I am distressed that Sinn Féin seems to have such little sense of history that it does not appreciate the value and strategic importance of Ireland's full membership of the European Union as an alternative to a claustrophobic relationship with Britain. Was it for this the Wild Geese spread the grey wing upon every tide? Hugh O'Neill, Sarsfield and Wolfe Tone all sought help from European countries that have been friends down the centuries. Thomas Davis said: