Ffs Bear.
There were several posts wrt NI & turnout.
In response to a previous post, I said:
^Wrt nobody caring about what happens in Ireland (and NI), I would have more sympathy with that if NI voters had cared enough themselves tbh.
37.3% didn’t care enough to vote
27.7% voted to Leave.
Only 35% of NI were sufficiently concerned enough to vote to remain within the EU.
‘Not bothered’ had the biggest vote share in NI.^
Somerville replied:
Again, Faith, you flaunt your ignorance about NI. There are a lot of people who are politically disenfranchised, because of our history. And the sectarian nature of political allegiance in NI lead to a lot of further confusion and decisions to abstain.
I replied:
^I may be ‘flaunting my ignorance about NI’, but I don’t live in NI.
It is the majority of voters in NI who either voted to leave or didn’t vote at all (65% of the NI electorate) that your eye-rolling condescension should be squared at tbh.^
She replied:
Everyone who voted leave (or indeed, didn't vote) is culpable, in my opinion, Faith. But those who claim to be patriotic supporters of the United Kingdom especially - it's staggering that you/they think it's merely up to individual parts of the Union to stand up for their own interests. 
I replied:
^Well everyone knew that every vote counted - the onus was on every individual to have their voice counted; if the voters in NI were not sufficiently interested in their future, then it is ridiculous to berate people who don’t even live there for their voting decision.
Similarly Scotland (although Scotland is not in the same position as NI obviously).
Gibraltar I feel for as they engaged wholeheartedly with a staggeringly high voter turnout, but unfortunately their numbers are tiny (although with Gibraltar, a majority of their voters wish to remain as part of the UK which is entirely different to NI, so not comparable)
Assuming the ‘not sufficiently bothered’ NI (& Scotland) had engaged with the vote at the same level as Gibraltar did then that would have been entirely different & would have had an impact on the discourse.
It would have been a far more impactful argument if NI had had an 84% turnout with a 96% Remain vote for example (as with Gibraltar).
But they didn’t.^
She replied:
^It would have been a far more impactful argument if NI had had an 84% turnout with a 96% Remain vote for example.
Well with the religious and ethnic divide, that was never going to happen.
You really don't have a clue.^
Then
^I think it should have only been valid if every constituent country of the UK voted to leave. Otherwise it would (and indeed, will) ultimately result in the break up of the union.
Which is why all the NI-leave voters were not DUP-supporters as is sometime believed, and nor was it political apathy that led to the lower turnout. I know DUP-voting-unionists who voted to remain, or abstained, because they foresaw the break up of the Union over the issue. And I know SF-voting-nationalists who voted to leave, or abstained, basically out of badness wanting to undermine the Union, however harmful the means. (There were also people on each side of the sectarian divide who voted against what their political representatives recommended for economic or other reasons, too.)^
I replied:
If some NI voters cannot put aside their pride to cast a pragmatic vote, the outcome of which will impact irrevocably on their future, or are choosing not to vote in an attempt to deliberately undermine the union, then that is in no way the responsibility of Leave voters in the rest of the U.K.
Alternatively Bear, you could just RTFT which would be far easier.
Is it now abundantly clear to you that AT NO POINT did I say that the Troubles in NI could have simply been avoided?
Or indeed that I “think the religious and ethnic divides are just a matter of pride?”