Black and Tan only meant one thing to me, until I moved to Liverpool, where it was a weird mix of mild and bitter, or bitter and Guinness. Popular amongst oul lads I thought it was deservedly on the wain and on the way to extinction. But in America, Ben and Jerry’s (the worlds most ethical ice cream) clearly believed it would be a winning new flavour. Apparently not. El Blogador leads the Nationalist Independent, and the Telegraph‘s coverage.
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Fair play to Iain, he managed to get over 2,200 people voting in his poll for the top Northern Irish blogs this year… We (just, I imagine) retained our top spot, with Splintered coming straight in at number 2, no doubt his pet subject du jour will have garnered him a lot of fans… I’ve [...] read our review »
Ah, the magic of marketing in action… The things that meander their way of Madison Avenue…
A car whose name in Spanish transliterates to “doesn’t go.”
The translation of “Coke(?) add life” got garbled in China, coming out something about resurrecting one’s ancestors…
And now this… oy.
It’s a good thing Indian Real Ale in its abbreviated form never made it to Ireland.
It is indeed truly shocking that not everyone in the world is aware of every Irish republican grievance dating back to the early 20th century.
Re-education camps should be set up immediately. Perhaps the Cubans could help?
“It is indeed truly shocking that not everyone in the world is aware of every Irish republican grievance dating back to the early 20th century.”
While recognising the sarcasm in the above comment, can we really call, say, the burning of Cork in 1920 a small republican ‘grievance’, ‘inconveniencing’ as it did everyone in that city, republican or otherwise…
Talking of ‘re-education’, sounds like it might be a good idea in certain cases…
A lot of cheesy remember-the-oul-sod-though- i’ve-never-been-there-in-my-life-nor-have-my-parents-or-grandparents-or-great-grandparents-but-we-do-have-shamrock-teacups, when in ‘Irish’ pubs in NYC order a shot called the ‘car bomb’.
very, very crass, but my don’t they think they’re cute when they order it.
Over here in Los Angeles, my local Irish bar offers Black and Tans, and ‘Irish Car Bombs’ – 2/3 of a pint of Guinness with a shot glass of Jamesons and Baileys dropped in.
Isn’t it time that Nationalists let bygones be just that?
I think I may write a piece for the Blanket.
Anyway, has anyone heard if Ben and Jerry are still going to go ahead with that Bloody Sundae idea?
The burning of Cork? Didn’t Ireland just celebrate the burning of Dublin?
You should!
TAF
“Isn’t it time that Nationalists let bygones be just that?”
LOL
No, shurely not, tell me it can’t be true? Are there really yet people in this world of ours who cry not for Oireland? Alas, alack, another pint.
Mick-
“El Blogador leads the Nationalist outrage.”
Heh-heh. Sounds very ‘campaigning’. Having done a bit more research, I’d say that the accompanying press release which came with the launch of said ice-cream was more ‘offensive’- full of plastic paddy ‘top of the mornin to ya’ type stuff.
Thanks for the mention.
SRR: “The burning of Cork? Didn’t Ireland just celebrate the burning of Dublin? ”
That would be the commemoration of the British *shelling* of Dublin…
TAFKABO: “Isn’t it time that Nationalists let bygones be just that?”
Its that “pattern of behavior thing,” TAFKABO…
Then again — maybe it was a “green” thing — thake a bunch of burned-out fellas from the trenches, hand them guns and tell them to keep the peace. Yeah… that’s the ticket. Recycling.
Then isn’t it time nationalists demanded the closure of all those ‘Shell’ petrol stations?
It’s an outrage I tell you!
La Mon
SRR: “Then isn’t it time nationalists demanded the closure of all those ‘Shell’ petrol stations?”
Ah, but *those* are *DUTCH* Shells, thereby making them relatively pacifist / inert…
The good ol US of A putting their foot in it again.
So no suprises there then.
The good ol US of A putting their foot in it again.
So no suprises there then.
Ohferfuxsake, for a moment I thought you were being serious.
Black and Tan ice cream…
I suppose it brings a whole new meaning to the old saying, ‘I scream, you scream, we all scream…’
spirit-level: “The good ol US of A putting their foot in it again.
So no suprises there then. ”
Egads!!
What we have here is a couple of self-absorbed Vermont hippies making a chocolate and beer-flavored ice cream and naming it after a beer-beverage you can order pretty much anywhere.
A wee look at Google tells me there is a town in Utah called Provo.
A gripe over the name of ice cream must be the most pathetic gripe in history. I truly believe I have heard it all now.
Dread TAFKABO
yeah but why let all that get in the way of a good MOPE
None of the reports identify a single person or organisation as having made a complaint. No story at all then.
