ABSTRACT
The Paras, the Prods, and the Provos may call each other terrorists, but they are not terrorists in their own eyes. From their point of view their strategy, tactics, intentions, and perceptions are perfectly justifiable. During the five violent years of the Irish crisis, none of the participants advocated the use of "terror" or admitted that their strategies, much less their tactics, could be so categorized. The British army had tactics but no "strategy", for the civilian government in London had to fashion a political initiative that would satisfy the minority without unleashing majority violence. Of all the groups involved in the Irish Troubles, perhaps none has given as long and as thoughtful consideration to the fashioning of an appropriate and evolving strategy, the selection of relevant tactics, and the relation of political and military priorities as the Official IRA.
