The greatest Irish person...

Clonmel1000

Zebra3 wrote: »

No Irish politician could have taken the country into WWII so I wouldn't give Don Dev any credit for that.

The country was broke, people still seething over the partition/continued occupation of their country and had no reason to join Britain in its laughable "war against fascism" while it still subjegated hundreds of millions around the world.

Well whatever their reason thank god someone stood up to Hitler. Recently visited the concentration camps in Europe a very sobering experienc. Anyway isn't Dev America?

casscass4444

Joey Dunlop,cream of the crop in his sport up until the end and for all the charity work he did without ever advertising it.
If a modern day celebrity did that you would never hear the end of it.joey was the polar opposite.quiet as a mouse

robman60

me_right_one wrote: »

Eamon DeValera.

Immigrant to this country, son of a single mother, foreign Hispanic surname, yet he took lives and was fully prepared to sacrifice his own for his adapted country. Little did he know he would one end up leading it.

Also a mathematical genius, avid rugby player, and a science enthusiast. Pure hero.

He adapted the country alright, just unfortunate that he deliberately adapted it in the direction of poverty. He wanted Irish people to remain poor and overly dependent on agriculture.

I do admire some of the things he did such as his passion for our language and his overall desire to maintain a distinct Irish culture, but I think he lacked foresight in leadership.

TK Whitaker is who I would choose as the greatest Irish person. A completely gifted individual who crucially lacked any desire for self-promotion and ostentation. Dragged us from agrarian poverty to prosperity, and was crucial in North-South relations before the Troubles started. Through no fault of his people resorted to violence which he detested and much of what he had written in the 60s was a premonition of the Good Friday Agreement some 30 years later. Unfailingly humble, articulate, and wise, with a real sense of duty to public service. This epitomises greatness to me.

Cartouche

Patser wrote: »

Arthur Wellesley

Hard to argue with that. One of the greatest military generals in history

Elemonator

In the science department, people like Boyle, Walton, Hamilton and Martin.

And although it was meant as a joke earlier in the thread (love it really), elsewhere its not cool to glorify Paddy Losty and alcoholism.

maninasia

Daniel O Connell. One of if THE creator of mass civil protest. Helped raise the downtrodden masses and breakdown the penal laws during Ireland's darkest days.

Lots of good people mentioned but an honorable mention to Dr Noel Brown who reformed the Irish health service in the 1940's, practically eradicating TB, changing the culture within the profession, dragging the mental health institutions into the 20th century, equipping hospitals with modern equipment around the country, and taking on the Catholic church by trying to provide maternity services for all - ultimately failing and forced to resign, but having dragged Irelands backwards service into the modern age.

learn_more

Bull McCabe

osarusan

Roddy Collins.

Not that one

Ability to capture and portray ireland
Rural Patrick Kavanagh
Urban Roddy Doyle

rafatoni

Uncel Dinny. Has to be.

Rented Mule

Pat Mustard wrote: »

Michael Flatley.

Soft day, thank gawd

Born and raised on the Southside of Chicago.

Graduate of Brother Rice High School - Go Crusaders!

Summer wind

Finbar Furey.

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

wotzgoingon

I don't have one, but all the "volunteers" who gave their life for Ireland's freedom.

MonkieSocks

Paddy the Irishman,

Much more popular than Paddy the Scotsman or Paddy the Englishman.
( Not Sure if there was ever a Paddy Welshman )

maryishere

wotzgoingon wrote: »

I don't have one, but all the "volunteers" who gave their life for Ireland's freedom.

I agree, the 100,000 brave Irish people who volunteered to fight the Axis powers in WW2 helped save Europe from Nazism and ensured Europes freedom. Hitler invaded neutral countries such as Denmark and Norway, so these volunteers helped ensure the freedom of these islands.

me_right_one

A Little Pony wrote: »

Wasn't Michael Collins?

No. He was a member of the legitimate, native, army of the country who were fighting the oppressors.

Duckworth_Luas

I vote for maryishere.

wotzgoingon

maryishere wrote: »

I agree, the 100,000 brave Irish people who volunteered to fight the Axis powers in WW2 helped save Europe from Nazism and ensured Europes freedom. Hitler invaded neutral countries such as Denmark and Norway, so these volunteers helped ensure the freedom of these islands.

They were good too. My grandfathers brother lied about his age and fought there and died but I was taking about different volunteers who gave their life for Ireland's freedom.

maryishere

me_right_one wrote: »

No. He (Collins) was a member of the legitimate, native, army of the country who were fighting the oppressors.

Collins was spared by the British after being captured in 1916, and released after a very short detention. As someone else said, he was not one bit grateful for the astonishing mercy he was shown. He showed no such mercy when unarmed men fell into his hands in all too many cases. Collins took part in the Easter Rising. He was imprisoned in Frongoch in Great Britain and released after a few weeks. This leniency was astonishing. As it turned out it was very short-sighted. Legally he could have been executed. Look at what happened in Germany, Russia and Austria-Hungary when people rebelled against their governments at this time? Some were rebelling for nationalistic reasons. They were executed in large numbers. The United Kingdom distinguished itself by its exceptional mercy. A fact that was never acknowledge much less repaid by the Irish republicans.

As is already documented, Collins met Sir James Craig in London in a government office. Collins made peace with the United Kingdom. The UK gave him weapons for the new Irish Army. How did Collins repay this trust? He handed some of these weapons to IRA units and these southern IRA units sent guns north. This inflamed the sectarian violence in Northern Ireland. Collins was breaking his vow to be at peace with the UK. His bad faith was reprehensible. He poured fuel on the flames in Northern Ireland.
So all in all, I do not think Collins was the greatest Irish person ever, despite all the propoganda that has been generated in this Republic.
Picking the greatest Irish person from the Sporting, Scientific or Entertainment worlds would be less controversal.

Packie Bonner

Realt Dearg Sec

Had the potential to be a really cool thread but the usual...types...had to ruin it. Good luck.

Junkyard Tom

maryishere wrote: »

the usual hate-posting

As per usual Maryishere has copied-and-pasted the above hate-post from some randon internet troll's blog.


Michael Collins – why I despise him.

https://gcalers.wordpress.com/2010/11/

Ken.

I'm going to start a poll on this. Gonna start it out with 2 or 3 options and then add to it. If I remember correctly the maximum is about 25 so gonna have to narrow it down. No sports people will be included as we done that already.
So far gonna have
W.B. Yeats
Shackelton,
Charles Stewart Parnell
Tom Crean
Arthur Guinness
Roger Casement
Michael Collins
TK Whittaker
James Joyce
Eamon DeValera
Bob Geldof
William C. Campbell

More can be added so don't vote if your guy/girl isn't on the list yet.

uch

Yer only Coddin me

uch

The greatest Irish person was the one who decided you could put currents and Raisins in bread and call it Cake, my feckin heroes, I like Cake

JupiterKid

Not one woman listed on that poll. Not a single one!:(

bodhrandude

Dr Noel Browne
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No%C3%ABl_Browne

Ken.

JupiterKid wrote: »

Not one woman listed on that poll. Not a single one!:(

I've told that guy to take the gun away from your head so you can name as many as you want. Fire away and I'll add them to the list.