RE: St. Patricks Day

I realize posting "The Men Behind The Wire" brings up images of "the bad old days". Just about everyone is done with that. Everyone, except for a few seen as no better than "soccer hooligans", is happy the killing is done.

Still, it pays to remember what helped bring everyone to the table. It wasn't just being tired. The fact of bringing the fight to England was a part of it.

From the time I was in Mrs. Kennedy's 7th grade class, I heard serious stories about the repression of the Irish by the English, by the landlords, by a system of abuse and denial of opportunity.

When they arrived here, in the USA, the Irish were also severely discriminated against. For the longest time they were a voice for equality, for progressive policies -- within their cohesive communities. Granted, there was little love lost between the Irish and the Italians, or African-Americans, or even other Southern Europeans, but they stood for unions, progressive policies, voting rights, etc.

They were a mostly urban population, with a love of what might be called "good times".

The great tragedy of The Irish is that they became "white", even before the Italians, "Polacks", or "Bohunks" did. They became so white, some even thought they were WASPS.

Now, many are mainstays of the "Conservative" Right-Wing-Republican movement.

I see that as a great betrayal of a great heritage.