International Irish bashing starts to grate

darkman2

Ouch! The Paddywhacking has started all over againBy Kim Bielenberg

Irish Independent


Saturday April 04 2009

As Ireland's economy goes from downright frightful to even more woeful, critics are lining up to shower us with the most ill-mannered jibes.

Air traffic may be down, but the arrivals lounge at Dublin airport seems to be full of wise-cracking hacks and pundits ready to pour scorn on our heads.

They are all apparently eager to portray us as a nation of wide boy property spivs, dodgy beer-swilling bankers, and politicians who could barely tie their shoelaces, let alone run a country. Not to mention, ladies who wear their pyjamas during the day.

Frankly, our recent reviews have been atrocious. Now I know what it must have felt like to have been the playwright, after Groucho Marx remarked, "I didn't like the play but then I saw it under adverse conditions -- the curtain was up.''

I would not begrudge our neighbours the opportunity to give us a good whack.

It's the Paddywhackery that rather grates on the nerves.

The Sunday Times was the latest to drape this land in 40 shades of spleen last weekend with a hoary old tale under the headline, 'How the Celtic Tiger lost its roar'.

The cover story was illustrated with a picture of a mournful, and somewhat damp, shamrock-emblazoned kitten.

No Celtic Tiger metaphor is too laboured for our friends in the international media, of course, as we flounder around in the gutter. The man from the Canberra Times (Yes, even they are rubbing our noses in it) said the Celtic Tiger "turned out to be no more than a pussycat on steroids''.

And the Herald, from that beacon of prosperity, Glasgow, noted gleefully, "the beast that was once the pride of the EU cowers in the undergrowth, licking mainly self-inflicted wounds".

But it was the man from the Sunday Times who really excelled himself last weekend.

No Paddy-the-Irish cliché was left undisturbed as the writer went through a Blarney-by-numbers analysis of our woes.

Pints of Guinness. Check.

Potatoes. Check.

Horses. Check.

Priest in public house. Check.

If John Wayne had surfaced with his nasal drawl, pursued by Maureen O'Hara, it could have been The Quiet Man.

As with other Celtic Tiger fables, now appearing daily in the international media, the subtext was clear: the priest-ridden peasants got their hands on some dough, became a little bit uppity, and now they are receiving their rightful comeuppance.

The hackneyed Sunday Times lament declared; "The Celtic Tiger that transformed a beer-soaked backwater into the envy of every small nation with a thirst for a makeover is dead, and its cubs are looking to emigrate because they see no future.''

Things are so bad, in fact, that the "Paddies'' (yes, "Paddies'') are heading for Poland to find work. That is where we are going in droves, apparently.

During our period of prosperity, readers were told, "a threadbare land of saints and scholars had become the Singapore of Europe'' (which must be quite mystifying to the more sober residents of that Asian city state).

The writer deserves credit for finding a home-grown Irish pundit who actually said of his return to Ireland in the Celtic Tiger heyday: "I left a godly land of broke but merry alcoholics and came back to a place where people who used to dig potatoes were buying luxury apartments sight-unseen and driving Porsches.''

And it goes on, "On a Sunday, the shops were full with people who seemed to worship Versace in the way our grandmothers worshipped the Virgin Mary."

Yes, it's all true. Around 1997, your neighbour gave up digging the aul spuds and disappeared into the sunset in a souped-up sportscar.

Aunt Hilda has missed 11 o'clock Mass and waved goodbye to the Almighty. She was last seen praying at the altar of Coco Chanel up in Dundrum Town Centre.

So how did it all go wrong? When in doubt, if you are a visiting hack, go to a pub, where you might bump into a priest, a property baron picking up pennies off the floor, or the Minister for Finance in the gents.

"First you have to go to Doheny & Nesbitt, a pub in Dublin,'' advises the Sunday Times man. "Take a seat in one of the oak snugs and order a pint of the black stuff (groan). It's here that it all started.''

Here, according to the incisive chronicler of our misfortunes, every night, politicians, bankers, businessmen and the "odd holy man" turn up to drink. Lord save us.

