The gubmint here has come up with some pretty cringe-worthy scams in the past to try to raise some cash.

That had that “Gathering” thing in 2013 in the hopes that everyone of Irish descent would come over and get ripped off.  Next year we have the dreaded 1916 commemorations where they hope the country will be flooded with tourists so we can do some more ripping off.  Having stripped the Irish themselves down to the bone, they are trying now obsessed with ripping off foreigners.

One of the more embarrassing enterprises, which I rated 10 out of 10 on the cringe scale was the “Certificate of Irish Heritage” which they introduced a couple of years back.

The concept here was that everyone in the world was desperate to prove they were Irish and would be glad to fork out for a certificate to say that yes, they were indeed Irish even if they weren’t.  For a mere €45 you could buy yourself a bit of paper to hang on your wall in order to impress your unimpressed neighbours.  If you were really insane you could fork out €120 and actually get a frame for the scrap of paper. 

I vaguely remember this thing being launched and how excited Dame Enda was as he envisaged 60 million people who claim Irish descent forking out €120 for his brilliant idea.  He gave one to Barak O’Bama and apparently Tom Cruise got one too which was even more embarrassing than the idea itself.  Why the fuck did they give one to that egotistical midget?  The little prick can’t even fucking act!

Anyhows it transpired that the world’s population were far more intelligent than Dame Enda gave them credit for, and the whole scheme was a dismal failure.  Out of a potential 60 million, a mere 3,000 coughed up.  They have scrapped it, and about fucking time too.

I dread to think what they will dream up next.  A certificate to say that you and all your family were in the GPO during the Easter Rising?  A certificate to prove that you are in fact Shergar?  A remake of “The Quiet Man” starring Tom Cruise and Barak O’Bama?

One good thing to come out of this I suppose is that O’Bama and Cruise are no longer Irish.

As I frequently say – every cloud………..