You could do worse than sign up for the Irish Times archive service. You can search editions as far back as the 19th century and marvel at how little has changed in Ireland since then. Apart from the installation of our very own gombeen class as the political "elite".
I thought the clippings above, from the very same page of the Irish Times Pictorial, 12th May 1945, spoke volumes about the stupidity and hypocrisy that seems to characterise many natives of our green unpleasant land.
When the rest of Europe was celebrating the defeat of Nazism, this is what happened in Ireland (clip left) - gobshites who more preoccupied with their anti-Britishness and the order in which an Irish tricolour was placed on a flagstaff, than the defeat of Hitler's murderous regime.
Then (clip right) we have our shamless gombeens looking for British help for "the situation in Ireland", with 170,000 people who had worked in Britain - presumably helping the war effort - due to return home to bolster the already significant unemployment figures.
The irony of it.
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17 comments:
the irish flag had no business being on that flagpole. Maybe it could have been better placed just under the swastika over at the german embassy!
You've heard the story that it was our very own CJ Haughey who organised some of this?
http://ucdhiddenhistory.wordpress.com/2009/04/27/7-charles-haughey/
Not sure if it is true though, suspect it is just a story.
@Neutrality my arse boy, ha ha ha!!
In fairness the 'Suggested agreement with Britain' is the opinion of one individual, R Corish, the Labour TD for Wexford. He died in December of that same year and was replaced by... you guessed it... his son Brendan, who eventually became leader of the Labour party in the 1970s.
'green unpleasant land' almost slipped under the radar with that GM. LMAO. It's up there with 'casting a cold eye...'
oh and i just noticed enough space on that german flagstaff for the vatican flag too. Any way the wind blows boys.....can someone please explain to me why every church in ireland hasn't been burned down by now!
@ Pony Boy and Ella. As though the Nazis would have respected our neutrality without the Allies. Another laughable self-deception.
@ Anon 10:29. The fact that a TD said it is enough. He hardly existed in a vacuum at the time. There are no reports of refutations within the chamber.
@ Anon 10:16. Don't be shy. Give us a name. I suspect it is true.
@ PB, Ella. And what a load of arseology Irish "neutrality" is. Another sacred cow long overdue for the knacker's yard.
@ DB. Nor are there any reports of ridicule or hilarity in that establishment. No, what Corish said passed for logic at the time, I believe.
Not proud to be Irish but I was born in the shithole so I guess that makes me Irish. I wouldnt want to be tarred with that old Fine Fail type Irishnes though. I dont like the cronyism, the nod and wink style business or the church for that matter.Nothing that goes on in this place really surprises me and I will be leaving ASAP
You're as Irish as me so, Anon. I too, am long past being surprised by what goes on here.
The STREAK of Fasism runs deep in Ireland to this day. A pointed and PSYCHOLOGICALLY ILL society, if ever there was one - where even such tendancies are impaired and haphazard. In this context, Ireland is akin to a dysfuntional Fascist State. A Facist State it has to be said, where the Mafia, (the participant population) are indulged by the elite in a game of pretence, whereby they are given a place of honour at the table, alongside the politically delusional. Yet it must also be noted, it is of extreme and profound puzzlement with how easily and to the extent by which, "the people" have allowed the country to continuously descend into corruption...In one sense though, it makes objective observation too easy...
@Anon. "Not proud to be Irish." Yes in reality it's an affliction if you have more than two brain cells to rub together. Begrudgery and deep profound corruption creates - and has irreversibly created - an atmosphere which the complicit and basically THICK CUTEHOORS, seem to like.
Always watch out for the ones that won't tolerate any criticism of Ireland or the Irish.
"Always watch out for the ones that won't tolerate any criticism of Ireland or the Irish."
Yep. And they are out there in massive numbers, unfortunately.
Flag protocols, are still flag protocols...
http://youtu.be/jCqXUVwyfms
The Second World War was not a war against fascism. Britain was ambivalent towards the fact that Hitler was exterminating Jews and as for dewy eyed romanticism about folk heroes look no further than "the British" and they're affection for the sozzled Churchill a man who thought gassing Kurds was "fair game".
That's right, you know that reprehensible act that made Saddamn Hussein such a monster rather than a mythologigal icon.
I live in Britain (London actually) and whilst it's undoutbed that there is a some romanticism surrounding Michael Collins and Irish history the same can be said all around the world. You appear to be suggesting that Michael Collins "had it coming" well war is a hard business, no glory in it.
My Grandmother lost nearly all her family to armed struggle and one of my ancestors who is buried nearby to Michael Collins was just an innocent young man hen slain in the senseless civil war.
