Mary McAleese does the right thing by turning down NYC St. Patrick's Day parade invite

Oh Hollabackgoil/The city is truly diverse now, the marchers may not be the Irish that were the dominant ethnic group of the past but they attend the Catholic schools,(and they are more successfull because of the it) Oh, did I mention my Hugely successful Irish American gay cousins who march not as a gay person but someone who attained the rank of full colonel in the military or the cousin who marches proudly with his Mothers county in Ireland? They are celebrating not what there sexual being is but pridein all that irish Americans have accomplished. Please go to the Queens parade , I'm still waiting for your explanation.

NEW WORLD ORDER WHORE.....THIS WOMAN IS DANGEROUS.....SHE WILL SELL OUT THE PEOPLE OF IRELAND.....SHES NOT IRISH AT HEART....SHE WORKS FOR THE INTERNATIONAL BANKERS....shes only a banker bitch....up the Republic

It was always that, and whats wrong with it? I guess you missed all the schools and counties as well. Maybe next year when can have a bisexual monkey juggler from Mongolia.

It's not even a parade of the Irish now. It just looks like an endless military/police/fire/holy orders recruitment commercial.

My Lord! Another 'tempest in a teapot.' When I lived in New York back when the earth was young, St. Patrick's Day was a special event for me. I worked for an English bank in mid-town at the time and we (the Irish guys) always got an extra hour for lunch, blatant favoritism and we loved it. Gay politics had not yet become a part of this otherwise happy occasion. Afterwards, I lived in San Francisco for many years, had several gay friends and attended a number of funerals. I found it difficult to accept the in-your-face militancy of some segments of the gay community - to me, their semi-naked parades were often vulgar and disgusting. I believe that the Irish president made the right decision - and not just because this special day has become poisoned by politics - but also because it is, to me at least, demeaning for the president of Ireland to lead this parade. It demeans the office, the highest in the land. The Irish ambassador to the U.S. would be fine, or some other notable. Perhaps I'm being a bit old fashioned.

ranger how many gay banners in yopur 3000 parades? Hiow many loyalist killer s?

What the ancient order of hibernian's are homophobic and setarian, never. Well my giddy aunt, a republican organization that leading republicans and Sinn Fein/IRA eulogised are homophobic and sectarian. well I never!!!

Racist why? The ingenious logic eludes me!?! Anyway it's Arthur's Day, the most manufactured drinking day of the year so goodbye for now all you conservatives, tea party-ers and plastic paddies! (PS- liberal Irish Americans are welcome anytime to Ireland!)

Dublinman aka JungleJim and other racist IDs objects to the NYC parade because he claims it excludes people because of their sexual activities. But then he goes all prudish and wants to leave "sexual references" out of the discussion. Wake up, you dope, your whole stupid campaign is based on sexual criteria--don't be such a hypocritical dope and try and learn a little logic. How the hell can we speak of homosexuals (like you want to) without a sexual reference? And no, unlike you and your other racist monikers, I don't need to hide under another identity, Dublin Racist.

Dublinman77 please do not put the banners of the NYPD and the NYFD into the same category with a group of gays and lesbians.

I just noticed something. Woundedknee and GeorgeDillon are the same person. You can tell from their way of arguing and sentence structure. Also the fact that they both attack me in an odd way of things I've attacked GeorgeDillon over. Strange.

A lot of people here are saying it's okay for gays to march, just not proclaim their presence as a distinct group. this means using no banners and no signs identifying themselves collectively. I wonder would the people who think this also say here and now they would like the same rule applied to the New York police officers or Firemen who march as a collective? I've no problem with them marching too. In fact after 9/11 I'd love to get over to see those firemen march and shake their hands. but why one rule banning one group but not all groups? Secondly, Woundedknee and GeorgeDillon, it was funny at first but can we leave the sex references out of this now please? Sure we can conduct a debate without them.

Let me ask the question again, Why do you need the banner?

Dubliner accuses me of "racism, ignorance, stupidity and repressed sexuality". You sure know a lot about all those things, Dub. Racist creeps like you should not be posting in an Irish-American site. Why don't you post on the British National Front site, that's the place for self-hating racists like you.

Dublinman--You are obsessed with what people do with their genitals. Get a life. Normal people do things with their genitals--they don't talk about it all day like you do. If you want to walk down Fifth Avenue in drag go right ahead--no one will interfere with you. But keep your ugly face out of an IRISH_AMERICAN (not Irish, you dope) parade. As I mentioned earlier, I've been to the Dublin parade, and was not at all impressed. I like a drink and sex as much as anyone else, but I don't find seeing drunk teenagers performing fellatio in the street at midday very entertaining--I guess you do. As to your reference to imperialism etc., I think you're just a crazy--they make no sense.