And here, 20 years ago, after "beery musings'', they planted the philosophical seeds for the Irish economic miracle, and its ultimate demise.

The chap from the New York Times also went to Doheny and Nesbitt's back in January in the company of the developer Sean Dunne. Curiously, he also wrote of "beery musings" that turned into government policy.

The man from the New York Times wrote of multimillionaires "living large in a country just coming to grips with its ability to show a little swagger".

And sure enough, the Sunday Times said "Ireland was livin' it large and lovin' it".

Of course, no Celtic Tiger horror story is complete without a visit to Limerick. The people of the city will no doubt take exception to the Sunday Times claims that the city has the "worst gang warfare in Europe". The city is now so poor, according to the article, that corner shops sell single tea bags.

And then of course we come to the most essential ingredient of every feature about the Irish economic nightmare -- the Iceland joke.

If only I had a euro for each time I have seen the joke about the difference between Ireland and Iceland -- it's one letter and six months -- I could repay the national debt 10 times over.

The joke has appeared countless times in newspapers here and abroad since it first surfaced in November of last year, but it was still given a run- out in the Sunday Times last weekend.

While the Paddywhackery makes for grim reading, it has to be admitted that some of the observations of our foreign visitors are amusing.

While financial eggheads in New York and London fret about the Dow Jones and FTSE shares tables, visiting scribes refer to an Irish "Pyjama Index".

According to this scientific measurement, you can gauge our public welfare by the number of people who are dressed in their PJs while walking along the street during the day.

Amusing as this concept is, it seems to be quite flawed. There were many daytime pyjama wearers on the streets of Dublin and elsewhere at the peak of the boom.

We can of course take all the brickbats on the chin, but I do have to draw the line at adverse commentary from the Royal Bank of Scotland.

A scathing report from RBS stated that Ireland was in the worst financial position of all the countries in the eurozone.

When you are being dissed by RBS, an outfit that recently recorded a loss of £24bn -- the largest in British corporate history -- you know you're really banjaxed. My word, those bankers have a brass neck.

- Kim Bielenberg

I agree with that article. It is a bit rich for the Brits (in particular) to be getting in our face all of a sudden - considering the mess they created for themselves. A few months ago it was water off a ducks back but I must admit I am starting to get irritated with the whole international media take on Ireland with all it's jibes about "going back to the potatoe" and all the rest. Every day there are numerous articles around the world now about us because of the economy basically taking the piss but I reckon it has actually gone beyond that. I don't mind a joke and enjoy a laugh at our expense but it is starting to go overkill at this stage IMO.

Im not saying we don't deserve some of it after giving it loads for ten years about how great we were but the anti irishness in the UK particularly has found it's excuse to come to the surface in the last year. Seems to me they are deflecting from their own huge problems by commenting on ours intentionally to make them feel better.

My name is URL

The fact that the Independent ran this story is more frightful than the aforementioned whackery.

T-K-O

Their economy is in the ****ter and has been for some time.

Now if the government make the correct decisions we are still in good shape as a country. Most other countries are in debt and have been borrowing for years we have not.


The international bashing is nothing new the Germans and the French have constantly gave out about our corporation tax.

galwayrush

The truth hurts.:rolleyes:

ejmaztec

Perhaps the Indo should do an article about people using IN&M share certificates to wipe their arses because it's cheaper than buying Andrex.

kraggy

I didn't need that article to know that the Sunday Times is a sneering rag of ****e.

Manic Moran

Ah, welcome to life on our side of the aisle. American-bashing has been a popular sport for some years, it's good to be in august company.

