Infamous informer tied up during burglary

by Barry Wed Aug 23, 2006 04:06

The nearest bar to the house .

Aye .

" maybe that wasnt one of my brighter ideas "

by Peter Simpson Wed Aug 23, 2006 11:31

I see Gay Mitchell on the front page supporting the Queen as well. He and Sean O'C seem to have a lot in common, politically. Maybe they should get together for an informed discussion.

by tom eile Wed Aug 23, 2006 11:43

Isn't there something homophobic about the way Daily Ireland gave prominence to this story - like they were smearing him for visiting a gay bar.?Give him a bad name for being a tout by all means , or for hobnobbing with Ruth Dudley Edwards ,but not for being gay.

by Barry Wed Aug 23, 2006 11:54

the point that it was a gay pub hed invited the men back from was a fair one as the accused claimed hed only tied OCallaghan up because he asked him to and that hed went to the house for gay sex with ocallaghan , not to rob him . The paper has a duty to report both sides of the story as claimed in court. It did not call OCallaghan gay or cast doubt upon his explanation for being in the bar .

by noticed it too Wed Aug 23, 2006 12:04

There is a distinct homophobic whiff about the reportage and most certainly about the gleeful reaction to the story which is being expressed elsewhere on the web by other republicans.

by Observer Wed Aug 23, 2006 12:07

I wonder what kind of reception Roger Casement could count on if he turned up at a meeting with some of the 'republicans' who have posted comments here?

by pat c Wed Aug 23, 2006 12:16

Casement was not an informer. Some of the comments here are just nasty though (I have requested that 2 of them be deleted). Much as I hate this creature I reckon he fell prey to an old trick: get someone to invite you home and then rob them.

I am happy to read that Deadly Edwards lost her laptop, hopefully filled with prospective articles.

by Harry Wed Aug 23, 2006 12:20

Not so much homophobia as schadenfreude, I think you will find.

by Harry Thu Aug 24, 2006 00:46

Pat C - it is not OK to celebrate depriving someone of their capacity to develop their ideas, even those of a reactionary like RDE, while at the same time making moralistic comments about other posters.

It is possibly the bondage rather than the gay aspect that awakens our sad but prurient interest (and that is possibly the “habit” referred to above). Then again that allegation was from the perpetrator of the, ahem, stitch-up. We should not take his word over that of the well-known informer, should we? Should we? Or should we care? And if we say we don’t care, it does not stop us from stopping and staring for a short while, before moving on.

An article from An Phoblacht in 1997 (link below) gives an insight into O’Callaghan. His psychological torture is a manifestation of the Faustian pact he made with British intelligence and their Irish sycophants. They made use of him and threw him aside when they were done.

Of course they have not completely done with him. One British media report of the court case referred in the opening paragraph to O'Callaghan as "The IRA killer Sean O’Callaghan". He still has his unwitting uses in the propaganda war.

http://republican-news.org/archive/1997/March06/06tout.html

by . Thu Aug 24, 2006 17:54

"Isn't there something homophobic about the way Daily Ireland gave prominence to this story - like they were smearing him for visiting a gay bar.?"

If you think that is the reason that a republican paper like DI has the story in such a prominent position then you really need to do some serious reading about recent Irish history in the north!

by pat c Thu Aug 24, 2006 18:05

"Pat C - it is not OK to celebrate depriving someone of their capacity to develop their ideas, even those of a reactionary like RDE, while at the same time making moralistic comments about other posters."

Its not depriving her of her capacity to develop ideas; I presume she uses her brain for that. Shes not exactly short of a few bob to buy a new PC either. I'm not making moralistic comments, merely pointing out that their comments could be taken as being homophobic. Republicans need not make such comments about the Spy.

