Unionists happy with direct rule?

The chair of the Northern Ireland Labour Forum Mark Langhammer has an interesting article in the Daily Ireland on the unionist reaction to the crisis in the peace process.

Since the DUP took over as the unionist family’s daddy, since the murder of John Gregg and routing of Johnny Adair, the loyalist community has been quiet and more relaxed — not bothered that Stormont’s gone, not bothered at all. Not unhappy with direct rule, not bothered about politics. In fact, the Prods are okay without politics, okay with gridlock.
Stormont and Northern Irelandism have run out of rope. And there’s nothing the Prods think they need to fix.

For fuller explanation of Langhammer’s conception of ‘Northern Irelandism’, see this article which appeared in the Observer in January 2004.