text:
Miyako-jima

Miyako Island (宮古島) is the largest and the most populous island among the Miyako Islands of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. Miyako Island is administered as part of the City of Miyakojima, which includes not only Miyako Island, but also five other populated islands.

Geography
Miyako-jima lies approximately 300. km southwest of Okinawa Island. With an area of 158.70 km2, Miyako is the fourth-largest island in Okinawa Prefecture. The island is triangular in shape and is composed of limestone. Miyako-jima is subject to drought and is frequently struck by typhoons.

Miyako-jima is well known for its beauty, particularly the Eastern Cape (東平安名岬), a nationally designated Place of Scenic Beauty at the southeasternmost point of Miyako-jima. It is considered by many as one of the most beautiful spots in Japan. Other notable locations include Yonaha Maehama beach, Sunayama beach, Painagama Beach and the sights on Irabu-jima. There are three islands nearby which are connected by bridges to Miyako-jima, Irabujima (as of early 2015), Ikema Island (池間島), and Kurima Island (来間島).

Ikema Bridge connects Miyako Island and Ikema Island. It is 1,425 m-long and was completed in February 1992. Yonaha Maehama beach can be viewed from the opposite side on Kurima Island. The Miyako language, one of several Ryukyuan languages spoken there to some degree.

Climate
Miyako-jima has a tropical rainforest climate (Af according to the Köppen climate classification), because all twelve months have a mean temperature of at least 18 C.

Culture
In Miyako Island, Miruku-potoke (the local name for the Maitreya Buddha) is traditionally believed to be an ugly god who arrives from China to create humans, animals, and crops. The handsome god Saku-potoke (the historical Shakyamuni Buddha, founder of Buddhism) then challenges him to a flower contest and steals the flower while the other sleeps. Miruku-potoke is thus defeated and forced to return to China, which is why China is a prosperous country while Miyako is not. Nearly identical creation myths are found in Korea.

Miyako is home to a unique festival called Paantu (パーントゥ), which occurs in the ninth month of the cultural (lunar) calendar. Three men dressed in grass, leaves and mud walk around town smearing the mud on houses, cars and people. They carry sticks in one hand and an expressionless mask in the other. Legend holds that those who have been muddied by the Pantu will have a year of protection and good fortune. Owners of new homes will also invite Pantu to give a muddy 'blessing' to their homes.

Miyako has its own version of soba. Otōri is a custom of drinking awamori, a distilled beverage native to Okinawa, Japan. It is performed by people sitting (usually around a table). One offers a toast, drinks from a small glass, and then offers some to each person at the table making a round, and usually going to the right. When the toaster makes their way back to their spot, the person who passed the otori before pours them another glass. They then announce "tsunagimasu" and drink their second glass. After a brief interval, it is then the turn of the next person to pass the otori, which continues until the celebration is ended.

Economy
Miyako is home to sugarcane cultivation, and produces brown sugar. Miyako jōfu is a locally produced hand-woven textile made from ramie fiber. It was formerly known as Satsuma jōfu. The textile traces its production to the Tensho period, 1573–92.

A large tourism boom in Miyako, starting with locals and Taiwanese visitors in the early 2010s, has been steadily growing with the annual number of tourists reaching over 1 million in both 2018 and 2019. The city has been struggling to cope with cruise megaships from mainland China– currently, the central port in Hirara can only handle ships as large as 50,000 tons but port officials hope to service ships as large as 200,000 tons. The effects of this growing tourist industry may change the character of the island as its population is small and rural.

Defense
The Miyako Strait has strategic significance. Chinese warships' passage through the straits is monitored by Japanese forces.

In late April 2015, it was confirmed that the Japanese Ministry of Defense was in advanced planning regarding the permanent deployment of a GSDF security unit to Miyakojima, to begin sometime in fiscal year 2016. This is part of ongoing efforts to improve the defenses of the Nansei Islands. A GSDF security unit is a battalion sized force, of up to 500 personnel, whose role on Miyakojima will include providing the initial response to large-scale disasters in the area as well as acting as a rapid response force to counterattacks on remote islands within its area of responsibility.

The Miyakojima security unit's exact composition is unclear as of April 2015, though given its known taskings, it is likely that the TOE will include both the Komatsu LAV and soft skinned vehicles with all terrain capability.

Consideration is also currently being given to deploying GSDF units equipped with anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles to the island.

Tokyo has currently earmarked ¥21.2 billion yen ($205 million USD) in FY2021 to build new Japan Coast Guard patrol boats and helicopters for the region, with plans to assign 22 ships of over 1,000 tons in the region by 2024. Miyako-jima's Coast Guard station is home to 9 Shimoji-class small patrol vessels and a Tokara-class medium patrol vessel.

Positioned in between the larger commercial ports of Ishigaki and Naha, Coast Guard facilities on Miyako's neighbor islands can provide 3 Tsugarus, a Kunigami, and a Hateruma class patrol vessel based at the 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters in Naha and 11 Kunigami-class patrol vessels and 2 Hateruma-class patrol vessels homeported at Ishigaki should the need arise. Along with facilities for housing up to 600 crew, Ishigaki is now JCG's largest base, surpassing even that of Yokohama.

Points of interest

 * Miyakojima City Tropical Plant Garden
 * Japan Airlines maintains a ticketing office on Miyako Island. It is only for domestic flights.
 * Miyakojima 100 km Ultramarathon.
 * Higashi-hennazaki Eastern Cape of Miyako Island

Airlines

 * Miyako Airport

Lanes

 * Port of Hirara
 * Port of Shimairi - For Ōgami-jima

Buses

 * Miyako Kyoei Bus
 * Yachiyo Bus
 * Kyowa Bus
 * Chuo Kotsu - For Shimojijima Airport in Shimoji-jima

Trains

 * The only railway on this island is operated in Shigira Resort, and conformed as a Chairlift, which connects the westernmost with the southernmost points of railway in Japan.
 * Stations : Shigira-ue - the westernmost railway station in Japan. Shigira-shita - the southernmost railway station in Japan.

title: Miyako-jima


text:
Talk:Manna from Heaven

Untitled
Note: it really is correct that the collection title has the word "manna," while the short story in the collection spells it "mana." Joyous 16:57, Oct 10, 2004 (UTC)
 * Yes. that is correct. It may be a typo, or there may be some meaning in it, because manna and mana are two different things. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.33.198.74 (talk) 19:22, 6 September 2009 (UTC)

Ummmm......
So what's the original meaning?

WikiProject class rating
This article was automatically assessed because at least one WikiProject had rated the article as start, and the rating on other projects was brought up to start class. BetacommandBot 13:41, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

Table of Contents
An expanded edition from Positronic Publishing, 2020/2021 adds three stories just before the Amber section: Tom Dean (talk) 17:46, 14 September 2022 (UTC)
 * 1) Nine Starships Waiting, (nv) Fantastic Stories of Imagination March 1963
 * 2) Tunnel Vision, (vi) Galaxy May/June 1994
 * 3) The Three Descents of Jeremy Baker, (ss) VB Tech Journal June 1995 / F&SF July 1995

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Talk:Manna from Heaven


text: User talk:68.38.10.190

title: User talk:68.38.10.190


text:
Talk:Oku no Hosomichi

Categorization
This article would be better served with the addition of one or more category tags. ... said somebody, without signing it

"Ogaki"
Is "Ogaki" Ōgaki in Gifu-ken? Either way, a link, explanation or both would help. -- Hoary 09:58, 11 April 2006 (UTC)

 * Yes, it seems to be. Or so I learn from the excellent map at the back of the first-rate photo collection Shin Oku no hosomichi by Takanashi Yutaka. -- Hoary 13:42, 12 April 2006 (UTC)

 * It can also be written as Oogaki as well.--Susuki 03:12, 28 September 2006 (UTC)

Retreads
I know of one photographic reexploration, Takanashi's 新おくのほそ道, and I'm pretty sure I've seen others. Amazon shows Lesley Downer, On the Narrow Road to the Deep North: Journey into a Lost Japan; Edward Bond, The Bundle; or, New Narrow Road to the Deep North (aka Narrow Road to the Deep North) and some other books that might either be interesting or or just play on the title with no particular significance. If the former, they might be added. -- Hoary 10:33, 15 April 2006 (UTC)

The most famous quote
Can someone translate this, please? Many readers of the English Wikipedia are not conversant with Japanese. -- llywrch 00:41, 26 October 2006 (UTC)

 * The format's not great, but I've added what I'm pretty sure is a translation. --Gwern (contribs) 03:15, 26 October 2006 (UTC)

 * Your addition is definitely a needed improvement. Thanks. --

llywrch 04:57, 27 October 2006 (UTC)

The translation
The Donald Keene translation posted here is not a translation of this whole passage, only of the middle part. It leaves out the very famous first two sentences or so, and the last part containing the poem. I am working on a translation that I will maybe post later. The initial part says something like this: "The days and months are travelers passing through a hundred ages. The years going by are travelers too. Those who spend their lives in a boat on the water, or driving a horse, until old age comes to meet them, they live the traveler's life day after day; the place they live in is travel."

Then comes the part that is already on the page. After that, it says something like, "Already while mending the rips in my pants, tying a strap to my bamboo hat, and applying moxa for endurance, I was remembering the old feeling about the moon over Matsushima...I turned my house over to someone, moved to Sampu for a temporary stay. I posted this poem--

Even the door is grassy... But for the generation moving in, there'll be the doll festival

--as the beginning of a sequence on a pillar of my house."

