Political Shorthand

A Sinner (pronouned SHINN-er)is a member of the Sinn Fein, the political party that has traditionally advocated the unificiation of British-occupied Northern Ireland with the 26 southern counties that make up the Republic of Ireland. Sinners are not necessarily directly linked to any factions of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), but they often hold similar political views. Of course, the degree of affiliation between the political party and the para-military organization is itself a matter of dispute. The conservative Irish Independent, newspaper, which is referred to as the Indo here in Ireland, ties the Sinners and the IRA directly together in its style sheet.