Why is Irish still compulsory?

Ficheall

I was shocked to see a (small) wall of McDonald's advertising trí Ghaeilge in the McDonald's at Liverpool St Station in London today.

riclad

Let people who want to learn it learn it, people go to gaelschoils ,thats fine .Make it voluntary.
IF half the money spent on irish ,was spent on it,technology stem,science teaching ,
we,d have a better qualified workforce in 8 years from now.
Culture is a living thing, we have gaa, irish music, books, storys.
WE have to face the fact ,most people don,t speak irish in daily life.
WE need to have more teachers ,reduce the pupil teacher ratio.
Spending more money on irish now is just stupid.
UNfortunately irish doe,s little to help on economy .
WE are not short of culture in ireland.
But we need a modern education system to revive the economy and compete with other countrys.
I don,t remember learning irish in primary school at all.

Barc66

Lads,

Very simple solution to this which makes this thread irrelevant (although i agree with the original poster that irish should def not be compulsory)

Just take 7 subjects for your leaving cert. Do irish at foundation level (or whatever the lowest level is these days). Spend pretty much zero time on the subject. Dont bother doing any of the homework the teacher gives you (what exactly can they do if you refuse?).

Then simply spend all your time on the other 6 subjects, and leave out irish entirely from your CV when you get the inevitable F grade. This is exactly what i did.

You're all welcome.

looking_around

Barc66 wrote: »

Lads,

Very simple solution to this which makes this thread irrelevant (although i agree with the original poster that irish should def not be compulsory)

Just take 7 subjects for your leaving cert. Do irish at foundation level (or whatever the lowest level is these days). Spend pretty much zero time on the subject. Dont bother doing any of the homework the teacher gives you (what exactly can they do if you refuse?).

Then simply spend all your time on the other 6 subjects, and leave out irish entirely from your CV when you get the inevitable F grade. This is exactly what i did.

You're all welcome.

You can actually, not sign up for it for the LC.

I replaced Irish with applied maths in my final year. (didn't even bother going to class, and didn't bother doing any exams. I only 'applied' fot 6 subjects I'd be doing, so it's not even on my LC ) And as of yet, has not been any issue getting college placements etc.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

looking_around wrote: »

You can actually, not sign up for it for the LC.

I replaced Irish with applied maths in my final year. (didn't even bother going to class, and didn't bother doing any exams. I only 'applied' fot 6 subjects I'd be doing, so it's not even on my LC ) And as of yet, has not been any issue getting college placements etc.

But what if you do actually want to study a specific seventh subject? In place out Irish?

Barc66

looking_around wrote: »

You can actually, not sign up for it for the LC.

I replaced Irish with applied maths in my final year. (didn't even bother going to class, and didn't bother doing any exams. I only 'applied' fot 6 subjects I'd be doing, so it's not even on my LC ) And as of yet, has not been any issue getting college placements etc.

Oh right, did not know that was possible. Assumed the compulsory element of Irish had college application implications, otherwise I would have done the same.

We need to get the word out to people that they need not follow these cultural fascists like sheep. People need to be confident enough to forge their own path and not waste time on a dying language they do not enjoy.

looking_around

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

But what if you do actually want to study a specific seventh subject? In place out Irish?

I was actually studying
biology, chemistry, physics, english, maths, applied maths, german = 7 subjects.

But I dropped biology because it had begun to feel like "too much" and I was under a huge amount of stress. (looking back I should've dropped applied maths.. but you live and learn.)

Barc66 wrote: »

Oh right, did not know that was possible. Assumed the compulsory element of Irish had college application implications, otherwise I would have done the same.

We need to get the word out to people that they need not follow these cultural fascists like sheep. People need to be confident enough to forge their own path and not waste time on a dying language they do not enjoy.

Yes, alot of people don't realise that it isn't important. Some colleges/uni's do require Irish. Many do not and even those that do, well, like I said, hasn't stopped me being offered places. (I mean there are people who arrived at the country..I think it's 11 years of age? 14? ..They do not have to do Irish. I think colleges just assume it's that. I've never been questioned about it. )
Just tell students to look at the uni requirements. Most Say "English OR Irish, and a second language, and maths, and 2 higher level C's "..etc... depends on the course. But yes, students need to realise, that they have the right to choose. And they can choose not to do Irish and there's little the school can do about it. More importantly, it won't hamper them in the slightest. (Unless they want to be an Irish teacher of course :pac: ..)