This is my original translation. It is quite a close translation, more literal than most published ones, but is unpolished. --

lotuspetal7 17:20, 21 March 2007 (UTC)

 * Well buddy, it is has finally been taken care of since I chose to simply quote the whole first section. As long as we don't get into trouble in terms of copyrights and all, I don't think we'll be needing an "unofficial" translation for the article, but that might come in handy one day. On the other hand, I remember the disastrous effects of having a "free" translation featured in an article... The Ame ni mo Makezu page has forever been subjected to (admittedly very slow) editing wars as various amateur translators and japanophiles battle for their own vision/version of what the correct or appropriate translation should be. I take what's happened to that article as a cautionary tale for any pages where an open literary text is left at the mercy of just about anyone with a superiority complex. • H☼ωdΘesI†fl∉∈   {KLAT}  • 21:32, 24 November 2010 (UTC)
 * I would advise against any unofficial translations of these types of work as they can be seen as original research. Yoenit (talk) 21:39, 24 November 2010 (UTC)

External Links - copyvio?
Among the external links is one to a very complete site at the University of Oregon, containing the text of ONH in five different translations to English. I understand WP policy precludes linking to external sites which are in breach of copyright. The site in question appears prima facie to be in just such violation. I can find no info re copyright nor about who is responsible for the site (which apparently has not been updated since 2002). However there is an email link, and I have written requesting clarification on this issue. If I do not receive a satisfactory answer within one week I will remove the link. If anyone can provide further info please do. --Yumegusa (talk) 18:03, 26 May 2008 (UTC)

--Yumegusa (talk) 19:39, 26 May 2008 (UTC)
 * Site editor has replied recommending that we remove the link as there "may be copyright issues involved". Removing

Seeds in the Heart
The "Plot" section currently cites two references to "Seeds in the Heart" without any details of this publication. Can anyone supply the needed detail? --Yumegusa (talk) 21:02, 25 September 2008 (UTC)

Sorta off subject, but...
What does no mean in Japanese, I hear it a lot on titles of Japanese books and movies and stuff...Pvmillennium (talk) 00:00, 7 January 2009 (UTC)

 * It's the genitive case particle. So Oku no hosomichi means "oku's hosomichi" or "interior's narrow-road". -- Hoary (talk) 01:18, 7 January 2009 (UTC)

 * Alright, thanks. Pvmillennium (talk) 01:19, 7 January 2009 (UTC)

 * And there's this, too. -- Hoary (talk) 03:03, 7 January 2009 (UTC)

Section "Significance in the Global Literary Canon"
Parking this here for discussion: Basho saw poetry as a process of meditation concerned with the art of describing the brief appearances of the everlasting self, of eternity, in the circumstances of the world. We get a sense of this ethical purpose in his writing at the commencement of Narrow Road to the Deep North. In a more lonely and perhaps more profound pilgrimage than Chaucer depicted in the Canterbury Tales, Dr Samuel Johnson in Rasselas, or, in more recent times, Cormac McCarthy in The Road, Basho reflects on mortality in intermingled poetry and prose as he journeys north from shrine to shrine.

''“Days and months are travellers of eternity. So are the years that pass by. Those who steer a boat across the sea, or drive a horse over the earth till they succumb to the weight of years, spend every minute of their lives travelling.”''

Basho saw his haiku poetry as designed to capture with surgical precision the moment of insight when the eternal enters our world. Our reading intellectual rubs against the words, till it parts to let insight reveal the meaning, the ethical truth. As an example:

''We gaze

Even at horses,

This morn of snow!''

How little this might mean until we begin to imagine people opening the door on a bright morning after a snowstorm. Everything is now dazzling white and the poor pack-horses that the eyes of the humans had avoided from pity or indifference the day before are now objects of wonder as the stand out in the landscape. Those readers whose consciousness may be incapable or only partially aware of such a revelation, are given the chance to obtain a fresh and more ethical way of looking at the world. The place of this text in the global literary canon seems assured. The section has multiple issues. It appears to be largely WP:ORiginal research - the PDF reference at the end is to the editor's own work, on staff webspace at ANU; in tone and style it resembles an essay, being polemic rather than encyclopaedic. Moreover, it is packed with unreferenced non-WP:NEUtral assertions. In its current state it degrades the article substantially, but I've parked it here in case any editor cares to attempt to salvage anything of it.

Please do not reinstate it without prior discussion of the above issues here. --Yumegusa (talk) 10:06, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

 * I agree second half can be deleted. But I think first half substantially improves the article particularly by beginning to set it in global literary context. Surely this is important. The reference is published as a working paper. Surely this is a section you'd wish scholars to expand over the years. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Fauncet (talk • contribs) 18:59, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

 * Your recent edits, Fauncet, represent a major improvement. I have no objection to such a section per se. However, please explain how you can claim that using your own work as a reference avoids WP:ORiginal research. There is no evidence in the reference to suggest that your paper has been published independently: it has been uploaded to the staff webspace at your institution. Please refer to WP:Reliable and explain how this can be acceptable. Also, please provide the page number for the Shirane citation. Lastly, please sign your Talk page posts by typing --~ --Yumegusa (talk) 19:48, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Prepared to concede on my paper (at least until it is published, then I might reapproach). But I think a section on critical analysis of the text in global literary context (particularly pilgrimage literature) adds value and that it is important this entry (in an English not a Japanese encycopaedia) starts to critically analyse this text (its faults and stregths) by comparison with other world literature. Although the point isn't made so clearly this intro does suggest such a comparison to Nobuyuki Yuasa in Basho: The Narrow Road to the Deep North and Other Travel Sketches (Baltimore: Penguin, 1966).Fauncet (talk) 03:49, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

Can I suggest you or other editors also start paras on 1) Basho's literary and other influences in writing the text and 2) mentions of the text in later Japanese and world literature

 * Thanks. Again, please provide page numbers for your inline citations - see WP:CITE--Yumegusa (talk) 08:39, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

 * I have added this to editor Fauncet's talk page:

Fourth request for page numbers in your references
I must ask you again to provide page numbers for the refs you added at Oku no Hosomichi. As earlier commented, the statements in question appear prima facie to be wp:or and when you were initially asked for a page number for the ref you provided for the first sentence, you changed the ref to another book, again without page number. You have since edited the page further, but have not provided the full references, making your text impossible to wp:Verify. There will remain no choice but to remove the section in question unless this matter is addressed. --Yumegusa (talk) 20:02, 24 June 2009 (UTC)

 * Section removed as unreferenced - see above. Please provide full refs incl page numbers if reinstating - see Cite. --Yumegusa (talk) 19:25, 25 June 2009 (UTC)

American vs British spelling
As there seems to be a great number of illiterate and uncultured amongst Wikipedia editors, I shall provide a small crash course on spelling differences as it pertains to this article: Please visit the article American and British English spelling differences, which is most interesting and enlightening. Thank you and God bless the piss-poor (which, by the way, can also be written "piss poor") education systems. • H☼ωdΘesI†fl∉∈   {KLAT}  • 21:12, 24 November 2010 (UTC)
 * 1) There are different ways to write and spell the English language, most prominent being the "American" way and the "British" way.
 * 2) Let's take for example the word... "traveller", which is found in Donald Keene's translation published by Kodansha in 1996.
 * 3) In British English one would normally write "traveller", whereas in American English most would spell it "traveler".
 * 4) Your humble teacher—me—doesn't have the slightest idea as to why an American translator would choose a predominantly "British" spelling in his work, but that's just the way it is.
 * 5) The course is over. Doesn't it make everything clearer? So get over it!
 * How about you focus your literate and cultured self on writing a section explaining these opening sentences and what is so brilliant about them so it actually becomes a pertinent quote instead of a decorative one, instead of making snide comments on the talkpage? Yoenit (talk) 21:55, 24 November 2010 (UTC)

WP: Japan Assessment Commentary
The article was assessed as Start-class, for lack of Coverage and References. The article would benefit from sections describing the impact of this work, the significance of the particular passage that is quoted, and a referenced section on critics' analyses. The philosophy section is broad, most of it has to do with Basho's work in general, and it is pretty vague.Boneyard90 (talk) 19:59, 4 May 2012 (UTC)

title: Talk:Oku no Hosomichi


text:
Swan Island

Swan Island may refer to:

Australia

 * Little Swan Island, Tasmania, Australia
 * Swan Island (Tasmania), Australia
 * Swan Island (Victoria), Australia

Falkland Islands

 * Swan Islands, Falkland Islands
 * Weddell Island, formerly Swan Island, Falkland Islands

Honduras

 * Swan Islands, Honduras

Ukraine

 * Swan Islands in Karkinit Bay, off northwestern Crimean coast

United Kingdom

 * Swan Island, London
 * Swan Island, County Down, townland in County Down, Northern Ireland
 * Swan Island, County Antrim, townland in County Antrim, Northern Ireland

United States

 * Swan Island (Alaska)
 * Swan Island (Chesapeake Bay), Chesapeake Bay
 * Swan Island (Oregon)
 * Swan Island Site, Illinois
 * Swan's Island, Maine
 * Swan Island (Michigan)

Other

 * Swan Island (band), rock band from Portland, Oregon
 * Little Swan Island hutia, extinct species of rodent
 * Île des Cygnes (disambiguation)

title: Swan Island


text: Talk:Maternity

title: Talk:Maternity


text:
User:Mentatus

''Above all else, the mentat must be a generalist, not a specialist. It is wise to have decisions of great moment monitored by generalists. Experts and specialists lead you quickly into chaos. They are a source of useless nit-picking, the ferocious quibble over a comma. The mentat-generalist, on the other hand, should bring to decision-making a healthy common sense. He must not cut himself off from the broad sweep of what is happening in his universe. He must remain capable of saying: "There's no real mystery about this at the moment. This is what we want now. It may prove wrong later, but we'll correct that when we come to it." The mentat-generalist must understand that anything which we can identify as our universe is merely a part of larger phenomena. But the expert looks backward; he looks into the narrow standards of his own specialty. The generalist looks outward; he looks for living principles, knowing full well that such principles change, that they develop. It is to the characteristics of change itself that the mentat-generalist must look. There can be no permanent catalogue of such change, no handbook or manual. You must look at it with as few preconceptions as possible, asking yourself: "Now what is this thing doing?"''

