Hero-worshiping Obama is not the answer to Ireland's problems

It seems everyone in Ireland is feeling great about themselves after the visit of President Obama yesterday. It was the ultimate feel‑good day, with the most powerful man on Earth and "coolest President ever" shaking hands, kissing babies and schmoozing with the Irish people for a few hours.

The President delivered a speech in front of tens of thousands at College Green in Dublin, a beautiful, mostly sun-drenched setting that looked spectacular yesterday. The speech itself, however, was pure cotton candy: tastes good, but when you try to swallow it there's nothing there. If you read it, rather than listen to it, you'll see what I mean.

Yesterday I said it would be "mostly feel-good platitudes and little else." Platitudes may be not quite right, but feel-good Irish-America boilerplate surely is. Yet, that hasn't stopped people describing the speech as "inspiring" and "electrifying."

If people were inspired that's great, but it was a transitory moment. The Obama-high will quickly pass. He won't be back until after he's out of office. He will be very little help to the people of Ireland, who are in the middle of the worst crisis since the early 1920s. He is, after all, the President of the United States. It's not his job to help Ireland.

Yet all over America - and in Canada and Australia and elsewhere - there are people who have a deep affection for Ireland, who can and will help Ireland. People of talent and experience. Creative, clear-thinking people who do actually understand Ireland, have ideas that could help the country and should be taken seriously when they say they want to help.

A week ago one of those people, former San Jose Mayor Tom McEnery offered a critical analysis of where Ireland is now and where we are heading. He also offered three concrete suggestions as to what we should do next.

McEnery's plan is to utilize the diaspora, don't "lose them in a jumble of compliments and forums." McEnery says we should put a successful Irish-American, like Intel's retired CEO Craig Barrett, in charge of Ireland's development agency. It's a fantastic idea.

The doors that are already opened to someone of Barrett's stature, the knowledge and experience he would bring to the table and the common language Barrett shares with the heads of those businesses we need to target for investment would be massive advantages for Ireland as it competes with other EU nations for American and other inward investment.

McEnery {photo} has other ideas on a global Irish entrepreneurs support system and a role for committed, successful Irish-Americans (and others) in the Irish legislature - a revised version of the current Seanad (Senate), the weaker upper house of the Irish parliament.

McEnery's call to action deserves attention, but I fear it has fallen on deaf ears. Such proposals are a challenge to those currently in positions of power here. They also represent a gamble for all, a leap of faith in those children and grandchildren whose stories were cheered yesterday.

The Obama visit was a fleeting moment. It's over and the problems here remain. McEnery is talking about something long-lasting, with the potential to generate work and wealth, to lift the Irish people, possibly save them the fate of another lost generation and to begin to build the broader, non-geographical linked-up Facebook Irish nation that will benefit those "away" and "at home."

Yesterday was a dream day in the middle of a long nightmare. Now as the dream fades the nightmare looms again. It's time to wake up, get to work and grab the helping hand being offered. It's long past time Ireland brought the diaspora on board to help steer the ship. Things could hardly be worse, but the talents and goodwill of the diaspora can lead to our best days.

{Photos from Google images and ITLG.org}

Jedward and Westlife - perfect openers for Obama

Niall O'Dowd is unimpressed with the warm-up acts for President Obama's speech at College Green in Dublin this afternoon. The two headline acts are Westlife, a rapidly aging boy band, and Jedward, well, if you don't know you probably don't want to know.

O'Dowd's problem seems to be that these two groups (acts/bands/whatever) are completely devoid of talent. He feels they compare badly with Van Morrison, who preceded President Clinton's address in Belfast in 1995. He's right about that. When Morrison sang his song Days Like This the President and the massive throng gathered to cheer him sang along in joy at the prospect of peace. It was a real moment of meaning, something people remember and look back on fondly.

I agree with O'Dowd on Van Morrison and how he compares with Westlife {photo} and Jedward, but today doesn't call for a singer/song-writer of Morrison's ability. Why? Because unlike in 1995 when the people of Belfast, indeed the people all over Ireland, had a real reason to cheer and celebrate the American President, today's love fest has nothing whatsoever to do with anything President Obama has done for Ireland or anything else he has done since taking office.

If today's large crowd was there to cheer the President for his boldness in waging war and especially for the operation that killed Osama bin Laden, I'd be thrilled. Yet, I know that a large chunk - possibly the majority - of those who'll be there will either be indifferent or uneasy about all that.

