Behind all the glitter, the flashing neon and the mood music there are many people outcast from society – cast into the shadow by a shamed system. Many who went through the Industrial Schools system ended up on the streets; many of them lived short, desperate lives before succumbing. We mustn’t forget them, or the system that destroyed so many lives.

]]> http://theraggedwagon.wordpress.com/2011/12/11/there-was-unease-at-the-way-hed-touch-an-arm-or-stay-close-when-talking-national-news-independent-ie/feed/ 1 theraggedwagon Hosted by imgur.com http://theraggedwagon.wordpress.com/2011/12/02/lessons-in-family-values/ http://theraggedwagon.wordpress.com/2011/12/02/lessons-in-family-values/#comments Fri, 02 Dec 2011 23:31:25 +0000 theraggedwagon http://theraggedwagon.wordpress.com/?p=255 ]]>
In those times and in those places our clergy gaolers singled out certain people for their brand of “religious” invective. On many occasions this fell on a particular ethnic group within our Child Detention Centre. Travellers. I remember with horror the treatment meted out to Traveller children.

The nuns had a particularly nasty hatred for Travellers. I’m sure it was to do with their own attitude to their bodies. Whereas the Travellers had no problem with their nakedness during bathtime or bedtime. The nuns used to be horrified at this, and would beat these little children quite mercilessly in the bath-house with switches, canes – whatever was to hand really. The effect this had on the rest of us was to makes us extremely frightened of anyone seeing our bodies.

On Sundays the nuns took us for walks outside the Detention Centre. On occasions we would turn left and walk us up to the very outskirts of Kilkenny City, in pairs holding hands all of us being warned to keep our eyes on the ground in front of us, and then the nuns would turn us around without entering the city and march us back. On other occasions we would turn right and take a walk in the country. On this country walk we would sometimes encounter Travellers parked along the road. The nun would warn us of the dire consequences if we dared take a peek at this exotic sight. Of course some of us did and we were walloped.

Myself, I thought the Travellers had an ideal life. The aroma of the food was mouth-watering, the sight of the campfire was romantic, their caravans, those old ones with the green arced roofs, were magic looking. The nun had no problem in shouting vicious insults at the Traveller families at the side of the road, calling them evil, filthy pigs. The Travellers ignored the nun and this made her even madder.

Naturally we would look then as it was plain to us that she was going to “fly off the handle”. When she did it was to us that she vented her spleen. So much for “country walks”. I remember once “absconding” from that place and heading through the fields towards a Traveller family parked alongside the road. They took me in and fed me. I have never since tasted such fresh bread, or tastier rasher and sausage and their mug of tea was MAGIC. Even I could tell that these people were SPECIAL. They had NO FEAR of the nuns, and they bent the knee to no one but God. They WERE very religious but it seemed to me, and I was only about 8 years old, that their religion was a HAPPY faith.

In any event they took me all the way into Kilkenny City where I was hoping to get to my family who actually lived only 17 miles from me, but I was hopelessly lost and some man from a butchers’ shop grabbed me and handed me back to the nuns. Later on in another Detention Centre a guy called Ward saved me from a rape and for a time (until he left) I had a protector. This actually taught me the value of family – I learned Family Values and Friendship from Irish Travellers.

I learned about HUMANITY from people who these BLACK-GARBED CHRISTIANS NUNS denigrated. I learned more about LOVE and FAMILY and BELONGING from people who were called PIGS by the same BLACK-GARBED NUNS.

Why is this thing dragging on? Why can’t the Criminal Assets Bureau step in?  Has anyone in the present government actually read the Final Report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse? And if they have read it, have they read it out loud to these Religious Congregations? Here’s a few of their findings with my own comments added:

A climate of fear, created by pervasive, excessive and arbitrary punishment, permeated most of the institutions and all those run for boys. Children lived with the daily terror of not knowing where the next beating was coming from. Seeing or hearing other children being beaten was a frightening experience that stayed with many complainants all their lives.

