Nationalism’s rudderless drift?
Over at the Guardian I’ve a piece which posits the idea that Sinn Fein’s difficulty over the summer, marks not a crisis as such, but a sense of drift from Northern Irish nationalism’s long term goal of political unification of the island. Sinn Fein appears to have met its political match in the DUP and the SDLP seems unsure of what it stands for these days, other than the completion of the Agreement. Not everyone will agree that there appears to be little or no practical strategy for bringing about constitutional change by peaceful and civil means. So I’d like to throw it open to the floor and ask, if there is a strategy, what is it?
Tags: Nationalism
Import experienced southern politicians.
These are the only people who;
1) have credibility
2) can be trusted not to play to a sectarian gallery
3) give a shit
4) can articulate the south’s concerns/hopes to the north and visa versa.
Three options;
1) As we already have loads of double jobbing up here we could just let serving TD’s also serve in the NI assembly if their constituents are happy to share.
2) People who are successful in northern elections could retire from the Dail.
3) We could have a grand committee/senate that includes southerners and perhaps our MPs.
Ruairi Quinn or Pat Rabbitte could campaign in prod bits of Belfast or the east ulster suburbs alongside local labour leaders in a way that SF never could or the SDLP don’t really bother to.
Same for Fine Gael politicians, perhaps under an Alliance tag – mirroring the move of cross-community northerners like Austin Currie and John Cushnahan south into Fine Gael seats.
If we had someone like Rauiri Quinn in the assembly – someone who’d served as minister of finance in the republic – the quality of debate would be much improved.
Not joint sovereignty perhaps but increasingly integrated democracies.
Hmm..
“That should probably read
1) have credibility
2) can be trusted not to play to a sectarian gallery
3) give a shit
4) can articulate the south’s concerns/hopes to the north and visa versa.”
would read better if I put an “and” between each point. Others have one or some of each but I don’t think any/many northerners can claim all four.
PS. Catriona doesn’t count.
perry,
are you familiar with the work of tribunals?
I appreciate Non Iron is the recalcitrant 4th field but to impose the most corrupt politicans in Western Europe on then is surely a punishment too far.
“…like all those before them who opposed the tollerationism of Protestantism, they ended up loosing.”
That was truly wonderful, Ulsters my homeland. Indeed it was phrasing worthy of that old master, George W Bush himself.
You are to be congratulated for bringing an element of entertainment to an otherwise worthy but less than entralling thread.
correction: “enthralling”. Apologies.
“I appreciate Non Iron is the recalcitrant 4th field but to impose the most corrupt politicans in Western Europe on then is surely a punishment too far.”
See – it already gets funnier!
I didn’t mention any corruptified Fianna Failers.
perry,
“Not joint sovereignty perhaps but increasingly integrated democracies”
Well I see no exclusions mentioned – of warriors of corruptiuon or others – in the above proposal.
True Sammy.
Another concern is that if everyone actually took this up we might have an assembly stuffed with semi-retired politicians still squabbling over bitternesses built up in another jurisdiction.
A lot like the Dail in a United Ireland.
Can I make a pedantic point?
Neither ‘leverage’ nor ‘action’ are verbs, no matter what insidious American business speak might suggest. We have a perfectly good verb already relating to the noun ‘leverage’ and that is lever. One ‘levers’ one does not ‘leverage’. One ‘takes action’ regarding something, one does no ‘action’ it.
Should that not be “may I make a pedantic point?”?
You clearly have the capacity to.
Of course you are quite correct. Still, my error is nowhere nearly as annoying as borrowing nouns to use as verbs.
In addition, what’s a ‘win line’?
Actually, the use of ‘leverage’ as a transitive verb is widely accepted and well-established.
“Not joint sovereignty perhaps but increasingly integrated democracies. ”
That won’t be achieved by imposing southern elected politicians in the North – they’d be no different than British direct rule ministers.
The only way more “integrated democracies” can take place is for the party systems to re-align. This is going to proceed at an evolutionary rather than revolutionary pace. Norn Iron is no different to the south when it comes to all politics being local and it is for the Norn Iron electorate to make the necessary choice to move society forward or stew in a “separate but equal” morass.
