From: Charlie (charlie@antipope.org)
Date: Wed Apr 26 2000 - 11:22:22 MDT
On Wed, Apr 26, 2000 at 12:52:15PM -0400, Michael S. Lorrey wrote:
>
> Its well understood that the PM's government is hamstrung by the Ulsterites much like
> the Republicans are hamstrung by the fundamentalist anti-abortionists (or the Cuban
> Americans, for that matter, in the present situation). However, contrary to your
> statement above, you said earlier that most people didn't want to pull the British
> Army out because they figure it would turn into another Kosovo in no time. Which is
> it?
Both ;-)
Put it another way: nobody wants to be there. But it's widely accepted that
the alternative is a blood bath. Which is why there's no major troops-out
movement on the mainland -- not because occupying Northern Ireland with the
jackboot of British imperial oppression is popular, but because the
alternatives on offer _all_ look worse.
(I suspect if Thatcher had gotten her way in the 80's and reintroduced
conscription there'd have been a HUGE "troops out" movement, almost as soon
as the first conscripts began coming home in body bags. But that's another
matter.)
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