People and Politics by Patrick Roberts

ESPN don't seem to know Northern Irish 'Troubles' are effectively over

Posted on Monday, July 18, 2011 at 01:32 PM

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ESPN revealed during the British Open that they may know their sport but when it comes to Irish politics they are all at sea.

The blathering about The Troubles when Darren Clarke was playing was pathetic to listen to.

On several occasions, commentators brought The Troubles up in the context of Clarke and Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell setting the golfing world alight.

In every conversation they reported that The Troubles were ongoing and the golfers were somehow battling terrrible odds while succeeding.

Perhaps a brief look at the history books might have reported that The Troubles essentially ended around 1998 and the signing of the Good Friday Agreement which created the framework for a joint government from both sides in Northern ireland.

The numbers of people shot and killed in the new century would not match a bad weekend in Detroit.

A 22-year-old like Rory McIlroy would barely remember when The Troubles were constant.

The sporting experts appeared blissfully unaware of that fact in their commentary.

They were certainly playing into the dumb sportswriter comparisons that are often made.

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allan07 | Jul 23, 2011, 04:43 PM EDT

Speaking as a protestant I wish the economics of Northern Ireland would improve for both communities. Better opportunities, better jobs for all, higher living standards, etc. The recent disruptions have been a least partly down to the lack of opportunity. When this happens in neighbourhoods with adjoining communities it spills over into the them and us disputes. Lets face it the people who claim to be one religion or the other have large proportions who are not christian at all. Ask yourself when was the last time you helped someone in need, helped a old person across the road, raise money for a charity, gave to a registered charity, go to church/chapel, look after a person in need, etc. Most people do nothing or even go to the church they claim they belong to. Alot on both sides of the community are not Christians. As for ESPN not knowing the troubles have ended i make no excuse. A few weeks back some were arguing that Barack Obama was NOT an Amercian. That was 2 years after they elected him. You just got to laugh at them. (If he wasnt an Amercian you would think someone might have noticed).

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tmitch57 | Jul 19, 2011, 11:35 AM EDT

The Troubles DID NOT end in 1998, they continued on through at least 2001 in terms of annual deaths due to conflict. And the peace was not stabilized until 2007.

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maireadinmelb | Jul 19, 2011, 07:07 AM EDT

Note, the troubles being over depends on your perspective, violence as was seen last week does not seem to correlate with the theory that the Troubles are over!

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maireadinmelb | Jul 18, 2011, 08:27 PM EDT

I didn't watch all of it but did tune in to much of the Open over the four days and don't recall any such blathering. I was hoping that Mcllroy could repeat his U.S. success but was heartened to see Clarke's great performance in challenging conditions. Three remarkable N.I. victories in a little over a year - great stuff.

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hyattsville | Jul 18, 2011, 03:39 PM EDT

Citizen69 makes a very valid point.

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citizen69 | Jul 18, 2011, 03:28 PM EDT

I didn't hear it. Maybe they were talking about the recent regrettable riots? But yeah, for the most part the troubles are over & even though the threat of terrorism remains, Northern Ireland is a very safe place to visit!

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