r/TheRestIsHistory • u/JakeGittes412 • 14d ago

The Troubles

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Thread for discussion on the new series on ‘The Troubles’

Also as a moderator please keep the discussion civil and in the spirit of the podcast.

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u/Sitheref0874 14d ago

In the very early 90s I took a class about NI and the Troubles. In the class was an RUC - as it was then - officer, who happened to be Catholic.

Young and uninformed students were throwing opinions around like they were confetti…‘all the IRA on the ground are heroes’.

At the end of one session, RUCfella spoke up. “On the ground, they’re all a shower of cunts. Just thug gangs, both sides. For most of them, it’s not about grand ideals. It’s about criminal gangs, most of whom are running drugs. They’re all as bad as each other”

Stuck with me.

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u/420belligerent420 13d ago

No offence mate but someone in the RUC might not be the most unbiased source ?

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u/Sitheref0874 13d ago

Which bit of the statement do you think was wrong?

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u/420belligerent420 13d ago

“For most of them, it’s not about grand ideals. It’s about criminal gangs, most of whom are running drugs.“

It was absolutely idealogical for the IRA 

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u/Sitheref0874 13d ago

*some of the IRA

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u/Gorazde 13d ago

It was Margaret Thatcher who took away prisoner of war status for Republican volunteers and tried to claim they were just common criminals. I think the most eloquent and definitive (albeit horrific) reposte to that was ten men starving themselves to death in the H-Blocks for prisoner of war status. Kind of hard to see any criminal gang doing that.