blessed are the peacemakers

do you ever come across things so seemingly peculiar that they make you think your view of the world is much too narrow?

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i do
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and, for just one of [gratifyingly] many instances
ulster politicians ian paisley and martin mcguinness as apparent chums
...
for those who don't know
the Rev Ian Paisley always seemed the epitome of the bigoted firebrand
and has been a bigoted firebrand since the early 60s
and had as much a hand as anyone in creating the grief that overwhelmed Northern Ireland for three decades
successfully and belligerently destroying any chance of political advance on numerous occasions
yet a protestant minister and very respected in his own Ulster
...
and Martin McGuinness
who few seem to doubt was once head of the IRA
which means he ordered some very ghastly actions indeed
...
and they were as implacable opponents as its possible to get
...
and yet
at the end of a very long political road
they ended up as first and second ministers of the Ulster Assembly
and were seen more than once chatting amicably
and even joking
on the steps of the Assembly and elsewhere

and even even ended up being dubbed the
Chuckle Brothers

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which is, from a 70s 80-s 0r 90s perspective, utterly incomprehensible
and yet its happened
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which can only mean my take on Ulster Politics
and what people are capable of
is wrong
...

which is certainly making me think

...

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