Warning -- bad language in video
The man at the center of the famous rant about the Irish economy which has become a massive YouTube with 1.27 million hits so far has revealed why he spoke out.
His rant has gone viral worldwide and media all over the world has sought him out.
His name is Denis Ryan, a native of Newport, Co Tipperary and a very well known entertainer and businessman in Canada. He is currently an investment banker in Halifax Nova Scotia.
He left from Ireland to Canada in the 1960s and became a well known musician and key member of Ryan’s Fancy, an Irish folk trio that was very successful in Canada in the 1970s and 1980s.
Last summer he a sang for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip during their royal visit to Nova Scotia.
The now famous interview took place on a street in downtown Halifax just a few weeks ago.
Ryan —who is named only as an Irishman in the banking business, launches an extraordinary tirade against bankers and politicians in Ireland.
The man who conducted the interview is Tony Quinn, a Canadian actor and comedian pretending to be Jason Calibri, a journalist for the fake media company the Financial News. He asked Ryan about the demise of the Celtic Tiger economy.
"In Ireland it’s a tragedy what happened to the tiger," Ryan replied. "We have four causes. We had a stupid f***ing government, with a regulator that was asleep at the wheel. We had very deceitful and conniving and corrupt developers, and of course, above all, wanking f***ing bankers."
He continues his colorful rant for several minutes.
He says all of them "should be thrown in jail and the keys thrown away for the rest of their life."
Ryan told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) this week that he had set up the interview with Quinn as a way to vent his anger at what had happened
"I’m disgusted, as you can appreciate, growing up in that country and seeing what’s happened to it," Ryan told CBC on Monday. He said members of his family back in Ireland are deeply suffering, he stated, "all because of the stupidity and greed of a few people, particularly the bankers,"
But he says he won’t do any more media. “I won’t do any more interviews,” he told CBC. “I don’t mean to be a pompous son of a gun, but I’m not an economist, and I’ve made my statement.”
Warning -- bad language in video
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.GeorgeDillon | Dec 22, 2010, 03:19 PM EST
Pacifist, which is it? Are you inane or insane? Reading your attack on me for what you call "your adolescent comment" (see below) inclines me to the latter. And the clincher is your reference to "having a threesome with Mick Jagger and David Bowie". You're either a pervert or a loon. For the benefit of anyone interested, not many I suspect, pacifist is ascribing to me comments that I never made, and which I find so crude and vulgar as to have only come from an Irish person.
GeorgeDillon | Dec 22, 2010, 03:16 PM EST
kateomprint: "Anyway where would we be without the word f**k it sure fills a lot of gaps". You're certainly right there, that word fills in gaps in every sentence that the Irish utter. That's why they're known throughout the world as ignorant foulmouths. When I get off the plane at Dublin or Shannon I keep the earplugs in my ears, the ones that are given out during the flight. It's one small defense against having crudity and vulgarity forced on me by the Irish. Why don't they try thinking, for a change? Come on, guys, thinking don't hurt!
GeorgeDillon | Dec 22, 2010, 03:12 PM EST
Pacifist, wrong again. It wasn't De Valera who introduced compulsory Irish. It was the Free State government of the 1920s.
pacifist | Dec 22, 2010, 02:54 PM EST
GeorgeDillon, Are you objecting to capitalism? Well, I am surprised. But you are right in a certain way about the attitude most have toward the Irish language. However, if you know the Irish as much as you think you do, you will know that Fianna Fail - under the leadership of Eamon de Valera, introduced compulsory Irish in the educational system. And if there's something the Irish hate it is being forced to do something. You are partially right on Irish traditional music - it isn't as loved or followed as it once was, but very many people still love it deeply. I would include myself in that catagory. Nationalism? Once again you are right in part. Too many show lip service to nationalism and many others espouse a type of nationalism that is repugnant - an example of the latter would be Sinn Fein/IRA and other murderous nationalist terrorist groups. Then there are those who follow English soccer teams - teams such as Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, etc., but when the English international side play against almost any country most of them support the team playing against the English. Your last comment is ill-considered. You fault people for leaving their own country where there is little or no employment and seek work elsewhhere for the sake of their loved ones. They are fleeing more than a mere recession - they are leaving a bankrupt country, but a country bankrupted by that most nationalistic and opportunistic of political parties, Fianna Fail.
biggles008 | Dec 22, 2010, 01:10 PM EST
When you read it, STOP, and think for one minute. You should then know that he is 100% right. If you don't , you are not living in Ireland. Happy Xmas to all.
