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Updated at 9.15pm
EVERY SCHOOL IN the country is to get an Irish flag in the run up to the 1916 centenary commemorations next year.
A member of the Defence Forces will deliver a tricolour to the estimated 4,000 primary and post-primary schools in the State between now and the 100th anniversary of the Easter Rising.
The initiative will be unveiled in detail when the government formally launches its plans for the centenary celebrations in Dublin next week.
The Taoiseach, Tánaiste and Arts Minister Heather Humphreys are due to launch the commemoration plans at an event in Collins Barracks in Dublin.
An initial launch at the GPO in Dublin last November was marred by protests with one demonstrator calling Enda Kenny the c-word.
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Nice – proud to be Irish and proud of our flag !!
If they people that fought and died for our flag were alive today, they would be very very busy.
They will also get an EU flag on the anniversary of the Maastricht Treaty.
Ah, that same old argument that those who fought and died for the creation of an independent liberal democracy would, were they alive, be patriotically fighting against our independent liberal democracy.
Democracy? Labour campaigned on a platform against WaterTax, and then go ahead and implement it. That aint democracy in action.
Well they were voted in so it was democracy! Democracy doesn’t mean those you vote into office will do what you say they will!
And the fact that they were kicked out of most country councils last year and will, within a year, be out of government should act as the perfect example that we don’t live in an autocracy.
Despite some obvious discrepancies, the modern irish state operates very much according to the plan of Pearse/Collins/Dev – a liberal democratic republic
An unfortunate fact overlooked by eirigi types is that the majority of republicans in history, from parnell to cathal brugha were on the right of the political spectrum.. The alliance between the radical left and the Republican movement we see today only really occurred in the 50′s and 60′s
the schools should be teaching democracy as we have lost our sense of direction and democracy
there voted in on what they say they will do. when in the case of current government all promises go to pot the only power we have is not to vote them again.
Our Presidential Blue Harp flag could be distributed alongside.
Bíodh an brat ar foluain i do bhéal chomh maith agus bain úsáid as ár dteanga álainn ársa.
Nice to see that the Defence Forces finally have something to do to justify their existence. Doesn’t quite make up for the money wasted on them every year but it’s a start.
Excellent idea. Really delighted to see this. Look forward to the defence forces visiting my area
Charles maybe you can make a 100m obstacle course for them to run around and then pin a nice big gold star to their chests when they complete it in under an hour.
A lot cheaper than teachers.
Slight Militarisation of our kids. Not sure i like this. Brits do it all the time at sporting events or with glammed up ads. We don’t need more patriotic kids, we need more educated kids. Whipping up nationalistic fervour ( ok slight exaggeration) just accelerates the general dumbening of the population. Much Tarbet kids were taught about how the yanks and brits glorify wars where they killed hindreds of thousands of innocents. It took me to my 30s to understand, i used to be a brainwashed yank supporyer…then i staryed to wonder what was behind the skynews rubbish and the movies, and i woke up…and im the better man for it -let’s teach kids about the horrors of war more, not hand them a fleg.
What do you propose Joe? That we replace it with the Palestinian flag and begin every school day with a Muslim call to prayer?
Your grammar is awful. I recommend autocorrect.
There is no such thing as a capitalist democracy, none exist, certainly not in ireland
no but you can expect them to do what they say they will
Every school should have one anyway.
Agreed. Nothing wrong with hanging even outside your house either…
Happened to be high up overlooking the city today….saw one european flag, no Irish ones.
That’s a real American thing to do , very annoying !
That was in reply to John’s comment.
Unfortunately schools seem to be quite poor at maintaining their flags – they don’t take them down at nights and they often hang ragged. I’d rather no flag than a rag.
Schools are more concerned about having their Green Eco world citizen flag on display – a requirement of the green schools youth brainwashing program.
Is this instead of broadband?
No flag for you Noel ! we cant have people talking back when ever they feel like it.
It’s an absolute disgrace to see the condition of some of the national flags around the country. They are left out day and night in all weather and are filthy and in ribbons. If you can’t have enough respect for the flag to look after it then don’t bother to fly it.
