The revisionist attack on Irish history

The traditional view of Irish history is based on the premise that the Irish people had a moral right to fight for their political, economic, social and cultural independence from imperialist Britain. An opposing view began to emerge in Ireland in the 1930s, according to Dr. Christine Kinealy, author of A New History of Ireland. At that time, a number of leading Irish Academics began following the lead of earlier British historians, in setting an agenda for the systematic revision of traditional Irish History, which they claimed was rife with "nationalist myths". Their declared mission was to replace this so-called mythology with objective, "value-free" history. In her essay, "Beyond Revisionism", Dr. Kinealy says that the revisionist movement gained a new prominence in the battle for Irish hearts and minds during the 1960s when the IRA campaign intensified. Challenging nationalist mythology became an important ideological preoccupation of a new generation of historians.

The Irish economy is heading towards a bright future

The economy is heading towards a bright future with real economic growth averaging 3.75% annually over the next decade, the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) forecasts in its Medium-Term Review 2008-2015. Looking further ahead, the ESRI foresees that Ireland will continue to outperform its European neighbours in the growth race in the years to 2025. As a result, income per head of population in Ireland is projected to come close to 120% of the EU15 average in the years 2020- 2025. While the economy is set to stutter this year and next, the ESRI foresees a strong economic rebound in 2010, when economic growth is forecast to exceed 5%.