Do you love Ireland?

NinetyTwoTeam

I actually don't mind the weather, and the people are pretty great, but the economic disparity here is IMO, bigger than we are led to believe, and has been growing rapidly ever since the recession. Everything getting more expensive is inevitable but it has really ramped up the last few years and wages for most jobs are nowhere near keeping up, and for many of us there still isn't a job. I am also sick of how so much of the country revolves around drink, and the government are so obviously corrupt and inept it's disgusting.
But you can hate the problems your country has and still love it. It's basically one big dysfunctional alcoholic family.

davepatr07

As someone has already mentioned, the grass isn't always greener on the other side of the world. 
Having lived abroad in certain first world countries I find it seems to be common for a country's citizens/residents to criticize its problems and only when you live and work in the country do you really get a feel for the place. I guess people give out because they know it can be better to live and with enough will power can make a change. You can talk all you want till the cows come home but nothing will be done until there is action.

 Every country has it's pros and cons even NZ where I've recently spent the past decade. Similar in size to Ireland, behind the glorious tourist images of the country and the high rankings of quality of life, New Zealand has serious issues, high cost of living, food is ridiculously expensive as is clothes electronics, poor transport infrastructure and the cost of travel. Even criminals get off lightly the justice system is poor.

 True Ireland cost of living is high depending on where you live but at least you have Lidl and Aldi, Ryanair and other competition. NZ doesn't do competition very well, rugby yes, competition no.
I'll still take Ireland anyday, you appreciate the place more once you spend time abroad it opens your eyes.

 [font=Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]"In some respects, our country needs to get its head out the sand. New Zealand has growing issues with child poverty, the environment, immigration, and the cost of living. We need to push for accountability."[/font]
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff-nation/94836744/seven-steps-to-save-new-zealand-by-2020

ChikiChiki

Autochange wrote: »

Once you liver in a different western country you come to realise what a corrupt little backwater it is. Its the regular joe soaps who make ireland a good place. Everything else is below par

Since I moved abroad, i have made it a habit of reading the news and comparing everything against how things are done at home. From politics, public transport, healthcare, housing etc. For a first world country Ireland fares pretty badly falling behind on almost everything.

And I 110% agree with the poster that said economic disparity is growing since the recession.

irishman86

One_Of_Shanks wrote: »

Aye. Or you could save yourself the few bob and realise that the point of the thread was a question.
So you can say yes or no?
So I said no.

I thought that was fair enough.

You will find people dont want your honest answer though
Some want the denial answer where you say we are the greatest place in the world and you wouldnt live anywhere else

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

oceonsheist wrote: »

Yes some come to mind and i have seen first hand the big differences. I will fetch the statistics tomorrow before posting them.
Anyway Ireland has one of the highest if not THE highest heroin usage rates in europe. It has a pretty serious drug use problem in comparison to other countries worldwide.

The last figures I see (2014) put Ireland 64th in the world, and 14th in Europe, for heroin usage per capita.

I love Ireland. I was on holiday down in Bantry and West Cork earlier in the week, meeting lots of people who had travelled thousands of miles to see, and were marvelled by, our Atlantic coastline. My brother and I were invited for a barbecue in the Americans' holiday house next to our holiday rental. It was mesmerising to be sitting on their lawn at sunset, enjoying our drinks right beside the sea, and looking at the sun going down behind the darkening mountains and the lush green, semi-tropical vegetation of the Beara peninsula, hearing nothing but the lapping tide.

Then again, we were fairly potted by then. But it did strike me that we are incredibly lucky to live on such a beautiful, unspoiled little island in the North Atlantic, which reports one of the highest rates of personal happiness in the world.

We talk ourselves down a lot, sometimes deservedly so, but this is a genuinely beautiful little island and we should acknowledge how lucky we are to have been born in such a beautiful and (mostly) happy place.

Stonedpilot

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

I love the physical country but not the nation we are but I guess that's the fault of successive governments. As a nation we pander to anyone and everyone except our own. It appears to me everyone else is looked after over and above the people who built this country and who have always lived here. It sickens me the way the ordinary hard working people are shít on from a high on a constant basis.

+1.