I think if SDLP-FF and UUP-Tory deals go through (with some refugees from the UUP & SDLP joining the labour parties) the basis can be laid for a political narrative that can be based on bread and butter issues. Fianna Fail and the Tories are more likely to offer a more economically liberal agenda than SF/DUP and put some shape on the tentative ideas of an SDLP-UUP opposition to SF/DUP. The cross community Labour Parties could offer a small minority voice to a more socially liberal agenda much as small Labour Party did in the south during the 80s and early 90s.
At least limited re-alignment introduces some form of “governmental politics” as experienced in the South and Britain and but it would be up to local politicians to advance that case in Norn Iron. There’s no point imposing outsiders – the change still has to come from within. It is the willingness of Northern Politicians to embrace governmental politics through re-alignment points their own disenchantment with the non existent poltical dynamic within a solely six county context.
The question of who is going to pay for Northern Ireland cannot be divorced from any ‘futuring’. The vast number of public sector workers (with British govt pensions etc)is going to be a huge influence. The global economy will also refocus attiudes.
“Actually, the use of ‘leverage’ as a transitive verb is widely accepted and well-established.”
It’s accepted as an imported Americanism. It is not necessary. WE HAVE THE FUCKING VERB ‘LEVER’. It’s similar to ‘proactive’. There is NO FUCKING NEED for the word ‘proactive’ because we have the word ‘active’.
Agreed JD but it isn’t enough for Fianna Fail or the Tories just to lend their franchise to northern parties without some exchange of personnel. Shiny new lapel badges aren’t going to make a dramatic change to the local discourse.
You’re right that local participation in government scale parties (attendance at all-Ireland or all-UK conferences and such) will be a healthy socialising influence on our politicians in itself but, for example;
the interest of GB based RC tories (especially of Irish birth/descent) would bring a new prespective into northern politics and might help validate any local RC interest in the new party,
and
the involvement of southern FF’ers would be needed to show that the all-Ireland FF was at least as credible a republican platform as SF (as well as providing some talent or perspective to bolster the northern team) and not just a rebadging.
I don’t see there being two NI Labour parties. I see (or perhaps hope for) a federal Irish party that accepts the UK Labour Party whip and can therefore campaign on a cross-community position. A similar situation to Brian Wilson’s northern Green Party.
It’s accepted as an imported Americanism.
So’s Rock n Roll. Following your logic we should all be listening to string quartets.
It is not necessary. WE HAVE THE FUCKING VERB ‘LEVER’. It’s similar to ‘proactive’. There is NO FUCKING NEED for the word ‘proactive’ because we have the word ‘active’.
“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.”
Pitt the Younger (another foreign import)
kensei ,
‘I doubt there will be any major soul searching within Nationalism.’
And if that’s the case among Northern Irish nationalism you can expect even less among Southern nationalists
The fact that SF are having what’s called a ‘difficult ‘ time with the DUP is also in part reflective of the type of ‘Unionism ‘ which the DUP represents . We are talking here about probably the most non secular politcal party on these islands at least as represented by it’s leadership and representatives . We are never far from God with the DUP albeit the God of the chosen people i.e themselves . From Iris Robinson to Rev McCrea to a whole host of others the ‘biblical ‘ quotations are never far from the script . Now is there any other political party in these islands that ‘quotes’ scripture as part of their political party platform ?
One other pertinent factor why Irish Nationalism generally is not rushing towards the DUP or towards a UI is ( despite the much pictured photo ops and ballyhoo of of Messrs Ahern and Paisley) – the decades old lukewarming which has characterised the Republic vis a vis religion . An opposite trend has been taking place among Unionists towards ‘embracing ‘ the whole born again , creationist , literal biblical truth merchants of latter day calvinism . This is seen in the new phenomenon of mega churches and the ‘religion will bring you prosperity ‘ merchants of salvation .
BTW I’m not painting all Unionists into the above camp but theres no escaping the fact that over the past 7 or 8 years the ‘born agains’ have triumphed over secular Unionists . This in my view will make it very difficult for Irish nationalism to ‘approach ‘ these Unionists re any prospective UI .
Secular unionism is on the decline in terms of political power despite UUP attempts to hitch themselves to a Tory revival . The bright children of Methodism and the COI denominations and others are leaving for a more congenial future in the UK and some even in the Republic . Meanwhile back in Northern Ireland those Unionists who favour the ‘literal’ biblical approach to the problems of politics come to the fore . Over time their influence will increase especially as we approach the ‘end times ‘ yet again
The truth which many Irish nationalists are coming to is that we’d rather NOT do business or share any UI with the ‘reborn ‘ fraternity above . We have only recently released ourselves from the shackles of an oftentimes ‘intolerant ‘ and backward looking Catholicism to have to deal with a 21st century ‘Protestant ‘ equivalent .
