Enda ‘Paddy’ Kenny Strikes Again!

An Taoiseach Enda ‘My Oirish Brings All The Paddies To The Yard‘ Kenny has come up with another golden nugget of Anglospeak. In an inspirational (ahem) speech to Irish ambassadors and diplomats from around the globe Mr. Blue Shirt Skies talked about the power of Riverdance and U2 that made him go all misty-eyed. In typical Kennyesque language:

‘I actually cry every time I see the power of the phenomenon of Riverdance – ancient dance translated into a phenomenal and powerful message. It’s like the young fella who climbed out of the military tank in Taiwan many years ago had no English. He had one word, U2. He knew the music.’

Er, okay. Is it just me or does Enda Kenny increasingly sound like a character from an episode of the Irish R.M.? ‘Sure, lor’ an’ begorrah, sur, ’tis a fine soft day, so ’tis!‘ Maybe all that practicing for meeting the British head of state went to his head? Talking of which:

‘As I said to Her Majesty down in Dublin Castle, one of the things that England gave Ireland was the language, the English language, and I said, ‘Your Majesty, look what we did with it — Beckett, Synge, Yeats, Heaney, Joyce and all the others and all in a space of a couple of hundred years.’ ‘

Which is sort of like an Israeli prime minster saying to the German head of state that the Holocaust gave the Jewish people the state of Israel. Sort of true, but hardly a price anyone would have wished to pay nor celebrate in retrospect. And given the option I believe the Irish people would rather that the England hadn’t ‘given‘ Ireland the English language. But then of course we were given no option since the whole thing involved the invasion, occupation and colonisation of our nation, the near destruction of our native language and culture and, oh, what: 3 or 4 million dead?

All of which prove that when it comes to the Uncle Tom stakes, Enda Kenny really is second to none.

So just for all you Anglo Paddies out there. Enjoy…!