Is a peaceful 32 united ireland possible

luckyfrank

First off let me just say anyone is welcome to the disussion as long as they show respect for each other i read other thread and it became silly at the end


There is nothing id love more than a peaceful 32 county united ireland
We share this island together no one owns it more than any other. The orange tradtion is a part of our shared history and i can understand how people of the orange tradtion would feel uncomfortable in a 32 county ireland but you's have nothing to fear im sure the four provinces could be federlised to an extent. The white flag of peace between green and orange traditions

I really think that federlising the provinces is the way forward a 9 county ulster which could decide its own education and healthcare while issues such as tax and national security would be handled by the central dublin goverment with repersenitives from all four provinces also i think we should be far more accomadating towards the orange tradition in a 32 county ireland with national holidays such as the 12th

Lockstep

I'd view it as possible.

I'd support a peacefully achieved 32 county republic.

dresden8

Anything is possible.

Generally money will solve any problem. If Great Britain goes down the tubes financially the North may well solve it's difficulties with Dublin pdq.

Remember foot and mouth? The North distanced itself from "the mainland" and became "Irish" in the blink of a press release.

Iwasfrozen

I would support a Federalised United Ireland as long as it is what the majority of the North want.

luckyfrank

Id like to hear from moderate unionists and how they would feel about a federal ulster within a united ireland.

LordSutch

Goodness me, we have just finished one thread on this Topic "Would you like to see a united Ireland" and now this one ..........

Speaking on behalf of moderate Unionism, I would agree to a 'United Ireland' as long as the Union Flag & the National Anthem GSTQ is retained, my point being that being a 'Unionist' means valuing the Union with Britain.

Moderate Unionists are all for closer ties & closer cooperation between the various parts of this island, but they cannot just 'give up' the heritage & become something they our not - (adopt your president, adopt your Tricolour & adopt your Anthem too) :rolleyes:

"Yes" - to 32 county cooperation & closer ties with the Republic by all means.
"No" - to the North breaking the Union with the rest of the United Kingdom.

But if the South re-joined the Commonwealth then . . . . . ?

luckyfrank

Camelot wrote: »

Goodness me, we have just finished one thread on this Topic "Would you like to see a united Ireland" and now this one ..........

Speaking on behalf of moderate Unionism, I would agree to a 'United Ireland' as long as the Union Flag & the National Anthem GSTQ is retained, my point being that being a 'Unionist' means valuing the Union with Britain.

Moderate Unionists are all for closer ties & closer cooperation between the various parts of this island, but they cannot just 'give up' the heritage & become something they our not - (adopt your president, adopt your Tricolour & adopt your Anthem too) :rolleyes:

"Yes" - to 32 county cooperation & closer ties with the Republic by all means.
"No" - to the North breaking the Union with the rest of the United Kingdom.

But if the South re-joined the Commonwealth then . . . . . ?

Well as a moderate nationalist id support ireland rejoining the commenwealth to an extent if it meant having dual national anthems closer ties with the uk id be all for it..... Again in a federlised ulster you could have dual heads of state if so be..... I really hope in the next general election up north there is a swing back to the moderate parties with the SLDP and UUP regaining popularity its because of them that we have any sort of self governence in the north

McArmalite

Camelot wrote: »

Goodness me, we have just finished one thread on this Topic "Would you like to see a united Ireland" and now this one ..........

Speaking on behalf of moderate Unionism, I would agree to a 'United Ireland' as long as the Union Flag & the National Anthem GSTQ is retained, my point being that being a 'Unionist' means valuing the Union with Britain.

Moderate Unionists are all for closer ties & closer cooperation between the various parts of this island, but they cannot just 'give up' the heritage & become something they our not - (adopt your president, adopt your Tricolour & adopt your Anthem too) :rolleyes:

"Yes" - to 32 county cooperation & closer ties with the Republic by all means.
"No" - to the North breaking the Union with the rest of the United Kingdom.

