Re: Good for them!
Yes, I was being facietious about history, q.v. Soviet Union, et. al.
The apparent EU issue is admiting more member states but the hidden clincher is more centralized power to Brussels and the core EU countries. Ireland's low tax policy lead to an economic boom in telecom (now butst), finance and other industries. Importantly, Ireland has a decent edu infrastructure and work ethic that enabled the tax cut policy to succeed.
Since I'm off to a party with the Irish side of the family, it's now time for me to don the Scottish persona and harrass the Irish.