Ireland is lovely but run run by crooks and freemasons. Couldnt care less about the ordinary Joe on the Street.

The Dail has a bar. Shows the contempt they have for us getting pissed in the Fail and making Joes Soap pay for it.

Cordell

I do, and I'm not even Irish.

noble00

I love Ireland so grateful every day that I live here compared to other countries the stories I hear that are not highlighted in the media makes me love it even more

One_Of_Shanks

irishman86 wrote: »

You will find people dont want your honest answer though
Some want the denial answer where you say we are the greatest place in the world and you wouldnt live anywhere else

Haha yeah you're quite right. I have reconsidered and I feckin love the place.

archer22

A poster further up stated "highest rates of personal happiness in the world".....hmm I don't know, I have lost count of the numbers of funerals I have attended of people who have committed suicide.

archer22

archer22 wrote: »

A poster further up stated "highest rates of personal happiness in the world".....hmm I don't know, I have lost count of the numbers of funerals I have attended of people who have committed suicide.

The latest Eurostat results place our suicide rate as being equal to the EU average; lower than the Scandinavian members and Finland, as well as France, Germany, and Belgium; and equal to the Netherlands.

Yet we are the 6th happiest country in the EU, and 15th happiest in the entire world. Happier even than the Germans, the French and the British. We're also a very wealthy country by international standards.

Not bad for a country whose independence was forecast as doomed to fail.

And we can do better, but we're a young country, and are off to a pretty exceptional start.

archer22

A Tyrant Named Miltiades! wrote: »

The latest Eurostat results place our suicide rate as being equal to the EU average; lower than the Scandinavian members and Finland, as well as France, Germany, and Belgium; and equal to the Netherlands.

Yet we are the 6th happiest country in the EU, and 15th happiest in the entire world. Happier even than the Germans, the French and the British. We're also a very wealthy country by international standards.

Not bad for a country whose independence was forecast as doomed to fail.

And we can do better, but we're a young country, and are off to a pretty exceptional start.

I don't think you can measure happiness to be honest.

And anyhow as you can see people in Ireland are expected to praise the place regardless otherwise they are offered free tickets to leave...or the the other one accusing critics of anything Irish of being "self loathing" :rolleyes:

Surveys of anything in Ireland end up like polls to determine the populations average height.
Majority claim to be over six feet tall

Emperor Qianlong

Ireland is a country run by, and for, public servents and venal politicians
Everyone else pays for it
We will have periodic booms followed by inevitable busts. A chance for our kids to follow the well worn path of emmigration

Still, sur arent we great craic !

oceonsheist

One_Of_Shanks wrote: »

Aye. Or you could save yourself the few bob and realise that the point of the thread was a question.
So you can say yes or no?
So I said no.

I thought that was fair enough.

The guy who said about organising a collection of 100 euro was probably just another grumpy disgruntled fecker who didn't even read or want to read what you said.

You gave an honest opinion and he basically called you poor and told you to *** off out of the country.

One_Of_Shanks

oceonsheist wrote: »

The guy who said about organising a collection of 100 euro was probably just another grumpy disgruntled fecker who didn't even read or want to read what you said.

You gave an honest opinion and he basically called you poor and told you to *** off out of the country.

Cheers pal.

Yeah to be honest I thought his reply was a bit uncalled for too but c'est la vie.

To clarify I didn't mean any offence, was just being honest. And like I said my family like living here so I can't exactly force them to move against their wishes and there are worse places to be, I'm in no doubt about that.

Thanks for your comment, much appreciated

Elmer Blooker

The Irish couldn't organise a pi55 up in a brewery which is ironic as the most famous brewery in the world is here.
This is how its done, the Russians can plan and construct a 137 km railway in less than three years! We cant even plan let alone build one a few kms to the airport! (I mentioned the Lisbon underground in a post yesterday)
The only Irish success story I can think of is the money making racket of getting more and more cars on the roads.
https://www.rt.com/business/399308-russia-railway-bypassing-ukraine/

odyssey06

Elmer Blooker wrote: »

The Irish couldn't organise a pi55 up in a brewery which is ironic as the most famous brewery in the world is here.
This is how its done, the Russians can plan and construct a 137 km railway in less than three years! We cant even plan let alone build one a few kms to the airport! (I mentioned the Lisbon underground in a post yesterday)

It's very easy to build railways when you don't give a damn about your own citizens who are in the way... I'd rather live in a country where the rights of the ordinary person count for something.
But if you want to achieve great building projects, dictatorships and autocracies and monarchies have a better track record.