NTM

Ruu_Old

Hey now, the Japanese wear pajamas to work and school, maybe we are setting the trend in Europe and not even knowing it!

adagio

Dudes,
Let us not forget that several countries in Europe (Germany/France/Spain/Tans..) have envied the multinational favoritism our low tax rates have engendered.
Therefore, we have a lot of political enemies in the long grass.... so don't be surprised to hear such comments.
There was Ireland unwittingly basking in the glory of the Multinational Sunset while traveling in the cavalcade and all of a sudden.... Bang...Bang... Ireland slouched upon Britain's shoulder... but who took the shot from the Grassy Knoll.. was it Germany..France.. or maybe it was a Brussels diplomat out on his own.:D

Fratton Fred

Having neighbours who are constantly criticising, analysing and mocking everything you do and taking great delight that the smug smile has been wiped from your face? Sucks don't it.

big b

adagio wrote: »

Dudes,
Let us not forget that several countries in Europe (Germany/France/Spain/Tans..) have envied the multinational favoritism our low tax rates have engendered.
Therefore, we have a lot of political enemies in the long grass.... so don't be surprised to hear such comments.
There was Ireland unwittingly basking in the glory of the Multinational Sunset while traveling in the cavalcade and all of a sudden.... Bang...Bang... Ireland slouched upon Britain's shoulder... but who took the shot from the Grassy Knoll.. was it Germany..France.. or maybe it was a Brussels diplomat out on his own.:D

It's Saturday night. You should really go out.

FruitLover

Who gives a monkey's?

Everyone's in the same boat now. I'm not going to lose any sleep over some rag's glee after previous sour grapes.

adagio

I know...but I can't... training tomorrow morning.
I have to express my 'frustration' somehow... don't judge me... ok...do... but be kind.:rolleyes:

ScumLord

We deserve it though. We where so smug about our economy and had no problem rubbing others noses in it.

Nodin

darkman2 wrote: »

Im not saying we don't deserve some of it after giving it loads for ten years about how great we were but the anti irishness in the UK particularly has found it's excuse to come to the surface in the last year. Seems to me they are deflecting from their own huge problems by commenting on ours intentionally to make them feel better.

Take the justified criticism like a man, and ignore the paddy bashing element amongst the Brits. Because fuck knows they aren't ones to be pointing any fingers.

K4t

ScumLord wrote: »

We deserve it though. We where so smug about our economy and had no problem rubbing others noses in it.

When you say 'we' do you mean the Taoiseach?

Quazzie

"The easiest way to forget your own flaws is to find them in someone else" - Quazzie 2002

darkman2

We should go to war. Surely we have built up massive military capability no one knows about with all the dosh.....

IT'S WAR!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3BO6GP9NMY

Local-womanizer

If the country goes completely tits up it wont bother me.If you have nothing to start with,what can they take?

Anyway,it wasent that long ago we were living in wee cottages eating spuds.Thats how far I am willing to go in all of this.

ScumLord

K4t wrote: »

When you say 'we' do you mean the Taoiseach?

Not just the government no. Irish people abroad have been as bad or worse than the stereotypical American tourist in the past few years. The entire country has had it's nose in the air over the last few years.

ejmaztec

Local-womanizer wrote: »

If the country goes completely tits up it wont bother me.If you have nothing to start with,what can they take?

Upside down tits?

K4t

ScumLord wrote: »

Not just the government no. Irish people abroad have been as bad or worse than the stereotypical American tourist in the past few years. The entire country has had it's nose in the air over the last few years.

Emphasis on the word in bold.

How exactly were Irish people abroad rubbing foreigners' noses in it. (or were we doing it by simply going abroad? :rolleyes:)

Local-womanizer

ejmaztec wrote: »

Upside down tits?

I havent thought this through.........

ejmaztec

Anyway, it's nice to know that Ireland's most successful export is begrudgery.:D

junkyard

Ireland should simply be turned into tax free/gambelling/brothal status, problem solved, everybody happy, country back on it's feet in no time.

pablomakaveli

The likes of France Germany and the UK like to criticise us because they don't like seeing smaller nations become very successful . It sort of dulls the shine on their nations glorious achievements.

Their countries are becoming less and less important on the global stage so bashing the smaller nations helps soothe their damaged egos.

darkman2

Charlie McCreevy FTW!


http://ec.europa.eu/ireland/press_office/news_of_the_day/mccreevy-carlow-speech_en.htm

"Everyone knows that at some vulnerable moments in our history our immediate neighbours have tried to take us on". But the Commissioner warned: "They should remember this: They have never managed to take us out. And we must make sure that they never will".

dresden8

ejmaztec wrote: »

Perhaps the Indo should do an article about people using IN&M share certificates to wipe their arses because it's cheaper than buying Andrex.

