May 6, 2022 - 8:30am
We won’t know until later today the results of the elections in Northern Ireland. But if they’re anything like the final polls, Brandon Lewis likely faces a busy few weeks just keeping Stormont on its feet.
The Democratic Unionists, who have been the dominant pro-UK party since the mid-noughties, seem to have failed to close the gap with Sinn Fein, meaning that for the first time the republicans will be the largest party in the Assembly.
In fact, the DUP seem to be locked in a desperate battle for second place with the Alliance Party, the Province’s middle-of-the-road liberal option.
Should these forecasts be borne out, it will be a seismic shock to ‘capital-U Unionism’, because for the first time they will not be nominating the ‘First Minister’.
In reality, the First Minister and Deputy First Minister are co-equal positions. But the fiction implied by the current titles is symbolically important — which is why the Unionists insisted on it in the first place.
Getting overtaken by the Alliance would be a second major blow, for it would mean that not only would the largest party at Stormont be pro-unification with Ireland, but the second-largest would be officially neutral on the whole question.
The strange thing is, the Unionists will certainly be the second-largest group in the Assembly — and they may even be the largest one. But the pro-UK vote is split between three major parties, whereas the nationalist vote is only split between two.
Under the original terms of the Belfast Agreement, it was the largest group which nominated the First Minister. It was the DUP themselves who, in collusion with Sinn Fein, prevailed on New Labour to change the rules in 2007.
Now that right goes to the largest party. This had the effect of encouraging voters on both sides to cluster behind the biggest party on each side (not coincidentally, the DUP and Sinn Fein).
Since overtaking the Ulster Unionists and changing the rules, the DUP have profited greatly from this fact, focusing every election on rallying the pro-UK electorate behind them to keep Sinn Fein out.
But that has come at a great cost to unionism more widely, as smaller parties have been squeezed and voters, tiring of the DUP’s limited offer, have switched to the Alliance or stayed at home.
There may yet not be a new executive: Sir Jeffrey Donaldson led his party out of the last one, and the Protocol may provide sufficient pretext for his MLAs to refuse to serve under Sinn Fein’s (entirely titular) leadership.
For their part, the republicans probably won’t want to rock the boat too much so as not to spook voters in the Republic: the party’s long-term goal has always been to hold office on both sides of the border.
But whether they agree to serve or not, the dethroning of the DUP must lead to a long overdue reckoning for Northern Ireland’s unionist leaders. They have been failing their voters, and their cause, for far too long.
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SubscribeMaybe compensation for Chinese Americans who came to California as indentured labourers? And compensation for Japense-Americans, interned during WWII? And comepnsation for California’s Jewish population, whose entry to Stanford was restricted in the 1950s? These were all shocking injustices and arguably, trump the other claims mentioned in the article.
Good point. Where does it end? The Chinese have a legit case here, which should be bolstered by this policy. I might be wrong, but I think the Japanese interns may have been compensated already.
Thanks for the heads-up. I just read up on Wikipedia about the compensation scheme for the egregious injustice suffered by the Japanese-Americans:
In fairness, the same scheme should be offered to those affected by slavery – $46,000 to each slave still alive today, pro-rated for each year spent in slavery.
Reparations are a bad idea. Period. They don’t make the poor wealthy and they make the middle class and wealthy even richer.
And it creates an entire industry of lawyer and financial grifters who feed off the poor.
I’ve seen it before in a community where I worked. Members of a native band with oil reserves would each get $100,000 when they turned 18.
Despite all this oil wealth and money, it was one of the poorest native communities in the province, with massive disparities in income and incredible social misery.
What happens is the poor families get their cash every year and blow it on new cars and trinkets. They don’t invest it or use it to start new businesses. They spend it.
I assume the $5 mill will be paid out in increments over say 10 years and you have to be 18 before you get your first payment.
.
Instead of waiting each year for their payments, lawyers will offer these families 50 cents on the dollar to get all their money at once, or for the families with children who aren’t eligible to cash in yet.
The grifters cash in big time and it really doesn’t change the financial position of anyone.
> to each slave still alive today
lol
“$20,000 (equivalent to $46,000 in 2021) to each former detainee who was still alive when the act was passed.”
