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by ExoticPearTree1 days ago |
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upvoteby dofm1 days ago|
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> Did it ever cross Britain's mind that the whole IRA debacle is of its own doing? Can't you just leave Ireland for good and let them be?

That people still ask this question betrays only that they aren't well-informed about what actual issues led to the Troubles.

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upvoteby Schiendelman22 hours ago|
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Tell us more! I don't know anything about it either. Couldn't the UK have ceded it to Ireland? Or would the problems just have gone another direction?
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upvoteby dofm21 hours ago|
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There are two largely different concepts/epochs separated by more than 40 years.

The negotiations and partition of Ireland and the establishment of Northern Ireland as a self-governing province (rather than being governed from Britain):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partition_of_Ireland

And then the Troubles, which were a sectarian conflict between Catholics and Protestants within Northern Ireland itself, that stemmed from Protestant oppression of Catholic rights protests (patterned after the US civil rights movement). The Wikipedia pages are really good, but the top level page is great because it covers the early days so well:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles

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upvoteby ExoticPearTree2 hours ago|
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This does not answer my original question: why doesn't Britain give the north of Ireland back to the Irish? Why does it cling to it? Didn't Britain cause enough suffering for the Irish already?
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upvoteby foldr2 hours ago|
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Because (depending on the exact poll) either a majority of plurality of the people of Northern Ireland favor remaining in the UK, so it’s not that simple politically. The Good Friday Agreement has provisions for a change in the future status of Northern Ireland based on a referendum, so if/when a majority of its population want to join the Republic of Ireland, this can happen.

Northern Ireland receives heavy subsidies from the UK government. I imagine the UK would be quite happy to cede it to the Republic of Ireland were this politically feasible and not likely to kick off another round of sectarian violence. Ireland may want the six counties in principle, but might be a little unhappy with the bill.

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upvoteby emptyfile1 hours ago|
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upvoteby 21 hours ago|
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upvoteby 1 days ago|
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upvoteby tim33314 hours ago|
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They couldn't because the majority in the north wanted to be part on the UK, and democracy.
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upvoteby ibejoeb14 hours ago|
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No matter what position one might take, for context, that's less than 1/4th.
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upvoteby slopinthebag9 hours ago|
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And a majority of the south (a far greater majority btw) wanted out.
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upvoteby foldr2 hours ago|
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And they have been out for about 100 years. The problematic issue is the status of Northern Ireland, where a slim majority, or clear plurality, still favor remaining in the UK. The idea that everyone would be happy if “the Brits” just “left” Northern Ireland is incredibly naive. The Good Friday agreement already provides for the possibility of referenda on the future status of Northern Ireland. The suggestion that a sudden unilateral decision to cede Northern Ireland to the Republic of Ireland would reduce conflict and sectarian violence (which have already been very successfully reduced by the painstakingly negotiated GFA) is essentially too silly to even comment on.
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