what exactly should my 'irishness' mean to me as an american anyway

[oldbadger]

So you may not be aware of it , but we 'irish - americans' often seem obsessed with our 'irishness.' St. paddy's day and halo-ween , america is fastidious with these for example. People like to mention that they are 'irish' in conversations.

So I think a problem is, that although we spread far and wide around this rock, my experience in internet conversations with the real Irish is that they don't really like us , or recognize us. Frankly, depending on how the ancestry thing is brought up, I have gotten some vicious comments

Here is a picture of a street just off the Shankhill Road area, taken circa 2003.

The trick is to decide which side of those enormous barriers you would belong to when they close.

 

[oldbadger]

Another quiz for American Irish ....

Which of these Murals would you feel any affinity for, or have given funds towards? (back in the day)

Or..........

It was the high walls and barbed wire between different blocks of homes that got to me.

 

[Revoltingest]

They actually did raid/invade Ireland and Scotland.

Haggis kept'm from conquering Scotland.
Vikings only had swords & axes.

 

[BSM1]

They actually did raid/invade Ireland and Scotland.

And kept Dublin as a Norse town when they retreated...

 

[BSM1]

Another quiz for American Irish ....

Which of these Murals would you feel any affinity for, or have given funds towards? (back in the day)

View attachment 37368
Or..........

View attachment 37369

It was the high walls and barbed wire between different blocks of homes that got to me.

This all you got? Nothing with aliens or squiggly lines?

 

[BSM1]

Iraq is in a bit of a mess.

But we didn't try to 'conquer' Iraq. But even at that, the Iraq "mess" is largely self inflicted. Having said that, I do believe we've overstayed our welcome in that part of the world.

 

[Twilight Hue]

And just as the white American has done for the entire time America has existed, Conquered anyone who was in their way.

I would think that would be the Spaniards who had arguably the first crack at things.

Besides what's this about White America?

You think whites do nothing but conquer (or at least try to) everything in sight?

 

[Spirit of Light]

I would think that would be the Spaniards who had arguably the first crack at things.

Besides what's this about White America?

You think whites do nothing but conquer (or at least try to) everything in sight?

The reason i am a bit against American military and the history of how America come to be is the way the Natives was slaughtered and the way the New American people was more or less egoistic toward the Native Culture and their Race. And yes White Americans have done a lot of negative toward other races. But it is American Military i despise the most. Not most of the civilians

 

[Twilight Hue]

The reason i am a bit against American military and the history of how America come to be is the way the Natives was slaughtered and the way the New American people was more or less egoistic toward the Native Culture and their Race. And yes White Americans have done a lot of negative toward other races. But it is American Military i despise the most. Not most of the civilians

Well although it was unfair in our history, it should be noted that native Americans weren't exactly peaceful either.

The Crow and Cheyenne Nations for example. Suffice to say they weren't too fond of each other long before Custer's arrival.

 

[Spirit of Light]

Well although it was unfair in our history, it should be noted that native Americans weren't exactly peaceful either.

The Crow and Cheyenne Nations for example. Suffice to say they weren't too fond of each other long before Custer's arrival.

That would be the native’s problem But when white man come the problem was that soon there was almost no free native Americans left.
I do have one problem with my own view of white American soldiers, And it is that I wish I could be able to let go of the attachment and frustration I feel. When I can do that then i could say I found the answer I'm looking for, Until i can do that i should be careful in what i say. Because i dont want to spread hate or bad thoughts about others.

 

[BSM1]

That would be the native’s problem But when white man come the problem was that soon there was almost no free native Americans left.
I do have one problem with my own view of white American soldiers, And it is that I wish I could be able to let go of the attachment and frustration I feel. When I can do that then i could say I found the answer I'm looking for, Until i can do that i should be careful in what i say. Because i dont want to spread hate or bad thoughts about others.

With all this renouncing of attachment to the material world, you sure picked a nothing burger to hang on to. This is basically ancient history, and there are more pertinent and recent examples of some country invading, slaughtering, and 'conquering' other indigenous peoples. This is just another example of US envy...

