I wasnt going to post to this thread again as there seemed no point. It has all been said and it really makes no difference.
But I cant sit idly by and see the continued rubbish that is assumed to be the truth - by both sides.
Where did the compiler of those statistical charts get their information?
I can state for a fact that over 1400 security forces personnel died on active service as a result of being deployed on Op Banner between 1969 - 2007. The MOD will only admit to about half that figure.
The other figures I can only guess at - as I believe the compiler also did. Statistics and damn lies seem to be the same thing when it comes to casualty figures.
The mention of Bloody Sunday always figures prominently in any discussion about 'The Troubles' but little regard is ever paid to the events which led up to this tragic event.
I wont bore you with the details, but can assure you all that there was no Black or White cut & dried answer to the whole sorry mess.
Shote WERE fired at security forces before the so called massacre of the 'innocents'.
Martin McGuinness WAS there and he WAS armed.
The people on that march WERE acting in an illegal and provocative manner.
The paras DID react in a fashion that evoked shame and revulsion from
the rest of the world.
It was the BEST result the Provisional IRA could have ever in their wildest dreams have hoped for. Their recruiting figures soared as a result.
The first OFFICIAL death reported by security forces in NI was Gunner Curtis, who was killed during a riot. Five other soldiers were wounded by the same burst of machine gun fire. 6-Feb-1971.
Those rioters were NOT children. They were an organised and very clever means to bring British forces out into a situation where a gunman could exploit the situation to his advantage. The troops lined up to face the rioters.
In the words of one who was there (not me)

"There were two troops deployed in the street both in anti riot formation. The Battery Commander was B**** M**** with D*** H***** as the Tp Comd of Curtis' troop. My troop was also deployed alongside ****'s and we were ordered to advance towards the junction and the rioting crowd. Our objective being to prevent them from reaching Tiger bay. It was our very first deployment in Belfast having been based in Armagh for the first few weeks of the tour.
The mob was angry and various missiles were hurled towards us including a nail bomb. We kept formation as ordered; the crowd suddenly opened and the automatic weapon sprayed the street. It was miraculous that so few were hit. We took cover but were unable to return fire because the crowd drew together again and the gunman disappeared. The injured lay on the road and we gave first aid as best we could until backup arrived."

I will stress that the British soldiers were mostly armed with riot shields and batons, cover being provided by two or three men with rifles/baton guns. (rubber bullets for the firing of)
The gunman, a scrote named Reid, was later shot & killed in, ironically, Curtis Street.
The events of Bloody Sunday came one year later. A year which saw increasing use of 'come-on' tactics employed by the provos.
This is rarely taken into account.
As a rough comparison there have been about 400 British Forces personnel killed on active duty in Afghanistan in the last ten years.
There were over 1400 British Forces personnel killed on active service during Op Banner 1969 - 2007.
You work the math and then tell me it wasnt a war.