Stray Bullets
Having served over thirty years in the RUC / PSNI I was medically retired with CPTSD. Dissociative Identity Disorder also evolved in me as a residue of CPTSD. I wrote a novel, 'The Bitter End of Dreams', through which I hoped to reflect the experiences of working class folk caught in the grip of a sectarian conflict. I set my story in Belfast, but replaced the Judeo-Christian god with that of Mithras. I also gave Northern Ireland an extra county. Such counterfactual alterations opened up for me the opportunity to place my story deep within the NI Troubles without being shackled to specific timelines, events and real people - thus avoiding the risk of libelling anyone, while being able to write a story, familiar to many, and retaining a sense of place and the tragedy of the Troubles. I'm going to talk openly about elements of policing the Troubles, religion, politics, sectarianism and our toxic ideologies. I've explored these topics in my novel, as well as the placing of actual events and atrocities; albeit heavily disguised or deeply submerged in subtext.To better frame my thoughts I will, firstly, discuss each chapter in sequence before reading that chapter. In this way I should be able to complete a spoken word version of my novel while using the opportunity it provides to elaborate on its creation process in the context of the NI Troubles.Thank you.
Stray Bullets
'A sledgehammer used to miss a fly': Counterinsurgency and State Violence Part II
This episode concludes (for the time being anyway!) my look at the RUC and accusations of collusion. However, as I write this more seeds of research into this topic are dropping into my inbox!
Nevertheless, this episode shifts from the early 1920s through to the recent Troubles, and via Ireland and Palestine. I sincerely hope you find something of interest and I remain grateful for any reviews / thoughts / feedback etc.
In the next episode I'll be looking at terrorism from a (possibly) different angle than the usual.
Works cited:
Sir John Shuckburgh at Middle Eat Committee, 5th meeting, 23 December 1921, CO 537 831.
Statement by A. C. M. Sir J. Salmond (Air Staff memo. No. 16, 1924. AIR 5 476
AOC Palestine to AOC Middle East (secret and personal), 5 September 1938. AIR 23 765.
GOC-in-C P/TJ to DMO&I, 20 November 1936. WO 106 2033
M. Begin, The Revolt, London 1951
Report by Sir Charles Wickham, 2 December 1946. CO 537 2269
M. J. Cohen, Palestine and the Great Powers 1945 - 1948, Princeton 1982
Seán William Gannon, The Irish Imperial Service: policing Palestine and administering the Empire, 1922–1966, Palgrave Macmillan, 2019
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