It’s high time these Congregations were subjected to ‘pervasive fear’ and ‘terror’ – Let them live with the fear that their assets will be taken from them. Introduce them to the terror of being flat broke.

Children who ran away were subjected to extremely severe punishment. Absconders were severely beaten, at times publicly. Some had their heads shaved and were humiliated.

Shaving them of their assets would be perfect justice.

The boys’ schools investigated revealed a pervasive use of severe corporal punishment. Prolonged, excessive beatings with implements intended to cause maximum pain occurred with the knowledge of staff management.

Corporal punishment in girls’ schools was pervasive, severe, arbitrary and unpredictable and this led to a climate of fear amongst the children. The regulations imposed greater restrictions on the use of corporal punishment for girls. In some schools a high level of ritualised beating was routine whilst in other schools lower levels of corporal punishment were used. Girls were struck with implements designed to maximise pain and were struck on all parts of the body. The prohibition on corporal punishment for girls over 15 years was generally not observed.

Corporal punishment was often administered in a way calculated to increase anguish and humiliation for girls. One way of doing this was for children to be left waiting for long periods to be beaten. Another was when it was accompanied by denigrating or humiliating language. Some beatings were more distressing when administered in front of other children and staff.

Maximum pain must be returned to these Congregations – this is the sword they wielded on children, they lived by this sword, let them die by this sword. Never mind that this punishment will be public and humiliating: this is Justice.

The recidivist nature of sexual abuse was known to religious authorities. The documents revealed that sexual abusers were often long-term offenders who repeatedly abused children wherever they were working. Contrary to the Congregations’ claims that the recidivist nature of sexual offending was not understood, it is clear from the documented cases that they were aware of the propensity for abusers to re-abuse. The risk, however, was seen by the Congregations in terms of the potential for scandal and bad publicity should the abuse be disclosed. The danger to children was not taken into account.

The Congregational authorities did not listen to or believe people who complained of sexual abuse that occurred in the past, notwithstanding the extensive evidence that emerged from Garda investigations, criminal convictions and witness accounts. Some Congregations remained defensive and disbelieving of much of the evidence heard by the Investigation Committee in respect of sexual abuse in institutions, even in cases where men had been convicted in court and admitted to such behaviour at the hearings.

Any other organisation, or group of organisations, found to have endangered children in such a despicable way for so long would be shut down and their assets seized. These Congregations terrorised children. They made children feel worthless. It’s high time these Congregations were worth less …

Children were frequently hungry and food was inadequate, inedible and badly prepared in many schools. Witnesses spoke of scavenging for food from waste bins and animal feed. The Inspector found that malnourishment was a serious problem in schools run by nuns.

Bearing in mind that the stated reason the majority of children were consigned into the ‘care’ of these Congregations was that they were children from dysfunctional families; yet here we have findings that the Congregations were dysfunctional, dangerous and utterly unsuited to caring for children. Yet the State funded them and the Congregations took the money under false pretences. It’s time these monies were fully refunded.

Clothing was a particular problem in boys’ schools where children often worked for long hours outdoors on farms. In addition, boys were often left in their soiled and wet work clothes throughout the day and wore them for long periods. In all schools up until the 1960s clothes stigmatised the children as Industrial School residents.

There was a further stigma if you absconded, at least in Ferryhouse. They made you wear short trousers – the thinking here was that you would be easily spotted if you re-absconded: Here’s a pic from Ferryhouse. See if you can count how many of the children in the pic absconded:

Ferryhouse 1960s

Their only crime was that they wanted to go home – and this was only part of the ‘justice’ the Congregations meted out to children. Time they were put into short trousers.

Where Industrial School children were educated in internal national schools, the standard was consistently poorer than that in outside schools. National school education was available to all children in the State and those in Industrial Schools were entitled to at least the same standard as that available in the country generally. Internal national schools were funded by a national school grant and teachers were paid in the same way. There was evidence particularly in girls’ schools that children were removed from their classes in order to perform domestic chores or work in the institution during the school day. When discharged, boys were generally placed in manual or unskilled jobs and girls in positions as domestic servants. Even where religious Congregations operated secondary schools beside industrial schools, children from the Industrial Schools were very rarely given the opportunity of pursuing secondary school education. Industrial Schools were intended to provide basic industrial training to young people to enable them to take up positions of employment as young adults. In reality, the industrial training afforded by all schools was of a nature that served the needs of the institution rather than the needs of the child.