Apart from all of the above there is the matter of the annual 6 billion which NI receives from HMG’s Exchequer . I can’t see any ROI electorate ever picking up that tab or voting to .
The losers in the above scenario for NI will be of course the ‘secular ‘ unionists who will be excluded from ever getting a majority of the seats in the Assembly’s ‘unionist ‘ quota and those Sinn Feiners who still believe that a UI can be won by ‘taking the King’s shilling ‘ sorry 6 billion a year .
Inertia once again I’m afraid . How long this lasts is anybody’s guess . Outside factors may of course upset the applecart but those relying on Scottish Independence to move the logjam both overestimate the Scots desire for such and underestimate the will of the ‘born agains’ among Unionism to retain their ‘niche ‘ under the UK umbrella .
But hey it could be worse . At least for now NI can add power sharing inertia to the already lengthening list.
Dec, you do know that Pitt the Younger was totally without interest in sex and therefore weird don’t you? Anything he said about anything is consequently totally without value. On the other hand he did consume three bottles of port per day so he did make some effort to feign normality.
And Pitt should know the argument of tyrants when he sees it!
The respective analysis of Duncan Shipley Dalton in post #17 and Seceder in post #10 show the keenest grasp of political reality.
“The current analysis will give way to a reappraisal of the Belfast Agreement which will confirm, contrary to the accepted wisdom at the time and since, was actually ultimately a pro Union document crafted to politically neuter republicanism once the IRA had been neutered by the security forces.” – Seceder
As obituaries go, that one is short, accurate and to the point. Martin Ingram supplied the missing piece of the puzzle, i.e. why the leadership of SF acquiesced in furthering a pro-union agenda: “Adams is a con man and the party/movement is controlled from London.”
The main flawed dynamics are these:
Northern nationalists support a political party whose existence depends solely on the continuing existence of partition. Expecting that party to work toward ending partition is akin to expecting them to build their own coffins. The mediocre hacks who are employed by that party have no intention of furthering any agenda that terminates their employment. Since their success as a political party depends upon being seen by a section of their voters as working toward ending partition, this dynamic creates a conflict of interests that is simply resolved by posturing as being anti-partition while doing nothing that would further an anti-unity agenda.
Northern nationalists were never republicans to begin with. The claim to be republican was simply an expedient cloak that was draped over a sectarian murder campaign that was rooted in militant nationalism rather than pro-unity republicanism. The actual support base for this militant nationalism came from those whose primary aim and selfish sectarian interests was internal reforms within a Northern Ireland that remained within the United Kingdom. This is why the violence was resolved by internal reforms within the United Kingdom along with a consolidation of the constitutional status quo rather than by achieving the alleged purpose of the violence, i.e. reunification.
Northern nationalists don’t any working understanding of the Republic of Ireland or of the variety of nationalism that exists within it, nor do they have any respect for the Republic. Most of them are happy to support a political party which refused to recognise the legitimacy of the Republic or the right of its people to freely elect their own government. The effect of this brainwashing is to leave Northern nationalists with the deluded impression that the Republic of Ireland may be dismantled and replaced with whatever best suits Northern nationalists and their fellow-travellers, British nationalists. To this end, they assume that the citizens of the Republic of Ireland who have worked extremely hard for their economic prosperity will agree to throw it all away and finance the whims of northerners to the tune of 10 billion Euros a year in extra taxation wherein northerners may enjoy in a generous share of the wealth of a country that they contributed not a penny in taxation to or contributed anything else to its success. They could, of course, endeavour to make Northern Ireland self-sustaining or simply less of a drain on the taxpayer but they prefer to indulge in their socialist dogma in other to justify to themselves that they have a ‘right’ to live like parasites on the hard work and enterprise of others. I don’t believe that northern nationalists lack the basic cop-on to grasp that the subvention is being used a tool to maintain the constitutional status quo by creating a dependency culture that is tantamount to distorting aspirations by bribery; I believe they understand that is the purpose of it but that their brand of militant nationalism is predicated on the selfish interests that allows for it.
