My Letter to the Irish News about the 'Occupy' protests

[Tyrones own]

He's over at Politics.ie mining his response as you speak 

You should try books.

Or a dictionary...oops to late, ...Corollary, great word Muppet!

You are like a child with a rattle. You get your attention and you are happy. 

Here, have some more attention. 

Mind your tail you don't step on it again...its never pretty

[muppet]

Mind your tail you don't step on it again...its never pretty

Tell me, when you post such knock-out posts such as this do you run a whooping and a hollering around the screen?

[The Iceman]

Well you have implied so far throughout your points that "if you're not with us you're against us"
I don't agree with the protests whatsoever and as a result I have fallen victim to your labels.

Correct me if i am wrong....... maybe your statements were not directed at me...

Gladwell's analysis isn't just a statement of facts. He writes and compiles his information with a deliberate purpose. He is by no means a neutral and his ongoing commentary throughout the book would indicate that.

The 'if you are not with us you are against us' mantra is quoting the Neo-Cons.

Tell me when Gladwell has a chapter on age cutoffs affecting the development of future sports professionals, or a chapter on the Avianca air crash in New York which outlines cultural differences to authority, how does that fit an anti-Republican agenda?

so he's not a liberal?

[Hardy]

Only in the USA have I seen the word "liberal" routinely used as a pejorative term. I know the word has been traduced in the opposite sense on this side of the pond, where it's self-proclaimed liberals themselves who are generally anything but liberal.

But the American right seems to be more correct than they understand when they use the word as a term of abuse. The antonym of "liberal" is not "conservative", it's "repressive" (in some dictionaries - "narrow-minded" in others).

[muppet]

Well you have implied so far throughout your points that "if you're not with us you're against us"
I don't agree with the protests whatsoever and as a result I have fallen victim to your labels.

Correct me if i am wrong....... maybe your statements were not directed at me...

Gladwell's analysis isn't just a statement of facts. He writes and compiles his information with a deliberate purpose. He is by no means a neutral and his ongoing commentary throughout the book would indicate that.

The 'if you are not with us you are against us' mantra is quoting the Neo-Cons.

Tell me when Gladwell has a chapter on age cutoffs affecting the development of future sports professionals, or a chapter on the Avianca air crash in New York which outlines cultural differences to authority, how does that fit an anti-Republican agenda?

so he's not a liberal?

I know nothing about him other than having read two of his books. Neither were remotely political.

[Eamonnca1]

Actually, my news source of choice is The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

The daily show has a liberal slant, as does John Stewart, you are a one trick pony then, thats what i thought. I think it is dangerous to listen to John Stewart and no one else, hell I am interested in what he has to say, he is an intelligent man and he is entertaining if not a little too  left wing for my taste.

Beck is a feckin fruitcake and should not be taken seriously but for every beck you have an equally moronic liberal.

There are a lot of lazy, smug gits on this thread, neandertals who seem to think FOX bad CNN good, you are a sad lot really but it explains a lot.

Riddle me this, do any of you think that there is a bad liberal news station out there??? probably not right!

I know, why don't we just cave and become liberals, that way we will all think alike, be on the right side and that way i can get my cred back, whatever the fcuk that is.

You are like a flock of sheep and have about the same amount of imagination, FOX news, Fox news. Fox new's, you idiots think that is all we do and were we get our information from, you are wrong.

Rant over.

Everyone have a nice day now. (except you liberal motherfcukers) 

One last thing, once again America needs a third party option.

FFS!  You people need to calm down and stop jumping up and down screaming out your hatred of the dreaded "liberals". If you'd open your mind and listen to what I have to say you'd find that I'm to the left in some areas and to the right in others. The problem with US politics is that it's skewed so far to the right that people like you think that anyone who isn't a gun-toting bible-thumping xenophobic redneck must be a pinko-liberal hippie.

Here is my list of main news sources:

The Economist
Al Jazeera
BBC
RTE
And for specific topics I go to Google News and get it from a variety of sources. The Washington Post and Guardian seem to come up a lot in those searches.

News sources I don't take seriously:

Fox
CNN
MSNBC
Just about any mainstream US cable network
British tabloid and Tory press

For entertainment I turn to Jon Stewart and Colbert.

There, happy now?

[Eamonnca1]

Only in the USA have I seen the word "liberal" routinely used as a pejorative term. I know the word has been traduced in the opposite sense on this side of the pond, where it's self-proclaimed liberals themselves who are generally anything but liberal.

But the American right seems to be more correct than they understand when they use the word as a term of abuse. The antonym of "liberal" is not "conservative", it's "repressive" (in some dictionaries - "narrow-minded" in others).

I noticed that myself when I first landed in the US. I couldn't understand why some people were jumping up and down in rage at the thought of "liberals" existing. I remember the first time I saw someone writing "I hate liberals," I asked him why he felt that way. He started mouthing off about something called school bussing.

I'd never seen that kind of venom in political discourse in the UK. In fact in the UK the world "Liberal" means keeping government out of moral matters, supporting free trade, and only using government regulation where necessary. That's pretty close to my own viewpoint so I was a bit shocked to see myself being lumped in with communists when I got here.

[Hardy]

I suppose the point is that in the Land of the Fee, there really is no left wing. It amuses Europeans that the Democrats, who would be to the right of Christian Democratic parties over here (i.e. one or two notches off the extreme right) are seen as pinko lefties in the USA.

