irish/english animosity

Regarding Andra's question here which asked about Irish/English relations in the present.

I couldn't find a lot on this in official sources, but I did come across an interesting sort of forum in which the same question was being asked. Here are some quotes which I think illustrate a myriad of viewpoints.

"fine I would say"

"i see the irish as a bunch of lovable alchaholics[sic] who are handy whenever a road needs to be repaired"

"According to my Irish Literature lecturer last year, for the majority of young people in Northern Ireland and The Republic, The Troubles are ancient history. I'd say the same goes for most young people in England too.

I think older generations in England still distrust the Irish a bit because of the IRA bombings and mass immigration in past decades but those kinda folks have the Muslims to distract them now."

"Whilst most progressive thinking people can place such issues where the firmly belong, in the past, there is still a deep seated distrust of the English by many with Irish backgrounds, particularly those of the Roman-Catholic persuasion.

A lot of the ill will could be seen as jusitified[sic] to many. As Dara O'Briain explains, 800 years is a bit long to just let it slide.(not a direct quote, but those were his sentiments)."

"There's also the political history to take into consideration. It can't be denied that the actions of a nation define how others see that nation, and if for generations your country contrives to oppress and harass, then it's to be expected you'll be resented for genrations[sic] to come."

"I mean, if it wasn't for the English; Irish would be our first language, but prior to getting our independence, the English banned the teaching of the Irish language so it's more or less dead now..."

"I think that relations are good but only as long as the English don't make light of the issue or forget about what was done to Ireland under their rule."

My impression is that Irish/English animosity still exists if you dig deep enough. If I wanted to be drastic, I might compare it to slavery/racial prejudice in the United States. It's there, people feel it, but for the most part we're trying to leave it behind ourselves, and yet there are still indelible marks (like language) which will stick with us forever.