Ireland General Discussion

[minionofmidas]

Why so damn high?

This is Ireland. 50% odds that it'll end up very close anyways.

[minionofmidas]

The next Irish election is going to be fun. I can hardly wait.

[minionofmidas]

Does that mean the other 23% are voting Healy-Rae junior?

He's adorable!

[minionofmidas]

He couldn't find a real party to join?

[minionofmidas]

What's wrong about having stopped killing people? It's more than can be said of the GOP, the Democrats, the Tories, Labour, the CDU, the SPD...

[minionofmidas]

Anyone shocked at Adams' comment here but following the same line of reasoning regarding Al-Qaeda is officially not an Irish man and needs to be deported to England ASAP.

[minionofmidas]

Seems that Irish politics has gone the way of Greece.

With Sinn Fein as Syriza and Labour as Pasok it kinda makes sense. Still, they have two versions of ND.

Not sure who would be ANEL and they, thankfully, have no Golden Dawn.

The new 'Independents Alliance' party would be ANEL. Although SF = SYRIZA is not a point I would emphasize too much.

Nah, SF = Syriza is a bit of light trolling.

How much of the 27% independents and others in that last poll would go to the Independents Alliance? And who are the rest?

Difficult to say. Won't be large. The rest of independents/others are a mixture of ex-political party politicos (from all parties), local interest trolls, soft left community activists/campaigners and various far left groupings.

The point being that most individial indies are a mixture of two or even three of these.

Seems that Irish politics has gone the way of Greece.

With Sinn Fein as Syriza and Labour as Pasok it kinda makes sense. Still, they have two versions of ND.

FF are more PASOK (in terms of their position in the political ecosystem) than they are ND. FG are certainly ND, though.

Though that's mostly because PASOK are more FF than they are Labour.

Which is of course related to the fact that neither Ireland nor Greece are traditional first world nations and both countries' political systems have roots old and strong enough to still reflect that.

[minionofmidas]

Many Irishmen heard the call of Franco
Joined Hitler and Mussolini too
Propaganda from the pulpit and newspapers
Helped O'Duffy to gather up his crew
 
The word came from the church, 'support the Nazis'
The men of cloth failed us again
When the bishops blessed the Blueshirts in Dun Laoghaire
As they sailed beneath the swastika to Spain

[minionofmidas]

A bookie is who's paying them for regular political polls? Lol Ireland.

[minionofmidas]

I found something in my Myles na Gopaleen collection the other day that seems to fit the Ireland of today quite well.

(...) Take this Ireland. You have various nations - the Orange nation, the Cork nation, the Wexford republic and so forth. They are all immature, and for convenience collectively known as Irishmen. Set in the middle of them, as costly carbuncle in a golden frame, is the dominant (and therefore the most disillusioned) nation: naturally I mean the Dublin Man.
He is immured in the historic Pale: to him, Ireland is composed of hostile tribes, various rough fellows in the interior, sects, ritual murderers, mystics, provincial university students, poets, Roman Catholics (...)
[There follows a pub conversation between an Irish Man and a Dublin Man on the eve of an election]
IM: Well, what is your best guess for Wednesday?
DM: (talks about horse betting)
IM: I'm sorry. I meant the elections.
DM: The whaaaaa?
IM: You know, the elections. The Government.
DM: The... the Gov... ment? THAT crowd?
IM: Yes. I was wondering which of the parties is going to get in this time.
(...)
DM: WHO'S GOING TO GET IN? I wouldn't mind if it was a question of getting into the sea off the Aran Islands where it's four miles deep.
IM: Well, do you think Fine Gael will form a government?
(...)
DM: THAT crowd? My dear man, I seen that crowd. I known that crowd very well. I seen them and I seen their fathers. I will tell you one thing about that crowd. That crowd is. No. Good.
IM: Well, I mean...
DM: Nor never was any good. (..., lengthy civil war anecdote) I needn't tell you, of course, that all that crowd has pensions now.
IM: Perhaps you think Fianna Fáil should form a government?
DM: I suppose you're joking? That crowd is all mad. But they done all right out of their madness.
IM: Perhaps then a coalition of all parties under the leadership of De Valera?
DM: Who? Say that again.
IM: De Valera...
DM: Dev a lera? You mean the fellow that went to America? But shure me dear man that fellow's as mad a hatter.
IM: Maybe the country might for a change try a Labour government, with Bill Norton at the helm.
DM: I met all that Labour crowd in the old days. I seen them, I built suits on their fathers. (...) And I'll tell you one thing about that crowd. They're no damn good to anybody. Nor never was any good to anybody.
IM (throws some obscure backbench names out)
DM: I will tell you what I would do with that pair, I would tie the two of them into the one good big sack and put them into the Liffey at high tide and it would be good riddance to bad rubbish, now do you understand me?
(...)

[minionofmidas]

Never heard of. Wikipedia tells me he used to be a member of a party that

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, though, and I can approve only of the second and the last of these objectives.