Sir Jeff D and David J : it’s the way they tell them…

“They would be better to focus on justice and reconciliation in respect of the terrible deeds of the past, rather than seek further instability with a divisive border poll.”

That’s Sir Jeffrey Donaldson’s judgement on those who would be concerned about a border poll. He figures any focus on a border poll would be divisive. I think that’s a reasonable assessment: some people will be for it, others against.  But it’s in the Good Friday Agreement, and it’s going to happen relatively soon. How soon? Soon enough for us all to start clarifying what kind of Ireland a border poll would be focused on.

David Jeffrey, once manager of Linfield FC and Ballymena FC, is concerned with another thing that he sees as divisive. I’m pretty sure he used that word, along with a judgement that building Casement Park is “too toxic” and should be abandoned. Unlike the Orange Order, of which both he and Sir Jeff are members.

There’s a pattern emerging here. If you concern yourself with a key element of the GFA – a border poll – you are being divisive and you can’t be concerned  with “justice and reconciliation”.  I think Jeffrey is maybe making an elementary mistake in terms of logic: arguing from the particular to the general. He may not be capable of thinking about a border poll AND about justice and reconciliation, but a lot of us out here can do just that. In fact, more recently Jeffrey has been talking about reconciling people into the many benefits of being part of the UK. And no, Virginia, don’t mention Brexit. It makes Jeffrey a bit twitchy.

David Jeffrey isn’t concerned with a border poll – or at least he hasn’t shared any concern, as far as I know.  But he is concerned about Casement Park. For the British government to follow through on the explicit promise of the British secretary of state and make sure Casement was ready for Euro 2028 would, David thinks, be a mistake. Much better to put Casement on the longish finger. Then “a modest Casement Park” could be built and less money spent on building it.  There was a time when the GAA was finger-pointed for having a ban against “foreign games” like soccer and rugby and such. Now, it appears, by hosting Euro 28 – i.e. soccer games – the GAA is being too ambitious.

I’ve a suggestion – Sir Jeff and David  J  could establish a double act, and do a tour of anti-Catholic Orange Lodges. Sir Jeff could explain why we shouldn’t say a word about a reunited Ireland, and David could explain how happy nationalists would be in the UK, as long as we were modest in stuff we aspired to and it didn’t cost too much money

Keep going, guys. At this rate you’ll bring the unionist house down.