Crime Has the IRA been reborn?

[Phlog]

What many people in Northern Ireland don't understand...let alone foreigners...BOTH sides are fucking disgusting when it comes to the politics and terrorist organisations. And THIS is why one cannot simply pick sides definitively.

I have been on tasks where I have had to protect nationalist (pro-united Ireland) terrorists and tasks where I have had to protect loyalist terrorists (pro-Uk remain). I have been green lit to perform operations against certain terrorists and been prevented from doing ops on others. Politics and bullshit.

This is not a movie- it is real life. Many bone-headed Americans spurt out things like 'freedom and liberty' without delving deep into the history within Ireland and Northern Ireland and deciding British bad/Irish good. Not to mention the hypocrisy of beliefs such as these considering American history.

I could care less if there is a United Ireland or it remains part of the UK...my intentions in joining the military initially was to 'kill the bad guys'...and I quickly learned that both main political groups were 'bad', both governments (North/South) were 'bad'....like any military deployment one man's terrorist is another's freedom fighter...in the end noone's hands are clean.

I'm glad for your posting ITT , bringing some reality to it, but being Irish (my uncle died in one of the first engagements) I can pick a side. I don't agree with anyone targeting civilians, but, well as you know the Irish have a longer memory than the English.

Right now I fucking hate all the Brexit bastards that have brought this to our shores again. They're all idiots who don't understand the situation their country is in or what it's done.

Peace in NI was a miracle, even Mr No changed his tune before the end. We were a guarenteed problems again when Catholics outnumber protestants in 2024 or the like but at least then Ireland and the UK would have been totally United, government and peoples in shutting them down.

 

[BillytheFish]

I'm glad for your posting ITT , bringing some reality to it, but being Irish (my uncle died in one of the first engagements) I can pick a side. I don't agree with anyone targeting civilians, but, well as you know the Irish have a longer memory than the English.

Right now I fucking hate all the Brexit bastards that have brought this to our shores again. They're all idiots who don't understand the situation their country is in or what it's done.

Peace in NI was a miracle, even Mr No changed his tune before the end. We were a guarenteed problems again when Catholics outnumber protestants in 2024 or the like but at least then Ireland and the UK would have been totally United, government and peoples in shutting them down.

My personal journey began with getting in fights with protestants in my area- despite me being perceived as a protestant. In NI you are put into a category of one side or the other based on your family name or what school you went to. Anyways I used to get cornered and asked who I was and what religion I was on and I always refused- this led to fights almost always lol.

My father was in the Navy, Army then Police...despite this being perceived as a Unionist/pro British job it alienated his entire family when he joined- my uncle was a convicted terrorist for the protestant/unionist side. So I was raised middle of the road- without bias.

I went to an integrated primary school- Catholics and Protestants...one of the first mixed schools...and that place used to get threats/petrol bombed on weekends quite frequently.

Fast forward and I am in the military getting spat on/rocks thrown etc etc while looking for bombs that might be targeting nationalist/Catholic areas lol....ditto for the Protestant side. There is alot of shady shit that has gone on from both sides that I cannot discuss...but plenty of open source material is out there that incriminate both sides of the conflict- civilians and governments alike. I have a very jaded view of the country...it still astounds me how somewhat intelligent people can be so blind to their own 'side' and what wrongs have been done. I believed in right and wrong and did not find much of the 'right' on either side.

If a stranger acts pro-British with me I tend to behave more Irish to piss them off, if they act more nationalist I will remind them of their own fucked up history. It is kind of my way of weeding out who is a fucking bigot and who isn't.

 

[Phlog]

My personal journey began with getting in fights with protestants in my area- despite me being perceived as a protestant. In NI you are put into a category of one side or the other based on your family name or what school you went to. Anyways I used to get cornered and asked who I was and what religion I was on and I always refused- this led to fights almost always lol.

