Recently there’ve been way too many incidents related to explosive materials found in public places. The motorway near Newry, the train station in South Dublin IIRC, the police station in Swords, loads. Media are saying it’s the IRA-originated, I don’t know. If that’s true, why make the Irish even less interested in NI? Am I the only one in this somewhat strange country thinking if it continues the only people suffering are going to be retailers in NI? If I know it’s even a tiny bit risky to go to Armagh, will I go shopping there? Of course I won’t, the cash will stay in the wallet. Jeez, why don’t they (whoever plants those bombs) realise they won’t change a thing?

why don’t they (whoever plants those bombs) realise they won’t change a thing?

But things have changed. The army have gone, the police force are independent, there’s a power sharing initiative in Stormont……oh hang on!

If the main ones affected are the retailers as you state then the target will have been hit given the ownership of businesses in NI. I don’t agree with your assessment that they won’t change a thing given how much has changed.

Aren’t some of these guys more into organised crime than politics?
In line with that assumption, would it be incorrect to assume that some of these guys are into organised crime because previously they were career terrorists and can’t just walk into the Job Centre and sign on?

religion + politics = war

War?

Media are saying it’s the IRA-originated

That’s not what I’ve been reading. All the reports I’ve seen suggests it’s dissident republicans, ie, republicans who disagree with the Provisional IRA.

Article in The Guardian about this, this weekend, I learned a thing or two.

link

don simon – Member
War?

in a terrorist’s eyes, yes.

in a terrorist’s eyes, yes.

So your equation was a terrorist’s equation then ?

i suspect that the recent economic downturn is a factor

in the increase in troubles

who’d of thought reckless mortgage lenders in america would cause social upheavals from NI to libya

If a bomb explodes in a shopping mall, how can anybody claim it’s for the better future? Innocent lives are at stake here.

@Edukator, it’s a bit more complicated, don’t you think? Most of the Irish I know don’t really care about the North. They seem to believe it should be independent, especially from the Republic.

Aren’t some of these guys more into organised crime than politics?
In line with that assumption, would it be incorrect to assume that some of these guys are into organised crime because previously they were career terrorists and can’t just walk into the Job Centre and sign on?

Couldn’t agree more, This is exactly what is behind it. Just change the phrase “career terrorist” for gangster and we have the truth. During the troubles a lot of people, on both sides, made a lot of money. Introduce a democratic process, negotiation and reconciliation and suddenly the cash dries up.

I really hope that they don’t succeed in plunging Nor’n Ireland back into the mire.

If a bomb explodes in a shopping mall, how can anybody claim it’s for the better future? Innocent lives are at stake here.

Well we’re dropping bombs in the centre of Tripoli, obviously innocent lives are at stake, but the government would still argue that it’s for a “better future”, so it’s quite a widely used argument.

kimbers and coyote have it I think.
Most of the media during the troubles only reported on killings in NI or bombs on the mainland. In reality there were a huge amount of gangland turf wars underway in NI during this period with corporal punishments being dealt out daily by the responsible groups. Virtually all crime that made money in NI was controlled by one group or another during this period and it all ended up in the same few pockets. When I worked there during the troubles I was shocked at just how much stuff went on that never got reported on the mainland.

religion + politics = war

It’s not about religion anymore (never really was IMO) and as for politics the DUPers and Shinners are up each others backsides so that bit ain’t right either. It wasn’t a war either, spineless scummy paramilitaries killing women and children can’t be called soldiers.

IMO it’s a few dozen losers stuck in the past wanting to disturb the ordinary people of Ulster. The ROI do not want nor can afford a million prods 😉

ernie, don’t be so aggressive, please. I’m not judging the claim that NI should be part of RoI, just the bloody 500lbs of explosives heading for the market in a local town, that’s it.
Following their logic the virtually entire Europe should be exploding all the time, care for a bit of history? Look at anything related to Prussia, Russia, Austria, Hungary, Poland, Finland, Sweden, Czech Rep., Slovakia, The Balkans, Turkey, Spain etc.
Instead of trying to kill each other, shouldn’t the Irish try to take themselves out of the recession? On both sides of the border?

this somewhat strange country

Yeah, I guess, as countries go, Ireland is right up there with North Korea, Bhurma and Kazakhstan in terms of downright strangeness.

Instead of trying to kill each other, shouldn’t the Irish try to take themselves out of the recession? On both sides of the border?

‘The Irish’ aren’t trying to kill each other. Some people in Ireland, probably less than 100 are trying to kill people – probably less than the number of active terrorists in the UK.

ernie, don’t be so aggressive, please. I’m not judging the claim that NI should be part of RoI…….

I’m sorry you’ve lost me ……… I haven’t a clue what you’re talking about 😕

It certainly wasn’t my intention to be “aggressive”, and I can’t see where I have been. And I wasn’t commenting on the rights or wrongs of any “claim”.

I was simply pointing out how violence is often excused by people in the context of “the aims justify the means”.

ernie_lynch – Member

If a bomb explodes in a shopping mall, how can anybody claim it’s for the better future? Innocent lives are at stake here.

Well we’re dropping bombs in the centre of Tripoli, obviously innocent lives are at stake, but the government would still argue that it’s for a “better future”, so it’s quite a widely used argument.
Behave ernie. 🙄
Surely planting a bomb in a public place a issuing a warning simply fulfills the terror aspect of terrorism. The objective? I see that the Real IRA are a bit pissed off at the queen visiting ROI… But I think these guys are the real hard core extremists that you find in any collection of people.

I think whoever is planning/ planting bombs needs to get a job and or a hobby and chill the fu*ck out. Life’s too short.

I don’t get how these terrorists are peeved that the head of the country they want to be part of, whether it wants them or not, wants the figurehead of the country they are currently part of to visit. And to say she’s wanted for war crimes then to say they don’t want her there also seems to be at odds. Just arrest her and take her to the international commission.

But then given how the guts were stretching the woolly pulleys (which looked distinctly ex-british military) i doubt they’d drag their lardy backsides over the border, just sit in front of the TV throwing things at the wedding coverage.

Sometimes I wonder if the alleged Israeli ways of dealing with the terrorists i.e. making them vanish aren’t the most effective ones. If it’s only around 100 individuals, as iDave reckons, would it not be a decent solution?
Ernie, I got your intentions wrong, sorry.

I don’t get how these terrorists are peeved that the head of the country they want to be part of, whether it wants them or not, wants the figurehead of the country they are currently part of to visit. And to say she’s wanted for war crimes then to say they don’t want her there also seems to be at odds. Just arrest her and take her to the international commission.

But then given how the guts were stretching the woolly pulleys (which looked distinctly ex-british military) i doubt they’d drag their lardy backsides over the border, just sit in front of the TV throwing things at the wedding coverage.
Who can argue against that? I’m completely lost by that first paragraph!!!

What amazed me when I went to NI was how small it is, Derry is tiny, Belfast is not what you would call huge. Growing up I always thought that these places were huge and must be difficult to police.

Worked with a guy who grew up as a Catholic in Belfast, he was telling me about the “hoods” who would dish out beatings to people if they got out of what they thought was line. He said you knew them, the guy who beat him worked in the local harware store. Crazy crazy situation.

And at the same time as a whole Ireland (the island) is such a picturesque place. Maybe they think publicity is good for tourism?
BTW Isn’t it funny how the hard-core anti-British still don’t use Gaelic names for places? Or, say in Balbriggan, the town that the British army totally flattened to the ground in 1920 or so, the most prominent places are called Hampton Court, Hampton Green, Hampton Common etc. If they were called **** Betty Green it’d show their anti-Britishness, as it is – I don’t know what to think.