But if the South re-joined the Commonwealth then . . . . . ?

" Moderate Unionists are all for closer ties & closer cooperation between the various parts of this island, but they cannot just 'give up' the heritage & become something they our not " Their tens of thousands of their brethern which they abonded to the newly formed Free State with barely a blink, despite their utterances pre treaty of fighting to the death, blood baths throughout the island etc, etc, gave up their 'heritage' without a single shot fired or barely a whimper ? Just remember the leader of unionism at the time was Edward Carson from Dublin, the unionists even won several seats in Dublin in what was the posher areas of the time such as Rathmines. No bloodbath etc when britian had to go.

Without the support of britian, the unionists will be more than able to 'give up' the heritage .

getz

give up both national anthems-one is singing about a old dear the other is about beating the british--saxon foe

---

the joint national anthem could be --danny boy--the flag mayby the flag of saint patrick--join the commonwealth--with the other 53 nations and 1.7 billion people--but most of all one sporting nation--it be a little bit special seeing a all ireland side taking on england

djpbarry

Why does this keep coming up? Why the need for a united Ireland? Why not just leave everything as is?

oscarBravo

Is a peaceful 32 county united Ireland possible?

No. Not yet. Taking this board as a microcosm of society, albeit a somewhat unrepresentative one, there are still too many people willing to attack each other for past grievances. We can wait in hope for parents to stop teaching their children to hate, and hopefully by then the question will be a quaint irrelevance.

At the moment I couldn't see it happening but in the next 20 years or so..? Maybe. I'd agree with alot of the other posters by saying that the core values of Unionism would need to be accepted by the whole island which is the biggest obstactle.

getz

could it be that in 20 years time the british /irish problem will be out of our hands anyway .the way all of us are having to follow E U dictations and laws no one will have a say on what goes on.

guinnessdrinker

I agree with most of what the op has said in his post. I think that a peacefull 32 county united Ireland is possible. Not tomorrow obvioulsly but in the not too distant future.

As regards to the anthems and flags, I think compromise can be made in these areas, neither anthem is acceptable to the other tradition on the island as they stand. A new anthem will have to be adopted (not Ireland's call!) as well as a new flag.

I like the op's idea about keeping the 12th of July as a holiday for the whole island. We have a shared tradition on the island, we are not too different from each other no matter what people say.

I think a federalised system could work well too. I know this idea has been doing the rounds for years (Eire Nua etc.) but I think it is an idea that could benifit everyone on the island. I would like to see each of the four provinces have more say in the running of day to day matters.

madden1

dresden8 wrote: »

Anything is possible.

Generally money will solve any problem. If Great Britain goes down the tubes financially the North may well solve it's difficulties with Dublin pdq.

Remember foot and mouth? The North distanced itself from "the mainland" and became "Irish" in the blink of a press release

Agree 100 % with this the money GOD solves all ill,

luckyfrank

djpbarry wrote: »

Why does this keep coming up? Why the need for a united Ireland? Why not just leave everything as is?

Think of what a unified ireland could achieve........ if you have any nationalistic sentiment running through your body you'd yearn for a 32 county ireland its should be a core value every irishman born.

midlandsmissus

Speaking as a southerner living in Northern Ireland, and considering myself to be very neutral to both sides, I would say there is not a chance in our lifetimes.

I would also say that people down south just cannot understand everything that happened up here. I, myself was ignorant to alot of things until I actually moved here.

There is in fact a deep distrust of the south up here by both Protestants and Catholics. I have had catholics say to me: "you signed us over to the british", "you left us to die up here". You southerners did nothing.

