Then there was Joe Duffy yesterday, I’m told. In the early hours of Saturday morning, a band of BMX riding scumbags wielding hammers smashed the windows of 40 parked cars in Castleknock. It seems, however, that apprehending the pedal-powered posse in the act was beyond the powers of the local plod.
Elsewhere, Englishman Raymond Bates was beaten to death by a hurley-swinging scumbag in Sandymount because he took off from the lights too quickly for the Gah-head's liking. Road rage, they called it - yet it sounds more like pure hatred to me. And let's not forget Polish worker, Lukasz Rzeszutko, murdered by an unemployable local bumwipe in Coolock while on his way to start an early morning shift. The whole place is awash with skangers and scumbags, no two ways about it.
Having spent several years living in one of England’s poorest boroughs – Newham, East London – and other places besides, I can say that few others can hold a candle to Ireland when it comes to producing scumbags. It is enough to make your heart burst with patriotic pride.
And speaking of patriotic pride, step forward Dublin City councillor Nial Ring, also featured in the aforementioned local freesheet. Never mind scumbags and social breakdown: Ring’s big concern is the proposed visit to Ireland by another EU head of state, Queen Elizabeth of Great Britain.
According to the People, the independent councillor - who comes from a proud Fianna Fail family - opposes the visit as his relatives were involved in the Easter Rising and the War of Independence. Furthermore, it seems that one of Ring’s forebears, Liam O’Rinn, translated the Soldier's Song (our national anthem) into Gaelic – presumably so we wouldn't be able to tell what drivel it is.
And there's more. Apparently Ring’s ancestral inner city home was used as a safe house during “the fight for Ireland” and “several people who were informers were actually taken out of the house for execution”. What better patriotic credentials could a man have?
Councillor Ring thinks Lizzy should issue the apologies, however, despite the mess of a country his brave rebel forebears helped create. “Queen Elizabeth is not welcome in my country unless she is coming to say sorry”, he is quoted as saying. “She can also apologise to me and my family for crimes by her country against my grandparents and their brothers and families. Then the healing can begin.”
Healing? What’s that, Nial? “She has a lot to say sorry for but I don’t think she has any intention of doing so”, he expands. “For a start, she needs to apologise for the crimes against the Irish people, their language and culture”. Bloody Hell. And there's me thinking it's 2010.
Tell me this and tell me no more. Are people not sick of being manipulated by this sort of insulting, knee-jerk, bar-stool, lumpen Republican rhetoric? Especially after the mess our very "own" gombeen political class have made of the place they profess to love so much?
I am no fan of monarchy and hereditary power, but that would apply to Beatrix of Holland as much as Elizabeth of England. Not to mention the Dail. But if the head of state of another EU country – even a constitutional monarchy – wishes to visit, what is the problem? I'll tell you what it is, according to these people: it's “The Past”. Strongbow, Cromwell, the Famine and all the rest - the 800 years. Stop the record, puh-leeese!
Let us just consider the more recent history of our continental European neighbours. 55 years ago - a blink of an eye in the Irish "folk memory" - the end of the Second World War saw much of Europe laid to waste and millions upon millions of its inhabitants killed. Yet most of the countries whose forebears were involved in that carnage have put it behind them, and enjoy relatively civil relationships today. They’ve moved on. It's the only way forward, after all.
So instead of banging on about the Brits and the 800 years, maybe our gombeen political class should apologise for what they have been doing to us since 1921?
And we should not allow ourselves to be so easily distracted by them.
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21 comments:
I just love the linkage between your blogs GM cos one thing is for sure Kneel Padraig Pearse agus pog mo Ring (to give him his full title) needs that buttplug urgently. PB
@Ponyplug, ha, ha, ha!!!
Do any of you remember that scene in "The Van" when Larry (Colm Meaney) is wearing his Brit Busters t-shirt, whilst running in to check the Man U results? Anyway... the open minded councillor that is Nial Ring is a Chelsea fan, and you know he probably doesn't see the irony in it at all. http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/nial-ring-2142546.html
yeah Ella I saw that - a season ticket holder if you don't mind and also worked for a german bank. Didn't the Luftwaffe bomb Dublin in WW2? Jesus I love Ireland -now do you think if i moved to Auckland I could put a few more miles between me and it? PB
Are people like Ring on the same planet as me? I get the impression at times that we are edging closer and closer to a tipping point where political violence (not the narrow fascist/nationalistic provo variety) might be justified. Certainly if the likes of FF muster any kind of credible political support at the next election or if Bertie were elected president, action would be needed.