Rather more than the POWs imprisoned, tortured and starved by the Imperial Japanese Army during WWII.
They belatedly got £10,000 from the UK government in the 1990s (if they were still alive – too late for my father).
Reparations are a bad idea. Period. They don’t make the poor wealthy and they make the middle class and wealthy even richer.
And it creates an entire industry of lawyer and financial grifters who feed off the poor.
I’ve seen it before in a community where I worked. Members of a native band with oil reserves would each get $100,000 when they turned 18.
Despite all this oil wealth and money, it was one of the poorest native communities in the province, with massive disparities in income and incredible social misery.
What happens is the poor families get their cash every year and blow it on new cars and trinkets. They don’t invest it or use it to start new businesses. They spend it.
I assume the $5 mill will be paid out in increments over say 10 years and you have to be 18 before you get your first payment.
.
Instead of waiting each year for their payments, lawyers will offer these families 50 cents on the dollar to get all their money at once, or for the families with children who aren’t eligible to cash in yet.
The grifters cash in big time and it really doesn’t change the financial position of anyone.
> to each slave still alive today
lol
“$20,000 (equivalent to $46,000 in 2021) to each former detainee who was still alive when the act was passed.”
Rather more than the POWs imprisoned, tortured and starved by the Imperial Japanese Army during WWII.
They belatedly got £10,000 from the UK government in the 1990s (if they were still alive – too late for my father).
Thanks for the heads-up. I just read up on Wikipedia about the compensation scheme for the egregious injustice suffered by the Japanese-Americans:
In fairness, the same scheme should be offered to those affected by slavery – $46,000 to each slave still alive today, pro-rated for each year spent in slavery.
How about the American soldiers who fought in the American Revolutionary War? George Washington promised them compensation but it never came through…..
Why won’t anyone address my claim for the Harrying of the North?
I would love to see a Western Government pass an Act of Parliament retroactively rescinding all Parliamentary apologies issued by the House since 1950.
Good point. Where does it end? The Chinese have a legit case here, which should be bolstered by this policy. I might be wrong, but I think the Japanese interns may have been compensated already.
How about the American soldiers who fought in the American Revolutionary War? George Washington promised them compensation but it never came through…..
Why won’t anyone address my claim for the Harrying of the North?
I would love to see a Western Government pass an Act of Parliament retroactively rescinding all Parliamentary apologies issued by the House since 1950.
Maybe compensation for Chinese Americans who came to California as indentured labourers? And compensation for Japense-Americans, interned during WWII? And comepnsation for California’s Jewish population, whose entry to Stanford was restricted in the 1950s? These were all shocking injustices and arguably, trump the other claims mentioned in the article.
California is becoming such an unlivable, expensive crap hole that even the radical progressive will be leaving soon, bringing their bad ideas to new communities.
I hate to break it to you, but they have been doing that for the last twenty years and it’s not just their politics that suck when they move in.
I hate to break it to you, but they have been doing that for the last twenty years and it’s not just their politics that suck when they move in.
California is becoming such an unlivable, expensive crap hole that even the radical progressive will be leaving soon, bringing their bad ideas to new communities.
Let’s see. Neither me nor my daddy owned slaves and neither you nor your daddy picked cotton. Guess I don’t owe you anything.
And if your greatgranddaddy owned slaves the money has all been spent.
And if your greatgranddaddy was a slave who went on to own slaves??? Certainly in the Caribbean!
All any of us alive now owe each other is respect, support and recognition as fellow unique humans in a tight spot.
All any of us alive now owe each other is respect, support and recognition as fellow unique humans in a tight spot.
And if your greatgranddaddy was a slave who went on to own slaves??? Certainly in the Caribbean!
And if your greatgranddaddy owned slaves the money has all been spent.
Let’s see. Neither me nor my daddy owned slaves and neither you nor your daddy picked cotton. Guess I don’t owe you anything.
These events are so frequent now that I am coming to believe that Liberalism is an illusion and that underneath all political and ideological names and identities there lurks a hard primordial truth that all politics are race politics, all politics are ethnic politics, all politics are religious politics. Call it the Samuel P Huntington was right thesis.