Class.

Tchaikovsky

Manic Moran wrote: »

Ah, welcome to life on our side of the aisle. American-bashing has been a popular sport for some years, it's good to be in august company.

NTM

But Ireland never invaded any countries! Only infested

Look on the bright side, at least we aren't French or German or *shudder* British

Tchaikovsky

K4t wrote: »

Emphasis on the word in bold.

How exactly were Irish people abroad rubbing foreigners' noses in it. (or were we doing it by simply going abroad? :rolleyes:)

The fact that we actually had the cheek to be born in the first place!

Zillah

Wait...the British are making fun of us? Haha. According to the UNDP, we're currently ranked #5 in the whole world on the Human Development Index. Britain is #21. So suck on it you underdeveloped, illiterate tools.

Now if Norway or Australia were insulting us then maybe they'd have a case, but they're both way too cool to do something so unclassy.

EDIT: Oh balls, the latest report is built on data from 2006. I'd imagine we've probably slipped down the ranking a bit. Still, I doubt we've fallen past #21 ^_^

Fratton Fred

pablomakaveli wrote: »

The likes of France Germany and the UK like to criticise us because they don't like seeing smaller nations become very successful . It sort of dulls the shine on their nations glorious achievements.

Their countries are becoming less and less important on the global stage so bashing the smaller nations helps soothe their damaged egos.

maybe it is because those countries have ireland a load me momen that they just wasted.
o

g5fd6ow0hseima

The slaters are dead right

Zillah

Fratton Fred wrote: »

maybe it is because those countries have ireland a load me momen that they just wasted.
o

What?

darkman2

Check out Britain's issues


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/5101950/Britain-should-not-fear-asking-for-IMF-cash.html




IMF? No shame lads!

ejmaztec

Zillah wrote: »

What?

It's all Greek to me..................

Latchy

darkman2 wrote: »

Im not saying we don't deserve some of it after giving it loads for ten years about how great we were but the anti irishness in the UK particularly has found it's excuse to come to the surface in the last year. Seems to me they are deflecting from their own huge problems by commenting on ours intentionally to make them feel better.

Well they might be and each to their own as they say . But your highlighted comment which is an over-exaggeration if ever I saw one , is old hat .The days of blaming the Brits for everything that goes wrong in Ireland are over ,at least as far as the Celtic tiger is concerened . That is an Irish phenomenon which requires an Irish solution to the fall out of it's deminese .

cocoa

wait just a second...

Someone wrote some piece of crap, without any actually substance of its own, based entirely upon other articles, in an attempt to criticise them, but failed entirely to find anything actually wrong or untrue about them, and they got paid?

The mind boggles... Ireland is in bad economic shape like everywhere else, if the international media state this fact then that's their business, it doesn't count as rubbing our noses in it...

OK-Cancel-Apply

I saw that article today - it was in the entertainment supplement, not the main paper. I only buy the indo for the TV guide.

OPENROAD

darkman2 wrote: »

. Seems to me they are deflecting from their own huge problems by commenting on ours intentionally to make them feel better.

Not sure about that, we really are in the **** big time, and things could get a lot worse after next Wednesday

jester77

pablomakaveli wrote: »

The likes of France Germany and the UK like to criticise us because they don't like seeing smaller nations become very successful . It sort of dulls the shine on their nations glorious achievements.

Their countries are becoming less and less important on the global stage so bashing the smaller nations helps soothe their damaged egos.

hmm, or maybe it's because they gave us so much money and we squandered it. A bit like parents giving their kid money to go to college and get an education only for the kid to piss it away every night getting wasted.

Latchy

Originally Posted by pablomakaveli
The likes of France Germany and the UK like to criticise us because they don't like seeing smaller nations become very successful . It sort of dulls the shine on their nations glorious achievements.

