Wall Street says no

Or at least the Wall Street Journal says No to the path opened up by the Sinn Fein endorsement of policing in Northern Ireland. The editorial (subs. req'd) appears in the European edition and definitely reflects a conservative and unionist pessimism about the peace process (could they be chatting to Dean Godson before they write them?). Anyway, the essence is in the conclusion --

At the same time, the negotiations have given the IRA more credibility in the eyes of many voters. Participation in Northern Ireland's government would further cement the IRA's reputation as a respectable party. It would also help it in the Republic's general elections, which Dublin plans for May or June. Irish Prime Minister Berti [sic] Ahern says he would accept Sinn Fein's support for a minority government.

Pretty soon the IRA could be governing in the north and south of the island. It's hard to see how that bodes well for peace in Ireland.

It's understandable that they'd be confused about Bertie's stance on Sinn Fein support, because he did briefly feint in that direction before undoing it a couple of days later; hence his current position is that he won't take their support. Note also the editorial's assumption of 100 percent of equivalence between Sinn Fein and the IRA.