The Mentat Handbook

Awards Sandbox

title: User:Mentatus


text:
Apoc

Apoc may refer to:

 * African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control, a World Bank and World Health Organization NGO
 * Apolipoprotein C, a family of four proteins that resides on lipoproteins.
 * Anglo-Persian Oil Company, later BP
 * Anarchist People of Color
 * APOC (wrestler) is the ring name of a professional wrestler.
 * Apoc, a character in the Matrix series
 * Assistant production office coordinator, a film and television administrative job

title: Apoc


text:
User talk:Brisky

Hi there, Brisky. Welcome to Wikipedia. When you get a chance, drop us a note at New user log to introduce yourself. You should also feel free to drop me a question on my talk page.
 * You can sign your name on talk pages by using " " for your username and " ~ " for your username and a timestamp.
 * The Wikipedia Tutorial is a good easy-to-follow guide to editing Wikipedia.
 * Welcome is another good place to start.
 * How does one edit a page gives editing help.
 * Manual of Style gives formatting info.
 * Policies and guidelines tell about the principles we operate on. It's important, but don't try to read it all now.
 * Help covers a broad range of useful topics.
 * Help desk is a good place to ask questions.
 * Show preview explains how to double-check your edits before saving.

Happy editing, J OHN C OLLISON | (Ludraman) 17:05, 10 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Chitty!
Great job on the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang articles. I have separated the film article from the book article and will eventually create an article for the stage musical (unless you get to it first!). I also added a stub tag and a little tweak to "Me Ol' Bamboo". Just thought I'd let you know, and thanks again. Cheers, Her Pegship 03:49, 2 February 2006 (UTC)

title: User talk:Brisky


text:
Talk:Ireland

Ireland naming discussions
Per WP:ARCA, discussions on Ireland article names no longer have to take place at WT:IECOLL. In future, they can take place on article talk pages. Scolaire (talk) 13:20, 3 December 2023 (UTC)

 * http://publications.europa.eu/code/en/en-370100.htm
 * NB:
 * Do not use ‘Republic of Ireland’. Although this name is found in some documents, it does not have official status. 86.120.171.235 (talk) 05:37, 12 April 2024 (UTC)

Usage of British Isles
The term British Isles is not offically recognised in Ireland. It seems that the entire argument to insert this term is due to the common usage in Britain. But it's not used officially or colloquialy in Ireland. It's use internationally (outside the UK) is extremely rare.

The common usage in Ireland is Ireland and Britain or Britain and Ireland to identify the islands.

An example of how the islands of Britain and Ireland are referred to would be in the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement. This is an agreement between both sovereign states which does not mention the term.

A colloquial term, that is seldom used outside of the UK, should not be used to describe Ireland and it's place geographically.

