Are the Irish total Hypocrites ?

[IamSimontemplar]

Ya the queen is a spritely old hen isn't she. So many theories out there the ' English attempting to make ammends for the past ' 'finally meeting us Irish as equals' doesn't really bother me. Obama's long lost relative hunt may probably only be an attempt to gain the Irish vote????(can't help thinking of the Simpsons version of the president tracing his roots) Let's hope that after the expense of 2 state visits some rewards can be reaped.

[ber]

Ya the queen is a spritely old hen isn't she. So many theories out there the ' English attempting to make ammends for the past ' 'finally meeting us Irish as equals' doesn't really bother me. Obama's long lost relative hunt may probably only be an attempt to gain the Irish vote????(can't help thinking of the Simpsons version of the president tracing his roots) Let's hope that after the expense of 2 state visits some rewards can be reaped.

Yes the whole thing is about Obamas re election, Caroline Kennedy is invited to the state dinner in Britian, remember
without Caroline Kennedy we would never have heard of Obama. He was a little know senator with no real influence
but then she endorsed him and his popularity exploded, politics in America is just all about money and influence

[benin]

politics in America is just all about money and influence

as opposed to politics where exactly?...lol

[ber]

as opposed to politics where exactly?...lol

There are limits in most countries what can be spent on election campaigns there are no limits in America and generally the
person with most bucks gets elected, our idea of power and influence in this country dosent even register on their radar

[El Gordo]

Something struck me over the past week as being quite amusing, it has been our reaction
as a nation to the utterances of the visiting heads of state namely Queen Elizabeth ii and
President Barrack Obama in our native language. In the tradition of Sile Seoige we almost
had a National Orgasm when Obama uttered the words "Is feider linn ".Much the same
when the Queen said "A Uachtarain agus a Chairde". It was as if our language was the
most important thing in the world to us.
What i find so hypocritical about this is that if u had a poll of that huge crowd that cheered
to rafters when Obama used an Irish phrase, about the Irish language they i am certain by
a huge majority dismiss it as being a useless dead language that should not take a prominent
place in our education system. This is not about the Irish language in particular but it just
happened to stick out as a great example of our shallowness over the past week we will use
something to show ourselves as being patriotic when it suits us but as soon as it requires a
bit of effort we abandon ship

The level of hypocrisy is about Irish is truly amazing. In most contexts it's just funny. The only place where it does real harm is in the educational system. How many hours do children waste learning a language which adults force on them, but refuse to speak themselves?

[Experienced Punter esq]

its all me myself & I for the most part though since the recession Irish people have no choice than to become a bit more balanced & appreciate things more the biggest example I have seen of hypocritical people in this country is the kind of person who would be shocked if they found someone talking about them behind their back yet they themselves are the very ones that would do the very same thing give such people a wide berth is this u?...

[timdog]

I don't think that the abandonment of the language shows Irish as shallow, in many areas it is very important to the individuals who speak it. The majority of people have little or no use for the language on a daily basis, so for this reason it is seen as a "dead" language.

Using the turn of phrase as both state leaders did, is only something that highlights the unique culture of Ireland, I would suspect that any foreign delegation always learns some turn of phrase of the local dialect to show the hosts that they have an appreciation for their culture and traditions. A lá Kennedy in Berlin...

In respect to the debate on Irish in schools, personally I would be in favour of the option to choose rather than have it forced. If you have kids, would you want them learning Irish, or Spanish, or Cantonese? Perhaps the length of time focused on the taught language is the problem, but I know my kid at 6 years old loves to throw out the odd Irish word, and it does no harm, do I see the value in learning Irish until they are 16, no, but at a young age, it helps them build their cultural identity and also lay the foundation for the ability to adapt language skills in the future.

It's a rock n roll thing... "Hello (insert name of city here)..." is how many shows get the crowd on side, these two were just playing the same game. And the crowds and press, loved it!

[ksteve]

I don't think that the abandonment of the language shows Irish as shallow, in many areas it is very important to the individuals who speak it. The majority of people have little or no use for the language on a daily basis, so for this reason it is seen as a "dead" language.

Using the turn of phrase as both state leaders did, is only something that highlights the unique culture of Ireland, I would suspect that any foreign delegation always learns some turn of phrase of the local dialect to show the hosts that they have an appreciation for their culture and traditions. A lá Kennedy in Berlin...

It's a rock n roll thing... "Hello (insert name of city here)..." is how many shows get the crowd on side, these two were just playing the same game. And the crowds and press, loved it!

Thats the thing though, its not a local dialect. When Kennedy said " Ich bin ein Berliner ", he was talking to an audience fluent in German as their primary language. How many people at College Green speak or indeed are genuinely interested in speaking Irish. I find it rather patronising. Now, if the dignatory were speaking in the Gaeltacht -- now we're talking !!