My father was in the Navy, Army then Police...despite this being perceived as a Unionist/pro British job it alienated his entire family when he joined- my uncle was a convicted terrorist for the protestant/unionist side. So I was raised middle of the road- without bias.

I went to an integrated primary school- Catholics and Protestants...one of the first mixed schools...and that place used to get threats/petrol bombed on weekends quite frequently.

Fast forward and I am in the military getting spat on/rocks thrown etc etc while looking for bombs that might be targeting nationalist/Catholic areas lol....ditto for the Protestant side. There is alot of shady shit that has gone on from both sides that I cannot discuss...but plenty of open source material is out there that incriminate both sides of the conflict- civilians and governments alike. I have a very jaded view of the country...it still astounds me how somewhat intelligent people can be so blind to their own 'side' and what wrongs have been done. I believed in right and wrong and did not find much of the 'right' on either side.

Aye. It was fucked from the beginning and both sides have been as bad as each other. Fingers crossed we can all navigate this shit peacefully. I ain't optimistic.

 

[Billy no mates]

If it weren't for the IRA and the violence they caused........

You say that with such certainty as though the social and political agitation of the civil rights movement had been wholly been ineffective , and that there's no possibility that the 'armed struggle' didn't increase rather than reduce government intransigence .

 

[Phr3121]

Good movie. Maybe you can relate or maybe don't want to.

"British historical thriller film set in Northern Ireland. It tells the story of a British soldier who becomes separated from his unit during a riot in Belfast at the height of the Troubles in 1971."


@BillytheFish

 

[Stranger Come Knocking]

Most Americans don't know much about European history. They know nothing about the War of 1812. A few know what side won the Revolutionary War and the American Civil War. Sad...

Ummmm, America won right? Asking for a friend.

 

[Phr3121]

Ummmm, America won right? Asking for a friend.

The war neither side won or lost...

"The War of 1812 ended when Great Britain and the United States of America signed the Treaty of Ghent on December 24th, 1814. The treaty said that each country would have their borders made the same as they were before the war. So, neither Britain or the U.S. gained any territory from each other."

"The only thing the U.S. got out of the land war were the lyrics to the 'Star Spangled Banner'. So, Canada won the land war (because it didn't get annexed), the U.S. won the sea war against Britain, and the war ended in a 1-1 draw. Ironically the only battle from the War of 1812 that most Americans know of is the Battle of New Orleans which was won by American soldiers on January 8, 1815 after the peace treaty had been signed."

A young Andrew Jackson was the American hero in defeat of the British:

 

[MayhemMonkey]

"Northern Ireland's power-sharing government has been suspended for two years because of a dispute between the main Protestant and Catholic political parties."

So, is that like a U.S. government shutdown for 2 years? How exactly is the government running things in Northern Ireland?

...and Northern Ireland is an independent country from the Republic of Ireland correct? It is part of the United Kingdom.

its being controlled by the UK government. Also its independent from Eire, but its far from independent

 

[BillytheFish]

Good movie. Maybe you can relate or maybe don't want to.

"British historical thriller film set in Northern Ireland. It tells the story of a British soldier who becomes separated from his unit during a riot in Belfast at the height of the Troubles in 1971."


@BillytheFish

I didnt take to that movie purely because I didnt enjoy the film. 50 dead men walking was an enjoyable one, or 'the boxer' with daniel day lewis, or 5 minutes of heaven with liam neeson

 

[BillytheFish]

The war neither side won or lost...

"The War of 1812 ended when Great Britain and the United States of America signed the Treaty of Ghent on December 24th, 1814. The treaty said that each country would have their borders made the same as they were before the war. So, neither Britain or the U.S. gained any territory from each other."

"The only thing the U.S. got out of the land war were the lyrics to the 'Star Spangled Banner'. So, Canada won the land war (because it didn't get annexed), the U.S. won the sea war against Britain, and the war ended in a 1-1 draw. Ironically the only battle from the War of 1812 that most Americans know of is the Battle of New Orleans which was won by American soldiers on January 8, 1815 after the peace treaty had been signed."