I can see where you're coming from but when reading this blog I can't help but get a glint of that same old folsiness and mythology with that glint in your eye that masks th swelling pride that you read in the pro-Tory/British Irish press when it comes to romanticising the past that never existed in Britain either.
Argentina was a fascist ally to Britain before the Falklands war erupted too so just in case you've seen one too may dewy eyed Meryl Streep histrionics "Where there is hope, let there be blah blah etc.." I hope I can look forward to you being as equally merciless when it comes to eroding the Irish media's fawning obsession with all things hierachal and British.
If you want to talk about romanticising a past that doesn't exist then the Tory Party and its friends in the press prove on a daily basis that it would take me all year to correct all they hysterically laughable revisionism.
Hi Matt.
WW2 in Europe was a do-or-die fight against Nazi Germany, a particularly virulent form of racist fascism. If the allies had not won, Ireland too would have been invaded (possibly facilitated by the likes of Sean Russell and the and the IRA) and its Jews, gays, socialists, trade unionists and others would have been deported to the death camps.
I am aware of Churchill's deeds. I am aware that many circles in both Britain and the US were ambivalent about the rise of fascism in Germany. I am aware that too many were rather silent on the introduction of the Nuremburg Laws, for instance. Too many were in the business of appeasing Hitler - at least Churchill did not do that.
I too lived in London (9 years up until 1995) and I am no fan of any kind of mindless jingoist nationalism, Irish, British, German or otherwise. My role, however, is to question Irish orthodoxies.
If you are talking about dewy-eyed romanticism I saw plenty of it among Irish people in England, first and second generation. Many clung to a romantic vision of the "old country" that they, or their parents, took the informed and conscious decision to get the hell out of.
There will be lots more from the current generation, many of whom will go to the UK, as the Irish political class has, once again, demonstrated a profound lack of suitability for self-rule.
"When it comes to eroding the Irish media's fawning obsession with all things hierachal and British." You make an interesting point Matt. When the Irish and the Media especially, FAWN, they do it to extreme...Almost dripping, with not a scintilla of sincerity behind it.
The Irish have a Hierarchical lineage from 1916 onwards also Matt. The Irish media are obsessed with that as well.
"Look no further than "the British" and they're affection for the sozzled Churchill." Also a good and valid point in my opinion, but despite his faults he did stand up to Satan.
Well speaking of nationalism and misrepresentations my Polish friends in London often express sadness that their contribution to the Battle Of Britain is often omitted from historical documentarys.
303 squadron was the most proficient and best performing squadron in the battle, registering more "kills" (147 I think) than any other squadron with the two Polish squadrons combined the squadrons with the best records as well as the squadrons that took the most casualties.
It took 70 years for their contribution to be recognised and even today the Battle Of Britain is still reminisced in plummy "chocs away" revisionism.
They also feel that Churchill abandoned them after the war but well as you have noted it wasn't a pretty time in history and we can't argue against the defeat of the vilest ideology known to mankind.
Anyway, living in London and reading some of the bigoted, ill informed posts daily on British politics/history as well as having to endure some very selective and romanticised notions of British history it has kind of gradually engrained a degree of perplexity at how inaccurate and ill informed a portrayal of history and politics the British people are often presented with.
The Westminster class infuriates me as does their incompetence. As for the Gombenn nation and Ireland, don't get me started. I'm with you there.
As for moribund nostalgia I'm more of a person who likes to keep moving forward without necessarily closing the door on the past whilst placing more emphasis on tring to shaoe the future.
At least that's the way I aspire to live.When I visit Ireland now I go to Kerry and only visit Dublin to see friends and family but haven't walked down the street I grew up in since I left. Moved on, no need to.
I've seen too many Irish people return to London disillusioned having spent all their life building up an illusion of Ireland tht doesn't exist only to find that the country they've returned to has moved on without them to hold much sway in nationalistic posturing.
I moved to London in the 90's but today Irish pubs (about as authentic as a leprechun doing a jig on a bowl of Lucky Charms but you catch my drift) display Union flags at Olympics and often have notices displayed in Polish on the windows.
I'm more than comfortable with that and there are little traces or remnants of the nationalism that was still prominent in the Cricklewood/Kilburn area in some small sections up until the early 00's.
It's still around I suppose but for the most part everyone has moved on and it is really great to see the next generation of young irish coming over with a far more cosmpolitan and progressive attitude. It is said though that many well educated Irish citizens are leaving not through choice but economic necessity again.
I'm absolutely devastated at what the political establishment have doen to the Irish economy.
Best thing about living in London is the Theatre and I've seen some wonderful Sean O' Casey adaptations at the Tricycle and some great up and coming talen tat the Southwark Playhouse.
Musn't grumble too much I suppose. Anyway, thanks for the clarification. Some good posts. It has been an interesting discussion.
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