Not In My Name

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

The only time these "terrorists" will be part of history is when the illegal partition of this island is brought to an end.

Great you put terrorists in parentheses. Maybe put "illegal" in them too. It would be more objectively accurate. You're unreal. You really are. I've seen you thank a post that justified the killing of touts. Somebody's mother no less. How odious and bereft of logic and bereft of soul and bereft of simple humanity a worldview you support. At least you're young. Hopefully age will grey the edges of your black and white received thinking.

People should concentrate on addressing the causes of the conflict and try to mitigate them as much as possible rather than making a video in order to allow them to sit back and bask in moral supremacy pretending they did something constructive in trying to heal wounds.

The biggest cause of the conflict today? A minority of twats. Simple as that. Twats. On both sides.

DeVore wrote: »

And by the way, Uganda dropped the anti gay bill due to international pressure, mostly online.

DeV.

Not quite. It was far less the online stuff. These guys really don't give a damn about a million e signatures. The do give a damn when the US state dept suggests they'd look unfavourably tradewise on Uganda and makes noises about cutting international aid. That was what actually made them give a damn.

Plus it was only dropped for the current session of parliament, it may well come back in a more US palatable form or when the next moral outrage takes up the news. Memories can be short.

With the Norn Iron question? I remember not in my name type marches with actual people taking to the streets in the 70's and 80's and the fcukwits on both sides kept up the killing. When you start up a paramilitary organisation/freedom fighters/terrorist group, you attract the young, the politically motivated, the rebel, the dreamers, the killers and the criminals. After the political and social reasons for kicking off paramilitary organisations are largely gone or diffused enough that most people just want to live their daily lives, what you have left is usually a core of criminals, killers and people who want to watch it all burn.

No amount of youtube videos or online petition signing is gonna do a damn thing about that. I agree with wolfetone on that point. It's gone beyond that point. Makes people feel better about themselves for watching and or signing something. Nothing wrong with that and it is better than nothing, but it's hopelessly naive to think it'll stop anything. Has anyone's actual back and forth debate with Wolfetone or KeithAFC changed their tune one little bit? No and they're not killers and psychos. Indeed even if Wolfetones ilk found a genie in a bottle and in the morning magically their "illegal" partition was over and the Unionists magically all took the ferry to Stranraer you would still have a core of nutjobs wanting to cause mayhem and they'd find another banner to march behind.

What will stop it? Hard nosed police work and judicial sentences. And time. But like the poor we have to accept we will always have psychos looking for a banner, any banner as an excuse.

yawha wrote: »

Is it though?

It's "lacktivism", and I think it's potentially harmful to good causes. If people think they're doing a small part to help a cause by signing an online petition, or changing their facebook picture or whatever, then there's a chance that less people will actually stand up and do something practical for that cause.

True enough, though it might get more to stand up that otherwise wouldn't because they feel there's support, even if it's online. Online communities are bloody valuable as the Iranian example showed.

Here? In this country? Not so much. We've been too long a culture of keyboard warriors since long before there were even keyboards.