A call for Irish Diaspora to come home

Yeah, what they're saying here is "Come home as tourists, spend a lot of money then clear off again!". If you are an ex-pat they've made it quite clear you sure as hell wont get any benefits from the government if you actually want to return home to live. Ireland only sees the diaspora as a cash cow and little else.

Around the world? Hope you guys are not expecting the Irish women that married your "Good Dutch friends" that were or are searching for the Desendant Of Ireland. They won't be coming home! Sorry, never trush the dutch! They used to or still do marry Irish women and bring them to Newfoundland and 'Knock' them off for a thrill and blame the murder on "Needles cousin-in-law" to show they're good friends with no on other than Holland and maybe the Nederlands. I do my best to make my way to Ireland, but the Canadians, Dutch, British and the Dutch prevent me from going. I have Irish roots and would like to get to know Ireland.

I'd like to "come home" and stay! All I need is a big bag o' money to live on.

No, it's always Lose-Lose when you scrape the barrel as Fáilte Ireland is doing. Again, they won't be able to sell to their targeted market by involving the black guy. The rest of us would see little appeal in what sounds like a summer-long St. Patrick's Day Parade comprising the same elements we so asiduously avoid when they invade our cities every March 17.

Hopefuly the Irish in Ireland will be a little nicer to us Irish-Americans if we come over.

People people, it's called a marketing campaign. Come home -- and revel in all that is Irish -- win win -- see? You get to be all Irish for two weeks, and we get a fat infusion of cash. The catch - the two week time limit. After you've gotten your infusion of Irishness, and we've gotten our infusion of cash, we put you on a plane and send you on your way. It's not a "call to come home". They don't want you to stay!

Knee, some of those same black people, born and raised in Ireland, are Irish citizens. Even those who aren't citizens, are culturally Irish, knowing no other country. The same Irish Constitution deems me to be Irish and I hold an Irish passport, though no reasonable person would consider me "Irish". Dublin could decide that I'm a pastrami sandwich if they choose, but that wouldn't change anything. Maloney, however, may have a point in exposing the weakness or total lack of demographic research on the part of Fáilte Ireland, even for a contrived demographic, such as "Irish"-Americans. A large number of those who so identify themselves would fit the O'Reilly-and-Hannity mold and would thus be repelled by a black president whom they somehow simultaneously believe to be a "Communist, Fascist, Atheist, Muslim Fundamentalist". Such folks are seldom well-traveled and Ireland would soon find that such visitors would require more "high maintenance" than they're worth. More thinking Americans on the other hand would cringe at "Gathering" of such and avoid Ireland altogether. Again, Fáilte Ireland should scrap this target of distant residual genetic material and make a more thoughtful and intellegent appeal. At the very least, they ought to try to convince Aer Lingus to stop treating passengers like cattle at exorbitant fares.

Woodkern, It's no crime to be ignorant, but it is wrong to spread misinformation and act like you know what you're talking about. The laws of the US apply to the US and and not to other countries. Citizenship laws vary from country to country. Some countries, such as the US, do have birthright citizenship, and many do not. Ireland is one of those countries who do not have birthright citizenship. Each country has the right to enact its own laws based on its own perspective and culture and values. Countries outside the US are in no way obligated to adopt American laws or values, and it would be wrong to attempt to impose on on other countries. It is right to respect the laws of each country and not to simply assume they should make their laws similar to the US's. That is the very attitude that makes Americans unpopular globally.

Woodkern If you're just another generic American with no sense of their roots, then why come to this website, which is for people who identify themselves as Irish American. And by the way, nice racist Irish American stereotype there, how very open minded of you.

Don't get any ideas Georgdildo,It's not for special needs people

Good idea. Kind of like an Irish עלייה or aliyah, the Jewish homecoming to Israel. Being Irish will not last as a genetic thing. Irishness is about the language and culture and history. When a diaspora person discovers their Irish history, they may return to Ireland physcially, but the real aliyah, is returning to the language.

seamusmoore: I agree with a lot of what you say. The guy who said "we have lost our sense of Irishness" was certainly right, though I believe that's because as many as one in five (much more, if you just count the hotel/restaurant sector) are not even Irish. It's horrible to go up to a receptionist desk in a remote and magical part of Ireland and be greeted by the monotones of some blond Polish woman. And you're a bit selective in your value of dollar/euro. I've been following the dollar for almsot 30 years now, and the period when it rose to well over the euro was a very short and untypical one. I'd say a euro/dollar value of 1.25/1.35 is in keeping with the history of the dollar versus Irish punt and euro in the past decades.

Woodkern said "FYI, there are black people born in Irish, and hence ARE Irish." This shows how little Woodkern knows about Ireland. Being born in Ireland does NOT make you Irish. That's obviously true--would a child born to a woman who gives birth over Ireland on a flight from Delhi to Washington be Irish? Utter nonsense. But more important than what I say is what the Irish Constution says. It explicitly denies automatic citizenship to someone just because they happen to be born there. We should follow suit here in the US and clamp down on the abuse of our birthright citizenship.

LOL, many of you just like to complain, pretty much about anything. Its a marketing theme/campaign and every country, region, state or province etc does it- Good Lord it must be surely depressing for folks who have to be around some of you on a daily basis- nothing but complaining.

obama, you want him? Done deal. Please keep him.