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The Other View |
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Issue No.8 Spring 2002
To Tommy McKearney, I read your article, 'Ulster Unionism, a Republican Perspective' with some interest and to my great surprise agreed with much of what you had to say.There are however a few points on which I would like to comment. Given that I have the advantage of being familiar with your background, I think it only fair that I should state my own point of origin. I am, for want of a more simple title, a Calvinist, Economist, Unionist by birth and tradition, born and raised on the Fermanagh-Monaghan border. My first comment relates to what you call, 'blind support for Irish Nationalism' and the similarly blind followers of Unionist dogma. I would take this argument a stage further and suggest that the rationale for both points of view have been taken over by the passage of time and relentless movement towards European unity. This suggests to me that both traditions are simply that, traditions, which exist more in history, culture and tribalism than in the reality of 21st century Europe. Long before a united Ireland could come into existence, by democratic movement, there will be a federal Europe and a de facto united Ireland within a united Europe. The border will then, be more symbolic and cultural than anything else and will melt into history along with the 'Black Pigs Dyke'. My second point relates to your statement re. the comparative standards of living in the North and the Republic. What you say is quite correct, at the moment, however it is significant to note that the Republic's economy is less stable than that of the UK and at the moment is sliding into the grip of a deep recession as the 'Celtic Tiger' has lost its teeth and roar. In the future increased stability will come as the business cycles of the Euro area states become more synchronised, but that is in the future. The Republic's economy also suffers from a much less equitable division of wealth and greater regional disparity than is seen in the North, which to you as a Socialist should be abhorrent. My third point relates to the 'ultra urban British MP's'. Once again I agree with your point in part, however I feel the true villain in this situation is the calamitous legacy of many years of the Common Agricultural Policy. This short-sighted policy created a false economy within agriculture, which retarded the development of the industry in all of the EU. The result is that we have been overtaken by Globalisation and can no longer compete with the efficient producers elsewhere in the world.Agriculture was our specialism and we lost it through complacency, brought on by the false security of intervention pricing. Finally I would like to congratulate yourself and your colleagues on the production of an excellent publication. It is both entertaining and thought provoking, a good combination, which has led a Fermanagh Unionist to e-mail a South-Armagh Republican. Five years ago, this would not have happened. Regards, David Hutchinson County Fermanagh |
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