My honest opinion about Ireland as the immigrant I am

skarman11

As an immigrant myself from another EU country (Spain) I came to this country with a job within my armpit, so to speak.

I pay my taxes here, do a job that companies here are struggling to find people to, and try to live as any other Irish person does, in an honest way.

I can't be grateful enough to this country and how I've been treated in this gorgeous land called Ireland. My neighbours are a lovely married couple with a baby. They have helped me out whenever I needed to sort anything at home.

I have made a good group of Irish friends, they're my brothers and I love them so much. Everybody, from the waitress in a restaurant to the hairdresser at the barber, has been so nice to me that I'm reluctant to go back home. Not to mention, GUINNESS🤤.

However, I keep hearing that Irish people are rac1sts, that Ireland is rac1st. And I hear that from people who has fled their country in which it was a matter of time for them to get k1ll3d because of their politics opinion or hunger. Just because they don't get all they want for free. That doesn't justify any crime by any means.

That's just unfair. Too unfair.

People need to know that the so-called rights are earned, not given away. And if you point out those facts you're a fac1st? What a joke. The so-callled Welfare states across Western world took GENERATIONS of really hard-working people to build them.

Again, thanks Ireland and its people for being who you are and the way you welcome everybody. You're so proud of your culture and history that you don't let anybody to tread on it. When one can be both welcoming and aware of what they culture is worth, that only means how proud you are of your own country and this should lead as an example for other countries.

PEACE.

Pauliedragon

It seems Guinness is no. 1 on your list mate. No problem with that. Welcome here my pal I hope you enjoy life in our wonderful country👍

Grayson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058333971/my-honest-opinion-about-ireland-as-the-immigrant-i-am

You're Spanish. You never earned your right to work in Ireland. It's part of the package of being an EU citizen. Rights aren't earned. The vast majority of people who have rights never did anything to earn them.

The J Stands for Jay

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698356#Comment_121698356

What did you do to earn your right to work in Ireland?

marathon2022

Do not base your beliefs based on boards content, it's battle if the shills around here. Not reality

Gatling

Tall tale in a tall glass me thinks

StevenToast

Walter Mitty.

Boggles

Chat GPT?

Grayson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698452#Comment_121698452

Literally nothing. That was my point. Irish citizens did nothing. My parents are Irish, therefore I'm Irish. Therefore I have all these rights. I didn't do anything to get those rights except exist. I currently live and work in Germany. I get the right to do this because Ireland is in the EU. I personally did nothing to get those rights. I didn't earn them.

Gusser09

Hmmm. Ive said it on multiple threads. Bots alive and well. This is a fake post.

Ireland is a race to the bottom.

animalinside

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698583#Comment_121698583

"you didn't do anything to earn the right.... it was already yours".

Is it not a bit early in the morning for Mr. Miyagi type bullshit on such a sensitive issue. Just because you're happy to throw away all worker rights of the country to the EU doesn't mean the rest of us are.

If you want to say something I suggest you say it straight. People use the term "earned the right to work here" as a way of expressing something.

Grayson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698606#Comment_121698606

I said what I meant. the OP said they'd earned the right to work here. They didn't. I didn't earn my right to work in Germany.

What hard earned workers rights are you talking about? And how am I throwing them away to the EU? I live and work in Germany. My rights here were given to me because I'm in the EU and and I'm an EU citizen. I'm not giving anything to the EU, they're giving something to me.

Now people can discuss whether someone from outside should have the rights to work in Ireland. But don't pretend the vast majority of Irish citizens did anything to earn the the rights of an Irish citizen. The same goes for EU citizens. We got them because of where we were born and who our parents are.

The J Stands for Jay

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698583#Comment_121698583

Sorry, I misunderstood your point.

Jim2007

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058333971/my-honest-opinion-about-ireland-as-the-immigrant-i-am

I think you are what the Brits would call an expat rather than than immigrant. You basically have the same value system, Christian religious background, similar legal system and so on. Topped up with the cultural differences and experiences that make you Spanish. Of course your complexion will make it a bit more obvious that you are a foreigner than say a German would in the same circumstances, but beyond that you are going to hold a similar disposition in life to an Irish person and that makes it easier for you to fit in and be accepted.

I have spent most of my working life in Switzerland working mainly with people from Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy and Spain as well as the US and the UK. And in every political discussion the split was almost always US/Uk on one side and all the EEA on the other. We have a lot more in common once you scratch the surface.

Today most of our rights are an accident of birth in the EEA and unearned, but there is a battle to be fought and that is to preserve those rights against who seek to take them away for their own commercial benefits. And Brexit is the best example of that so far.

20silkcut

When I was doing my leaving cert almost 30 years ago I remember our career guidance teacher reminding us constantly how we were entering a jobs market of intense competition and how most of us would struggle to find a job and many of us would have to emigrate. And he was right the mid 90’s jobs market was very intense, not as bare as the mid 80’s, but a lot more intense than today. I recall a friend of mine going for the Guards and he was always in my mind well over 6 foot tall but had the ruler pressed right down on his skull and came up at 5’11 and 1/2. That was enough for me I’d come up at 5’6 I thought if I went for it. There was no hope of getting in to the guards. Now they are taking them at any height up to the age of 50. It’s not only about been born in the right country it’s been born at the right time. Someone leaving school in Ireland in the 50’s or 60’s was at astronomically far greater disadvantage than someone leaving school in the 2010’s or 20’s.

