Sir, - The articles of October 27th by Vincent Browne ("Lynch partly responsible for the 1970 arms crisis") and Kevin Myers (An Irishman's Diary) merit comment.
I often find Browne exasperating in the extreme, especially his rude and one-track interview style. I disagree with Kevin Myers on many things. That said, both Browne and Myers have over the years shown a degree of moral courage in going against the cosy consensus on various controversial subjects. Both articles between them constitute a good argument for tolerating a free press.
It is often very difficult for people to grasp what exactly is going on in the politics of their country at any given time. When the press is muzzled politically we get the equivalent of Pravda, even in supposedly liberal democracies. The articles also constitute an argument against monopoly in journalism, whether it be a commercial monopoly or an ideological trade-union based monopoly.
The reality of the early 1970s is beginning belatedly to dawn on those of us who lived through that time. What was good and honourable in Irish republicanism faded from view when a resort to violence was raised to the status of unquestionable dogma, and when cynical politicians realised there were votes in "let's pretend" republicanism, which in effect did stand idly by. And now the would-be inheritors of "the more mature approach" are shown to be so phoney. - Yours, etc.,
Seamas De Barra, Rathfarnham, Dublin 14.