[extropy-chat] Living in Ireland -the reality

[Alex Ramonsky]

I know this is a response to a rather old post and I apologize for my 
tardiness...
I lived in various counties in Ireland (Not the same thing as Northern 
Ireland, BTW -there is no conflict in the South) from 1986 until 1999, 
when I moved to the UK.
The bad news:
We had no electricity, no toilets, no running water. We were not 
unusual. Most of our neighbors didn't either.
Since we are not catholic, there was little chance of getting employed 
or a decent place to rent. We were treated as second class citizens, 
known as  'blow-ins'. We were refused service in all catholic pubs and 
some shops and restaurants.
We were stopped on the street by the cops regularly and searched for no 
apparent reason. We were ripped off by the locals at every opportunity.
There are drunks everywhere, and real mental cases wandering around on 
the streets accosting people for money/booze.
Car insurance is prohibitively high. Irish roads (about the same 
standards as much of Africa) meant we needed a new 
gearbox/clutch/suspension every year or so.
It rains almost every day, and the winds are icy and blasting for much 
of the year.
The attitude to science? There were 5 religious education lessons per 
week in our local high school and 2 science. Catholic prayers had to be 
done before and after every lesson, and in the mornings.
The good news:
You won't have to send your kids to school. (That's why we did it). You 
are very unlikely to get burgled, mugged, raped, beaten up or murdered.
Or indeed, acknowledged at all.
Enjoy. :  )
AR