NEW YORK BOSTON |#Popular: Irish Celebrity Gossip Irish in US Politics Irish Festivals Irish Roots Irish Entertainment Offbeat Irish

Home Page > Blogs > News blogs > Periscope > Running for Irish president (maybe) day one and two

Periscope by Niall O'Dowd

Running for Irish president (maybe) day one and two

Posted on Wednesday, June 08, 2011 at 11:47 AM

Larger Text

E-mail

33 Comments

RSS

Archives

"But you weren't born in the US" my wife's aunt said to me at the barbecue, "you can't run for president."

I had to explain it was president of Ireland I was talking about.

She was relieved. 'Thanks be to God... 'You'd never beat Obama anyway' she said.

The spry 85-year old from Kerry is about to embark on her annual pilgrimage to Ireland where she will terrorize the neighbors in Kerry with her all night card games.

Aunt Nora is a wonderful weathervane to measure progress by. After a lifetime of anti British sentiment she was charmed by the Queen's visit to Ireland.

Elizabeth R may be the only 85-year-old on earth in better shape than Aunt Nora I reckon.

After the Irish Times report on their front page that I was considering running, the pace picked up remarkably.

The Sean O'Rourke show on RTE 1, Ireland's national radio station, is the key political program and Sean himself is a Tim Russert-type figure with an encyclopedic knowledge of Irish politics.

He asked me to go on in the early morning my time and talk about my decision. Between shooing my daughter out to school and dealing with the cranky air conditioning (it is 96 degrees here in New York) the time flew by.

As the time for the interview drew near I felt unaccountably nervous.

I am used to doing radio and television but never about myself. Being the man in the arena is a new experience.

Unlike many in the media I have a deep respect for politicians.

It is often a thankless job but the vast majority in my experience start out with the right intentions to do well and do good.

It is what happens after that can be disillusioning but some of the great ones, a Kennedy, a Clinton still make it all seem like a noble profession.

Sure there is always the Greek chorus, never more loud than these days, claiming we are heading for disaster here there and everywhere. They have been there for time immemorial too.

All I know is no pessimist every set foot in America to live.

The journey of every family here from the great to the ordinary began with a man and and woman with a small suitcase departing their homeland for the bright city of America.

I want Ireland to have that sense of optimism,not this dreadful dark cloud that has settled there.

The interview went fine I thought as I sketched out what I believed is the untapped power of the Diaspora in areas such as tourism and economic development to help Ireland.

It was a bit surreal putting down the phone in the Long Island suburb , looking round my house and knowing I had taken a huge step into the unknown wondering what have I gotten myself into.

I'm a great believer that you need to reboot your life from time to time.

I jumped on a Greyhound Bus from Chicago to San Francisco one day back in 1979 rather than go back to Ireland and a teaching job and I've never regretted it since.

Likewise, when I jumped on a plane to New York from California in 1985 it changed my life again.

Where this step leads I have no idea, but the journey is certainly interesting.

Irish in America have certainly come on board A nice note in the Irish Echo, our competitor, from editor Ray O'Hanlon cheering me on was a much appreciated gesture

I will keep you informed.

E-mail

33 comments

Next Previous Page 2 of 3 pages

antoman | Jun 08, 2011, 08:02 PM EDT

Well...Jacers hour on the laptop is over I guess.He never finished his sentence.

Report abuse

ellenfromcork | Jun 08, 2011, 07:00 PM EDT

" The nail (Niall) that stands up is hammered down"

Report abuse

mamaginnty | Jun 08, 2011, 06:40 PM EDT

Its 11.35pm in Ireland and I am watching Vincent Brown show, the group are talking about who is running for president. Niall O'Dowd's name being mentioned as a runner.

Report abuse

jacersagain | Jun 08, 2011, 06:07 PM EDT

(...more) Mind’ya Niall, though, Pat Cox is a bit of a limbo man – once a person of the detested meed’ja (as a presenter on Irish TV’s ‘Today Tonight’ programme), then a politician of the now-detested ‘left-of-centre’ Fianna Fail Party, then a centre-road politician with the now virtually-defunct Progressive Democrats Party and now chasing membership of your brother’s ‘right-of-centre’ Fine Gael Party to gain a nomination, I’d wonder, with his record of being a such a detestable turncoat, if your old vibrant aunt-in-law might actually be your best campaign cheerleader. Good Luck t’ya anyway Niall but my wish would be that your wisdom gets the better of your heart – I wouldn’t like to see you face ignominy if you lost. Let’s see what the next two or three days, weeks or months bring for you.