We could learn a thing or two from the Anericans on how to treat our flag.
The last thing we want to do is treat our flag like Americans treat theres, they’ve gone way overboard, in a scary way comparable to the Nazis, the way we view our flag is fine. We’re not bombarded with it flying from every house, business, street, cereal box etc…
We don’t generally talk to flags either.
Shame many prominant buildings in Dublin city centre dont fly the National flag it would be great to see it flown on a regular basis not just on special occassions. Any reason buildings such as Trinity College or Bank of Ireland on College Green don’t fly it?
“Any reason buildings such as Trinity College or Bank of Ireland on College Green don’t fly it?”
“buildings such as Trinity College…”
“Trinity College…”
Correct me if I’m wrong but wasn’t that the place which was extremely opposed to an independent Ireland, had a unionist society, and who looked upon the 1916 rising as a silly hullabaloo those pesky Catholics were up to?
I’ve seen the national flag flying over trinity though
And an instruction book will be included – telling how, when etc. – the flag should be seen.
Many people – including the GAA – don’t seem to know whether it can be raised at night, or not….
Sunrise to sunset is the protocol. You’re right it flys day and night outside shops etc. It’s also not allowed to deface it with random messages.
Joe – you mean write messages on it?
Yep, no slogans etc. rarely enforced of course. Mess around with the Argentinian flag for instance and you’ll find out all about it.
that’s you told off, Davy Keogh.
Nice idea. It should also be an opportunity to reclaim it for the country and remind everyone that the flag speaks of enduring unity and peace between green and orange in our society.
Total overall cost to public finances will be about €80m. €79,980,000 for consultancy and about €20k for the 4,000 flags.
Thanks.
I hope they deliver the protocol booklet on how to treat the flag with it, not flying it at night etc, but a good iniatiaive none the less.
Good idea, if people are to fly our flag they should know how to fly it correctly and pay it the respect it deserves.
Im so glad to hear that, we should be proud of our flag.
Teaching kids that armed insurrection is right and then telling them that it is wrong can be confusing.
Your opinion
Try teaching ‘sometimes right, usually wrong’ and give reasons. Kids are not dim.
Ah it’s ok it’ll be FG version of events so it’ll involve a union flag and picture of the monarch of the day as well.
Absolutely right Tap Solny, those French Resistance crowd were just a bunch of misguided patriotic romantics.
Often wondered about that..the french resistance set off bombs in cafes frequented by German soldiers and their french friends.executed lone German captives and colaborators,bombs on trains etc with “colateral” damage. all the while bringing the fight to the regular German military and their french paramilitary sidekicks,they have always been regaled as hero’s and freedom fighters by all including the english who supported,supplied and eventually honoured them…..funny that.
If there’s a spare one, I’d love to have one….Thanks!!
Hopefully the first lesson that children will be taught is that dragging it through pubs and writing moronic slogans on it is not the done thing. At the recent FG conference, they talked of taking the flag back and social media went mental, when we all know what they meant was the above. Three weeks later at the SF ard fheis they spoke of the same sentiment, which of course was ok.
Is it really going to take the defence forces a year to get a flag to every school in the country? Thank god we’re not being invaded.
I won’t mention the 6 Counties so where a foreign army garrison remains in post
Patriotism, the last refuge of a scoundrel.
Finally, the people are waking up and will reclaim our country from these scoundrels.
Labour OUT. FG OUT.
SF/IRA in?
\•.
At least they stand up for Ireland.
By moving child abusers to Ireland from outside the jurisdiction
Now, if you could just randomly squeeze in something about water charges, that would be grand.
SF/IRA stand up for Ireland, sinister fringe? They stand up for rapists and terrorists, more like.
That the kind of organisation that you want running this country?
A leader that cannot be questioned on his past behaviour under any circumstance? One that has clear links to terrorism, yet his followers show blind loyalty to him. Get real.
Here we go again ..
those dont represent me!
How do they.
Nice idea. Who gets the contract for the Flag supply? I assume it was tendered out.