I have found the majority of catholics up here have the attitude "They never gave a f*ck about us down there" and dont paricularly want to join with the south.
Protestants up here, all that I have met anyway would NEVER consider the idea of joining with the south. They feel that it would go against all who have died at the hands of the I.R.A. There is still ALOT of hatred up here and it is only now taking baby steps to an improvement.
Maybe four or five generations from now it will simmer down to a point where people might consider it, but you're having a laugh if you think it will be any time soon.

luckyfrank

midlandsmissus wrote: »

Speaking as a southerner living in Northern Ireland, and considering myself to be very neutral to both sides, I would say there is not a chance in our lifetimes.

I would also say that people down south just cannot understand everything that happened up here. I, myself was ignorant to alot of things until I actually moved here.

There is in fact a deep distrust of the south up here by both Protestants and Catholics. I have had catholics say to me: "you signed us over to the british", "you left us to die up here". You southerners did nothing.

I have found the majority of catholics up here have the attitude "They never gave a f*ck about us down there" and dont paricularly want to join with the south.
Protestants up here, all that I have met anyway would NEVER consider the idea of joining with the south. They feel that it would go against all who have died at the hands of the I.R.A. There is still ALOT of hatred up here and it is only now taking baby steps to an improvement.
Maybe four or five generations from now it will simmer down to a point where people might consider it, but you're having a laugh if you think it will be any time soon.

Maybe your right but im up the north every week as a truck driver and i meet alot of people from both sides and all of those who i met a very moderate in out-look i would say the people you have met would be of the extremist out-look i think a form of a united ireland is possible in 30 or so years with a 9 county ulster semi automonus

Crash

luckyfrank wrote: »

Think of what a unified ireland could achieve........ if you have any nationalistic sentiment running through your body you'd yearn for a 32 county ireland its should be a core value every irishman born.

I'm intrigued by this one - what exactly could a 32 county republic achieve that would be different? any examples?

luckyfrank

Going Forward wrote: »

I'm intrigued by this one - what exactly could a 32 county republic achieve that would be different? any examples?

Yes sporting wise and politcally we would be much stronger i believe. In time i believe an all ireland economy would be stronger aswell

LordSutch

luckyfrank wrote: »

Think of what a unified ireland could achieve........ if you have any nationalistic sentiment running through your body you'd yearn for a 32 county ireland its should be a core value every irishman born.

Yeah, right :rolleyes:

What a load of old cobblers ...............

madden1

Camelot wrote: »

Yeah, right :rolleyes:

What a load of old cobblers ..............

Looks like we are back to the same old slanging match on this thread like all other threads that try to have a civilised discussion on this subject

LordSutch

Exactly - I agree with you madden1, this topic has been done to death in a very similar Thread still going. "Would you like to see a united Ireland" where all the same questions have been asked & all the same answers have been offered . . .

I gave a serious answer to a serious question in Post#6.

BenjAii

Quite apart from the issue of mutually incompatible views of national identity, there is the question of cold hard cash.

I think its fair to say NI lives in the style it has grown accustomed to thanks to a generous largesse from the British taxpayer. I believe the figure is usually quoted at several billion pounds sterling a year.

Given, if this was removed, NI would probably collapse economically how are we in the Republic, with a much smaller tax base than Britain, supposed to continue with this were there to be a 32 county Ireland ?

madden1

Camelot wrote: »

Exactly -

I agree with you madden1, this topic has been done to death in a very similar Thread still going. "Would you like to see a united Ireland" where all the same questions have been asked & all the same answers have been offered . . .

I gave a serious answer to a serious question in Post#6.

Camelot I agree that your answer on post 6 was fair and sound but your post on 21 in response to luckyfrank What a load of old cobblers ...... was a dig at his views, and not as you state that the topic was done to death.

Camelot wrote: »

Yeah, right :rolleyes:

What a load of old cobblers ...............