[b]Continued[/b]
Northern nationalists signed an agreement (the GFA) that raised unionist expectations of what they could achieve from a united Ireland to unrealistic levels. Instead of assuring unionists that they would have the same rights are any other citizen within the Republic of Ireland (and such guarantees are already in the Irish constitution), they promised that the Irish nation-state would be dismantled and replaced with a join British-Irish entity that would be acceptable to those who are British (but, of course, wholly unacceptable to those who have zero intention of dismantling their nation-state in accordance with the whims of others). Just as Northern nationalists renounced their own claim to self-determination they expect the citizens of the Republic of Ireland to follow their pitiful example and do likewise. This poison chalice isn’t even about furthering unity (since those who are British will always correctly calculate that their sense of nationality will be better served by remaining within a British state), it is about ensuring that the Republic doesn’t make any attempt to end partition since its citizens would not support it when they became fully cognisant of what it would actually mean, i.e. the ‘ending’ of partition by the de facto extension of it (the political conditions that exist within it) to the entire island. This dynamic effectively means that Northern nationalists have been converted into 32-county unionists.
Northern nationalists cannot sell Irish unity because they don’t know what they are actually selling. This is like trying to sell a car when you don’t even know the make and model or the price. I doubt many car dealers have built their fortunes on this methodology. Only the Irish government can sell unity because only the Irish government has the access to the required information and authority to negotiate, and that government has no intention of explaining what “rigorous impartiality” means to a nation whose vibrant nationalism will never countenance its own dissolution.
I could go on with another dozen major flaws, but I won’t! Beyond one last flaw: Northern nationalists support a political party who have viciously brutalised the unionist community for decades. As a sales strategy, that’s like hiring the customer’s rapist to sell that car to her that you don’t know the details of. Good luck with that approach because you’re going to need it.
re. Pitt the Younger
Are you referring to the engleze foreign secretary by his moniker?
Typo: “Since their success as a political party depends upon being seen by a section of their voters as working toward ending partition, this dynamic creates a conflict of interests that is simply resolved by posturing as being anti-partition while doing nothing that would further an [b]anti-partition[/b] agenda.”
This thread is an interesting development. But the complacency (about voting numbers) in nationalism will not be jolted until 2021.
re. Car Sales.
Dave, I agree with the thrust (perhaps an unfortune phrase) of your analogy – listening to SF say that they want to persuade Unionists of the merit of a UI has as much credibility as the Russians saying they want peace in Georgia.
The trouble for Unioinsts is that, to carry your analogy on a bit, its also as if after the Customer has been brutalised her husband (the Englezes) and told her to be off and marry another – the very person who did the dirty (SF). She’s now lost her looks ( shipbuilding and linen) and her behaviour (marching up and down in funny outdated clothes in her neighbours street) has become an embarassment.
Harsh I know, but like we Nationalists have been telling everyone for years the Englezes cant be trusted.
” you suggest all “Proddies” are a homogenous bunch”
Weeslabber
You are absolutely right. I was careless and meant to say Unionists not Proddies. See… this stereotyping thing is infectious
“I don’t see there being two NI Labour parties. I see (or perhaps hope for) a federal Irish party that accepts the UK Labour Party whip and can therefore campaign on a cross-community position. A similar situation to Brian Wilson’s northern Green Party.”
I agree Perry – I should have clarified that better. I think that is roughly what the Labour Parties are looking at – perhaps like the NUS/USI link
We are still trapped by the all politics is local maxim. The change will need to come from within and the best that you can hope for is that NI politicians operating within a wider Irish or British political discourse can move things forward – evolution rather than revolution
AFAIK, there is already such an arrangement in place between the two Labours. Although I wouldn’t look to either of those organisations for a transformative vision of society. For a start, the former DL people were originally told to join the SDLP when DL folded – hardly a challenge to the status quo.
you suggest all “Proddies” are a homogenous bunch”
No-one’s more guilty of that characterisation than successive Unionist politicians with their constant references to ‘The people of Ulster/Northern ireland’.
Mick
I don’t see how you can suggest that the SDLP have not yet seen the wisdom in the position Bertie Ahern adopted in his speech as quoted, when what he said is in tune with SDLP thinking in a broad sense.
John,
When is Derry City Council going to vote to secede from the uk, as you have predicted?
Sammy
You can say the Englezes can’t be trusted for as long as you like. BUT £7 billion is £7 billion.
And most people, directly or indirectly, work for them. And their pensions are directly linked to them. My take on most nationalists is give us a United Ireland, but please God, not yet! And this is likely to continue as a mindset for a long time to come.