GeorgeDillon | Dec 22, 2010, 01:07 PM EST
pacifist: What you say is utter nonsense. Ireland is a very unnationalist country. Irish nationalism is restricted to shouting for the Irish team in international competitions, or getting behind some Irish person who does well in other spheres. But as regards respect for things that are intrinsically Irish, I see little when I go to Ireland. Most Irish hate the Irish language, for example, and I would say most sneer at Irish traditional music and think it somehow not "cool". Ireland has desecrated many of its historic places. For example, Frascati House, birthplace of the great Lord Edward Fitzgerald, was knocked down because some capitalist wanted to build a shopping center. Can you imagine Mount Vernon being knocked down like that. In fact, if you want to see a real nationalist country, look at us, the United States. We bring it to the other extreme, thinking we are better than everyone else. The Irish set no value onm their nationality--look how fast they are to abandon their country when an economic recession (not war, famine or plague, just a recession) comes along.
pacifist | Dec 22, 2010, 08:59 AM EST
Conjoly, Weren't you listening? He did blame the politicians - that is the Fianna Fail led Government who allowed light bank regulation and didn't have strict oversight in place. But you are right in that the builders and bankers did what comes naturally to them. However isn't that the same with most of the politicians - about 99% of them? And kirtjohnson, your analysis is downright silly. The largest politicsl party, Fianna Fail, has boasted of its Irish nationalism since being founded in 1927 and has been in power for most of the years of the state's existence. As for your assertion that the Irish suffer from post-colonial self-hatred - more nonsense for it has been quite the opposite. The majority are steeped in a nationalism that is rooted in overt self-regard and the delusional notion that almost everybody in the world loves them. The catastrophic economic mismanagment was mainly at the hands of the FF led Government in cahoots with corrupt builders and bankers. The bankers in particular played a major role in illegal financial transactions - that is encouraging and facilitating depositers to put their money in off-shore accounts - the Bank of Ireland and Allied Irish Banks had particularily dirty hands. The one almost total exception was the Northern Ireland based, therefore British, Ulster Bank in that its illegal activities were negligible when compared to national Irish banks. The only conclusion I can draw concerning your skewed version of history is that you have been reading those Sinn Fein propaganda sheet - a supposed newspapers - An Phoblacht and/or the Republican News or some pot-boiled history. That the majority bought the fairy story peddled by Fianna Fail, mostly propagated by the Irish Independent from 1997 onwards especially is certainly true. But the Irish Times was not part of that conspiracy in 1997 and for some time afterwards that newspaper has been the severest of critics of FF and all its works for many years.
kurtjohnson | Dec 21, 2010, 10:14 PM EST
The root cause is degenerate anglo materialism/determinism which has led to the mass consumer/industrial estate cancer. This was force fed to the Irish people by the Dublin media which had unionism as its ideological inheritance (i.e. the Irish Times). This diseased ideology was peddled as part of the continuing script of post-colonial self hatred originated by the planter ascendancy to destroy Irish nationalism.
kateomprint | Dec 21, 2010, 09:34 AM EST
so what if he used bad language he got his point across. That is exactly how we all feel here and sometimes the word f***k and w****r are the only ones that can describe these bankers and politicians. Anyway where would we be without the word f**k it sure fills a lot of gaps
Conjoly | Dec 21, 2010, 07:49 AM EST
Agree 100% with Towngate and GeorgeDillon. This guy is ineloquent to say the least and also misattributes blame for the whole problem - he glosses over the role of the (main culprits for the problems in Ireland), politicians. Selouscout expresses my views exactly, except the electorate and the politicians deserve the most blame (together with the regulator) as the developers and bankers have only done what comes naturally.
