Bernard Moffatt's blog

Manx Radio has at last acknowledged that when it comes to the TT there are ‘a few voices off’ with this item - that surfaced briefly with even a link across to Tranceltic sharing billing with NBC and the Washington Post...wow:

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/tt-danger-has-world-watc...

Thousands of people gathering last month at Herri Urrats (The People's Steps), the festival which Basque schools (Ikastolas) holds in the northern Basque Country every year. The Seaska ikastola federation's is urging the French government to provide more teachers for Basque schools and the mobilisation of the campaign was very much the main subject of conversation at this years event.

There is a report here from the ‘Argia’ website:

One of the great advantages of being in the Celtic equivalent of the waiting room for ‘Tír na nÓg’ is that media focus tends to drift away. Indeed the only query from Manx Radio of late was Howard Caine ringing up to ask if ‘I really had gone’!

Cooperation between (South) Australia and Brittany is the area of education, culture and economic matters is likely to be the result of a lengthy contract by the Royal Australian Navy to purchase up to 12 submarines from Breton based shipbuilder DCNS.

A delegation from Brittany has already travelled to (Adelaide) Australia to cement links as this report in 7 seizh indicates:

http://7seizh.info/2018/05/29/bretagne-australie-meridionale-la-region-d...

‘CULTURAL ACTIVIST’: ALL COUNTRIES LARGE AND SMALL SHOULD SPEAK OUT - WILL THEY?

In the Isle of Man we live in a world where ‘cultural activism’ can it seems be divorced from politics but for some the reality is more harsh

Tashi Wangchuk a Tibetan activist who wants to promote his countries language has recently been sentenced to five years in prison - he could yet face harsher penalty.

The issue of so called ‘legacy killings’ is once again on the agenda in N Ireland as two soldiers - members of the parachute regiment - have been committed for trial over the death of Joe McCann in April 1972 (link):

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-44334966

McCann was unarmed when he was killed and a large number of security forces shell cases were found close to his body.

I understand that Spain currently has extradition requests before the French Courts in relation to a number of members of the ETA nationalist movement however it is unclear at this stage if they will be implemented.

The French courts on the basis of the last account I read were uneasy about the treatment that the detainees would receive if returned to Spain.

One of the detainees Iratxe Sorzabal has already been subject to torture when she was held by the Spanish almost two decades ago.

It’s no wonder the Russians are ‘tetchy’! Looking South and West they see nothing but military alliances. There is NATO of course and then the various EU institutions including the Partnership for Peace. The UK and Ireland recently signed a military accord over training which was denounced by the Celtic League and then Britain and France old historical enemies signed some years ago their own Entente Cordiale.

I mentioned the IOM TT Race yesterday and as usual - that being my predilection - I was critical. Of course immediately there were cries of ‘he’s at in again whinging year after year’. But when I thought about it I’ve actually been ‘singing this tune’ for decades as I realised when I stumbled on an old recording I made over twenty years ago with Channel 5. Indeed I’ve probably been a critic since some of my critics were crawling around in nappies!

Next year marks the fortieth anniversary of ‘Operation Tân’ a notorious police crackdown in Wales in 1979/80 which was targeted indiscriminately at nationalists because police were totally in the dark about a Welsh Nationalist direct action campaign which involved the targeting of holiday homes.