SimonTemplar

dodderangler wrote: »

Basically you want irish language gone?
Have some fcukin respect. It's our native tongue and it'd be an awful shame to lose it and see it gone.

Forcing people to learn Irish who have no interest in it, aptitude for it or who never use it after the Leaving Cert. is not a way to keep a language alive.

RandomName2

Barc66 wrote: »

Lads,

Very simple solution to this which makes this thread irrelevant (although i agree with the original poster that irish should def not be compulsory)

Just take 7 subjects for your leaving cert. Do irish at foundation level (or whatever the lowest level is these days). Spend pretty much zero time on the subject. Dont bother doing any of the homework the teacher gives you (what exactly can they do if you refuse?).

Then simply spend all your time on the other 6 subjects, and leave out irish entirely from your CV when you get the inevitable F grade. This is exactly what i did.

You're all welcome.

Then you're barred from certain public service roles (like teaching) and entering certain universities (like UCD).

Pretty big price to pay...

looking_around

RandomName2 wrote: »

Then you're barred from certain public service roles (like teaching) and entering certain universities (like UCD).

Pretty big price to pay...

Not teaching in Secondary school.

And there's nothing to stop you doing Irish on evenings. If you decide you need it for what you want.

btw, I dare say the majority of students don't go to UCD and aren't even considering it as a choice. Like I said. Tell students to look at uni requirements, and decide if it's worth it to them.

For the requirements though (not points.) you can 'repeat' the LC just to do the subjects you're missing.

I know some who did this for biology/chemisty.

UCDCritic

Azwaldo55 wrote: »

Apart from some sheep farmers in Donegal and Galway and Kerry nobody speaks the language on a daily basis.
Nobody!
Yet precious hours every week that could be better spent training our children for the challenges of the modern economy are wasted on forcing them to try and understand a tongue they find impenetrable and will never have any need to speak.
The most spoken language in this country is English. End of.
The ideology behind maintaining the myth that Irish should be compulsory is hardline republicanism which claims that one day all Irish people will speak Irish.
Whether they want to or not! Whether the language is of any use or not!
The usual refrain of the Irish language fanatics is that it would be a shame to see it go and why should Irish speakers be denied the right to converse in their naked tongue.
A Dubliner who only goes to Galway on the odd holiday or maybe a stag night is supposed to be able to speak this tongue which they would otherwise never speak to please a few thousand people who probably speak English when they come to Dublin.
Most of the craw thumping lunatics who believe the Irish language will one day overcome the foreign tongue surprise surprise cannot speak the language themselves.
Yet they want to force the rest of the non-Irish speaking population to speak this dead language to keep a romantic notion alive and accuse anyone who doesn't want to speak it of being a West Brit!
Having grown up having to learn off atrociously bad poetry by Gabriel Rosenstock I thoroughly despise it and I burned my Irish books the day I left school.
I don't want to stop people from learning the language but it should not be compulsory.
If you want to put yourself willingly through that torture that's fine.
I'm delighted for you.
That should not be my business.
Inflicting this compulsory language has created a hatred and hostility to the language which has ensured its demise as generations of school children refuse to learn it.
The Irish language does not define me as Irish and I would lose nothing if it is gone. It does not define me and I will not miss it if it dies.
How many jobs to you actually need jobs for?
Apart from being Irish language teachers?
Should people be forced to speak Irish to conduct all our business and daily life through the medium or face a firing squad?
So why oh why should Irish be foisted on us?
It is utterly ridiculous to keep it compulsory in our schools.

Irish is still taught because it's a part of our culture and you should be proud of it.

Carlos Orange

UCDCritic wrote: »

Irish is still taught because it's a part of our culture and you should be proud of it.

Why?

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

UCDCritic wrote: »

Irish is still taught because it's a part of our culture and you should be proud of it.

No, it's a part of YOUR culture and to try and pass it off as part of someone else's culture when you don't know them is arrogant.

Seaneh

Azwaldo55 wrote: »

I have never heard the language spoken even once in everyday conversation anywhere in Ireland outside of the Irish speaking areas of the country. Not even once.

Galway City isn't an "Irish speaking area" but almost every day of the 5 years I lived in Galway I heard people using Irish in their every day life.

I lived in Dublin for over a year, Dublin being the furthest from an "Irish speaking area" in the country and I still heard people using Irish in certain establishments in the city.

So either your head is buried in the sand or you just don't pay attention.

