Eligibility Rules, Okay

[Gather round]

I would have thought satisyfing at least one of:
a) believing in a united Ireland; or,
b) identifying as Irish (rather than Northern Irish or British)
would have been a prerequisite to being an Irish nationalist.

What makes him a nationalist, in your book? Simply membership of a party perceived to be nationalist?

Membership of a political party whose self-proclaimed vision is "a reconciled people living in a united, just and prosperous new Ireland" does fairly obviously imply believing in a united Ireland, don't ye think? It's a bit more than a perception.

Unionists have been gently ridiculed here and elsewhere for denying their Irishness. This is the same sort of thing, people hold seemingly contradicting opinions.

[DannyInvincible]

Membership of a political party whose self-proclaimed vision is "a reconciled people living in a united, just and prosperous new Ireland" does fairly obviously imply believing in a united Ireland, don't ye think? It's a bit more than a perception.

I guess, assuming he toes the official party line on unity...

[ArdeeBhoy]

I'm a lifelong non-royalist, by the way.

I can assure you all that's patently a distortion of the truth...

[ArdeeBhoy]

If you're insistent that people like him aren't nationalists, it suggests the oddity that a large proportion of SF/ SDLP combined support don't want a united Ireland; or even more bizarrely that they might successfully vote for it while thinking thus.

No. That's just your own bizarre, erm, interpretation...

[Not Brazil]

AB is referring to the SDLP member who you claim is a nationalist in spite of his self-identification as Northern Irish.

I had thought AB was asking about folk in the plural, given his use of "them".

My SDLP friend is certainly a Nationalist, who espouses the Party line on Unity.

[ArdeeBhoy]

Hardly, given we don't know their gender.

[Not Brazil]

Hardly, given we don't know their gender.

Post #4529 made his gender quite clear.

[ArdeeBhoy]

Doh..

[Not Brazil]

Actually, it doesn't.

Actually, it does.

[ArdeeBhoy]

I am also a friend of an office bearer in my local SDLP Branch (he happens to be a Protestant) who also primarily indentifies as Northern Irish.

Ok, my bad. Though if your posts were generally a bit clearer and not punctuated by bad spelling...

[Gather round]

No. That's just your own bizzare, erm, interpretation...

Bizarre, dear.

[DannyInvincible]

Unionists have been gently ridiculed here and elsewhere for denying their Irishness. This is the same sort of thing, people hold seemingly contradicting opinions.

For denying it or asserting it? I don't think the discussion here has amounted to ridicule. I think people were just genuinely confused as NB was asserting his Irishness whilst many unionists so vehemently deny it.

My SDLP friend is certainly a Nationalist, who espouses the Party line on Unity.

Would he not view the Northern Irish identity as a sort of ideological impediment to that? Or what does he feel the future holds for his identity? Does he see it as a temporary thing or what? It's certainly interesting, but I guess I just find it difficult to reconcile self-identifying as Northern Irish whilst ultimately aspiring for a discontinuance of that entity's existence.

[Not Brazil]

Ok, my bad. Though if your posts were generally a bit clearer and not punctuated by bad spelling...

Oh, I think my use of the word "he" was both clear and spelt corrrectly.

[ArdeeBhoy]

That was.

But not the rest. As ever.

[Not Brazil]

Would he not view the Northern Irish identity as a sort of ideological impediment to that? Or what does he feel the future holds for his identity? Does he see it as a temporary thing or what? It's certainly interesting, but I guess I just find it difficult to reconcile self-identifying as Northern Irish whilst ultimately aspiring for a discontinuance of that entity's existence.

He is comfortable with "Northern Irish".

He doesn't view that as being within a "British" context ie. he does not consider himself Northern Irish/British.

In fact, I seem to recall the SDLP in recent times using a motto of "Proudly Northern, Proudly Irish".

How he would identify if there were to be a United Ireland, I'm not sure about. Must ask him, next time we sit down to have a chinwag on politics.

I don't see his identification as Northern Irish at odds with his Nationalist beliefs.

If others do, that's their problem, not his.

[Not Brazil]

That was.

Thank You.

[DannyInvincible]

He doesn't view that as being within a "British" context ie. he does not consider himself Northern Irish/British.

Might it be "northern Irish" then?

I don't see his identification as Northern Irish at odds with his Nationalist beliefs.

If others do, that's their problem, not his.

Not so much a problem in that he can identify how he wishes. Just trying to get my head around it.

[Not Brazil]

Might it be "northern Irish" then?

Could be - but he doesn't identify as just plain old "Irish".

[Gather round]

For denying it or asserting it? I don't think the discussion here has amounted to ridicule. I think people were just genuinely confused as NB was asserting his Irishness whilst many unionists so vehemently deny it

I did say gently ridiculed, we don't need to quibble over that.

There were two broad schools of thought on here- those for whom it confirmed their own point of view, others who pointed out the contradiction of saying, effectively 'We're from Northern Ireland, not Ireland'.

I was pointing out above that similar self-contradiction is widely shared. I mean, self-evidently, Northern Ireland is part of both Britain (the state, the UK if we must), and Ireland (the island). Yet only 22% of a poll sample in the South seems to recognise this.

[ArdeeBhoy]

Hardly a contradiction, more a difference of opinion...

And you object to it being part of your favourite kingdom? Why?
As it'll never be part of Britain, geographically.

And why would Koreans have an opinion anyway?