths were being treated as murder, following post-mortem examinations yesterday.

The father is believed to have suffered severe burns after the silver Vauxhall Vectra he was in caught fire with his two sons also inside. The family are from the Royston area of Glasgow.

Officers have not said how the boys died, or confirmed whether they were found in the boot of the vehicle.

Reports that they suffered carbon monoxide poisoning or had their throats cut have been dismissed.

The alarm was raised at around 5:15pm on Saturday when the car was spotted beside the gated entrance to a hill track off the B822 Crow Road between Lennoxtown and Fintry, near the East Dunbartonshire-Stirling border.

The man, who is in his forties and thought to be Asian, was earlier seen apparently asleep in the car at the turn-off, which is used as a lay-by by walkers.

Half a mile away, at a popular viewpoint car park, several floral tributes had been left yesterday. One message read: "For those two little angels taken on such a tragic day. Forever in our hearts."

The road remained closed until lunchtime while investigations continued. By then, the only sign of the incident was a scrap of blue-and-white police tape fluttering from a fence. There were reports that the boys' parents were estranged and the father had weekend access to his sons. Police have spoken to the mother.

A spokeswoman said officers were following a "positive" line of inquiry and were not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident.

The man is being treated at Glasgow Royal Infirmary. Police officers are at the hospital, waiting to speak to him.

David Shephard, from Lennoxtown, who drove past the car several times on Saturday afternoon, said he thought the man had been asleep.

He said the Vectra had been parked pointing south towards Lennoxtown, with no sign of anyone else in the car.

Mr Shephard, 26, said: "I drove past the car with my girlfriend at about 1pm. It was in a wee lay-by. The guy was in the driver's seat, smartly dressed in shirt and tie, with his head lying to one side. I thought he must be sleeping.

"We passed him on our way back about 20 minutes later, then I passed him again at about 4:30pm when I drove up to take the dog for a walk."

Mr Shephard said he noticed at that time a small silver car had stopped, which he thought may have contained the people who raised the alarm.

When Mr Shephard was returning home about an hour later, he found the road had been cordoned off, with police cars and vans and an ambulance and fire engine at the scene.

Prayers were said at church services in Lennoxtown yesterday.

Margaret Tindall, session clerk at Campsie Parish Church, who led its service yesterday morning, said: "We prayed for the relatives. It is such a sad situation. It was so desperately sad that no-one was able to intervene and help them in time."

John Dempsey, a Lennoxtown councillor, said: "My thoughts are ones of shock at these tragic deaths.

"I have a three-year-old grandson, so I know how the family will be feeling."

Mother finds disabled daughter, 25, and son, 7, dead at home

MICHAEL HOWIE

POLICE are investigating a double murder after a disabled woman and her young brother were found dead in their home.

Michelle Thomson, 25, and seven-year-old Ryan were discovered by their mother on Saturday evening.

Police and paramedics were called to the house in Buckhaven, Fife, at about 7pm, but the siblings – found in separate bedrooms – were already dead.

The bodies of Ryan Thomson, seven, and sister Michelle Thomson, 25, were found in their home on SaturdayAnother sibling, 20-year-old Ross, was found in the house, but he was uninjured. Ms Thomson is understood to have suffered from severe disabilities.

The children's father, Robert Thomson, 49, was found injured at the house, and was taken to the Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline.

He is being kept in the high-dependency unit with a police guard.

Police last night refused to release details on the causes of death of the children, but described the scene officers were met with as "a harrowing one".

Yesterday, the main road out of Buckhaven was closed off and guarded by police as forensics experts examined the scene. The house, in Methilhaven Road, had its windows covered and police tents erected around the back and side.

Examinations of the crime scene are expected to finish later today.

Last night, neighbours said there had been marriage problems between Robert Thomson and his wife, June.

One family friend, laying flowers outside the house, said: "A couple of weeks back, June left him, but she had come back to try and patch things up."

She added: "My daughter cared for their daughter, Michelle, and was engaged to their eldest son, Shaun, so we knew the family quite well. I don't know what would bring someone to do something like this; it's just horrible to think."

Chris Arnott, 38, who also lives in Methilhaven Road, said: "It isn't nice to think this could happen on your street. I have spoken to the guy Bob in the pub a couple of times – he seemed normal. But they have only lived there for a little while and have been trying to sell that house practically since then – there was a terrible accident outside it a few years back."

Other neighbours told how the family had "kept themselves to themselves" since moving from Kirkcaldy.

The couple's eldest son, Shaun, 24, lives in Essex and was yesterday travelling back to Fife after being informed of the tragedy.

Floral tributes have been left outside the detached house.

Messages read simply: "Sleep in peace forever" and "God bless".

Nobody had been charged in connection with the deaths by last night. But police confirmed they had launched a murder inquiry.

Detective Superintendent Alastair McKeen said: "This is a murder investigation, but it is at a very early stage and we are keeping an open mind.

"Mr Thomson is likely to have valuable information about the events which took place in the Muiredge Cottage yesterday, and we will be keen to speak to him."

After appealing for information from the public, he said: "This is the type of event you hope you never have to see."

The full article contains 1564 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

A Painting from the Scotsman.com

2008-05-03T08:32:00.000-07:00

Everything comes up roses for Mrs Mac

A detail from one of two painted panels by Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh.

By Tim Cornwell
Arts Correspondent
A PAINTED panel by the wife of the architect and designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh yesterday set a world auction record for a Scottish work of art.

The White Rose and the Red Rose, painted in 1902 by Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh, sold for £1,700,500 in London yesterday. Bought by a private US collector, what was called a consummate example of the Glasgow avant-garde smashed the expected price of between £200,000 and £300,000.

A companion panel, The Heart of the Rose, sold for a more modest £490,900, though that was double its estimate. Mackintosh, who lived from 1865 to 1933, was an artist whose design work was called one of the defining features of the "Glasgow Style".

The Scotsman's art critic, Duncan MacMillan, said: "It would be a very fine thing on your wall. It's a beautiful thing by a rare artist of high reputation."

Her artwork appears to have doubled the previous auction record for a Scottish artist, set by the former coalminer Jack Vettriano when his painting The Singing Butler sold at a Sotheby's auction in 2004 for £744,800.

Featured in a Christie's auction of 20th-century decorative art and design, there was little hint that the Mackintosh panels would break records, but they have a rich history. The panels were shown at the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative Art in Turin, Italy, in 1902, picked by Francis Newbury, head of the Glasgow School of Art.

They featured in the exhibition's "Rose Boudoir", in a collaboration of Mackintosh and his wife. It was seen as the height of the couple's work together.

They both trained under Mr Newbury, who also commissioned Mackintosh to design the GSA, one of his most famous buildings. After Turin, the panels were bought by Fritz Wärndorfer, the famous patron of the Viennese avant-garde and an admirer of the Mackintoshes.

Philippe Garner, a Christie's specialist, said: "We are thrilled to have set a world auction record. There was fiercely competitive international bidding throughout the sale in the room, on the telephone and online." The Christie's sale of art nouveau, art deco and early modernist work totalled £3,666,650.

THE FINE ART OF BREAKING RECORDS

WHEN Jack Vettriano's The Singing Butler, left, was sold for £744,800 in 2004 it was described by Sotheby's as "the record for any Scottish painting".

Sotheby's old rival, Christie's, appears to have smashed that record yesterday with the sale of The White Rose and the Red Rose for £1,700,500, claiming "a new world auction record for any Scottish work of art". The Scottish colourist SJ Peploe was the closest contender behind Vettriano in the price wars, with top works commanding about £500,000. In 2007 a painting by Scottish-born Peter Doig sold for £5.7 million, a record for a living artist, but Doig left Edinburgh as a baby for the Caribbean and North America.

A Bit of Irish Legend

2008-04-30T10:44:00.000-07:00

Since I like to read history, I get lots of mail relating to Celtic histories. I found this little tidbit earlier today.

Murder Of “Brown Earl” Of Ulster And Its Effects
April 29th, 2008 | by indo |

The most bitter quarrel of all, and one which had most important results, was that which ended in the assassination of the last De Burgh Earl of ” Ulster.” The ” Red Earl ” had died in 1326 in the monastery of Athaisil and had been succeeded by his grandson, the ” Brown Earl.” William De Burgh, the brother of the Red Earl and one of the victors at Athenry, had died in 1324. Between William’s son, Walter, and the Brown Earl, some fighting took place, and eventually Walter De Burgh was treacherously captured, and starved to death in the Brown Earl’s castle of Greencastle in Inis Eoghain. Walter’s brother-in-law, Sir Richard Mandeville, in revenge suddenly fell upon the Brown Earl, and murdered him near Carrickfergus (1333). The Earl left an only child, an infant girl, who was carried off to England, and the last of the Lordships thus met the same fate that had befallen all the others.

The Normans of Connacht Renounce English Authority.—The effects of this crime were severely felt in ” Ulster ” and in Connacht. In the former it resulted in the settlement of the Clann Aodha Buidhe O’Neills and the ultimate annihilation of the northern settlement. In the latter it caused the repudiation of English authority by the other branches of the De Burghs. These were descended from William, the brother of the first Earl of the family , and were now represented by two brothers, Ulick Burke and Edmond ” Albanach ” Burke. Knowing that the infant daughter of the Brown Earl would eventually carry the title and its possessions to some ” absentee ” husband, they definitely renounced allegiance to the English Crown and English law, and adopted the Irish names of Mac William from their ancestor, Ulick becoming Mac William ” Uachtar ” (or ” upper “), and Edmond becoming Mac William ” Iochtar ” (or ” lower “). To remove the only other claimant to any superior title over them, Edmund seized a surviving son of the Red Earl, and drowned him in Lough Mask (1338). The lesser Normans followed the example of their leaders, and all Connacht was thus lost to the English Crown for more than two centuries.

The New Earldoms: Kildare, Desmond, Ormonde.—It was just when the last of the early Lordships disappeared that there rose into clear prominence three family which from that time became the conspicuous leaders of the Irish of Norman descent. They were not late arrivals ; their founders had been amongst the earliest settlers, but hitherto they had occupied a secondary position to the Marshalls, De Lacys, De Burghs and others. Unlike most of these families, their interests lay altogether in Ireland, and they were only remotely concerned in English politics. They were the Fits-Geralds of Leinster, the Fitz-Geralds of Munster, and the Butlers, the respective heads of which were now created Earls of Kildare (1318), of Desmond (1330), and of Ormonde (1328).

A shocker?

2008-04-29T11:14:00.000-07:00

From the Scotsman newspaper.........

Exclusive: Half man, half chimp - should we beware the apeman's coming?

Creation of a hybrid using human sperm to impregnate a female chimpanzee would be legal (Picture: Bill Henry)

Date: 29 April 2008
By JENNY HAWTHORNE
A LEADING scientist has warned a new species of "humanzee," created from breeding apes with humans, could become a reality unless the government acts to stop scientists experimenting.

In an interview with The Scotsman, Dr Calum MacKellar, director of research at the Scottish Council on Human Bioethics, warned the controversial draft Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill did not prevent human sperm being inseminated into animals.

He said if a female chimpanzee was inseminated with human sperm the two species would be closely enough related that a hybrid could be born.

He said scientists could possibly try to develop the new species to fill the demand for organ donors.

Leading scientists say there is no reason why the two species could not breed, although they question why anyone would want to try such a technique.

Other hybrid species already created include crossed tigers and lions and sheep and goats.

Dr MacKellar said he feared the consequences if scientists made a concerted effort to cross humans with chimpanzees. He said: "Nobody knows what they would get if they tried hard enough. The insemination of animals with human sperm should be prohibited.

"The Human Fertilisation and Embryo Bill prohibits the placement of animal sperm into a woman The reverse is not prohibited. It's not even mentioned. This should not be the case."

He said if the process was not banned, scientists would be "very likely" to try it, and it would be likely humans and chimps could successfully reproduce.

"If you put human sperm into a frog it would probably create an embryo, but it probably wouldn't go very far," he said.

"But if you do it with a non-human primate it's not beyond the realms of possibility that it could be born alive."

Dr MacKellar said the resulting creature could raise ethical dilemmas, such as whether it would be treated as human or animal, and what rights it would have.

"If it was never able to be self-aware or self-conscious it would probably be considered an animal," he said. "However, if there was a possibility of humanzees developing a conscience, you have a far more difficult dilemma on your hands."

He said fascination would be enough of a motive for scientists to try crossing the two species.

