As opposed to the Fightin’ Irish, who are generally football teams at Catholic high schools, which makes them predominantly Filipino, Chinese, Korean, South American and Italian, at least in this city it does, and it’s always a cheap laugh when I see them on the bus in their team sweatshirts. But am I being racist, or are they?

Hmm.

In any case, to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day here are the three most brilliant quotes about the Irish since Dave Allen died and went to…nowhere? Wherever he went, I’m sure he had a bit of apologizing to do, particularly after the bit about the Pope jousting with the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Quote the first, from Departed screenwriter William Monahan, via Susie Bright’s Journal, whom I used to read all the time in Mondo 2000 and so on and which blog I only stumbled across because she posted a link to my blog on Facebook. See, being referrer-stat obsessed has a payoff!

I’m Irish. I’ll deal with something being wrong the rest of my life.

and Quote the Second, from the same source:

What Freud said about the Irish is: We’re the only people who are impervious to psychoanalysis.

and Quote the Third, from my boss, the Manolo, who says he doesn’t have an Irish bone in his body. Still, he’s got our number:

If Darby O’Gill = Uncle Remus for Irish People, then the Pogues = N.W.A. for Irish People.

Amen to that!