"Ireland - I wouldn't start f ..." a Ireland Travel Page by sourbugger

I hope you enjoy this collection of some of my irish tips.

cheers

This news story (2006) made me smile enourmously. It must be copyright of someone, i found it on some website, probably taken from a newspaper

TWO armed cops who were supposed to have been protecting the U.S. Embassy in Dublin are to be dismissed following a drunken punch-up outside the building.

Garda (Police) Commiss ioner Noel Conroy has told the pair they have 28 days in which to lodge an appeal if they intend to challenge his decision to fire them.

The move follows publication this week of the findings of an internal investigation that recommended the men either resign, or be sacked, for a series of disciplinary offenses linked to the incident in June last year.

The officers, who have a combined service of 35 years, were uniformed members of the force in a south Dublin station when they were temporarily transferred to the elite plain-clothes diplomatic protection corps and assigned to armed security duty at the embassy in the upmarket Ballsbridge area of the city.

An investigation led by Superintendent Philip Moynihan found that the unnamed officers, who were armed with Smith and Wesson handguns, left their position outside the embassy shortly after the start of a 12-hour overnight shift.

They went to popular nearby pub, Paddy Cullen’s, named after a former owner who was a Dublin All-Ireland Gaelic football goalkeeper.

In clear breach of rules, they spent an hour in the bar before returning to the embassy for the changeover of the uniformed Garda presence in the security hut.

They returned to the pub and had several more drinks before a dispute broke out over whose turn it was to pay for the next round. They had to be separated by other patrons, but their argument continued on the pavement outside and the brawling pair had to be again separated by onlookers.

They continued fighting when they returned to the embassy where U.S. Marines who were on duty inside the building witnessed part of the incident.

At about 5 a.m. one officer handed his weapon to the uniformed colleague – also against regulations – and drove away in his car. He was arrested soon afterwards by other members of the force on suspicion of drunk driving.

A later conviction for drunk-driving was the only appearance in court by either of the brawlers.

The Director of Public Prosecutions ruled against pressing criminal charges in relation to the fight or the illegal gun handover. The decision was based on the absence of complaint by any member of the public and because neither officer pressed charges against the other.

Following the incident the secretary-general of the Department of Justice telephoned U.S. Ambassador James Kenny to apologize.

“I’m on the mountain”, said the callow youth in a green striped hurling jersey. He might as well have been on the train or in the pub, but instead he was trying to contact his gormless girlfriend who was in a far higher position closer to the top of the sacred mountain.
“Wave again”, he shouts at full volume, although at this point the use of the mobile seemed to be somewhat of an arbitrary matter.

It seems a shame that a few thousand years earlier Moses did not have the sense to add a couple of commandments on social etiquette when he had the chance. At least Moses managed to deliver his message in tact, without repeating himself. If he had had a mobile it might have been a wholly different story – Aaron would have allayed the fears of the Israelites by simply giving him a tinkle :

“Have you got them yet ?...How long are you going to be for crying out loud ? I can’t cover my neighbour’s what ?....your breaking up again…”

The youth, his girlfriend , and myself were ascending Crowe Patrick on Reek Sunday. When it comes to religion there is no denying that the Irish take their Catholicism with a good dose of gusto. Some of the estimated 60,000 pilgrims had begun climbing before 2AM in order to make it before sunrise, whilst others were on their fifth or sixth climb of the day. The priests had been holding masses from 8AM onwards, but by late afternoon things had died down a little as the less feverishly devout ascended more in the manner of a good post Sunday lunch walk.

Legend has it that St Patrick imitated Christ by spending 40 days and 40 nights on this particular mountain. His stone bed is still marked out on the summit. Whilst he may have encountered superb views over the bay, it would seem an even more inhospitable place than the Judean wilderness. At least he didn’t have a mobile.