The battle of the Bog

Sponge Bob

The state deployed the following.

1. The Air Corps it seems, maybe a private plane but usually it's the Air Corps.
2. The ERU
3. A number of uniformed police...and scuttling along behind them.

3. The Rangers. Thats the National Parks rangers not the special forces.

And between them they confiscated 2 turf cutting machines on a bog.

The machines were rescued by a couple of local farmers that night.

http://www.galwaynews.ie/26413-bog-owners-twelve-hour-stand-garda%C3%AD-turf-row-hits-new-low

A file has been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) following a twelve-hour showdown at a County Galway bog in which a group of 100 local people used cover of darkness to take back two turf-cutting machines which had been seized from them by Gardai on Tuesday.

And the locals are not too happy at having guns flashed at them and low flying air corps aircraft buzzing etc.

But Gardai have been accused of an ‘over the top’ reaction after an airplane, the Crime Scene Unit, the Armed Response Unit, a jeep, and two patrol cars were deployed to Clonmoylan Bog, near Portumna, which is one of 53 bogs nationwide which have been designated as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs).

This one is gonna run

A file has been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) following a twelve-hour showdown at a County Galway bog in which a group of 100 local people used cover of darkness to take back two turf-cutting machines which had been seized from them by Gardai on Tuesday.

100 people.. christ. In a few months we'll get a headline along the lines of "50 million spent protecting bogs"...

Just throw them (ALL) in jail if they're breaking the law and be done with it.

Sponge Bob

Lock them up with Seaneh Fitz and the other criminals I say.

IrishHomer

Sponge Bob wrote: »

The state deployed the following.

1. The Air Corps it seems, maybe a private plane but usually it's the Air Corps.
2. The ERU
3. A number of uniformed police...and scuttling along behind them.

3. The Rangers. Thats the National Parks rangers not the special forces.

And between them they confiscated 2 turf cutting machines on a bog.

The machines were rescued by a couple of local farmers that night.

http://www.galwaynews.ie/26413-bog-owners-twelve-hour-stand-garda%C3%AD-turf-row-hits-new-low




And the locals are not too happy at having guns flashed at them and low flying air corps aircraft buzzing etc.





This one is gonna run

So Spongebob how come your not over there beefing up the numbers for your cause, too wet for you?

mike65

Why do people cutting turf for personal use need mechanised methods?

IrishHomer

mike65 wrote: »

Why do people cutting turf for personal use need mechanised methods?

Laziness & greed

laoisman11

IrishHomer wrote: »

Laziness & greed

obviously never worked with turf......

IrishHomer

laoisman11 wrote: »

obviously never worked with turf......

Eh obviously did!!!!!!!!!!!!

laoisman11

IrishHomer wrote: »

Eh obviously did!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well if you "obviously did" maybe you can tell us the amount of time it would take for one person to foot enough turf for an average family home?

Any then perhaps you can explain why you deem the use of mechanised equipment to do this "laziness and greed"?

mike65

The reason I ask is the obvious one, that using machinery means enough can be lifted for black market sales, slipping the neighbour half a tonne for a few bob (no idea what the going rate would be).

Seth Brundle

According to the IT, the siezed equipment has been torched: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2012/0621/breaking4.html

laoisman11

laoisman11 wrote: »

obviously never worked with turf......

What Irish person hasn't worked with turf? I'm as city as they come and even I've spent time cutting and stacking turf as a teen over multiple summers.

laoisman11

Rojomcdojo wrote: »

What Irish person hasn't worked with turf? I'm as city as they come and even I've spent time cutting and stacking turf as a teen over multiple summers.

That's what I was wondering too. Irishhomer wanted to raise some point but then thought that by letting the rest of world know what he meant was derailing the thread.

Odd.

IrishHomer

laoisman11 wrote: »

Rojomcdojo wrote: »

What Irish person hasn't worked with turf? I'm as city as they come and even I've spent time cutting and stacking turf as a teen over multiple summers.

That's what I was wondering too. Irishhomer wanted to raise some point but then thought that by letting the rest of world know what he meant was derailing the thread.

Odd.

Eh can you read?

I gave a quick answer to mike65s question that sidetracked things originally, now is OP still gone to ground? LOL :-)

laoisman11

Anyway......

Back OT........the authorities went way overboard here. Where is the political pressure coming from on this one, Europe? And why on this when the govt couldn't be bothered protecting the area surrounding archaelogical sites like Tara?

Seth Brundle

laoisman11 wrote: »

Anyway......

Back OT........the authorities went way overboard here. Where is the political pressure coming from on this one, Europe? And why on this when the govt couldn't be bothered protecting the area surrounding archaelogical sites like Tara?

I believe that the EU would fine us something like 25K per day were we to allow it to continue.
Tara unfortunately wouldn't have incurred such a fine.

laoisman11

laoisman11 wrote: »

Anyway......

Back OT........the authorities went way overboard here. Where is the political pressure coming from on this one, Europe? And why on this when the govt couldn't be bothered protecting the area surrounding archaelogical sites like Tara?

Tell us, what should the authorities do when a certain sub-section of the population are willfully breaking the law as such?

Aidan1

2. The ERU

No, the RSU supposedly - different entirely. And the GS haven't confirmed they were there either - any photographic evidence?

That said, given that there is numerous cases of turf cutters threatening the lives of the NPWS or Gardai, why would they not have armed officers there to protect those upholding the law?

