Guinness Lobbies for St. Patrick's Day Holiday
It can be hard to enjoy beer-soaked Lucky Charms and a 40-stop pub crawl if you know it is costing you a day of vacation, and perhaps an additional sick day to recover. Maybe this is why Guinness has started Proposition 3-17, a "grassroots effort" to make St. Patrick's Day an official holiday in America.
The March 17 festival for Ireland's patron saint is already celebrated with parades in more than 90 U.S. cities and drunken debauchery just about everywhere else. Yet St. Patrick's Day remains in the Mardi Gras/Cinco De Mayo/Oktoberfest caste of state-snubbed drinking holidays. Apparently Guinness feels that's just not right.
The company has launched a campaign, including the online petition (as of this morning, more than 71,000 had signed) and plans to advertise in newspapers and on TV. Bar owners in D.C. have begun receiving e-mails asking for support.
The company is depicting its campaign as matter of not only Celtic pride but American multiculturalism. "Guinness and Proposition 3-17 supporters believe that a regulated, official holiday would not only reduce the amount of employees missing work in order to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but officially allow people to express their Irishness," says the petition.
It's natural to be skeptical of a beer company fighting for such a measure, as opposed to, say, a cultural organization. Critics might even argue that Guinness is simply pushing a popular cause in order to sell more beer.
And they may be right. But if by building brand loyalty they also manage to create awareness about Irish culture, shouldn't they be praised? There are plenty of companies that push products without regard for anything but a bottom line. Slick marketing and social impact are not mutually exclusive.
By Emil Steiner | February 28, 2008; 10:15 AM ET | Category: OFF/beat Politics
Posted by: ralfy | February 28, 2008 3:45 PM
Write your congressman today! This is a holiday we all deserve. Don't be afraid to stand up for our Irish heritage. There is power in numbers.
Posted by: Curly | February 29, 2008 4:27 AM
Hell yes, I could use the day off. Let's all remember that crazy lil irish dude
Posted by: | February 29, 2008 4:55 AM
While I love people of Irish decent (particularly my girlfriend) and I love Guiness, St. Patrick's day should not be an official holiday. Then every cultural holiday has to be official too. The fact remains that we're all just Americans and while we may pride ourselves on our ancestry, the country should only celebrate holidays that all Americans are a part of.
Posted by: Peter C. | February 29, 2008 12:39 PM
Sure, make St. Pat's a holiday, and Cinco de Mayo, Arbor Day, and Mother's Day. After all Cinco de Mayo celebrates the defeat by Americans (as in Mexico being on the American continent) of the French. I say Mr. "Sanctuary Mansion" Romney lead the charge on that one. According to him, we're destined to become the France of the 21st Century if the Dems win. What better way to avoid that predicament is to commemorate a day where French hiney was kicked... and the drunks get an additional free drinking and recovery day.
Posted by: Kruhnn | February 29, 2008 2:01 PM
Hell yes! More drinking holidays! Can I add Purim, Bachinal and Carnival to the list.
Posted by: | February 29, 2008 3:03 PM
I think this portrays the Irish as a bunch of drunken, beer soaked potato eaters. There is a great deal more to the Irish than that. From Irish Spring to Bennigens, they true contain multitudes.
Posted by: fas | February 29, 2008 6:17 PM
My b-day is march 16th! this would be the best gift in the world! and I am finally turning 21 this year lets make this happen!
Posted by: Maggie | March 3, 2008 1:45 AM
Check around places like http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Irish-Americans for the Irish contribution. Not to take anything away from any cultures contribution, but the Irish in particular have played a key roll from the very formation of our country (1/3 to 1/2 of the troups in the revolutionary war) to the beginnings of the Blues, Jazz, CW and Rock & Roll.
Most of europe have at least one holiday and/or bank holidays each month. We would just e falling in line with most of Europe to add St. pat's as well as Cinco De Mayo and maybe an asian holiday.
Posted by: Kendo | March 4, 2008 1:28 AM
This is obviously a PR stunt. To the commenter above, the Irish weren't even in America during the Revolutionary war! Get your facts straight!
Posted by: Pill | March 4, 2008 11:22 AM
This is a great idea. Finally a holiday people would actually participate in. You go Guinness! Pr stunt or not, it is a rocking idea.
Posted by: Michael Peters | March 11, 2008 11:01 AM
The Irish weren't even in America during the Revolutionary War? Where were they? On vacation?
Get YOUR facts straight.
Posted by: Beck | March 13, 2008 1:57 AM
A holiday for the Irish would be great! Alot for Irish shed blood and died for this country.
Posted by: Bill Holland | March 13, 2008 11:52 PM
A holiday for the Irish would be great! Alot of Irish shed blood and died for this country.
Posted by: Bill Holland | March 13, 2008 11:54 PM
I don't think we should make St. Pat's day an official holiday. I respect all cultures but in truth, how can you single out one group? I would think that Cinco de Mayo would become an official holiday before an Irish holiday does because of the population anyway. And who thought it would be a good idea to celebrate a holiday only to get drunk and have an extra day off. What would the cards read, "....and make sure you have a designated driver for the holiday." With all the political nonsense going on in this country now, having a holiday just for drinking is absurd. Actually, it's absurd any way you slice it.
Posted by: DR6 | March 14, 2008 10:38 PM
"With all the political nonsense going on in this country now, having a holiday just for drinking is absurd." What is New Year's? Answer: "an event that happens when a culture celebrates the end of one year and the beginning of the next year" (wikipedia), a reason for setting resolutions we either follow through or don't "reflections", and a reason for drinking! "late-night partying" I'm sorry, but most people I know drink the night away on New Year's, so what's one more day? To add to that day, those of us that are Irish, are celebrating our heritage. I am Irish, but I do not just drink and get stupid. I have children, and I pass on to them the heritage that my ancestors would have wanted passed on. This holiday means more to me than just drinking. St. Patrick's Day to me means celebrating my heritage that was passed on to me through my ancestors that came straight from County Cork Ireland, making family recipes with my children passed down from our ancestors, singing and dancing, showing my spirit and passing on family names that were passed on for generations. Without my ancestors I wouldn't have my name or the love for baking and cooking these amazing dishes.
Posted by: Stephanie | March 15, 2008 7:40 PM
Hell yes make it official. Shoot if it weren't for the Irish alot of American history wouldv'e turned out differently. Who the heck do you think fought in those wars: revolutionary, civil war, WWI, WWII.
Posted by: Robert McCann | March 17, 2008 4:02 PM
We have a show up today on MobLogic about this. http://www.moblogic.tv/video/2008/03/17/the-green-beer-lobby/
And we linked to this article in the post. http://www.moblogic.tv/blog/2008/03/17/the-best-advertising-strategy-ever/
Stop by, let us know what you think.
Posted by: Amanda | March 17, 2008 4:19 PM
The comments to this entry are closed.
with 35 million Americans of Irish decent I don't think it will be tough to get this bill through. Maybe Ted Kennedy could be the sponsor?