Originally posted by doctoroxygen
Oops, you're right about Omagh. But as far as republican terrorism goes, it's all the same. And I know loyalist terrorism is the flip side of the same awful coin, but there's no reason to bring that up. I just wanted to correct the perception (a very common one here in America - just ask Ted Kennedy or Peter King) that republican terrorism is somehow better or more noble than Islamist terrorism.
The point about Loyalist terrorism is that it was helped a great deal by British intelligence. The IRA did bring the war to the British mainland but the point is, the British brought the war to the Irish mainland. The Northern Ireland State discriminated against Catholics and looked the other way when they were treated worse than Protestants. This sparked an IRA campaign in the sixties and seventies and the civil rights marches. At Bloody Sunday, civil rights protesters were shot dead by British paratroopers.
Are you aware that the British army was originally welcomed by nationalists in the North? They thought they would treat them better than the RUC and the Northern Ireland State. This was not the case.
The point I'm trying to make is that alot of what stemmed with Irish Republicanism was brought about by harsh treatment given by the Brits. Look at the division of Ireland. That was inflicted upon the people without a referendum or anything.
Thankfully, Anglo-Irish relations have improved and the situation for nationalists and unionists in the North is now alot better but what happened in the seventies was a conflict situation whereas these Islamic terrorists just seem to be killing for the sake of Jihad.
