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Politics : Sharks in the Septic Tank -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: epicure who wrote (17172)	6/20/2001 10:01:23 AM
From: thames_sider	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

The hunger strikes which made most impact in the UK recently were those of the IRA prisoners in the early 1980's. It marked a sea-change in perceptions of Sinn Fein in particular, and was one of the first effective non-violent tactics since the late 1960's. OTOH my reaction won much applause at school... I kept a log of who was left and how long they had, cheering them on. The strikes also garnered them much support in the US. Had McVeigh struck earlier, maybe these equally idealistic (if individually less prolific) mass-murderers would have had less success... Perhaps their finest moment came bombing the Memorial Day service at Enniskillen (that's the exact equivalent of bombing a Veteran's Day parade), which really sums them up. Hunger strikes don't really impress me unless I already support the cause, in other words... Great PR, but only for the converted. If my reaction's typical, then probably such actions against regimes even less humane than me are futile and ultimately wasteful of protesters whio could be more effective in other ways.

To: epicure who wrote (17172)	6/20/2001 3:01:42 PM
From: one_less	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

Ghandi was able to appeal to the hearts of the British people. The Brits loved the humble appeal of this genuine and intelligent person, who was educated and socialized in their system. They hosted him and treated him like a royal in london. They couldn't stand to think that it was their armed brethren clubing peaceful protesters to death. Ghandi knew this would be the reaction of the British people and used it effectively. Stalin would have simply had Ghandi shot in the head. Do you think Ghandi would have used the same tactic to get Stalin's attention? I don't.