On this St. Patrick’s Day 2008, I think it is fitting to pay tribute to someone that I never thought I would pay tribute to; The Rev Ian Paisley, retiring First Minister of Northern Ireland.
Paisley is a tough old bastard, that is for sure, but with his willingness in his last years as a Union firebrand to sit down, shake hands and laugh..yes laugh.. with a former IRA strongman, Martin McGuinness, who is now his Deputy, comes a respect that I don’t think anyone would seriously deny him. Paisley knew the time had come, and knew that he had pushed Sinn Fein to ‘give’ on many issues. When they had done this, he said, “In politics as in life, it is a truism that no one can ever have 100% of what they desire. They must make a verdict when they believe they have achieved enough to move things forward.”
No matter what our personal views are of Paisley’s renowned bigotry, his hatefulness over the years, and his steely determination never to sit down at the table with Sinn Fein; in the end he showed how tough he really was. Swallowing one’s pride, and eating a hefty slice of humble pie is harder than spitting vitriole.
Let us now hope that his successor learns from the great leap of faith that Paisley has made, and builds on it. May he tip his hat to the fiery old bugger and raise his pot of Guinness with the words of a famous Irish toast:
“Here’s to a long life and a merry one.
A quick death and an easy one.
A pretty girl and an honest one.
A cold pint– and another one!”
A very happy St. Patrick’s Day to all my Irish readers.