Yamanoto

Elmer Blooker wrote: »

The Irish couldn't organise a pi55 up in a brewery which is ironic as the most famous brewery in the world is here.
This is how its done, the Russians can plan and construct a 137 km railway in less than three years! We cant even plan let alone build one a few kms to the airport! (I mentioned the Lisbon underground in a post yesterday)
The only Irish success story I can think of is the money making racket of getting more and more cars on the roads.
https://www.rt.com/business/399308-russia-railway-bypassing-ukraine/

Made all the more baffling when you look at the number of highly-skilled Irish professionals who were involved in a project as complex, innovative and brilliantly engineered as London's Crossrail.

A Little Pony

One_Of_Shanks wrote: »

I don't love Ireland.  I actively dislike the place, have done all my life.

My parents, Mother in particular, and wife and all her family are very proud to be Irish but I would leave in a flash if I could.

Each to their own but if the question is do you love Ireland then my answer is no.

You aren't alone in that many hundreds of thousands think likewise.

Elmer Blooker

odyssey06 wrote: »

It's very easy to build railways when you don't give a damn about your own citizens who are in the way... I'd rather live in a country where the rights of the ordinary person count for something.
But if you want to achieve great building projects, dictatorships and autocracies and monarchies have a better track record.

I wonder if any "ordinary person" in this country ever successfully prevented a motorway outside their front door or a wind farm where the noise keeps them awake all night.
I presume the planning process in Russia didn't involve an army of consultants who consulted even more consultants before the plans are eventually thrown in the bin!

Made all the more baffling when you look at the number of highly-skilled Irish professionals who were involved in a project as complex, innovative and brilliantly engineered as London's Crossrail.

Indeed. There isn't any work of that kind in this country, thats why they're in London.

BalcombeSt4

Love Ireland? I'm not in love with it or anything, it's a small piece of the Earth, I like being alive on planet Earth alright.
There's always been a small minority of the population who I've admired, but as for love Ireland, just for being born here then no.
I can't understand that irrational nationalistic mentality from any country. I can understand people taking pride in something their country might have done to help humanity, but I have more in common with people from England & China who view the world the same way I do than a greaseball Irish capitalist.

Kivaro

The poster said this: "Each to their own but if the question is do you love Ireland then my answer is no."

And then you say:

blackcard wrote: »

It would cost less than €100 to leave this country. Maybe we could start a collection.

What a dickhead of a response.

Dirty Dingus McGee

oceonsheist wrote: »

The guy who said about organising a collection of 100 euro was probably just another grumpy disgruntled fecker who didn't even read or want to read what you said.

You gave an honest opinion and he basically called you poor and told you to *** off out of the country.

Maybe he should have expanded on his answer and provided reasons why he doesn't like the place.

To be honest it wasn't that great an answer precisely because he didn't do that, and if Ireland is so awful why the **** would you bother living here unless you actually had to.

He said he disliked the country all his life yet he's still here, which is quite odd in fairness as if you dislike a place all you life you could easily leave at some stage and he hasn't.

archer22

Dirty Dingus McGee wrote: »

Maybe he should have expanded on his answer and provided reasons why he doesn't like the place.

To be honest it wasn't that great an answer precisely because he didn't do that, and if Ireland is so awful why the **** would you bother living here unless you actually had to.

He said he disliked the country all his life yet he's still here, which is quite odd in fairness as if you dislike a place all you life you could easily leave at some stage and he hasn't.

In fairness there could be lots of reasons why he couldn't go...elderly or ill parents to care for.Property and commitments here..maybe a wife and five or six kids, who knows.
There is a strange perception in Ireland that everybody can just jump on a plane and feck off!!.