LordSutch

Question for you madden1 re luckyfrank's post#16 "Is it also your core value for a 32 county ireland"?
(as originally posted by 'luckyfrank)

The reason I said it was a load of old cobblers, was because his statement is 'narrow' and unaccommodating to other Irish people who dont hold his views! he says (its should be a core value every irishman born) :rolleyes:

Thats quite presumptuous on his part, & certainly Not my core value, and I thought we had moved-on to a more in depth & cerebral discussion - instead of just saying that if you are born irish then your core value must be to crave a united ireland!

djpbarry

luckyfrank wrote: »

Think of what a unified ireland could achieve...

What?

luckyfrank wrote: »

...if you have any nationalistic sentiment running through your body you'd yearn for a 32 county ireland its should be a core value every irishman born.

And that's all it boils down to, isn't it? Some kind of emotional, nationalist belief in an entitlement to the whole island, which I will never understand.

I see no more of a need to unite the Republic of Ireland with Northern Ireland than I do to unite the Republic with Wales, Scotland, England, the Isle of Man, the Basque Country, etc., etc.

dante18

djpbarry wrote: »

I see no more of a need to unite the Republic of Ireland with Northern Ireland than I do to unite the Republic with Wales, Scotland, England, the Isle of Man, the Basque Country, etc., etc.

I think you're just deliberately trying to annoy people by saying things like that. Or maybe you just think that it makes you look more cosmopolitan and educated to appear to be above the patriotism of the masses.

I can't understand how any true Irishman would not want to see his country united. Not only is it unpatriotic but it's downright unmanly.

djpbarry

dante18 wrote: »

Or maybe you just think that it makes you look more cosmopolitan and educated to appear to be above the patriotism of the masses.

Well, I am pretty ****ing amazing; you’d understand if you knew me.

dante18 wrote: »

I can't understand how any true Irishman would not want to see his country united.

Northern Ireland is not my country; this seems to be a concept that many nationalists and republicans have a great deal of difficulty in grasping.

dante18 wrote: »

Not only is it unpatriotic but it's downright unmanly.

:rolleyes:

Why do you assume that I’m a man?

dante18

djpbarry wrote:

Northern Ireland is not my country;

Kerry is not my country. It's part of my country though. It's the same with the north of Ireland.

djpbarry wrote:

this seems to be a concept that many nationalists and republicans have a great deal of difficulty in grasping.

I have a very hard time grasping it. Ulster is a province of Ireland. The fact that 6 of its counties are temporarily under the jurisdiction of a different government from the rest of us doesn't change that. It's still a province of Ireland.

djpbarry wrote:

Why do you assume that I’m a man?

I don't assume that you're a man. I don't think I've ever said anything to make you think I did assume that.

Real men like me are patriotic and have a sense of pride in our country.

CerebralCortex

dante18 wrote: »

I think you're just deliberately trying to annoy people by saying things like that. Or maybe you just think that it makes you look more cosmopolitan and educated to appear to be above the patriotism of the masses.

I can't understand how any true Irishman would not want to see his country united. Not only is it unpatriotic but it's downright unmanly.

Do you realise how offensive that sounds? I mean your defining what it means to be a true Irishmen and completely isolating those of us who consider ourselfs Irish but don't agree with you. You realise what you said sounds no better than what a hard line unionist would say. Two sides of the same coin. I suppose you think you need all your grandparents to be white catholics and from Ireland to be considered Irish?

djpbarry

dante18 wrote: »

Kerry is not my country. It's part of my country though. It's the same with the north of Ireland.

Eh, no, it isn't. That's your problem right there. Have a look a this here map; see the thick black line? That there is an international boundary between two neighbouring countries, the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

dante18 wrote: »

Ulster is a province of Ireland. The fact that 6 of its counties are temporarily under the jurisdiction of a different government from the rest of us doesn't change that.

Define temporarily. I was of the understanding that Northern Ireland has been under British rule for several hundred years.

dante18 wrote: »

I don't assume that you're a man. I don't think I've ever said anything to make you think I did assume that.

