The DUP

[LongTimeLurker]

1 hour ago, The Chlamydia Kid said:

If the DUP hold the Tories to a no hard border between NI and the republic it means Teresa May will have to take her "no deal is better than a bad deal" approach of the table- bet we won't hear much objections from the usual loud mouths about the 'coalition of chaos' then...

It basically means a relatively soft Brexit that keeps freedom of movement and trade intact and hopefully people will be able to see beyond the DUP's stance on certain social issues and realise what a massive opportunity that is. The question will be whether Theresa May can hold her party together on that long enough to make it actually happen without having any Douglas Carswell type defections to UKIP and whether other pro-Remain parties would step into the breach to help out if that became a problem. As a pro-Remainer I hope so but a key problem is that Labour's rise was fueled by ex-kippers so they are not likely to play along for cynical self-serving reasons.

[Glenconner]

2 hours ago, Crùbag said:

Indeed. Though even our remaining Presbyterian areas like Lewis and Harris are moving away from this.

Northern Ireland is still in the grip of this madness.

Might be why Sunday Politics couldn't find any of the 13 new Scottish Tories to appear on the show.

Either that or the Tories are quietly taking out May.

[LongTimeLurker]

 

[John Lambies Doos]

The Torys and the right wing press can never use the term 'coalition of chaos' again after what's happening with the Torys and DUP. They can never have a go at corbyn again re. The ira link.
It puts the whole Irish peace process up in air, it makes stormont much more unlikely and it will push the ROI into supporting a border poll.
Strong and stable... fuk off you cow

[Crùbag]

52 minutes ago, LongTimeLurker said:

 

You miss the point. We're ay told about other religious nutters but ignore those in our midst. White Christian extremism is ok apparently.

As an atheist, I think they're all crackpots.

[Donathan]

The Torys and the right wing press can never use the term 'coalition of chaos' again after what's happening with the Torys and DUP. They can never have a go at corbyn again re. The ira link.
It puts the whole Irish peace process up in air, it makes stormont much more unlikely and it will push the ROI into supporting a border poll.
Strong and stable... fuk off you cow

The IRA line is still valid because, in Great Britain, Northern Irish unionists are far more popular than IRA/Nat types

[bennett]

3 hours ago, NotThePars said:

 

A mate of mine got somedy's season ticket for a Sunday game last year because the guy who owns it refuses to watch the Rangers on the Sabbath.

 

Gotta respect Ozzy n the guys tho..

 

[Jacksgranda]

8 minutes ago, John Lambies Doos said:

 a/ The Torys and the right wing press can never use the term 'coalition of chaos' again after what's happening with the Torys and DUP. They can never have a go at corbyn again re. The ira link.
b/ It puts the whole Irish peace process up in air, c/ it makes stormont much more unlikely d/ and it will push the ROI into supporting a border poll.
Strong and stable... fuk off you cow

a/ Yes they can

b/ No it doesn't

c/ No it doesn't

d/ No it won't. They know what side their bread is buttered.

[LongTimeLurker]

1 minute ago, John Lambies Doos said:

The Torys and the right wing press can never use the term 'coalition of chaos' again after what's happening with the Torys and DUP. They can never have a go at corbyn again re. The ira link.
It puts the whole Irish peace process up in air, it makes stormont much more unlikely and it will push the ROI into supporting a border poll.
Strong and stable... fuk off you cow

Agree with everything else but think you are wrong on the bolded bit at least where the elite in the RoI is concerned. They'll still be happy to have NI as a containment zone for politicians they would rather not have in the Dail (e.g. Gregory Campbell holding a yoghurt carton) and for pragmatic economic reasons of not wanting to take over the responsibility of paying for a place that still doesn't come close to covering its costs in terms of taxation generated. Think what it will do though is boost SF's electoral prospects in the RoI.

[LongTimeLurker]

6 minutes ago, Crùbag said:

You miss the point. We're ay told about other religious nutters but ignore those in our midst. White Christian extremism is ok apparently.

As an atheist, I think they're all crackpots.

I'm an atheist as well and share that posture although I'd use gentler language like deluded. Closer to home why do we still have faith schools? NI isn't the only place in the UK where the religiously observant tail still wags the dog.

