Thread by @liamstack

Greetings from St. Patrick’s Cathedral where a small symbolic St. Patrick’s Day march gathered before sunrise.

Here is @NYCMayor holding (a) a banner and (b) the smallest shillelagh I have ever seen.

(Maybe because he is so tall?)

Normally there are 150,000 marchers and 2 million spectators at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Today, between organizers and an honor guard from the 69th Infantry Regiment, there are just a few dozen people.

I was at the St. Patrick’s Day mini parade for 5 minutes before I met a trade unionist from Long Island whose grandparents were from a town (Ballina) next to wear my grandmother was from (Pontoon.) Ballina is also the home of Biden’s ancestors and the great @declanwalsh

Here is Cardinal Dolan with some truly enormous Irish wolfhounds at the St. Patrick’s Day mini parade outside @StPatsNYC

Overheard at the St. Patrick’s Day mini parade:

[69th infantry regiment soldier #1] look at the size of these fucking dogs, man.

[69th infantry regiment soldier #2] they’re huge!

Organizers of the St. Patrick’s Day mini parade, accompanied by a bagpiper, an honor guard from the 69th Infantry Regiment, and 2 truly enormous Irish wolfhounds, just marched into @StPatsNYC. I’m here for @NYTMetro

.@NYCMayor has reappeared after the St. Patrick’s Day mini parade to sit in the first pew at Mass at @StPatsNYC. I do not see his tiny shillelagh.

In fairness everyone here at @StPatsNYC for the St. Patrick’s Day mini parade seems to have these tiny shillelaghs. I do not know how these are supposed to function as walking sticks, let alone weapons.

Cardinal Dolan welcomes the elected officials who are at St. Patrick’s Day Mass today, including @NYCMayor and “Lt. Gov. Hochul, we are glad you’re here. If you’d like to light some candles after Mass, we understand.”

“We’ve got a good crowd here today,” Cardinal Dolan said at the beginning of the Mass, which is abiding by all the coronavirus social distancing and masking rules. “It’s not jammed like usual but it sure beats last year,” when all celebrations were canceled.