It’s time to serve the needs of survivors and victims and not the sensibilities of these Congregations. The statutory objective of CAB is to target the proceeds of criminal activity to ensure that those engaged in criminal activity do not benefit from it. These Congregation were unjustly enriched by the slave labour of children.

- – - – - – - -

Realistically though all the above actions would only happen in my dreams – and they would be wild dreams. As a child I never had such dreams in anyway. Never did I dream that what I, and so many other children, were suffering should be revisited on those making us suffer. I’ve never dreamt of pushing a nun’s hands into a fire; I’ve never had the dream of battering a member of the clergy with a hurley stick or a wheel brace or a coin-embedded leather strap; I’ve never dreamt of starving or enslaving members of the Religious Orders. My dreams were more fantastic than those – fantastic, because I knew they were not going to come true; for you see I dreamt of decent and enough food on my plate; I dreamt of warm places, of running free in a meadow; of confusion explained; of childish puzzlement satisfied; of a little red bus; of loving touches; of being wanted;

And then there’s a squeeze on my shoulder and I’m released from my reverie. I sit at a big table and the Minister repeats his question:

“Would you like a bun with your coffee, Andrew?”

It’s not a religious Minister that’s asking the question but a democratically elected Minister and 18 years of an almost unrelenting childhood flashes before me:

Flashes of a loving family that soon went sour; of loving relatives who wanted to care for us; of a father’s refusal to allow that; of a final 6 weeks of being locked in a room with my sister and crippled brother, surviving on rainwater, nettles and mushrooms and sometimes milky eggs; of men in spacesuits rescuing us from the filth and squalor; of being scrubbed and washed and togged out it new clothes; of being in Court and being handed an orange and my brother; of hooded heads with faces and long dark corridors lined with statues; of children kneeling in a hall chanting ….. and all the horrors that followed.

And I’m not looking for revenge – only justice. And I can still dream.

It even had a private chapel, and he loved to entertain friends from Ireland and arrange meetings with the Pope for a chosen few. He was widely expected to return to Ireland in triumph as Archbishop of Armagh, his home diocese, and be the future Primate of All Ireland. But John Paul 11 banished him to a lonely Cork diocese in 1987, when Magee was at the height of his power. The job of Bishop of Cloyne was intended for someone else, but John Paul insisted that Magee go. He was never liked by the priests there, who considered him a Vatican outsider who was dumped on them. The Bishop’s house was a sad, drafty old building in need of repair, totally unlike his Vatican villa.

The reasons why he was exiled to Cloyne have never been explained. Rumors ran rampant, including involvement in a cover-up of the death of John Paul I and unspecified personal behavior charges, but nothing ever came to light. What is known is that in 1978, on the death of John Paul I after only 33 days as Pope, Magee covered up the fact that a nun found him, and a statement was issued that he was the person who discovered the body.

Why this was so has never been explained. Nor was the fact that he was briefly brought back to Rome immediately when Pope John Paul II died for unspecified duties. By all accounts, he went into a deep funk when posted to Cloyne, a minor diocese in Ireland far from his beloved Armagh. His lack of oversight of the child abuse problems in his parish were seen as a sign of his total disinterest in his new duties. Now he is gone, and the mystery of how he ever ended up in Cloyne, or why he tried to mask the truth of who found the body of John Paul I, may never be known.

In “Angels and Demons,” Dan Brown’s prequel to “The Da Vinci Code,” an ambitious Irish priest close to the Pope almost becomes Pope himself by plotting and eliminating enemies during a papal conclave. The book’s Rev. Patrick McKenna may well have been loosely based on Magee. Whatever lofty ambitions Magee had,  they have long since ended, and he resigned in disgrace. It was surely not the script he had written for himself.