Spirit-level: “Dread TAFKABO yeah but why let all that get in the way of a good MOPE
”
There is a nugget — a small kernal of legitimate complaint, or at least *would* be if the damn stuff was actually marketed in Ireland under this name…
As for this being a MOPE, if bits of history are to be lauded, then historical events that call into question those being lauded are fair game.
What this REALLY was, as Henry94 is pointing out, is a damn slow news-day… I mean — look at how much space the Independent dedicated to this… did they do the same in the paper edition?
Well, perhaps we should be fair and equal and remove all potentially offending products.
Strongbow. Now didnt he do a few naughty things, and in County Laois too, so I am offended.
What about those “Planters” crisps and nuts?
No thought at all for the feelings of the true native sons of ulster.
Reminds me of when I first came to the states and saw a billboard stating:
“Friends tell friends to join an IRA”
Other signs that caught my attention included:
“Are you on E? Fill up on Coke” (ad for Cocoa Cola)
and “Park and ride” … which I later found out is illegal.
Here in Seattle all the Irish bars serve black and tans (Guinness and Harp) and the American owned Irish bar chains serve car bombs.
All a mis-understanding. If, say, someone was to make a James Connolly memorial stout and market it with a slogan such as “You won’t be able to stand, but a few pints will blow you away” THAT would be offensive.
None of the reports identify a single person or organisation as having made a complaint. No story at all then.
Doesn’t matter.You need to remember the WDW (wee dafty weans) factor.
The likelyhood of a story being repeated and entering into foklore is in direct relation to the number of people that want it to be true badly enough to ignore all semblance of truth.
TAFKABO: “The likelyhood of a story being repeated and entering into foklore is in direct relation to the number of people that want it to be true badly enough to ignore all semblance of truth. ”
Point of fact — even British contemporary sources point out that the B&Ts, whilst in Ireland, were a bad deal and probably made an ugly situation worse.
That said, I think you’re reading too much into it, TAFKABO… There’s no story here. Besides, how much mileage is there in two loopy Vermont socialist/hippies naming an ice cream treat after a beer drink, even if the name has “darker” connotations is country its not marketed in, yet?
All we really have is a slow news day. A couple of papers, needing to fill a couple of column inches (or more — still can’t fathom the history lesson // monograph stuck into the Independent… overkill on the presumed ignorance of their readers) picked up an amusing little tale off the wire. The part that suprises me is that the dearth of explicitly Irish news sources bemoaning this silly little tale. Like I said, its not even really a story — its not even been marketed outside the United States, so no one has had the chance to be offended yet. Hell, the Independent story spends most of its time ‘splaining who the Black and Tans were and why the name might be a problem.
DC
You haven’t accounted for the WDW factor.
DC-
I think it’s more the novelty factor than anything else which gives a story such as this legs. That said, it was a bit of an own goal marketing the product as quasi-Irish, given the meaning its name has on this side of the pond.
Dread
Ever tried an Apple Cromwell, A Planter´s Plomange or an Orange Bakewell. All very sweet tasting.
TAFKABO: “You haven’t accounted for the WDW factor. ”
Actually, I was taking the long way ’round to the pub — what mileage is there in this tale even entering the folklore. This is two American hippies and an ice cream treat with a stupid name. Its not, say, the Jewish blood libel, what with rabbis turning little Christian or Muslim kiddies into matzoh. The damning part is already history.
Didn’t mcdonalds have to pull an ice cream container because the lid of it looked like the prophet mohammid? Yes I am sure of it. One muslim member of the public objected and it was pulled.
Glad the Irish are not that sensitive, but I do worry if it is politically correct to call them pokes or is that changed to cone?
BB: “Didn’t mcdonalds have to pull an ice cream container because the lid of it looked like the prophet mohammid? Yes I am sure of it. One muslim member of the public objected and it was pulled.”
Almost… I forget the chain, the the “swirl” on the ice cream picture, when turned sideways, vaguely resembled the Arabic script for “Allah,” iirc.
Unfortunately, while when your burnt toast looks like Christ, you get pilgrims… when your ice cream picture looks like Allah, you get rioters.
Dread
“Its not, say, the Jewish blood libel, what with rabbis turning little Christian or Muslim kiddies into matzoh. The damning part is already history.”
Dread, Dread, Dread. This is naturally a not so thinly disguised swipe at me. Perhaps you can elaborate.
Although how you got there from ice cream is beyond me.
Dr Who: “Dread, Dread, Dread. This is naturally a not so thinly disguised swipe at me. Perhaps you can elaborate.