bluesman | Dec 21, 2010, 02:18 AM EST
So Dillion you must be a developer or banker????
irishimport | Dec 20, 2010, 10:50 PM EST
I used to dance to Denis and his band Ryan's Fancy in the Maple Leaf Ballroom in Toronto in the early 70's They were a great group and the Maple Leaf was a great Irish meeting place
pacifist | Dec 20, 2010, 07:58 PM EST
GeorgeDillion, I directly mentioned the foul language, but I understand that it was prompted by the rage he and the majority of Irish people feel about what the Fianna Fail led Government, Bankers and Builders have brought upon the Irish economy. However you focused on his having entertained British Royalty as if that is important. And your adolescent comment on his possibly having a threesome with Mick Jagger and David Bowie ( see isn't plain English better that that foreign language - French - we don't speak when making a point, silly as it is. And crude name calling by teddyboy who supports your somewhat outdated point of view doesn'y make your argument stronger. Do you think name calling is any more commendable than cursing?
Selouscout | Dec 20, 2010, 05:41 PM EST
@ georgedillon, Denis Ryan is absolutely correct. Corrupt Bankers, Land Speculators, Developers and of course… Ireland's great Politician’s. But never forget the complacent electorate who keep voting these curs into office. @Dublinjas... I agree
Dublinjas | Dec 20, 2010, 04:26 PM EST
Well let me try some of that on you GeorgeDillon, You are the biggest Arsehole God ever put on Earth.
Hannrick | Dec 20, 2010, 03:52 PM EST
So whats so special about this guy- thats old news and we already know how to curse.
GeorgeDillon | Dec 20, 2010, 03:28 PM EST
This guy has nothing to offer. He's a foulmouth and a fool. He shows just why the Irish are in the situation that they're in. They think that cursing and blinding changes reality. It doesn't. It just makes them look like idiots.
pacifist | Dec 20, 2010, 03:20 PM EST
The language aside - language which I find offensive - he summarized what 92% of the people of Ireland feel. One of the latest opinion polls gave the Government an 8% approval rating. So what if he sang for British Royalty? Big deal! In another opinion poll the vast majority of the Irish people said they would welcome a visit by Queen Elizabeth II. However the infantile and immature comments posted here show that some people have yet to grow up. But petty name calling? That's for unmannerly and undisciplined children.
Porickseantuny | Dec 20, 2010, 12:46 PM EST
Seamusmoore amen
oldboreen | Dec 20, 2010, 12:19 PM EST
Yea OK,not elegantly explained but by God he told it exactly as it is!.A highly paid Wall St. economist couldn't have put it more succinctly. Pity about the dumb reporter though-who the heck is he? No wonder Ryan told him to ****off!
Lorcan1916 | Dec 20, 2010, 10:14 AM EST
Ireland's answer to the winnebago man Jack Rebney .
killowen | Dec 20, 2010, 10:08 AM EST
Reporter mading a comedy of a tragedy that has befallen what an ahole - the truth is hard to take.
greenferrett101 | Dec 20, 2010, 10:05 AM EST
This guy says it like it is!
teddyboy | Dec 20, 2010, 09:40 AM EST
seamusmoore,is fear mor e,, and thank you for what you said about this wanker,,,
seamusmoore | Dec 20, 2010, 08:26 AM EST
"Just last summer he sang for QE II and Prince Philip in Nova Scotia royal visit"? Now there are some Irish bona-fides, eh? Michael Collins got shot in the head for alot less. Someone get this guy a pair of Union Jack kneepads in case he gets knighted or has a menage trois with Mick Jagger and David Bowie.
Towngate | Dec 20, 2010, 07:49 AM EST
Has anybody REALLY fallen for this pile of paddywhackery?
irishwriter | Dec 20, 2010, 06:38 AM EST
People...meet the next Irish president.