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You're both right, there's tension here at times between the two. But it's nothing like in Northern Ireland where they're killing each other. Ronald Reagan is a Protestant Irish American. Many Irish Catholics like me voted for him and didn't even think about it. But that's because it's about being American first.

Ireland is about as big as NY State if that, they can't really get away from each other if that's what they wanted to do. So unfortunately it's going to make finding peace a lot more difficult. As far as American Catholics sending money to the cause over there- I support a free, united and independent Ireland. But putting bombs in garbage cans and blowing up women and children is not the way to go about it. I would never send my money to any organization who does that. In my opinion, I'm not an expert on the Irish situation, but the IRA is discredited and should be treated as such.

To correct myself, Reagan's father was a "Green" Catholic and his mother an "Orange" Protestant, though he was raised as a Protestant. But it wouldn't have mattered to me. I voted his politics, not his religion.

It's very difficult to dampen the passions. In parts of North Belfast there are patchwork enclaves, some of them only a few streets in size.

You're both right, there's tension here at times between the two. But it's nothing like in Northern Ireland where they're killing each other. Ronald Reagan is a Protestant Irish American. Many Irish Catholics like me voted for him and didn't even think about it. But that's because it's about being American first.

Certainly foreign conflicts create more of a conflict here than others. I've never seen Ted Kennedy (Irish Catholic) pick a fight with Mitch McConnel (Scotch-Irish Protestant) over Ireland.
On the other hand, you should see the arguements on campus between Jews and Arabs.

Ireland is about as big as NY State if that, they can't really get away from each other if that's what they wanted to do. So unfortunately it's going to make finding peace a lot more difficult. As far as American Catholics sending money to the cause over there- I support a free, united and independent Ireland. But putting bombs in garbage cans and blowing up women and children is not the way to go about it. I would never send my money to any organization who does that. In my opinion, I'm not an expert on the Irish situation, but the IRA is discredited and should be treated as such.

I know Many Irish Catholics, some from Northern Ireland, who hate the IRA. It is a terrorist communist group that has lately trained Columbia and PAlestinian terrorists.