//Again this idea that no-one who was not personally present should hold strong views on the matter. That is a nonsense, and adhering to ideas like that breeds generations of morons who will blindly wander down the lane of their life taking no notice of how they got there as humankind or indeed what they can learn from their journey to make everyone's future better.//
I haven't said that and that's trying to twist what was said. Of course, anyone in our society should and can opine but it's often in reflectio, history and experience of the moment that justice and precedent can often be found.
What I did say is that folk who were on the ground as military or as civilians (like Sandy) should be listened to and their counsel taken seriously and not dismissed because of some ideological/political position - as that is surely the very root of being blinkered. Once the former is achieved, out of the considered points naturally should comes conclusion and rational explanation - and that these should reflect all sides of the argument.
In reading this thread as a neutral, and you will note that I have not added my 'alfpenny's' worth on it, I have felt that you risk falling into this trap of not giving due consideration. Take that for what it's worth and that's probably zero, malheureusement.
May I ask you what part of Slappy's arguments do you agree with or do you arrive at a conclusion that all of what he has written is bunkum? That may be a natural conclusion but one that, in this case, is perhaps extremely harsh. As has been said, these incidents in Northern Ireland and elsewhere have become very subjective and are very much steered by what happens in the heat of the moment, good or bad, deliberate or perceived, intent or mal-intent..... In that lies the root of my opinion by the way in that there are grievances on both sides that will probably never heal or be resolved. Is one party worse than the other? - that's virtually impossible to answer.