There is a load of shite on this here interweb device isn’t there[1] And most of this shite occurs when people come out and make black and white statements which aren’t simply a statement of opinion, or belief, but instead suggest that they are, in fact, The Truth. I won’t repeat myself by stating I dislike black and white statements/arguments or the notion that there is such a thing as one truth[2]
I just wonder how someone could possibly make the statement below[3] with having read every single literary publication written in Irish. And therefore, in order to make that judgement, you need the ability to speak Irish.
There is no writer in the Irish language that anyone need bother reading if looking for Irish literary contributions
And as for the lack of respect to those people who appreciate Irish traditional music? Yeah, dude. Whatever.[4]
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EDIT: see also
- Donal’s blog
- AdamMaguire.com
- Talideon.com asks
did you know that the average French person is certain that Beckett was actually French, and wrote in French and not English?
. Anne, as our representative of France, although of course far beyond average, would you care to respond ;)
- some may even suggest this blog as an example, but I shan’t listen to them ↩
- oops. I think I just repeated myself. My bad. ↩
- which I’m not going to argue with, cause I don’t think it is worth discussing shite ↩
- I know, quite an argument I’m putting up isn’t it. But honestly, its so ridiculous I couldn’t be arsed. ↩
Which would explain why his blog doesn't take comments?
Well what's the point? Afterall obviously it is all true so it'd get a bit boring reading so many comments saying, "yeah. I agree."
Indeed… its not worth it, best just ignore it. I have to say it made me very angry too.
I know I shouldn’t rise to it but reading that really fu*ked me off. Maybe it’s because of where I’m from and my family background but this guy’s rant really irks me!
Going by his logic we could do without me and all my kind……
An extraordinary lack of knowledge on Irish music and writing is the only defence to his statements regarding both. Do the names Muiris Ó Súilleabháin or Sean O Riordan mean anything to him I wonder….
Just goes to prove that idiots are alive and well all over the internet.
James, by ignoring it do we give that sort of attitude some sort of authority though? Surely we can at least say "I disagree" wthout feeding any trolls?
Eoin, thank you for posting. I totally forgot about your blog Ach go hairithe. Must remember to add it to google reader this time.
I agree you shouldn't rise to it, but I have no problem with stating that I disagree. with it.
Carl, was there ever any doubt :)
I got this in an email, which I quite liked:
"Its a kind of solipsism to justify ignorance on the basis that if it
was worth knowing, you'd have heard of it"
I wouldn't worry about it gents. He hasn't read any of the writers he touts as great just as he hasn't read any of the stuff he dismisses. He doesn't have a clue about music either, not even the stuff he purports to listen to.
I get the impression that his traffic has fallen off since he got rid of comments and he's lonely for some attention. It was a pretty tawdry and sad post, more a pathetic cry in the dark than a serious-minded polemic.
Don't forget us ladies too copernicus ;) But I don't think too many of us were all that worried.
You ain't a lady. You're a fence.
I was trying to figger out some way I could come back into town ar an bhus and go to Pirates with you after class on Saturday. But then it's so long and I wouldn't get home till all hours, even if I went to an evening show so I think I'd better give up on the idea.
Sigh.
(Flattery will not get you anywhere.)
I disagree, there. The people who know Beckett know that he was Irish, and after checking (because I thought that Godot, among other works, had been written in French first, and the guilt was overwhelming), it appears that he did write in French a lot.
But to be totally fair, though, I think the average French person would probably not know who he is.
“Its a kind of solipsism to justify ignorance on the basis that if it
was worth knowing, you’d have heard of itâ€
Not so much a solipsism as a circular argument. Solipsism is not believing in the existence of other minds.
I've served the guy who wrote that post, in my former library. He was always pleasant. I've looked at the website of the think-tank he works for, The Freedom Institute, and it's painful sub-Ayn Rand simplistic neo-liberalism. Society is so complicated these days that the idea of limiting government intervention to an absolute minimum is ridiculously outmoded. He writes for Magill, by the way.
I couldn't access his post, so can't really comment on it, only to say that even if Irish DID have the worst literature of the world– and since I don't have any real mastery of the language I can't tell, although I'm not sure how you could grade these things– it would stil be worth preserving, since culture is the chief glory of the human race.
I can understand many people's hostility to Irish, especially the sanctimonious siege mentality of so many Irish language speakers. For instance, in Daniel Corkery's the Hidden Island, he praises the rugged matter-of-factness of the Irish bardic poets. Nothing wrong with that, but why does he then have to add something like, "These poets would have never descended to the sort of maudlin sentimentality of Tennyson's "Maud" ?" All it shows is a deeply-rooted inferiority complex, even more so than the post that raised your hackles. Irish language enthusiasts have been bashing the English language and English culture for so long and all they have done is dent their own credibility.
NM, what about Friday evening? An earlish showing? Or are you busy. If so I'll heaad off myself at some stage.
Anne, so you are saying the average French person is ignorant. fair enough :)
Mal, a lot of what Waghorne said seemed to suggest that no one other than himself had an opinion. Therefore I think that the solipism fits. He may be very nice, in person, but his online personality does seem to be rather trollish.
As for the siege mentality of Irish speakers, I've never come across it, so can't comment.
And maybe Corkery just doesn't like Tennyson :)
I'm an Irish language enthusiast, if a non-participating one, and I've never bashed English, either the language or the culture.
Sorry Fence. The gif of the dude with the gun (guy pearce?) encouraged an incorrect assumption on my part.
Guy Peace?!? It is Jayne. The man they call Jayne.
Firefly & Serenity. Adam Baldwin. Sigh.
See, Fence doesn't want to be him. She wants to do him. :-)
Also, it's Jayne who inspired the title of the site. His mammy sent the gun-toting mercenary a wooly ear-flap hat to keep him warm in his travels. He put it on and asked "How's it set? Pretty cunning, don't ya think?"
Now you are more knowledgeable than you were before you read this comment.
Oh, and despite my picture, I am not a cat. Yet. Perhaps in my next life.
There are some things I can't do. I can't watch Fox News. I can't listen to Rush Limbaugh. And now I've learned a new thing – I can't read that guy's blog.
A language is only as dead as you think it is and my feeling is that the waves of "non-nationals" and new EU accession state job-hunters descending on these shores is going to start a cultural revival of all things Irish. Including the alleged dead language.
Of course, I might be biased. I'm learning the language especially because I want to write in it. When I do, I'll have to send Mr. W a signed copy. :)
No worries Copernicus. And as NM explainified, that is Jayne (the man they call Jayne).
NM, aren't you vulgar ;)
I think I agree Ann. I'll have to just ignore his stuff when it appears on Irishblogs.
No. Yes. Maybe. But it's not untrue. Is it? :-D
I'll be in my bunk.
Mr Waghorne it seems is speaking very educatedly through a part of his anatomy that most of use for garbage.
And he's pissed me off………
You don't turn green when angry do you?
Hey, btw no can do for Friday. I think you should just go without me. I was trying to figure it out but the fact that it's so long is stymieing me all the way. Sigh. Just go. GO! *sob*
Sure me and Jayne go way back. Surprised I didn't recognise him there. I guess everything's shiny now.
It's kind of a small picture. You can see a slightly bigger version up top, beside the links to Fence's other sites. He moves and everything!
And yes, it's all shiny! :-)
Small, and a little dark. You cannae see his face properly I suppose. Still, it is shiny that you recognise him now.
Fence, no I don't turn green when angry; but it seems I do repeat myself. As in how did I manage to comment twice, oh well
Oh yeah, I knew there was something I meant to do, delete the duplicate. I'll do it now.