Wednesday, March 17, 2010

St Patrick's Day


Now I don't believe myself to be churlish, but I don't actually care that today is St Patrick's Day. If I had more Irish blood than great grandparents on my mother's side in me perhaps I would. If people who want to celebrate St George's Day weren't treated like xenophobic, racist, homophobic, paraskevidekatriaphobic monsters, and every other phobia you can imagine, I might be slightly sympathetic to St Patrick's Day. But I don't care.

What really pigs me off is Americans claiming to be Irish, especially American politicians claiming to be 'Oirish' to get the Irish vote, on the grounds that their great, great, great grandfather once had a pint of Guinness or once cut a piece of peat out of a bog. It's just wrong. If you want a piss up then have one, you don't have to sing maudling songs about perceived injustices three hundred years ago, wear a stupid green Leprechaun hat and drink vast quantities of Guinness until every bodily fluid oozing from you is jet black. Get over it.

Although a pretty patriotic person I don't naturally go for over-the-top demonstrations of patriotism anyway, I don't think it's very English. But I must admit to liking the following very, very much:

1 comment:

Citizen Stuart said...

I agree 100%, although I had to look up the definition of the word "paraskevidekatriaphobic". Thanks for improving my vocabulary.

Good song by Morrissey too.