Well, yes, you did. You said of my views on a united Ireland; "Not only is it unpatriotic but it's downright unmanly." Seems quite clear to that you have assumed me to be male and not much of a male at that.

dante18 wrote: »

Real men like me are patriotic and have a sense of pride in our country.

And real men like me are not terribly patriotic and believe in democracy. See, I can do that to. Doesn't really mean very much though does it? Certainly doesn’t constitute and argument.

JWAD

dante18 wrote: »

Real men like me are patriotic and have a sense of pride in our country.

You say this under a pseudonym, anonymously on the internet and behind the protection of a firewall??

Hilarious, Man!
:eek: :rolleyes:

Villain

The problems with democracy is it only needs a majoirty i.e. 51% of those allowed to Vote up north could vote in favour of a United Ireland, that would leave 49% unhappy and I would bet some of that 49% would show their anger by means of action.

I believe Ireland should be united, but I don't think its will be possible during my lifetime, if only the plantation of Ulster had never occured ......

luckyfrank

I dont know if its just me but the celtic tiger has not only brought with it cash and prosperity but also a wave of unnationlistic generation of people to

Today's soicety is all about guicci and prada and all that crap people are more concerned about there frappichino and bagel's instead of what is really important !!

National reconcillation and irish unity with freedom and respect for all traditions

What need you being come to sense,
But fumble in a greasy till,
And add the halfpence to the pence
And prayer to shivering prayer, until
You have dried the marrow from the bone?
For men were born to pray and save:
Romantic Ireland's dead and gone,
It's with O'Leary in the grave.

Yet they were of a different kind,
The names that stilled your childish play,
They have gone about the world like wind,
But little time had they to pray
For whom the hangman's rope was spun,
And what, God help us, could they save?
Romantic Ireland's dead and gone,
It's with O'Leary in the grave.

Was it for this the wild geese spread
They grey wing upon every tide;
For this that all the blood was shed,
For this Edward Fitzgerald died,
And Robert Emmet and Wolfe Tone,
All that delirium of the brave?
Romantic Ireland's dead and gone,
It's with O'Leary in the grave.

Yet could we turn the years again,
And call those exiles as they were
In all their loneliness and pain,
You'd cry, "Some woman's yellow hair
Has maddened every mother's son":
They weighed so lightly what they gave
But let them be they're dead and gone,
They're with O'Leary in the grave.

W B Yeats


As applicable now as when it was written

stovelid

A united Ireland could well be achieved by peaceful means, but I don't think it would be possible for it to survive; not yet. The divisions of the troubles - and of unionist misrule before that - will have to be literally bred out of Northern Irish society.

I think it will be a good start when the current 40+ age group (the ones with the most vivid, lived experience of the troubles) pass on from society, and especially politics and policing.

djpbarry

luckyfrank wrote: »

I dont know if its just me but the celtic tiger has not only brought with it cash and prosperity but also a wave of unnationlistic generation of people to

And that's bad because?

luckyfrank

djpbarry wrote: »

And that's bad because?

You can tell alot about a person who cares for nothing but himself

stovelid

luckyfrank wrote: »

people are more concerned about there frappichino and bagel's instead of what is really important !!

Steady on Frank. Wannabe students in 80's Tallaght had to read their conspicuously angled Penguin Classics and trendy political tomes in Abrakebabra ffs. Let's not knock the arrival of decent coffee shops.:D

Seriously though: the downturn in nationalist fervour is a good thing in many ways. People can think about the North without recourse to the troubles. You can be proud to be Irish without being nationalistic.

ardmacha

That there is an international boundary between two neighbouring countries, the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

I think you are confusing countries and States. Scotland and England are different counties in the same State. Ireland is a country divided between two States.

