Eamonn McCann thinks the British Royal Family is monstrous tomfoolery. IMHO he is right,at least in the literal sense. But I think we have to read this occasion largely as an encounter between official Ireland and official Britain (although MDH will address himself to the Irish in Britain as well), with all the limitations which that undoubtedly implies, rather than as some kind of bending of the knee as a few unthinking commentators have suggested. To mock QEII for her role makes as much sense as mocking MDH for his squeaky accent and sometimes ponderous prose; its beside the point (and anyway his two speeches today were well judged, as was her toast). Moreover, the visit does betoken some recognition of a more balanced and mutually respectful view of the entwined relationship between the British and the Irish and the complex identities of many British-Irish people in both jurisdictions. And both sides were careful to say that all is not rosy and much work remains too be done. One other thing: apart from the official Ireland/official Britain bit, the visit does recognise the kinds of ordinary encounters where Irish and British know each other best, such as music, culture, sport. Nor would there be any point in denying, whatever one thinks of it, a shared military past. Tom Barry fought in the British Army before he joined the IRA. I think thats good enough for now.
Posted on: Tue, 08 Apr 2014 21:43:03 +0000
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