The mostly young (I'm guessing) crowd can hardly be there to thank the President for the fact that his Treasury Secretary shot down a better bailout deal for Ireland. After all, quite a few amongst the gathering will undoubtedly have to leave Ireland in the not-too-distant future because we owe a debt that we cannot repay priced in a currency we can neither afford nor control.

Maybe they hope that by showering the President with adulation today he will be so moved that he will start pumping Green Cards into the crowd with one of those air cannons they use for tee shirts at sporting events. If that's their motivation then I say "Good luck to them," but there's no hope of that.

The truth is none of that matters to the crowd. They will yell and shout and cheer the President's speech, which I expect to be mostly feel-good platitudes and little else. There will be nothing of any real importance said and his starry-eyed audience will adore him for it.

In other words, he'll look good and he'll probably sound good, but there will be no substance to his lyrics or his performance - just like Jedward and Westlife.

Bin Laden's death: good news that could have waited

Read more: A tribute to those Irish Americans we lost on 9/11

Read more: Bin Laden death brings justice to still grieving Irish families

When I answered the phone I was expecting the worst, something seriously wrong with someone in my family or my wife's. I let the phone ring once more to try to ensure I was as awake as possible to hear what was being said.

"Hey, how ya doin? It's ..." I recognized the voice and I knew the name - a friend of mine from college. I shook my head and turned and looked at the clock again: 4:10. That's 4:10 AM.

"I'm fine. You do realize it's 4 o'clock in the morning, right?" I can't remember if he said that he'd forgotten about the time difference or not. I don't think he really cared. He was so excited he just had to call to tell me, "Osama bin Laden is dead."

Obviously, that's good news, but I don't think I conveyed that to my friend. There's no doubt I wasn't as excited as he was and the phone call finished up after two minutes.

As I hung up the phone, I became aware that not only was my wife awake, but so were the children. I told my wife who was on the phone and what he had to say. It was pitch black, but I didn't need to see her face to know how she was looking at me.

After reassuring the children that all was well, we settled down to resume our sleep. For me, however, sleep was elusive. At 5:00 I gave up, figuring the alarm would be going off in under an hour anyway.

I put the television and computer on and started to feel it, the satisfaction that Osama had been killed by American forces and didn't die in his sleep as an old man. It is really good news, although I'd have been more excited if it had come in May 2002.

At around 5:30 I started to feel bad. I still wasn't feeling as excited or as joyous as those gathered outside the White House or in New York, but then again I noticed that most of those appeared to be college students who would think nothing of blowing off a class or two to make up for lost sleep. Still I was wondering if I should have been chirpier when my friend called to convey the news.

Then another fact dawned on me: today is a national holiday in Ireland. I didn't need to get up at 6:00 after all. The rest of the family won't be waking for hours.

Grrr. Bin Laden's death is good news, but it's good news that could have waited. Bad news can't wait, but good news can be patient. It would have felt just as good at 8am as it did at 4.

Read more: A tribute to those Irish Americans we lost on 9/11

Read more: Bin Laden death brings justice to still grieving Irish families

Time in Ireland will not win votes for President Obama

Here we go again. Despite the fact that people here know a great deal about America, the media, and to a lesser extent the public generally, knows next to nothing about Irish-America. Don't ask me how this can be, but it's true.

Today the Irish Independent declared that President Obama's "popularity is likely to soar among the Irish‑American vote in the US when he addresses the Irish people at a rally in Croke Park."

Now if you voted for candidate Obama and you remain a fan of him today, you're unlikely to have your positive views of him soured by a warm welcome at Croke Park or pictures of him being greeted by (very) distant relatives in Moneygall, County Offaly. If you are not a fan of President Obama today you are very unlikely to change your mind about him because 80,000 Irish people cheer him heartily or you hear some in Moneygall singing "There's no one as Irish as Barack O'Bama." A serious cringe and an upset stomach are far more likely.

This sort of thing really makes me laugh. There are times when people here talk about Irish‑Americans as if they're children waiting for the lead to be given from the ancestral motherland.

This is bad enough when we're talking about aspects of Irish culture - such as dance or music - but when it comes to American politics you think they'd trust Americans to make up their own minds. But no. A selection of happy shots of people in Ireland applauding Obama is all that's required to get Irish‑Americans to throw their weight behind his campaign for reelection.

