I'm impressed.

Experience changes a person. Sometimes for worse, but more often for the far-better:

"But I have more important questions for Irish artists. What happened to the notion of the artist as a free thinking individual? Why have Irish artists surrendered to group-think on Israel? Could it be due to something as crude as career-advancement?

"Artistic leadership comes from the top. Aosdana, Ireland's State-sponsored affiliation of creative artists, has also signed the boycott. Aosdana is a big player. Its members populate Arts Council funding panels.

"Some artists could assume that if their name is on the same boycott sheet as the people assessing their applications, it can hardly hurt their chances. No doubt Aosdana would dispute this assumption. But the perception of a preconceived position on Israel is hard to avoid."

A rare occurance that shouldn't be so rare. In a world where an Irish city considers a statue honoring an enemy of freedom and Hollywood rich folk are "proud" to stand with the likes of Hugo Chavez, seeing one person overcome their environment and see the real world for what it is tis a joy to behold.

Please read the whole article.