When the National Lottery decided in May to organise a raffle for tickets to visit the USS John F Kennedy, it showed an accurate judgment of public opinion. Hundreds of thousands of people applied lord the 10,000 available tickets, and many of those who were disappointed were happy to pay large sums in order to get aboard. Enthusiasm turned to frustration on Tuesday evening when guests had to be turned away because of high seas and yesterday because of a breakdown in the landing gear. The much hyped visit for Independence Day has shown - perhaps reassuringly - that there are some things the mightiest navy in the world cannot anticipate and, when they happen, does not have a ready answer for.
Obviously there is strong, popular support for the visit, which reflects the long standing connection between Ireland and the United States. The link may have become more pragmatic and less sentimental in recent years with EU membership and the development of a complex pattern of international relations. But it is still an essential part of our history, and an important element in our development strategy. That does not exclude the right to be critical about many aspects of US policy or to point out that its great power status must be exercised responsibly. The JFK has quite legitimately been the focus not only of welcome but also of vocal protest.
To argue, however, that the presence of the vessel in Dublin Bay involves it in complicity in the series of naval actions in which the vessel has taken part, or that rejecting it would somehow have effected a dissociation from the economic benefits of the Gulf War that this State in common with other non belligerents - has accepted, is hardly tenable.
If the JFK had violated our non nuclear legislation or our stated policy on nuclear weapons, that would have been another matter. But an assurance has been given contrary to the previous practice of refusing to comment that it is only carrying conventional arms. The positive balance of our relationship with the United States far exceeds anything that would have justified rejection.
It is also worth pointing out that the visit has created no precedent in terms of military contacts with other nations or with the United States specifically. Canadian, Soviet, French, German and British warships have visited these shores since the 1980s. This list of nations whose vessels have been in Irish waters is not exclusive. The process involves no commitment beyond friendship. US ships have been among the most frequent and regular visitors.
Why so many people wanted to see the JFK may be a question for the sociologists. Some of the disappointed visitors who were interviewed on television, spoke of a family day out for their children. No doubt there was also the sporting chance offered by the National Lottery, the pressure of fashion, the possibility of being one of a small arbitrarily chosen elite. For some, the sight of a massive feat of engineering or a vicarious glimpse of history was the lure. The motivations, and the near hysteria that goes along with these occasions, may say many things about our society, but the political message is much less clear.