Lets not play to stereotypes and say that every Irishman is an alcoholic. I'm Irish and I wouldn't say that I was an alcoholic under any circumstance. That being said, we do need to address that I'm a big fan of recreational drinking and I know from first-hand experience that most of my Irish buddies are too. We wear our funny Irish t-shirts and we drink our dirty Irish whiskey and we have a blast. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?

There are several other drinking Holidays during the year, but the Irish only get the one to celebrate our heritage and culture. Halloween, New Year's, Labor Day, and the 4th of July are all very fine and good...but where's the green beer? If I throw on one of my funny Irish t-shirts on Halloween, people are just going to think I'm dressed as a leprechaun.

So, I propose a question to my dear, fellow Irish-American brothers and sisters: Why must we bicker so? We all come from the same roots, so there should be no reason we have to fight about what it means to be an Irishman. Perhaps my partying days will slip past me as I get older, but right now I just want to be happy and drunk. I'll go to Mass with the old-timers next year, maybe.

This infighting has to stop, my dear fellow Irishmen. If we have to lie down our beers while they lie down their rosary just so we can figure out how to get along, then so be it. Here's a brilliant idea: The holier-than-thou clan can leave us alone during Saint Patrick's Day, and we'll promise to come straight to the church for confession the next day. The drinkers win, the bake-sellers win, and God wins.

So lets put on our funny Irish t-shirts, string our necks with green beads, toast our glasses high in the air, and remember the songs our grandfathers sang. The Irish spirit will not be laid to rest by mere bickering. We have much to celebrate. Few have climbed as high from as far below as the Irish people in this great country of ours. That sounds like a great reason to have a drink to me.