Say what you will about Ronald Reagan, but it can't be denied that he changed the face not of just American politics, but Irish-American politics. Since the time of the Famine, when shrewd political bosses such as New York's Boss Tweed saw votes in the desperate millions as they stepped off of coffin ships, Irish-Americans were loyally tied to the Democratic party in the … [Read more...] about The Reagan Democrats
The Last Word
The Last Word:
From Celibacy to Godliness
A staggering succession of priests accused. A total failure of responsibility by bishops. Concern in every parish. On the positive side, a surprisingly strong consensus for broad reform has taken hold among the Catholic people. On the negative, the obsessive coverage threatens to take on the character of a witch hunt, as headlines blur the distinction between genuine predators … [Read more...] about The Last Word:
From Celibacy to Godliness
The Last Word
Why it's hard to be an American in Ireland. Dublin, September 11: Heading home from work, shocked by what I'd seen in the previous few hours, I wondered if people on the train felt the same as I did. Were they horrified? Were they feeling sick? Were they in shock? A group of schoolboys, loud with nervous excitement, talked about what they'd seen. But, for the most part, there … [Read more...] about The Last Word
The Last Word
The last time it happened...The Irish were to blame. ℘℘℘ The election results are in. The presidential candidate of the incumbent Democratic party has won the popular vote but lost the election because one big state has narrowly swung to the Republicans. Commentators blame the Democratic loss, in part, on defections among a key ethnic group many of whom had been led to … [Read more...] about The Last Word
The Last Word: The Far Side of Revenge
There was a terrible silence in Omagh in the days after the bombing. It seemed that not even birdsong could be heard in a town that was full of life and joy and laughter when the world turned upside down on 15 August 1998. To those who know nothing of Northern Ireland it may seem distasteful to engage in the arithmetic of tragedy, but the difference with Omagh was that the … [Read more...] about The Last Word: The Far Side of Revenge