OP Shitonya Brits
7 Apr 2019 / #61
As discussed there were several motives established behind Irish voters expressing their rage and rejection of Poland's hard-won and thoroughly merited accession to the EU.
I'm alright, Pollack, keep your hands off of my stack!
One was simply about the money and the profound fear and loathing which consumed the Irish at the mere prospect of having their EU welfare fix reduced should Poland join.
As an aside, I encourage readers to explore how Poland successfully used EU funds to stabilise, modernise and grow its economy year on year since accession.
Now compare Poland's responsible investment approach and resulting prosperity to Ireland's 40-plus year EU welfare dependency which still resulted in such ignominious highlights for Ireland like it being part of the profligate but insolvent nation of EU PIIGS during the Eurozone debt crisis during the 2000s. How Ireland pulled off dirty, behind-closed-doors deals with the EU to exceed its existing over-fishing capacity with its super trawler the Atlantic Dawn by allowing it to plunder West African fishing stocks and decimate local African livelihood. And how Ireland ultimately decided to facilitate murky global tax avoidance schemes by becoming the world's biggest corporate tax haven thus robbing countless communities all around the world of much needed revenue for local causes.
Give Ireland back to the Irish
Although Ireland found comfort and happiness in its dependency on the EU's udder, the Irish as voters indeed had other motive for ruling against Poland which were much more pathological and deeply rooted in centuries of ethno-nationalism.
I am not referring to the decades of discrimination and distrust which the established Irish immigrants in the New World exacted against newly arrived Polonia (this would be a voluminous thread topic all on its own).
Rather, there is no denying that the Irish Republic's violent history is one centred around protecting and preserving Irish identity. Today this is also classed under identitarianism.
The Irish struggle against the British is often portrayed as one between Catholics and Protestants. But this is misleading as it was never a conflict regarding differences in Christian practices of worship. Indeed, as a majority Catholic nation, the Irish people should have been the most enthusiastic of all about welcoming Poland due to her centuries of Catholic tradition and suppression under communism (more on that later).
But they were not.
Despite being a motley mix themselves, the Irish have always been acutely aware of their own ethnicity and what they regard as their own culture.
This began long before the 20th century with their wars with the Scottish who themselves were conquered by the English.
Although being completely Anglicised (even to the point of enjoying free rights to settle and enter politics in the UK akin to Puerto Ricans and the US), the Irish still spent most of the 20th century in vocal and violent opposition to Britain while deliberately remaining neutral and detached from Polish plight during WWI, WWII and the Cold War.
As stated in the study I shared, the Irish didn't even regard Poles as being European.
As far as the Irish were concerned Poles were just another bunch of foreigners on the Continent who didn't speak English.
Fast forward to 2001 and it is clear that Ireland's own membership in the EU did not change Irish nationalist sentiment at all.
It still kept simmering under the surface and only erupted into a raging boil at the ballot box when Poland's accession meant that Poles could also enjoy free movement of labour and the right to settle in other EU states like Ireland.
And the Irish nationalists were having none of it. Not only because they would have to compete with highly skilled Poles on their own Irish turf but because they knew their Irish identity would once again face displacement if not replacement.
For Irish nationalists they knew their identitarian struggle would continue and their no vote was their warning shot that Poland should back off and go away.
One last time for Lenin
Irish nationalism however should not be seen as a monolithic movement but rather as a unified objective which inspired and beckoned many radicals from across Ireland's incongruous society.
Take for example the Irish Republic Army which had many active members and even more tacit supporters.
What is not widely known (because it isn't talked about) is that the IRA had Marxist political origins.
Not only that but the IRA also entered into a secret agreement with the Soviet Union in the 1920s to secure funding and solicit weaponry. The IRA also regularly met with Soviet officials in Moscow, London and New York throughout the 1930s, 1940s and beyond.
But thanks to true Poles and Second Polish Republic champions like Zbigniew Brzezinski and Karol Wojtyla (aka Pope John Paul II) Poland was liberated from Soviet occupation and oppression once and for all.
However, Poland's declaration of freedom clearly would never be welcomed by any living pro-Soviet IRA member or their descendants.
Obviously, these "The Red Flag" whistling Bolshevik has-beens took their grudge out on free and independent Poland at the Irish ballot box.
