The Irish et al.

[Ed Brunner]

It appears that the Irish (and everybody else)have had a real "doings" at St Paddys Cathedral in Manhattan this day.
I am sure that it will last for a while. In the old days it would carry on at Gilhooley's
on 8th Av. I have no idea where it would happen today. They will sing Danny Boy and cry. They will drink Irish Whisky and sing and cry some more.
The unique aspect of this particular event is that at the Mass at the Cathedral ALL segments of New York ethnicities took part. This is most unusual.

What does this have to do with guns?

The Irish sing Danny Boy because it is the story of a father saying goodbye to his son who was leaving for the USA and the father knew he would never see him again. The mass exodus from the Emerald Isle was brought about mainly by the Potato Famine inflicted upon the Irish Catholics by the British government.
The unarmed Irish could not fight and win so to beat starvation they sent as many of their young people as they could to America. A lot of the lucky ones sent money back and brought other relatives over.
Other than the Blacks,very few people came to this country harder than the Irish and none forgets how it happened. Funerals are a bittersweet reminder of the triumph of the spirit of the Irish.

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Better days to be,

Ed

 

[Destructo6]

Pretty much all peoples that arrived prior to 1900 had it rough. The protestants had the choice of moving to the wasteland of the New World or more persecution in the old world. The Chinese were worked to death on the trancontinental railroads in the west and the Irish in the Midwest. Each new group was tormented, assimilated to some degree, and in turn tormented the next wave of newcomers.

Kind of hard to beat the slavery experience though.

[This message has been edited by Destructo6 (edited July 23, 1999).]