But he also said there was a small chance of scientists using the method to "humanise" organs for transplant into humans. "There's a desperate need for organs. One of the solutions that has been looked at is using animal organs, but because there's a very serious risk of rejection using animal organs in humans they are already trying to humanise these organs.

"If they could create these humanzees who are substantially human but are not considered as humans in law , we could have a large provision of organs."

He wrote to the Department of Health to ask that the gap in the draft legislation be addressed.

The department confirmed that the bill "does not cover the artificial insemination of an animal with human sperm".

It said: "Owing to the significant differences between human and animal genomes, they are incompatible and the development of a foetus or progeny is impossible.

"Therefore such activity would have no rational scientific justification, as there would be no measurable outcome."

Dr MacKellar disagrees. He said: "The chromosomal difference between a goat and a sheep is greater than between humans and chimpanzees."

Professor Bob Millar, director of the Medical Research Council Human Reproductive Sciences Unit, based in Edinburgh, agreed viable offspring would be possible. He said: "Donkeys can mate with horses and create infertile offspring; maybe that could happen with chimpanzees."

But he said he would oppose any such attempt. "It's unnecessary and ridiculous and no serious scientist would consider such a thing. Ethically, it's not appropriate.

"It's also completely impractical. Chimps would never be a source of organs for humans because of the viruses they carry and the low numbers."

Professor Hugh McLachlan, professor of applied philosophy at Glasgow Caledonian University's School of Law and Applied Sciences, said although the idea was "troublesome", he could see no ethical objections to the creation of humanzees.

"Any species came to be what it is now because of all sorts of interaction in the past," he said.

"If it turns out in the future there was fertilisation between a human animal and a non-human animal, it's an idea that is troublesome, but in terms of what particular ethical principle is breached it's not clear to me.

"I share their squeamishness and unease, but I'm not sure that unease can be expressed in terms of an ethical principle."

A Department of Health spokeswoman said: "It's just not a problem. If you inseminate an animal with human sperm, scientifically nothing happens. The species barriers are too great."

HYBRIDS ARE AT CROSS PURPOSES

EVEN though hybrids of humans and animals have never been created, many other creatures have been crossed successfully.

Lions and tigers have been bred to create ligers, the world's largest cats.

And there are also zorses (zebra and horse), wholphins (whale and dolphin), tigons (tiger and lion), lepjags (leopard and jaguar) and zonkeys (zebra and donkey).

As well as these hybrid mammals, there are also hybrid birds, fish, insects and plants.

Many hybrids, such as mules, are sterile, which prevents the movement of genes from one species to another, keeping both species distinct. However, some can reproduce and there are scientists who believe that grey wolves and coyotes mated thousands of years ago to create a new species, the red wolf.

More commonly, hybrids mate with one of their parent species, which can influence the genetic mix of what gets passed along to subsequent generations.

Hybrids can have desirable traits, often being fitter or larger than either parent.

Most hybrid animals have been bred in captivity, but there are examples of the process occurring in the wild.

This is far more common in plants than animals but in April 2006 a hunter in Canada's North-west Territories shot a polar bear whose fur had an orange tint.

Research showed that it had a grizzly bear father, and it became known as a pizzly.

In 2003, DNA analysis confirmed that five odd-looking felines found in Maine and Minnesota were bobcat-lynx hybrids, dubbed blynxes.

Last Updated: 29 April 2008 8:08 AM
Source: The Scotsman
Location: Edinburgh

Nothing new

2008-04-28T13:06:00.000-07:00

I've checked out both my Irish and my Scottish sites and just couldn't come up with anything interesting today.

But I did do a wonderful Internet Radio Show with Nikki Leigh. We talked alot about my Celtic stories and discussed the new book, Saratoga Winter: 1865. It is to be the second book about the five O'Malley brothers, two that came over to America in 1863. The first book, Saratoga Summer: 1863, is about the oldest of the five, Connor. He got to go through the Civil War Draft riots in New York City, along with the youngest O'Malley brother. This second book is about Egan...

And I should be off writing about it right now, 'cause I just got a wonderful idea.

Love this newsletter

2008-04-27T09:15:00.000-07:00

I have gotten the Scottish Snippets newsletter for years and have always enjoyed it. I thought it would be nice to share it with some Celts.

Although the "Scottish Snippets" newsletter is now produced every second
week, the "Colour Supplement" of recently taken, larger-size graphics of
Scottish scenes, flora and fauna is continuing on a weekly basis.

This week's collection focuses on the Firth of Clyde:

~ The Firth of Clyde, looking north towards Loch Long;
~ Western Ferries terminus at Hunter's Quay on Cowal, with "Sound of Suna"
ferry departing;
~ The statue to "Highland Mary", immortalised by Scotland's national poet,
Robert Burns;
~ Ruins of Castle Toward, south of Dunoon, owned by the Lamonts and
captured and burnt by the Campbells;
~ The new Castle Toward, built as a mansion house in the 1820s;
~ A Treecreeper bird, running up a tree trunk as its name implies, probing
the bark with its curved bill;
~ A brightly coloured Anemone in the walled garden at Culzean Castle
Country Park.

For all these graphics and further information, see:
http://www.rampantscotland.com/colour/supplement080426.htm

An Irish fable and more

2008-04-26T07:51:00.000-07:00

DoAn Art Studio displays art and the musings that go with it. This was put out this week. If you'd like, go to the site to see the picture.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Ériu – Queen of the Emerald Isle

Ériu was the sovereign earth-mother goddess of Ireland. She was one of a triad of goddesses: her sisters, Banbha and Fodla, were also goddess queens of the land. Ériu was married to the King Mac Gréine (Son of the Sun), who was himself the son of the Dagda, the father god of the Tuatha dé Danann.

When the Milesians (the humans) came to the Emerald Isle, they were confronted by the three sisters, each of them offered the island in exchange that the land be named after them. Banbha and Fodla became poetic names for the island, while Ériu became the chief name. We now know the land as Ireland, the root of the name coming from the name Ériu.

Ériu was an earth goddess, and this painting focuses primarily on that aspect of her. I wanted to tune in to earth energies rather than focus on form. As I worked on the piece, I filled my mind with images of Ireland, the land itself, and its plentiful plant and animal life. I used a photograph of a moss and lichen covered rock in Ireland as a guide to the composition. The range of colors in the painting reflect Ireland’s lushness and richness of life.

Ériu was also considered a solar goddess, through her marriage to Mac Gréine. When Ériu, as queen, conferred the land to the new human king, she offered him wine in a golden cup. Wine was the symbol of the earth, rich with life and plenty while the cup symbolized the sun, the source of illumination and healing. By using glazing techniques, I incorporated qualities of the sun in the painting as well. Glazing requires very thin layers of color layered over each other. The light shines through the transparent layers to the white canvas below, when the light bounces back, the colored layers blend, creating the different hues. I used only Hansa Yellow Light, Phthalo Blue, and Alizarin Crimson in the paintings. I didn’t mix colors on a palette. All the different colors appear solely from light blending together the multiple layers of color.

Ériu was also a goddess of sovereignty. In ancient times, the Celtic kings were married to the goddess of the land. It was the king’s responsibility to please the goddess, to make sure no one died in childbirth, that the food should grow plentifully, and so on. If the goddess was happy, the people thrived and were happy. If the king was unable to fulfill these duties—the king would be overthrown, having lost favor with the goddess.

I think about how such beliefs truly bonded people to the land they lived on. It was much more difficult to disrespect the land, or to take without first obtaining the permission of the land itself. How many of us today take a moment to consider how our actions affect the land we live on? If we thought of the earth as a living being would it be as easy to treat it so poorly? Imagine how much better off the environment would be if we each thought of ourselves married to the land?

DoAn

Getting Green is not Easy

2008-04-22T08:39:00.000-07:00

Strange to see that other governments and people are having some of the same problems that we in America face. Here's a news item from the Scotsman.com.

Lewis wind farm vetoed – but green target 'will still be met'

SCOTLAND is still on course to hit its renewables target, the energy minister insisted last night, after he pulled the plug on plans for Europe's largest wind farm.

Jim Mather finally rejected a proposed 181-turbine development on Lewis, which provoked a fierce "environment-versus-development" debate over nearly four years.

Supporters said it was a lost opportunity to advance Scotland's renewables industry and the fragile economy of the Western Isles. It had been claimed the project would bring in £600 million annually and provide hundreds of jobs.

Ministers had indicated in January that they were "minded to refuse" the plan, and yesterday's announcement delighted objectors who said it was a rational decision to protect the environment.

Mr Mather said the Lewis Wind Power (LWP) project was incompatible with European law, as it would have had a serious impact on the Lewis Peatlands Special Protection Area. The land is designated under European Commission regulations because of its important birdlife.

However, he insisted the rejection did not mean there could not be wind farms in the Western Isles, nor did it affect the government's commitment to renewables – its target was still to generate 50 per cent of Scotland's electricity from renewables by 2020.

An action plan on how to develop renewables in the islands is to be completed in the autumn.

At present, 454 wind turbines are operating in Scotland, with a further 203 approved. Applications have been received for 1,700 others in 28 locations, including another two in the Western Isles.

Mr Mather said: "There is 6.4 gigawatts of renewable development either under construction or in existing or planned applications, well over twice the current installed renewables capacity of 2.8 gigawatts.

"Even allowing for refusals, we are well on the way to meeting our ambitious target to generate 50 per cent of Scotland's electricity demand from renewables by 2020."

But the Highland Renewable Energy Group said yesterday's decision was a social and economic disaster for the islands and raised major questions about the Scottish Government's commitment to renewable energy.

Bill McAllister, the group's secretary, said: "The Scottish administration cannot, in all strategic logic, decide to reject nuclear and opt for renewable energy instead, and then reject the large-scale scheme without which the administration has no chance of reaching its own renewable energy supply targets."

He said the future of a new interconnector between the islands and mainland was also now at risk.

Gareth Williams, of the Scottish Council for Development and Industry, warned that, if the decision was allowed to set a precedent, it could mean large parts of Scotland near designated sites would now be closed to development.

The Liberal Democrats called for ministers to publish a strategy for the future of energy in Scotland.

LWP, meanwhile, said it was considering its next move. Kevin Murray, the firm's representative on Lewis, said the rejection represented a "huge missed opportunity". He went on: "For the sake of our generation and the generation coming after us, we need renewable energy. We also need this for the economy – fuel prices are going through the roof, fish farming is struggling, as is Harris Tweed."

It had been claimed the wind farm would employ more than 400 people and bring in £6 million annually to the islands, as well as using the former oil fabrication yard at Arnish for turbine manufacture.

Angus Campbell, the vice-convener of Western Isles Council, said the decision was "deeply disappointing and perplexing in view of the Scottish Government's renewable energy policy to make Scotland the green powerhouse of Europe". He added: "The government has got the balance between the environment and the socioeconomic benefits of the wind farm completely out of kilter."

The £500 million project has been controversial since it was put forward in October 2004 by LWP, a consortium of AMEC and British Energy.

Out of 11,022 representations, 10,924 were against the plan, with only 98 in favour.

Environmental bodies feared potential damage to the peatlands, which are home to species such as golden eagle, merlin, red throated diver, golden plover, dunlin and greenshank.

Stuart Housden, the director of RSPB Scotland, said the rejection of the project sent "a strong message that in meeting our ambitious and welcome renewable targets, we do not have to sacrifice our most important environmental resources".

Catriona Campbell, of the protest group Moorlands Without Turbines, said she was delighted while Alasdair Allan, the islands' SNP MSP, said the decision brought to an end a long and painful debate.

Precious peatland

THE Lewis peatlands are regarded as one of the most extensive and intact areas of blanket bog on the planet and one of Scotland's most important wildlife areas.

The development would have covered an area of 24,797 hectares (61,248 acres), much of it in the Lewis Peatlands Special Protection Area, the second largest in Scotland.

Environmentalists claimed the wind farm would hit populations of red-throated divers, black-throated divers, golden eagles, golden plovers and dunlins.

It was also felt that construction would cause irreversible damage to the structure of the peat and that carbon dioxide would be released.

But LWP said greenhouse gases released during construction would be cancelled out by the clean energy produced by the turbines within seven months. Dr Tom Dargie, who carried out analysis for LWP, said that the long-term structure and function of the peatland habitat was not under threat.

Charity has the clout to fly in face of controversial building proposals

WITH more than a million members, the RSPB has considerable power to influence decisions.

The charity, which last year had funds of almost £80 million, has fought vigorously against Lewis Wind Power's proposal to build a wind farm on peatland at Lewis.