We lived through a 300 year period where Liberalism and British ethnic interest were one and the same. As the World’s british ethnicities decline demographically – Canada, Australia, UK, – global Liberalism is increasingly vulnerable to being overthrown and replace with new ethno political models. Afro Socialism for example. Latino Paternalism is another model. Pakistani Islamism would be another.
It really does put one into a Biblical frame of mind. Woe be to those who forget that numbers rule the World, for they will lose theirs and pass into another.
I’m not sure I follow. It doesn’t look like there is a single black member on city council.
Perhaps that’s why, coincidentally, Michael Savage, a San Francisco resident and talk show host, coined the phrase, “Liberalism is a mental disorder.”
I’m not sure I follow. It doesn’t look like there is a single black member on city council.
Perhaps that’s why, coincidentally, Michael Savage, a San Francisco resident and talk show host, coined the phrase, “Liberalism is a mental disorder.”
These events are so frequent now that I am coming to believe that Liberalism is an illusion and that underneath all political and ideological names and identities there lurks a hard primordial truth that all politics are race politics, all politics are ethnic politics, all politics are religious politics. Call it the Samuel P Huntington was right thesis.
We lived through a 300 year period where Liberalism and British ethnic interest were one and the same. As the World’s british ethnicities decline demographically – Canada, Australia, UK, – global Liberalism is increasingly vulnerable to being overthrown and replace with new ethno political models. Afro Socialism for example. Latino Paternalism is another model. Pakistani Islamism would be another.
It really does put one into a Biblical frame of mind. Woe be to those who forget that numbers rule the World, for they will lose theirs and pass into another.
Grifters gotta grift. The state that never allowed slaves will take from people who never owned slaves to give to people who never were slaves. Makes perfect lib sense.
Grifters gotta grift. The state that never allowed slaves will take from people who never owned slaves to give to people who never were slaves. Makes perfect lib sense.
Progressives really are every more despicable. If only the Republicans would really embrace the working class and aim for the widest distribution of wealth and property, and a society based on marriage, family, households, autonomous communities, subsidiarity and a strong civic-national framework, starting with border security and national service…..I think they would sweep all before them
Progressives really are every more despicable. If only the Republicans would really embrace the working class and aim for the widest distribution of wealth and property, and a society based on marriage, family, households, autonomous communities, subsidiarity and a strong civic-national framework, starting with border security and national service…..I think they would sweep all before them
Reparations? Sorry. Paid at the office with 600,000 Union dead and maimed. The companionship and wealth of the descendants of my family’s many casualties have been denied. I have a better case for charging you.
Reparations? Sorry. Paid at the office with 600,000 Union dead and maimed. The companionship and wealth of the descendants of my family’s many casualties have been denied. I have a better case for charging you.
What a great idea: those who have never been slaves should be compensated by those who never owned a slave.
What a great idea: those who have never been slaves should be compensated by those who never owned a slave.
Perhaps given the state of the world we should consider that the past is/was a different country and invest instead in a future for everyone?
That makes too much sense for today’s world. But then again, the state of the world hasn’t really changed much over the last 5,000 years, has it?
That makes too much sense for today’s world. But then again, the state of the world hasn’t really changed much over the last 5,000 years, has it?
Perhaps given the state of the world we should consider that the past is/was a different country and invest instead in a future for everyone?
In all this talk of reparations why is there never any mention of how much has to be paid before forgiveness is possible?
In all this talk of reparations why is there never any mention of how much has to be paid before forgiveness is possible?
At least some of the potential recipients of $5M per capita reparations, will themselves also be SF taxpayers. Doesn’t someone need to calculate the per capita contribution to the reparations on the part of each SF taxpayer, in order to rebate that amount to the recipients (who otherwise would be forced to pay in part for their own reparations)?
At least some of the potential recipients of $5M per capita reparations, will themselves also be SF taxpayers. Doesn’t someone need to calculate the per capita contribution to the reparations on the part of each SF taxpayer, in order to rebate that amount to the recipients (who otherwise would be forced to pay in part for their own reparations)?
Adjusted for today, is that really the going rate for “Forty acres, and a mule”? (The promise of the 1860’s)