Driftwood
“My take on most nationalists is give us a United Ireland, but please God, not yet! And this is likely to continue as a mindset for a long time to come. ”
I tend to agree with you – unless that gold find in Monaghan turns out to be significantly bigger than originally thought.
Driftwood, it 25 years hence when Ireland builds its first nuclear power plant, we’ll cite it in Dundalk and arrange an ‘accident’ when the wind is blowing strongly in a northern direction. That will solve the ‘northern problem’ once and for all; and, with a bit of extra luck, get rid of Dundalk at the same time.
“[Note to self: must get BJR to sub my stuff before it goes out on the net].”
Heh! I’m no sub for for a hefty sum I’ll consider it. Sorry but couldn’t resist since it was on the Guardian site. I’ve been pulled up on here for same and I hold my hands up. I’m skating on thin ice when it comes to mistakes!
The 7 billion is a complete red herring
It will be off set by the increase in value of public assets of the republic and the increase in taxaes from 1.3 million new citizens….. I am assuming some of you are so anti-Irish you will feel it necesary to leave(turn out the lights first please)
Sammy, that’s a bit like the SNP with North Sea Oil. The fact is, most of us are in clover here.
Apart from a minority of gobshites on ‘both’ sides, if it wasn’t for the weather, lets fucking accept this is as good as it gets. Now if only we could get rid of that bunch of dickheads at Stormont and forget about water charges…..
Steve
I take it you didn’t major in Economics.
As for anti Irish, well I am in a ‘mixed’ marriage although both atheist/agnostic. I’ve no problem being labelled Irish or British or Northern Irish. Whatever. I prefer Human/Mammal/Ape, but whatever floats your boat.
Dub
I don’t tend to make predictions, but my plan (http://johnoconnell.org/an_irish_velvet_revolution.htm) is there for the wise among you to support. I wrote the plan at a time when power-sharing looked as if it would fail. It’s still looking that way and I don’t see too many other plans that would avoid the return to ethnic genocidal violence.
Driftwood
No I don’t major in economics but any fool can see the 7 or 6 billion subvention from London is not entirely transferable and It ignores other revenues and differences in Taxation
As for Labels, I am Canadian and depending on which grand parents you wish to saddle me with english, welsh scottish and irish but in the classical western European tradition of paternal lineage My last name is Prussian.
feel free to label me as you see fit because it matters not what you label me it is what i label myself that matters
I am CANADIAN(inside joke other Canadians will get)
As for religion I am firmly in the None Of The Above Column
“Nothing will be achieved on the constitutional question without patience.” Posted by Percy.
How many times have I heard or read about English politicians and their Irish gofers saying this. These are the words of occupying powers since time began, have patience and all things are possible, in the meantime we have what we hold.
Percy, do yourself a favor pick up a history book, the Irish have been patient for 800 years, bar the odd insurgency in between times. There has been no more patient people in history, what good it has done them.
Hang on there is a ringing in my ears, ” if we sacrifice enough of our sons the British will give us our independence at the end of the war, we must be patient.” [little did he know he would be sacrificing his own son to Britain's dispute with Germany over the imperialistic spoils]
There is nothing more sad than a gullible Irish rebel who genuinely believes the tosh they are told by a British prime minister.
Fine Steve
I won’t label you, how you see me is academic.
The 6/7 billion pound subvention is more than acdemic though. Canada’s economy is on a different level than Northern Irelands cargo cult/ soviet satellite?
Lurig,
“Evolution not revolution” did you really just use a phrase from Alan Partridge to describe where the movement’s going?
driftwood ,
‘Northern Irelands cargo cult’
Very apt but at least nowadays the NI tribes appear to have stopped indulging in that other favourite past time of the aborigines of Papua /New Guinea i.e head hunting .
As I said it could be worse .
Steve the Prussian
‘It will be off set by the increase in value of public assets of the republic’
Aha the old pass the paper routine .
‘and the increase in taxaes from 1.3 million new citizens’
This shower already pay taxes just not enough -that’s why they need topping up to prevent a standard of living drop to Bulgarian levels.
Mick Hall ,
‘There is nothing more sad than a gullible Irish rebel who genuinely believes the tosh they are told by a British prime minister.’
So what would call a ‘gullible Irish rebel ‘ who appears to genuinely believe the ‘tosh’ but actually does’nt ?
