Comments on: Sympathies… yet again

By: John Mack

John Mack — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 05:35:14 +0000

Irish society has seemed to be always split between families that respect women and those that put men so far ahead that a woman will get no respect if she dares to undermine the status of a popular male. In the US we would call this warped perspective “living forever in high school” and not growing up.

By: Benny

Benny — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 16:53:06 +0000

i am very familiar with the rape case that took place in duagh about 17 years ago where fr james linnane spoke out against the carey family the same as fr sean sheehey has done in listowel how dare priest take one persons side above the other i was a student priest and due to differculties i recieved in the duagh community i was turned down for furthur studies to the priesthood even though i was fully innocent at the time and was accused of a crime i did not commit the local priest also went against me along with the local bishops it is not the duty of priests to side with one family above the next as they are there to represent the whole community and not one individual person what fr linnane done at the time was appauling and he should even to this present day he highly ashamed of himself along with fr sean sheehey i think it is very unfair that bishop murphy spoke out against fr sheeheys actions and over looked the actions taken by now cannon james linnane i think that even now fr linnane should resign from his duties the same as fr sean sheehey those priests have great chech and dont practicse what they preach and i can support this statement i am thinking of all families involved in this recent and indeed past rape case and am appealing to the community not to get involved or take sides as no one really knows what happened on any night and should not piont the finger as it said in the bible do onto others as you want them to do onto you it is not the place of priests to speak out in cases such as these as it is not their place and they should be trying to keep the peace in the community what fe sean sheehey has recently done and what fr linnane done many years ago is not the way to go it gives the wrong impression to communities and places a sence of a void and creates conterversary in a small community i would like to finish by saying i am deeply shocked at fr sheeheys and fr linnanes reactions and only think it is fair for fr linnane to step down from his ministery as he done wrong and created alot of conflict in our community i would like to say i am familiar and friendly with both families in duagh and hold all of both families in the highest of respect but clearly state priests should be more opened minded today than before times have changed and from my study of the bible i never once saw where a priest or a man of god should side with one individual above another as this type of inefficiency brings division to local communities.
Thank you and my prayers and thoughts are with all involved.

By: Joan

Joan — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:05:56 +0000

This thread is located at:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=267053&goto=newpost

Here is the message that has just been posted:
***************
I was born in Listowel in the mid seventies. I now live and work in Dublin. This past week was embarassing for any right thinking Kerryman, but even more so for Listowel men. The outrageous support of Listowel people, of a sex beast who was found guilty by a court of law has outraged modern Ireland. The display by 50 savages of this beast was insane. These 50 men are as guilty of Danny Foley. They openly condoned the rape of a young woman. They as a group of men said it was ok to try and throw her into a skip like a piece of rubbish.
Every female relative of these 50 men should be very scared. Now you know what kind of Kerry men run in your families. Men who are akin to savages. I thought Kerry had dragged its ass out of the bygone eras, but after this we are back in the Kerry babies times. The women who support these 50 men should be ashamed of yourselved too. You are obviously in abusive relationships if your men condone rape. I am surprised these men don’t have a weekly rape day when they wheel out the town’s women for a bit of manly fun.

Be under no illusions, Danny Foley is a convicted rapist and sex beast. He thought he would get away with being a beast, but CCTV caught him out. Danny Foley was trying to throw that girl into a skip after he finished with her, make no mistake about that. He should have got life. He is no quiet respectable man. He has clearly shown that a savage lurked below his face. I am so ashamed to be a Kerryman this week, but even nmore so that I am a Listowel man, cause every other county now thinks we are nothing more than cave men, and that is very sad. Shame on you Listowel, you have made a mock of us across the globe.:mad:
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By: Simon

Simon — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 17:51:58 +0000

Serious where do people get the idea that men think a “girl is asking for it”. I know no one with that attitude. I remember watching a news feature from America where they asked a class about the Rianna Chris Brown thing. The guys attidue basically ranged from he should be locked up to I’d like to beat the crap out of him. The girls were saying stuff like he might be quiet stressed and needs a second chance.

The degagatory language against men on this thread is highly insulting yet it is totally acceptable in society to suggest that men as a unit think stuff like “girl is asking for it”

By: Niall

Niall — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 23:14:40 +0000

Marie, some foreign women I’ve spoken actually like the way that in Ireland, cunt is not regarded as some sort of especially vile insult. Calling somebody a cunt is no worse an insult in many parts of Ireland than calling them a dick.

