Is there some twisted logic to the fact that two new series that portray Irish-Americans in an unflattering light have debuted just before St. Patrick's Day? Or is it just unfortunate timing? It's kinda weird, right? The Black Donnellys, a preposterous Paul Haggis vehicle, is all about these ne'er do well working-class Irish young folk just can't stay out of jail and are drawn into a life in organized crime. The season opener tries to get away with a... they just had to brutally murder some nasty gangsters to start over. It doesn't have a lot going for it in terms of believability. Then there's the Riches, which concerns a family of Irish travelers (also known as the Tinkers) posing as upwardly mobile suburbanites. The Irish traveler con/scam artists do exist. They've been running repair and house-painting scams in the southeast and mid-Atlantic states, as I learned on 60 Minutes about three years ago. And with Eddie Izzard on board, I have to go with the later and issue a warning about the former.