The Republic has well and truly go it’s act together. Celtic tiger and all that. The money that leaves this country and ends up in the US is a huge amount.
approx 80+ intel chips made in Ireland. Dell computers has a huge plant. IBM also has a FAB and serious manufacturing plants (close to the size of the plant in Burlingtom (VT)).
It’s those troublesome Nordies that coz all the shit 
If I’m already on the list, there’s nothing to stop me from spelling your name 1no, now, is there?
Yeah but didn’t all those states vote on those things? Or at least our fine representatives (for whom a few of us voted) voted on those things…
As for the airports, what do you expect us to do? Someone set us up the bomb!!
Next time I’m there I’ll buy 'em a round.
Yeah, well now my good man, if America is stupid enough to give it’s hard bombed-for dollars to Ireland and keep 39,500,000 of it’s own people in poverty, it only proves my point that America is not the lasnd of the free.
Surely the “land of the free” would look after it’s own people before giving away its cash?
So, America NOT= LATF.
Ireland, taking dirty cash from the US, NOT= fucking saints, but at least we’re free.
You say that like it’s a bad thing. 
From the CIA
2/3 of the population engaging in subsistence agriculture! It’s clear you think America is the fucking anti-christ, but even I can do the math; 66.6% living at a subsistance level does not in any way come out as ‘better’ than 15.8% living in poverty (the level of which, by the way, is above subsistance). We also haven’t been chopping off the hands of dissenters during a bloody civil war which just ended two years ago.
Like I said in my first post, your hyperbole is egregious. Either ammend your argument or shut the fuck up, but don’t continue to make dumb-assed statements that I’m sure you know are false, and then try to hold them up to scrutiny.
This is a hijack but what the fuck. This thread’s a load of wank anyway.
Bollocks. You didn’t bail anyone out. You fought a war the way you had too. A war which you were dragged kicking and screaming into like the first one when you had to deal with a possible alliance between Mexico and Germany. Nobody was bailed out. The US did it’s bit using all it’s capability which was considerable.
Ireland was neutral(although leaned towards the Allies) during the war but over 100,000 men left these shores to fight for the UK.
Well, that explains why nobody wants to move here any more.
Say, how’s that broadband service coming along? Joined the 20th century yet?
You are taking the piss. Buckle up it’s going to be a rough ride.
Incidentally, I’m still not exactly sure how or why you think Ireland is ‘more free’ than the US (which I guess is what your argument is shaping up as). Because our liquor laws are different than yours? Your sister couldn’t get a drink in Massachusetts on Sunday and now we’re an oppressive totalitarian regime? What exactly, if I may ask, is your point? What are you bases for comparison? What measure of ‘free’ are you using to make this judgment?
You clearly feel strongly about this, so why not try to frame a cohesive argument instead of spewing ill-thought pseudo-arguments that do nothing but illustrate your total lack of interest in being objective.
Forgive me for jumping into this menagerie of crap that you have unleashed upon an unwitting populace with what would seem to be an easily and factually answerable question.
First, cite called for on the study. Not because I doubt what the study says, but because I would like an explanation of what they use as their standard of policy in the U.S. and in the other 16 nations.
Is it based on yearly income, spending, etc? Heck, if I’m a millionaire, retired and living off of my interest income, I could easily qualify as below the poverty line if the only yardstick is my yearly income. Does the study take into account government assistance, current cash on hand, cost of living between countries, and an innumerable amount of other metrics that could skew study?
Um, I thought Ireland *was * in the middle of a civil war.
Nope that’s the Nordies I was talking about.
Trouble makers I tell you. Also playing with bombs and painting the side of buildings.
Check the link I posted earlier. If you want to read the entire report (warning: 3.4MB PDF link) the UN has it available here. The Irish government complains that the information used is grossly incorrect and outdated, probably because the study concluded that
Still, though, I’d rather live there than be chased by the Wolfman.
HAHAHA!
“Ireland was neutral.”. …although Ireland DID lean towards the Allies. I see.
