Erm, first of all, it’s called “Northern Ireland”. “Ulster” is a nine-county province which includes three counties in the Republic.
Anyway, there was a discussion similar to this here (it’s more about why the Protestants aren’t relocated to Britain, but the same principles apply). I would add that (a) thousands upon thousands of Catholics were pogromed out of the North earlier in the Troubles; it didn’t help matters then and by reducing their numbers probably just made things worse for the ones who remained; and (b) this is exactly what the loyalists want to happen and few would support giving in to them this way.
(b) also provides a partial explanation for why the parents continue to try to use the Ardoyne Road route, rather than the other entrance to the school (which is somewhat out of their way). Giving into tactics of intimidation just sends the message that intimidation works, and who’s to say they’re going to stop when the children stop walking down that road? The school itself has been attacked, and in one of the reports yesterday (which I can’t find a link to at the moment), one of the loyalists made clear what the real issue is: “Why did they build a Catholic school here anyway? This is a Protestant area.”
Finally, I am deeply offended by the idea some posters have offered that both sides are to blame. As I said earlier … no matter what grievances the Protestants might have, there can’t possibly be any justification for targetting schoolchildren.
For the sake of completeness I should mention: It was reported on our teevee news last night that, at the time the school was built, the whole neighborhood was Catholic. Catholics have been moving out of the area and Protestants moving in, street by street. It seems to me that the real issue is, some people don’t think the Catholics are moving out fast enough :mad:
So they’re both christians, and the difference between them is only one of religion (same language, same race, same culture) and - what, NO RELIGIOUS LEADER SPEAKS OUT ABOUT THIS?
or demonstrates the turn the other cheek principle? or exhorts his followers to do so?
What a fine religion this christianity is, to be sure.
Dear god in heaven, can’t you people in Ulster manage to learn anything from my country’s history? Must you repeat the Little Rock Nine 40 years later?
Not addressed to anyone here, mind you. Heard reports of the bomb this morning on NPR, couldn’t imagine how frightened those children must be.
I’m 100% with ruadh on this one. There is no explanation that justifies this kind of behaviour. No small child no matter what race, religion or nationallity should be put through this shite.
Squink, fuck you.
So you’d probably think that Rosa Parks should have gotten out of her seat then, and saved herself the trouble?
These are kids walking to school. Their not haveing a catholic equivalent of an Orange march or anything. Their parents aren’t dancing down the road singing “I’m an Unrepentant Fenian Bastard” while waving a tricolour and wiping their arse with the Union Jack.
They are parents walking their children to School.
Once more squink. Don’t give me reason to tear you a new arsehole with a rusty chainsaw. I’m pissed off about this and really not going to take any shit on this thread.
Glad to hear it Alphagene, but I can’t help but recall that just a few days ago Hutchinson was blaming nationalists for starting the whole trouble. I’ve noticed that the loyalist paramilitary involvement here seems to be UDA/UFF; Hutchinson’s party is the political wing of the LVF, traditionally the more prominent of the two paramilitaries in Glenbryn and the UDA/UFF’s deadly rivals. Sure that’s got nothing to do with his about face :rolleyes:
As for you, squink, why stop at blaming the parents for walking their children down that road? Why not call them neglectful simply for raising their kids Catholic in a part of the country where that in itself makes them “legitimate targets” (according to a Red Hand Defenders - UDA/UFF cover group - statement a couple weeks ago). Their very existence is a “provocation” (your word), not just their walking down the road to go to school.
Quit trying to shift the blame from where it belongs.
Of course not, they had already done the dancing and arse wiping thing earlier in the year. Once the school year starts they all turn into wide eyed innocents, and the protestants are being assholes for not recognizing this annual transformation. :rolleyes:
I see nothing nothing noble in exploiting children as weapons in a propaganda campaign.
I’ve yet to see a single piece of evidence that any of the Catholic families with kids in that school had anything to do with any of the problems the Protestants have allegedly faced in the Ardoyne. Maybe you’d like to provide some?
And even if they were, I’m still waiting to hear how that would excuse terrorising their children.
And you see something excusable in throwing missiles at children in a propaganda campaign?
I agree with you that certain conflicts make disproportionate amount of headlines. IIRC the number of people killed in a month in Rwanda exceeded the number killed in all the years of the N.Irish troubles. I think a lot of Westerners just have problems relating to African and Asian people, or just take the view that those countries are such a mess anyway it isn’t really surprising things like that happen there (I’m not condoning that view BTW).
Of course now Squink will probably tell us that those boys must have done something to deserve it and the police should go after their parents for allowing them to play outdoors.
Let’s review: The kids in question are as young as four years old. At what point is a four-year-old not a “wide eyed innocent”? What annual transformation are you referring to – going from being four to being five?
Listen, you moron, children are not extensions of their parents. Even if every single parent with a child in this school is an IRA sharpshooter, that does not excuse attacking their kids. People with differences sometimes go to war over them, but NO person with ANY decency makes war on children. And to throw a bomb at them?? Jesus. It makes me sick to my stomach.
And let me clarify that I don’t think these parents have done anything except try to take their kids to school, or at least I haven’t read anything indicating it. I’m just saying it wouldn’t excuse this even if they had. I’m sure some of them have IRA sympathies – how could they not? The opposition just tried to blow up your kid.