Please remove this British centric, colonial, unoffical, political and insulting term from Wikipedia. Thank you. 2A02:8084:4241:E200:A60E:2E2E:BAA9:AD18 (talk) 22:18, 25 April 2024 (UTC)
 * Denied. The Banner  talk 22:43, 25 April 2024 (UTC)
 * I'm not sure why this request is denied without explanation. This term 'the British Isles' is not accepted in Ireland. It's only sparesly used outside of the UK due to the offense it causes. I question the insistence to feature this prominently in this article and I have to assume it comes from a political viewpoint.
 * What do you call someone from Scandanavia? Scandanavian. Iberia? Iberian.
 * What do you call someone from the British Isles. British? Can you not see why this is inaccurate and offensive to Irish people? I can not think of any other region that lays claim to foreign land like this. It's basically like calling Iberia 'The Spanish Peninsula'.
 * Please remove this outdated and uncommonly used phrase. Thank you. 2A02:8084:4241:E200:69C9:889F:2F4E:273E (talk) 22:22, 26 April 2024 (UTC)
 * Please read all the talk page discussion about this and present a new case. Canterbury Tail talk 01:03, 27 April 2024 (UTC)
 * Thanks for your reply. I have read the discussion. The above arguments keeps refering to 'common usage'. My point is is that it's not commonly used in Ireland or outside of the UK. The common usage in Ireland (i.e. the island in question) is to refer to the two islands as Britain and Ireland or the UK and Ireland.
 * It's hard to 'present a new case' when you insist that it is the common term to use 'the British Isles'. The point I'm making is that it is not in common usage outside of a single country (the UK)
 * Sports teams (e.g. British and Irish Lions), international agreements (e.g. Belfast Agreement), political institutions (e.g. British Irish Council), non-political institutions (e.g. RNLI) do not use the term. Why wouldn't they if it's common usage for a geographic description (in much the same way that Scandanavia or Nordic is used as a geographic (and political) term in all the nordic countries)? I've never seen a commercial institution (e.g. Tesco, McDonalds, etc.) use the term British Isles in Ireland to sell any products. Not once. However, I've seen it used in Britain. My point being why wouldn't Tesco use the term 'British Isles' in Ireland? The answer is that it's not accepted and causes offense.
 * And of course it's an offensive term. It's describing me as British even though I'm Irish. It's a term popularised after the Act of Union. It's archaic. Ireland is commonly called a 'Home Nation' or the 'Irish Republic' in the UK. Just because some say it doesn't make it correct or an accepted term.
 * The commonly used term for both islands by people, politically, in institutions, etc. is Britain and Ireland. This is the case across Ireland, the UK, Europe and the world. I don't understand the refusal to recognise the commonly used phrase to describe both islands.
 * In summary:
 * 1. You say that the British Isles is a commonly used term - I've argued it's not and given concrete examples of insitutions that would use it if it were common.
 * 2. I've given the commonly used term for the group of islands (be it by people, in the media, sports, charities, cross border institutions, etc.): Britain and Ireland, the UK and Ireland. 2A02:8084:4241:E200:D17F:4A17:8A56:847E (talk) 14:25, 30 April 2024 (UTC)
 * https://www.rte.ie/news/analysis-and-comment/2024/0403/1441354-uisceeireann-water/ January 2024
 * https://www.rte.ie/news/uk/2024/0319/1438611-coastal-erosion/ March 2024
 * https://nos.nl/artikel/2505776-storm-isha-richt-schade-aan-in-buitenland-code-oranje-voor-nederlandse-kust Dutch, January 2024
 * https://nos.nl/artikel/2509472-weer-discussie-over-tunnel-bij-stonehenge-archeologisch-van-groot-belang Dutch, February 2024
 * https://travel-dealz.de/deal/hal-britische-inseln-kreuzfahrt/ German, 2024
 * So yes, I have the idea that the term is in actual, recent, Irish and international use. The Banner  talk 14:56, 30 April 2024 (UTC)
 * 2. https://www.rte.ie/news/uk/2024/0319/1438611-coastal-erosion/ March 2024
 * To be pedantic, although publish by RTÉ, this article was about the UK and usage of the term in question was a direct quote from a British person. Cashew.wheel (talk) 16:23, 30 April 2024 (UTC)
 * You've come back with some rare examples. If I supply all the examples of the use of Britain and Ireland, would that suffice around the usage in Ireland and internationally to refer to the islands as Britain and Ireland? I can supply recent examples from Ireland, the UK and further afield? I can supply these with sources in media, direct quotes, government statements, geographic references, etc. I can provide a comprehensive list of examples where Britain and Ireland is used instead of the 'British Isles'. Would this list suffice in updating it? This is a key point.
 * Even the Wiki entry on County Londonderry refers to the fact that it's called County Derry as well, even though officially and historically that county has never been called County Derry. The UK government, the BBC, etc. state that it's County Londonderry. But the article recognises that a large part of Derry itself and most of Ireland don't call the county or city as Londonderry (even though there are examples of it being referred to as Londonderry in southern Ireland and by nationalists).
 * The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) stated that the two islands are commonly called “Britain and Ireland”. "The British Isles is not an officially recognised term in any legal or inter-governmental sense. It is without any official status. The Government, including the Department of Foreign Affairs, does not use this term".
 * The Ordnance Survey (OS) of Ireland, say that they “have no need to, nor would we use term British Isles”. (Source on both quotes: https://www.thejournal.ie/is-ireland-british-isles-northern-ireland-europe-islands-1140112-Oct2013/):
 * I can find many articles, books, etc. of how Britain and Ireland are referred to as Britain and Ireland. These examples can be political, commercial or geographic (e.g. forestry, rivers, etc.). A quick example of the type of examples I can provide (and ones which I give that largely avoid reference to the two sovereign states i.e. geographic):
 * https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/feb/26/british-irish-rivers-desperate-state-pollution-report-trust
 * https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rivers-Britain-Ireland-Great-S/dp/0237524821
 * https://www.janetredlertravelandtourism.co.uk/news/lonely-planet-selects-40-attractions-uk-and-ireland-ultimate-travel-list/
 * It's actively encouraged to not use the term by the Irish government, by the UK government, by certain media outlets, by the Ordanance Survey of Ireland, etc. The list goes on. As in my previous examples, it's not used by most commercial and inter governmental insitutions. I can't get one example of a commercial/gov instution that refers to Britain and Ireland as the British Isles. But I'm sure they exist.
 * There are many instances where something is used 'commonly' but it's not accurate e.g. Irish Republic, Home Nations when including Ireland, the British West Indies, Britain being a mainland to Ireland, etc.
 * The British Isles is inaccurate, unofficial, anglo-centric and an offensive term. Your opinion that it is 'commonly used' breaks down when 'Britain and Ireland' is the most commonly used description. As mentioned, I can back this up with many examples, which can be timeboxed to recent articles, books, quotes, active gov/commercial institutions, etc.
 * Can this article be updated to reflect this please? 2A02:8084:4241:E200:52AF:C4BE:1FF3:7F76 (talk) 10:49, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * No need to update as the info is correct. That some people find it offensive can be true but that does not alter the fact that the geographical term is still in common use. Beside that: 1) the Guardian sources is referring to rivers on the island of Ireland and to rivers on the island of Britain. Not to the archipelago; 2) the book does the same. Two islands, not the archipelago; 3) Lonely planet refers to the countries, not the archipelago.
 * And in a case of original research, I was asking around in my local pub. (Rural, West-Ireland setting) No one found it offensive, in fact, no one was bothered by the use of the term or did care about it. The Banner  talk 11:07, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * On your last point, I asked my friends in a pub and they were bothered by the use of the term and did care about it (Suburban, East-Ireland setting).
 * We are disputing the fact if it's commonly used and I've given a ream of evidence to state that it's not the most commonly used name. If it was, then its use would be widespread across governments, organisations, media, etc. Why don't the RNLI use the term 'British Isles' when they are effectively a borderless organisation across all islands of Britain and Ireland. And as previously mentioned, the British Irish Council doesn't use it, but that organisation features the local governments from the Channel Islands (the islands off France) and the Isle of Man.
 * In terms of it being an offensive term - it's not my main argument. Yes, it's offensive to some and not to others. But my main argument is about the correct term and the most common term. For example, Londonderry is offensive to some, but it is also a legally based fact. And I was pointing out that the Wikipedia article refers to the fact that it is also called Derry, with no legal basis. For some reason, the article on Ireland, the most commonly used term when combining the island with Britain and its islands, is not used or accepted by this article.
 * In terms of the 'correct term'. First, correct to who? I've just stated that the Irish government, British government, many media style guides, and commercial organisations do not use the term and use Britain and Ireland. If British Isles was correct, then they would be using that term. However, it's seldom used. How is it the most common term when rarely used by all these organisations, many of which cover every single consitutional makeup of Britain and Ireland (e.g. RNLI, British Irish Council, Tesco, etc).
 * The archipelago consists of Britain and Ireland and then some minor islands surrounding both islands. Are the Channel Islands part of the archipelago or part of France? Are the Orkney islands part of the British Isles or their own separate archipelago? The 'correct' term doesn't seem to be able to clarify this with inconsistencies in the definition of what makes up the 'British Isles'. If it's the correct term, then you'd expect a consistent definition. The 'British Isles' is a confusing and inexact definition.
 * I've addressed each point you've made with hard counter arguments:
 * Common Use
 * Extensive evidence from every type of entity that Britain and Ireland is a more commonly used term than 'the British Isles'.
 * Examples of other wikipedia entries e.g. Londonderry referencing the other commonly known name for the area, Derry. I didn't bring in other geographic arguments like the use of Australasia for the Wikipedia entries for Australia, NZ and New Guinea
 * Correct Term
 * I've highlighted the inconsistent definition of 'the British Isles'.
 * I've highlighted that Irish and UK governments, as well as other organisations spanning both the UK and Ireland don't use and actively insist on not using the term; strange statements to make about the 'correct term'.
 * I've questioned who states that it is the 'correct term' when so many prominant entities avoid using it or actively say it shouldn't be used.
 * The Local Pub
 * Maybe you're buying all the pints? There is a national characteristic, I'm sure not unique to Ireland, to go along with someone even when they're saying something you don't agree with. It's basic manners of not wishing to offend. They may see you as intelligent and will give way to your opinion. I don't know. Alternatively, you could be right and they like/accept the term and have no problem with it. I never said the entire country has an issue with it, only that it is not commonly used and even to say extremely rare. I've never really heard anyone say Londonderry from the south of Ireland but some people wouldn't have an issue with it. Honestly, I've never heard any Irish person call it 'the British Isles', in their own words. That's not to say it never happens. Again, my point is more on common use than offense.
 * Is there an escalation process for this? I think the arguments I've outlined are correct, reasonable, and evidence based. 2A02:8084:4241:E200:52AF:C4BE:1FF3:7F76 (talk) 15:41, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * The usual escalation process is to provide reliable sources to back up your claims. By now you have come with claims, one source that it is a contentions topic (what we already know) and links to pages that do not back up your claims.
 * But you can always try Third opinion. The Banner  talk 16:01, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * This statement of yours:
 * "links to pages that do not back up your claims."
 * What is it that you're looking for and what can you offer as a counter argument to illustrate the most common usage across all types of institutions. Not oblique references in scientific journals but an illustration of 'common usage'?
 * I can offer a comprehensive list of political, cultural, non-political organisations and private enterprises that use the term 'Britain and Ireland', rather than 'the British Isles'. I've listed a few off below, without links for now, but easily found. To backup and support the claim of the British Isles being the most common usage, please indicate across political, cultural, sporting, arts, commercial, charities, the common usage of the phrase 'British Isles'. I fail to find any examples beyond some journal articles relating to rivers and forestry. But I'm sure they're out there. I'm arguing of the most common usage.
 * Backing up 'Britain and Ireland', please find a list put together in a couple of minutes:
 * POLITICAL
 * - Government of Ireland official standing - offical statement not to use term
 * - Good Friday Agreement - no reference to 'British Isles' in an international peace agreement between both countries
 * - The British Irish Council - no reference to 'British Isles' (and this is the only political grouping between all governments in Britain and Ireland)
 * - British government use of the term - avoided
 * CULTURAL
 * Ordnance Survey of Ireland - official statement not to use term
 * British and Irish Lions - no reference to 'British Isles', many of Britain and Ireland
 * Tesco - use of different labelling for beef, etc.
 * Observer/Guardian - avoid use of term in style guide
 * Mercury Prize - no reference to 'British Isles'
 * Booker Prize - no reference to 'British Isles'
 * NON POLITICAL
 * - RNLI - one of the few cross border charities
 * I haven't put the links in but they're obvious and can include them if you wish. The above point is, of course, not comprehensive. But a marker of a clear trend as to the most common term for Britain and Ireland, which is...Britain and Ireland.
 * I understand there might be some groupthink here and standing your guard from every change argued for in the article. I understand. This group has been batting away this correction for a long time. But even your source for the line in the Ireland article doesn't reference 'the British Isles' i.e.:
 * "Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest in the world."
 * The source from this statement then goes on to state:
 * 81638.1 sq.km.  Ireland (Ireland/United Kingdom)   1032 m
 * Even here, they use the two soverign countries and not a reference to the 'British Isles'. But this is the source you give!
 * And finally, I've clearly demonstrated that the term 'British Isles' is an ambiguous term that is not geographically precise and is open to misinterpretation of political ownership (as there is no other equivalent geographic grouping as overtly political/controversial as this).
 * Please be clear in what you're looking for as evidence of 'common usage'. 2A02:8084:4241:E200:BED1:7611:C7A0:D130 (talk) 22:03, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Good jaysus. With all due respect, IP, you're not going to win hearts and minds by posting walls of text. Especially when what you're posting is pretty much exactly what's been posted on this page, the British Isles page, the Terminology of the British Isles page, and probably a couple of others, going back well over 15 years. We have heard all of these arguments, and they've been rejected. Including by Irish people, living in Ireland. As to "There is a national characteristic, I'm sure not unique to Ireland, to go along with someone even when they're saying something you don't agree with. It's basic manners of not wishing to offend," I'm guessing you've not been to too many Irish pubs... Look, it's a term, it's in use, maybe less common than it once was, most people don't give a rat's ass about it, a small minority really object to it, and many of the ones who do, bizarrely, tend to be wearing British football jerseys while giving out about it. Please - WP:DROPTHESTICK and back away from the dead horse... Bastun Ėġáḍβáś₮ŭŃ! 22:21, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * No need to tar me with a group who tend to be wearing British football jerseys. Not my scene at all thanks. But it speaks volumes on your attitude in rejecting my argument - indicate any hint of being anti-colonial or from a non-anglo/British viewpoint, then you're tared as being unintelligent, backward or in this case a soccer hooligan. I get it.
 * And I didn't try and win hearts and minds. I've layed out clear examples of the common usage of the term 'Britain and Ireland' over 'British Isles' across Ireland and the UK. In response I get voxpops in pubs and 'most' people don't care arguments in response.
 * In regards to the national characteristic argument. Forgive me. One of the arguments against changing it was that the poster had asked his friends in the pub. I was trying to counter that strange argument. But I guess my argument was more foolish.
 * But I get why it's rejected; I've read through many of the previous posts on this. There's a colonial mindset in both Ireland and directed at Ireland, that still persists today in maintaining that Ireland is a British land. An inferiority complex within and directed at a nation. Fair enough... according to Wikipedia and the smart blokes managing the board, I'm from one of the British Isles, and therefore I'm British.
 * I'll back away. 2A02:8084:4241:E200:A3B:D4D3:6FDF:6B40 (talk) 14:41, 3 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Nah. You're just a... person who doesn't like the term "British Isles". Whatevs. That doesn't make you British; nobody suggested that, nobody believes that, and maybe leave the chip off your martyred shoulder. Likewise, nor does it make anyone else a West Brit for recognising that the term is still widely used - cherry-picked examples from... *checks notes*... a supermarket, a music industry award website, and a publishing website notwithstanding. 🙄 Bastun Ėġáḍβáś₮ŭŃ! 14:53, 3 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Who tf is the "we" of "We have heard all of these arguments, and they've been rejected"
 * I guess you mean the same small numberer of "editors" who have gaslighted this issue on Wikipedia for years.  No change there then 109.78.105.250 (talk) 12:27, 10 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Take a look at the archive of this page to see how many times this discussion has taken place. And usually, there were some claims thrown around without any serious sourcing. The Banner  talk 12:39, 10 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Well that singularly fails to address the question asked.
 * So again who is this all encompassing embodiment of "we"  you seem to rely on for an apparent appeal to authority? 51.37.111.212 (talk) 11:08, 8 June 2024 (UTC)
 * Did you actually read the archives and the prior discussions? The Banner  <i style="color:maroon">talk</i> 12:00, 8 June 2024 (UTC)
 * yes and your fatuous arguments still don't provide an answer  to the question asked. 64.43.20.57 (talk) 01:39, 17 July 2024 (UTC)
 * What about a compromise: use an explanatory footnote after the first use of the term? It might look something like this:
 * "Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles." Dgp4004 (talk) 13:03, 8 June 2024 (UTC)
 * "Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles." Dgp4004 (talk) 13:03, 8 June 2024 (UTC)

