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Trump cultivates a particular persona that aims to distract from the narrative sometimes. This punctures that.
THE TRUMP BABY balloon could be on its way with a number of Irish-based organisations seeking to arrange its arrival in time for the visit of US President Donald Trump in November.
The unique balloon was a feature of protests in the UK during the president’s recent visit, and we could be seeing the image of him wearing a nappy floating over O’Connell Bridge in two months’ time.
Kevin Smith, a spokesperson for the Trump baby campaign in the UK, told TheJournal.ie that organisers planned to expand the protest to other countries, as they had crowdfunded more money than was needed for the initial campaign.
“With the extra money, the plan was to get it into as many places as we can,” he said. “The two immediate dates for that are Paris and Dublin.”
Among those seeking to organise the arrival of the Trump baby balloon to Ireland are volunteer organisations Comhlámh, Friends of the Earth Ireland and the Latin America Solidarity Centre.
Alongside other issues, they have chosen to demonstrate strongly against Trump on issues around climate change, migration and the president’s backing of Israel.
Speaking to TheJournal.ie, Comhlámh spokesperson Mark Malone said that organising a protest using the very visual prop of the Trump baby mirrors the president’s “cultivation of a particular persona” that disrupts the narrative and “seeks to distract”.
Plans afoot
It was announced at the end of last month that President Trump would visit Ireland in November, as part of a visit to Europe to mark the 100th anniversary of the armistice that ended World War I.
“While in Europe, the President also will visit Ireland to renew the deep and historic ties between our two nations,” the White House said in a statement.
While the news was welcomed by the government, plans were immediately set afoot for protests to take place when Trump arrives in Ireland.
It was since confirmed yesterday that the visit is likely to happen on 12 or 13 November.
Earlier this week, Labour leader Brendan Howlin met with Green Party leader Eamon Ryan and they agreed to coordinate a public rally during the visit.
Howlin said there are a number of reasons why this action is necessary, and said discussions would be held with other groups
When Donald Trump visited the UK in July, demonstrators flew a giant balloon near the Houses of Parliament in Westminster depicting the US President as a nappy-clad baby.
Furthermore, organisers said they’d been given approval to fly the balloon by London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
A spokesperson for Khan said the mayor “supports right to peaceful protest and understands that this can take many different forms”, and had so given the go-ahead for the blimp.
In a statement to TheJournal.ie, a Labour spokesperson said the party wanted a “family friendly” public rally for democracy, decency and international solidarity against Trump.
“We’ve no doubt that the creativity of the Irish people will be on display, and we would encourage as broad a peaceful demonstration as possible from across the political spectrum and civil society,” the spokesperson said.
No doubt the balloon will make it over across the Irish Sea but it shouldn’t distract from the focus on Trump’s disastrous policies and the reasons why Irish people should protest his visit.
Also in a statement to TheJournal.ie, a Green Party spokesperson said it wasn’t looking for a “monster meeting” type of event for the protest but rather a well-coordinated one.
The spokesperson said: “The last thing we want to do is play Trump’s game of inflaming passions and increasing divisions. Rather, we want to emphasise the ‘This Is Not Normal’ aspect of his presidency (and his election campaign) and that standing up for democratic norms, decency and compassion is more important than ever now.”
‘Broader discontent’
Comhlámh is registered charity that provides supports and services to returned development and volunteer workers.
Malone said the organisation’s decision to back protests against Trump was an effort to reflect the views of its broader membership.
“We’re very happy to be involved with bringing it over,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for a collective organisation of discontent at how society is.”
He said that he expects there to be large numbers attending protests against Trump, but added that protests are just one way to try to effect change.
Malone said: “We’d see this protest as an opportunity… it’s about building that long-term engagement, and active citizenship.”
He singled out Palestinian solidarity, in particular, as a movement that many in Ireland get behind, which stands in contrast to the US President’s pro-Israel stance since taking office.
“People talk about ‘special relationship’ Ireland has with the US,” he added. “This would be a continuation of that. It’s standing with the people in the US that are living under this administration.”
Óisín Coghlan, from Friends of the Earth Ireland, told TheJournal.ie that Trump’s visit provided an opportunity “for all of us to reject the nihilistic vision that he has”.