A sincere apology by QE would not be the worst of things - although the rotten FF ringleaders should be the last to ask for it.
The above article further reinforces how out of touch with the real world politicians really are. We seem to be living in a past no longer relevant in today’s society. If Councilor Nial Ring’s backward thinking was to prevail then the North of Ireland would never have been settled. When do we Paddies forgive and forget. The Queen has nothing to apologize for and as far as I am concerned she is very welcome here. Have we no self respect or respect for other heads of state that come here in friendship. The Queen has no good reason to come to this detritus pit as we mean absolutely nothing to anyone in Europe. We seem to think we have an importance that does not exist. We are a backward nation whose only preoccupation is getting pissed out of our minds and run down and talk about our neighbours if they have more than us. It is about time that we moved forward and realized that only for Britain this god forsaken sorry excuse for a country would have long ago imploded. Do we Irish not realize that despite being members of the EU Britain is our biggest customer for exports. Every time FF destroys our country we immediately look to the UK for jobs and education. ( Also remember that before the EU or EEC we Paddies were the only ones who could enter the UK without a passport. No member of the commonwealth could do that ) We have no air force or coastguard but we look to the RAF and the RNLI to save our sorry asses in times of trouble and we contribute nothing towards the cost of same. What a sorry sick backward nation we are. It is time for the people in this country to move on. A man once said to me ‘anyone who dwells too much in the past has no future’ – what a wise man he was.
Very sad that some idiots define themselves and their nationality by whom they hate i.e. the likes of Ring and his ilk towards Britain
@PB, lucky you living so far away from here. Auckland, mm now there is a thought, I wonder what the visa requirement are. I (well we) emigrated from here in 1986 and returned in 2000, we remember why we left alright, but many a time we wonder why we ever returned.
The reason Ella was due to the awful green mist coming over your eyes and you remembered your good friends, family and pleasant childhood thoughts. Its people like you who are the real patriots and not the wankers who run the country. Unfortunately those that will leave this time will not come back. Fool me once shame on you but fool me twice shame on me. We will not be fooled again by FF who should be eradicated and never seen again. Its up to us now to finish the work at the next election and try and make our unfortunate country fit to live in again.
@ Anthony. Go raibh maith agat mo chara! I'm just admiring the "Erin go bragh" tat on my arm, I do that most evenings, to remind myself of what a great little country I live in! not..
The nub of the thing is, what's that councillor on about? The items you mentioned at the start of your article GM is reality.
@ Ponyplug. Yes... Chelsea, of all clubs. Jesus, I hate Chelsea with a passion.
@ Anon 08:54. He seems alien enough to me too, if that's any consolation. Yes, any of the developments you mention should be a bridge too far for any decent people. There are a few, I think.
@ Der Wanderer. Think I'll wait for an apology from our own bunch of gormless, unprincipled gombeens before anyone else. The likes of this Ring clown has some cheek, as far as I'm concerned.
@ Anthony, Carlos. Yes Spot on, the whole "hating the Brits" thing is very boring, juvenile and tiresome. I doubt even the most rabid Irish patriot would turn their noses up at an British S&R chopper in their hour of need.
On the emigration front, how many young people who are full of such nonsense, will be jetting off to Stanstead in search of work in the coming years? Quite a few, I'll wager.
Did it myself years ago, but even then I had no illusions about this place. Think it is the old ties that draw you back, but even those ties don't stay around for ever (parents and so on). That's how I got suckered, anyway.
@ Ella. Bloody Hell. I thought I had been redirected into Gaelport or was reading the minutes of a FF branch meeting there there for a minute. You know they do skin grafts and laser treatment for unwanted tatoos now?
@ Dakota. What indeed? I'd say he thinks his shite talk will strike a chord with his voters. And it might - which speaks volumes about the mentality of some in this place. Very sad.