 

[Spirit of Light]

With all this renouncing of attachment to the material world, you sure picked a nothing burger to hang on to. This is basically ancient history, and there are more pertinent and recent examples of some country invading, slaughtering, and 'conquering' other indigenous peoples. This is just another example of US envy...

It is one of my last attachments actually, and i guess a big one, but honestly, i have no envy of America or American people at all. Why would i envy you?

letting go of attachments is not done in one swoop you know, because if you remove one, often we experience a new one we did not know was an attachment, so it is a journey and not just something we can do in one day.

 

[BSM1]

It is one of my last attachments actually, and i guess a big one, but honestly, i have no envy of America or American people at all. Why would i envy you?

letting go of attachments is not done in one swoop you know, because if you remove one, often we experience a new one we did not know was an attachment, so it is a journey and not just something we can do in one day.

Again, there are more wrongs that you can place your energies to solving.

 

[Spirit of Light]

Again, there are more wrongs that you can place your energies to solving.

I know of my faults yes, and yes i will end my critique of America.

 

[columbus]

But we didn't try to 'conquer' Iraq. But even at that, the Iraq "mess" is largely self inflicted. Having said that, I do believe we've overstayed our welcome in that part of the world.

Seriously?
You believe this?

Did you realize that Saddam Hussein was a USA ally, until he failed to destroy Iran?
Despite all the WMDs we provided?
Tom

 

[BSM1]

Seriously?
You believe this?

Did you realize that Saddam Hussein was a USA ally, until he failed to destroy Iran?
Despite all the WMDs we provided?
Tom

Not the point...

 

[columbus]

But we didn't try to 'conquer' Iraq.

Not the point...

So what was the point to the Bush Invasion?

It cost trillions of dollars.
What do you believe was the point to the war?
Tom

 

[oldbadger]

With all this renouncing of attachment to the material world, you sure picked a nothing burger to hang on to. This is basically ancient history, and there are more pertinent and recent examples of some country invading, slaughtering, and 'conquering' other indigenous peoples. This is just another example of US envy...

Trouble is, Americans did commit so many Human Rights and Genocide violations 'back in the day' but need to feel squeaky clean today, and some are actually arrogant enough to believe that all the World is envious of them.

If you could only just accept such simple truths then many here would be able to give some comfort, in as much that human beings are killers when they're greedy, a condition found all over the World.
But you ain't squeaky clean....... you got poo on your boots.

 

[BSM1]

Trouble is, Americans did commit so many Human Rights and Genocide violations 'back in the day' but need to feel squeaky clean today, and some are actually arrogant enough to believe that all the World is envious of them.

If you could only just accept such simple truths then many here would be able to give some comfort, in as much that human beings are killers when they're greedy, a condition found all over the World.
But you ain't squeaky clean....... you got poo on your boots.

Dribble...I feel zero guilt for anything that happened before breakfast this morning. You have the liberty to boo-hoo over any perceived wrong you wish, but don't have the right to decide the conscience of others.

 

[amorphous_constellation]

And so..... the very first thing that American Irish can do is to discover where their families came from, what their families believed in, how they might have suffered, what they hoped for. And then they will become from a real Irish root, and they will have learned about it.

Well, to be honest that's quite hard for me, since the thing is pretty murky. My paternal great grandfather is said to have died young, and we don't know much of anything about him.. My grandpa however , always apparently had a very strong sense of being Irish .. Everyone knew him to be an 'irishman'.. but I never really got to know him since he died when I was a kid.. trying to find my great grandpa's correct death record is pretty hard for several other complicated reasons which I won't bore you with.. Complicating this irishness thing further is actually the fact that my surname could apparently come from scotland and england as well ... the only thing I really have to go on is my grandpa's insistence on his roots.. Unless I want actually do some serious traveling and research, maybe I can't really know for sure about that... it's kinda frustrating to think about, because it might be impossible to know at this point exactly what's going on with all this

And maybe that feeds into why I asked this thread question .. because I suspect that some americans like myself may experience these sorts disconnections that rapidly accrue with each generation, and it does get to this point of wondering why one's whateverness really matters anymore.. I don't know