DRAWING CONCLUSIONS: A Cartoon History of Anglo-Irish Relations 1798 -1998. – by Donal Kennedy.

The book’s authors are Roy Douglas, Liam Harte and Jim O’Hara.

The belated review, together with remarks concerning even earlier propaganda

and current propaganda is all my own effort: DONAL KENNEDY July 2024.

This is a superb book, containing over 250 cartoons from British, Irish, continental

European and American sources.

The authors tell us that cartoons often expose “a nastier underside to contentious

issues than is apparent on the surface of polite society.”

Irishmen and women have been consistently portrayed by British cartoonists as less than human.

Human beings, unique among mammals, are credited with reason and a moral sense.

We Irish have been depicted as idiots, apes and satanic monsters by our nearest neighbours from at least the 1580s and continue to this day in THE TIMES, 26 years

after the publication of Drawing Conclusions.

Irish cartoonists, even when depicting atrocities inflicted by their British enemies depicted the British as fully human beings.

For example , in 1798 Lieutenant Edward Heppenstal,of the Wicklow Militia, among other atrocities, used his great height to act as a walking gallows.

He strangled two rebels, brothers, in succession over his shoulders. Then he had their father shot.

Irish cartoonists  recorded Heppenstal’s atrocities, as well as other British ones, but did not depict their enemies as morons, apes, or devils.

In 1998 Ian Paisley, quoting King Solomon said-

“In everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under Heaven …

……….a time to kill and a time to heal……a time to love and a time to hate…..

a time of war and a time of peace”

Paisley continued –

“I believe that Northern Ireland has come to a time of peace and a time when hate

will no longer rule.

How good it well be to be part of a wonderful healing in our province.”

Ian Paisley proved true to his then words and he and Martin McGuinness developed

a sincere  and deep friendship.

But THE TIMES, ever a warped organ is stuck in a time warp preceding itself by centuries.

On the death of Martin McGuinness with the caption “Peacemaker”  Peter Brookes

depicted a tricolour draped coffin with a picture of McGuinness holding a Dove of Peace, bring carried on the shoulders of masked, camouflage- jacketed gunmen. 

 On Michelle O’Neill becoming First Minister at Stormont (the fruit of a democratic election) Brookes resurrected an IRA guard of Honour, and had Michelle saying

“who’d have thought it?

The statesmanship of Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness and Sinn Fein consigned

the IRA to history. They have long gone away.

( Tony Blair, a supporter of  American warmongering  to his fingertips was 

challenged by the SDLP’s Seamus Mallon, whom he asked why he talked with

Republicans. Blair replied “because they have guns.” Realpolitik for Slow Learners! )

In the 1580s when Elizabethan Englishmen were slaughtering men, women and children in the O’Neill country,  a cartoonist purported to show an Irish Chieftain  at dinner in the woods.

 His table, rather than standing horizontal, was at an angle of 45%. A harpist(or piper)  was  entertaining the company, while one of the party was defecating within inches of the food.

That genocidal contempt is alive in THE TIMES and much of the British media today and extended to Russians, Chinese and Palestinians.

6 of 85,477

DRAWING CONCLUSIONS: A Cartoon History of Anglo-Irish Relations 1798 -1998. – by Donal Kennedy.

The book’s authors are Roy Douglas, Liam Harte and Jim O’Hara.

The belated review, together with remarks concerning even earlier propaganda

and current propaganda is all my own effort: DONAL KENNEDY July 2024.

This is a superb book, containing over 250 cartoons from British, Irish, continental

European and American sources.

The authors tell us that cartoons often expose “a nastier underside to contentious

issues than is apparent on the surface of polite society.”

Irishmen and women have been consistently portrayed by British cartoonists as less than human.

Human beings, unique among mammals, are credited with reason and a moral sense.

We Irish have been depicted as idiots, apes and satanic monsters by our nearest neighbours from at least the 1580s and continue to this day in THE TIMES, 26 years

after the publication of Drawing Conclusions.

Irish cartoonists, even when depicting atrocities inflicted by their British enemies depicted the British as fully human beings.

For example , in 1798 Lieutenant Edward Heppenstal,of the Wicklow Militia, among other atrocities, used his great height to act as a walking gallows.

He strangled two rebels, brothers, in succession over his shoulders. Then he had their father shot.

Irish cartoonists  recorded Heppenstal’s atrocities, as well as other British ones, but did not depict their enemies as morons, apes, or devils.

In 1998 Ian Paisley, quoting King Solomon said-

“In everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under Heaven …

……….a time to kill and a time to heal……a time to love and a time to hate…..

a time of war and a time of peace”

Paisley continued –

“I believe that Northern Ireland has come to a time of peace and a time when hate

will no longer rule.

How good it well be to be part of a wonderful healing in our province.”

Ian Paisley proved true to his then words and he and Martin McGuinness developed

a sincere  and deep friendship.

But THE TIMES, ever a warped organ is stuck in a time warp preceding itself by centuries.

On the death of Martin McGuinness with the caption “Peacemaker”  Peter Brookes

depicted a tricolour draped coffin with a picture of McGuinness holding a Dove of Peace, bring carried on the shoulders of masked, camouflage- jacketed gunmen. 

 On Michelle O’Neill becoming First Minister at Stormont (the fruit of a democratic election) Brookes resurrected an IRA guard of Honour, and had Michelle saying

“who’d have thought it?

The statesmanship of Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness and Sinn Fein consigned

the IRA to history. They have long gone away.

( Tony Blair, a supporter of  American warmongering  to his fingertips was 

challenged by the SDLP’s Seamus Mallon, whom he asked why he talked with

Republicans. Blair replied “because they have guns.” Realpolitik for Slow Learners! )

In the 1580s when Elizabethan Englishmen were slaughtering men, women and children in the O’Neill country,  a cartoonist purported to show an Irish Chieftain  at dinner in the woods.

 His table, rather than standing horizontal, was at an angle of 45%. A harpist(or piper)  was  entertaining the company, while one of the party was defecating within inches of the food.

That genocidal contempt is alive in THE TIMES and much of the British media today and extended to Russians, Chinese and Palestinians.