There have been two interesting articles in newspapers this week. Both address the current ‘Condition of Scotland’ question. For Northern Ireland unionism, which always likes to consider its situation unique and…
Articles
Distant dreaming
In considering the article by academics Christopher Kissane and David Kenny (one from London School of Economics and the other from Trinity College Dublin) in today’s Irish Times (18 August),…
Opportunity knocks
We don’t yet know how Brexit will affect Northern Ireland exactly, but the referendum result certainly revived the nationalist trope that Irish unity is ‘inevitable’. The Republic’s national parliament recently published…
Cultural effrontery
On 9 August there was an interesting and revealing article in The Irish Times by Rosemary Jenkinson, artist-in-residence at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast. The title was: ‘I’m a Belfast Protestant…
Academic jargon, propaganda and agitprop…
It is often the absence of critical thought in the academic world which continues to shock. It is hard sometimes to avoid the conclusion of those like Roger Scruton that…
A United Ireland: why unification is inevitable…. Likely not.
Kevin Meagher, A United Ireland: why unification is inevitable and how it will come about (Biteback, London, 2016) Book Review The only thing ‘inevitable’ about this book is its failure…
Attrition
The news that the talks at Stormont, aimed at kick-starting the Northern Ireland Executive, are to be put on hold until after the summer break does not really come as…
David McWilliams is wrong to say demographics will deliver a United Ireland
The history of the twentieth century dictatorships, whether of the extreme left or extreme right, proves that when anyone claims something is historically ‘inevitable’ we should be extremely cautious.
Why Ruth Davidson et al are wrong on the DUP and gay rights
Ruth Davidson and others have taken fright at the idea of the Conservatives doing a deal with the DUP — because of its record on gay rights and social…
Wither nationalism… ?
So the election is over. Leaving aside the overall picture, it can be said that this was good election for Unionists.