Cheddar Bob

To paraphrase the NASA media officer on The Simpsons

"the Irish left perceives West European and Chinese immigrants to be clean cut, hard working go getters.

They hate immigrants like that"

This content has been removed.

Francis McM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698884#Comment_121698884

True. I remember whole classes emigrating to England and America in the 1980s. Todays young people spend their money on concert tickets, i phones, takeaway coffees, stag parties abroad and then complain about housing.

20silkcut

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698984#Comment_121698984

And go back 30 years earlier and whole classrooms of male primary school leavers went straight out to work on the family farm at 14 years of age. Effectively uneducated by today’s standard. Yet incredibly it is the much better educated following generations that has produced the fractured warped febrile political landscape that we enjoy today. How is that possible??? I thought education was supposed to make everything better??? Now it has made many things better but it’s made politics infinitely worse.

Boggles

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121699054#Comment_121699054

Now it has made many things better but it’s made politics infinitely worse.

Dead right!!!

We need to make this man President so we can get back to the Political Good Times you pine for!!!

20silkcut

Wasn’t pining for them I can assure you.

positron

"However, I keep hearing that Irish people are rac1sts, that Ireland is rac1st. And I hear that from people who has fled their country in which it was a matter of time for them to get k1ll3d because of their politics opinion or hunger. Just because they don't get all they want for free. That doesn't justify any crime by any means."

Breaking news! People who experienced racism complains about racism, and dude on internet is shocked.

In other news, water is still wet, snow cold to touch, and this year Christmas falls on 25th of December. Who would have thunk!!!

Cluedo Monopoly

Hey Spaniard, why are your i characters the number 1? I don't like it.

I am a little bit racist to be honest. Not as much as other people but I am trying my best. Boards helps.

Arthur Daley

Good to see a European who migrated legally showing solidarity, and an understanding of the concerns of hard working taxpayers who built a welfare state with a border around it.

Whatever the source of the post, what was said, needs to be said.

British people get no problem in Ireland as well

skarman11

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698581#Comment_121698581

No I just suck at writing

Francie Barrett

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058333971/my-honest-opinion-about-ireland-as-the-immigrant-i-am

You are not alone.

All my friends and colleagues of EU27 countries say the exact same things.

They are confused that they have to come here, work a full time job that barely makes ends pay, while the country imports asylum seekers who live on welfare and live in heavily subsidized housing.

chrisd2019

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121717874#Comment_121717874

This situation though may not last much longer, penny dropping for sure in Department of Finance and Social Welfare with the recent moves to cut payments. General slowdown in corporate world could rapidly empty the cock of gold of recent years.

tinytobe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058333971/my-honest-opinion-about-ireland-as-the-immigrant-i-am

I think it's the definition of racism. For some racism is already a minor political difference, for others it's only about Nazis and concentration camps.

To me the country has a bit of that sentiment of "we" and the "the others we don't want", but I think that's way worse in Germany or Austria.

And then an Englishman would feel more resentment in Ireland than a Spaniard or a Frenchman would. Back in the early 90ies I've noticed that the English were still not treated well, if they lived in Ireland, - at work or finding housing, whilst the French or the Spanish had it easier.

I think Ireland is very racist when it comes to those Irish flying Palestinian flags and being totally blinded by what kind of atrocities Hamas have committed. This is especially uncompressible to me as it was always the Jews which were oppressed and prosecuted.

thereiver

People arrive here from the eu the government has no choice but to process them as per eu law Re asylum seekers they mostly live in hostels 3 or 4 to one room . It's not exactly luxury hotel accomodation

they have reduced payments for people who come from Ukraine the no of people who come here is lower than most eu country's I don't think most Irish people are racist most people who work in cafes hotels retail are from the eu Gen z does not remember the 80s when Irish people were going to the UK and America to get jobs now young people are leaving because the ridiculous cost of housing and high rents Most eu country's have 100s people arriving every week looking for work

The reason Brexit happened is because the Brits were fed up with having to accept 1000s of eu immigrants and also having to provide housing for them

Our economy boomed in the last 10 years due in part to the fact that 1000s of people arrived here to fill the jobs that were available in retail hotels and service industrys

Sin fein is getting more votes from young people as they at least are promising to do something about the housing crisis

skarman11

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121698649#Comment_121698649

How are you finding Germany so far? Was there few weeks ago and in the Netherlands. Kinda shocked me how rusty their English is, but maybe bad luck. Are you fluent in German?

lmao10

The 40+ billion euro that the EU gave us to invest in our country certainly helped.