Although how you got there from ice cream is beyond me. ”
Actually, seeing little value in your posts, I’ve actually tended to ignore you of late.
However, since you seem to want to paint me as an anti-Semite, i will ‘splain.
TAFKABO seems to think that there is some benefit for getting this silly tale into the “counsciousness of mind” in Ulster… something he calls the WDW factor. *shrug* I’ll adress that when I get a grip on what it is.
Anyhow, there is nothing to be gained from this tale — two socialists in Vermont apparently offended folks who have never seen the product, because is called “Black and Tan.”
Now, the only two really horrible food stories I am aware of, off the cuff, are the “McDonald’s burgers are (insert non-beef meat here)” and the ancient blood-libel… Only *ONE* of these tales is used for political gain, so I went with that one.
I suppose I could have gone on about the Sepoy rebellion and the greased cartridges, but that would have taken up almost as much space as the Independent took explaining who the Black and Tans were.
TAFKABO seems to think that there is some benefit for getting this silly tale into the “counsciousness of mind” in Ulster… something he calls the WDW factor. *shrug* I’ll adress that when I get a grip on what it is.
I think you just need to get a grip, period.
Stop taking it all so seriously, we know all about the Black and Tans, and that they really existed, you’re missing the point.
Lighten up ferfuxsake.
Just for the record, this story was first reported in Lá, Ireland’s Irish language daily on 14 April (Good Friday). It’s nice to see the world’s press are up to speed.
Dread
¨Actually, seeing little value in your posts, I’ve actually tended to ignore you of late.
However, since you seem to want to paint me as an anti-Semite, i will ‘splain.¨
You do a good enough job of displaying yourself as hating everyone who has a different opinion to yourself. In the past I have suggested you should broaden your horizons, seek out other ideas and opinions and realise while you are obsessive about British, Unionist and Protestant wrongs in Ireland…the many Republican and Catholic wrongs should not be ignored.
I never said you where anti semitic, but your obvious Paranoid and totally incorrect swipe at me confirms you as a moron.
TAFKABO: “Stop taking it all so seriously, we know all about the Black and Tans, and that they really existed, you’re missing the point. ”
Now, sod it all, make up your mind — I was making light of it all right up to you and our “WDW factor.” Obviously I missed the joke in that, but either *SHARE* it, so we both get a laugh or leave off and not go on about it, “ferfuxsake.”
Besides, I took for granted the folks *HERE* knew who the Black and Tans were — I was asking why the Independent took, what, 80% of the story explaining who the B&Ts were.
As I point out, I’ve been ignoring you, despite your snide comments and snipes. And frankly, as I was posting from work, I hadn’t yet seen your comment to make it a swipe. But, since we all know that Mick only put up Slugger to cater to your self-importance, obviously is was all about you.
Physician, heal thyself… You do not debate, you condescend and snipe. As a matter of fact, you have been a font of condescening comment and sniping. To this you now add personal insult. Bravo.
¨As I point out, I’ve been ignoring you, despite your snide comments and snipes. And frankly, as I was posting from work, I hadn’t yet seen your comment to make it a swipe. But, since we all know that Mick only put up Slugger to cater to your self-importance, obviously is was all about you.
Physician, heal thyself… You do not debate, you condescend and snipe. As a matter of fact, you have been a font of condescening comment and sniping. To this you now add personal insult. Bravo.¨
So you are ignoring me Hmmm!
You are at work, why don´t you take a break and run to your nearest Ben and Jerry´s and advise them on the Black and Tans and the Famine and the Plantation and the Hunger Strikes and ad nauseum!
You would bore the leggings off a village idiot.
“handbags down ladies , and nobody gets hurt!
Mick Fealty 2005
Long, long before HM Govt put that gang of thugs in (mixed) uniforms into Ireland, was not “Black and Tan” the name of a perfectly respectable and very effective strain of terrier? And was not that part of the “joke” in so naming the irregulars? If that is the provenance I see no harm in borrowing the name for a drink, an ice cream or anything else.
Best to all.
Uptheshankill: “Long, long before HM Govt put that gang of thugs in (mixed) uniforms into Ireland, was not “Black and Tan” the name of a perfectly respectable and very effective strain of terrier?”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Toy_Terrier_(Black_&_Tan)
This is a non-story, got up and running by the media. Certain sections of the media love this sort of story. They claim “people are outraged that…”, when nobody is actually outraged at all. Then they can have some fun running stupid comment pieces on how outraged they are that other people are outraged about something so daft, usually under the heading “P.C. Gone Mad”. In medialand P.C. is always “gone mad”, if P.C. was a person he would be permanently detained under the mental health order.