From Irish Central Niall O’Dowd

1. Honest
2. Forward-Looking
3. Competent
4. Inspiring
5. Intelligent

And Enda has all these in abundance.

He is honest to a fault. Some say he is too honest to be a politician but Enda is fast consigning that hoary old cliche to history’s dustbin.

He is forward looking. He knew Ireland needed a plan and instead of cobbling together a series of aspirations he produced an utterly brilliant, yet simple, 5-point plan that points the way forward and upwards for this badly-wounded nation.

He is competent. Some would say he is more than competent. For a leader to demonstrate that they are competent, it isn’t enough to just avoid displaying incompetency. When people were confused over the Roscommon spat Enda cleared up the confusion forthwith and people are now able to look at his immediate reaction and think, “that just goes to show why he is the one in charge of Fine Gael AND of the country”. These moments of confusion around Enda will, of course be infrequent, but it’s likely that his decisiveness and demonstrations of competency will help boost even more his leadership ability.

Like the other traits, it isn’t enough for a leader to be competent. They must demonstrate competency in a way that people notice. This can be a delicate balance. There is a danger of drawing too much attention to yourself in a way that makes the leader seem arrogant. And Enda has never being one to show arrogance of any kind. Nor is he one to “toot his own horn without blowing it”. The Roscommon spat is, though one are where he should ‘toot his own horn‘. He did promise equal access to health care for everyone and, barely 4 months into his stewardship, ALL the people of Roscommon now have equal access to health care in Galway.

Enda is unarguably the most inspiring leader Ireland has elected, going into the second decade of this century – just his simple, yet telling, phrase: “” Paddy likes to know the story “” is evidence of that inspirational quality. A phrase that is both inclusive and profound.

Enda is unarguably the most intelligent Taoiseach we’ve had this century. His performances in the General Election debates proves this – not even Vincent Browne could ruffle his integrity.

Enda Kenny – A leader for our times. Watchful, Alert, Far seeing, Intelligent, Inspiring.

Enda Ever Watchful For Danger

But whether any discipline action ever was brought against ‘now-retired‘ Bishop Lawrence Soens, who’s also accused of abuse, or his whereabouts are still being kept secret.  “Any discipline against (Soens) has been kept secret,” attorney Craig Levien, who has represented local victims of clergy abuse, said Monday. “The scandal wasn’t just the abuse of children by priests, it was the coverup.”  Soens has not been defrocked.  “There’s a double standard that’s applied to priests versus a bishop,” Levien said.

Previously, Levien had requested the release of “all communications from Cardinal Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict, about the decision not to defrock credibly accused perpetrators.”  Montgomery responded to that request Monday, saying a decision made by the Vatican “is final, cannot be changed” and that communication that goes on at the Vatican is “confidential.”    [SOURCE]

Our Buckley

The Hi-Res image is on DeviantArt here:  http://fav.me/d3jtqaf

I dreamt I dwelt in marble halls
With vassals and serfs at my side,
And of all who assembled within those walls
That I was the hope and the pride.
I had riches all too great to count
And a high ancestral name.

But I also dreamt which pleased me most
That you loved me still the same,
That you loved me
You loved me still the same,
That you loved me
You loved me still the same.

I dreamt that suitors sought my hand,
That knights upon bended knee
And with vows no maidens heart could withstand,

They pledged their faith to me.
And I dreamt that one of that noble host
Came forth my hand to claim.

But I also dreamt which charmed me most
That you loved me still the same
That you loved me
You loved me still the same,
That you loved me
You loved me still the same.

Remarable bishop, the Magee

Mr. Praline: ‘Ello, Miss?

Owner: What do you mean “Miss”?

Mr. Praline: I’m sorry, I have a cold. I wish to make a complaint!

Owner:  We’re closin’ for lunch.

Mr. Praline:  Never mind that, my lad. I wish to complain about this here bishop whom I confessed to not half an hour ago in his very own boutique.

Owner: Oh yes, the, uh, the Norwegian Blue boutique …What’s,uh…What’s wrong ?