Sponge Bob

IrishHomer wrote: »

So Spongebob how come your not over there beefing up the numbers for your cause, too wet for you?

What are you on about??? What "Cause"??? Go off and troll elsewhere willya.

Sponge Bob

Latest. The Assistant Commissioner is involved now.

http://www.galwaynews.ie/26438-agreement-reached-standoff-clonmoylan-bog

Assistant Garda Commissioner Jack Nolan has given a briefing that they hopper machine seized by Gardai is to be returned to its rightful owner.

An examination of the machine will be undertaken by Gardai later today.

Iwasfrozen

I'm sick of these bloody turf cutters. Anyone breaking the law should be put in jail simple as. :mad:

southsiderosie

MOD NOTE:

Just a few points of clarification:

- People do not have to join a cause or be affiliated with it in order to discuss it on this website. So let's cut the 'why aren't YOU over protesting'-type responses.

- If you have an issue with someone's posts, please report them rather than retaliating on-thread.

This can be a good thread if it does't get bogged down (;)) by petty sniping.

dulpit

It puzzles/bothers me that people feel like they can kick up a fuss when they disagree with the law that's there. They're breaking the law, so stick them in jail.. Instead we have Ming out there going on about how they should be getting compensated/etc.:mad:

Also, on a side note:

MOD SNIP: Leave the face-palming for AH, thanks.

Mr.Micro

dulpit wrote: »

It puzzles/bothers me that people feel like they can kick up a fuss when they disagree with the law that's there. They're breaking the law, so stick them in jail.. Instead we have Ming out there going on about how they should be getting compensated/etc.:mad:

Also, on a side note:

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The Irish and ungovernable comes to mind. There appears to be an issue with some group over everything. The whole country appears to be a group of factions, farmers, turf cutters, anti household charge, anti septic tank, anti bin charges, D4 types, Mick Wallace types who do as they like and respect nobody, all with a non conformist mentality, "you are not telling me what to do".

MadsL

I also note plenty of anti-EU sentiment, until it comes to farmers cashing the EU cheques.

Sponge Bob

Many badly thought out Civil Service concoctions are blamed on 'the EU told us to do this' rather than the Civil Service admitting they only half thought out a package of measures and apologising. Sadly it seems to have a cumulative effect.

It wasn't the EU who came up with the idea of delivering (substandard) turf as 'compensation' or allocating alternative bogs 70 miles away in lieu of the current plot. That was our dears.

Like I said in the first post, this one is gonna run.

Seth Brundle

dulpit wrote: »

Instead we have Ming out there going on about how they should be getting compensated/etc.:mad:

They have been paid -quite handsomely at that!
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/payments-under-turf-scheme-are-doubled-3041634.html
http://www.shannonside.ie/news-details.php?nid=12437&action=newsdetails

Being paid 2 grand this year and 1500 for the following 14. How much does it cost to heat your house? Being paid not to have to go to the hassle of cutting and drying and hauling turf?

Sponge Bob

kbannon wrote: »

Being paid 2 grand this year and 1500 for the following 14. How much does it cost to heat your house? Being paid not to have to go to the hassle of cutting and drying and hauling turf?

Some people accepted the offer. Not all of them.

MadsL

kbannon wrote: »

They have been paid -quite handsomely at that!
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/payments-under-turf-scheme-are-doubled-3041634.html
http://www.shannonside.ie/news-details.php?nid=12437&action=newsdetails

Being paid 2 grand this year and 1500 for the following 14. How much does it cost to heat your house? Being paid not to have to go to the hassle of cutting and drying and hauling turf?

Ming said that you can't heat a telephone box on €1000 a year, and then claimed it was not about the money.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmaOpFP5e9U

He also claimed that turfcutters were like the black civil rights movement in 50s America. :rolleyes:

Members of the Turf Cutters and Contractors Association claim they are being “intimidated” by low-flying Air Corps aircraft monitoring activities. Independent Roscommon TD Luke “Ming” Flanagan has colourfully likened the turf-cutters’ activities to the resistance movement of the US black civil rights heroine Rosa Parks. “There are occasions that, during the tyranny of the state, the law needs to be broken,” he said.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0529/1224316867975.html

Icepick

kbannon wrote: »

They have been paid -quite handsomely at that!
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/payments-under-turf-scheme-are-doubled-3041634.html
http://www.shannonside.ie/news-details.php?nid=12437&action=newsdetails

Being paid 2 grand this year and 1500 for the following 14. How much does it cost to heat your house? Being paid not to have to go to the hassle of cutting and drying and hauling turf?

unbelievable
If they cannot heat homes for 1,500 a year, they need to insulate and it's clear they are selling it on the side.

Rasheed

I'm from a county that is badly hit by the ban. When they first started talking about stopping turf cutting, I was livid.

Now, not so much after reading the facts. It's coming from Europe,it's not an Irish thing so it has to be adhered to. End of. We can't afford €25 a day, never mind €25000.

Next point is the compensation is more then fair in my opinion. I know it's not all black and white either and I'm open to correction, but the offer of €2000 this year, €1500 for the next 14 seems fair to me. Plus they are offering bog relocation if the money doesn't suit.

I have heard people are afraid they will accept the money, stop cutting and that the government will say they have no money for compensation in 3/4 years time. If this happens, I will personally spend every waking minute to spare I have cutting turf by hand.but I don't think the government are that stupid either.