Sheesh. Regardless, despite what people here anticipate, I doubt that there will be much coverage of the President's time in Ireland; 60 seconds on the nightly news bulletins and maybe a couple of minutes on daytime CNN is the most I'm expecting. I suspect most of the American press will go straight to Britain, where the President is heading for a state visit after his pit-stop here. {Of course, Irish Central will have EXTENSIVE coverage of his time in Ireland.}

If the weather's good - and it generally is in May - there could be some nice scenic shots of the Irish countryside, which will do the tourism business no harm. A picture of the President looking out of Marine One at Clonmacnoise {photo} in 'his' Co. Offaly would be ideal.

That's all the upside I'm hoping for.

Bush was a uniter; Obama's a divider

It all started just around the inauguration in 2009. Maybe it was before that. Election Day? I can't quite remember now, but it was around that time. Before Barak Obama became President of the United States the people of this state were united, beautifully so.

There had been some straws in the wind even before the election, but once it was clear that Barack Obama was going to be President the real fight started. Neighbor turned on neighbor, brother on brother.

I had never even heard of Moneygall before Obama came along. Why would I have? I'm sure I've driven through it on my way to Limerick, but 300 people live there. It made no impression. Believe me, I wasn't the only one in Ireland who had never heard of Moneygall before.

When it transpired that Barack Obama is descended from a Falmouth Kearney, who left Moneygall for New York in 1850 suddenly the town (hamlet, more like) started making the news. The instant reaction of most people was, "Where? What did he say? Moneyball? Isn't that a book by Michael Lewis?" Okay, that last one was only me, but you get the picture. Nobody knew nor cared about Moneygall. God be with the days.

Now we have two counties practically ready to go to war over Moneygall. Although the media has repeatedly described Moneygall as being in County Offaly, it apparently could be considered to be in County Tipperary too. I only found this out today, thanks to the Irish Independent.

To my eye it seems that Offaly has the stronger claim, but let's face it the American media is going to be much happier with Tipperary - it's a known quantity - than Offaly. I can already hear it: "How do you pronounce that? Awfully?" Accuracy be damned, Tipperary has a strong hand here.

And then there's Kilkenny. The people of County Kilkenny want in on the action. "Moneygall? Offaly? Tipperary? Show me the ancestors!" they demand. You see, Falmouth's family left little by way of a permanent mark on Moneygall, but going back a bit further there is a definite relative - a grand-grand...uncle - Bishop John Kearney who is entombed in St Canice's Cathedral {photo} in the beautiful city of Kilkenny.

Now it's really getting ugly. You don't have a direct line in Kilkenny, but you have an actual tomb and it's a beautiful spot. Not just beautiful, but lively. The President's people will love Kilkenny and so will the American press.

You see how Obama has divided the people? The desire to claim him as a 'native son' could easily lead to blood, war, ruin. Offaly? Tipperary? Kilkenny? Bad-tempered hurling matches engender less bad feeling.

It was all so much simpler with President Bush. No county, no town or hamlet claimed him or wanted to be associated with him. (I think there was some distant connection, but it's been officially buried.) From Election Day in 2000 until he left office, the people of Ireland were quite content and of one mind in detesting the man.

Didn't matter what he did, they were against it. Every word out of his mouth was greeted with a sneer and every action with a protest. Those were happier times.

Now the country is choosing sides in a three-way battle to make Obama their own. It won't end well. As we all know, the Irish have long memories and this division will take generations to heal.

Ireland's health care example

On Monday the New York Times published a column by Paul Krugman that compared Ireland's and America's economic problems. Krugman is an economist and should know better than to omit the role played by the fact Ireland is in a monetary union with countries whose economies are not really in synch with our own. He should also know that comparing Ireland (GDP around $250bn) and the United States (GDP $14 trillion) is really of little value.

I didn't think much of Krugman's column, but he got me thinking, thinking about health care and if Ireland's experience was of any value to the American debate on the topic.

I haven't been following the ins and outs of America's health care debate. In fact, I don't really understand all that well how the Irish system works, even though I've lived here for nearly 20 years. Having said that, I can offer a couple of observations of the Irish system that may be of some use to you.

First, having the government run your health care system is no panacea. I don't know if we'd be better off with less government involvement, but based on the volume of media coverage of all that's wrong with the Irish health care system, I can't imagine it could be much worse.