Mr. Praline: I’ll tell you what’s wrong, my lad. ‘E’s gone, that’s what’s wrong!

Owner: No, no, ‘e’s uh,…he’s just resting.

Mr. Praline: Look, matey, I know a gone bishop when I see one, and I’m not looking at one right now.

Owner: No no he’s not gone, he’s, he’s restin’! Remarkable bishop, the Magee in he, ay? Beautiful cassock! Look at the head gear!  Beautiful

Mr. Praline: The cassock don’t enter into it. He’s gone, ain’t he?.

Owner: Nononono, no, no! ‘E’s resting!

Mr. Praline: All right then, if he’s restin’, I’ll wake him up! (shouting loudly) ‘Ello, Bishop magee! I’ve got a Brady fish for you if you  show…

Owner: There, he moved!

Mr. Praline: No, he didn’t, that was you shaking the chair!

Owner: I never!!

Mr. Praline: Yes, you did!

Owner: I never, never did anything…

Mr. Praline: (yelling and shouting repeatedly) ‘ELLO Bishop Magee!!!!! Testing! Testing! Testing! Testing! This is your nine o’clock alarm call!

Mr. Praline: Now that’s what I call a missing bishop.

Owner: No, no…..No, ‘e’s stunned!

Mr. Praline: STUNNED?!?

Owner: Yeah! You stunned him, just as he was wakin’ up! Bishops stun easily, Major …. real easily

Mr. Praline: Um…now look…now look, mate, I’ve definitely ‘ad enough of this. This bishop is definitely gone, and when I asked about him not ‘alf an hour  ago, you assured me that his total lack of movement was due to him bein’ tired and shagged out following a prolonged triduum novena in Galway.

Owner: Well, he’s…he’s, ah…probably pining for the Latin.

Mr. Praline: PININ’ for the LATIN?!?!?!? What kind of talk is that?, look, why did he fall flat on his back the moment I got home?

Owner: The Magee Blue prefers keepin’ on it’s back! Remarkable bishop, id’nit, squire? Lovely cassock!

Mr. Praline: Look, I took the liberty of examining that bishop when I got it home, and I discovered the only reason that he had been sitting still and gazing into space in the first place was that he had been NAILED to the chair.

(pause)

Owner: Well, o’course he was nailed there! If I hadn’t nailed him down, he would have nuzzled up to confessional box, cracked it apart with his nose, and VAVOOOM! Feeweeweewee!

Mr. Praline: “VAVOOOM”?!? Mate, this bishop wouldn’t “vavooom” if you put four million volts through it! ‘E’s bleedin’ demised!

Owner: No no! ‘E’s pining for the Latin!

Mr. Praline: ‘E’s not pinin’! ‘E’s passed on! This bishop is no more! He has ceased to be! ‘E’s expired and gone to meet ‘is maker! ‘E’s a stiffo! Bereft of life, ‘e rests in peace! If you hadn’t nailed ‘im to the chair ‘e’d be pushing up the daisies! ‘Is metabolic processes are now ‘istory! ‘E’s off the twig! ‘E’s kicked the bucket, ‘e’s shuffled off ‘is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin’ choir invisibile!! THIS IS AN EX-BISHOP!!

(pause)

Owner: Well, I’d better replace him, then. (he takes a quick peek behind the counter) Sorry squire, I’ve had a look ’round the back of the shop, and uh, we’re right out of bishops.

Mr. Praline: I see. I see, I get the picture.

Owner: I got a slug.

(pause)

Mr. Praline: Pray, does it do confessions or masses???

Owner: Nnnnot really.  Benedictions maybe… and a couple of Angeluses a week, arthritis permitting!

Mr. Praline: WELL IT’S HARDLY A BLOODY REPLACEMENT THEN, IS IT?!!???!!?

Owner: N-no, I guess not. (gets ashamed, looks at his feet)

Mr. Praline: Well.

(pause)

Owner: (quietly) D’you…. d’you want to come back to my place?

Mr. Praline: (looks around) Yeah, all right, sure.