The RSPB argues that renewable energy targets can be met without needing to threaten environmental resources. The RSPB, the largest conservation charity in Europe, has had similar clout when opposing other high-profile developments, such as Donald Trump's controversial plans for championship golf courses at Menie Estate north of Aberdeen.

Along with Scottish Natural Heritage, the Scottish Government's conservation adviser, the RSPB has objected topart of the development being built on an site of special scientific interest, saying it could damage wildlife.

The organisation has an army of 12,200 volunteers and 150,000 youth members. It has 200 nature reserves covering about 130,000 hectares, which are home to 80 per cent of the country's rarest or most threatened bird species.

The charity, which was founded more than a century ago, is supported by a network of 175 local groups and there are at least nine volunteers for every paid member of staff.

The bulk of the charity's income is spent on conservation projects, maintenance of reserves and education schemes. It counts among its success stories the decision by governments in India, Nepal and Pakistan to ban Diclofenac, a veterinary drug that is wiping out vultures.

More than 1,000 RSPB members attended the Stop Climate Chaos Rally in London in November 2006.

It's not only in America

2008-04-21T08:58:00.000-07:00

It seems that Scotland is also having its troubles.

Bank crisis, high street blues and now petrol pumps could run dry

The government’s response to the crisis of 2000, which saw cars queuing at petrol stations, would be the template if the strike at Grangemouth goes ahead.

SCOTLAND is facing its biggest energy crisis since the fuel blockades of 2000 which brought the country to a grinding halt. Then, petrol stations ran dry as truckers and farmers blockaded oil depots in protest at rising fuel duties. Now, as a strike at Scotland's sole oil refinery looks inevitable, filling stations across the country have only three days worth of fuel left.

Contingency plans are believed to have been drawn up to bring fuel up from refineries in England, such as the Stanlow facility in Cheshire, if the strike goes ahead as planned next weekend. But industry insiders believe that widespread and protracted petrol shortages are almost inevitable.

Fears have also been expressed that it could result in domestic power cuts, supermarket food shortages and put the emergency services and hospitals under severe pressure.

Grangemouth distributes more than 200,000 barrels of fuel every day and supplies petrol station across most of Scotland as well as parts of the north of England. Even a brief halt to production and distribution would have considerable knock-on effects.

A spokesman for the UK Petroleum Industry Association, which represents the country's nine major oil body, said filling stations had between three to seven days' fuel supply left, depending on their location.

He said: "Grangemouth is a significant oil refinery for the whole of Scotland. The danger is that people will dash out and stockpile fuel and generate shortages. Filling stations in the main towns and cities are usually resupplied two to three days a week – while in rural areas it is around one a week."

During the fuel blockades of 2000 hundreds of petrol stations across Scotland were forced to close with the severe shortages having a knock-on effect on buses, trains and supermarket supplies.

David Capitanchik, a national security and oil industry expert with Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, said a Grangemouth strike could have an even more severe impact as electricity is generated at the site.

"Any significant stoppage could cause serious fuel shortages in Scotland and beyond for a month or longer. It is does stop functioning then it could also have serious effects for domestic power supplies.

"I have heard it said in the past that any terrorist attack on Grangemouth would mean lights going out in parts of London. If the plant is brought to a halt by strike action then there is no doubt that it would be a very serious matter and peoples' domestic power supplies could be affected.

"It could also potentially impact on the movement of food supplies and the emergency services."

The problem for supermarkets is that they operate a "just in time" delivery system enabling them to cut down warehouse stocks, relying on regular deliveries to keep shelves filled. A day without deliveries would wipe out some stocks of chilled and perishable goods.

Other products would begin to run out within three or four days, although supermarkets say they can last a week without deliveries of most goods.

Supermarket giants Tesco, ASDA, Sainsbury's and Morrisons have contingency supplies of fuel in their distribution centres which would be used in the event of shortages.

Fuel shortages would also leave water, gas and electricity companies without supplies to carry out repairs. The Scottish Government last night said it had "initiated appropriate contingency measures" but did not divulge details.

However, the fuel blockades of eight years ago give an insight to the likely UK-wide response to industrial action at Grangemouth.

Then Tony Blair readied the Army, with 80 fully-loaded military tankers and 160 troops moved to secret locations across the country. Business leaders said the crisis cost the country £250m a day.

Shops began rationing food, schools were closed, factories told workers to go home and farmers warned that livestock would starve.

In 2000 several hospitals were forced to cancel all routine operations and many ambulance services were forced to limit how many emergency calls they could respond to.

The stress on services meant the NHS was put on red alert for the first time in more than a decade.

Agreements mean that this time supplies from England will get through to the emergency services and hospitals.

However, it may see non-vital ambulance journeys being temporarily cancelled and other non-emergency incidents being put on hold.

The Federation of Small Business in Scotland believed the impact on strike could have a disastrous effect on the economy.

Spokesman Stuart Mackinnon said: "This has come totally out-of-the-blue and is terrible news for Scotland's small businesses.

"We would encourage both the unions and the management to get around the table and get this sorted."

Top prices

Even when it is available, the rising price of oil is driving UK fuel prices up to unprecedented levels, writes Marc Horne.

As ever, Scotland's most rural and remote areas are worst affected.

The Welcome Inn filling station at Lower Barvas, on the Isle of Lewis, may well be selling the most expensive petrol in the country.

Last night, unleaded petrol there was £1.20.9 a litre.

Richard Mackay & Sons at Durness, Sutherland, is thought to be selling the dearest diesel, at £1.32 a litre.

However, neither comes close to matching the prices of the Chelsea Cloisters filling station in London. There the cost of a litre of unleaded petrol is £1.34.

If you know of more expensive fuel, contact Scotland on Sunday at mmacleod@scotlandonsunday.com or phone 0131-620 8430

Consumers cutting back on treats as credit crunch bites

Murdo MacLeod, Jen Lavery and Samantha Novick

SCOTTISH consumers are cutting back on many of life's little luxuries as the credit crunch continues to bite.

Families hit by a wallet-crippling combination of rising food costs, soaring petrol prices and mortgage hikes are increasingly substituting budget options when it comes to shopping and services.

Last month, research by Scotland on Sunday revealed that living costs for many middle-class Scottish families would be between £1,000 and £4,000 more in the coming year, driven in part by an 11% increase in the typical shopping basket.

Many shoppers have been forced to find ways of sparing the pennies. They include:

• Avoiding £25 taxis by taking £2.50 night buses instead;

• Shunning £750 Highland dress outfits outright in favour of a £350 kilt and hiring the rest of the outfit for £65.

• Booking holidays in Scotland rather than flying overseas, with one budget hotel chain saying bookings for May are up by more than 20%.

Across the UK, budget shops are benefiting from the economic downturn as shoppers turn away from the high street where sales have slumped by 1.6%.

Primark, the discount clothes retailer, has seen trade increase by 4%. Aldi, the budget supermarket, has reported a 25% increase in sales.

John Keogh, proprietor of Greenock kilt firm Keogh and Savage, said: "We are noticing a difference because of the credit crunch. And it's in sales of Highland dress. Instead of buying the whole thing, they are instead buying the kilt and maybe hiring the rest. We also notice that, while previously you would see people come in and say that they wanted a complete outfit, just because they wanted it, it's now very much a special thing – say a 21st or a 30th or a 40th."

Taxi firms say the change has been noticeable for just over a month.

Andrew Walker, who runs D&S Cabs in Dunblane, said: "Yes, it is certainly noticeable. Not very many people are out taking taxis any more – and the pubs are quieter and the restaurants are quieter. We are definitely noticing an impact on our income."

Cut-price retailer TK Maxx – where a £130 designer Quiksilver coat can be bought for £50 – is among the winners. It said the economic squeeze would lead to it opening new stores in Scotland.

Spokeswoman Helen Gunter said: "Our value proposition is certainly very likeable during times like these. TK Maxx is very popular with people looking to save. We are currently doing very well in Scotland and will be expanding."

In addition, restaurants north of the Border have been telling suppliers to cut costs.

One wine supplier said: "This is my third recession and it's following a familiar pattern.

"Restaurants are talking to suppliers about how to cut costs – they will be using cheaper cuts of meat, for example. As far as wine is concerned, because of the weakness of the dollar, we are looking to source wine increasingly from dollar-based economies such as Chile and Argentina in order to cut costs.

"Very rich people are less affected by recessions and will continue to eat out. For the rest of us, eating out will return to being something of an occasion, like it used to be."

A spokesman for cut-price hotel chain Travelodge said bookings for Scottish leisure breaks had increased sharply.

"We are already seeing a 22.5% increase in bookings for the May bank holiday and that trend is being reflected at our 23 Scottish hotels, showing that more people are opting to take their holidays here. What we're finding is that travellers who would otherwise go for more expensive hotels are saving money by going for discount hotels."

The increase in discount hotel bookings is in sharp contrast to the overall hotel sector, where occupancy rates fell 1.3% in three months.

Shoppers at the Meadowbank Centre in Edinburgh admitted they were being squeezed.

Support worker Deborah Reilly said: "I've seen reports and I have felt we've had to cut back a bit recently."

Nick Gladding, an analyst at Verdict research, said: "It is clear that people are cutting back on discretionary spending. Electricals, furniture and DIY items are all showing signs of the slowdown.

"There is going to be a cloud over the consumer economy all year. And there are signs that middle-class shoppers are trading down, with discount stores doing very well out of people's belt tightening."

Fiona Moriarty, director of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: "Things are slightly different in Scotland compared to the rest of the country. We're slightly helped by the fact that council tax is not going up by so much, and we have more people working in the public sector so they are not as much affected by the downturn."

Some Scottish Facts

2008-04-20T09:06:00.000-07:00

Fact of the Day

In 1689 followers of the Covenanter Richard Cameron, who had assembled at Edinburgh to guard the Revolution Convention of Estates, formed into a regiment under the Earl of Angus. The Cameronians were disbanded in 1968.

Clan Gunn: Gerek, my Scottish novel, takes place in 1650, when the Covenanters were running rampant against the Royalists. Although the Gunns were not really connected to the war in great numbers, I have taken one of the Clan and made him a hero.

Finding new stuff

2008-04-18T16:38:00.000-07:00

I didn't put anything in the blog today about Scotland or Ireland. I often wonder if people even bother to read those things. I must admit I find them interesting and it keeps my interest in those two Celtic countries.

I tend to write about Celtic characters. Having come from Albany, New York, which by default is an Irish city, I feel I know more about the Irish than I do about the Scots, but there is something about a Scot in a kilt...something about the strong, silent type........or it is just my fantasy. lol

Scotland's Troubles in Green

2008-04-17T13:22:00.000-07:00

Wind farms or peat bogs: Scotland's green dilemma

Campaigners say building wind farms on peatland will release the very carbon dioxide that renewables are meant to reduce.

POETS and scientists alike have sung its praises. The vast swathe of peatland that covers much of Lewis is held in high regard for its environmental qualities and the rich wildlife it sustains.

Scotland's vast expanses of peat bogs are regarded as our equivalent of the rainforests, and 17 per cent of the world's "blanket bog" is in this country. In all, Scottish peatlands cover some 1.9 million hectares and contain about two billion tons of carbon – roughly four times the UK's annual output – as well as "sucking in" carbon from the atmosphere.

But the wild land on Lewis could be turned into an industrial landscape if the building of 176 turbines is granted approval, and other vital peatlands face the same fate.

Campaigners against the proposal say building a renewable energy facility on an area of peatland is a massive contradiction, as it will release the very carbon dioxide that renewables are meant to reduce.

The Scottish Government has said it is "minded to refuse" the £500 million project but has yet to make a final decision. If it does go ahead, thousands of tonnes of peat would be excavated from the moor and huge amounts of concrete and aggregates poured into the ground to accommodate the foundations, roads and sub-stations.

The effect on the peatland, which has been built up over thousands of years, is a growing concern, not just on Lewis but in other parts of Scotland under pressure from the renewables race.

Last week, the Scottish Government approved an application for a 35-turbine development at Gordonbush, on the edge of the Caithness and Sutherland Peatlands Special Protection Area, despite local and national objections.

With dozens of applications either approved or awaiting a decision, a campaign is being stepped up for a moratorium on erecting wind farms on peatlands. Today, a meeting in the European Parliament in Brussels will hear of the damage that can be done to such land by the building of turbines and surrounding infrastructure. It has been arranged by Scottish MEP Struan Stevenson, who said peat bogs formed a crucial part of the world's "air-conditioning system".