[The Chlamydia Kid]

If you read his many many posts on the thread about things your mrs does to annoy you, you'll understand he's actually a very miserable wee guy who is cuckolded, this is probably the only way he ever gets a (albeit wrong) sense of not being one of life's big losers. I'm almost tempted to feel sorry for him.

 

 

[emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

[LongTimeLurker]

7 minutes ago, Donathan said:

The IRA line is still valid because, in Great Britain, Northern Irish unionists are far more popular than IRA/Nat types

They won't talk that up again to the extent they did this time mainly for the more mundane reason that it didn't work to anything like the extent they thought it would.

[Co.Down Hibee]

3 minutes ago, Donathan said:

 

 

The IRA line is still valid because, in Great Britain, Northern Irish unionists are far more popular than IRA/Nat types

 

 

Not sure I'd fully agree with that , there isn't a great deal of support in the UK for the Unionists argument, I'd say there is a greater sympathy for Irish Nationalists as opposed to republicanism.

[Donathan]

Not sure I'd fully agree with that , there isn't a great deal of support in the UK for the Unionists argument, I'd say there is a greater sympathy for Irish Nationalists as opposed to republicanism.

Maybe only from the point of view that Northern Ireland is a bit of a drain on resources and the UK might be better off without them. I'm not sure the Republic even want them particularly.

[John Lambies Doos]

a/ Yes they can

b/ No it doesn't

c/ No it doesn't

d/ No it won't. They know what side their bread is buttered.

 

Pish. How can you possibly disagree with the stormont part. The British and Irish govt have to be completely neutral on stormont. How can they now if the DUP are kingpins in the UK government. Also, stormont has effectively been shut for months now, many in the DUP want direct rule from WM, just like many right wing torys in Scotland... want the 'shortbread senate' , their words- in Scotland gone (there are some on here btw)

DUP wielding power does effect the peace process, and does have a negative impact on stormont...

Perhaps do some research

 

[Jacksgranda]

1 minute ago, John Lambies Doos said:

 

Pish. How can you possibly disagree with the stormont part. The British and Irish govt have to be completely neutral on stormont. How can they now if the DUP are kingpins in the UK government. Also, stormont has effectively been shut for months now, many in the DUP want direct rule from WM, just like many right wing torys in Scotland... want the 'shortbread senate' , there words- in Scotland gone (there are some on here btw)
DUP wielding power does effect the peace process, and does have a negative impact on stormont...
Perhaps do some research

 

I see absolutely no evidence of this whatsoever. Both SF and the DUP say they want Stormont up and running, they are still engaged in talks to get it going, the DUP "wielding power" (voting for supply and commitment measures - which they've always done) affects the peace process not one jot.

 

[LongTimeLurker]

3 minutes ago, John Lambies Doos said:

...many in the DUP want direct rule from WM, just like many right wing torys in Scotland...

The main selling point of Stormont to the DUP is that they can block issues like abortion, gay marriage and an Irish Language Act where direct rule may not be to their liking. It's more the UUP types that want to pretend they are living in the Home Counties.

[Jacksgranda]

2 minutes ago, LongTimeLurker said:

The main selling point of Stormont to the DUP is that they can block issues like abortion, gay marriage and an Irish Language Act where direct rule may not be to their liking. It's more the UUP types that want to pretend they are living in the Home Counties.

An Irish Language Act will probably be implemented in the next Stormont although it will be massaged/nuanced some way or other and it won't be called an Irish language Act.

[Co.Down Hibee]

19 minutes ago, Donathan said:

 

Maybe only from the point of view that Northern Ireland is a bit of a drain on resources and the UK might be better off without them. I'm not sure the Republic even want them particularly.

 

Certainly from an economic stance that's very true , you'll most likely find that England would be happy to offload the other nations for that reason, 

Taking that out of it most in the UK would have sympathy for a united Ireland, modern opinions tend to be against the colonial attitude of the past , not sympathy for the actions of the IRA of course but certainly Nationalists.

The Unionists argument has always made me chuckle because they swear loyalty to a crown and country that doesn't want them as do the Shinners of course, 

 

[Bully Wee Villa]

Can someone with a better knowledge of the statelet explain what has happened to the SDLP/UUP vote? Why have so many people, seemingly, switched to the two extreme parties?