If 20 years ago if you had suggested that, in late Sept. 2005, the IRA would (seemingly) have disarmed you'd have been laughed at.
If you'd gone on to prophesy that Ian Paisley would lead the largest Unionist party you might also have encountered disbelief. Anticipating his belligerent, curmudgeonly response to this event would however have been a complete banker.
Does this remind anyone of anything?
Are there any former SU Officers out there interested in playing top CR pub game "well in my day we would have"?
(Thanks to Tom A, Harry's Place comments, for the above link)
Had intended something new - at least one post - every weekday. Unfortunately, yesterday, harsh reality intervened. You can help by sending something in and by keeping an eye on the site.
Interestingly everyone's now gone coy about Mr Draper - remember folks he's on honeymoon so now's probably your best chance to get some retribution in!
Sadly, but perhaps predictably, the first comments below focus on the now C-list celebrity Derek Draper. (Less predictably the same name has turned up as a signatory to this sites mailing list. I say name -- is it the real one or a spoof?)
So I intend to take radical action and cauterise this "wound" immediately. This will be the one and only opportunity on this site to discuss DD.
John Erskine makes the following honest confession in the comments box below:
"Mixed feelings on this one, as I wish Derek well on his personal journey. People should be able to put rather embarrassing episodes firmly in the past. We all make mistakes, except most of them aren't in public.
In any case, I'm partly to blame, as I first met young Draper at an NUS training weekend for FE Student Union Officers in Scarborough, and thought that he looked like a likely recruit for the forces of truth and light. Needless to say, I sought to explain the evil nature of various political projects to him. At that stage he was an earnest, clean-cut working class lad from Runshaw College.
The rest is history."
(He makes some further points, similar to those in the front-page article, about finding common cause with Auntie Millie's nieces and nephews).
But as Jane Ashworth points out on the same thread:
"As I remember, we used to be on top of this. Didn't we stop talking about DD because every time we did so, he won?"
So on this blog this is you last chance, knock yourselves out with your DD stories because after this thread all future ones will be deleted.
Derek - if it really is you on the mailing list, thanks for signing up, see you at the do in December. And I never thought I'd find myself saying that!
In this part of the site we are encouraging people to post short pieces about their abiding memories from their political "youth":
- A mini bus chase with fascists through Central Manchester
- Your favourite college occupation
- Your least favourite YS summer camp
- Election defeats in the 80s
Just about anything memorable will do.
Mail them to us and we will put them up. We are unapologetically nostalgic for our own generation of active service but don't let that put you off.
Most importantly sign up for party information on the home page.
Get in touch!