Ballymurphy Inquest

Sonic67

It's "whataboutery" and you agree with it? Nice doublethink.
They weren't combatants. Combatants wear a uniform, or just an armband. Combatants fight legitimate military targets. As they used terror for their aims, the targeting of women and children, then they were terrorists.

It wasn't a war either. If it was, they'd have been treated as prisoners of war and not as criminals.
If all sides were being treated equally then no problem, singling out one, makes it a witch hunt.

phil t

No it wasn't.

BobbyMac

The only British soldiers being tried or potentially tried in the future weren’t shooting terrorists, they where killing British citizens in cold blood and indulging in depraved & ghoulish acts

Their chief commander (Ford) revelled in the body count at Bloody Sunday as per the leaked audio

The fact that you can’t condemn professional soldiers for engaging in these acts is incomprehensible to me

phil t

Which differs from the IRA how?
Where are your cries for justice there?

BobbyMac

Firstly I've been unequivocal in my condemnation of all sides during the conflict when innocents have been killed, maimed or injured unlike others on here, so I'll take no lectures on morality when using a skull as an ashtray and having a death kitty has been excused

Secondly I've no issue with Loyalist and Republicans being historically tried for crimes that they've not already served time for, it would appear some do have an issue with British Troops being historically tried for crimes that they've not already been prosecuted or jailed for

TBF it should be the commanders who should be up as well as the troops as it's apparent that the basic disregard for the Catholic citizens of Derry came from the top

To quote David Gow, Mr Gow told the hearing: “On the day of internment, everybody on the street was an enemy.”

If that's the mindset no wonder people where murdered in cold blood

BobbyMac

It was for the people of NI, it was convenient for the British State to use this narrative, it meant not being bound by the Geneva Convention for one

BobbyMac

@IronGiant

Do you want to merge the Ballymurphy chat on the JC thread with this one?

Jeremy Corbyn - Continuing Saga of the Labour Party Leader

phil t

What changes an innocent into a legitimate target?
Murder is murder, no?

BobbyMac

Isn't the reason for the Bloody Sunday & Ballymurphy inquests?

Sonic67

Again. If it is only British soldiers on trial it is a witch hunt. You want justice, then justice is blind and do it for all.

It was the 70s. There were people racist and sexist then. You want to try people do it at the time. Attitudes have changed. They were people putting their life at risk every day. What do you do for a living?

During my time I was under no illusion, if caught by the IRA I'd be lucky if I had a quick death. I was in numerous conflicts. I can't remember the details of every time I was under fire now and that was from the 90s.

Should we take all those who appeared or commissioned The Black and White Minstrel Show in the 70s now for racism?