[redandblack4ever]

Hardy, I'm with you on that. The Democratic Party is not the party I remember from my youth. They have turned their backs on the unions, middle-class people and the working poor. Right now I believe Obama will lose next November because of the economy and the fact that the Republicans are getting away with disenfranchising voters. If the Pukes don't win the election outright, they'll steal it again, as they did in 2000 and 2004. Hopefully, Mr.Wonderful and myself will be relocating to Ireland before next November and I won't have to put up with living under Repuke rule. I swore in 2008 if McCain won we would move then, but at least that didn't happen. I think the writer H.L. Mencken said "never underestimate the stupidity of the American people". Well I'm not, because I've seen how stupid the American people are and if they vote the Pukes in again, they will get everything they deserve.

As the getting news from the Daily Show, I watch it myself and believe me I'm no gobshite or teenager when it comes to American politics and history. I knew from the beginning that the Daily Show was satirical. Not like some people, who took Steven Colbert seriously.

[heganboy]

I knew from the beginning that the Daily Show was satirical. Not like some people, who took Steven Colbert seriously.

Tee Hee

[Eamonnca1]

They say that if a parody is good enough, the victims of the parody will begin to think that the joke is actually on their opponents.

There are conservatives out there who are genuinely confused about Colbert in this way.

[The Iceman]

I find that most of those who complain about Ireland being a nation of begrudgers are those who found their peers didn't react the way they wanted to about boasting and absurdly showing off their financial wealth in a fashion that makes the person listening think that the person speaking thinks they are a better person simply because of the money they make. It's certainly not just an Irish trait, it occurs in every country (even the USA) but Irish society have a peculiar trait of cynicism that doesn't like being made fools of even if they're practising the cute hoor tactic themselves. Places which are strongly influenced by Calvinism have perhaps an even stronger dislike to this than the Irish. Are there begrudgers in Ireland? Yep, but they're a minority. The majority have no problems with someone who has worked hard and not tread on people along the way to getting just reward for it.

That wouldn't be my experience Fionntamhnach but we'll disagree on it sure. Very few people would know anything about my financial situation, what I do or anything about me. I lead a very low key life. I don't need anyone's praise or recognition. I am friends with several ex-pats and we would all have the same experience so surely there must be something there.....
I do believe that cynicism and begrudgery are traits of the majority in Ireland. I think you don't realize how bad we all are until you move somewhere else where the glass is a bit more half full. My own cynicism is a daily struggle. But like somebody mentioned thats a different thread altogether.......

[Tyrones own]

If I can back you up for a minute here from educating us all Eamonn
You didn't get around to this;
Do you or do you not think that Curleys and Emersons would have been/are incorporated?

[pintsofguinness]

I find that most of those who complain about Ireland being a nation of begrudgers are those who found their peers didn't react the way they wanted to about boasting and absurdly showing off their financial wealth in a fashion that makes the person listening think that the person speaking thinks they are a better person simply because of the money they make. It's certainly not just an Irish trait, it occurs in every country (even the USA) but Irish society have a peculiar trait of cynicism that doesn't like being made fools of even if they're practising the cute hoor tactic themselves. Places which are strongly influenced by Calvinism have perhaps an even stronger dislike to this than the Irish. Are there begrudgers in Ireland? Yep, but they're a minority. The majority have no problems with someone who has worked hard and not tread on people along the way to getting just reward for it.

That wouldn't be my experience Fionntamhnach but we'll disagree on it sure. Very few people would know anything about my financial situation, what I do or anything about me. I lead a very low key life. I don't need anyone's praise or recognition. I am friends with several ex-pats and we would all have the same experience so surely there must be something there.....
I do believe that cynicism and begrudgery are traits of the majority in Ireland. I think you don't realize how bad we all are until you move somewhere else where the glass is a bit more half full. My own cynicism is a daily struggle. But like somebody mentioned thats a different thread altogether.......

I'd agree that begrudgery is an Irish trait but if you go on while at home the way you've gone on on this thread I'm not surprised people think "big shot". 

[Tyrones own]

Hardy, I'm with you on that. The Democratic Party is not the party I remember from my youth. They have turned their backs on the unions, middle-class people and the working poor. Right now I believe Obama will lose next November because of the economy and the fact that the Republicans are getting away with disenfranchising voters. If the Pukes don't win the election outright, they'll steal it again, as they did in 2000 and 2004. Hopefully, Mr.Wonderful and myself will be relocating to Ireland before next November and I won't have to put up with living under Repuke rule. I swore in 2008 if McCain won we would move then, but at least that didn't happen. I think the writer H.L. Mencken said "never underestimate the stupidity of the American people". Well I'm not, because I've seen how stupid the American people are and if they vote the Pukes in again, they will get everything they deserve.

As the getting news from the Daily Show, I watch it myself and believe me I'm no gobshite or teenager when it comes to American politics and history. I knew from the beginning that the Daily Show was satirical. Not like some people, who took Steven Colbert seriously.

Mr and Mrs Wonderful  Can't make it under the Obama regime, it's policies and Chicago's cronyism, they are now forced to look elsewhere for handouts as the unions having bled the Country dry, can't sustain it's welfare and hand outs and so we'll go back to County Down while they're still providing free this that and the other, cause that's all we know.
You could have simply left it at that