Actually, I've had a look at the archives, and I've discovered that it's far from having an overwhelming consensus. In 2008, there was a consensus (of reasonable people) against having it in the lead. said: But it doesn't need to be in the lead. Why not compromise - leave it out of the lede, but change "Shannon is the longest river in Ireland" to "...in the British Isles". said that attempting to insert BI references looks very like a political move masquerading as a geographical edit. said that Inclusion leads not just to confusion for readers or editors with little knowledge of the subject but also to likely edit wars. At that time there was an edit-war in progress, but the stable version did not have the British Isles in the lead or the article body. In September 2010, a user began a discussion to complain that the article did not mention the British Isles. It was closed as: Resolved, consensus reached and the following was added to the geography section : "Ireland and Great Britain, together with nearby islands, are known collectively as the British Isles, although the name is contentious in relation to Ireland and other terms are also in use" (emphasis added). It was not then added to the lead, but somehow, it seems to have snuck in without anybody establishing a consensus! In October 2022, I myself proposed replacing the current sentence with "Ireland is the third-largest island in Europe (after Great Britain and Iceland), and the twentieth-largest on Earth." That discussion was ended as "no consensus", but there was a majority in favour of the proposal. The impression given here and in the above discussion that all reasonable editors have always agreed with adding British Isles to the lead is not correct. Scolaire (talk) 17:14, 11 May 2024 (UTC)
 * It is entirely possible, even probable, that I was misremembering and attributing debates that took place on other pages to ones that took place on this one. <span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif">Bastun Ėġáḍβáś₮ŭŃ! 12:28, 12 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Not reading all of this WP:TLDR, but per MOS:GEO (A place should generally be referred to consistently by the same name as in the title of its article), we should use the common name of articles on geographic names, per the title of those articles. So as long as the article is titled British Isles, it should be the same here if directly referring to it. The only alternative is to make the wording here purely descriptive avoiding the term, which seems like a good alternative if it is contentious and omitting it doesn't change the meaning too much. But if it is needed then only the common name "British Isles" should be used, of course mentioning the term's controversy in Ireland if required.
 * Noticed Geography of Ireland falls foul of this since 2021, using "North-West European Archipelago", is there some naming convention to use this term instead? Nothing at WP:IMOS.  Dank Jae  02:10, 13 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Fixed. Yeah, that change seems to have been introduced by a single-issue 10-edit account. <span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif">Bastun Ėġáḍβáś₮ŭŃ! 12:22, 13 May 2024 (UTC)
 * The best way to get nowhere with this topic, is to say the term is offensive. GoodDay (talk) 13:19, 8 June 2024 (UTC)

bad article, connor mcgreror isnt mentioned
McGregor is arguably one of the most well known irish people 81.209.26.4 (talk) 07:37, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * No need to mention him in an article about the island. The Banner  <i style="color:maroon">talk</i> 07:47, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Or, indeed, ever. <span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif">Bastun Ėġáḍβáś₮ŭŃ! 22:22, 2 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Who? Cashew.wheel (talk) 16:09, 13 May 2024 (UTC)
 * I assumed he referred to a former plumber turned fighter with the first name Conor. The Banner  <i style="color:maroon">talk</i> 17:42, 13 May 2024 (UTC)

Ireland is not a "British" isle
the term is a colonial and outdated one having been dug up from (by even then) archaic sources by one John Dee - an advisor to Elizabeth I of England, and who advocated for the colonisation of Ireland. Today it has no official standing and has no more relevance to Ireland than the term British East Africa has to modern day Kenya. And as such needs to be be kept in the dustbin of history  where it belongs 109.78.105.250 (talk) 12:17, 10 May 2024 (UTC)
 * It is a geographical term for a group of islands. Nothing colonial here. The Banner  <i style="color:maroon">talk</i> 12:34, 10 May 2024 (UTC)
 * The now archaic term as detailed is colonial both in origin and use from the 1600s onwards. Denial doesn't change that regardless 51.37.111.212 (talk) 10:57, 8 June 2024 (UTC)
 * Denial doesn't change the fact that it's absolutely a common geographical term, still in use in Ireland and elsewhere. <span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif">Bastun Ėġáḍβáś₮ŭŃ! 11:04, 8 June 2024 (UTC)
 * Best we keep using it. GoodDay (talk) 13:23, 8 June 2024 (UTC)
 * yes 2402:E000:60A:656B:0:0:0:1 (talk) 19:15, 16 June 2024 (UTC)
 * Best according to whom exactly  - the same small number  of self serving editors? 64.43.20.57 (talk) 01:42, 17 July 2024 (UTC)
 * No, these people. <span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif">Bastun Ėġáḍβáś₮ŭŃ! 12:41, 17 July 2024 (UTC)
 * Best we keep using it. Denisarona (talk) 06:14, 17 July 2024 (UTC)

Northern Irish Growth since Brexit
There is a referenced claim in this article that Northern Ireland has outpaced the rest of Britain in growth as a result of staying in the EU's customs union. It is referencing this politico article: https://www.politico.eu/article/northern-ireland-economy-outpace-post-brexit-britain/

The article itself was referencing the Office for National Statisics regional growth statastics for Quarter July-Sept 2021: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/bulletins/gdpukregionsandcountries/julytoseptember2021

In this quarter, Northern Ireland's growth outpaced the rest of the UK's.

However, in the subsquent reports from the ONS, the regional growth metrics show it is a lot more complicated. With regional growth variying from quarter to quarter and Northern Ireland not constitently being in front. In the most most recent publish quarter (April to June 2022), Northern Ireland has negative growth of 0.3%, whilst England and Scotland have 0.0% growth and Wales had negative growth of 0.4%. Making the modal average for Great Britian -0.1%, ahead of Northern Ireland on -0.3%.

All this can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/bulletins/gdpukregionsandcountries/previousReleases

With now an additional year of data from when the referenced article was publish, I think it should be fair to see that this has not been a consitent trend and the statement is a reductive understanding of the causes of economic growth. Therefore the statement should be removed, with the sentence finishing on the fact that Northern Ireland remained in the Customes Union following the Brexit negotations. 31.94.2.196 (talk) 07:58, 21 May 2024 (UTC)

 * Agreed and removed, thanks. feminist🩸 (talk) 02:40, 25 June 2024 (UTC)

title: Talk:Ireland


text:
Terra Lliure

Terra Lliure (, "Free Land"), sometimes referred to as TLL, was a Catalan nationalist far-left Marxist-Leninist paramilitary group. Formed in 1978, the group carried out hundreds of attacks that left many people injured and five dead (four of them members of the organization after the explosion of the artifact they were manipulating in three separate incidents).

Terra Lliure, became known to the public with a protest at a mass meeting at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona in 1981. An important police raid in 1991 and the renunciation of violence by some of the group members led to the dissolution of Terra Lliure in 1995. After disbanding, many members joined the political party Republican Left of Catalonia. During the most active period of its activity it was considered a terrorist organization by Spanish and European courts, Spanish press, and at least parts of the Catalan press.

Ideology
Terra Lliure was described as a Marxist, nationalist and a separatist organization that sought to establish an independent Catalan state. Founded during the period of Spanish transition to democracy, Terra Lliure decried what it considered to be a persistence of anti-Catalan discrimination and state violence. It was placed on the far-left fringe of Catalan political forces and sought to be an imitiation of Basque Euskadi Ta Askatasuna and became a bridge between Catalan anarchists and nationalists. In its 1981 Declaration of Principles, Terra Lliure described itself as a movement that "fights to defend the land, the language, national sovereignty, the interests of workers and against the Spanishization of Catalan society".