Seaneh

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

No, it's a part of YOUR culture and to try and pass it off as part of someone else's culture when you don't know them is arrogant.

No, it's part of our collective culture as a nation, and to try and deny that is idiotic.

UCDCritic

Princess Consuela Bananahammock wrote: »

No, it's a part of YOUR culture and to try and pass it off as part of someone else's culture when you don't know them is arrogant.

What country are you living?

This is Ireland, we speak Irish, Irish is everywhere. Half of all government literature is in Irish.

If you're Irish it's a part of your culture and Identity, end of story.

Carlos Orange

Seaneh wrote: »

I lived in Dublin for over a year, Dublin being the furthest from an "Irish speaking area" in the country and I still heard people using Irish in certain establishments in the city.

What would the certain establishments in Dublin be called?

Carlos Orange

UCDCritic wrote: »

What country are you living?

This is Ireland, we speak Irish, Irish is everywhere. Half of all government literature is in Irish.

If you're Irish it's a part of your culture and Identity, end of story.

Except it isn't everywhere. The only places I see written Irish are where it is legally mandated. I go years without hearing people speak Irish on the street. Maybe everyone switches back to Irish after I walk by but I suspect not.

Questioning peoples nationality isn't really an endearing argument either.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Seaneh wrote: »

No, it's part of our collective culture as a nation, and to try and deny that is idiotic.

Is it? I spetn 30+ years living in Ireland and I don;t remmeber it being a great deal of any national collective culture.

What does "culture" mean to you anyway?

UCDCritic wrote: »

What country are you living?

This is Ireland, we speak Irish, Irish is everywhere. Half of all government literature is in Irish.

If you're Irish it's a part of your culture and Identity, end of story.

I live in Germany, what's the relevance of that?

The rest of your argument is fallacy - English is more commonly spoken than Irish and half of all government literature is only in Irish because it's constitutionally mandated.

There is no way you can attribute any one chracteristic to an entire nation - and say it's their "identity". That's just insane.

I was born in Ireland. I grew up in ireland. I was taught Irish, but I never really learnt it. I never liked it and I never related ot it. It simple was not a part of who I was. It was not a part of my culture and it most certainly NOT a part of my identity!

But again, what is "culture" to you? And what is "identity"? And why do you think you can pin these attributes on every individual who happens to be born within a political location?

Iwasfrozen

UCDCritic wrote: »

What country are you living?

This is Ireland, we speak Irish, Irish is everywhere. Half of all government literature is in Irish.

If you're Irish it's a part of your culture and Identity, end of story.

IRISH IS THE LANDGUAGE OF IRELAND.

LALALALA

I CAN'T HEAR YOOOOU LALALALA

WilyCoyote

It is compulsory for the self same reason that speaking Irish was outlawed by the Brits in olden times ........... brainwashing!

And most of the parents that send their kids to schools like Stillorgan or Oakley Rd would be considered sleveens by any normal thinking amoeba.

Thor

Language is a tool for communication purposes. Learning a second language is done for the benefit of communicating with the population/people that uses it. If I want to live in Germany, it would be a massive benefit to learn German, and nearly a necessity if I wished to work their full time.

Their is no fundamental reason to learn the Irish language for use in the real world. Simply put, it's a dead and irrelevant language, being kept alive simply out of respect for something that we lost as a nation a long time ago. We don't use it, nor do we have a need for it.

Even if everyone who was taught it in school could speak it perfectly, they would only be able to communicate with others that spoke it. The problem is that nearly all of them would also speak English as well, meaning you have learnt a second language for no benefit.

Teaching children a language that will have no benefit in their adult years is a waste of time and that's the real argument. Not whether people should learn it at all. Should someone wish to learn it for their own reasons, that's perfectly fine, and they have the freedom to do that. However, making it a compulsory language only negates the fact that some consider it a culture benefit. You must want to learn something or it really won't have any meaning at all.

I'm all for anyone wishing to learn anything they want, and if Irish is a language you wish to learn, then by all means. The issue is effectively forcing children to learn something that offers no benefit in the real world and in most cases will be ignored throughout their adult hood anyway. Is making it compulsory really the way to show a language any respect or honour, as people seem to wish we do.

Language is more Nature, than culture. It adapts as we need it to. We're forcing a language to stay relevant for the wrong reasons. How we spell and pronounce words change over time. Most languages are only a remnant of the original language. While that can't be said about all languages, it stands to reason that any cultural respect over a language isn't real, as language will evolve with time and in some cases, be blended with the words of another.