For what seems like the 10th time in the last two years a major scandal in one (maybe more) of our hospitals is unfolding. This scandal is totally dominating the news here. {Nobody seems to care much about the Jihad-Jane-Irish-al-Qaeda-cell story that broke on Tuesday.}

All three major broadsheets are full of coverage of this latest fiasco in the health system and are calling on the Minister for Health, Mary Harney {photo}, to resign.

That brings up a related point. Problems in the health care system have the potential to generate such emotion among the population and provide so much fodder for the opposition parties that the normal functioning of the government seems to grind to a halt every time health hits the headlines. Maybe something to bear in mind?

Ireland is a small country and maybe the health care issues here have nothing to do with the fact that the state is so heavily involved in running it. Maybe things will be completely different in whatever form an American state-funded / state-run system takes. Maybe.

Or maybe it will be a bureaucratic, systematic mess like we have here now.

Ireland needs a 'Tea Party' movement

On Wednesday night BBC's "Newsnight" did a segment on the Tea Party movement in America. I'd heard about the Tea Party-ers, but only as a vague protest movement. The other night the BBC put a human face on them, interviewing a small gathering in someone's home in Washington, MO.

When it was over I thought to myself, "nothing like that would ever happen here." I don't know why, but the scene I was witnessing just seemed so American: people in a small town getting together to discuss what they could do to affect national politics. They seemed so determined to make a difference, to influence policy and - they stressed - to ensure that they weren't used and/or abused by one party of the other.

Ireland is only 1/100th the size of America, yet I think most Irish people feel a greater sense of frustration that there is nothing that can be done, that what 'they' (politicians) get up to is out of our control.

Ireland's issues and Irish voters are not the same as America's, so the Tea Party goals would not suit Ireland. Yet, the manner in which the Tea Party movement has channeled frustration with politicians among a segment of the electorate is a model that could be useful here.

The biggest source of anger in Ireland right now is the banks and the government's support for them. The Irish economy is on its knees, barely treading water. The NY Times recently mentioned Ireland as possibly having to default on its obligations, so great are the debts the government has taken on to shore up the banks.

Needless to say, many people are hopping mad that all of us taxpayers have to stump up to save the bankers, all of whom seemed to be coining it during the Celtic Tiger years.

This past week the government announced that they were going to hold an inquiry into what happened with the banks, but the inquiry is going to be held in secret. No tv cameras, no press, no nobody other than those who the government appointed inquiry head asks. The inquiry is expected to be complete by year's end.

There's a general cry out 'whitewash' across the country as everyone knows that the banking problem was a result of bankers' greed (and/or stupidity), developers' greed, regulatory bodies ineptitude and government indifference (or worse) until it was too late. Despite the frustration at the banks, politicians and developers the closest we've come to a protest movement here was when, in a widely applauded move, a man threw eggs at the chairman and chief executive of Allied Irish Banks last May.

If there was a Tea Party type movement Irish people might be able to use that anger to better effect, instead of simply stewing or calling and texting talk radio programs.They might just, perhaps, get the public inquiry and maybe even a banker or two on trial.

Ted's death - big news in Ireland, hardly news in France

Posted by TheYank at 8/27/2009 5:48 PM EDT

Last night I stayed in a little hotel just on the French side of the France/Belgium border. This morning I got a copy of the local paper (it was just lying around, I can't speak French) and was thumbing through it. Inside I came across a small item with the headline, "Ted Kennedy est mort." Like I said, I don't speak French, but even I could understand that one.

And I could pretty well understand the whole article. Why? Because it was about 35 words. That's it. That's all the coverage Senator Kennedy's death got in NW France. Quite a contrast to all the words written about Senator Kennedy in today's Irish papers.

There are times when America seems far away from Ireland, but when I'm in France or Belgium it seems as if the distance to Ireland is far greater than it is when I'm in New York. The death of Senator Kennedy was one of those times.

Of course Senator Kennedy was connected to Ireland, which is why the coverage was so extensive in the Irish papers. Still, there was a lot of analysis of his Senatorial career completely unrelated to his efforts on behalf of Ireland. There's just so much interest in America in Ireland, far more than there is in the goings-on in Ireland's fellow EU members.

Excepting Britain, I would say that 95% of the population would be hard pressed to name any European politicians that are not Prime Ministers. And, 95% may well be too low.