Similarly to Basque ETA, Terra Lliure was also influenced by the far-left liberation theology and had a faction directly dedicated to it. This is in line with the Basque ETA that Terra Lliure aspired to become a Catalan equivalent of; ETA was founded in the Benedictine seminary in Lazkao and was supported by Basque clergy, which harboured separatist and nationalist tendencies, especially at local level. Pro-ETA Basque priests accepted violent actions of ETA, considering it justified as part of the oppressed people's aspiration for freedom and independence. One of the most prominent supporters of ETA amongst the Basque clergy was José María Setién, the Archbishop of San Sebastián. In case of Catalonia, despite the fact that Catalonia was a heavily anti-clerical nation prior to WW2, the nationalist movement became increasingly "Catholicized" between 1940s and 1960s, as the Catholic Church became the only institution that the Francoist regime was unable to persecute for its usage and promotion of the Catalan language. Following Vatican II, Catalan clergy would increasingly emerge as a vocal opponent of the Francoist regime, and many parishes provided refugee and aid to anti-Francoist groups. In 1963, Catalan abbot Aureli Maria Escarré went as far as arguing that the Francoist regime "does not obey the basic principles of Christianity". The commitment of the Catholic Church to preserve the Catalan language and aid anti-Francoist resistance earned the respect of Catalan Communists who abandoned the traditional Catalan anti-clericalism and instead "began to see the Church as a potential ally". Terra Lliure sought to continue the link between Catalan socialists and the Catholic clergy, seeing the post-Francoist Spain as merely a continuation of Francoism and its repressive structures.

Politically, Terra Lliure emerged from a split in the Socialist Party of National Liberation (Partit Socialista d’Alliberament Nacional dels Països Catalans, PSAN), a pro-independence party with a Marxist-Leninist ideology created in 1969 and based in Catalonia and the Valencian Community, and the Independentists of the Catalan Countries (Independentistes dels Països Catalans, IPC) party, which emerged in Catalonia and was the result of a split in the PSAN in 1979. In July 1984, the Movement for Defence of the Land (Moviment de Defensa de la Terra, MDT) was formed, another Catalan pro-independence left-wing party that integrated these two parties and became the political arm of Terra Lliure. Terra Lliure's objectives, made explicit and explained in its internal bulletins called Alerta, were: independence, socialism and the reunification of the "Països Catalans", a cultural entity comprising the Principality of Catalonia, the Valencian Country, the Balearic Islands, as well as its bordering areas (the so-called Catalunya Nord to the north and the Franja to the west). Terra Lliure argued that only Catalan independence can protect its culture and bring about socialism, while rejecting autonomismo (autonomism) and sucursalismo ("sectionalism", a regional political party's dependence on the central party).

Despite calling for "Països Catalans", Terra Lliure envisioned that Greater Catalonia would be further separated, either through federalization or subsequent separatism, into regions "with different languages", with the Valencian language being cited as an example. According to Terra Lliure, these languages were forced to communicate in Spanish, and Spanish assimilationist policies resulted in fragmentation of Catalan society, where the "Catalan working people" (poble treballador català) were now alienated in their own homeland by privileged Spanish speakers. In its program, Terra Lliure also decried the decline of traditional Catalan industries, environmental destruction, and state-sanctioned repression. Through this, the organization also had protectionist, environmentalist and anarchist overtones (with anarchism being represented by some of the factions within Terra Lliure). It also called for the defence of Catalan territory, language and national sovereignty from espanyolistas and anti-nationalist, along with "protecting the interests of workers" against "the forces of occupation".

In a 1982 letter released by Terra Lliure, the organization wrote: "Ever since the French and Spanish states conquered the Països Catalans, we have walked towards our destruction as a people." Terra Lliure described Catalonia as "subject to continued aggression from the Spanish and French oligarchies and the regional bourgeoise, that endanger everything that constitutes our national heritage: land, work, language, customs. Not only do they call into question our national identity, but also our survival as [the] people who [make up] Catalan society." Terra Lliure argued that class and national liberation were inextricable from each other and could only be achieved through armed struggle. The party accused Spain of "attempted annihilation of the Catalan nation" and warned of the loss of national consciousness and replacement of Catalan cultures through the hegemonic culture of Spain. It warned that disappearance of Catala language from public use meant that the "Catalan culture was reduced to catacombs". Terra Lliure also argued that democratized Spain continues "attempts at cultural and national genocide" and stated its belief that the prevalence of Spanish language in Catalonia must be prevented and fought against, writing: "We do not accept the existence of two communities or two languages as a perpetual fact, as this can only lead to the disappearance of our language and our community and to an artificial division of our working people."

History
In the 1960s, a new generation of anti-Franco activists reshaped Catalanism and separatism. In 1968, the Socialist Party of National Liberation (Partit Socialista d’Alliberament Nacional dels Països Catalans, PSAN) was founded, which combined Marxist revolutionary ideology with Catalan separatism. PSAN took anti-colonial struggles and third-world anti-imperialist nationalism as its model for Catalan separatism. The party grew increasingly divided during the Spanish transition of democracy, with many left-wing radical, revolutional socialist, but also moderate and reformist currents emerging. Terra Liure was founded in 1978 by a small faction of PSAN that endorsed violent tactics despite the end of Francoism, arguing that a "symbolic" damage is necessary in order to assist and bring about national and class liberation.

As small Catalan terrorist cells coalesced around Terra Liure and started its activities in 1979, the movement struggled with lack of support and popularity as the sociopolitical conditions were no longer favorable to violent tactics. The exiled regional government of Catalonia officially returned in late 1977 and was the transitional Catalan government until the 1980 Catalan regional election. Unlike in Basque Country, in Catalonia voters overwhelmingly approved of the new constitution in 1978, with 61% voting in favour with a turnout of 68% - in comparison, only 31% of Basque voters voted in favour with a turnout of 45%. The 1979 Spanish local elections showed that the Catalan movement had great potential to become a powerful force in Spanish politics and take power in the upcoming regional elections, leading many Catalan nationalists to embrace reformist and Spanish democracy. The Catalan statute of autonomy also proved popular, with 53% of voters supporting it in October 1979 (with a 60% turnout).

In the 1980 Catalan elections, the centrist Convergence and Union (CiU) unexpectedly won with 28% of the vote, ahead of the socialist PSC and communist PSUC. This allowed Terra Lliure to gain some support for its tactics and to escalate violence as radical nationalists grew disillusioned with CiU governments, resulting in some support for terrorism. The foundation of the Movement for Defence of the Land in 1984 marked the best period in the history of Terra Lliure, as a known political front and terrorist organization shifted towards more radical actions. The organization was then severely weakened in late 1985 as its leadership was arrested and its political front suffered splits along strategic issue. The separatist Republican Left of Catalonia (Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, ERC) also attracted the members of Terra Lliure into its ranks by negotiationg individual solutions for jailed activists, resulting in separatist voters and militants embracing ERC, which became the third largest party in Catalan parliament.

In May 1981, Terra Lliure kidnapped Spanish cultural activist and teacher Federico Jiménez Losantos who helped organizing and then signed the Manifesto of the 2,300, which decried legal protections given to the Catalan language. The manifesto alleged that Spanish speakers are discriminated against in Catalonia, and warned against "Catalanization" of Catalan schools and public spaces. After verifying his identity and locating him, Terra Lliure members tied Jiménez to a tree and shot him in the knee, but allowed him to be rescued. Terra Lliure called their attack a "retaliation for activities against the Catalan language".

Despite struggling to gain widespread approval for its radical militancy amongst the Catalan public before, Terra Lliure's attack on Jiménez was not met with outrage as the overwhelming majority of Catalans were strongly critical of the Manifesto of the 2,300 signed and organized by Jiménez. The Catalan public vehemently rejected the claim that Spanish speakers were discriminated against, and Catalan newspapers unanimously condemned the manifesto. The University of Barcelona organized a counter-declaration "in defense of the Catalan language, culture, and nation", which was endorsed by over 1300 Catalan institutions and voluntary associations. This sparked the foundation of a Catalan organization Crida a la Solidaritat en Defensa de la Llengua which organized a rally at Camp Nou in June 1981, with the slogan “Som una nació” (We are a nation). The rally had around 100,000 attenders and sparked a political and cultural movement in favor of Catalanization and Catalan autonomy, and against Spanish centralization. Terra Lliure also attended the event and distributed its leaflets, gaining recognition and new recruits.

In the autumn of 1982, in September and November, the first assembly was held in the south of France. It established the strategy of "armed propaganda" to achieve its objectives, consisting of violent actions, not with the intention of causing personal injury, but rather with the aim of provoking fear and intimidation, as well as seeking maximum media coverage. In its documents, the Terra Lliure organisation always described its activity as "armed propaganda". This concept was used as a euphemism to express the low intensity of the organisation's actions, implying that it did not seek to attack human lives or carry out indiscriminate armed actions. Shortly after this assembly, the police discovered a cache of explosives and weapons in the Collserola mountain range outside Barcelona, which led to the imprisonment of Terra Lliure members Carles Benítez and Xavier Monton. These arrests provoked a crisis in the organisation's leadership that led to the expulsion of some dissident militants who questioned the armed route as a tool for political and social change.

The third assembly was held in July 1988, at which Terra Lliure's leadership wanted to assess the social support that the organisation really had in Catalan society. It also approved a plan of action in view of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, which was not approved by all members of the organisation due to the deep crisis that already existed within the Catalan pro-independence movement and which led the organisation to enter a period of less combativeness from the 1990s onwards, carrying out very few armed actions. The year 1987 was a turning point because of the actions of ETA and Terra Lliure itself - that year, Terra Lliure caused its only civilian fatality in an attack on 10 September 1987, when the explosion of a device in the courthouse in Les Borges Blanques (Lleida) caused a wall of an adjacent house to collapse, killing a 62-year-old woman, Emilia Aldomà, who was sleeping at the time. The second reason was the attack by Basque ETA in the garage of the Hipercor shopping centre in a predominantly working-class neighbourhood of Barcelona on 19 June 1987, which killed 21 people and injured 45, making it the bloodiest attack in the history of ETA and the second most serious in the history of Spain after the attack of 11 March 2004 in Madrid. The Hipercor attack, together with the subsequent attack on the Civil Guard barracks in Vic (Osona) on 29 May 1991, in which 10 people died, had a double effect for Terra Lliure. ETA's car bombings made it increasingly difficult to continue justifying the 'armed struggle' and reduced social and political support for home-grown violence.