“The absurdity and hypocrisy of Trump’s position on climate change will be on show when he visits his Trump Hotel in Doonbeg, Co Clare,” he said.
He wants the US to be the only country outside the Paris Agreement, while at the same time he desperately wants to build a ‘big, beautiful, wall’ to prevent the rising sea eating away the dunes of his precious golf course.
Coghlan also accused the president of a “repugnant and reckless approach to everything from democratic values to migration and climate change”.
‘People get it straight away’
Trump Baby UK spokesperson Smith said that the Trump baby balloon in the UK had been successful as a “visual reference point that people could get behind”.
Smith added that issues around climate change and the treatment of migrants under the Trump administration needed to be highlighted, and this form of protest effectively made that point.
“People get it straight away,” he said. “It’s not about pointing fingers at Trump, and America. It’s about highlighting these things.”
So are there any barriers to Trump baby flying?
Well, first it has to get here, and Smith said arrangements were underway to transport the blimp across the Irish Sea.
And, in Ireland, it is unlikely that organisers would have to acquire permission in the same manner that organisers in London sought from Sadiq Khan.
In response to a request from TheJournal.ie, the Irish Aviation Authority directed us towards a statutory instrument regulating the use of tethered balloons, airships, free balloons and kites dating back to 1999.
This is the pertinent section related to a tethered balloon such as the Trump baby:
A balloon in captive or tethered flight, or a kite, shall not be flown within 150 metres of a cloudbase or higher than 60 metres above ground level, measured to the top of the balloon. Where it is proposed to tether a balloon of total height 45 metres or more, the Operating Standards Department of Authority shall first be advised at least 24 hours beforehand.
So, as long as it isn’t flown 60 metres in the air, or within 150 metres of cloud, it’ll be fine to use.
In the event that the Trump baby got free, there’s a rather more ominous provision in the legislation: “Should a tethered balloon break free of its moorings, the person responsible for its operation shall immediately inform the authority of the location and time at which the balloon broke free and its estimated flight path.”
Something similar has actually happened before, when a giant inflatable minion got free and caused traffic chaos in north Dublin.
Malone added that the logistics have yet to be ironed out in terms of coordination with other protests, and where the Trump baby would fly, but said that would be sorted out in the coming weeks.
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So much effort to protest against one visit, the same people aren’t protesting our failing health system, house crisis, suicides, and so on. Go figure.
@B9xiRspG: agreed
@B9xiRspG: it’s just so silly
@B9xiRspG: I suppose you are organising a protest about those issues you seem to care so much about?
@B9xiRspG: You’re fu*king joking right..there are people protesting homelessness in Waterford tonight and getting pulled apart in an article here today as being layabout dole scrounges..Every time someone in this country protests about anything the usual hurlers on the ditch pop up tut tutting that they should be protesting about something else and the second they do that they’re castigated for protesting that too..Jesus Christ you can’t win in this fu+king country.
@B9xiRspG: we are not paying for water and once we personally don’t have to pay out money other peoples problems become irrelevant.
@B9xiRspG: You hit the nail on the head… Sadly the brainwashed media lefty.
@B9xiRspG: ain’t that the truth. They are probably same people that call anyone protesting here in Ireland against homeless crisis etc every name under the sun but there the idiots that will support this.
@Bryan Yelahw: Still nothing. I guess he fell asleep at his keyboard
@B9xiRspG: oh yes they are!
@John Ryan: You can win if you pick your battles. For example the Irish Water charges protests was a small temporary victory.
The M3 protests around the hill of Tara was a loss because the motorway got built eventually with an additional cost to the tax payer of €150m
Protesting against Trump is not a battle that can be won. He’s coming and no protestor is stopping him and no protestor is going to stop our government welcoming him like any other dignitary. Simple as.
Energies could be expended in greater places and on greater things than Trump.
@John Ryan: nailed it.
@B9xiRspG: spot on, pity these quacks aren’t as concerned about the elderly Irish lying on hospital trolleys
@B9xiRspG: how do you know who’s protesting or supporting what? You don’t. Just make a generalised statement there for some thumbs up.
