The Falkland Islands (Malvinas)

[skunk]

Originally Posted by firestarter

If the Sun (and the other gutter tabloids) weren't so royalist, they'd pretty quickly turn against NI.

One thing Murdoch isn't, is a royalist.

[firestarter]

Originally Posted by skunk

According to the BBC, almost every Argentinian treats it as a given that the islands are Argentinian.

And yet less than 2% of 'Argentinians' are actually from the country itself... the overriding majority of the population is descended from a rag-tag group of Europeans who arrived there after the UK laid claim to the Falklands.

I think we need to start a campaign to give Argentina back to the South Americans.

[Happybunny]

Originally Posted by firestarter

Nothing's going to happen with Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland sucks up vast amounts of tax resources from the UK government, and the proportion of the population employed by various government agencies is higher there than the other UK countries.

Even 'private enterprise' in NI receives vast government subsidies (the extent of which actively sucks jobs from elsewhere in the UK... I know because I've been part of the process).

Now the 'Celtic Tiger' in Eire has blown up, and the rest of the Eurozone on such a shaky economic footing, politicians of both sides in NI know exactly what's best for them. If they threw in with Eire now, they'd be completely stuffed.

If the Sun (and the other gutter tabloids) weren't so royalist, they'd pretty quickly turn against NI.

I totally agree that the established politicians are not going to make any trouble. They have far to much to lose.

But jeremy h post 171 does support my fear that the foot soldiers on both sides of the divide who did not get a good job at the end of the troubles.

This latest spat with Argentina has hardly made the papers here, and nothing on TV.
But the past few weeks we have seen pictures of major riots in IN over flags, and then this week end a bomb under a car. I'm not trying to make it so that it is like the 1970's but looking at it from here, there does seem to be a rising in the number if incidents.

[jeremy h]

Originally Posted by Happybunny

But the past few weeks we have seen pictures of major riots in IN over flags, and then this week end a bomb under a car. I'm not trying to make it so that it is like the 1970's but looking at it from here, there does seem to be a rising in the number if incidents.

I was simply making the point that there's actually been quite a lot of incidents since the Good Friday Peace accord by dissidents. What's happened recently in my opinion is that we're just hearing more about them. The road was, is, and is going to be a rocky one - but it has to be travelled I guess.

[Happybunny]

Originally Posted by VulchR

So would I. I would imagine that the families of the Argentinian conscripts who died in the war wouldn't be too happy. I hope the average Argentinian has the good sense to respect the islanders' wish to remain British.

Anybody know what happened with respect to the Argentinian boycott of the Falklands?

All I found was this.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...-protests.html

There is also talk that the Holland America line will stop visiting the South Atlantic this years if these actions carry on.

Originally Posted by jeremy h

I was simply making the point that there's actually been quite a lot of incidents since the Good Friday Peace accord by dissidents. What's happened recently in my opinion is that we're just hearing more about them. The road was, is, and is going to be a rocky one - but it has to be travelled I guess.

Let's hope so.

Back to topic.

[jeremy h]

Originally Posted by Happybunny

Back to topic.

Yes, the way the Argentinians handle this is so stupid. You could get hold of these islands but to do it you'll have to make the people there want to change allegiance. Don't bully them, threaten them or insult the war dead with stupid adverts... Just set up an intelligent long term plan - first renounce any claim and undertake that will never be another military action. Then offer the islanders lots of perks, free university education, free passage to Argentina whenever you want, perhaps access to really spiffy free medical care etc etc. It'll take years and years and cost a lot but it would probably work eventually.

But what you won't be able to do is endlessly use it as a distraction from domestic issues and that appears to be a very valuable thing to the Argentinean governments over the years.