DOB
So.. Maltese flags over every School if he who shall not be named gets the tender?His tazx residency belongs there innit ? Printed in China as per course. :)
I always thought they had flags. All the schools up my way have them and fly every day. Getting excited. 100 years since we got our country back and will take it back again. Two celebrations in one.
Fuve read the history. ’16 did not give us back our country. That didn’t come til ’22. My gran came from the claddagh in galway, was 6 yo at the time, remembered her dad telling her that some louts in Dublin started a skirmish of sorts , but not much came of it (at the time) . that was the way it was viewed at the time. I’m thinking that if, tomorrow ,the people’s republic of cork revolutionised, it would be viewed in the same way ??
Many seem to forget that not only did we not get our country back in ’16, but we didn’t get our country back in ’22 either.
I can’t think of a single man or woman who fought and died for a 26 county state
Proud to be Irish #32
That’s are fleg.
Better make the most of it , won’t be long we will be like our nearest neighbour where displaying their flag on many of their public buildings is a no no for fear of upsetting some minority or other!
Why are the free staters delivering them?
Who do you think should deliver the flag of the Irish Free State? The TA?
Who are the Freestaters…..? It’s the Defence Forces that delivering the flags…read the article again.
Did the penny drop yet?
The post man that’s who!
At least he provides some service to his country
What service do you provide to your country?
I fight crime in a rubber suit
Well…. stay out of Gotham!!!!
Good one RR85….For a minute there I thought you were suggesting Republican terrorists in camouflage fatigue and balaclavas should do the honours…
Done more standing up for their people than the “Defence Forces”. Not their fault I know but they didn’t do much defending when their fellow countrymen were being burned out of their homes in 1969. Typical Free State govt gutless and only want to do things to make them look good in Europe rather than defend their own citizens. In effect the Free State govt helped the IRA when they abandoned half a million of their own people, if they had acted more decisively The Troubles may have being avoided
Jack Lynch did his Grand Old Duke Of York impression.
By the way, I’m not getting at the Army here, my own brother is heading off to Syria in couple of weeks to do his country proud. It’s the low life politicians who use and abuse the ordinary foot soldiers for their own purpose. I’m sure that many of the soldiers who were on the front line would have loved nothing more to have gone to help their fellow countrymen but prevented from doing so by self-serving politicians
Lovely gusture and I suggest keeping it to remind all our children and adults that we are proud.
Shouldn’t just be for commerative purposes.
Instilling nationalism is not a good thing, especially to the most vulnerable i.e our children.
Why?
They should all have one in the 1st place
Bill is every member of SF inda IRA
@ Shane and not everyone that points out The Shiiners shortcomings is not from FG or Labour.
What happened to good old post deliveries. Out with the Cash Escorts, in with the flag deliveries. Another waste of resources of Irish DF members.
And so they should good
It’s against the law to fly the Irish on your house unless you get a permit..not a lot of people know that.
I actually didn’t know that. I fly my national flag EVERY Easter in memory of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice, not just as a party piece on the centenary of The Rising. I wonder how many lilies we’ll see next year tho, have to say seeing Mr Blue Enda with a lily on will physically make me sick. Id love to know what Pearse & Connolly would make of that #traitor
Does every school get a memorial card of the innocents who died in the crossfire? there was a lot so they may need a new tax but they’re good at that.
You Ouvvviiihhhhh?
Or memorial cards for all the innocents who died over 800 years of occupation? And lapel ribbons for the Irish slaves transported to the West Indies?
Pray tell Mr Todger, name me one conflict where innocent civilians were NOT killed? Not excusing it but it’s a sad side effect of war, it’s always the innocent who suffer most. But the deliberate targeting of civilians is something different – Bloody Sunday, Ballymurphy to name but a few
Mr Todger??? trying to debate the ‘heroes’ after 100 years of brainwashing is pointless bu here goes, if your sibling had got their head blown off by a stray fired by the ‘rebels’ you may change your opinion. I blame Maxwell for creating needless martyrs and leading us down a road to further needless violence and 90 years of social and economic misery inflicted by what emerged from that era.
