St. Patrick's Day

Because I haven't insulted anybody recently, and there are Irish people on my FL.

I hate Saint Patrick's Day.

I hate what it's been turned into in the US. I hate the festivities, I hate the way the whole thing has been degraded into cheap commercial sensationalism, and I hate the fact that everyone tends to see it as a good reason to go get drunk, even if they aren't Catholic.

But most of all, I suppose I hate it for the implications.

I mean, in theory it has become a celebration of Irish culture and Irish contributions to America. And there have been many. Irish people have contributed to the cheap labor market, sewn shirts, built railroads, and helped the eastern political machines achieve dominance over the electorate. If it weren't for the Irish, the Transcontinental Railway would have gotten to Utah only from one direction. But we never talk about the bad parts of Irish immigration to America, namely what they brought with them.

And if you don't believe that they brought anything bad with them, I have two words for you:

Leprechaun. Mafia.

( So This Short, Green Guy Walks Into a Bar... )