It's a cultural thing ...

I was reading Michael Dibdin's 'And Then You Die' the other day and this nice little passage stood out:

You knew where you were in a Catholic culture: up to your neck in lies, evasions, impenetrable mysteries, double-dealing, back-stabbing and underhand intrigues of every kind. With which comforting thought he lowered the blind again and dozed off.

Ah, an explanation for the crisis in Ireland and the lack of any real sense of emergency or protest. It's a cultural thing - the crisis is just normal practice magnified. I'll post a review of the book next week some time.