Sinead O'Connor - "I wish the Brits had never left Ireland"

dark crystal

In a magazine article, Sinead O'Connor has said she wishes the the British had never left Ireland, because it strengthened the grip the Catholic Church had over the country:

http://www.digitalspy.ie/music/news/a452853/sinead-oconnor-i-wish-the-brits-had-never-left-ireland.html

"I actually wish that the Brits had never left. When they left, the church had a ball - that would never have happened if England had stayed, but we couldn't have you stay because you were killing us."

She added: "But I wish you'd come back or get me out. It's still a parochial country"

Looking at certain threads in AH on any given day, there are still many issues facing Ireland - economic crises, political cronyism, problems with the judiciary and sentencing, the question of abortion and the issue of secular education being just a few of them, but I honestly think Ireland has come a long way since independence and we aren't the only country with such issues, but we, at least, are trying to overcome most of these.

In 2011, Ireland were ranked seventh in the world in the human development index - many places above the UK (ranked 23rd) and ninth in the world in the Education index (UK came in 31st place). Also, the Catholic church are nowhere near as powerful as they one were, thankfully.

Is Sinead being overly bitter here, or does she have a point? Yes, there are still improvements to be made in this country, but I honestly don't feel we're still as bad as she's making out in this article!



*I do, however, agree with her point about Bono, the idiot.

dodderangler

I wish she'd fcuk off

lukesmom

Because she is such an idiot I wouldn't dare take any of her stupid statements seriously

smash

She's a fúcking moron, why would anyone listen to her?

Madam_X

Shur in the 90s she was all ra-head. And as for anti church... wasn't she a priest for some obscure but nonetheless catholic sect?

Hard to take anyone that fickle seriously.

ITS_A_BADGER

shes outta of her mind, did anyone see her on the saturday night show a few weeks ago? She mentally disturbed

branie

Remember when she tore up a picture of the Pope on Saturday Night Live?

Duggy747

More verbal scutter from the slaphead.

Might as well just be saying "LOOK AT MEEEEE!!! PAY ATTENTION TO ME!!!!" since that's all it ever is whenever she's mentioned.

dark crystal

branie wrote: »

Remember when she tore up a picture of the Pope on Saturday Night Live?

Yeah, that pretty much ruined her career in America if I recall correctly.

Grayson

Ireland's come a long way since 1980.Up to that point, nothing had changed. 90% of of the republic had the same attitude then as they did in 1920. And part of the reason nothing changed was the church.

Bad Santa

To be as nice as she is deserving of: I don't think Sinead O'Connor knows what she bloody well thinks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZCe8Fw8vyM

DrumSteve

She has a point.

But sometimes I think she just likes trolling people.

Lux23

I would agree with her too, I think Irish people need someone to tell them what to think. The British, Catholic Church and now IMF/EU.

Dravokivich

Its because they wouldn't let her become a priest.

opinion guy

Honestly I just think she will say anything for attention. Kind of like Michael O Leary....without the planes

Madam_X

Lux23 wrote: »

I would agree with her too, I think Irish people need someone to tell them what to think. The British, Catholic Church and now IMF/EU.

Gotta love the "Everyone else but not me" brigade.

Robbo

I can't forgive her for shooting Darren in Love/Hate.

Duggy747

I liked her as Ripley in Alien 3, though

johnwest288

not another SOC thread :mad:

Anyone

It must be a slow news day if Sister Bernadette is been given press time.

SEPT 23 1989

The nice voiced crazy woman has a point

Lollipops23

Why is she let speak to the press? She's known to have severe mental health issues, she had to pull the plug on her last tour due to her mental state.

I know journalists aren't well known for the morals, but come on.

strobe

Lux23 wrote: »

I would agree with her too, I think Irish people need someone to tell them what to think. The British, Catholic Church and now IMF/EU.

Are you Irish? Include yourself in the above do you?

irishconvert

They never did leave Sinead, take a walk down Henry or Grafton street and see how many Irish owned businesses you can spot. I'd say 90% of them are British chain stores.

ITS_A_BADGER

Lollipops23 wrote: »

Why is she let speak to the press? She's known to have severe mental health issues, she had to pull the plug on her last tour due to her mental state.

I know journalists aren't well known for the morals, but come on.

Someone famous + mental disorder = Journalist goldmine

They have no morals

mojesius

Women rule the land of Tir na nOg

Leftist

dark crystal wrote: »

but I honestly think Ireland has come a long way since independence

We've come a long way since 1921.

wtf. paddywack backslap at it's most ridiculous.

mickgotsick

The church in Ireland secretly had lots of potatoes during the famine, and they hid the potatoes in pillows and sold them abroad in potato fairs. And the Pope closed down a lot of the factories that were makin' the potatoes and turned them into prisons for children.

Dermighty

Who even cares what that crazy bitch is saying anyway!

Lollipops23

ITS_A_BADGER wrote: »

Someone famous + mental disorder = Journalist goldmine

They have no morals

I know, I guess I still hold out hope for humanity sometimes (silly me )

I don't take anything she says seriously to be honest, just as I wouldn't take stuff Mad Mary on O'Connell St said seriously...

Lollipops23

Dermighty wrote: »

Who even cares what that crazy bitch is saying anyway!

Sorry, but stuff like that is why mental health problems are so stigmatised in Ireland. She's not well, she's been on a cocktail of treatment for years and has been quite vocal about her problems before.