Reflecting on the failure of the organization, Terra Lliure leader Jaume Fernàndez argued that a resilient Catalanist challenge to Spanish government was dependent on the nationalist constituency turning away from the transition process. Because most nationalist Catalans remained loyal to the new regime and trusted the electoral process, Terra Lliure was unable to gain strength. In 1991, Terra Lliure announced a ceasefire with the Spanish government and stated that its members would join the Catalan Republican Left to fight for independent Catalonia through non-violent means. Despite this, the Spanish government continued to hunt members of the organization, and Spanish authorities organized Operation Garzón in 1992, a preventine manhunt that was criticized for human rights activists for "indiscriminate arrests and extensive tortures that brought back the ghost of Francoist repression in Catalan society". Terra Lliure was officially disbanded in 1995, and most of its former members joined the ERC. On 8 March 1996, the Spanish government pardoned the 18 members convicted in the 1995 trial and ordered their immediate release from prison.

1978–1990
Most of Terra Lliure's original members converged into the group around 1980, arriving from other armed organizations such as the Catalan People's Army (EPOCA), the Catalan Liberation Front (FAC) or political organizations such as the Socialist Party of National Liberation (PSAN) and Catalan Countries' Independentists. In 1979, Terra Lliure started its armed activities and two of its members died that year, one in a shootout with Civil Guard members and another one blew up himself.

Terra Lliure's best known action was the kidnapping of journalist Federico Jiménez Losantos on 21 May 1981 in Barcelona, for having signed the "Manifesto of the 2,300". This manifesto was a document signed by more than 2,300 intellectuals and professionals living and working in Catalonia and published on 25 January 1981. In it, they defended the co-official status of Catalan and Spanish as the vehicular languages of public education in Catalonia; expressed their concern about the exclusive use of Catalan as the "only official language"; and criticised the policy of the Catalan government to progressively introduce education only in Catalan. After being shot in the knee by Terra Lliure member Pere Bascompte and left tied to a tree, Jiménez Losantos was found by the police the same day. In June, the group published its first statement, called Free Land Calling, in a mass meeting at the Camp Nou stadium.

In 1982, Terra Lliure held its first assembly, while it continued its armed campaign against Spanish and French interests, bank offices and other administrations. A second assembly was held in 1984 and the group started publishing official statements and claimed actions that they carried out through the Alerta magazine. In 1985 and 1985, two more members died while carrying explosive devices.

Between 1984 and 1989 some of Terra Lliure's leaders were arrested, nevertheless the group maintained its structure and capacities and a parallel political movement was developing, the Solidarity Committee with the Catalan Patriots (CSPC) and the Movement for the Defense of the Land (MDT). During these years, starting from 1985, both the MDT and Terra Lliure would receive bomb attacks from Milícia Catalana (MC), a right-wing Spanish nationalist armed group. In 1987, the group committed its only killing, with a bomb attack in Les Borges Blanques, Lleida. Terra Lliure admitted the killing was an error. The group also committed several attacks, mainly against American interests, together with the Catalan Red Liberation Army. In 1988, Terra Lliure held its third assembly and developed three documents to describe the theoretical framework and analyze the social reality of the Catalan National Liberation Movement.

1991–1995
In July 1991, Terra Lliure announced it was declaring a ceasefire and that some of its members would start joining the Republican Left of Catalonia. Despite that, some cells kept carrying out attacks, especially due to the proximity to the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1992. Also in 1991, a former member of Terra Lliure, who had joined ETA, was killed in a police raid after a bomb attack in Vic, Barcelona.

In July 1992, under an order of judge Baltasar Garzón, police arrested around 40 of members of the group. Years later, the European Court of Human Rights ordered the Spanish government to compensate some of the arrested people for failing to investigate allegations of torture during the raid. The following years, the group did not commit any attack and announced its dissolution on the 1995 National Day of Catalonia.

1979

 * January 26: Martí Marcó is shot dead by Spanish police at a checkpoint in Barcelona city center.
 * June 1: Fèlix Goñi is killed in Barcelona as the bomb he was carrying explodes prematurely.

1980

 * July 25: first attacks claimed by Terra Lliure, with two bomb explosions in Fecsa-Endesa offices in Barcelona and Calella.
 * September 10: two bomb attacks target the Provincial Education Delegation and the ENHER offices building at the Gràcia district of Barcelona.

1981

 * January 2: bomb attacks against Fecsa-Endesa offices in Barcelona and Lleida and against an electricity pylon in Prat de Llobregat.
 * April 12: bomb attacks against FECSA office in Terrassa and against a Pirelli factory in Vilanova i la Geltrú.
 * May 21: Jiménez Losantos is kidnapped in Santa Coloma de Gramanet. After a few hours, he is released with a shot in the leg.
 * May 30: bomb attack against a transmission station of the Spanish TV in Montserrat, the night before Fuerzas Armadas (Spanish army) day.
 * June 24: bomb attacks against FECSA offices in Girona, Salou and Reus. Bomb attack against an electric transformer station.
 * September 9: bomb attacks against the Spanish treasury's office and the Spanish state labor office in Barcelona, the Spanish treasury's in Tarragona and the Spanish state delegations in Valencia and Alicante.
 * October 9: bomb attack against an excavator property of Exmop SA at Pedraforca mountain. Bomb attacks against the Spanish education ministry office and the Spanish courts in Valencia.
 * October 29: bomb attacks against the provincial government office in Lleida and against Montepio Laboral savings bank and the Spanish courts in Barcelona.
 * November 9: bomb attack against Guardia Civil barracks in Terrassa.

1982

 * January 23: bomb attacks against FECSA premises in Cornellà and Sant Cugat del Vallès.
 * February 25: bomb attack against Guardia Civil barracks at Alcover.
 * May 1: bomb attack against the Spanish state labor office in Girona.
 * May 22: bomb attack against Guardia Civil barracks in Vallvidrera which results in two wounded Guardia Civil agents.
 * May 30: bomb attack against Spanish employment service offices in Sant Feliu de Llobregat.
 * July: bomb attacks against ENHER and FECSA offices at Barcelona and Mollet del Vallès.
 * September 2: bomb attack against ICONA offices in Barcelona.

1983

 * April 20: bomb attack against Guardia Civil barracks in Sitges.
 * September 2: bomb attack against FECSA offices located in the Sants district of Barcelona.
 * September 7: mortar attacks against Guardia Civil barracks in Martorell and against a Spanish police station in Barcelona.
 * November 8: mortar attacks against the Spanish state delegation offices and against a Spanish police station in Barcelona. The station, in Casarmona, was the same one as in the previous month's attack.
 * November 12: bomb attack against the central Spanish courts in Valencia.
 * November 15: bomb attacks against two separate offices belonging to Hidroeléctrica Española in Valencia.
 * December 2: bomb attack against a FECSA office in the Sarrià district of Barcelona.

1984

 * January 20: bomb attacks against two separate Spanish treasury offices in Barcelona.
 * January 21: bomb attack against a Spanish police station in the Gràcia district of Barcelona.
 * February 10: bomb attack against a FECSA office in the Sant Andreu district of Barcelona.
 * March 2: bomb attack against a Spanish police station near Barcelona's port. A patrol car and a police bus are destroyed as a result.
 * April 20: bomb attack against a command office of the Spanish Navy in Castelldefels. The building is virtually destroyed by the blast.
 * May 9: bomb attack against a Spanish state employment office in Valencia.
 * May 12: bomb attacks against El Jardín and Primar bars in Barcelona. Both were involved in heroin trafficking. Another bomb attack against the courts of Barcelona.
 * May 13: shrapnel bomb attack against an office belonging to Hidroeléctrica Española in Sueca.
 * May 21: parcel bomb against Pedro J. Lapeña, an extreme-right professor at Valencia University.
 * May 30: bomb attack against a tax collection office in Valencia.
 * June 15: bomb attack against FECSA offices in the Sants district of Barcelona.
 * June 26: bomb attacks against the Spanish public works ministry's offices in Valencia.
 * June 27: bomb attack against Spanish state employment offices in Valencia.
 * July 1: a bomb targeting ENHER offices in Barcelona is defused by the police.
 * July 10: coordinated bomb attacks against FECSA offices in Sabadell, Molins de Rei, Terrassa, Sant Cugat del Valles, Martorell and Rubí. Another bomb attack hits offices belonging to Constructora Pirenaica SA in Barcelona.
 * July 16: bomb attacks against Hidroeléctrica Española premises and against Spanish state employment offices in Torrent and against the Spanish labor ministry's offices in Barcelona.
 * July 18: bomb attacks against Spanish state employment offices in Quart de Poblet and against Spanish Navy premises in Tortosa.
 * July 20: Terra Lliure member Josep Antoni Villaescusa dies in Alzira, Valencia after the premature explosion of the bomb he was about to plant in Spanish state employment offices.
 * September 8: mortar attacks against Spanish state offices and a Spanish police station in Barcelona. This second attack fails. Another bomb attack targets Guardia Civil barracks in Santa Bàrbara.
 * November 2: bomb attacks against two Spanish state employment offices in Barcelona.
 * November 28: bomb attack against Guardia Civil barracks in Perelló.

