FAKE NEWS!
You’ve probably seen some rumblings on social media this morning and if not, you’re bound to hear it being blasted on the airwaves for the rest of the day.
In a piece for The Times entitled “Britain is the authentic nation in this battle”, Melanie Phillips has said that Ireland has a “tenuous claim to nationhood”.
Phillips said: “The claim to unite Ireland is tenuous since Ireland itself has a tenuous claim to nationhood, having seceded from Britain as the Irish Free State only in 1922.”
She went on to state that Britian is an authentic, unitary nation by comparison.
The type of thinking it requires to draw that conclusion is simply astounding.
Melanie Phillips herself has a tenuous claim to existence, having been born only in 1951. @MelanieLatest @thetimes pic.twitter.com/4aHNayKPRJ
— Who dusky (@momahony_) March 7, 2017
Obviously there was a strong reaction to her article online…
https://twitter.com/ianprior/status/839033554273185792
https://twitter.com/garside66/status/839082580813185024
https://twitter.com/JonLFoster/status/839081870788866048
https://twitter.com/mermayden/status/839081129999273984
https://twitter.com/dmcbfs/status/839078760217460736
Melanie Phillips has written something spurious about Irish nationhood. I'm shocked. If only her previous writing had given us some clues.
— Gavan Titley (@GavanTitley) March 7, 2017
Melanie Phillips can always be relied upon to be more offensive than she needs to be……..
— Jos Bell (@Jos21Bell) March 7, 2017
Melanie Phillips helpfully proves why it is vital to continue teaching History in schools https://t.co/Mv6ufVKXmX
— Annie West (@anniewestdotcom) March 7, 2017
Are Katie Hopkins and Melanie Phillips in some kind of extreme-right-poisonous-bile Battle of the Bastards?
— Helen the Zen 🏴 💙 🍉 (@helenmallam) March 7, 2017
All the Irish people I follow on Twitter are staggered and furious about Melanie Phillips preposterousness this morning. Strangely soothing.
— Orla (@OrlaDoherty) March 7, 2017
Melanie Phillips doing her absolute best to endear everyone to the English. #MajorFacePalm
— Dean Faccini (@DeanFaccini) March 7, 2017
Although not everyone felt the same way… or were being controversial for the sake of it, rather like the original article.
https://twitter.com/MisterSoAngry/status/839079621052219392
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