As is often the case, these things have a way of escalating. That's clearly a response, (witless as it may be), to the IRA's response to the protestants. Most Englishmen don't feel particularly inclined to celebrate St. Patrick's day for much the same reason most New Yorkers probably aren't gonna be celebrating Ramadan any time soon. Insulting some random fella who's got sod-all to do with it is obviously taking it too far. I think I know you well enough to say you'd feel similarly if you saw a group of fat drunken yanks insulting a Muslim. Sensible people, like you and I, have the good sense not to think a group, (ANY group), of loud-mouth, drunken idiots are typical of an entire country.
To be honest, most people in England would be completely bemused by the idea that they are "stereotypically" anti-Irish, let alone anti-catholic. Many English people do in fact go out for a beer or three on St Patrick's Day. It's just an excuse for a night out, and there's no significance beyond that. Whatever hostility there may have been between the English and Irish ended decades ago, at least on this side of the Atlantic.
I think this "The English hate the Irish" meme is one of these things that some Irish-Americans have a need to hang on to as some kind of badge of honour.
That's awesome, I was waiting for someone to fall into this! Hawaii. And Texas. The only two States that were sovereign nations before joining the United States. It appears that both nations looked to the U.S. flag for inspiration. And in the case of Hawaii, they wanted to honor a man of significant British Navy heritage. "In three voyages Cook sailed thousands of miles across largely uncharted areas of the globe. He mapped lands from New Zealand to Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean in greater detail and on a scale not previously achieved. As he progressed on his voyages of discovery he surveyed and named features, and recorded islands and coastlines on European maps for the first time. He displayed a combination of seamanship, superior surveying and cartographic skills, physical courage and an ability to lead men in adverse conditions. Cook was killed in Hawaii in a fight with Hawaiians during his third exploratory voyage in the Pacific in 1779. He left a legacy of scientific and geographical knowledge which was to influence his successors well into the 20th century and numerous memoria worldwide have been dedicated to him." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Cook
Depending on what accounts you trust it seems that the Hawaiians or at least their king looked more to the UK for inspiration. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Hawaii
Meh. I can't speak for the East coast dudes like in Boston or New York but for me and my buddies in the Gulf Coast it is more a rivalry with spics and guidos for finding employment and at the same time dating their women over what some Limey Brit officer did to my ancestor's village circa 1875 when they hung my wife's great grandfather. HOWEVER, playing association football out at the men's league and that's where you learn to hate on the English as they are often some schoolboy player that means to us he played high school varsity ball but fancies himself as God's gift to the sport as if he was Alan Shearer in his prime and when over here let's everyone get an ear full from him. That shit gets old real quick. In the oil industry or down at the bar the Limeys are great fun however. You just have to put them in their place sometimes after a night full of pints and soccer talk. Us hinchas in Houston have a saying, "Los ingleses lo inventaron el futbol y a los brasilenos lo perfeccionaron! Todos lo saben menos los argentinos." The English invented football and the Brazilians perfected it. Everyone knows it save the Argentines."
They speak Spanish on the island of Hispaniola. Imagine that. Islands "found" by some European years later still have something European in their local culture. Shocking I know.
I suppose we'll get to the point eventually, will we? ATM you seem to be quoting various unconnected facts one after the other. Some flags have parts of some other flags in them and some part of the world speaks Spanish... yes?! AND?!
It's quite interesting, though, to see someone who's clearly a small-minded bigot, (have you seen his anti-feminist sig line? ), complaining about OTHER people's bigotry. We seem to be getting that a lot on here atm.
Naw brah. California was recognized as a sovereign nation by nobody. Texas for example had embassies in Paris, London, Madrid etc. The California Republic (in Spanish "República de California"), also Bear Flag Republic or Bear Republic, refers to a period of revolt by American settlers in the Mexican territory of Alta California against Mexico. Revolt was initially proclaimed in Sonoma on June 14, 1846, before news of the outbreak of the Mexican–American War had reached the area. Although participants declared independence from Mexico, they failed to form a functional provisional government. Thus, the "republic" never exercised any real authority, and it was never recognized by any nation. In fact, most of Alta California knew nothing about it. The revolt lasted 26 days, at the end of which the U.S. Army arrived to occupy the area. Once the leaders of the revolt knew the United States was claiming the area, they disbanded their "republic" and supported the U.S. federal effort to annex Alta California. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Republic
Haha! Clearly! Clearly you've never been punched in the nose. Nor played team sports in the U.S.A. Or had to bury your friends. You can order yours from here: http://www.roadkilltshirts.com/Product.aspx?ProductId=11193
Police confirm that a rocket launcher was discovered at a house in the village of Cullyhanna near the border of south Armagh
An interesting moment in British and Irish history... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26932969 Irish President Michael D Higgins has spoken of his country's "deep and enduring" friendship with Britain. Speaking in Westminster during the first state visit to the UK by an Irish head of state, he said both countries could take "immense pride" in their work towards peace in Northern Ireland. But he said there was "still a road to be travelled" to reach lasting peace. Earlier Mr Higgins met the Queen and visited Windsor Castle, and he will return there later for a state banquet.