Noel Whelan had a piece in yesterday’s Irish Times, warning us that in our admiration for the forgiving spirit of those close to the victims of the Mullaghmore explosion – Louis Mountbatten, young Paul Maxwell and Nicholas Knatchbull, 83-year-old Dorothy Brabourne – we must not forget the foul deed that was done that day, and the ‘slaughter’ of eighteen British soldiers at Narrow Water. He highlights the sense of triumph among republicans at the time, and quotes the graffito “Thirteen dead but not forgotten/We got eighteen and Mountbatten”.
Not to put too much a tooth in it, he calls on readers to remember what foul dealers in death republicans were.
He’s right, of course. The deaths of the young and the old always seem particularly callous. The death of 14-year-old Julie Livingstone, killed by a plastic bullet as she came home from a message to the shops. The death of 17-year-old Jackie Duddy, shot down as he vainly ran for his life on Bloody Sunday. The unborn child of Colette Doherty, killed in Dublin in the Dublin-Monaghan bombs which killed 34 people. Fr Hugh Mullan, shot dead as he tried to help one of the dying in the Ballymurphy massacre.
There is a terrible danger attached to our reaction to the deaths at Mullaghmore and Narrow Water, a danger which Noel Whelan would appear to have succumbed to. It is that we see the deeds of the IRA as uniquely evil and the death of their victims as uniquely poignant. That we see the killing of Lord Louis Mountbatten, a member of the British royal family and an old soldier, as more horrible than that of Jackie Duddy and the thirteen others who died with him. (Can you even name the remaining thirteen? ). That we talk about the ‘murder’ of the 18 British soldiers at Narrow Water, but about the ‘controversies’ surrounding the actions of the Parachute regiment on Bloody Sunday in Derry and in Ballymurphy a few months earlier.
The close-up of what happened in Mullaghmore highlights a fact we should all know: that armed conflict is a terrible, vicious and merciless affair. But when we exalt the killings of the high-born and those who associate with them above the killings of the ordinary and the unadorned, those who who sailed in a pleasure boat in Mullaghmore with a member of the Royal family above those who went to the shops for a message, we are guilty of a truly despicable act: attaching greater importance to the death of one human being over another.
Maybe Noel Whelan should have a re-read of that great Englishman, John Donne: “Each man’s death diminishes me, for I am involved in mankind. Therefore, send not to know for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee”.
Present tense
Let us not forget the young man who remains in a coma in Derry years after an unprovoked attack by disloyalists and the silence in relation to this event. Some individuals are promising us ‘a bad July’ in 2015.
Mr Whelan could do worse that review the role of the state, the British Army, the RUC and its proxies in much of the needless bloodshed on these islands.
Mr Whelan might wish to comment on the reluctance of the British government to release files on incidents with embargoes on such information until 2022? Perhaps with bells the truth will be told.
I’d agree with yourself and John Donne on that Jude….
Excellent article Jude. I am puzzled by the media’s use of words in the past few days. We read and heard of ‘The murder of Lord Mountbatten’ but the killings on Bloody Sunday and Ballymurphy. Is there a difference? Were Bloody Sunday and Ballymurphy not murders as well.
Jude
I can’t see how you conclude that Noel Whelan sees the deeds of the IRA as uniquely evil. The Mullaghmore and Narrow Water killings (certainly murder in the case of the civilians on board) are in the headlines so he is addressing those in particular.
To assume that means he does not consider killings by other groups to be equally evil is both illogical and unfair.
When you do a piece about killings by the British army should we assume that all other killings are unimportant to you? I would certainly not make that assumption despite the fact that you tend to highlight those killings much more frequently.
The point he is making (as far as I can tell) is that the media down south spend much more time discussing nasty deeds by the IRA & a lot less time discussing nasty deeds by others. If you read the two main newspapers, Irish Times & Irish Independent on a regular basis this will become self-evident.
When Gusty Spence, the man who carried out the first murders of the troubles, died several years ago the Irish Independent carried a story on Gusty’s life. I can honestly say that I read much less flattering Obituaries of Nelson Mandela in the press when he died a few years ago.
I think for major newspapers with large circulations to engage in such one-sided explanations of the ‘troubles’ is quite dangerous. One consequence is that many of our fellow country men & women who are too young to remember the troubles could not name one person murdered by Loyalists/Brits in the North.
One very unpleasant man I got talking to outside a bar in Balbriggan told me De Valera & the Provisional IRA (of which Devalera was obviously not a member & which this particular individual was seemingly unaware) were the same as Chairman Mao.
This type of ignorance is partly a consequence of a media which has an agenda of keeping their readers/listeners as ignorant of the North as possible. As far as I am concerned the question is not if they have this agenda the question is why
Antonio
My point is that the Mullaghmore killings are in the news at present, so that is what he (Whelan) is addressing.
If there has been an earthquake and it is reported in the news, do we complain that the media are not mentioning last years tsunami?