Their countries are becoming less and less important on the global stage so bashing the smaller nations helps soothe their damaged egos

Ahhh , if only . No what it really shows is that Ireland was always the insecure little island on the fringes that it always was , a former british colony with an inferiroity complex . Hard to take and ya , it sucks .

neil_hosey

Latchy wrote: »

Ahhh , if only . No what it really shows is that Ireland was always the insecure little island on the fringes that it always was , a former british colony with an inferiroity complex . Hard to take and ya , it sucks .

former british colony with an inferiority complex? :rolleyes:

the brits will say anything to make themselves feel better.... articles and posts like this prove who REALLY has the inferiority complex.

Latchy

neil_hosey wrote: »

former british colony with an inferiority complex? :rolleyes:

the brits will say anything to make themselves feel better.... articles and posts like this prove who REALLY has the inferiority complex.

Yes the brits are well known for pushing the blame onto other nations , it's known the differnce that counts .

It's Op's reference that shows were the real inferiority is and he obiously doesn't know the difference .

Like blame the end of celtic tiger on the Brits ?

GTFA :rolleyes:

Whosbetter?

As an proud Irish patriot, I laugh at the way things have gone.

I'm not proud of the stupid fools that voted FF over the years though.

WHAT WERE YE THINKING???

Still, nothin new.

I rem when a good load of fools sang 'Arise & follow Charlie'.

Even, at age 10 I could see what was going on.:rolleyes:

Ye get what ye deserve FOOLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ejmaztec

The government probably slipped the press a few quid to compile the article in an effort to take the heat off themselves. We should take a step back to remind ourselves who the real bastards are.

darkman2

Latchy wrote: »

Yes the brits are well known for pushing the blame onto other nations , it's known the differnce that counts .

It's Op's reference that shows were the real inferiority is and he obiously doesn't know the difference .

Like blame the end of celtic tiger on the Brits ?

GTFA :rolleyes:

Yeah, Anyway so listen up. The Brits have no say here so yeah it is Fianna Fail's fault. BUT the Brits are havin a go at us - and they really should not considering the amount of sh*t we could dig up on them and their not so unimportant "let's go to the IMF! No shame" economic circumstance. Not really ones to be talking are they?

neil_hosey

Latchy wrote: »

Yes the brits are well known for pushing the blame onto other nations , it's known the differnce that counts .

It's Op's reference that shows were the real inferiority is and he obiously doesn't know the difference .

Like blame the end of celtic tiger on the Brits ?

GTFA :rolleyes:

yes they are .. the brits love to blame their problems on other people, you obviously being a brit i would hope that you understand that.

Hmm, the OP's reference?? he came accross an article i assume on a british paper and posted it here.. lol, its done on pretty much a daily basis, in this case the article slates Ireland when britain can hardly talk themselves... no one blamed the end of the Celtic Tiger on the Brits..

neil_hosey

Whosbetter? wrote: »

As an proud Irish patriot, I laugh at the way things have gone.

I'm not proud of the stupid fools that voted FF over the years though.

WHAT WERE YE THINKING???

Still, nothin new.

I rem when a good load of fools sang 'Arise & follow Charlie'.

Even, at age 10 I could see what was going on.:rolleyes:

Ye get what ye deserve FOOLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I never voted Fianna Fail, i voted Sinn Fein since i could vote, mainly because they were the only party willing to do anything pro-active in the area (a **** area) where i grew up. BUT... 5 years ago here, and Id say to this day, id still get slated for voting for Sinn Fein.

Latchy

neil_hosey wrote: »

yes they are .. the brits love to blame their problems on other people, you obviously being a brit i would hope that you understand that.

Sorry to bring you into reality but the history will show you that half the world blames the other half for all it's ills . Implying that I am a brit ( I am not ) implies that people cant have an objective opinion about Ireland and Irish affairs ,so by same logiic you being Irish ( as I am to ) might think like that .

Whosbetter?

neil_hosey wrote: »

I never voted Fianna Fail, i voted Sinn Fein since i could vote, mainly because they were the only party willing to do anything pro-active in the area (a **** area) where i grew up. BUT... 5 years ago here, and Id say to this day, id still get slated for voting for Sinn Fein.

Well,that's the way it goes.
SF voters achieve nothing & then wonder why things don't go their way.

That's why they're always looked upon as underachieving complainers.:rolleyes: