You Can't Go Home Again

Dungannistan is always depressed to hear news of bad things happening in Ireland, and so Dungannistan is always depressed. I was especially depressed to learn that the manager of a food store in my hometown Dungannon, was murdered March 2008 by two other men he had met in a bar. The manager, Shawn Fitzpatrick (left), was 32 years old. I only heard of this recently because the two murderers were found guilty a week ago, and now await sentencing.

After the guilty verdicts, Fitzpatrick's sister, Stacy McNally, read a statement on behalf of the family. She said that they "pray that these evil men never walk the streets of Northern Ireland again, because our Shaun won't." He was "a loving son, a great brother, wonderful uncle, fun-loving, hard-working, soft-hearted, kind and inoffensive."

The two men who killed Fitzpatrick said they did so because he was gay and they did not like gays. When the EMT personnel found Fitzpatrick, they later reported that he had been beaten so badly that they assumed at first he had been shot in the face.

Oh Dungannon...