> So the real problem is not a few perverted priests (after all, who but a pervert would be attracted to this job?) but a public social welfare system that sells the public down the river to the Catholic service delivery institutions.As I see it, this shows the weakness of labor in Ireland - which seems to be attracted more to nationalist than socialist or social-democratic ideals.
I'm not sure whether you're referring to organised labour or the ordinary proles. The former are now quite clearly social democratic (albeit with a socialist minority) and while their roots may lie in nationalism that can't be said to be the case any longer, given their organic links to the Labour Party which is probably the most anti-nationalist party of any significance in this part of Ireland.
As for ordinary workers, the biggest weakness isn't their attraction to nationalism - which seems to me to be fairly superficial - but with a fiercely clientelist political culture in which the parish pump takes precedence over just about *everything* else. A notable statistic in the recent polls which show support for Fianna Fáil at its lowest ever is that the only exception to this trend is among the lowest NRS social class categories. The reason for this continued support isn't because of FF's "nationalist" credentials but because of that party's skill at embedding itself into communities and persuading working class people that they'll "look after" them.
You're right about the pervasiveness of Church control of social services; I'm sure I've mentioned this before here. 95% of primary schools, most of the public hospitals etc.