He said: "Peatlands and wetland ecosystems accumulate plant material under saturated conditions to form layers of peat soil up to 20 metres thick – storing on average ten times more carbon per hectare than other ecosystems.

"In the headlong rush to cut carbon emissions, the EU and the UK government are throwing money into renewable energy without any coherent planning strategy to determine where wind farms should and shouldn't be built.

"The result is there are dozens of outstanding planning applications to build giant turbines on blanket peat bog in Scotland, causing immense damage to the environment and releasing vast quantities of – in other words, achieving the exact opposite of what was intended.

"The first thing a contractor does before constructing giant wind turbines, access roads, pylons and associated infrastructure on peatland is to drain the area, thus releasing all of the stored into the atmosphere. The peatland is also subsequently destroyed as a carbon sump, stopping any further carbon storage.

"Damage to peat can extend as much as 250 metres on either side of any excavation, so the peat will gradually dry out over the years, resulting in an ongoing release of carbon.

"The whole hydrology of the area will change forever and once damaged, peat can never be replaced. By destroying peat bogs in this way, these wind farms would create more carbon emissions than they would ever save." At today's seminar will be Sutherland residents who objected to the Gordonbush plan. Victoria Reeves, of the Landscape action group, said: "In other parts of the UK, people are trying to restore their peatlands because, as they gradually deteriorate, they are no longer able to absorb from the atmosphere and are also releasing it into the atmosphere, so you have a double whammy."

The John Muir Trust is commissioning new research on the effect of carbon releases from peatland. Helen McDade, its policy officer, said: "It's clear the science on this is not well established. One of the key things on carbon emissions from disturbed peat is how much of a peat bog is disturbed if a (wind-farm] scheme goes ahead. Until that is clear, it would be foolhardy to carry on."

Clifton Bain, climate change policy officer with the RSPB, said the effect on peatland depended on the location and size of development.

He said: "You avoid the most important, best condition peatland – these are places you just cannot replace. After that, it may be possible to design a wind farm in such a way that it reduces the carbon, but you have to think what effect it will have on the wildlife. This is a habitat that supports incredibly important bird populations. We have been calling for a long time for guidelines to help steer wind-farm developments away from these important habitats."

According to the Scottish Government, blanket bog is the most widespread peatland type in Scotland, particularly in the uplands, and is the one most commonly affected by electricity-generation developments.

A spokesman said: "We recognise the role peatlands play in storing carbon. Maintaining and enhancing carbon stores will play an important role in our overall approach to tackling climate change."

Jason Ormiston, the chief executive of Scottish Renewables, the green- energy trade body, said: "Struan Stevenson pitches a theory that has at its heart a fatally flawed premise and chooses to ignore experience of existing wind-farm development on areas of peat, where not only have the projects proved significant cutters of carbon emissions but have involved habitat restoration with a net gain of peatland in and around the site."

Auld Lang Syne

2008-04-14T11:37:00.000-07:00

Top-secret plan for Auld Lang Syne to head for the New World

View GalleryBy Craig Brown og Scotsman.com

STORED in a custom-made safe within a walk-in strongroom in the depths of Glasgow's Mitchell Library is one of the original manuscripts of Robert Burns's Auld Lang Syne. It does not see the light of day too often.
But later this month, the precious 220-year-old script will be carefully packed into a carry case, padded with polystyrene cut specifically to cushion and secure it and transported across the Atlantic.

With the manuscript under lock and key until it has reached its destination, the prestigious Grolier Club in Manhattan, even the exact date of the journey is a closely guarded secret. When the revered cargo arrives, it will become part of the Scotland Week celebrations in New York.

Unique even among the six remaining copies of what is arguably the best-known song in the world, the document is an irreplaceable part of Scottish cultural history. The remaining music sheets are scattered across the United States and Scotland.

Karen Cunningham, head of libraries at Culture and Sport Glasgow, will accompany the manuscript on the journey.

She said: "The manuscript is in very good condition and we'll have it packed in a way that there won't be any damage.

"The Mitchell's insurance demands we follow strict guidelines when transporting the manuscript. As soon as I arrive, I'll take a car and install it personally at the Grolier Club. My staff have been talking to their staff, and they're happy with the storage and presentation conditions and security."

She added: "It's lasted all these years, and it's more robust than people imagine, but I certainly won't be leaving it lying about."

While in New York, Ms Cunningham will be giving a lecture on the manuscript and the Mitchell Library.

Written by Burns in 1788, the manuscript only came into the library's possession in 1998, after being bought at auction in New York for almost £200,000.

Though Burns is credited with writing the definitive version of Auld Lang Syne, it is believed to have originally existed in Scots oral tradition.

Valued at £250,000, though priceless in terms of historical importance, the manuscript has never been in a major Burns exhibition. That will change next year when it goes on display as part of Homecoming Scotland, a series of events for the 250th anniversary of Burns's birth.

Tom McWilliam, VisitScotland's area director for Glasgow, said: "Scotland Week gives us a fantastic platform to showcase Glasgow and Scotland. Our programme will focus on Homecoming Scotland, showing US consumers why they should come to Scotland in 2009 to join us in our year-long celebrations. The Burns manuscript will be an important element of this."

The manuscript will go on display in the Grolier Club, then the Bryant Park New York Public Library from 30 March to 6 April.

The Grolier Club of New York is America's oldest and largest society for book lovers. Formed in 1884 and named after Jean Grolier, the Renaissance collector renowned for sharing his library, it aims to foster the study of graphic arts.

LITERARY LEGACY

THE popularity and literary worth of Burns' Auld Lang Syne has meant the surviving six manuscripts of the text are scattered between Scotland and the United States.

Two of the other original manuscripts are in the Burns Cottage Museum in Alloway. The remaining three are in the Library of Congress, the de facto US national library, based in Washington DC; the Pierpont Morgan Library, New York (although not on public display), and the Lilley Library, at the Indiana University Bloomington, in the US.

Experts believe the song was originally transcribed by Burns for a collection of old Scots songs called A Select Collection of Scottish Airs which was then published by George Thomson in 1793.

Burns, who in addition to his role as poet was also a collector of folk songs, accompanied the manuscript with the note: "The following song, an old song, of the olden times, and which has never been in print, nor even in manuscript until I took it down from an old man's singing, is enough to recommend any air."

However it is widely accepted that he finished the lyric himself.

There is some doubt as to whether the melody used today is the same one Burns originally intended, but it is widely used both in Scotland and in the rest of the world.

The full article contains 741 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.

740 miles of Scottish coast is crumbling into sea

2008-04-09T11:05:00.000-07:00

View GalleryBy David Maddox Scottish Political Correspondent

SCOTLAND'S seas and coastline are facing a new series of threats because of rapid climate change, The Scotsman can reveal.

The first report into the state of the nation's seas highlights the fact that 12 per cent of the country's coastline is already subject to serious erosion, and that is set to get worse.

The report, Scotland's Seas – Towards Understanding Their State, was ordered by Richard Lochhead, the Rural Affairs Secretary, to provide an analysis of what needs to be done to protect Scotland's marine environment and to help inform forthcoming marine legislation.

The authors warn that climate change will bring stormier seas, higher sea levels and bigger waves. They claim that 740 miles of Scottish coastline has already suffered serious erosion problems, increasing the risk of more flooding and damage to the natural habitat of wildlife.

The report also states that sea temperatures are now rising at between 0.2 and 0.4 per cent per decade compared to 0.07 per cent 100 years ago.

There is also evidence that water acidity levels are increasing in some areas, which adversely affects wildlife such as bottlenose dolphins. But the report admits there are gaps in the knowledge on bottlenose dolphins, which are believed to be in decline in the Moray Firth and along the east coast.

Populations of common seals and Arctic terns are being dramatically reduced, although some species like gannets have seen an increase in numbers.

The report, which was drawn up by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), the Fisheries Research Council (FRC) and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), once again underlines the problem of the over-fishing of cod in Scottish waters and says stocks are in a dangerous state.

Worries are also raised about some of the life forms at the bottom of the food chain – zooplankton – which are the diet for many seabirds.

The authors said that 34 special areas of conservation have been set up in Scottish seas and are showing "favourable signs" of improvement but that it may take "decades or even centuries for full recovery in some cases."

Richard Lochhead, cabinet secretary for rural affairs and the environment, said: "Climate change is a truly global issue and can only be tackled if we work together.

"Our seas play a vital role in regulating our climate and are a lifeline for the communities that live around them. Our winters are getting wetter and warmer, sea levels are rising and coastal erosion is increasing. Our marine wildlife is now having to cope with these as well as other pressures, and is beginning to suffer as a result. Our marine industries also have to cope with changes. These are happening now and we must take action."

However, it was not all bad news, as Scotland's seas are much cleaner than they were in 2000. The report noted that 94 per cent of Scottish waters are now "clean and safe" and there has been a 72 per cent reduction in unsatisfactory or seriously polluted waters to just 90.5km of coastline in total.

Chemical contamination levels in samples taken from estuaries are also down, although 30 different types of metal, including cadmium, mercury, lead, copper and zinc, are present.

Problems remain with litter on Scottish beaches – 90 per cent of the rubbish contains plastic and 80 per cent comes from land-based sources, usually through fly-tipping or being casually discarded.

The report says more needs to be done to manage chemical discharges from towns and farms.

It also highlights the importance of the seas to the Scottish economy. Marine-based industries, including fishing but excluding oil and gas, are worth £2.2 billion in Scotland and employ around 50,000 people.

Robin Cook, the chief executive of the Fisheries Research Services (FRS), said: "Scotland's seas are rich, diverse and productive.

"This report forms an important step in ensuring the sound stewardship of our marine environment and the protection of the many thousands jobs that are dependent on our seas."

And SEPA chief executive Campbell Gemmell said: "There is a vast amount of work already being carried out. This is the first step to a more comprehensive and detailed report on the state of the marine environment, due in 2010."

SNH chief executive Ian Jardine added: "As a maritime nation, we have a long history of studying and exploiting our marine natural resources. In the 21st century, our challenge is to use our marine environment sustainably. Most of the population of Scotland has an interest in marine issues, even if that's to enjoy a day out on a clean beach.

"But we know there are challenges ahead in agreeing how best to use these resources, and protect them in the face of climate change and threats from new, invasive species.

"To ensure the future long-term health of Scottish seas, it is essential to maintain a balance between sustainable exploitation of marine resources and the protection of wildlife and natural features. This important report will help us all to co-ordinate action for our seas."

WARMER, HIGHER, STORMIER

THE most obvious example of climate change is the rate at which the seas are warming up. This is now at 0.2 to 0.4 per cent per decade compared to 0.07 per cent a century ago.

About 12 per cent of the coastline is at serious risk of erosion, which is increasing because of rising sea levels.

In Aberdeen the sea is rising at a rate of 0.7mm a year, but at some places, such as Lerwick, the level has decreased slightly since 1957.

The report also suggests that the seas will get stormier, with higher waves creating surges that could create further coastal erosion.

This could damage habitats and cause problems for areas such as Moray which are prone to flooding.

ECONOMICALLY VITAL INDUSTRIES

MARINE agriculture is worth £2.2 billion to the Scottish economy and employs around 50,000 people, according to the report.

The biggest employer is fish processing, accounting for around 14,000 people. It was worth £481 million to the economy in 2004-5.

Building and repairing ships and boats, once Scotland's biggest industry, was worth £312.9 million and employed 7,216 people.

Sea fishing had 2,684 people employed and made £149.5 million. Fish farming covered 2,468 people and had an income of £121.7 million.

Oil and gas brought in £20 billion in 2005, one-fifth of the total Scottish gross domestic product. It employs around 145,000 people.

VULNERABLE WILDLIFE POPULATIONS

UNCERTAINTY surrounds the future of bottlenose dolphins. The authors believe that numbers have declined. This fits in with recent concerns of the Green Party about the impact of oil exploration in the Moray Firth.

The number of common seals has almost halved since the mid-1990s, but the grey seal population has shot up by around 25,000.

Many bird populations have also fallen, although actual numbers are not given. The proportion of breeding Arctic terns are down by 95 per cent since the mid-1980s; Arctic skuas were down 63 per cent and little terns 54 per cent. This could be due to a 70 per cent drop in zooplankton since the mid-1960s, the main food source for many seabirds.

METAL CONTAMINATION

SINCE 2000, there has been a 72 per cent improvement in the waters off the Scottish coast, with stretches totalling 90.5km still unsatisfactory or seriously polluted. It means that 94 per cent of the coastal waters are now clean and safe.

The report also notes that contamination levels in estuaries are down, although the authors say that more work needs to be done and note that over 30 metals, including copper and zinc, are still present in samples taken from the seabed. It says nitrogen levels in urban and agricultural discharges need to be better managed.

The report also highlights litter as a major problem, with 80 per cent of it coming from land-based sources.

PROTECTING OUR MARINE LIFE

THE Scotsman is campaigning to protect our precious marine life. We want:

• A network of marine reserves and protected areas to be created to safeguard sites properly

• A system of marine planning, effectively zoning areas for appropriate use, to safeguard important fishing grounds from offshore wind farms and other projects

• A single organisation to administer this system

• Scotland to be given control of conservation to the 200-mile boundary with international waters

It is hoped that many of these issues will be dealt in a Scottish marine bill, which has been promised by the Scottish Government. A draft UK Marine Bill was published in Westminster last week.

Snippets from Scotland

2008-04-08T14:07:00.000-07:00

Got this from an on-line newspaper, called Scottish Snippets........love reading all these little bits of news.

Tartan Week To Go Down Under?
So far, the support of the Scottish Government to Tartan Week has been
concentrated largely in the USA, particularly in New York with the parade
along Sixth Avenue and other events. The tourism agency VisitScotland has
also hosted the first Scotland in Toronto Week to tap into the Scottish
ancestry of many Canadians. Now Scottish Culture Minister Linda Fabiani has
suggested that she is keen to strengthen links in the Antipodes, with a
Scotland Week in Australia. The Scottish Government is trying to change the
name of the event to "Scotland Week" to focus on the modern aspects of
Scotland - and also halved the budget this year for the event in the US to
around £400,000. So there are some mixed messages coming across.

7,000 Bikers Roar into Children's Hospital
Around 7,000 motor cyclists and their passengers roared into the Royal
Hospital for Sick Children at Yorkhill, Glasgow - to hand deliver thousands
of chocolate eggs to egg-cited young patients. This has become an annual
event organised by the Motorcycle Action Group which raised £30,000 for the
event last year.

Britain's Biggest Meteorite
Scientists from Aberdeen and Oxford universities have uncovered evidence
that the largest meteorite ever to hit the British Isles struck an area
near Ullapool in the west coast of Scotland - 1.2 billion years ago. The
unusual rock formations in the area were thought at one time to be caused
by volcanic activity, but with no volcanic vents or sediments nearby, that
theory had often been questioned. Now the researchers have found material
that had been ejected by a meteorite impact, spread over an area of 30
square miles. They estimate that the object must have been more than half a
mile wide and created a crater seven miles across. Craters on Earth tend to
get eroded, so the scientists are pleased to have found the new evidence.

Top of the Pecking Order
The Big Garden Bird Watch 2008, organised by the Royal Society for the
Protection of Birds, shows that the chaffinch is the most commonly-sighted
feathered friend in Scotland's gardens. Those taking part saw on average
5.43 chaffinches over an hour, when the survey was run in January. The
second most common bird reported was the house sparrow, followed by the
starling. Even though the total numbers were smaller, the blackbird was the
most widely-seen bird, found in over 90% of gardens. But being territorial,
blackies are rarely seen in any numbers in the one garden. For the first
time the colourful siskin flew into the top ten - their numbers bolstered
this year by Scandinavian immigrants. Overall, the survey suggested that
fewer birds were seen compared with last year. Last summer's poor weather
may have taken its toll of fledglings although milder winters also meant
fewer birds came in this year from the countryside to feed in gardens as
they had enough food in the wild.

Historical article

2008-04-06T10:05:00.000-07:00

I just found this article from the Schenectady Gazette in New York and thought I'd put it on the blog. It's quite interesting and in keeping with some of the historical novels that I've done--and I just might use this piece as a start of the sequel to Clan Gunn: Gerek.

Focus on Mohawk Valley History
Sir William Johnson brings Scots over
By Bob Cudmore
Saturday, April 5, 2008

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The year before he died, Sir William Johnson saw to it that hundreds of Scots came to his vast land estate in the American wilderness, an area that today is occupied by the cities of Johnstown and Gloversville.
Johnson came to America in 1738 from Ireland and built an alliance between the British colonial government and the native Iroquois people. He became Superintendent of Indian Affairs.

He constructed a fortified home in Fort Johnson and then a mansion in Johnstown, Johnson Hall. Both buildings are historic sites today. As a military leader, Johnson won a major battle against the French in 1755 at Lake George.
After the victory, Johnson was made a baronet and granted 100,000 acres of land the British previously had secured from the Mohawks. The land parcel was known as the Kingsborough Patent.

To populate this area, Johnson tapped into a tide of immigrants from the highlands of Scotland who were coming to America at a fast clip between 1770 and the American Revolution.

The Highlanders were a proud and strong people, who had strong loyalties to their clan chiefs. Many of their chiefs had been killed in the bloody but unsuccessful effort to install Prince Charles on the British throne in 1745.
The Highlanders fierce but futile resistance in 1745 had the unusual effect of convincing British authorities that Scottish soldiers would be effective in the British Army as the empire expanded in America. Also, times were hard in Scotland and many Highlanders simply opted to take a chance in the New World.
Johnson advertised leased land on his Kingsborough Patent through New York City agents, and convinced 400 Scots of the Highland Clan MacDonnell to settle on his property.
Many of the Scots who settled the Kingsborough Patent arrived in 1773, some of them on board a ship called the Pearl that came to New York harbor.
The Highlanders arrived under four chiefs, the MacDonnells of Aberchalder, Leek, Collachie and Scotas. Their land grants ranged from 100 to 500 acres.
After Sir William died in 1774, many of his Scots tenants were drawn into the Revolutionary War on the British side.
Some 300 of them followed Sir William’s son John into exile in Canada when the war broke out and served in the King’s Royal Regiment of New York, sometimes called Johnson’s Greens or the Royal Yorkers. Their final stand was in 1781 near Johnstown itself.
Those who survived the war lost their lands in New York to the new government. The British granted the Highlanders lands in Ontario, Canada where some of their descendants still reside.
In 1959, an Episcopal priest, Duncan Fraser, came to serve in Johnstown and wrote note cards with the names of each of Johnson’s tenants plus information about some of them.
Wanda Burch, site manager of Johnson Hall in Johnstown, said that people studying genealogy often ask to see Fraser’s notes. This year, Burch transcribed Fraser’s notes and composed an introductory essay. She plans to produce a small booklet for visitors interested in their Scots ancestry.
Burch said that Fraser, who is deceased, was in search of his own history when he began researching the individual names on the tenant list but provided valuable information for others as well. Burch developed a friendship with Fraser’s widow Dorothy who lived on William Street.

Burch said people wonder why the Highlanders, who lost their own lands to the British, fought so fiercely for the British in the American Revolution. One explanation she has heard is that the Highlanders felt that in each case they were not fighting for or against someone—they were fighting for their homeland.

Hitorical fact

2008-03-31T08:11:00.000-07:00

Historical Fact of the Day in Scotland

It was on today in 1652 that the Honours of Scotland - consisting of the sceptre, sword and crown - were smuggled to safety through the siege of Dunottar Castle by the wife of a Scottish minister. Oliver Cromwell had destroyed some of the regalia of the English crown and was intent on doing the same to Scotland's royal symbols. The wife of James Granger, minister of the parish of Kinneff near Stonehaven, then buried the Honours underneath the church where they remained until the restoration of Charles II.

My book Clan Gunn: Gerek takes place two years before the above happened. The book takes in the tenor of the times and how it might affect the lives of Highlanders.

Here's to Scotland

2008-03-30T10:26:00.000-07:00

Fact of the Day

The first use of anesthesia in a medical operation occurred today in 1842. Dr Crawford Long used ether to bring about a state of unconsciousness when he removed a tumor from the neck of a patient, thereby ushering in a new age of painless surgery. Another pioneer in the use of anesthetics was Scotland's James Young Simpson, who conducted experiments with chloroform. To read how The Scotsman reported Simpson's historic work, see the www.Scotsman.com Digital Archive

Interview with Patricia Guthrie

2008-03-27T06:25:00.000-07:00

Here's the promised interview with Patricia Guthrie, author of In the Arms of the Enemy.

1) Have you ever owned a thoroughbred?

Yes, I’ve owned two.

2) What has been your experience with them?

Two were ex-race horses that didn’t like to run ahead of other horses. So, they were lucky enough to be sold as riding horses.

I used them as riding horses and showed a little, although I could never afford to aim for the big time.
I rode them hunt seat, until I discovered I hated jumping and thought dressage was pretty cool. (in recent past years, I’ve worked more with quarter horses and trained and showed a few for close friends)

I loved working with the thoroughbreds when I had them, but my riding experience wasn’t quite up to what they required. Fortunately, I didn’t know that at the time. Luckily, I didn’t get thrown, especially from the seventeen-hand horse.

Seabee was a good horse but our bodies just didn’t fit together. Oh brother. I traded him to a woman who was short than me, but a much more experienced horsewoman. She hunted him with great success. Her horse was part thoroughbred, part quarter horse.

So began my love affair with quarter horses. But, that’s another interview.

3. Have you found them to be wild and excitable as claimed?

It depends on the horse. Thoroughbreds are bred for running, for speed, so to be successful; they have to have the drive, spunk and action. They’re excellent campaigners not only on the track but in dressage, in the jumping arena and as riding horses.

4. Experience on the race track.

Some, but none professionally. I enjoy watching the horses run and enjoy following their racing careers. When I was a teenager I could spot out the names of every Kentucky Derby winner. Now, when I have time I love to go to the track and watch every type of person milling in the crowds and through the barn area.

3) I am not familiar with the name you mentioned before, regarding euthanizing healthy horses for the insurance money. I thought you were talking about the show horse circuit, where George (can’t remember his last name-but I do remember that he was very wealthy and rode jumpers) had a horse put down in order to collect the insurance money. I know he was put on trial, but I don’t remember what came of it.
(I believe that was his brother, Silas Jayne who was a bad--an evil excuse for a human being. He died in prison, where he still controlled the “horse mob.” I purposely avoided writing this story in the horse show circuit. I live in the area)

Euthanasia implies humane. There’s nothing humane about the way some of these people murder the horses. You’ll find this inhumane horror in every aspect of the horse industry that involves money. Lots of money.

4) What’s your next book about?

Waterlilies Over My Grave, a romantic suspense, should be out in September of 2008. This is about a woman who leaves a career and an obsessive psychotic, psychiatrist ex-husband to take a job in a resort town half-way across the country, only to find he’s followed her with deadly intentions.

As I have three collies at home who help me with my writing at all opportunities, I’ve honored them with a place in my book. Lady, a tri-color collie named Lady. She loves getting into the action. At one point she sniffs out a bomb, in another she points to a bad guy, but her people don’t quite have her instincts. Lady helps get the bad guys. She’s in quite a few of the scenes.

After that, I’m working on paranormal romantic suspense. The heroine inherits a castle in Romania inhabited by drug dealers. This one has a horse in it that belongs to a nine-year-old boy. The horse wears a straw hat. I haven’t worked out her name or breed yet.

5) Are you going to continue with a horse theme or something related to the industry?

Yes. I have a mystery outlined, but it’s still in the changing-planning stage. Horses will be a main part of the story and background.

6) How often do you ride?

As often as possible, but not nearly enough. I’m working out a new schedule, where I hope I’ll be able to utilize my time better. (if that’s possible, sigh)

7) And when do you find time to write?

See question six. (LOL) I’ve been writing for ten years and even when I retired from the teaching field, to write full time, I discovered that being an author is a little different than being a writer. Being an author
entails having a little bit of a bi-polar personality. Part of you has to be reclusive to concentrate and focus on your plot/put yourself into the scene. The other part of you has to be bubbly and effervescent to market your book and meet the public.

Baby Seals

2008-03-26T16:04:00.000-07:00

I'm posting this article that I found in Scotsman.com newpaper. It's all about baby seals that are being killed at an alarming rate. I'm an animal lover and this offends me.

Also, do stop by tomorrow for another interview with Patricia Guthrie, author of In the Arms of the Enemy.

Irish Roots Cafe

2008-03-25T08:19:00.001-07:00

I just found this wonderful blog and site. Do go there, especially if you're a Fitzgerald.

http://www.irishroots.com/blog/

2008-03-24T08:34:00.000-07:00

This coming Thursday, I'll be hosting an interview with Patricia Guthrie. Hope you all tune in.......... Here's some information to whet your appetite.

Book Summary of In the Arms of The Enemy

WANTED: ASSASSIN TO KILL RACE HORSES ON DEMAND
FLEXIBLE HOURS-GOOD BENEFITS
Light Sword Publishing announces the release of Patricia A. Guthrie’s first published novel “In the Arms of the Enemy.”
When the death of a racing stable’s prize horse and his trainer is blamed on the stable’s owner; his son, Adam Blakely, goes undercover convinced that the trainer’s partner, Maggie McGregor, is the killer.
Determined to leave the tumultuous world of horse racing, Maggie returns home to try and find peace. When a handsome horse owner moves his horse into her father’s boarding stable and asks Maggie to train his horse, family finances dictate that Maggie accept--and that’s when the accidents begin.
Drowning in deception and lies, Maggie and Adam search for a killer and uncover an insurance scam so insidious, it threatens to rock a horse racing empire and bring the killer to their doorstep. They need to learn to:
Keep your friends close; but your enemies closer.
Review magazine "Affaire de Coeur" says, "With a strong mystery and a sizzling romance, Ms. Guthrie captivates readers from the start. This is an enjoyable thriller with a plot that will keep you guessing until the climactic end.”
* * * * * Rated five stars
AUTHOR BIO
Patricia A. Guthrie is a resident of Park Forest, Illinois. A recently retired music teacher from the Chicago Public Schools (May Community Academy and Chicago Vocational Community Academy) and former opera singer, Author Patricia A. Guthrie is now an avid horse owner, dog obedience trainer and writer. Ms. Guthrie lives with three feisty collies who act as “ghost writers” and help her write at every given opportunity.
This story is dedicated to those horses lost to man’s greed and inhumanity and to those humanitarians whose mission is to save and protect them.
In the Arms of the Enemy By Patricia A. Guthrie
www.paguthrie.blogspot.com
www.patriciaanneguthrie.com
www.myspace.com/paguthrie

Scotland today--

2008-03-23T10:50:00.000-07:00

I just found this bit of news from an online paper called "Scottish Snippets."

Scotland's Population at 20-Year High
Figures released by the Registrar General Office for Scotland show that
Scotland's population is at its healthiest level for more than 20 years.
The reason is that there were more children born in 2007 than any year
since 1997, with the fifth consecutive increase in births on the previous
year. But less than half the babies born had mothers who were Scots - the
baby boom is being generated by one in three infants with mothers born in
the Eastern European countries which joined the EU in 2004. The Registrar's
figures also show that the number of marriages fell, and is now nearing its
lowest number since Victorian times when the population was smaller. Some
49.1% of last year's births were to unmarried parents. The provisional
statistics show that there were 57,781 births in Scotland last year.
Despite being the highest in 20 years, that is half the level of the early
1960s. Scotland's population has steadily increased since 2003 when the
population was 5.06 million. In 2006 it had risen to 5.12 million - the
highest since 1985 - and all the signs are that there will be a further
increase in 2007. It's not that long ago that Scotland's falling population
was regarded as "chronic" after two decades of decline. There were
predictions that it would fall to below five million by 2009 and below four
million by 2041.

More about the Dingle Peninsula

2008-03-20T12:32:00.001-07:00

Special thanks to Steve MacDonogh for contributing
this extract from "The Dingle Peninsula"
Travel/Local History; ISBN 0 86322 269 2

Dingle is one of the most favoured spots in Ireland for the independently minded visitor. The National Geographic Traveler has described it as "the most beautiful place on earth". Bounded on three sides by the sea, it combines in its landscape the ruggedness of rocky outcrops and cliffs with the soft shapes of hills and mountains, skirted by coastal lowlands. For those who stay only briefly the scenery is what the Dingle experience is all about: the view of the Blasket Islands from Slea Head; the harbours, mountains, cliffs and strands; the view from the Connor Pass. Indeed, every part of the peninsula offers attractive and often dramatic views.

Roads lead over the mountains and along the coasts between irregular grids of mortarless stone walls surrounding small fields. The main road from Tralee divides at Camp: one route continues along the northern coast to Castlegregory, dividing again when one road turns towards Cloghane and another rises high to the Connor Pass over the mountains to Dingle. The other route from Camp rises to a mountain pass above Gleann na nGealt, the beautiful "valley of the mad", and descends to Anascaul and thence, after a series of hairpin bends, to Lispole and a long straight road to Dingle. From the direction of Killarney and Castlemaine another road enters the peninsula along a narrow coastal strip beneath the Slieve Mish mountains past the beautiful long strand at Inch and turns inland through a pass to Anascaul.

The Connor Pass road is undoubtedly the most dramatic route to take, though it is not suitable for heavy vehicles or caravans. As it swings towards the south it rises at the side of a large valley formed by glaciers that came from a semi-circle of coums or corries in the surrounding mountains. From the top of the pass there are breathtaking views in fine weather of lowlands, mountains and sea.

High vantage points provide the best position from which to take in the sweep of the landscape, and most of the main roads on the peninsula cross mountains at passes. The road to Dingle via Anascaul does not rise as high as the Connor Pass, but it is high enough to provide magnificent views of the coast of Tralee and Brandon Bays, of the landscape on the southern side of the mountain range, and of the Iveragh Peninsula across Dingle Bay.

To the west of Dingle the most scenic route winds around the coast via Ventry to Slea Head, from which the view of the Blasket Islands is a sight that stops many visitors in their tracks. From Slea Head the road continues along the coast to Dunquin, thence to Ballyferriter, from which one road crosses by Mám na Goaithe, the windy pass, to Ventry; another goes further north to themám at Baile na nÁth (Ballynana), the townland of the height. From this pass one road drops down to Milltown and Dingle while another continues north to Kilmalkedar, Ballydavid and Feohanagh, and meets a road which leads along the foot of Mount Brandon to a low pass back to Dingle.

From Dingle the Connor Pass road rises steeply, and in its higher reaches rocky mountain slopes and cliffs at one point named Faill na Seamróg, the shamrock cliff tower above to the left. At the bottom of the descent from Connor Pass to the north the road swings right to Castlegregory and Camp, and turns left to Cloghane and Brandon, finally coming to a halt on the cliffs at Brandon Point. From here there is a fine view of Brandon and Tralee Bays, the spit of sand out to the Maharees, and the whole northern side of the peninsula, while above and behind stands the imposing mass of Mount Brandon.

These are the main routes through the peninsula, each of them opening up a landscape rich in visual variety and interest. But there are also countless roads off the main routes and countless narrow bohareens, or country lanes, and for visitors who have time to do more than drive once through the peninsula, getting off the beaten track is the best way to explore the area.

The hills, coastline and countryside yield their qualities most readily to the walker. There is a depth in the appeal of the landscape which goes beyond the contemplation of beautiful scenery, for the countryside is dotted with the historical remains and artefacts of past centuries. The Dingle Peninsula possesses a quite extraordinary concentration of archaeological sites. These are not massive structures of great splendour, such as Newgrange or Stonehenge; but they are in their modesty more characteristic of the ages from which they survive. In the number that have survived in this small area lies a magnificence and splendour of its own.

The archaeological remains testify physically to the rich culture of the past, and the peninsula is also an exceptionally rich repository of folklore and of Irish traditional culture. Largely isolated in recent centuries from the mainstream of European and Irish economic, social and cultural change, Dingle, in common with other parts of the west of Ireland, long maintained traditional values and customs. Today in the area to the west of Dingle town Irish is very much the first language; many of the ancient customs which were observed for many centuries and had their origins before the advent of Christianity have died out in the last sixty years, but some survive. Some holy wells are still visited for annual devotions, and the day after Christmas Day is celebrated with the festival of "hunting the wren". Traditional music and dance play an important part in many people's lives, despite the counter-attractions of multinational pop culture, and the traditional small boats of ancient design, the naomhóga or curraghs, are still built and used.

For many people the most abiding impression, and one which has drawn visitors back year after year, is perhaps the most difficult to define. It has to do with the pace and rhythm of life, about which there is a subtle joke to the effect that the Irish language lacks a word that conveys the same sense of urgency as the Spanish mañana. It has to do with lifestyle, with a certain sense of ease, calm and relaxation. There is no one word that adequately describes it, but it is expressed in chance encounters. Visitors stop to ask for directions and find themselves drawn into conversations which are long, fascinating and charming. People used to the coldness of New York, Frankfurt or London are surprised to find the person next to them at the counter of a Dingle pub commenting upon the weather and wondering if they are enjoying their visit, where they have come from, how long they are staying and what they think of the present state of the world. However, a great deal of change occurred during the 1990s. Tourist numbers and facilities increased and prosperity grew substantially, and those involved in tourism increasingly spoke in terms of Dingle as a product to be promoted, adopting the full panoply of modern marketing perspectives. Partly the change was generational, with more young people happily able to remain living in the area. Nevertheless, there remains a certain laid-back informality, which visitors who stay for a while soon find is part of the experience, part of the attraction of the place .....

Inevitably, the visitor¹s response to Dingle is an individual one. Many visit for the contact with Irish spoken in a natural, native way and for the insight that offers them into Irish life and culture. Others visit because it can be a kind of paradise for the hill walker; others to observe sea-birds or the arctic alpine flora. For many the atmosphere of simply being there, of impromptu meetings or musical sessions in pubs, is like a restoring breath of fresh air to which they will wish constantly to return.

There must be few for whom the surrounding presence of the sea does not provide abiding images: the fishing boats in Dingle Harbour, the long sweeps of strand on the northern coastline, at Inch, Ventry and Smerwick; the sound between the Blasket Islands and Dunmore Head; the black naomhóga at Dunquin Harbour; the power of sea against rocks at Clogher and Brandon Creek.

The peninsula¹s position at the extreme western edge of Europe gives it a dramatic setting as it faces into the vastness of the Atlantic. It has also meant that its history has been shaped both by isolation from the more developed countries of Europe and by periods of close trading contact with Europe. What attracts many visitors to the area has much to do with the comparative isolation from intensive economic development, from the central political, social and cultural concerns of the industrialised nations. Elements of the ancient cultural well-spring of Indo-European civilisation survived here long after they had been obliterated elsewhere; in terms of physical remains, the lack of economic development and the prevalence of superstitious inhibitions have meant that a great number of archaeological sites are still intact.

More recently many of the elements that give the Dingle Peninsula its particular character have been under heavy attack from modernising influences. Physically an enormous change in the very scenery of the peninsula has been taking place, and continues, as spruce trees march in ever more massive battalions across the landscape, which used to be characterised by long, uninterrupted stretches of blanket bog. The comparative prosperity of recent decades has enabled people to build new homes, and many have opted for singly sited white bungalows, which are now scattered over the countryside, with particular concentrations in strip developments along the roadsides. The strongest influence on the area is no longer farming or fishing; rather, it is tourism, and there has been debate in recent years, with some believing that the more tourists and the more tourist developments of any kind the better, while others have questioned how much tourism and of what kind is appropriate. Modernisation and prosperity are very welcome in themselves, but they do bring changes which place both old virtues and old vices under threat, and different people view such changes differently. However, it is still true to say that the life of the area possesses distinctive characteristics; that there is an elaborative and imaginative quality to local speech most marked in Irish but also present in English. But these are qualities which reveal themselves to visitors who stay for a while and who have an ear for such things.

In what follows the attempt is to convey, in moving through the peninsula, examples of the elements that are characteristic of the area. It is not possible to provide information about everything; nor would one wish to. After all, the best kind of exploration is the kind you do yourself. There are many archaeological remains on the peninsula: there are fine megalithic graves, standing stones and early Christian settlements, not to mention ringforts, ogham stones and castles. The archaeological survey of the Dingle Peninsula, published in 1986, proved a four-year task for a team of archaeologists.

And so, in this book, I have given detailed background in relation to just one example of each kind of archaeological site, while others are mentioned more briefly. To be comprehensive about the archaeology, folklore and history of the area would require many books: quite apart from archaeology, some sixty books have come out of the Blasket Islands, Dunquin and Ballyferriter alone; and the archives in the Department of Folklore in University College Dublin include some 100,000 pages of material from the Dingle Peninsula.

There is a luxury of material and of choice. The choices taken in this book of where to stop on the road and look in some detail would certainly not be everyone¹s choices; there are things and places described which other observers would consider insignificant, just as there are places and things not described which perhaps should have been. But the area is genuinely rich in all kinds of interest, and if this book succeeds in providing some information about every part of the peninsula while leaving an appetite for more, then it will have succeeded in its purpose.

The Dingle Peninsula by Steve MacDonogh

The Dingle Peninsula

2008-03-18T11:08:00.000-07:00

My book, Lost Son of Ireland, takes place on the Dingle Peninsula. I decided to put some of the research I found, on this blog.

There is no other landscape in western Europe with the density and variety of archaeological monuments as the Dingle Peninsula. This mountainous finger of land which juts into the Atlantic Ocean has supported various tribes and populations for almost 6,000 years. Because of the peninsula's remote location, and lack of specialised agriculture, there is a remarkable preservation of over 2,000 monuments.
It is impossible to visit the Dingle Peninsula and not be impressed by its archaeological heritage. When one combines each site's folklore and mythology, which have been passed orally from generation to generation through the Irish language, one can begin to understand how unique and complex is the history of this peninsula.

THE STONE AGE

The southwest of Ireland has traditionally been seen as having few Neolithic monuments. The recent discovery of a series of Passage Tombs outside of Tralee has reopened the debate. It is now felt that many of the hilltop cairns and possibly some of the standing stones date to the Neolithic. It is also likely that the cup and circle rock art is Stone Age rather than Bronze Age. It is during this period that the first farmers appear, living in more permanent structures, and showing a certain skill with the craft of pottery. Stone is the main material used in tool and weapon making. Large stone tombs are built to house the dead, and possibly also for ritual use. Some of the tombs of this period show incredible architectural skill in their orientation on the setting sun during the Winter Solstice.

Answers to those questions

2008-03-17T16:36:00.002-07:00

Answers:

1. Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr.

2. Ireland forever. (Extra credit answer: Gaelic.)

3. Londonderry Air. The lyrics were written by an English lawyer named Fred Weatherly to a traditional tune.

4. Green representing Roman Catholics, orange representing Protestants and white in between representing living together in peace.

5. Hearts, moons, stars and clovers. Shapes added to later versions of the cereal included horseshoes, pots of gold, rainbows and red balloons. (Extra credit answer: "They're always after 'me Lucky Charms." Or, "They're magically delicious.")

6. You can hear the angels sing. The lyrics are: "When Irish eyes are smiling, sure 'tis like the morn in spring. In the lilt of Irish laughter, you can hear the angels sing. When Irish hearts are happy, all the world seems bright and gay. And when Irish eyes are smiling, sure they steal your heart away."

7. French. Notre Dame means "Our Lady" in French.

8. Father Flanagan. (Extra credit answer: "There is no such thing as a bad boy.")

9. To scare away the devil.

10. Four. The usual distilling age is 7 to 8 years. Premium Irish whiskies are aged many more years.

11. Sinead O'Connor.

12. A cobbler or shoemaker.

13. Somebody I adore. The lyrics are: "I'm looking over a four-leaf clover that I overlooked before. One leaf is sunshine, the second is rain, third is the roses that grow in the lane. No need explaining, the one remaining is somebody I adore. I'm looking over a four-leaf clover that I overlooked before."

14. "Manly, yes, but I like it too."

15. Charles Parnell in a movie titled "Parnell."

16. Water of life. It is a shortened version of the Irish word uisgebeatha. Uisge means water and beatha means life.

17. Lamb or mutton chops.

18. Finnegans Wake.

19. In the water. It is a seaweed found along the west coast of Ireland. Also called carrageen, it is used as a thickener in puddings, soups, ice creams, cosmetics and medicines.

20. 1845 to 1849.
(Total up your right answers and if you can still count that high… yer too damn sober, laddie/lass. Ye’ve missed the whole point o’ the Day. Try again… G’day t’ ye.)

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2008-03-17T16:36:00.001-07:00

A Wish for a Friend
Wishing you a rainbow
For sunlight after showers—
Miles and miles of Irish smiles
For golden happy hours—
Shamrocks at your doorway
For luck and laughter too,
And a host of friends that never ends
Each day your whole life through!

Trying something different

2008-03-16T13:19:00.001-07:00

Chances are you may find yourself celebrating the Irish holiday in your favorite bar, tavern or saloon. If you want to kick-start the party, try out these 20 questions of Irish trivia. Topics run the gamut from history to pop culture and test your knowledge of all things Irish. They can be used to set up spirited bar games and contests. You can form teams or let anyone shout out the answers. Have awards for the winners or make the losers buy a round for the house. Be as formal or as raucous as you want. The choice is yours on how to play. May the luck of the Irish be with you. You can even just do it by yourself as you cry in your green beer.

Questions:

1. What are the names of the members of the Irish rock band U2?

2. What does "Erin go bragh" mean? (For extra credit: What language is it?)

3. What is the alternative title of the song "Danny Boy"?

4. What are the colors of the flag of Ireland?

5. What were the shapes of the marshmallow pieces in the original Lucky Charms cereal? (For extra credit: What does the leprechaun say as a sales pitch for the cereal?)

6. In the song "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling," what can you hear in the lilt of Irish laughter?

7. Notre Dame derives from what language?

8. What is the name of the Irish priest depicted by Spencer Tracy in the 1938 classic movie "Boys Town"? (For extra credit: What is the Boys Town motto?)

9. Before baking Irish soda bread, why is a cross traditionally slashed in the top of the loaf?

10. What is the minimum number of years that Irish whiskey is aged?

11. What Irish singer tore up a picture of the Pope on live television?

12. In Irish folklore, what is the traditional profession of a leprechaun?

13. In the song "I'm Looking Over A Four-Leaf Clover," what does the fourth leaf represent?

14. In early television commercials for Irish Spring soap, a woman expresses her approval of the product by saying what phrase?

15. Movie idol Clark Gable was miscast in a 1936 movie portraying what Irish patriot?

16. What is the historical root definition of the word "whiskey"?

17. What type of meat goes into a traditional Irish stew?

18. What is the title of the final novel by Irish writer James Joyce which is known for its experimental language and free associations?

19. Where would you start looking for Irish moss?

20. What were the years of the Irish potato famine?

The answers will come tomorrow.................

Trying again--if it doesn't work, forget it.

2008-03-16T13:12:00.000-07:00

Here's the second try.

Here's hoping. It's a cute St. Pat's day card.

Might work

2008-03-16T13:05:00.000-07:00

Didn't work. Must have done it wrong--which is nothing new. lol

Some Irish Trivia

2008-03-15T18:53:00.000-07:00

The first St. Patrick's Day on record in North America was in Boston, Massachusetts in 1737. I was unable to discover if the celebrants dyed their beer green in honor of the day.

St. Patrick's Day in Ireland

St. Patrick's Day in Ireland is much different; it's a public and religious holiday. Not saying a few beers mightn't get hoisted at O'Reilly's Pub, but in general it's a more cultural and sanctified event than its North American counterpart. People attend mass, watch parades and enjoy rugby games.

St. Patrick is not St. Patrick

Some historians believe his real name was Maewyn Succat. Even if it wasn't, it still wasn't Patrick but Patricius because he was born and raised in Roman Britain, probably on the coast of Wales.

When he was 16, Irish pirates raided the coast, taking him and many hapless more into Ireland where they were sold as slaves. Patricius remained a slave for six years, herding his master's sheep before escaping back home. He entered the church, eventually became a bishop and returned to Ireland as a missionary. He wasn't the first missionary there but does get most of the credit for establishing Christianity in Ireland.

Irish snakes

One popular legend about St. Patrick is that he stood on a hill (Croagh Patrick to be exact) in County Mayo and with a wave of his staff, banished the snakes from Ireland. However, there never were any snakes in the Emerald Isle, making this a metaphor for something else. Serpents are often associated with paganism, especially goddess worship. Within 200 years of St. Patrick's arrival, Christianity dominated the country. Still, traces of the old goddess worship remain to this day. For example, the goddess Brighid became "Christianized" as St. Bridget. And there may be a good reason the Virgin Mary is so revered in Ireland that untold numbers of girls have been given the name.

More sayings

2008-03-14T17:52:00.000-07:00

May there always be work for your hands to do;
May your purse always hold a coin or two;
May the sun always shine on your windowpane; May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain;
May the hand of a friend always be near you;
May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

I just got these in an email. Thought I'd post them before St. Pat's day.

Water, water, go away

2008-03-12T10:03:00.000-07:00

And don't come back another day. I want to get the cellar cleaned up and make a list of all the stuff I've lost. Today we had sprinkles but of snow. The sun does not want to shine.

Not writing makes my days long. What to do with myself? I fooled around with emails, my ACES group for English Setters, did my other blog but not well and heard Spitzer resign from office. What a day!

Interview

2008-03-11T09:18:00.000-07:00

I will be interviewing Pat Guthrie on the 27th
Check my other blog for the weekend's problems. lololol

For much more information about Patricia Guthrie and In the Arms of the Enemy, visit her virtual book tour site - http://inspiredauthor.com/promotion/Patricia+Guthrie

Book Summary
WANTED: ASSASSIN TO KILL RACE HORSES ON DEMAND
FLEXIBLE HOURS-GOOD BENEFITS
Light Sword Publishing announces the release of Patricia A. Guthrie’s first published novel “In the Arms of the Enemy.”
When the death of a racing stable’s prize horse and his trainer is blamed on the stable’s owner; his son, Adam Blakely, goes undercover convinced that the trainer’s partner, Maggie McGregor, is the killer.
Determined to leave the tumultuous world of horse racing, Maggie returns home to try and find peace. When a handsome horse owner moves his horse into her father’s boarding stable and asks Maggie to train his horse, family finances dictate that Maggie accept--and that’s when the accidents begin.
Drowning in deception and lies, Maggie and Adam search for a killer and uncover an insurance scam so insidious, it threatens to rock a horse racing empire and bring the killer to their doorstep. They need to learn to:
Keep your friends close; but your enemies closer.
Review magazine "Affaire de Coeur" says, "With a strong mystery and a sizzling romance, Ms. Guthrie captivates readers from the start. This is an enjoyable thriller with a plot that will keep you guessing until the climactic end.”
* * * * * Rated five stars

AUTHOR BIO
Patricia A. Guthrie is a resident of Park Forest, Illinois. A recently retired music teacher from the Chicago Public Schools (May Community Academy and Chicago Vocational Community Academy) and former opera singer, Author Patricia A. Guthrie is now an avid horse owner, dog obedience trainer and writer. Ms. Guthrie lives with three feisty collies who act as “ghost writers” and help her write at every given opportunity.
This story is dedicated to those horses lost to man’s greed and inhumanity and to those humanitarians whose mission is to save and protect them.
In the Arms of the Enemy By Patricia A. Guthrie
www.paguthrie.blogspot.com
www.patriciaanneguthrie.com
www.myspace.com/paguthrie

Danny Boy--the song

2008-03-06T11:13:00.000-08:00

I just read this on the Internet and found out more than I wanted to know about a song I love. I found it on GoGirlfriend's Blog

Danny Boy Banned in New York Pub

The most overplayed, over-ranked and the most depressing lyrics of all time?
If you're hoping for a pint of green beer and hearty round of "Danny Boy" in pubs this St. Patrick's Day, steer clear of Foley's Pub in Manhattan. The owner, Shaun Clancy, banned it for the entire month of March.

"It's overplayed, it's been ranked among the 25 most depressing songs of all time and it's more appropriate AP News - Shaun Clancy for a funeral than for a St. Patrick's Day celebration," said Shaun Clancy, who owns Foley's Pub and Restaurant, across the street from the Empire State Building.

But Shauny Boy, it's the one Irish song we all know - I'm singing it in my head as I'm writing this!

Clancy, the 38-year-old owner, grew up bartending when he started pouring drinks at his Dad's pub in Country Cavan, Ireland. He's promised a free Guinness to anyone who'll sing an Irish song his pub's pre-St. Patrick's Day karaoke party on March 11 - as long as it's not Danny Boy.

A free Guinness? Worth reconsidering our fixation with the tune and a Google search to find a replacement? Maybe.

So, what's the Irish man's problem with Danny Boy. For starters, it was written by an English man, Frederick Edward Weatherly, who never set foot on Irish soil. Some say the song's symbolic of the Irish potato famine, while others say it's a song sung by a mother grieving a dead son or lost lover.

The song concludes, "The summer's gone, and all the flowers are dying/ 'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide." Maybe Shauny Boy's onto something here - it doesn't exactly sound like Irish dancing music, to me.

Martin Gaffney, 73, told the Associated Press he was happy to see the song banned. The song is "all right, but I get fed up with hearing it - it's like the elections," he said in a thick Irish brogue.
If your heart's set on crooning the sad lyrics this St. Paddy's day, get yourself to AJ's Café in Detroit where you can sing to your heart's content in a 50-hour marathon of the song.
50 hours of Danny Boy?