Sorry for the long post, but I was slightly bored waiting for my camera to charge to do some videos.

WilyCoyote

dodderangler wrote: »

Basically you want irish language gone?
Have some fcukin respect. It's our native tongue and it'd be an awful shame to lose it and see it gone.

Are you serious? Language is a medium of communication. Nothing else.
It's a dead language - like Latin. What would you think of Italians that wanted to introduce Latin as the Lingua franca?

9bred4

beatha teanga í a labhairt

WilyCoyote

9bred4 wrote: »

beatha teanga í a labhairt

Really? In Londis?

9bred4

WilyCoyote wrote: »

Really? In Londis?

Am I missing something here?

mickydoomsux

UCDCritic wrote: »

What country are you living?

This is Ireland, we speak Irish, Irish is everywhere. Half of all government literature is in Irish.

If you're Irish it's a part of your culture and Identity, end of story.

"We" don't speak Irish. The few kids in school who are forced to endure this irrelevant nonsense speak it because they have to along with a tiny vocal minority of awkward arseholes who refuse to let it die like it should.

The fact that half of government literature is in Irish is actually a negative point because it is a waste of time and money translating it to appease a tiny minority of people.

VinLieger

UCDCritic wrote: »

What country are you living?

This is Ireland, we speak Irish, Irish is everywhere. Half of all government literature is in Irish.

If you're Irish it's a part of your culture and Identity, end of story.

My god your deluded i know maybe 5 people in my life who are anywhere near fluent or even interested in speaking Irish.

We don't speak irish, a very small minority do. Also the only reason half of all government literature is still in Irish is due to people like you who refuse to acknowledge that its a waste of time and money to continue the charade that its our first language

comongethappy

UCDCritic wrote: »

you should be proud of it.

Or what?

Can one not chose what they feel like being proud of?

Awkward Badger

I think its gone well beyond the point of it being reasonable, useful, necessary or beneficial to ignore the fact that English is now the native language of Ireland. Everyone speaks it and most people speak it exclusively.

When I hear someone say nonsense like "Irish is your native tongue, you should respect it and be proud of it" it annoys me no end. First of all its not. I was raised to speak English just like my parents and just like their parents. Any Irish in the last three/four generations of my family has been very minimal. Its about as native to me as building Cairns. Its native to the country not the current generation of people.

mickstupp

My friend's son couldn't do science in Maynooth as he'd elected to do Foundation level Irish rather than Ordinary or Higher. Doesn't matter if his marks will get him into Physics with Astrophysics or whatever it was. They require O/H Irish for no good reason whatsoever. And it's genuinely no good reason since that so-called requirement disappears once you hit 23.

Mackas_view

Chances are we are dealing with a fairly immature adult in the OP.

mickydoomsux

mickstupp wrote: »

My friend's son couldn't do science in Maynooth as he'd elected to do Foundation level Irish rather than Ordinary or Higher. Doesn't matter if his marks will get him into Physics with Astrophysics or whatever it was. They require O/H Irish for no good reason whatsoever. And it's genuinely no good reason since that so-called requirement disappears once you hit 23.

That kind of thing still existing in modern Ireland is utterly ridiculous.

Once most people finish their leaving cert Irish paper they'll never even think about the language for the rest of their lives and yet it is a requirement for numerous college courses that it has nothing to do with.

Akrasia

We need to know irish so we can understand the commentary on tg4 for the minor and under 21s hurling and for the rabo direct rugby

Also, for talking to each other on buses in London without the hated british knowing what we're saying (usually "can i have permission to go to the toilet please?")

riclad

Gaa is part of our culture,folk music is part of out culture.Irish dancing is part of our culture.
BUT we don,t force every child to learn music or dancing ,
if its part of our culture it will go on regardless of the education system.
ITS ridiculous that someone cant do a physics degree cos they got a d in irish in the leaving .

comongethappy

Akrasia wrote: »

Also, for talking to each other on buses in London without the hated british knowing what we're saying (usually "can i have permission to go to the toilet please?")

The Sasnach must never know our bladder status!

Nor can they know our weakness for ceaprai feoil & milsean!

BeerWolf

When I moved to Ireland, I'd have only just finished "Class 5" [Standard 5 it was called].

I completely skipped Class 6 and entered secondary school 1st year. And so was completely exempted from learning Irish. Had I gone for class 6 after the move, I'd have had to do it --- lucky me. :P

stevie1122

FunLover18 wrote: »

Also those saying it's a part of our history and culture. Why isn't Irish history, Irish music, and all other aspects of Irish culture compulsory at LC level.