Would be nice to have the option of getting one in the 6 counties as well. Many here feel just as strongly about the memory of the rising as do in the Republic
All we need now is the Proclamation to be gifted by the Government to the 4000 schools and displayed in a prominent place in the schools.
This is already being done by the Thomas F. Meagher Foundation! Michael D. himself launched the programme a few weeks ago. They are even coordinating an Irish Flag Week for March 2016 and a scholarship programme for schools.
We should be proud of our country, proud of our flag. We fought hard to be able to fly our flag, and our children should also see the importance of a nations flag.
The same people who expressed anti-fag sentiments now express pro-flag sentiments, a fine example of Orwellian doublethink.
Fleg
Vote no in endas referendums and force a GE.get them out asap.
Protocol for national flag is here.
http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/eng/Historical_Information/The_National_Flag/The_National_Flag.pdf
I really do not know why this is done, as the more this government gives Ireland and its citizens sovereignty away then the more of this rhetoric appears, is it done in the hope we do not notice what we as a people and nation are loosing?
Does that include schools in the still occupied 6 county’s or just the free state ?
Cant see the defence forces delivering the National flag to My old school in Co Antrim, Hope they do..
I’m surprised that they don’t already have one.
What if they already have one?
Well then they’ll have a spare one for when the other flag gets dirty and worn .
I hope that our local NS school flies the National flag, they never ever bothered to enroll for the ‘Green flag’ project which is a pity.
Chris , that’s terrible , especially for a local school .
is the government going to supply schools with the flagpole as well or is this another bill hard pressed parents will have to pay
They have No authority over the National flag they only represent 26 counties will the british army deliver 4 the other 6 lol The 1916 leaders fought for all 32 counties somebody please send them back to school
Flax flower?
At last, the defence forces now have a purpose in the country..great to give them something to do..
You would think our government would have secured the domain name Easterrising.ie for years to come including next year. We pride ourselves on our tech economy but let that slip.
Nice to see but not every school has a flag pole to fly our flag properly!
This is what we fought for republican freedom of course it’s right
Whatever the impetus for this project and whatever people think money should be spent on I think that this ia great opportunity to engage young people with their sense of nationality and identify that would transcend all the conflicting theories and beliefs to which they are currently being exposed to inthe run up to 1916 commemorations
To anyone who thinks that the Defence Forces are an indulgence I suggest that you check out this link http://www.military.ie/en/press-office/news-and-events/single-view/article/13-february-2015-army-bomb-disposal-team-render-safe-a-viable-ied/?cHash=a9fd43977fbc594c18e8c0ebf7c708cb
A free flag, but a flagpole costs about 5k, another half arsed Effort
Some are expensive, but it can be done for a few hundred.
They can be very expensive, but can also be done for a few hundred for a decent enough one.
Big Denis is probably in the middle of setting this company up but has already being given the contract
Cutting edge stuff being in the Irish army. I bet there will be some kind of special training for this.
Those mighty plutocrats in Brussels want a one army E.U. So by by Irish army and hello E.U. super army, thank god the E.U. BE GONE BEFORE THAT WILL HAPPEN…
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2985143/Now-EU-wants-ARMY-Brussels-chief-Jean-Claude-Juncker-calls-European-force-face-Putin.html
Daily Mail? really?
It was an example, use google or yahoo to look it up… I heard it myself from Sky news I believe…
Every school should also get a copy of the proclamation
Do we assume they all have flagpoles. Grants- approved lists of contractors?
Nationalism creates wars. I think this is a great little country with more great things than problems. But this jingoistic nonsense?
Swedes not known for being overly patriotic but flags everywhere over here,gardens,houses,public buildings etc.somewhat ironic.
This obviously comes from the same type of thinking that gave us the Spike in O’Connell St., the Dublin Milk Bottles, the tree with my name on it. All pomp and ceremony signifying nothing.
A themed display, which would bring our people and visitors to a knowledge of the importance of the Rising, the resulting executions, the following independence struggle, and the resulting civil war, would be more suited. It would also be available for future generations.
As long as they are prepared to pay for the installation of the post to hang it on – no problem.
have your say