A peaceful united Ireland is possible, this is simply the return of normality. As the present difference is artificial, then through entropy a United Ireland is inevitable unless there are forces against it, and no real forces exist. The Good Friday agreement sets out principles by which everyone can be involved. This makes peace more likely than not, and in the absence of conflict people will see themselves are having more in common, in a slow and unexciting way.

luckyfrank

stovelid wrote: »

Steady on Frank. Wannabe students in 80's Tallaght had to read their conspicuously angled Penguin Classics and trendy political tomes in Abrakebabra ffs. Let's not knock the arrival of decent coffee shops.:D

Seriously though: the downturn in nationalist fervour is a good thing in many ways. People can think about the North without recourse to the troubles. You can be proud to be Irish without being nationalistic.

I dont know if you read the previous threads in this and the other irish unity thread but there was a number of people clearly stating they woudnt want now or in the future a united ireland and these are irish people saying that :eek:

I never met people like this but im gonna throw a bone at it and say they were are probably fed with a silver spoon or live in postal addresses with even numbers in dublin

Im very moderate in out-look but for some people to just be so nonshalant about irish unity makes sad

Acacia

Camelot wrote: »

Speaking on behalf of moderate Unionism, I would agree to a 'United Ireland' as long as the Union Flag & the National Anthem GSTQ is retained, my point being that being a 'Unionist' means valuing the Union with Britain.



But if the South re-joined the Commonwealth then . . . . . ?

IMO, if there was a United Ireland there should be no union or link with Britain , so I don't think keeping the Unionist flag and National Anthem would be feasible. Or indeed marches on the 12th of July.To be perfectly honest, in a 32 county Ireland, Unionism has no place. It would sort of defeat the purpose of having a United, independent Ireland, would it not?

As for the South re-joining the Commonwealth....don't think so, either. Why would the Republic do such a thing after all the effort and bloodshed of the past to gain independence?

I realize that not everybody will agree with me on this, and I respect their opinions. I hope I have not offended anybody, that was not my intention. I'm just giving my honest opinion on the matter. I hope I will live to see a United Ireland, achieved by peaceful means.

luckyfrank

Acacia wrote: »

IMO, if there was a United Ireland there should be no union or link with Britain , so I don't think keeping the Unionist flag and National Anthem would be feasible. Or indeed marches on the 12th of July.To be perfectly honest, in a 32 county Ireland, Unionism has no place. It would sort of defeat the purpose of having a United, independent Ireland, would it not?

As for the South re-joining the Commonwealth....don't think so, either. Why would the Republic do such a thing after all the effort and bloodshed of the past to gain independence?

I realize that not everybody will agree with me on this, and I respect their opinions. I hope I have not offended anybody, that was not my intention. I'm just giving my honest opinion on the matter. I hope I will live to see a United Ireland, achieved by peaceful means.

There is a sizeable popualtion on this island who consider themselves british if it meant having a united ireland id support rejoining the commenwealth to an extent to accommadate them. And why not have the 12th as a national holiday ?? Just because its not your culture doesnt mean it cant be celebrated by those who wish to

Fratton Fred

Acacia wrote: »

IMO, if there was a United Ireland there should be no union or link with Britain , so I don't think keeping the Unionist flag and National Anthem would be feasible. Or indeed marches on the 12th of July.To be perfectly honest, in a 32 county Ireland, Unionism has no place. It would sort of defeat the purpose of having a United, independent Ireland, would it not?

As for the South re-joining the Commonwealth....don't think so, either. Why would the Republic do such a thing after all the effort and bloodshed of the past to gain independence?

I realize that not everybody will agree with me on this, and I respect their opinions. I hope I have not offended anybody, that was not my intention. I'm just giving my honest opinion on the matter. I hope I will live to see a United Ireland, achieved by peaceful means.

How many unionists are there in Australia, India, Trinidad, Canada, Fiji.......

India shed a lot of blood for independance and they are a secular republic, are they foolish because they are in the commonwealth? what do you know that they don't?