NB: "The Red Flag" is a socialist anthem written proudly by an Irishman.
It's all there.
I'm alright, Pollack, keep your hands off of my stack!
One was simply about the money and the profound fear and loathing which consumed the Irish at the mere prospect of having their EU welfare fix reduced should Poland join.
As an aside, I encourage readers to explore how Poland successfully used EU funds to stabilise, modernise and grow its economy year on year since accession.
Now compare Poland's responsible investment approach and resulting prosperity to Ireland's 40-plus year EU welfare dependency which still resulted in such ignominious highlights for Ireland like it being part of the profligate but insolvent nation of EU PIIGS during the Eurozone debt crisis during the 2000s. How Ireland pulled off dirty, behind-closed-doors deals with the EU to exceed its existing over-fishing capacity with its super trawler the Atlantic Dawn by allowing it to plunder West African fishing stocks and decimate local African livelihood. And how Ireland ultimately decided to facilitate murky global tax avoidance schemes by becoming the world's biggest corporate tax haven thus robbing countless communities all around the world of much needed revenue for local causes.
Give Ireland back to the Irish
Although Ireland found comfort and happiness in its dependency on the EU's udder, the Irish as voters indeed had other motive for ruling against Poland which were much more pathological and deeply rooted in centuries of ethno-nationalism.
I am not referring to the decades of discrimination and distrust which the established Irish immigrants in the New World exacted against newly arrived Polonia (this would be a voluminous thread topic all on its own).
Rather, there is no denying that the Irish Republic's violent history is one centred around protecting and preserving Irish identity. Today this is also classed under identitarianism.
The Irish struggle against the British is often portrayed as one between Catholics and Protestants. But this is misleading as it was never a conflict regarding differences in Christian practices of worship. Indeed, as a majority Catholic nation, the Irish people should have been the most enthusiastic of all about welcoming Poland due to her centuries of Catholic tradition and suppression under communism (more on that later).
But they were not.
Despite being a motley mix themselves, the Irish have always been acutely aware of their own ethnicity and what they regard as their own culture.
This began long before the 20th century with their wars with the Scottish who themselves were conquered by the English.
Although being completely Anglicised (even to the point of enjoying free rights to settle and enter politics in the UK akin to Puerto Ricans and the US), the Irish still spent most of the 20th century in vocal and violent opposition to Britain while deliberately remaining neutral and detached from Polish plight during WWI, WWII and the Cold War.
As stated in the study I shared, the Irish didn't even regard Poles as being European.
As far as the Irish were concerned Poles were just another bunch of foreigners on the Continent who didn't speak English.
Fast forward to 2001 and it is clear that Ireland's own membership in the EU did not change Irish nationalist sentiment at all.
It still kept simmering under the surface and only erupted into a raging boil at the ballot box when Poland's accession meant that Poles could also enjoy free movement of labour and the right to settle in other EU states like Ireland.
And the Irish nationalists were having none of it. Not only because they would have to compete with highly skilled Poles on their own Irish turf but because they knew their Irish identity would once again face displacement if not replacement.
For Irish nationalists they knew their identitarian struggle would continue and their no vote was their warning shot that Poland should back off and go away.
One last time for Lenin
Irish nationalism however should not be seen as a monolithic movement but rather as a unified objective which inspired and beckoned many radicals from across Ireland's incongruous society.
Take for example the Irish Republic Army which had many active members and even more tacit supporters.
What is not widely known (because it isn't talked about) is that the IRA had Marxist political origins.
Not only that but the IRA also entered into a secret agreement with the Soviet Union in the 1920s to secure funding and solicit weaponry. The IRA also regularly met with Soviet officials in Moscow, London and New York throughout the 1930s, 1940s and beyond.
But thanks to true Poles and Second Polish Republic champions like Zbigniew Brzezinski and Karol Wojtyla (aka Pope John Paul II) Poland was liberated from Soviet occupation and oppression once and for all.
However, Poland's declaration of freedom clearly would never be welcomed by any living pro-Soviet IRA member or their descendants.
Obviously, these "The Red Flag" whistling Bolshevik has-beens took their grudge out on free and independent Poland at the Irish ballot box.
"The Red Flag"
NB: "The Red Flag" is a socialist anthem written proudly by an Irishman.
It's all there.