Unionism’s big enemy is apathy

BORIS Johnson betrayed unionism and our unionist politicians have failed us. Instead of continuing to focus on unionism, we need to shift our focus to the regeneration of our community.

By our apathy we have, to a large extent, been the architects of our own demise.

Yes, those in positions of leadership have failed us. But we as a community have to accept some measure of responsibility and stop feeling sorry for ourselves. Until we do that nothing will change.

Our community is in freefall and we have to acknowledge that and change our mindset.

Yes, we should remember the past and learn from it. But we should move on and make our own history.

If we as a community are going to survive — even thrive — we have to cut out the dead wood that continues to eat into our culture.

It is my hope that a more radical leadership will emerge, in Church and state, and spring from the ground up.

To make way for it, so that it will grow and flourish, we first have to prune away the dry rot.

This will require a lot of hard work and will be painful, even sacrificial, but our apathy and our indolence have left us with no alternative.

If we as a people are going to survive, we need a leader who will encourage us, even bully us, to shift our gaze from the English shires to the green Antrim hills.

Someone who will identify and root out the enemy within our own ranks, who continue to harry and weaken us. Then drag us, kicking and screaming, into the 21st century.

This is not encouraging, but it’s a measure of where we are and it makes grim reading. We have continued to procrastinate and deteriorate to such an extent that the enemy is at the gates. We will be hard pushed to find 13 apprentices.

Judging by the present mood, this generation will leave the gates open.

CLIVE MAXWELL Bleary, Co Down