If the Spy is gay then that is of no import to me. I do take pleasure in his discomfort and that of RDE however. I reckon thats the last time RDE will leave him in charge of her house.

by Pete Brickette Thu Aug 24, 2006 18:15

When I read the headline I wondered had they uncovered yet another one?

by Barry Thu Aug 24, 2006 18:42

If any other man , particularly a closeted gay man, found himself in that predicament you couldnt help but feel sympathy at the desperation and loneliness that led to him taking such a foolish risk. Or perhaps a closeted gay man being so cruelly tricked and preyed upon in this manner when their life must already be in complete turmoil as a result of not coming to terms with their sexuality , that is bth cruel and tragic. But the gay aspect of the case deserves examination , to mention it is not homophobic , merely potentially embarassing to sean O'Callaghan if he is as some would suspect leading a double life denying his homosexuality . Denying it under oath in court too remember .

. Frankly I find it extremely difficult to believe most heterosexual males would even finish their pints once theyd realised theyd mistakenly walked into a gay establishment on their own , never mind invite complete and total strangers back for a drink after spending the night in their company . And i think its fair to assume most people would share that belief . Thats not a dig at the gays , in fact its probably more a reflection of the paranoia and prejudice of your average heterosexual male if anything .Its human nature . Personally speaking id do a quick about turn , maybe have a chuckle about it later but theres no way Id stay in it , much less invite some of its patrons, complete strangers , back to my home . If i was invited to a gay bar by friends its possible I might go , but theres no way Id walk into one on my own and most non gay males would take exactly the same attitude . And as well as that Im sure gay people might get a bit miffed about heterosexual men with flowing moustaches walking into their watering holes unaccompanied and perhaps sending out the wrong signals . Lets face it gays dont go to gay pubs simply because they may be more tastefully decorated . They go there to eye up the talent and shift other men .

This incident raises a number of pertinent points that cant be dismissed and deserve highlighting due to OCallaghans high media profile and lucrative self publicising . Firstly sean OCallaghan makes quite a lucrative living appearing on our television screens and newspapers and in books making the claim hes staying one step ahead of both the Provisional and Real IRA who have teams out looking for him . He regularly claims he will be hunted down and killed if he lets his guard slip. Yet here he is walking into a bar and inviting total strangers , violent drug addicted criminals back to his home in the middle of the night . What on earth would possess a man to do something so stupid , a man in his situation remember ? Was the man desperate for sex or is he simply an idiot wholl invite any gobshite off the street ? Was he desperately lonely or is he talking complete crap about the threat to his life and his meticulous security precautions ? As OCallaghan repeatedly makes these claims and gets paid everytime he does then they deserve open and full examination . And remember too when these claims are made they are frequently done with a definite political agenda as well as the financial one .
Furthermore it raises another issue . OCallaghan is employed as an advisor on security by the Ulster Unionist party . I wouldnt be at all surprised to find out that Ruth Dudley will never let him look after her house again if the mans inviting drug addicted violent criminals back in the middle of the night . So what on earth are the Ulster Unionist party doing having this man advising them on their security for ? It seems to me hes a complete fraud in this regard .
And then we have the repeated portrayal of OCallaghan of himself being a former deadly operator who simply became disgusted by the animalistic sectarian provisionals and turned tout . This deadly operator constantly on the look out for an assassins knife or bullet that could come at any moment never even put up a struggle when accosted by two gay males . Im sure the forst thing that would enter a womans head in such a situation would be the immediate fear of rape if attacked by heterosexual males . Yet OCallaghan seems to have cowed immediately to a threat despite the possibility of death and maybe a fate worse than death . So yet again this calls all his heavily publicised and dont forget publicised bull over the last number of years into grave question . The distinct possibilty that OCallaghan could be a closeted homosexual is newsworthy as it raises the question as to whether this was the reason he turned informer . Is it possible he was blackmailed and the reasons he has given for turning arent true at all and like many of his public claims a convenient invention ? Both the Garda and the British are well capable of this type of blackmail .
I disagree that its homophobic to ponder these points , to question his sexuality or to highlight the situation OCallaghan found himself in . The man has put himself repeatedly in the spotlight and his motives are fair game to be examined as a result of his own self publicity .

by SOC SUpporter Thu Aug 24, 2006 18:47

I have always been delighted that people like O'Callaghan informed on the IRA - anything that helped stop them bl;owin geveryone to bits was welcome, and its members are better off in prison than roaming our streets with bombs. I am equally happy that Barry's 32cSM is infiltrated from top to bottom - heaven knows how many lives that has saved. My condolences to Sean on a bad night out. He is a real hero.

by pat c Thu Aug 24, 2006 18:48

"I disagree that its homophobic to ponder these points , to question his sexuality or to highlight the situation OCallaghan found himself in "

I agree with you there. The only thing I was quibbling about was the nature of a couple of the comments.

by tom eile Thu Aug 24, 2006 21:48

Barry defended the Daily Ireland coverage on Tuesday in this way:
“ The paper has a duty to report both sides of the story as claimed in court. It did not call OCallaghan gay or cast doubt upon his explanation for being in the bar “.

In other words , the paper only mentioned the fact that O’ Callaghan had visited a gay bar indirectly - as part of a neutral report of the
trial of a mugger. I don’t believe that was the case . I think the whole purpose of the front page report was to say to backward readers of the Daily Ireland : Sean O’Callaghan is gay.

Today Barry says that it was perfectly right for the Daily Ireland to call O’Callaghan gay and to cast doubt upon his explanation for being in the bar:
"I disagree that its homophobic to ponder these points , to question his sexuality or to highlight the situation OCallaghan found himself in”
But what was that situation ? O’Callaghan was the victim of a homophobic attack. A homophobic attack is every bit as bad as a sectarian attack , a sexist attack or a racist attack . Harry thinks it’s ok for a newspaper that purports to be progressive to show shadenfreud towards the victim of a homophobic attack. It’s not. Even if that victim is a tout .

by Dirty free stater Fri Aug 25, 2006 03:05

Gay men who mascarade as hetro are themselves homophobic.They display their fear or loathing at being homosexsual by their denial .As an out gay male i am surprised that Pat C defends such idividuals who have em ...no balls to come out . They hurt themselves ,their wives, children.

by village person Fri Aug 25, 2006 06:04

Theres nothing whatsoever to suggest Mr OCallaghan was the victim of a homophobic attack . In fact he wasnt even injured or beaten . As he picked up his companions in a gay bar its more than reasonable to assume he was robbed by 2 gays , not attacked by heterosexuals for being gay . He wasnt beaten or abused for being gay , he suffered no injuries . There was no element of "queer bashing" whatsoever in this case . He was restrained during a burglary by 2 men he met in a gay bar and invited home . Gay bars are were men go to pick up other men for consensual homosexual encounters . As the defences case was that Mr OCallaghan had picked these men up in a gay bar and after inviting them home was tied up because he had asked to be for sexual reasons then the paper has a responsibility to report that . One cant imagine
Now had Mr OCallaghan gone to a straight singles or swingers bar and invited 2 young ladies home for a drink and found himself tied up and robbed would there be a problem in reporting that if one of the girls claimed Mr Ocallaghan had been tied up because he had asked to be ? I dont think its remotely homophobic to report on a case were a man in the public eye through his own relentless self publicity walks into a gay bar and invites 2 young men home for the night, then gets robbed , then ends up in court in a very public case .
Secondly reading through Barrys longer post it seems hes making the point it isnt homophobic for people on Indymedia and elsewhere to discuss and examine the isues raised in this case . I dont believe hes referring to the DI .

by Kenno Wed Aug 30, 2006 14:58

How could anybody be a supporter of that attention seeking idiot? The Sunday Indo line taken by SOC supporter above is just the usual mock-moralistic crap that 'enlightenened' Irish people come up with. 'Oh he saved so many lives'! 'What a hero!' It makes me want to puke. Paid Informers, perjurers and scum like O'Callaghan have stunted the political and social progression of this country for centuries. From 1798 to the Fenians, from Clonmult to Internment, these native parasites have strangled every revolutionary attempt to destroy imperialism. And these same informers are heroes to you? No wonder we've been under colonial, capitalist rule for half a millenium.