Unfortunately, it has.
When people think of Ireland, what do us Irish people want them to associate with it? Maybe it is our lovely food, or brilliant visual landmarks (not the Spire mind you). It would be nice if people actually thought that of Ireland when it was brought up, but I’d say the majority wouldn’t. What would people think about? Well, you probably know the answer from the title – alcohol. And that is unfortunate, because Ireland is way more than that.
Every now and again, I do see people saying “Why are we [Irish people] looked at as the drunks of Europe!” or something to this extent. And I wish, I really do, we weren’t. But we are, and it is because of days like Arthur Guinness Day, and St. Patrick’s Day. These are the two main days that reinforce the stereotype.
Arthur Guinness Day was actually a really good idea when it was celebrating Guinness’s 250th anniversary. But since then, it has nearly become a holiday here in Ireland, where every year people look forward to it for one reason, and one reason only: they have an excuse to get drunk. Why do we need to celebrate every year for Guinness? We don’t, but the majority of the Irish public like to think we should and that enough is a reason to drink. The day (or ‘holiday’ if you want to call it) is nothing but a cheap gimmick for people to drink, and you can say, “Well, it is the companies pushing and promoting the day” and that is true, but people still fall for it and love it.
Then we have St. Patrick’s Day, a day that is rich with history and actually has a purpose to be a holiday. In Dublin City Centre, you have a massive parade for adults and their children to enjoy for a day out! What could be wrong? Well, apart from the drinking culture taking over the entire day and ruining it, nothing else. Unfortunately (I’ve used that word a lot in this post) the day has turned into nothing more but a day off to get drunk. Parents think twice about going into town now with their kids for the parade, why? Because of the amount of drunks in there ruining it.
Let me get this straight, I have no problem with people in Ireland drinking and enjoying it, but we cannot say as a nation that we shouldn’t be looked at as the drunks of Europe (or the world, whatever you want) when we turn days into drinking sessions. We are the drinking nation, and it’s as simple as that.
Were we always the drunk nation? I don’t know, maybe we were.
Maybe you can tell me.
Until next time.
– Andrew
An Irish Mind 