This all
neglects the fact that although the
Rising gave a lot of people a
Republic, it also was the
seedlings of one of the
bloodiest and most
evil conflicts in modern
history.
The Troubles can only be seen in this light, because it is only in this light that you can understand the reality of what they have achieved. Misery, death, suffering, torture, internment, lies, betrayal, terror, and pain. So much pain. The pain of frustration. The pain of loss. So many families torn apart, so many children dead, so many brothers, and fathers, and sons and friends dead.
It is all very well to start a Rising, but today, in this modern world the people who live in a first world country should be able to 'rise' above violence and maintain the love of life which they so readily promote, and so little enact.
It may be worth dying for your political beliefs, but is it really worth killing?
I guess what I am trying to say is that the IRA are a pack of murdering bastards. So are the Loyalist scumbags who choose to use politics as an excuse to kill innocent people. They are all in it for the drugs business, and the protection money, and anyone who lives in Northern Ireland will tell you this.
Let's not romanticize the past, it only strengthens one of the symbols of this pointless and futile conflict, and will only lead to more suffering.