Well, it's that one day of the year when we all get to act like morons and wear green and speak in Gaelic tongues. Some of us, anyway. I'm not much of a St. Paddy's Day guy, and not so much because of my non-Irish heritage as I try to avoid amateur nights in the local pubs. That's what St. Patrick's Day (brought to you by Guiness and MTV) has become - just another overcommercialized day that was initially meant to honor the heritage of a country's immigrants.
But St. Patrick's day is starting to get a run for it's money in the "celebrating heritage" department. While Guiness has pretty much taken over St. Patrick's day, Cinco De Mayo (sponsored by Cuervo Gold and Corona) is quickly overtaking March 17 as a "national heritage" type of day - whether you're hispanic or not. I mean, as the weather's starting to warm, who doesn't appreciate a good taco and a cold Corona?
Seriously, though, I can't help but feel that animosity toward Gerry Adams, Sein Fein, and the rest of the thugs (including the British overlords) in the seemingly endless Irish conflict have a lot to do with the marginalization of March 17th. The Sein Fein "snub" by the White House and Ted Kennedy is all I'm hearing on radio today. I'm hearing nothing about Irish heritage or contributions to America.
It's a shame, Shamus.