I don't think there's enough Guinness in the world to get anyone through that special brand of Irish Hell.

The writing life

2008-03-02T10:56:00.000-08:00

The writing life is not all it's cracked up to be. So many things get in the way--even what people say to the author.

So, I'm going to give myself an Irish blessing. "May the sun shine always in the windows of my outdoor office." That's where I'm going to hide. I am not going to listen to anyone, but sit in front of the computer until blood slips from my nostrils, so that I can write something decent...

Check the other blog if you want to know what's happened in the recent past.

It's Snowing

2008-02-27T16:36:00.000-08:00

It's snowing and snowing and hasn't stopped. I shoveled the back deck for the dogs today, the path to my office and the front porch. The snow was heavier than cement. Hard exercise for an old lady like me.

Then, of course, I wasted the rest of the day...........but I did want to write something on this blog. I hope you enjoyed the Irish blessings.

Blessings one day--snow the next

2008-02-26T19:45:00.000-08:00

I'm sitting in my room, watching the snow fall. It's been coming down since 9:30 this morning. At first, it was light and fluffy, but, as the day wore on, the snow grew stronger and began to stick to the ground.

Actually, watching snow is lovely. The sounds of the world are muted. The bare brown of the scenery takes on a glowing white. I think I like snow better than the summer sun that often brings brown grass. Although, I must admit, autumn is my favorite time of the year.

Irish Blessings

2008-02-25T08:08:00.000-08:00

Today, a friend of mine sent me an Irish Blessing joke that was done in the same format as the ones I already know. It didn't work for me so I made her check it out at www.snopes.com She found out it wasn't true.......so I sent her some real Irish Blessings.

May ye always have...
Walls for the wind
A roof for the rain
Tea beside the fire
Laughter to cheer ye
Those ye love near ye
And all yer heart might desire

Irish Blessing:
May ye always have work for yer hands to do
May yer pockets hold always a coin or two.
May the sun shine bright on yer windowpane.
May the rainbow be certain to follow the rain.
May the hand of a friend always be near ye.

May the road rise up to meet ye

And may God fill yer heart with gladness to cheer ye.

And my favorite of them all:

May ye rise up to Heaven before the devil knows ye've died...

If any of you Irishmen out there know others, send them on.

My bad

2008-02-24T10:05:00.000-08:00

I took a long time to get back to my blogs. Just didn't have the stuff to write. I did watch the Eukanuba and the Westminster Dog Shows and enjoyed every minute. I even watched the Eukanuba one over again yesterday. The English Setter came in second in the Sporting Dogs group and the Scottish Deerhound came in second in the Hound group. Watching it was fun, but it did keep me from writing.

I am making a pledge to myself. I am going to write every single day. I will find the time no matter what else I have to do. There will be no TV, no lying around, no reading--if the writing is not done. I am not saying how much I will write in a given day nor will I mention which novel I will be working on--unless I'm working on it. I have the suspense and the historical.

I spoke to my publisher today and she is waiting for both books. I just have to get a move on and stop feeling lazy and blocked. That's my wish for today and tomorrow as well.

Enjoying dogs

2008-02-18T10:32:00.000-08:00

I watched the Eukanuba and the Westchester Dog shows. I loved seeing the Setters strut their stuff. They are so beautiful, I'm amazed that they don't win more often. Their coats always flow in the breezes they creating while tracking down the arena, and their big, old faces are always so sad. I feel they touch the heart of everyone--especially me.

Since I have both the Irish Wolfhound and the Scottish Deerhound in two of my historical novels, I always watch those dogs as well. The Irish Wolfhound in both of the above shows was a gorgeous tan color--so extraordinary. Those hounds just lope around as if they were small horses.

I also have an Irish Wolfhound in my new Saratoga book--which I'm having trouble with, if you read my other blog--Saratoga Winter 1865 is giving me fits. Every time I work on the historical, I get a great idea for my suspense, Vengeance Is Mine. I absolutely don't know which book I'm enjoying more.

A hound

2008-02-13T19:32:00.000-08:00

Well, the Irish Wolfhound didn't win his/her group, but a hound won the Westminster Dog Show. The 15 inch hound won the whole bloody thing. Uno, his name, was adorable, barking and howling for his attention. And he knew he had won. In fact, the dogs seem to know when they've won. They're smarter than we realize.

The English Setter came in fourth in the Sporting Group. I didn't tell my two dogs that it hadn't won. Didn't want to hurt their feelings.

Quick note

2008-02-12T17:05:00.000-08:00

A quick note before American Idol. Next week I'm going to have an author, who writes books about horses, as a guest on both my blogs. Do stop by..............

The Westminster Dog Show

2008-02-11T15:33:00.000-08:00

Tonight starts the biggest dog show in the US. There's the Croft Show in England that is bigger. When I watched the Eukanuba show last week, the Irish Wolfhound was in the top four dogs in the Hound group. It was so exciting to see him stand so proud.

I'm hoping the same dog gets to be in the final seven, which will be shown tomorrow night. Or course, I'll have to watch American Idol's Hollywood session first, but will switch to the dog show as soon as Idol is over. I tend to watch the Sporting dogs, of which I have two, the Herding group
and the Working group.

I find the shows riveting and love to see dogs stride out, so proud of themselves. They seem so gregarious and confident. The dog shows are good TV and worth watching, the ultimate realty show...

Irish Wolfhounds

2008-02-07T15:51:00.000-08:00

I don't know what's making me think of Irish Wolfhound. Perhaps, it's the fact that I am using one in my Saratoga Winter 1865. I also used a Wolfhound in my book, Lost Son of Ireland. That dog was a bit different than the one (Zoah) I'm using in the new book.

In Lost Son of Ireland, the dog had been hurt and left by the side of the road by warriors of a different village. He didn't quite trust strangers until some fine Irish men spoke to him sweetly. Then he let them carry him to the village, where the heroine took care of him and helped to get him well. The Wolfhound showed them all much love as the gentle giant he was. I don't want to mention the ending because I would love to have readers read the book itself.

I love animals. Over the years, I have had a black Lab, two pure-bred Collies, an extraordinary mutt (Part chow as evidenced by the black tongue, part German-Shepherd as evidenced by his coloring and part Golden Retriever as evidenced by his body structure and his nature--he was also, the dog of my heart.) and now two English Setters.

Right now, my little girl, Abbey, has severe hip dysplasia and is on pain medication. The past two days, she seems like her old self, cute, adorable and frisky. Barney, the male, is a very serious, self-contained dog, not always sure of himself and he sure does want to please--except when it's time to come back inside and he doesn't want to. The vet put them on medication for arthritis, to be given once a day. Hopefully, they'll both feel lots better real soon.

Wolfhounds and Deerhounds

2008-02-06T09:17:00.000-08:00

I just had a member of the Cambridge Writers group send me a URL. for Wolfhounds.
http://www.iwclubofamerica.org/ I went there and the dogs are glorious. They have so much information on the site, I will go back many times. My Zoah, in Saratoga Winter 1865, is an Irish Wolfhound, and, for a big dog, is adorable. I really feel that she is a character in the book and have had several people tell me she steals the scene--which, in a way, is not good, but I guess I'll correct it in the later revisions. Right now, I just love the way I have her--large, gentle but protective if she feels it necessary to be that way.

I used a Scottish Deerhound in Clan Gunn: Gerek. Dubh was a definite character and I found my other characters relying on him a great deal. He had personality and I've had reviewers tell me how much they loved him. I did, too.

Pups

2008-02-05T10:39:00.000-08:00

I'm feeling great now that my little English Setter, Abbey, is feeling better. She's almost up to her old style, barking to go out and letting Barney bark to come in. I couldn't believe her snarling at him the other day, so totally unlike her. But each day she feels more like herself.

I got a wonderful note from someone who knows about Irish Wolfhounds. I might contact them personally to find out what they do know. I have an IW in my book, Saratoga Winter 1865. I need more information about their nature. I'm going to the AKC (American Kennel Club) to find out the restrictions or whatevers. Let's face it, you can't have an ugly dog in a book. And Zoah is a real character and I want her to continue. She's only a youngster at the beginning of the book and, as yet, I don't have a specific goal for her.......but I will soon.

Giants

2008-02-04T11:39:00.001-08:00

Since I watched and cheered the Giants on during yesterday's Super Bowl, the idea of giants took hold. It made me think of the Giant Causeway in Ireland. The most beautiful cliffs in the world that look out on the ocean. Someday I'll visit.

Of course, all the Celtic men in my writings are giant. Their personalities are bigger than life. They are taller than the average bear and much more handsome. It's a nice way to live, thinking about men like that.

I have always found big Irish and Scottish men to be quite gentle unless roused by injustice. I have found them kind and helpful, good with children for they are great story-tellers and laid-back..........oh well, we'd better not go there. lolololol

2008-02-03T13:31:00.000-08:00

I just read a wonderful Google article about Riding in Ireland. I'm going to put the url down but not sure it will work this way. http://travel.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/travel/destinations/ireland/article3287585.ece

I hope I got it all down and you can read the article. Since I love both horses and Ireland and the Irish, I really enjoyed the article.

Irish Wolfhounds

2008-01-31T16:58:00.000-08:00

I'm having so much angst with Abbey, the English Setter, not being up to par, that I wonder how I would react to having an Irish Wolfhound. They are the largest dog in the dog kingdom. Because of that, they often go to the Rainbow Ridge by the time they are seven. I don't know whether I could handle that------------and I've always wanted that kind of dog. I understand that they are amazingly kind and laid-back. Kinda' cute and funny for their size.

I've always thought of myself as being very tall, too tall. Of course, in my day, I was. Now the girls seems to tower over me. I always had Collies because they were big. My Alex was considered a large-breed, and my vet considers my two English setters as large-breeds. I think they're medium, but I have to go along with the Vet.

2008-01-30T07:52:00.000-08:00

Monday I rushed my little Abbey, English setter, to the Vet's. When he called later in the day and said he wanted to keep her longer, so that he could X-ray her, I knew something was up.By the time 5 p.m. on Tuesday came around, I was a wreck. I had the feeling that it was something serious--and unfortunately, I was right.My poor little female has severe hip dysplasia. She was groggy when I brought her home and couldn't settle down anywhere she hurt so bad. She cried most of last night, sometimes in her sleep, and I had to take her outside twice during the night. She seems a bit better today and is on the pill the doctor gave her. We will have to wait several days to see how effective they are.Consequently, I'm a wreck, only did a tiny, miniscule bit of writing Monday and Tuesday because I couldn't concentrate. Today I have to go to Red Hat luncheon for a gal who used to work at Curves and then go to Bennington to get several huge foam rubber mattress toppers. I'm going to make some comfortable beds for Abbey...knowing full-well that Barney will used them, too.

Oh, byw, my website is back up: http://www.DoriceNelson.com

Bad day

2008-01-28T09:21:00.001-08:00

Most of this weekend, I spent watching our little female dog.he just wasn't acting herself. I knew she was in some kind of pain, so this morning, Abbey went to the vet. She's there until he can find out what's wrong with her. It seems as if she's dragging one hind leg. This will be the first time that she's been all alone, without even Barney, our other setter. I'm a wreck.

Dogs

2008-01-24T17:44:00.000-08:00

It's funny that a gal who like thing Celtic has two rescued English Setters. But I have a good reason. When we moved to this little village in the Hudson Valley, my husband and I had a mixed mutt (also a rescue) named Alex. Alex was part Chow, part German Shepherd and part Golden Retriever, but, more important, Alex was the dog of my heart. He was my special friend and I still miss him to this day.

We had to help him to the Rainbow Bridge eight days after we moved into the new house, a place on a bit of acreage that was to be for him. I held him until he took his final breath and something in me died with him.

I was devastated and went out the wrong door at the vet's. There was a huge dog in that section, waiting to get his infected ears cleaned. When I came out the door, he dragged his handler over and leaned against me, looking up and offering whatever solace he could. I didn't know what kind of dog he was and asked. When I found out he was an English Setter (I had no knowledge of such a dog.) I promised him, "If I ever get another dog, I will get one like you."

I have kept my promise. I now have two rescued English Setter. Barney, the male, is a tricolor, and Abbey, our little gal, is an orange belton. They are the sweetest dogs in the world and are still overcoming the bad parts of their lives. They have so much love to give. Barney is still somewhat apprehensive about things but he gets better and better every day.

I will have an Irish Wolfhound in my new historical, Saratoga Winter 1865.