Whether the Irish political establishment likes it or not Sinn Fein will be in Government in this country some time over the next few years.
They are consistently riding high in the polls but not quite enough to win an overall majority to rule on their own.
Over the past few weeks we have seen a lot of sniping between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael on one side against Mary Lou McDonald and the Shinners. There is no love lost and no quarter given. It is shadow boxing getting ready for the General Election in over two years time.
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Yes Sinn Fein has instigated a series of libel actions against the media and individuals who said nasty things about them and they have our state broadcaster RTE running scared which is not a good thing for democracy.
Politicians of any party should not be suing in a land of so called free speech and it is wrong in my humble opinion.
The national broadcaster in turn should not allow itself to be bullied or threatened by any political organisation and should be fighting every libel challenge.
The Taoiseach Micheal Martin believes Sinn Fein has a deliberate strategy of trying to bury the past.
In other words it does not want to be held to account for IRA campaign of terror which left many innocent people dead .
The party rightly or wrongly believes the terror campaign in the north and mainland Britain had nothing to do with the current modern Sinn Fein and since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, we as a society both north and south have enjoyed 25 years of peace.
Therefore Sinn Fein as a political entity has moved on and can not longer be blamed for the sins of the past.
The fact is if a member of your family was killed by the Provos you will never forgive them or Sinn Fein.
The same rule applies if a member of your family was killed by the British Army, MI5 , the RUC, or Loyalist paramilitaries, you will never forgive them either.
Lets not forget the biggest atrocity of the Troubles the Dublin and Monaghan bombings which left 33 innocent souls dead was orchestrated by British Intelligence in other words sanctioned by the British Government.
The War of Independence and the Civil War over 100 years ago left deep scars in our society .
Those who fought for and against the Treaty hated each other until they died. The Anglo Irish here were also bitter.
It took decades for reconciliation to happen. In fact it is only two years ago that the old arch enemies Fianna Fail and Fine Gael went into Government together for the very first time.
There are many people who joined Sinn Fein in the past 20 years who have nothing to do with the IRA., They joined because they believe the party can deliver change. They do not like the old Irish political status quo.
There are now a whole generation of people aged from 20 to 40 years old who believe Sinn Fein can deliver a better future for them and the country.
They despise Fianna Fail and Fine Gael and see them as parties of the ruling class who stand up for the bankers and big business before them.
Rightly or wrongly they don't believe they act in the interests of working people, and they see arrogance and a sense of entitlement. They want to give Sinn Fein a chance to see what they can do.
The next election will be fought on the economy and housing. Sinn Fein will be scrutinised like every other party. They will be held to account for their policies to see if they are realistic and workable.
All the libel actions in the world won't protect them from that because that is what happens when voters go to the polls.
If Sinn Fein have a great election and get into power good luck to them. But they will be expected to deliver and if they don't their support will plummet and they will be kicked out of office like many parties before them.
Will they be a threat to our democracy? No
Will they try their best for the country? Yes.
Will they destroy the economy? I doubt it because the permanent Government, the Civil Service, won't let them.
So once and for all let's bury the politics of fear and if Sinn Fein are voted into office well bring it on.
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