Acacia

luckyfrank wrote: »

There is a sizeable popualtion on this island who consider themselves british if it meant having a united ireland id support rejoining the commenwealth to an extent to accommadate them. And why not have the 12th as a national holiday ?? Just because its not your culture doesnt mean it cant be celebrated by those who wish to

Here's what I think about the whole thing and I'll probably catch shít for this, but here goes:

If you consider yourself British, fair play to you. But this is Ireland, not Britain, I'm afraid. I'd be in favor of a 32-county independent Ireland with no union with Britain. If the British people here don't like that, they can (with all due respect) live in England.

Why should I, or anybody else, agree to be part of a foreign Commonwealth to accommodate people who don't even want to be considered Irish in the first place? Seems like a bit of step backwards if you ask me.

And I disagree with the idea of the 12th as a national holiday because of what it represents. Yes, it's not my culture, why should it be part of my country's national identity by having it as a national holiday? I'm not saying people shouldn't be allowed march if they want to, but I don't agree with it being a national holiday.

Again, no offense intended to anybody here.

Fratton Fred

Acacia wrote: »

Here's what I think about the whole thing and I'll probably catch shít for this, but here goes:

If you consider yourself British, fair play to you. But this is Ireland, not Britain, I'm afraid. I'd be in favor of a 32-county independent Ireland with no union with Britain. If the British people here don't like that, they can (with all due respect) live in England.

Why should I, or anybody else, agree to be part of a foreign Commonwealth to accommodate people who don't even want to be considered Irish in the first place? Seems like a bit of step backwards if you ask me.

And I disagree with the idea of the 12th as a national holiday because of what it represents. Yes, it's not my culture, why should it be part of my country's national identity by having it as a national holiday? I'm not saying people shouldn't be allowed march if they want to, but I don't agree with it being a national holiday.

Again, no offense intended to anybody here.

so given the choice between joining the commonwealth and keeping Ireland divided, you would rather have a divided country?

Acacia

Fratton Fred wrote: »

How many unionists are there in Australia, India, Trinidad, Canada, Fiji.......

India shed a lot of blood for independance and they are a secular republic, are they foolish because they are in the commonwealth? what do you know that they don't?

Never said anybody was foolish for being in the Commonwealth. I would just rather not be. I'm not concerned about Australia or India, etc. I'm concerned about Ireland.

(Sorry for the double post.)

Acacia

Fratton Fred wrote: »

so given the choice between joining the commonwealth and keeping Ireland divided, you would rather have a divided country?

It shouldn't be a question of being in the Commonwealth or keeping it divided. I'm talking about a hypothetical situation. Ideally, I'd like an independent, united Ireland.

But I doubt that's going to be possible any time soon.

Fratton Fred

Acacia wrote: »

It shouldn't be a question of being in the Commonwealth or keeping it divided. I'm talking about a hypothetical situation. Ideally, I'd like an independent, united Ireland.

But I doubt that's going to be possible any time soon.

I understnad that, but somewhere along the line compromises have got to be made.

I must admit, I don't understand the 12th being a public holiday, it only applies to NI, not the rest of the UK. In England we don't even get St. Georges day off.

luckyfrank

Im comfortable enough with my own national identity that it wouldnt bother me one iota if we rejoined the commenwealth or something similar ffs were financially married to the uk as it is and relations between the two countries have never being better. Again its not something id do just for the sake of it i believe that the people of the orange tradition have the same right as anyone on this island we have a shared history however bloody it is and id strech over backways to make them feel comfortable in a 32 county ireland

Acacia

Fratton Fred wrote: »

I understnad that, but somewhere along the line compromises have got to be made.

I must admit, I don't understand the 12th being a public holiday, it only applies to NI, not the rest of the UK. In England we don't even get St. Georges day off.

Yes, it's not ideal world, unfortunately. I wish people could be more civil and discuss things (like we are doing) with respect for the other person's opinion.:) Perhaps, a lot of violence could be avoided.

Hmm, I always thought St.George's day was a public holiday in England. :)