When Jude writes about Ballymurphy, say, does he remember to list all the wrongs done by the IRA too? No,nor should he.
A quick google shows plenty of reference in the Irish Times to Bloody Sunday to take one example,so I ask, where is the statistical evidence of bias?
I am ready to accept it exists but not on the basis of individual perceptions.
Tell you what, gio – a fiver for every article that speaks positively of Sinn Féin that you can find in the Sindo or even TUT as Perkie calls it – say over the past month. Shouldn’t be hard – after all they’re balanced mainstream organs…
Jude
That is not the point you made. You suggested they had succumbed to viewing the deeds of the IRA as uniquely evil. Yet there are plenty of articles highlighting other atrocities by other groups. Try Eamonn McCann for one.
Perhaps if the IRA had not carried out so many vile deeds there would not be so many anniversaries coming along to embarrass their political wing
Ha haa, gio – God does indeed love a tryer. I do indeed suggest that the mainstream media view the deeds of the IRA as uniquely evil. You’re simply adding to that chorus by what you say. I suppose you did know that we had the Dublin -Monaghan bombing anniversary just over a week ago? I’m not saying the IRA didn’t carry out vile acts – in fact I’m saying and have said the opposite. But what is truly sad is the spectacle of people who want to heap all the pain of the Troubles on the back of republicans and drive them out into the wilderness. Sad and either self-deceiving or very stupid.
I have not carried out a statistical analysis. maybe I will some day.
I was at an event organised by Slugger last year, Brian Feeney was talking about the anti-Sinn Fein/northern republican agenda of the independent news media and said there were 45 articles in the most recent edition of the Sunday Independent portraying the Shinners in a negative light. The wee guy doing the compare says ‘so you think there is an agenda behind it’. ‘Of course there is agenda behind it’ retorted Feeney.
The idea that the Irish Independent (and to a lesser degree the Irish Times) do not have an anti-Sinn Fein / republicans generally is a ludicrous as suggesting the Sun does not have an anti-Labour party agenda or the Daily Mirror does not have an anti-Tory party agenda.
Of course they do. and of course the Irish Independent does have an agenda. bloody obvious it is pure propaganda and makes no effort to inform its readership on the north. It’s agenda is to keep north & south in mutual ignorance of each other. why you do not see that as problematic is beyond me
Very true Jude,it’s fairly typical of this country though,I think we were colonised so long there’s a bad case of Stockholm syndrome in the Irish psyche anyway.
Perfectly stated, why Ireland feels this need to rewrite Britains cruelty and misrule always astounds me
Unfortunately that has been a fact of life here for decades: Enniskillen worst than McGurk’s Bar, Omagh worst than Dublin/Monaghan, any one killed or injured by republicans a more evil act than that carried out by any other organisation.
Even recently when you look at the reporting of Jock Davidson’s murder and the allegations made against the victim with not a shred of evidence to support them. Compare that to the reporting of the killing of Robert McCartney, no background as to what or who Mr McCartney was. Was he a fine upstanding hardworking citizen or was he something else altogether? I don’t know and sadly I expect that I never will given the differentiation the media makes in their opinion towards deserving and undeserving victims, God help anyone who, for example Roy Greenslade, takes issue with this consensus to see the venom and bile that will be rained upon them .
Yes Roy Greenslade the famous provo sympathiser not a man known for his neutrality on republican affairs as for Jock Davidson he was a known IRA commander and his unit was responsible for McCartneys death doesn’t really matter what McCartney was like does it or perhaps some blatant mud slinging to diminish the victims character does seem to work for the republican community?
How do you know Jock Davidson was responsible for McCartney’s death, neill?
As the commander of an illegal armed group who carried out the attack it could be said that he had a role in the attack
He read it in the paper therefore it is true
Oh I can assure you my sources are better than the local newspapers
Try to be a little more exact, neill. There’s so much stuff out there …
You see, Neill, that’s part of the problem. How do you know, as Jude asks, Davidson was responsible for McCartney’s death? How do you even know that he was “a known IRA commander”? Do you live in the area? Perhaps you crossed him at some time?
Personally, I don’t know the man from Adam, so am unaware of what he may or may not have done.
Robert McCartney? As Belfast Dan states, who was he? What may he have been involved in? I don’t know the answers to those either. He may have been in the IRA, and responsible for many actions – I don’t know. But to you, Neill, it matters what Davidson done but not McCartney, despite your obvious ignorance about both men.
And yet, in your above post, you do not see the “blatant mud slinging to diminish the victims character.” Why? Because it suits your purpose. I’m sure you feel well proud of that.
Give yourself a wee slap on the back because you actually prove the point of this post – there is discrimination in death!
Yet, foolishly (mar is gnách), you zone in on what you think the blog should be about. You know who and what Mountbatten was (I’ll not rely on hearsay like you do – we could go on facts).