"Crazy bitch" is so unsympathetic.

dark crystal

Leftist wrote: »

We've come a long way since 1921.

wtf. paddywack backslap at it's most ridiculous.

Oh give over ffs.

lufties

Madam_X wrote: »

Shur in the 90s she was all ra-head. And as for anti church... wasn't she a priest for some obscure but nonetheless catholic sect?

Hard to take anyone that fickle seriously.

+1000 she seems extremely impulsive, and comes
Out with any auld fad that enters her head, saw her on the late late recently, it was good entertainment for most people, but I just cringe everytime I see her being interviewed..she should just get out of the limelight like she said was.

MaxSteele

Baldy conscience should just piss off to some remote island in the Phillipines and set up a self sustaining society like Tilda Swinton in the Beach.

Twat.

davet82

she should have been sectioned years ago

4zn76tysfajdxp

I'm sympathetic towards her for her mental health issues, but she seriously needs to stop talking to the press.

lufties

opinion guy wrote: »

Honestly I just think she will say anything for attention. Kind of like Michael O Leary....without the planes

Totally agree, she craves attention..and being a so-called media darling.

davet82

Russell Clean Clipboard wrote: »

I'm sympathetic towards her for her mental health issues, but she seriously needs to stop talking to the press.

the press need to stop listening or people to stop reading, idk why she gets so much attention maybe its just car crash stuff (you dont want to look but you cant help it)

Leftist

dark crystal wrote: »

Oh give over ffs.

that's what you said.

'ah shure we're grand'

Who hasn't come a long way since the 1920s?

4zn76tysfajdxp

Leftist wrote: »

Who hasn't come a long way since the 1920s?

North Koreans.

Da Shins Kelly

Lovely voice, but I wish she wouldn't speak.

looksee

She is a 'celebrity'. She is (was) good looking and she can sing. Why does this give her opinions any weight or value?

Sir Gallagher

Its actually not that crazy or insane, what she has said. Maybe a bit flippant if anything. She's right in saying that the church woupdnt have had such a stranglehold on the country if the Brits were still around. Each country has to learn on its own though.

Vojera

Every time I hear her latest statement I think "That woman really needs a minder or something". Would have saved her sexual preferences being splashed all over the place for one.

As for what she actually said, I agree that the Church has had too tight a grip for too long, but that's gradually decreasing. Compare our parents and grandparents to nowadays. Another two or three generations and people won't believe what used to go on here.

bluecode

She may be a bit off the wall but this time she actually makes sense, sort of.

Our problem was that the Brits marched out and left us to it. Cut us off just like that. Which after all, is what we wanted. But in common with many countries around the world. We just weren't ready for independance. If we'd had a few years of Home rule just like the original plan. There'd have been a chance of for people to get used to ruling ourselves with the safety net of money from London. Eventually we'd have become independant in our own time. Instead the money from London disappeared overnight and we were left to get on with it.

Effectively the Brits were replaced by an unholy alliance of the church and conservative crooked/incompetent former gunmen turned politicians who ran the country for their own benefit. The only thing that's changed is that the church is out of favour.

Not only that we had a ridiculously antagonistic relationship with Britain when we would have been better off being more like Australia, New Zealand or Canada.

It's no secret, this country is messed up in so many ways. But there's no point in looking back. We can only try to improve things.

flogging a dead horse

Sadly this woman is reminiscing of ol'Eire of yester-year. The Ireland of McQuaid, the catholics, the priests, the nuns and established upper echelons lay of Ireland 1940-2000. An Ireland of poverty, emmigration,Northern Ireland as an apartheid state, a civil war divide, a country with it's hatred, disdain and paronia towards Soviet-Bolshevism, in a country oft compared to a Soviet country, by the Daily Mail, Daily Express and Richard Nixon, as ruled by De Velera.

Secular-Pluralist Ireland is doing quite well, minus the economic activities, of Anglo, Quinns, all that property malarkey.
Oh and not to forget Morriartey and a certain Michael Lowry.

All is well and the past is indeed another country.

Cienciano

branie wrote: »

Remember when she tore up a picture of the Pope on Saturday Night Live?

dark crystal wrote: »

Yeah, that pretty much ruined her career in America if I recall correctly.

Fair play to her, she was dead right.

Buzz84

Yeah it would of been great having the Blackwatch and The Parachute Regiment patrolling our streets. She's a head banger.

dark crystal

Leftist wrote: »

that's what you said.

'ah shure we're grand'

No I didn't.

Who hasn't come a long way since the 1920s?

Oh I don't know..... Eritrea, Mali, Swaziland, Yemen, Zimbabwe, El Salvador, Somalia are all ranked as some of the worst places to live on earth in ranks of peace, economy, health, education, gender equality and human rights, so I'd say there's a fair chance the people living in those countries don't feel they've come a long way, but don't let that get in the way of you trying to find offensive subtext in a completely innocuous post.

Happyman42

sigh...how much is the new album Sinead? :rolleyes:









edit, I don't know if she has a new album or not but I'll wager a 20 euros (thats 16.20 sterling Sinead) that she has.

donvito99

The church in Ireland secretly had lots of potatoes during the famine, and they hid the potatoes in pillows and sold them abroad in potato fairs. And the Pope closed down a lot of the factories that were makin' the potatoes and turned them into prisons for children.

Niamh Connolly/Sinéad O'Connor