I wish we had a leader like him. It would be nice to have a leader thats puts his countries work force first
@Ger Murphy: He gets his MAGA hats made in China and employs immigrants on minimum wage. Jobs being lost thanks to his daft trade wars et al. You’re right about one thing. He gave his farmers 13bn to compensate for China no longer buying US soya beans. So give over will you.
@Paul Furey: Maga hats… funny there you thought u were gonna make a point worth reading
@Paul Furey: links for proof please!
@Oonagh Brett-Francisco: it’s common knowledge, why do you need him to provide links? Do you need someone to teach you how to use Google?
Like him or loathe him the American people voted him in as their leader and he should be given the same courtesy as others have received.
Anything else is just hypocritical.
@john s: What’s hypocritical is the fawning all over of this fella and rolling out red carpets in front of him, shouldn’t even be allowed to land never mind greet him.
@john s: Canceling his visit would be more to our advantage seeing as he’s about 10 minutes from being impeached or indicted and the type of companies we like to attract from the states hate his guts with a passion. It would send a message that we’re not some backwater willing to kiss ass for scraps and that we actually stand with the majority of Americans who want nothing to do with him either. The owner of tech companies would appreciate that a hell of a lot more than some gobdaw politician meeting him with a red carpet and diddily aye song and dance number at Shannon…
@john s: we are a sovereign nation with a constitutionally protected right to protest
@john s: the same courtesy the u s inflicted in appolitic regmie change in so many countries? With respect your delusional my friend
@john s: actually they didn’t. More people voted for Hillary. Trump’s election was down to the peculiarity of FPTP.
@john s: Obama dropped more bombs than any American president.
@Ian James Burgess: I think LBJ might have dropped more lol
@Ian James Burgess: whether you like it or not bombing has escalated under Trump.
@Ian James Burgess: Good article here…https://news.vice.com/en_ca/article/8xvn8v/more-bombs-more-boots-more-casualties
i watched a video lately (cannot find it :( ) that said that the U.S. are dropping a bomb every 4 minutes…
@Patabake Kennedy: What has he done wrong on the Irish that warrants that he not be let land.
@Gareth Cooney: He was born.
@Patabake Kennedy: Your reply is right on par with your mental capacity.
Any big balloons of Howlin and his crew for sacrificing the poor people of Ireland for the sake of their own pensions?No didn’t think so.
The balloon wasn’t a success in the UK , it’s just gonna be hot air over here too.
@Bill Brown: “a succees” in this context would mean…? He successfully avoided anywhere the balloon would be using helicopters…
@Bill Brown: shows how much you know. He didn’t go to London because of the balloon. Good research though. Lolol
Imagine,a president who tries to deliver on his pledges..growth up..employment/taxes up..protest..wish we could set him up here..
@Kieran OKeeffe: taxes are up?
@Kieran OKeeffe:One thing that i do know is that Trump likes to go playing golf or waffle away at the number of rallies that he holds..Anyways,could you show everyone on here the number of bills that Trump has got passed through Congress since he became president ?
@Kieran OKeeffe: Fake news b
America sneezes- Ireland catches pneumonia. ……..remember that.
@George McCarthy: Thanks Doc.
@George McCarthy: In that comment we would never have got rid of British imperialism.. Granted we replaced it with Irish conservatives.. but the right to protest is a few rights left to us. Hope Joan Burton isn’t in the car with Trump.
Would they ever grow up and cop on, not the time or the place. The green party protesting about climate change !! Pot kettle green ?!! Ireland ranks worst in Europe for emmisions.. Trump is potus visiting euro as mark of respect for lives lost at war..show bit of respect.
@Kerrie Roche: Bullsh*t !!! He’s visiting Europe because he didn’t get his military parade and doesn’t want to stick around the States for the absolute drubbing he and the GOP will get in the midterms…
@Kerrie Roche: the twisted potus deserves every thing thrown at him
Trump may be reprehensible in many ways but that balloon is pretty pureile.
The arsehole behind, so to speak, making that balloon was on the Sean O’Rourke radio show this morning. He was banging on about the right to protest. How important that was. Fair enough. When the subject of a similar balloon being made of Sadiq Khan wearing a bikini was brought up, he described the people behind that as “racists” who had “no imagination”. When brains get very, very tiny due to a lack of the oxygen of challenge Spike Milligan is needed. “Come in number 23. Your time is up”.
@Dave Slater: They have no imagination..they literally stole someone else’s idea…
@John Ryan: They stole it and made it better.
@John Ryan: Deep!
Hmmmm interesting, protesting about climate change, treatment of migrants, but Ireland already has an atrocious record of both those things, kids grow up in direct provision, we have the second worst record for climate action in the EU.
@Lisa Byrne: I wonder if that giant balloon is made from environmentally friendly materials or if it will just be left lying around when they’re done with it and move on the next thing to he offended with
@Sam Harms: I wonder if you’ve ever protested anything in your life?
Trump may be a clown but anyone over the age of 10 who thinks this balloon is a great idea / humorous has clearly been spending too much time with the communists up in bang bang cafe phibsboro lol
Brendan Howlin is usually so silent but he wants to get involved in this. Where was he for the last year on Irish issues?
trump baby? What a waste of money. How pathetic are people who spent that
I hate Trump I also hate homelessness. Why protest a non entity instead of protesting our own problems.
Leave trump to the yanks and deal with Veruca.
@Kevin Geraghty: people are protesting about homelessness right now in Waterford. You should attend if you feel so strongly about it
We are an autonomous, soverign nation of individuals with a constitutionally protected right to protest. EVERY US Presidential State visit has been protested in Ireland for two centuries. Anyone who thinks that Trump should get special treatment is (and I’m sorry for borrowing their boring terminology) a snowflake cuck.
@Paddington C.: Yes but it’s not our protest now is it anymore, do our middle class still need to pander to their British middle/upper class contemporaries to feel they are relevant, take selfies and be really ‘European’.
It would be great if this was a grass roots protest but by even the Journal’s poll/comments it is not, except for the very dedicated few who protested Obama/American policies against popular opinion because they believed in it, knew their facts/references and could argue their cause this is just going to be a farce of the bourgeoisie indignant and virtue signalling for a couple of hours delighted they might be acknowledged abroad.
This type of personalized protest is playing right into Trump’s hand… the more we react the him, the more it feeds his paranoia. We need to be much more subtle…
@Shane: ok. Strongly worded email coming up..
Ahh for f… sake
Get a job hippies.
@Mark Jones: get an education.
What a massive waste of money!
A Irish welcome for Trump
Its great news the “Baby Trump” balloon is coming to Ireland in order to
fly it over his golf course as a cead mile failte welcome from Ireland
The Baby Trump balloon was used to greet Trump in London and Scotland recently and I believe Trump was over come with emotion which brought a tear to his eye when he first saw it.
All the cost with organising it and some jumped up councillor won’t give permission for it at the last minute
Let him come and go without any fuss.. it’ll probably annoy him more than protesting.
There will be people there protesting out of genuine reasoning and concern for their issues of interest.
The trump balloon is for enticing out people who have no such issues, but don’t like trump (who does?) and see a bandwagon passing by.
It detracts from the real issues and only insults our Atlantic neighbors, many of whom also don’t like trump but think that office should be treated cordially.
The funny thing is, all the effort is put in, and he doesnt really care. So just a waste of money.
He is not our president, these protesting sjw idiots will just
make a holy show of themselves.
In all fairness Trump has not started wars killing hundreds of thousands like the war mongering Obama. I did not see the idiot sjw lot protesting Obama’s visit. Bunch of Clowns!
Surprised the ballon has not been sold to Roger Walters for his tour, maybe to replace his lost pig balloon.
@WoodlandBard: not lost, Peter Frampton bought it at his yard sale.
That idiot will probably say something like “ I’m delighted to be in the uk or Scotland!
The best protest against Trump would be to ignore him completely, for the TV news to show his visit minus any kind of crowds. But we can’t resist a chance to protest about something.
What about so the precious unborn babies.
Idiots
Siding with the likes of Howlin and the traditorous greens . Brainwashed sheep
The funny thing is, all the effort is put in, and he do
have your say