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Path: utzoo!dciem!mmt
From: mmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: Breaking the Cycle of Violence in the British Isles: Reply to Dave Peak
Message-ID: <586@dciem.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 23-Dec-83 16:39:31 EST
Article-I.D.: dciem.586
Posted: Fri Dec 23 16:39:31 1983
Date-Received: Fri, 23-Dec-83 17:24:57 EST
References: <184@houxk.UUCP>
Organization: D.C.I.E.M., Toronto, Canada
Lines: 21

From what one hears, there is nothing the British would like better than
to leave Northern Ireland, but they are afraid that there would be a
bloodbath. As I am sure McGhee knows full well, the majority of people
in Northern Ireland have no wish to join the Republic, and the departure
of the British Army would leave the field open for the descendants of
the B-Specials, who have no love for the minority Catholics. In an all-out
civil war in Northern Ireland, it is questionable who would win, but
it is clear who would lose: everyone who was not an extremist would lose.
The impression we get here is that if a Catholic leads a peace effort,
the IRA is likely to get nasty, and if a Protestant does, the Ulster
Defence League will. If you are going to list the murders and other
terrorist activities by the Army, please include those committed on
innocent people by the IRA and by the UDL as well. Be fair.

No recounting of past evils is going to help heal the Irish wounds,
and no abdication of the only existing source of order will reduce
the level of violence. God knows, they've tried often enough.
-- 

Martin Taylor
{allegra,linus,ihnp4,uw-beaver,floyd,ubc-vision}!utzoo!dciem!mmt