Catscradle,

Smugly and self-righteously - Eh?

You mean to tell me that bigotry, obstuctionism and pure bloody mindedness on the part of people on both sides have had no part in this?? Oh but of course seen from your perspective the fault has to lay everywhere else. Going down that road we'll get the list of who did what, when and to who, down through the ages - so to short circuit all that irrelevant crap please tell me what that apple eatin' bitch was doin' talking to a snake in the first place.

Had a look at the photograph you referred to, the caption to which read:

An armed RUC officer in riot gear chats with a young Catholic boy as he escorts him through a Protestant area close to Holy Cross School in north Belfast on the morning after the IRA announced that it was to begin decommissioning. Photograph: Adam Butler/AP

What's the "...deeper story."

One other observation, particularly considering the title of this thread, what you have written totally lacks any constructive thought or objectivity. I agree with PeteB, your switched to transmit and listening to nothing. I saw you started a thread discussing errosion of civil liberties in the US - what do you do over there collect for NORAID?