Ireland as almost #1...

Even though I am on the other side of the pond and get the NY Times daily, I still have to rely on friend Ciarán to flag interesting items. In this case it is an OpEd by Thomas Friedman on Ireland's rise to the (almost) top of the EU. While Friedman has become somewhat of a tiresome observer, he does seem to have some credibility (and access to) the powers that be -- so whatever one might think about his analysis, it is good to see the Emerald Isle getting such great press... especailly if it spills over (as it does) into Northern Ireland.... Ireland