Totally agree GM man: 2 terrible wars, last one only 65 yrs ago, millions died ( was it 20 million? )and 12% of German men died in either 1st or 2nd world war) yet our EU neighbours live in respectful peace despite what their
( often conscripted) grandfathers did to each other- I have often thought our EU neighbours could teach us a lot about reconciliation and civilised relations with our neighbours: I doubt if 1 other former British colony harbours the residual hatred of the Brits as this one does. I am not sure of the Visa issues but many former Empire citizens didn't find it that easy to get into UK, even with commonwealth status. Not so the Irish, who could readily go to Uk, vote in the elections, and avail of totally free education and good free health care. I know 1 rabid anti Brit man Ted, ( from Cork) who emigatated with his brother to Chicago. In later years he re-emigrated to NI,( as in the '70s this country was broke) I knew his daughter Vera. Vera met a young English girl at a sports camp, stayed in touch with the English girl, and 1 time wrote to her that it was really funny when a no of Soldiers were blown up in a well known '70s atrocity. The English girl wrote, no, not funny, 1 of them was her brother. This family did well out of NI's excellent free Grammar schools and universities. When Ted's brother returned from Chicago, near retirement, he settled in NI. He became seriously ill, got excellent Totally free health care and lived on quite a few years after diagnosis - as ROI had the lowest survival rates in Europe for his condition, retiring to the UK ( where he'd never lived or worked or paid taxes) prolonged his life.
Also ( despite the troubles) many impoverished NI catholics have risen as a class thanks to good education, services etc; social progression there is far better than here; I read a recent story in Indo here, saying many of the super rich in the North were catholic now , due to this elevating effect- I'm glad i grew up under John Bull's tyranny in NI. Yes Mr Ring is a dinosaur, and yes I am pleased that 90 yrs after independence this country is grown up enough to have head of our nesrest neighbour, who we depend upon in so many ways ( eg College places- only chinese students outnumber the irish at UK colleges- and there are 1 billion + chinese on earth, so no wonder they can spare a few to EU colleges: reason there are so many Irish students in UK- we don't provide enough college places in a lot of subjects) ...i could go on...what do we do for the Uk- compared to what they do for us? And i have never seen the brits paddy bashing so much- as the unthinking Brit bashing that emanates from some in this country
Dear Mr Ring
Well, Well Well. Does Ireland not have enough trouble with it’s financial downturn (down and out)without some uneducated racist and bigot like you finding something to whinge about.
If you feel so bad about The British Monarchy; then go to Monaghan Town and look at the British Court House in Church Square. This building proudly displays the British Crown Coat of Arms. Just find a stepladder and climb up and remove it if you are so strongly anti British.
You sound like a ‘barrack room lawyer’ full of bullshit. I’ll bet you do not possess two working brain cells.
A RING OF IGNORANCE
Wake up Mr Ring!, no one gives “one fiddlers fuck” about all your Irish Republican Trash.
Should we insist that the Monarch’s of Norway, Sweden and Denmark come to Ireland and apologise for the invasion of the Vikings.
Should we ask the present the Pope to apologise for the “Laudabiliter” which was the Papal Bull issued in 1155 by Pope Adrian IV, (the only Englishman to serve as Pope), giving King Henry II of England the right to assume control over Ireland because he thought that they the Irish people were no better than animals, hence the Norman invasion. What do you think Mr Ring?
HM Queen Elizabeth II is very intelligent and very knowledgeable. Also, She is the longest reigning head of state in the world. Are you going to embarrass the Irish nation in the eyes of the world with your outdated,embarrassing, nationalistic pig ignorance?
It seems that much of the property in Ireland is still owned by English Estates. Most of Dublin and most prominent buildings in Ireland are still the property of English landlords. Where does Mr Neil Ring think he is living. Does he think that he is Darby O’Gill talking to “the little people”?
D B McGINNITY
Good points - "barrack room lawyer" sums it up. It's bloody embarrasing, to be honest.
The likes of Ring and our gombeen caste of politicians should be the only ones apologising.