Yes, we still owe that much back to them.

thereiver

Gen z is right about housing. Tents are very high versus even ,10 years ago. They have a choice pay high rent to share a house or stay at home with their parents and try and save for a deposit for a ridiculously expensive house

People are refusing job offers in Dublin as they can't afford the high rent

Thats due to Ticketmaster ticket prices are very high for any big name popular singer like Taylor swift

Theres more people who want tickets than the no of tickets for sale

It seems every generation looks down on young people as being feckless or irresponsible

yoke

Based on what they wrote, I'm pretty sure the OP is not Spanish, and not an immigrant in Ireland.

None of the Spanish immigrants I've known would share those views, and being honest it would be very difficult for a Spanish immigrant in Ireland working in a high demand sector to cross circles with "people who has fled their country in which it was a matter of time for them to get k1ll3d because of their politics opinion or hunger".

And immigrants to any country don't get **** for free - "Just because they don't get all they want for free." - there is no way a legit Spanish immigrant to Ireland would not know the difference between an ordinary immigrant and an asylum seeker.

Reported for being a shill.

tinytobe

Myself not being Irish and having lived in Ireland, what really scared me is the lack of and sometimes total absence of security like police or military.

It was only after those riots in Dublin that I saw more police / Garda around.

I also have the impression that police and military in Ireland are chronically underfunded, and if push came to shove the politicians would hope and pray that the "evil English" or the "far away Americans" would come to the rescue.

Also, the Irish attitude about that subject bothered me often ( NATO membership is out of the question for a large majority and even a well funded neutral military, a decent air force is also out of question), who would attack us militarily is often handled the same as who would burgle my place, but burglars are sadly more common.

Like by comparison I always enjoyed if a major event in London, lot's of people around, lot's of possible attack points for criminals / terrorists and other scum, had a secure feeling about it, as I saw police, dog units around, etc…even NHS paramedics on site sometimes. Even security / military with military style rifles are a common sight on many airports, - not in Ireland.

Many things are more felt, and more impressions of somebody, but overall, Ireland never seemed like a secure and reliable place to live for me. In all the places I've lived in, I've often felt that if I was burgled or something happened to me the chances of getting real decent help and support were far less in Ireland than in other EU countries or the UK.

The same goes for health services. Even though the NHS in the UK has many shortcomings, I've often felt in better hands with the NHS than with the HSE in Ireland.

But on the positive, it always felt like a place to make friends easier, talk to people easier, it seems more a country for families, and a general child friendly society. Public schooling also seems better in Ireland than in the UK and many EU countries.

skarman11

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122098873#Comment_122098873

Estás flipando. La ignorancia es muy atrevida y tu mensaje lo demuestra. Pero cada cual que se crea lo que considere.

Spanish enough, buddy?

Kermit.de.frog

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122098784#Comment_122098784

Ireland gave €3.6bn net contribution to the EU last year. And billions since 2013. They'll take far, far more from us than they ever gave to us. We would have succeeded as a small open economy regardless like other small open economies.

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122098939#Comment_122098939

Citation needed.

skarman11

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122098939#Comment_122098939

Is it because of the fines of having lower corporate taxes?

timmyntc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122099399#Comment_122099399

Its because EU contributions are based on our GDP, and we are on paper a high GDP country

Because of corporate tax

BaywatchHQ

People don't dislike immigrants, they dislike low class immigrants. You see Irish people have developed into snobs despite their own bleak peasant past.

Emblematic

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122101434#Comment_122101434

By "high class" do you mean immigrants with skills of value to the country? If so, is it not reasonable to wish to continue having these immigrants?

Grayson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122098642#Comment_122098642

Errr… Nein?

My German is terrible. And there's a lot of stuff around paperwork that's annoying. But in general I like it. It's a nice place.

tinytobe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122102321#Comment_122102321

Ze Germans will make you talk, - still, but nowadays in a nice atmosphere in the beer garden. Fraeuleins will be serving the beer.

nullzero

Is the OP suggesting that Ireland isn't a fascist hellscape?

Obvious troll.

Grayson

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122135343#Comment_122135343

Ze Germans will make you talk …english.

It's something a lot of expats complain about. You try speaking Germans, they see your difficulty and they switch to english. It's actually very hard to practice german here.

tinytobe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122135580#Comment_122135580

They say something similar about the Netherlands. Even more, even Dutch government websites seem to have an English version as well.

skarman11

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122135580#Comment_122135580

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122135610#Comment_122135610

I'd add that British, specially English people tend to correct and even mock the other speaker's pronuntiation.

In France, they won't even understand you if your French pronuntiation isn't perfect. Other than that, maybe this map makes sense.

paul71

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122158282#Comment_122158282

That map does not take into account which of the 2 official languages of the country that are reacting to.

Badly Drunk Boy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122160922#Comment_122160922

It sort of does, or tries to…

paul71

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122161332#Comment_122161332

It tries poorly. Honestly the difference between English and Irish is representative of the page. It is not an issue with the people of the countries it is the accessibility of the language. So you an Italian speaks English as 2nd of 3rd Language, its kind of "meh". The same with an English person speaking German as 2nd. But a Spaniard speaking Czech thats quite interesting. A Czech speaking Irish now that is a can of worms that requires opening and one that I have come across.