Now I don’t entirely buy the line that our choice of curses or swears accurately reflect our values, but if they did, surely the parity of esteem in which a dick and cunt are held reflects the fact that Ireland is equal parts misogynist and misandrist.

By: DISGUSTED

DISGUSTED — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 22:25:43 +0000

OMG: I dont think you have any right at all posting that “gossip” about the girl . I couldnt care less if its true or false, it has no bearing on this case as the evidence has proven the guy guilty.
Your post is pure gossip and does not belong here.

By: Rosemary

Rosemary — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:18:40 +0000

OMG, I’m sure it’s difficult for people in Listowel to accept that Foley may have assaulted this woman, but he has been convicted. He is guilty, as far as the legal system goes – he was seen on CCTV leaving her, with her trousers off, behind a skip. If that’s not fairly damning evidence I don’t know what is.

Also I’d like to warn everyone, from a very general point of view, that Foley is not a rapist. He was convicted of sexual assault, not of rape, and I doubt a defamation charge would be beyond him or his family, judging by their talk in the media.

Regarding the whole Joan / men argument, the sad fact of the matter is, men and women find it really difficult to consider sexual assault without assuming that the woman is somehow culpable. We ALL in some way look at women as sex objects, whether we want to or not; it’s in our culture and it’s almost inescapable. I’m sick of berating my male friends for making sexist jokes because my female friends do it too. It’s not a men hating women thing, it’s a people hating women thing (although not all of the time, and rarely overtly).

By: OMG

OMG — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:25:04 +0000

i feel really sorry for that girl BUT i live in listowel and know that before this case the same girl was “paid off” by TWO other men before taken it to court on the same kinda charges. [EDIT: THIS IS COMPLETE HEARSAY, THERE IS NO EVIDENCE OF WHICH I AM AWARE TO BACK THIS UP - Mark]….so that is why in so many peoples mind danny is innocent and if i was in that court on wednesday i would have shaken his hand. and did anyone not notice that the same girl had no family in court for the whole trail….. i know that if something like this happened to me i would want my family there!!! in court there was no evidence that he raped her but that of bruising so in my mind if the girl was so drunk that she cant remember parts of that night that she could have fallen in the nightclub!! there is alot of ifs and buts in this but seven years is a bit much with no evidence that he did and the Wayne fella in cork got only 2 years for killing a child!!!!

By: Damien

Damien — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 12:00:20 +0000

Marie and Anie, you might find this hard to believe, but men do have this conversation. I’ve had this conversation with other men, men from both ends of the social spectum. Sometimes this conversation is reasoned and rational, and sometimes it revolves around the idea of stringing up sex offenders, but either way I have never heard a man suggest: “well, sometimes they’re just asking for it.” Now I have met a few men whose views on women are less than healthy, I’m thinking of one in particular, but to suggest this is a general trait inherent in men, or lend any credence whatsoever to Joan’s claim, is honest-to-god sexism.

By: Aine

Aine — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 06:23:30 +0000

Marie, you are a star for bringing this up. I live overseas and every time I come home it shocks me at how casually we accept the misogynistic and derogatory attitudes of men in Ireland. The way men talk to each other about women and girls, including using the awful c word, without even noticing they are doing it. From an outsiders point of view I know it is shocking but it is so commonplace in Ireland that it’s barely noticed and rarely commented on.

So I mirror Marie’s request: challenge them. If you really think that this girl has been wronged by the people in her comunity then challenge the people in yours. Talk to young men and boys about their attitudes towards women, how they feel about the way their mothers/sisters /girlfriends should be treated on a day to day basis.

Niall is right-the people who supported Dan Foley did so because they thought he was innocent, despite all the evidence , but also because many would see the crime here is that a man would go to jail for sexual assault. Their thoughts are that a man will be put away for some of the best years of his life, that rape happens because of the actions of the victim, that dressing or dancing provocatively is ‘asking for it’ and that the punishment in no way fits the crime. Many rapists are repeat offenders and I’m wondering how many of these people would support him on his second or third conviction. Or if his next victim was known to them.

It doesn’t matter how nice a chap they think Dan Foley is, Rape is an act of violence. Always.