Hilarious! I can just see it now. Ireland stands back and seriously considers its position at the start of WWII, and in spite of the clear ability to remain stong and neutral and handle whatever outcome occurs, they grudgingly side with the Allies.
And after Germany conquered England, they of course would have allowed Ireland to remain neutral, and affored them all the freedoms that were previously held.
Uh-huh. Pull your head out of your ass. Ireland is free because it was afforded to you by others, NOT because of something you did or do everyday.
“Mom, the cupboard is empty. Can you go to the store and get more food? And I need some money for gas and smokes since I can’t seem to hold a decent job. And, we **really ** do need to talk about the serious lack of beer in the fridge - you and Dad are really slipping here, and I’m starting to have some concerns that you aren’t really doing a good job of taking care of me and my needs. Why can’t you and Dad tend to your responsibilities without me having to constantly badger you and show you how messed up things are?”
It’s the U.N. Poverty Index.
You should try it sometime.
And for all the Americans who suddenly get all “this is a load of crap” when someone points out the bleeding obvious, come the fuck on, tell me 1. Does anyone think America is the “LOTF”, and 2. Why do these people think this ?
Reference to the Straw Man fallacy, of which your OP is fairly teeming with examples.
Yes, and I personally apologize on behalf of the entire country for that, but one of the little-known provisions of the USA Patriot Act was a directive that dry-cleaning establishments start printing patriotic slogans on their packaging. You see, if we don’t do that, the terrorists have already won.
Now, to further address your complaints:
Such-and-such a state: you can. Touche.
Such-and-such a state: You can! BTW, I’m terribly sorry your sister was unable to purchase these goods when and where she needed them. I hope she was able to make do, and may I suggest that next time she plan for self-pleasuring ahead of time?
Sorry; once more, in English, please. Assuming that ‘jammer’ refers to a vehicle of some sort, do you really think we need more drunken drivers careening around in our gigantic, lumbering SUVs than we already have?
No, just people from certain countries deemed by some bureaucrat somewhere to be potential sources of terrorists, who without a doubt, are even now plotting to destroy the laundry bags we hold dear. Unfortunately, no one asked me whether I thought this was a worthwhile idea before implementing this plan. I would have told them what I thought of it, believe me.
Anyway, thanks for your concerns; we apologize for the inconvenience, and we’ll try and have everything straightened out by your sister’s next visit.
Go easy on old Yo-jo. He isn’t even agreeing with me.
First off, for those who say Americans have no sense of history, I think the shoe is here on the other foot. Ireland is no longer part of the British Empire because of a chain of events that started when a bunch of American ignoramuses fought for independence. Had that not happened, you’d (arguably) still be living in an Empire where the King was the ultimate power.
The modern concept of “freedom” arguably began when li’l Tommy Jefferson and his cronies (say, around 1776) decided that government was based on the consent of the governed. And around 1789, when that same gang (pretty much) set up a form of republican government with a written constitution that guaranteed certain freedoms (freedom of speech, of religion, of assembly, etc.)
Up till that time, other countries ensured freedoms, of course. The Spanish Government’s Inquisition guaranteed freedom from heresy, for instance. And various governments guaranteed freedom from nasty foreigners.
So, America is entitled to call itself “land of the free” in the historic sense, in the same way that Egypt calls itself the “cradle of civilization” or that Italy calls itself the “home of the Renaissance.”
Second, you seem to be equating freedom with the ability to buy things. The U.S. is a republic, and there is constant discussion about allocation of power between the states and the federal government. Those states where the legislatures have restricted the ability of residents to purchase or sell certain items… well, most governments do that. Your vaunted Irish freedoms don’t include the freedom to buy or sell heroin or other drugs, I bet. Different governments draw different lines, the question is only whether those governments are elected representatives, enacting what (presumably) is wanted by the people governed.
And finally, let’s compare prices for commodities. America might not be the land of the “free”, but compared to Ireland (and most of the rest of the world), it’s certainly the land of the inexpensive. Plus, I’ll add, lower effective tax rates than most of the rest of the world (generally, the small number of countries with tax rates lower than the U.S. are called “tax havens.”)