Fear the Irish

[Benjamin]

I fear the Irish he said:

They have long memories.

The little known legend of Abhartach

could well be their own Dracula.

A tyrannical mis-shapen dwarf--

who could only be killed by a stake

of yew tree wood through the heart;

then, burying him upside down

with a great stone directly above,

and a ring of thorns round the grave.

 

St. Brendan and his monks-- I said:

discovered Americay

before the Vikings got that way.

And I'm sure before too long

some document will appear,

to prove beyond a doubt,

by those well read, and still not dead,

Erse blood has Hispanic D.N.A.

With genes emanating from Erin

round the world and back again.

[fdelano]

I do fear the Irish because they have managed to worm themselves into all of us. I suspect Bren is behind the conspiracy. In 1955, I marched as a drill team member in the Chicago St. Pat's Day parade. We drank a lot of free green beer and didn't care at all who was buying.

[Tinker]

This was an entertaining piece with some surprises. In America everybody is Irish on St Patrick's day... Here in this small, isolated, primarily Italian community we celebrate the day at the church with a green spaghetti feed and good Irish beer. (we catholics do like our beer as well as our wine) The OReillys and the Gleasons put down roots here generations ago along side the Gonnellas, Respinnis, Ciddios and Novellos and infested the gene pool.

 

~~Tink

[dedalus]

So true, so true ... The Spanish DNA reference is particularly interesting since it appears our ancient forebears indeed wandered up from Iberia after the Second Ice Age!

[Benjamin]

Bren. Just a little mischievous humour following a talk describing how Bram Stoker (a native Dubliner) was weaned on ancient myths and folklore by his mother.

 

Franklin. I've never drank green beer-- I'm partial to black Guinness (though it's best over there:-) Jamiesons and barmbrack.

 

Tink. I find it interesting how such a small nation has influenced the cultures of so many.

[fdelano]

Most intriguing, Geoff. Seems every "race" has its DNA secrets, as if it makes a damn. Well, except for Bren, whom I suspect having Gnome genes. They do tend to bluster.

[Benjamin]

Perhaps Leprechaun is more appropriate: It's a moot point as to which have been around longest although I would suggest the Irish have that in hand too.

[David W. Parsley]

I'm steering clear of this one. A fund read! (and dialogue to follow)

 

- Dave

[fdelano]

Ah, Bren, you're a lovely man, even if a sonofabitch with a hidden pistol, as am I.

[Larsen M. Callirhoe]

okay does green beer make you pee green pee lol....

[dedalus]

Leprechauns are the Tuatha de Danaan who went underground after a major defeat by I-forget-whom and are still there as far as anyone can tell since they leave pots of gold at the end of rainbows. They are not to be confused with the fairies who used to hang out in bath houses in Dublin. I don't do pistols. On the other hand, an Armalite isn't easy to hide ... you can stuff it down your trousers leg and proceed down the street on crutches, but when the squaddies see 20-25 guys approaching them on crutches they grow a weensy bit suspicious ....

[fdelano]

Ah, the Squadies. Would you still shoot one on sight? There are neocons here who would do you in if you belittled the Confederate battle flag. I keep my .38 close because there are many crazies here.

[dedalus]

No, absolutely not. But would he shoot me? Back then your chances were 50-50. I suppose it makes sense having a gun in America when everyone around you is armed and dangerous and possibly deranged. May I suggest putting machine guns in all your exposed windows and a field gun on the roof? An AA battery off the front porch is optional.

[Benjamin]

There's Yorkshiremen here who believe it's God's own country and would fight to the death for it . But I'm worried that if we decide to evict the Scots after this weeks political agreement to the referendum to allow them to leave the UK--- that the Irish will invade us. We have no right to bear arms so I fear that what once was the Danelaw will be up for grabs unless we declare independence and stuff them full of Yorkshire pudding and strong ale.

[dedalus]

Ahh, yez'll be all right. The Irish never invade anyone unless there's a horse race or a party in prospect. As for evicting the Scots, how could you be so stupid? The border is a myth to begin with and they've been there for generations and the whole thing means nothing. They'll be useless as an independent nation because of all their internal divisions, unlike the Irish who kept the outside fuckers more or less quarantined up in the northern 6 counties. It's not ideal, I'd be the first to admit, but we'd never have broken free as we did without a united population down south. And that's a fact. The Scots will never really break free from Britain because they don't have that same fire in their souls. They're looking for their 'rights' whatever the fuck that's supposed to mean but there is no way they will go to war for them. That's simply unthinkable in modern Britain. Half-hearted sentimental nationalists, if you ask me ....

[Benjamin]

I think they're too close to the intoxicating smell of North Sea oil and gas to see straight. Particularly when they are considering votes for children of 16. A thought occurs to me that if all the Scottish MPs currently sitting in Westminster were no longer there, the remainder of the UK would be be stuck with a permanent and vicious right wing form of government.Divide and conquer springs to mind. I wonder if the parsimonious reputation of Tykes will affect any future moves for a Republic of Yorkshire. After all it is the largest county.