But focus, Neill, if you can, of the priest Jude mentioned. No? Ok. What about the mother of eight? Still no good? Alright. What about the other children who have died – all of them, no matter who was involved? Still not getting the response?
All well, Neill. Don’t lose heart. There’s always whataboutery.
Alright lets take this point by point Ceanaire
How do you even know that he was “a known IRA commander”
The PSNI said so!
Robert McCartney? As Belfast Dan states, who was he? What may he have been involved in? I don’t know the answers to those either. He may have been in the IRA, and responsible for many actions – I don’t know. But to you, Neill, it matters what Davidson done but not McCartney, despite your obvious ignorance about both men.
McCatney was stabbed to death in a bar and nobody saw anything doesn’t that strike you as strange that nobody saw anything or perhaps those involved had the power to intimidate people into silence now who in the Markets area has that power and muscle especially in ceasefire times?
And yet, in your above post, you do not see the “blatant mud slinging to diminish the victims character.” Why? Because it suits your purpose. I’m sure you feel well proud of that.
The facts are quite simple the victim was an IRA commander responsible for peoples deaths the PSNI clearly linked him to DAAD who killed many drug dealers now I don’t like terrorists or drug dealers but as I have said many times on here and I shall do so again I don’t believe in murder from anyside be they Republican Loyalist or security forces I believe in law and order rather than the bullet or the bomb is that clear enough?
“or perhaps some blatant mud slinging to diminish the victims character” is this not what has happened in Jock Davidson’s case Neil?
It wasn’t the dog which barked, Esteemed Blogmeister, but rather the dog which did not bark in this week’s The Unionist Times which caught this blogtrotter’s attention.
Noel Whelan, of course, is the dog which barked. Mr. Whelan is nothing is not versatile: a brawny pundit who can fawn like a spaniel, or when vexed, a Wexford man who can growl like an oul rotweiller.
Solemn, stern and yet, generous to a default with his pomposity, Know-all Noel is a no-nonsense non-wag with the tongue, a watch-dog for the no-nothing public who prefers to let his tail do the wagging.
A Fianna Failure as a candidate, who eventually grew weary of the electorate relentlessly putting the No into the Noel, Mr. Whelan later morphed into a salty-tongued pillar of the media establishment.
Thus, these days Noel Whelan is the go-to Big Wheel Pundit on casters who is rolled into every available studio and with every ounce of his not inconsiderable sinew, gumption and fibre, on every disaster, to Pronounce.
Truly is he, in a remarkable morph, the Sir Oracle who, when he opens his mouth to opine, lets no dog bark.
(Or maybe not so remarkable; for was not the Daddy of all morphs, Father Morph himself a Wexford man too? Boolavogue is still in vogue, it would seem)
This week the Yesman in Noel opted to be The Sir Oracle of the Coracle, as what made him bark was a barque in The Great Summit that is An Mullach Mor.
But, then, the Dog that did not Bark is the one which most concerns one here.
Just like the cat of the Seachail, Eamonn Kelly: coimead do shuil ar an bpussy cat / keep your eye on the pussy cat, tis da wans ya don’t see, dem’s da wans to watch.
The non-barking Dog is this case in The Unionist Times was, of course, The Man who is Thursday aka The Londonderry Lad. He, for whom the only things which make sense are pounds, shillings and pence. As in: who has and who has not.
Thus, Norneverland is not so much a case of Classiebawn as of (yawn) class.
So, while Noel Whelan in his role as undertaker of the non-droll variety was duly doling out the names of the victims of the shameful Mullaghmore Massacre The Man who is Thursday opted to keep mum on the many more who were massacred almost simultaneously in a synchronicity of atrocities.
Narrowminded Nats who do like to pick nits
Saw Narrow Water as Paddies versus Brits:
And not Para-proles
On afternoon patrols
Who were unceremonlously blitzed into bits.
Whereas Marty Robbins sang of Eighteen Yellow Roses and then some, The Man who is Thursday sang dumb of the Eighteen Fellow Decomposes.
What precisely is The Unionist Times telling its loyal readers here?
That there is a Hierarchy and a (gasp) Lowerarchy of victims, dear?
Say it ain’t so, Seymour.
Very well written Jude, perfect analysis. The passing of time dulls these modern journalists senses. Only we who lived through those times and in the thick of it understand the true meaning of the death on our streets and our fight for survival. I have read Donne extensively and quote that phrase regularly and it is so true..well done man xx
Dear Patricia – you have covered me in blushes…Go raibh cead maith agat – thank you so much.
Noel Whelan’s article was very one sided.
He makes no mention of Derry / Ballymurphy and the rest of the North were the
Para’s left their bloody trail.
He is a disgrace of an Irishman..
Jude it’s a freestate,26 county,d4,west brit mentality.Simple.
Succinctly put, tt. We Tyrone people like to get to the nub of things…