Forgive me if I seem churlish. On the face of it, Friday’s statement from groups planning Eleventh Night bonfires this year looks like a step in the right direction.

But a handful of fine-sounding words – which, in all likelihood, will be ignored – is quite simply not enough.

For too long these sectarian beacons have sent out a clear message to nationalists – croppies lie down – while simultaneously terrorising people living in loyalist communities, who don’t want to suffer the fallout from pyres that get higher and higher each year as youths pursue something akin to a nuclear arms race.

I remember when bonfires were big enough to give a bit of heat on a chilly evening, and warm enough to coddle potatoes, but were not so hot that they threatened to consume the neighbourhood in a towering inferno.

Let’s not pretend the Twelfth is about ‘respect and understanding’

Who will grasp the opportunity to solve Stormont’s housing and water crisis?

Today’s monstrosities are not just an example of the enthusiasm of youth gone mad. It’s much more sinister than that.

Calling for the........

© The Irish News