The Irish Language is a fake passport, a false identity created by a nationalist state. For the most part the Irish language is dead, it lay on a hospital bed in 1909 when Peadar Kearney wrote “The Soldier’s Song”, which was later popularised by the IRB in the 1916 rising before becoming our National Anthem and translated into Irish for safe keeping. As our National Anthem we only stopped singing it in English in the 1930’s, in attempt to legitimize the budding Republic.

The bucket fed Irish we see in school books is a hybrid common Irish, it’s a watered down version of the language devoid of culture and ‘blas’.  This is to ensure it appeals to a wider public in an inoffensive fashion just like Starbucks coffee.  Book Irish is nothing more than 'Gaeilge Puca' and our ancestors might not even recognise it if they heard it spoken.  

The language serves little purpose unless you’re visiting the graves of 19th century Ireland on a regular basis or in case you get into a fist fight in Dingle, in which case a quick phrase like “Ciarrai Abu” will turn things around to have you back drinking with the locals and listening to tales about “The Bomber Liston” and the golden years of Kerry Football.

Irish is really only for hobby language enthusiasts and provoking the DUP. Generally speaking you’re only entitled to hold one of two positions about Irish, you either love Irish and speak it, or you don’t love Irish and shut up.

The problem with being a language nationalist is that it gets in the way of people being Irish for different reasons. We’re very likely heading towards a United Ireland and we’re going to have to rethink our identity to accommodate six counties, including why we sing our national anthem in Irish. Continuing to sing it ‘as gaeilge’ may be considered a sectarian move set to alienate our new neighbours.  

I’d be a huge advocate of the language on a personal level and I fully support any initiatives to promote it or preserve it. However I’m also in favour of removing it from our schools so our children can learn more practical language skills and compete with the nations of Europe for jobs and export markets. If we are going to imagine an Ireland of the future we’re going to have to look forward and it’s hard to imagine the Irish language continuing to play such a sentimental and antagonising role in society.  

Coming to terms with the death of the Irish Language will be difficult, the denial stage is over and some people may be angry for a while but once we accept it we will take our place amongst the nations of the earth.
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(Picture from a series of collages by Sean Hillen called “What’s Wrong”, the post may not represent his views)

Most people in Ireland will know more about Trump’s shut down than the DUP walkout in Northern Ireland. This is because RTE news coverage of Northern Ireland is nonexistent and in addition to that the Irish government has played no part in helping restore power in Stormont, albeit it’s hard to compete with billion pound bribes from the UK. That said the only sound bites we’ve gotten from the coalition (not a coalition) have been misinformation criticising Sinn Fein for not taking their seats in Westminster, skirting the issue of power sharing in Northern Ireland.

The stalemate in Northern Ireland began over a Sinn Fein’s request to have the Irish language recognised as an equal language in Northern Ireland, like it is in the Republic of Ireland and in the European Parliament. The DUP refuse to have Irish words appear on public buildings and road signage not to mind recognise it as an equal language. The issue resulted in a government shutdown in January 2017. In June 2017 the DUP agreed a £1billion deal to support the conservative party in Westminster instead of taking their seats in Stormont, thus ending power sharing.

The stalemate in Northern Ireland clearly benefitted one party over the other, the Irish media have failed to criticise the DUP for their actions or provide coverage challenging the shut down.  

In America I fear the shut can last as long as Trump is willing to continue it as he stands to benefit most from the outcome as any compromise the Democrats make will only bolster Trump’s 2020 campaign.  The wall was a comical idea that the world laughed off and any compromise in its funding will only legitimise the proposal. In one way half a wall would be worse than a full wall because he’d have more support to finish the job.

We’re truly entering a very strange space in the history of America as an egomaniac attempts to build a wonder of the world in his own name and he’s literally inches away from funding it.
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The truth about stalemates is that they do benefit one party, and it’s always the one that acts like the victim because they are on the losing side of the board. 

Toon by Dave Power ​@DaveBrownToons

It’s a new year and Netflix is jampacked full of January frills, just like your local gym. I haven’t written a Netflix review since watching Audrie & Daisy, possibly because I was traumatised by it, possibly because Netflix documentaries feel like infomercials, but Struggle really grabbed my attention.

The trailer alone is super exciting “The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski” depicts the world of a hidden genius with a short temperament and colossal ego. The documentary goes on to depict Szukalski as a misunderstood megalomaniac.

The trailer opens with the line;
“He was creating art that was inspired by another dimension”

Before concluding with;
“We need to rewrite the history books”

Now if that doesn’t grab your attention you’re living a very fast life indeed. 

Stanislav Szukalski was a Polish sculptor who flirted with 1930’s Nationalism in order to fulfil his fantasy about becoming one of the greatest artists of all time. However the war that tore through Europe would end up destroying his work and haunt him forever more.

After resettling in America Szukalski could no longer find work as a sculptor, his reputation tainted by the product of European Nationalism and his strong minded opinions of others and self.

“I died in Los Angeles, the Cultural Siberia of America” he remarks at the thought of no longer being considered a great artist, either of his time, or in human history.

Whether due to his new found company, unsettled genius, or continuous desire for expression, Szukalski developed a new theory on the history of mankind called Zermatism before he died. In reimagining the world he articulated a belief that all evil people were derived from the crossbred offspring of Yeti’s and Humans. This is how he explained the atrocities he witnessed, Nazism, and the plight of Europe.

He theorised that all human culture can be traced back to one common civilization on Easter Island and that humankind was locked in this eternal struggle with the Sons of Yeti ("Yetinsyny"), the offspring of Yeti and humans.

This documentary is such a good watch on so many levels, it’s a story about hidden genius, retribution, a tale of lovers, mysticism, cultism, paranoia, and discovering the unknown. It’s an astonishing tale of a man who lead an unconventional life, lived out in contrast with himself. Struggle is so rich in material and content it will have you googling for days. 

Ten more on my Netflix watch list this month are:

1. Two Catalonias
2. Black Mirror Bandersnatch
3. Carol
4. Roma
5. Extinction
6. The Resistance Banker
7. The Ottoman Lieutenant
8. Source Code
9. The 34th
10. The True Cost

If you’ve seen any of these shows or if you have any recommendations please let me know