NB. This post was first published as a guest blog on the Alternative History Weekly Update (1 October 2014).   “This society believed it was looking towards a new future, yet we consistently find ourselves being dragged backwards.” The late David Ervine, Ulster Loyalist politician Alternative history in the Irish context appears to be a neglected area of literature. There are exceptions of course, notably the fascinating book by Diarmaid Ferriter, entitled What If? Alternative Views of