Practical patriotism - Go forth and buy for Ireland

PATRIOTISM is one of those old, crusty ideas the great value of which is not entirely realised until its place in the public consciousness reaches a low ebb.

It lies latent until the idealism, pride-of-place and self confidence it represents are called upon for the benefit of the country and all of those who live and work in it.

For generations patriotism meant only one thing in this country: violent and relentless confrontation with our nearest neighbour as a means of establishing our independence.

Today patriotism can be expressed in the most practical and basic of ways — and all without a voice being raised or a shot fired in anger.

As the Christmas buying frenzy —and what a frenzy it is — charges towards a climax a simple principle should, at least to some degree, be observed: buy Irish.

Business leaders have suggested we need a new Made in Ireland campaign to sustain Irish jobs and bolster an economy not just quite as vibrant as it has been in recent years.

The simplicity of this idea is plain to see, after all, what goes around comes around and if we do not support local industries and businesses the consequences are obvious.

Mark Fielding, the chief executive of the small business organisation ISME suggests that if each of the country’s 1.47 million households spends just 10% — estimated at €143 — of their Christmas budget on Irish goods rather than imports it would make a very significant contribution to sustaining jobs in Ireland — the jobs we all depend on.

We have all heard the stories in recent weeks about the enormous contribution Irish people have made to the bottom line of New York’s retailers.

The Irish transatlantic shopper has been described as the top spender in the Big Apple. This cannot be an easy accolade to secure in one of the great capitals of capitalism and whether we should judge it as a mark of success or excess remains to be seen.

It would be foolish to pretend that Irish goods can always compete with international competitors on price and some of the examples are extreme — Irish hand-made teddy bears cost from €126 to €299 online but Asian factory-made ones cost as little as €15.50.

However, if we only consider price too much of our budget will go abroad. Remember ISME suggests that if we spend just 10% of our holiday cash on Irish goods it would have a significant and lasting impact.

That cannot be too much to ask, especially as the stakes for all of us are so high.

General George Patton, accepted by many historians as the greatest of all American military leaders, once described a patriot as the guy who makes the other guy die for his country.

Maybe we could amend that slightly and argue that a modern patriot is the guy — or gal — who buys for their country.

So, go forth to the Christmas frontline armed with your credit cards and fight the good fight — buy for Ireland.