1985

 * February 14: bomb attack against Spanish state tax offices in Ripoll.
 * March 2: bomb attack against Citroën offices in Gràcia, Barcelona.
 * April 22: bomb attack against Spanish Television premises in Miramar.
 * July 27: two bomb attacks against FECSA offices in Barcelona.
 * August 28: police defuse a bomb aimed at Spanish state employment offices in Barcelona.
 * August 31: bomb attack against Spanish state employment offices in Figueres.
 * September 3: bomb attack against Spanish state employment offices in Vilafranca del Penedès.
 * September 4: bomb attack against Spanish state employment offices in Barcelona.
 * September 6: police defuse a bomb aimed at Foment del Treball offices in Barcelona.
 * September 11: police defuse a booby trap next to the Spanish Naval Forces Command Center in Barcelona.
 * September 17: armed Terra Lliure members assault far-right lawyer Gómez-Rovira's office in Barcelona, leaving behind an explosive device.
 * October 30: police defuse a bomb aimed at Guardia Civil barracks in Canet de Mar.
 * November 29: bomb attacks against Spanish Police vehicles at Montjuïc, Barcelona.
 * December 6: bomb attacks against Spanish state employment offices and a Spanish police station in Barcelona.
 * December 8: police defuse a bomb aimed at the Spanish state employment offices in Ripoll.
 * December 16: bomb attack against a Spanish police station in Barcelona. Terra Lliure member Quim Sànchez dies as a result of the premature explosion of the device he was carrying.
 * December 17: bomb attack against Telefonica offices in Vilafranca del Penedès.
 * December 18: bomb attack against a Spanish police vehicle in Barcelona.

1986

 * January 7: bomb attack against Spanish state tax collection offices in Arenys de Mar.
 * January 8: bomb attack against Spanish courts in Blanes.
 * January 11: bomb attacks against Spanish state tax collection offices in Mataró and against state employment offices in Barcelona.
 * February 28: bomb attack against Sanyo premises in Barcelona.
 * March 5: double bomb attack against an army cultural center in Barcelona.

1987

 * January 18: bomb attack against offices of Banco Hispano Americano in Barcelona.
 * February 10: bomb attack against state tax collection offices in Via Laietana, Barcelona.
 * September 10: bomb attack against the Court in Borjas Blancas. As a result of the terrorist attack dies Emilia Aldomà i Sans.
 * December 26: claimed responsibility on a bombing at Bar Iruna in Barcelona which killed an American sailor.

1988

 * August 16: bomb attack against the building of the Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Urbanismo in Girona
 * September 6: attack against the Instituto Nacional de Empleo in Tarragona, causing the destruction of the building.

1989

 * February 27: bomb attack against state tax collection offices in Palma de Mallorca.
 * September 11: bomb attack against a building of the Guardia Civil in Banyoles. As a result, two police officers are badly injured.

1990

 * February 7: bomb attack against Spanish Labor offices (INEM) in Girona.
 * March 21: Terra Lliure's member Jordi Puig, badly injured after the explosive device he was handling in his car explodes in front of the building of the Law Court in Santa Coloma de Farnés.
 * May 23: bomb attack against a reconstruction of the Santa María vessel (one of the three vessels used in Columbus' first trip to America) in Barcelona's harbor. The ships results badly damaged.

1991

 * May 10: bomb attack against the offices of Telefónica in Lleida.
 * May 11: bomb attack against the offices of Telefónica in Girona.
 * December 19: bomb attack against the Court building in Cervera.

1992

 * February 28: bomb attack against the Court building in Figueres.
 * June 29: bomb attacks against offices in Barcelona and Girona.

title: Terra Lliure


text: Category:Hale County, Texas

title: Category:Hale County, Texas


text:
User talk:Pyramide~enwiki

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The developer team at Wikimedia is making some changes to how accounts work, as part of our on-going efforts to provide new and better tools for our users like cross-wiki notifications. These changes will mean you have the same account name everywhere. This will let us give you new features that will help you edit and discuss better, and allow more flexible user permissions for tools. One of the side-effects of this is that user accounts will now have to be unique across all 900 Wikimedia wikis. See the announcement for more information.

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title: User talk:Pyramide~enwiki


text: Category:Norwegian films

title: Category:Norwegian films


text:
South East Hockey League

The South East Hockey League was a minor ice hockey league formed in August 2003. It succeeded the short-lived Atlantic Coast Hockey League and had 4 teams for its first and only season. Jim Riggs was the commissioner.

The Huntsville Channel Cats were the 2003–2004 President's Championship Cup winners. The Channel Cats defeated the Knoxville Ice Bears in three straight games in the championship series.

For the 2004–2005 season, the SEHL ceased play when two of its teams folded while the other two joined with teams from the World Hockey Association 2 to form the Southern Professional Hockey League.

Teams

 * Huntsville Channel Cats (folded; SPHL had an expansion team in the city)
 * Knoxville Ice Bears (moved to SPHL)
 * Cape Fear Fire Antz (moved to SPHL as Fayetteville FireAntz)
 * Tupelo T-Rex (never played due to contractual issues with the Central Hockey League)
 * Winston-Salem T-Birds (folded; SPHL had an expansion team in the city)

Semifinals
Huntsville received a bye into the final.

title: South East Hockey League


text:
User talk:Ctaylor

Sugar Plantations Become Killing Machines In the early to mid 1800s the sugar plantations in the Caribbean gained a reputation some refere to as KILLING MACHINES. There was a tremendous amount of slaves dieing while working on sugar plantations. The American slave population began to decrease rapidly in the Caribbean, more so as the sugar plantations began to develop and the gang system was introduced. The gang system was a harsh factory-type work discipline. The numbers Rogozinski gives in his book, A Brief History Of The Caribbean, of decreased slavery populations are horrific. On the island of Jamaica about 750,000 slaves were imported and by 1834 only 310,000 slaves were freed. The death toll percentage was even higher in Barbados, which imported 387,000 and only freed 81,000 in 1834. Cruel masters, poor food and housing, intense work schedule, diseases, and the torturous trip of the Middle Passage were several causes that led to a population decrease. Within the first three years of arrival to the islands one out of every three slaves would die from one of the causes mentioned prior. One other reason for the rapid decrease in slavery population was that the death rate was much higher than the birth rate. Not only with the poor diet of low-protein and low-fat cause the slaves to be more susceptible to diseases but it also reduced pregnancies. Even worse off than adults only three of four babies made it past the age of five. The life expectance of those surviving childhood was less than 40. Some abolitionists believed planter purposely kept the birth rate in check because with a mother and a child there were two mouths to feed but neither were working. Others believe that women did not want to have children that would become property of their master. Reference:Rogozinski, J. (1999). A Breif History Of The Caribbean.(ch 10-11)

Welcome
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title: User talk:Ctaylor


text: Category:Version control systems

title: Category:Version control systems


text: Category:Sprinters

title: Category:Sprinters


text:
Category:Australian tennis players

This category lists tennis players with Wikipedia articles who have notably represented Australia. Note that articles are sub-categorized by whether a player has done so in male or female competition, and also by particular notable competitions.

title: Category:Australian tennis players


text:
Operation Blowdown

Operation Blowdown was an explosives test carried out in the Kutini-Payamu jungle of Australia's Cape York Peninsula in 1963, to simulate the effects of a nuclear weapon on tropical rainforest. It was conducted by the Australian Army, the Department of Supply, and the Defence Standards Laboratory with participation from the United Kingdom, Canada and United States. In addition, blast effects on military material, field fortifications, supply points, and foot and vehicle movement were examined in a rainforest environment.

A spherical charge of 50 ST of TNT was detonated on a tower 136 feet above ground level and 69 feet above the rainforest canopy. After the explosion, troops were moved through the area (which was now covered in up to a metre of leaf litter), to test their ability to transit across the debris. In addition, obsolete vehicles and equipment left near the centre of the explosion were destroyed.

Although never officially stated, there is speculation that the test intended to determine the feasibility of using nuclear weapons in clearing the jungles of Vietnam, at a time of Australia's increasing involvement in the Vietnam war starting in 1962.

United States participation included the establishment of pressure measurement equipment and the loan of photographic and instrumentation equipment, some of which had been used in the 1962 Project Plowshare.

Preparations
The construction of the base camp and test area was provided in part by the 24th Construction Squadron, Royal Australian Engineers. At ground zero, a straight sided tower was constructed to suspend a sphere of TNT charges. The charges were tins of 41 pounds of remelted and cast TNT from 155-mm shells. The final sphere contained a total of 2,438 TNT and 70 CE/TNT booster canisters resting on 408 support blocks with a diameter of approximately 13 feet. Extreme care needed to be taken during construction since damage or air gaps might have caused jetting or deformation of the blast wave.

The section of rainforest selected was typical of North Queensland and contained 70 different tree species of varying sizes. Four lanes centred on the tower were set up with instrumentation and one 200-foot wide lane was cleared of vegetation except for select trees to study the impact with varying distances from ground zero. Furthermore, approximately 17,000 trees were catalogued to determine the effects of the blast. Military equipment including light and heavy weapons, mortar pits, ammunition, trenches, aerial masts, wireless communication equipment and cables were also positioned around the blast site, complete with simulated troops.

Blast effects
At 8:30 am Eastern Australian time, 50 tonTNT were detonated flattening a considerable area of the test site. Observers were located on a nearby hill 2 mi away and 650 ft above ground zero. Destruction was total within 250 ft, severe within 400 ft and stopped around 900 ft. The effects of overpressure are summarized by the following table. For reference, 5.0 psi is enough to destroy city areas while instruments at the blast site recorded 83 psi at approximately 190 ft. To understand the destructive forces, such an overpressure would correspond to wind speeds greater than 1,000 mph, and would be equivalent to a 1.0 megaton blast at 3,000 ft. This also helps in understanding how a test of 50 tons could be used to evaluate nuclear weapons which may be in the kiloton and megaton ranges by reducing the distance to ground zero for greater effect.

title: Operation Blowdown