Twas the mother who told me that the only people who always told the truth were fools and children . She did’nt mention British Prime Ministers or Irish Rebels nor politicians nor clergy nor bankers nor solicitors . No now that I recall it was just fools and children you could rely on
Where did I go wrong Greenflag?
Steve, British government spending in NI as a percentage of GDP is 71%. The clue to which government provides government investment, government consumption, and transfer payments, etc, is in the word “British.” Remove that source or funding and you must replace it with the funding of another government (Irish taxpayers).
I think the regional subvention could be reduced to manageable levels within a united Ireland and, indeed, erased in, perhaps, 15 years. But that would require a willingness of the part of northerners to endure cutbacks (in addition to the ones they’ll suffer when British companies who don’t operate in the Republic withdraw and when functions that are performed in NI for the UK are no longer performed, etc), and they’re selfish subsidy-junkies who don’t have any intention of living within actual or fair means and, indeed, believe that it is somehow a right to live within the means of others. When trying to sell unity to them, they simply won’t buy something that make things worse before it makes them better – and that’s just the nationalists.
Steve, look at it this way: there are about 2.5 million taxpayers in Ireland and I’ll hazard a wild guess of about 1 million in NI. Add them together and divide them by a 10 billion Euro subvention and that equates to an extra tax bill of about 2850 each. Now you might argue that it would be the case that some taxpayers in NI will pay less tax because Irish tax rates are currently lower than NI rates, but lower tax rates also mean less tax-take from the NI region and, ergo, a higher subvention. So that 10 billion subvention (at current levels) could well double due to the combined effects of harmonisation and the job losses that will occur in NI when it separates from the UK. Try dividing 20 billion by a reduced workforce of 3 million and the average taxpayer has to pay 6,666 in extra taxes to pay for unity. I think you’re going to have one hell of a job selling unity to anybody on this basis – and saying ‘But it’s only for a decade or so’ won’t have much ameliorating influence to this me-generation we have spawned. There is a price to pay for bombing NI back into the economic dark ages and permanent partition is likely to be that price.
The imposing of unnecessary borders is economic poison. The only reason Unionists were able to pull partition off is because the damage was largely done to Donegal and the 6 county areas along the border, which were predominantly Catholic, and the Unionists were able to shield themselves from ruin by securing the state positions for themselves.
At one point I think something like a third or a half (I forget which exactly) of the male Protestant population was drawing money from one or other constabulary, mainly Specials. This in turn caused a kind of conflict addiction: part-time policemen were actually pleased at the prospect of Fenian rebellions, because it would mean extra income for them. “Send in the B-Specials, they know how to handle it” was a frequent refrain at the beginning of the troubles.
Schumacher once made the point that capital cities never really subsidise their peripheries. Capitals are great hoover-like mechanisms which suck in money from the countryside and then return a small amount of this in the guise of handouts. So the amount of Southern England’s subvention to Northern Ireland is probably not as high as it seems. Nevertheless I am persuaded that there is some loss to the English Exchequer in the case of Gibraltar and NI, because these are artificial areas cut off from their natural hinterland.
So inevitably, in the case of unification, there are going to have to be cuts. The obvious solution is that the advocates of the British connection and the procurers of subsidies from the same should follow those subsidies when they disappear. A lot of Unionist policemen and civil servants are going to have to take a ten year break in England before they can afford to move back to their homeland.
The only way reunification can be sold to those who are going to support it, a Catholic majority in the 6 counties, is by giving them cast iron assurances that they will be the beneficiaries of the new arrangement.
Willingness to countenance a 32 Republic, among Protestants, is in my experience largely a luxury of the well-heeled, those who have so much stashed away that they will prosper whatever the case. “A Liberal is someone whose economic interests are not at stake.” Your average Protestant state employee senses that there is a risk that reunification will have negative economic consequences for him, which is why he opposes it with such fervour.
This is the reason why I feel attempting to convert Unionists to the cause of a United Ireland is time wasted. Each political system is, like a casino, designed to create winners and losers. Unite Ireland, and these identities may be reversed.
Cruel as this may sound, it should be pointed out that the new victims of the lottery are historically the creators of the same. Besides, among English people of my acquaintance it is understood that economics dictate that you have to spend a few years working in Holland or Saudi or somewhere before you can return home. I don’t think these people should be taxed to subsidise NI stay-at-homes.