Ireland... With(IN) or Without EU

This past week, I have spent the first half of my spring break on the gorgeous island of Ireland.  Ireland has long been a member of the European Union, longer than its old partner, the UK.  Although Ireland is a participating member of the EU, I noticed several glaring differences between Ireland and many of the continental European nations.

The most obvious difference was the security.  In Paris, you cannot go outside your home without seeing a member of the national guard or a police officer.  Every entrance to each building is manned by a security guard who checks you and your possessions.  This is not the case in Ireland, at all.  From the moment I landed in the Dublin airport, it was apparent.  In Paris (as well as other EU nations) the airport is the hot-spot for big-gunned security personnel.  I did not see a single one of these guards in the Dublin airport.  Furthermore, there were no guards patrolling the streets of Dublin, Ireland's capital city, only the occasionally cheery police officer.

Walking around the city, there are other things to notice as well, or, should I say, a lack of things to notice.  Every city has its homeless population.  Dublin had one, but the percentage of these displaced individuals were not refugees or foreign citizens.  The majority of these people were Irish who seemed to have run out of luck (no pun intended).  I would warrant that the most obvious of these reasons would be the physical barriers.  Ireland is now separated from the rest of the EU by the English Channel, following the landmass of Britain, and then the Irish Sea.  These are a considerable amount of barriers, both geographically and politically, that make it difficult for Ireland to receive displaced people, not to mention that they would have to travel through the EU-leaving UK.

These have been two major items I have noticed.  Ireland seems very much to be a EU nation in harmony.  It is not plagued as severely as its partners in some areas.  The prices were a bit high (slightly less than Paris in Dublin), but in the country the harmony was mirrored.  Our guide even boasted on the unemployment numbers, which have been looking better and better recently.  Ireland has always had a boom and bust economy.  They are hardened and prepared for hard times and no how to deal with them.  Although Ireland is an important player in the EU, they seem to have the long end of the stick when it comes to the universal problems each EU member faces.

Here's a picture of Bono: