Those among us who could have acted to halt the course of tragedy preferred to do nothing. Those who could have spoken out, when words might have meant something, chose to hold their tongues. And the rest of us were content to let matters slide. Now all of us must pay the price for this neglect. There is a black sin on the face of Irish Republicanism today that will never be erased.
Murder now lies at the feet of the Irish nation and there is no gain-saying that fact.
We cannot change past, however much we regret its record. But if we wish to restore the honour of our people, now is the time to act. We must break the paralysis that leaves the good name of the Irish people in the hands of unscrupulous men. And we must find a way to make restitution for our failings. We won't have a ballad to commemorate the butchered fragments of a woman we saw on the telly being shovelled up by a fireman.