Dirty Dingus McGee

archer22 wrote: »

In fairness there could be lots of reasons why he couldn't go...elderly or ill parents to care for.Property and commitments here..maybe a wife and five or six kids, who knows.
There is a strange perception in Ireland that everybody can just jump on a plane and feck off!!.

He said ALL HIS LIFE?

So that mean when he was 14 or 15 he would have hated the country and wanted to leave.

Unless he's had extremely bad luck to have personal circumstances that were out of his control from that age meaning he has to stay here (and hopefully that isn't the case) the he could have found a way to leave if this country is so bad to live in.

odyssey06

Dirty Dingus McGee wrote: »

So he wouldn't have been tied down by anything at that stage unless he had personal circumstances out his control that were one in a million.i.e being the only possible person that could be a carer for a relative that would have had very long term condition (and hopefully that wasn't the case).

Chances are, if you are that 1 in a million, it's not really Ireland that's the problem, it's the situation?
It's not the 1920s... Irish people have probably the best opportunities of any people in the world - to go elsewhere.
We have free movement to Britain and the EU.
We have English as a first language, which counts in favour if emigrating to such favoured nations as Australia.

Reallly if this place was as bad as some people make out, and the other places so appealing... you would wonder why there's anyone left here at all.

Samaris

I like some things about the country, I don't like other things. Overall, it's a pretty decent place to live.

I like that
- It is one of the most peaceful places in the world to live in.
- That everyone can get an education and be encouraged to do so.
- That famine is not something to worry about, nor are food shortages.
- That we have pretty much no dangerous animals, nor particularly awful endemic diseases.
- That if disease does break out, an epidemic is relatively unlikely.
- That we still have vast areas of unspoilt lands, admittedly mostly in the far west and around the edges
- That we have a relatively stable, settled climate (at least for now), without extremes of heat and cold that kill people.
- That our closest dominating power is Europe rather than Russia, America, China or any other monolithic nation. Europe has its issues, sure, but right now, they're not the worst issues to be dealing with compared to some other countries.
- That we have a relatively stable, peaceful democratic process that doesn't require revolutions to get the previous asshat out of office.
- I do like much of the history and cultural influences in our music and art, even if I feel James Joyce is murderously over-rated.
- I like the language, even if I personally am rubbish at it.
- That it is a relatively secular country and I don't have to worry about being lynched, stoned, burned or god knows what if I don't have the same beliefs as the person next to me.
- And yes, I like that -so far- we have remained fairly welcoming and allowing of people to settle and integrate here, even if we do tend to keep up a bit of a barrier until at least four grandparents can be counted in the local graveyard.
- That we are relatively pragmatic and allow things that have been ingrained for decades, if not centuries, to change when they are blatantly out of date (the equal marriage referendum being one).

I am not keen on
- A bit of a national obsession with what other countries (esp England) think of us.
- A bit of a national obsession with showing other countries (esp England) that we don't care what they think of us.
- Issues with religion in our healthcare and education systems.
- That we seem to have a national failing for electing cute hoors into office and then are unfailingly surprised when they are cute hoors in office too. Then we elect the next one.
- A bit of a culture of begrudgery and "tall poppy syndrome".
- I also personally have no time for misty-eyed naval-gazing about eight hundred plus years of wrongs to be savoured and gnawed upon.
- I will also be mad as hops if we do continue with what looks like exactly the same pattern that lead up to Ireland's particularly impressive crash in the recession. We don't seem to learn easily if it means giving up a cute trick.
- The godawful depressing stuff that passes for Irish lit that gets driven into students during the LC, simultaneously driving out any hope of a love of the language. An Bloody Triail..and Peig.

All very subjective ofc, but my tuppence'orth. Or tuccents'orth as may be.

suicide_circus

If you don't love Ireland, get out. Get out now.

archer22

Dirty Dingus McGee wrote: »

He said ALL HIS LIFE?

So that mean when he was 14 or 15 he would have hated the country and wanted to leave.

Unless he's had extremely bad luck to have personal circumstances that were out of his control from that age meaning he has to stay here (and hopefully that isn't the case) the he could have found a way to leave if this country is so bad to live in.

Are 14 and 15 year old's allowed to feck off now ...where was he going to go and do at that age?.