I’m bemused[1] My eyebrows are raised in a very “wtf are you on” sort of way.
The thing is, I’m well aware that some people don’t know that Ireland isn’t part of Britain. And no offence to my American bloggers, but often those some people come from the US, so they have an excuse. Not like it actually matters to them when they come over on holiday, apart from the fact that we don’t share a currency. But you don’t need a passport to travel[2] between Britain and Ireland, so you might think things that are wrong.
But when British people think it? I mean. WTF![3] But maybe it is just the listeners of Chris Moyle’s radio show? I dunno. But seriously, WTF?
One [learned listener] called in to say he always thought Ireland was in Britain and this was backed up with more texts from listeners who also felt the same.
Moyles hit back by saying: “It’s like saying the French are German if you say the Irish are British.”
*please insert your own version of my[4] mini-rant about 800[5] years of bloody struggle etc, violence, etc, blah blah blah. mention 1920’s. Not forgetting Treaties. Oh yeah, and actual independence. And the fact that we’re a republic*
So, people of Britain, let me assure you, Bob Geldof is not British. He is, in fact, Irish. You can be Irish and British.[6] but only if you live in Northern Ireland. Which isn’t where Bob is from. He’s from Dublin. Which is in Ireland, aka Éire[7] often refered to as the Republic of Ireland. Now concentrate, and then think again about whether Bob Geldof is British.
Maybe they’ve all been down the local library and been browsing through their Dewey Decimal system manuals, and discovered that Britain & Ireland are covered under the term The British Isles? And that is where the mistake comes from?
Story spotted over at Blogorrah
- Do I use this word too often? Not my fault if the world bemuses me is it? ↩
- well you do for the airplane company peoples, as id, but technically you don’t ↩
- and yes, that totally deserved the capital letters. I could even have added another exclamation mark and not felt ott ↩
- this is a participatory blog you know ↩
- or 600 iffin you’re of Norman decent, ahem NM ↩
- maybe this is where they got confuddled ↩
- this is the official name of the state, but please don’t use it unless you are speaking in Irish, otherwise I’ll have to rant all over again ↩
Shoe the donkey, shoe the donkey…. look what you made pop into my head now.