tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-160907056447793603.post7921436905873976389..comments2023-11-15T04:03:13.741+00:00Comments on Crime Scene NI: #QUBimpact Bonus MaterialGerard Brennanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18301381067485712366noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-160907056447793603.post-22237023069253307342013-04-22T22:55:02.481+01:002013-04-22T22:55:02.481+01:00Thanks for dropping by, Stuart. Your thoughtful in...Thanks for dropping by, Stuart. Your thoughtful insights are always welcome here, sir.<br /><br />Ah, the politicians. I look forward to your post. No doubt I'll nick the phrase, "sectarian head counts" in the near future too. There's a ring (of truth) to it.<br /><br />I've pitched the idea of a new NI political party to friends more than once after a few pints. It hasn't taken off yet. Probably because I end up making it sound more like a weird hippy cult than anything else. The idea could use some refinement, by somebody who's less of an eejit than me.<br /><br />Dominique mentioned to me more than once that it's the potential for political insight that attracts French readers to NI crime fiction books. He was talking about you and Eoin McNamee at the time, interestingly enough. And although it's not set in Belfast, I'd love to know what your French fans make of Ratlines when it's translated. <br /><br />Cheers<br /><br />gbGerard Brennanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18301381067485712366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-160907056447793603.post-62492011631128397742013-04-22T11:35:50.667+01:002013-04-22T11:35:50.667+01:00Very interesting post, Gerard. Your sense of natio...Very interesting post, Gerard. Your sense of national identity, in that it doesn't conform to the either/or dogma, is becoming more the norm in Norn Iron of recent surveys and census results are anything to go by. As someone from Protestant background, I have no problem with being Irish, Northern Irish, British, or any combination of the three. Like you, I'd tick the Northern Irish box before anything else.<br /><br />I think most people here have moved beyond the cultural and political ghettos of unionism and nationalism. The shame of it is the politicians haven't. While most ordinary voters are primarily concerned with keeping food on their tables, the education and health of their children, their prospects of holding on to their jobs - you know, the sort of thing most people in the developed world are preoccupied with - our political system is still organised around a constitutional question that few people are really asking these days. We've made a lot of progress here, but still our elections are essentially sectarian head counts. I may do a more detailed blog post about that myself over the coming weeks.<br /><br />It's also interesting that a French interviewer cuts straight to the politics. It's been my experience of touring in France that journalists there are far more interested in the politics of my writing than anything else. It gets a little awkward when they expect me to have detailed insights into our past, present and future. Which I don't.Stuart Nevillehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03883631620345577504noreply@blogger.com