Nationalism has no Jim Allister, or Micheal Martin

I have been busy on a number of fronts recently so the blog has had to take something of a back seat.  If you know me though, you will have been able to guess that I was keenly observing last week's elections in Ireland, North and South, as well as in Britain and indeed Colombia (it was a fun weekend, though not so much for my partner).

An opinion piece I read today by Suzanne Breen caught by eye, since it chimed with my initial reflections after the conclusion of the local elections in Northern Ireland.

@PJM2010 @mickfealty If I were Doc Al I'd be on the phone to Mícheal Martin this afternoon. #SDLP
— Chris Connolly (@Cripipper) May 26, 2014

Breen's argument is that Irish nationalism in Northern Ireland is 'lacking a Jim Allister".  This is partially true, but glides over the unfortunate reality that someone who is to Sinn Féin as Allister is to the DUP would be big on the armalite and low on the ballot box.  However, the headline was almost certainly written by a sub and would not have been the one Breen wrote for herself.