Report abuse

jacersagain | Jun 08, 2011, 06:06 PM EDT

(...more) Mind’ya Niall, though, Pat Cox is a bit of a limbo man – once a person of the detested meed’ja (as a presenter on Irish TV’s ‘Today Tonight’ programme), then a politician of the now-detested ‘left-of-centre’ Fianna Fail Party, then a centre-road politician with the now virtually-defunct Progressive Democrats Party and now chasing membership of your brother’s ‘right-of-centre’ Fine Gael Party to gain a nomination, I’d wonder, with his record of being a such a (detestable?) turncoat, if your old vibrant aunt-in-law might actually be your best campaign cheerleader. Good Luck t’ya anyway Niall but my wish would be that your wisdom gets the better of your heart – I wouldn’t like to see you face ignominy if you lost. Let’s see what the next two or three days, weeks or months bring for you.

Report abuse

jacersagain | Jun 08, 2011, 06:02 PM EDT

I think having one’s vibrant, old aunt-in-law say you should go for it is one thing (o’ course she’d be thrilled to see ya wearing that ridiculous-looking ‘British’ tall hard hat that male Irish Presidents-elect wear at the swearing in ceremony!) Seeing you shaking hands with Presidents and Kings or Queens from other countries around the world would be another thing and probably tickle her to bits. What would she think, and would you be prepared, in the interests of diplomatic protocol, to shake hands with - President Mugabe, for example? Ah, sure you’d probably swim such occasions nonchalantly anyway but my view would be that you would not be qualified to hold the office of President given the import of its legal qualification requirements. Again, I wish you good luck if you go for it but, nothing personal (well, we don’t know each other at all except through ICentral pages) I would not be voting for you, solely on that account. The best Presidential prospect putting his name forward so far, IMHO, is Mr. Pat Cox, former President of the European Parliament – and I doubt you’d fare well up against him in an Irish Presidential election. (More...)

Report abuse

LoyalCitizen | Jun 08, 2011, 05:19 PM EDT

If you truly expect Ireland to have an optimistic outlook you will have to start a civil war to get rid of the traitors who run the courts. Get a new court system then you can get rid of the rest of the traitors in the establishment. When you have completed the eradication of all the traitors you can then figure out how to invest in the people and give them the life they deserve.

Report abuse

KittyMurphy | Jun 08, 2011, 04:47 PM EDT

@GeorgeDillon - I now suspect you are intoxicated. Would you for the love of God lighten up. And for the record I'm a 20 something year old, born and bred in Ireland who isn't racist, bigoted or bad-tempered which is more than I, and the rest of the sane commenters on this website, can say for you.

Report abuse

antoman | Jun 08, 2011, 04:22 PM EDT

Don't mind georgyboy folks.He's having one of his 'episodes'.It will soon pass.

Report abuse

GeorgeDillon | Jun 08, 2011, 03:59 PM EDT

Kittymurp: I am sure I've traveled far more than you ever will. You sound really bigoted and narrow-minded. And by the way, that figure of 70 million is baloney. Here in the US, some 35 million ticked Irish as ONE of their ethnic heritages on the census. The same people could also have ticked, and did, French, English, Italian etc. Indeed I myself put Irish and Argentinian, because I have family links with that country. My wife put Italian, Greek, French and Irish. It's an utter nonsense to invoke that figure. And it's inflated too, apart from the 35 million or so here, there'll be only a few million more if you combine Australia, Canada & New Zealand. Argentina might throw in half a million more, tops. Whar's the resht of me dispora, kitty?

Report abuse

GeorgeDillon | Jun 08, 2011, 03:52 PM EDT

Hyattvile: You just can't take the truth, you obviously have never been in Ireland. You come across as a singularly negative and loathsome individual.

Report abuse

antoman | Jun 08, 2011, 03:00 PM EDT

We've always punched above our weight to.Just saying.

Report abuse

antoman | Jun 08, 2011, 02:59 PM EDT

admirable* typo.

Report abuse

antoman | Jun 08, 2011, 02:56 PM EDT

Niall O'Dowd you know as well as I do what being Irish and living on an Island is all about.Only recently are cars available to be purchased by the public that are capable of floating and driving in water.We've always looked beyond the horizon and thought whats out there and devised a means of getting there.As a young man I took myself to England and worked there.Not a bother.,cept for the sea sickness going there and again on the boat home.The difference between you and me is that I left the UK whereas you never left America.Its your home now.So you running for the Presidency of Ireland while admiral is kinda stupid.If you were elected you'd get homesick after a month or two and want to return to America.I told you the Government jet can't fly to America without droptanks and we have'nt designed them yet.Are you willing to come home Niall O'Dowd or is this some kind of publicity stunt?

Report abuse

hyattsville | Jun 08, 2011, 02:34 PM EDT

GeorgeDillon... Why do you persist in returning to a place which you have so much contempt for, to spend time with people who you treat with such distain? I have never read one positive or constructive comment penned by you. You come across as a singularly negative and loathsome individual.

Report abuse

Next Previous Page 2 of 3 pages