A RIGHT RINGING CRUSADE
Most of the Irish people with whom I associate are highly literate, in virtually all subjects. In general, I am proud of my Irish learning. Therefore, it is a paradox that some semi-illiterate, paranoid “bogman” is able to reach such a point of influence whereby he can spout interminable nonsense and risk causing the loss of goodwill towards the people of Ireland. To me it is a mega-paradox that anyone takes him seriously. Put him in the coalhouse until after the Queen’s visit.
Adrians IVth.Legacy
Adrian IV thought that the Irish were like animals, and Mr Ring’s attitude does not help to dissuade that image. After the catastrophe of the Second Crusade where the Crusaders slaughtered Jews on their way to the Holy Land, St. Bernard of Clairvaux was disgusted with the outcome. In 1154 the new pope Adrian IV tried to make amends and he wrote to the Irish Bishops to enlist their help for another crusade. Because Adrian was an Englishman, the kings and chieftains in Ireland did not want any part of the Adrian IV’s Crusade and they and the Bishops of Ireland told the Pope to “Fuck Off” (In Irish). I do not know how to state that expletive in Irish.
That is why the “Laudabiliter” was issued. Henry did not want to invade Ireland because he could not find an excuse for doing so, also he was preoccupied with his French wars. Henry II did not invade Ireland and he did not arrive in Ireland until 1172. It was Strongbow who invaded Ireland. Because Strongbow’s family now make cider for a living why can’t that company apologise for the invasion of Ireland. Let everyone get pissed on cider for a week or two and forget all about Neil Ring’s paranoid meanderings about things that no longer matter.
David Corrigan
If some ignorant hotheads stirred up by politicians, insult or threaten the HM Queen; the consequences could be devastating for Irish people and their decendents living in the UK, Northern Ireland and the Commonwealth. It could harm trade and commerce. Ireland has little in the way of bargaining power at the present time. Does Neil Ring realise this?
Crikey... I mean, all recent German Chancellors have made prominent visits to Israel. But you can't have that kind of mutual understanding and healing of wounds in Ireland, where the death toll in the Easter Rising and War of Indepence is in the hundreds, as opposed to millions.
Gombeen,
Top rant man, I'm a Scouser and I for one in the people's republic of Liverpool, and that applies to the whole city, have very little time for the bunch of priviliged asswipe freeloaders- fuck...even Thatcher came one day in 81 when I was a boy to finger wag after the riots, she was soon sent packing and never to return, but as you say what the hell do we care if Lizzy 2 pops in to say 'Hulllo' to all of her previous ancestors, oh sorry, the Fitzgerald's, Smurfitt's. Butlers and Guinness' of this world were turfed out after 21, 'Wur de fuck' bizzo as usual as those Gombeenshites carried on ruling Ireland and ruling as a group elite have ever since, the Brutons, Aherns, it's all Anglo/Irish lineage. Mr Ring is typical of the FF moron's who as you say, happy to support 'Hun FC'and enjoy freebies when in London but when it comes time to throw an old FF chesnut at the fire, they are so F..... predictable, Liz 1, Cromwell, Trevelyan,Hamar Greenwood- yeah........ don't they read history, Liz 1st tried to ameloriate the O'Neill's until they got greedy and tried to get Spain in though the back door- hence the flight of the Earls, the Irish supported the Royalists under Ormonde when Cromwell came (another lunatic by the way) many poor and working men were cruelly evicted from their homes during the Famine by ruthless Irish landlords- probably Unionists and Dev was quite happy to take us to Civil War under an oath of allegiance which sent Ireland backwards to years of economic strife- yes Mr Ring, those are the real concerns I have in addressing British presence in Ireland, read a book asswipe and not the standard FF shite of Cul Chulain and Pearse and his poetry, maybe you'll learn about Jim Larkin and Connolly, maggots.
Marcus Maher
No doubt since I'm not a hater of all thinks Irish my words won’t get printed. One question I would like to ask is where does the money come from that maintains this bile and hatred? I was just searching for Councillor Rings’ contact details and this is the first thing that presents itself. I know that Google doesn’t provide this kind of exposure cheaply.
I wonder can it be traced back to the British treasury or a British org that promotes their monarchy?
Please note that Councillor Nial Ring was democratically elected by his constituents, which is more than can be said for some!
Padraig Beirne
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