A young Andrew Jackson was the American hero in defeat of the British:

i did the mandatory US History 1 and 2 as part of my degree here in Texas, had a fantastic professor who I am friends with now. Really is alot of spectacular stuff that has happened here in only a few hundred years

 

[ElKarlo]

What many people in Northern Ireland don't understand...let alone foreigners...BOTH sides are fucking disgusting when it comes to the politics and terrorist organisations. And THIS is why one cannot simply pick sides definitively.

I have been on tasks where I have had to protect nationalist (pro-united Ireland) terrorists and tasks where I have had to protect loyalist terrorists (pro-Uk remain). I have been green lit to perform operations against certain terrorists and been prevented from doing ops on others. Politics and bullshit.

This is not a movie- it is real life. Many bone-headed Americans spurt out things like 'freedom and liberty' without delving deep into the history within Ireland and Northern Ireland and deciding British bad/Irish good. Not to mention the hypocrisy of beliefs such as these considering American history.

I could care less if there is a United Ireland or it remains part of the UK...my intentions in joining the military initially was to 'kill the bad guys'...and I quickly learned that both main political groups were 'bad', both governments (North/South) were 'bad'....like any military deployment one man's terrorist is another's freedom fighter...in the end noone's hands are clean.

Wwii simplified the worldviews of most Americans. It was frozen into good vs bad. Then in fact it's never that clear cut

 

[Blowing Dixie]

Irish freedom song are better

Agreed. But for some reason I prefer this version:

 

[OverCoronavirus Pressure]

As an American, my understanding is that all other countries are perfect and don't have any internal problems or history of "American-style" violence.
We invented conflict and strife, and I'm nearly certain this bombing is America's fault somehow.

 

[Billy no mates]

As an American, my understanding is that all other countries are perfect and don't have any internal problems or history of "American-style" violence.
We invented conflict and strife, and I'm nearly certain this bombing is America's fault somehow.

Well you used to help pay for it so you're not that far out .

 

[OverCoronavirus Pressure]

Well you used to help pay for it so you're not that far out .

Yes, I understand all Americans are guilty of something in every circumstance.

 

[Rimbaud82]

As an American, my understanding is that all other countries are perfect and don't have any internal problems or history of "American-style" violence.
We invented conflict and strife, and I'm nearly certain this bombing is America's fault somehow.

 

[Rimbaud82]

Ok. That leads to my next question, but I think you've answered it with the passport issue.

If Ireland is a separate country, what happens if a foreign power tries to invade it? It has no Army. The British military would come to the rescue. Correct?

Weird. 4 separate countries under one military. I don't think we have that anywhere else in the world.

You what? Ireland does have an army? Not a very big one, but they have one...they take part in a lot of UN peacekeeping missions.

 

[Billy no mates]

Yes, I understand all Americans are guilty of something in every circumstance.

I'm glad you accept that , now we can all move on .

 

[Rimbaud82]

Good movie. Maybe you can relate or maybe don't want to.

"British historical thriller film set in Northern Ireland. It tells the story of a British soldier who becomes separated from his unit during a riot in Belfast at the height of the Troubles in 1971."


@BillytheFish

Thought that was a quality thriller, but doesn't have a lot of replay value.

 

[Rimbaud82]

I did a polysci class where the topic was Nireland.

Basically there will never be reunification. Too many loyalists.

Well that is just not true, basically. The demographics are actually shifting towards a nationalist majority. The unionist population is a difficult issue, but it doesn't render a UI impossible.

And as to your original q ph. IRA has always been around kicking they just been laying low. It's actually PIRA and NIRA now since Sinn Fein went all capitulation

The Provisional IRA disarmed, it was the Real IRA and now the New IRA since 2012 when they merged with a number of even smaller dissident republican groups. What do you mean Sinn Féin went all capitulation? They are the second largest party in NI, and the third largest in the ROI.