Because language is a different thing how many people in other countries that speak their own language fluently do you think would have a good understanding of their countries history or music?

Religion is forced on children in schools but you don't think theirs any problem with that yet the countries national language being forced on children annoys you?

Next people will be suggesting we replace Irish in schools with Polish, Lithuanian or Yoruba. (I wouldn't be surprised if that has been suggested already)



Not directed at the person who's post I quoted and yes I know I am going off topic but going by the posts I have read in this thread a lot of people have no pride in their heritage and this is part of the reason the country is in the hole it's in right now. Look at what Greece, Egypt, Syria, Libya did over the last few years to try and change what was going in the country while the Irish as usual sit back and just take it. At this stage now the Government could start charging for oxygen and they would probably get away it. The usual I don't care lazy attitude Irish attitude. Like the round of applause the national team got at Euro 2012 from the fans attending the games after a disgraceful tournament and what was probably the worst performance of any country so far in the history of the competition.

Anyway rant over and the whole Irish language thing really annoys me I could go about it all day so I won't be posting in or even looking this thread again because even just reading some of the previous posts annoyed me.

threeball

Was over in Wales recently and had to admire and envy the way they have kept their language strong and vibrant without compromising the advantages that come with being English speakers. The whole Irish language situation is absolutely embarrassing when you see that a country pretty much integrated into the English way of life has held on to their identity.

The only problem with Irish is the way its taught. The liom, leat, leis, leithi Nazis destroy the desire to speak the language. When a child starts to speak for the first time you don't correct their every mistake, you work with them until a point comes where the language is so easy that you can correct a pronunciation etc without any difficulty.

Getting rid of the language would be just another stupid decision in a country full of stupid decisions.

comongethappy

threeball wrote: »

Getting rid of the language would be just another stupid decision in a country full of stupid decisions.

Who said get rid?

Let those who want it, go nuts on it.
& leave the rest alone.

Free will..... There is nothing to fear.

Grayson

stevie1122 wrote: »

Because language is a different thing how many people in other countries that speak their own language fluently do you think would have a good understanding of their countries history or music?

Religion is forced on children in schools but you don't think theirs any problem with that yet the countries national language being forced on children annoys you?

Next people will be suggesting we replace Irish in schools with Polish, Lithuanian or Yoruba. (I wouldn't be surprised if that has been suggested already)



Not directed at the person who's post I quoted and yes I know I am going off topic but going by the posts I have read in this thread a lot of people have no pride in their heritage and this is part of the reason the country is in the hole it's in right now. Look at what Greece, Egypt, Syria, Libya did over the last few years to try and change what was going in the country while the Irish as usual sit back and just take it. At this stage now the Government could start charging for oxygen and they would probably get away it. The usual I don't care lazy attitude Irish attitude. Like the round of applause the national team got at Euro 2012 from the fans attending the games after a disgraceful tournament and what was probably the worst performance of any country so far in the history of the competition.

Anyway rant over and the whole Irish language thing really annoys me I could go about it all day so I won't be posting in or even looking this thread again because even just reading some of the previous posts annoyed me.

Just because someone isn't a fervent as you about the cause you care passionately about, isn't the same as not caring in general.

You'll find that most people who don't want Irish to be compulsory have put a lot of thought into it. You're just trying to make them into bad people so you can explain why they don't follow your belief.

Carlos Orange

stevie1122 wrote: »

Religion is forced on children in schools but you don't think theirs any problem with that yet the countries national language being forced on children annoys you?

I'm sure you could find one or two people who object to the role of religion in schools. There is a significant difference between the two things though. When I went to school religion may have been forced upon me but it was also part of my life outside of school. Even now being Catholic is a part of way more peoples life in Ireland than speaking Irish is. Saying Ireland is an Irish speaking country is a fiction. Saying Ireland is a Catholic country was largely true and still is to a degree.

riclad

Irish is very useful, if you are applying for a job, teaching ,in rte/tg4.
OR need maximum points for a high point college course ,

IF you are applying to do IT in college , your irish results may be of no
value.
otherwise it has no value in real life for 95 per cent of the population.
Most employers place little value on it,
they might look at your leaving cert results in english, maths, science ,
to assess your level of intelligence .
I Could have a great interest in irish poetry ,music, short storys,
it won,t help me to get a job in ibm, or google.
IF my points are low in maths,science ,english.

