I like it too

I really regret not to have followed the Irish debates leading to the referendum held yesterday on the Lisbon Treaty. I am sure they did resemble Portuguese debates a lot, the only difference being they were conducted in English. With an adult population of about three million people the debates in Ireland would have shown three million different reasons to vote Yes or No.

A nice, middle-aged anchor-woman moderates the debate on TV. She speaks louder than any of her guests, a way to make her authority be felt among a potentially unruly bunch of participants.

-You sir, why are you voting No?, she asks one man.

With a lot of gestures of his hands, he answers:

-To be frank, I am voting No because of the codfish issue. Formerly, before joining the EU each Irish fisherman could catch 200 pounds of codfish a year. Now, he can catch only 180. This is a threat to the lives of fishermen in Ireland!

Then, a man who for thirty years has lived on generously-paid EU jobs explains why he votes Yes:

-First, I would like to make it clear that I am not here to do favours to anybody. But I really believe we all should vote Yes because without the EU we would go back to the archaic Irish society of the 1970's.

The anchor-woman now points at a man from a village known in the polls for its Yes majority:

-Sir, are you going to vote Yes to the Lisbon Treaty too, and why?, she asks.

-Sure, I'll do. Since in my village everybody likes that thing, I like it too, he says.

It is now the turn of a politician from the opposition to explain why he votes No:

-Over the last thirty years the EU has taken the best out of the Irish people. If it were not for us the EU would be in shambles. How would they find a country like Ireland they could show the World as an example of EU success? It is high time we put an end to this exploitation of the Irish people!

An old woman explains why she votes No:

-I heard that the Treaty will allow the imprisonment of three year-old kids. You know, I have a five year-old grandson, named Patrick, and I do not agree with putting boys in jail at that early age.

A man rises from the audience and after a long speech explains why he votes Yes:

-Everybody knows that this miserable country would have already sunk if it were not for the EU!