Hunger Strike Commemorations part 2

Subject: Hunger Strike Commemorations part 2
From: InOBU
Date: 26 Jan 01 - 12:37 AM

One of our number tells me that the thread has gotten too long for him to open... so we should break into a part 2, with everyone's agreememnt.
Cheers,
Larry

Subject: RE: Hunger Strike Commemorations part 2
From: InOBU
Date: 26 Jan 01 - 12:41 AM

To recap for those who could not open the thread, we were discussing wether or not hunger strike was suiside. The families feel it was not.
Small tangent, and coincidence. Alan Feldman, informed me of Peter Bellamy's death by suiside. I had not heard. I am stunned and saddened. Let's dedicate our selves to try and build folk audiences, and offer each other the emotional support Peter seems not to have had in these days of the decline of our audiences in so many forums.
Larry

Subject: RE: Hunger Strike Commemorations part 2
From: Ringer
Date: 26 Jan 01 - 01:03 AM

As I understand it, "emotional support" wouldn't have helped the clinically depressed Peter Bellamy, who had a loving wife and the friendship of stout fellows like Martin Carthy. Though nominally suicide, his death was (IMO) due to illness. Folk music is immensely the poorer for it.

Subject: RE: Hunger Strike Commemorations part 2
From: GUEST,Keith A of H
Date: 26 Jan 01 - 03:20 AM

Peter was due to appear at my local club when we had news of his death. A great character with a unique style.
Larry, I am no political activist and don't keep notes, but I was remembering a bombing campaign here in England some 5-10 years ago. I think a bomb had been planted at a chemical works and some unarmed policemen tried to block the bombers escape. They were repeatedly shot. If my memory is false I am sure someone will tell me.
Keith.

Subject: RE: Hunger Strike Commemorations part 2
From: InOBU
Date: 26 Jan 01 - 07:48 AM

No, I trust your memory. Often one finds that a sort of folk wisdom of events creaps into the conversation, aided by films and intentionally distorted press. I went to Belfast, the first time when I was about 20 for that reason. I found most accounts difficult enough to sort out without the injection of spin by Ruitter's News. The notion of truth being the first casuality of war is much more at work when the war is fought in a naiton with such an active creative folk culture and with an adcersary who is so good at making propaganda. Not to sound like a broken record, but if not for progress, for the benifit of historians, there should be a truth and reconcilliation process.
As to Peter Bellamy, did he suffer from some sort of unballence, like manic depression. I really am completely at a loss at this - now old, as it turns out, news.
Larry