Ficheall

riclad wrote: »

Irish is very useful, if you are applying for a job, teaching ,in rte/tg4.
OR need maximum points for a high point college course ,

IF you are applying to do IT in college , your irish results may be of no
value.
otherwise it has no value in real life for 95 per cent of the population.
Most employers place little value on it,
they might look at your leaving cert results in english, maths, science ,
to assess your level of intelligence .
I Could have a great interest in irish poetry ,music, short storys,
it won,t hel[p me to get a job in ibm, or google.
IF my points are low in maths,science ,english.

An Irish Kipling...

Iwasfrozen

stevie1122 wrote: »

Because language is a different thing how many people in other countries that speak their own language fluently do you think would have a good understanding of their countries history or music?

Religion is forced on children in schools but you don't think theirs any problem with that yet the countries national language being forced on children annoys you?

Next people will be suggesting we replace Irish in schools with Polish, Lithuanian or Yoruba. (I wouldn't be surprised if that has been suggested already)



Not directed at the person who's post I quoted and yes I know I am going off topic but going by the posts I have read in this thread a lot of people have no pride in their heritage and this is part of the reason the country is in the hole it's in right now. Look at what Greece, Egypt, Syria, Libya did over the last few years to try and change what was going in the country while the Irish as usual sit back and just take it. At this stage now the Government could start charging for oxygen and they would probably get away it. The usual I don't care lazy attitude Irish attitude. Like the round of applause the national team got at Euro 2012 from the fans attending the games after a disgraceful tournament and what was probably the worst performance of any country so far in the history of the competition.

Anyway rant over and the whole Irish language thing really annoys me I could go about it all day so I won't be posting in or even looking this thread again because even just reading some of the previous posts annoyed me.

If you want to learn Irish go ahead but you have no right to force your opinions on other people.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

threeball wrote: »

Was over in Wales recently and had to admire and envy the way they have kept their language strong and vibrant without compromising the advantages that come with being English speakers. The whole Irish language situation is absolutely embarrassing when you see that a country pretty much integrated into the English way of life has held on to their identity.

The only problem with Irish is the way its taught. The liom, leat, leis, leithi Nazis destroy the desire to speak the language. When a child starts to speak for the first time you don't correct their every mistake, you work with them until a point comes where the language is so easy that you can correct a pronunciation etc without any difficulty.

Getting rid of the language would be just another stupid decision in a country full of stupid decisions.

This strawman argument has been presented nmerous times already and, I'm sure, will continue to be.

I say strawman, because the thread title clearly states "compulsory". It does not say "existing". We do NOT want to get rid of it.

We just want those who disagree with you to have that right to disagree with you.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

stevie1122 wrote: »

Because language is a different thing how many people in other countries that speak their own language fluently do you think would have a good understanding of their countries history or music?

Religion is forced on children in schools but you don't think theirs any problem with that yet the countries national language being forced on children annoys you?

Next people will be suggesting we replace Irish in schools with Polish, Lithuanian or Yoruba. (I wouldn't be surprised if that has been suggested already)



Not directed at the person who's post I quoted and yes I know I am going off topic but going by the posts I have read in this thread a lot of people have no pride in their heritage and this is part of the reason the country is in the hole it's in right now. Look at what Greece, Egypt, Syria, Libya did over the last few years to try and change what was going in the country while the Irish as usual sit back and just take it. At this stage now the Government could start charging for oxygen and they would probably get away it. The usual I don't care lazy attitude Irish attitude. Like the round of applause the national team got at Euro 2012 from the fans attending the games after a disgraceful tournament and what was probably the worst performance of any country so far in the history of the competition.

Anyway rant over and the whole Irish language thing really annoys me I could go about it all day so I won't be posting in or even looking this thread again because even just reading some of the previous posts annoyed me.

Again strawman! The thread title says "Irish" it does not say (and no is anyone on this thread with half a brain suggesting) "languages".

Have exactly the saem problem with compulsory religion. Most of us who are argining for freedom of choice would!

If people can't argue the points raised and have to invent rguments that the can argue, then perhaps it IS best you read elsewhere!

WilyCoyote

9bred4 wrote: »

Am I missing something here?

Londis, Waterville!

9bred4

WilyCoyote wrote: »

Londis, Waterville!

Yes.. what about it ha

feargale

Just curious - what does OP think of Israel's Hebrew revival. Does OP approve?