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Labour TD sparks another row over Home Rule and WWI - this time it's about stamps

And John Bruton’s getting involved…

AN POST SHOULD withdraw stamps commemorating John Redmond, a man who “promoted, recruited and shamed Irishmen into killing for Great Britain” in World War I, according to Labour TD Eamonn Maloney.

In a statement, Maloney said it was appropriate to commemorate “the thousands of Irish boys and men who were slaughtered during World War One,” but An Post were “wrong” in honouring Redmond, leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party at the outset of the conflict.

The 1914-1918 World War is constantly referred to as the Great War. But there was nothing great for the 200,000 Irish recruits who fought in it.
There was nothing great for the almost 50,000 young Irishmen who were slaughtered.

90351144 Former Fine Gael taoiseach John Bruton Mark Stedman / Photocall Ireland Mark Stedman / Photocall Ireland / Photocall Ireland

Former taoiseach John Bruton has been quick to reject the Dublin South-West TD’s comments, however.

Speaking to the Irish Daily Mail, Bruton issued the following statement:

I think on the merits of the case, [Redmond] deserves to be celebrated.
Will Eamonn Maloney be taking a similar stance with regards to those men of 1916?
Is he going to ask that he commemorate those who went to war in 1916 on behalf of the German, Austro-Hungarian and Turkish empires, which they clearly stated they were doing?
The 1916 GPO occupiers did so in alliance with the Kaiser against a country that was defending the French Republic and the small nation of Belgium.

stamps-single

An Post, meanwhile, has said there are no plans to withdraw the stamps.

Speaking to TheJournal.ie, a spokesperson explained that the stamps in question were not commemorating John Redmond as such.

One was to commemorate the centenary of the 1914 Home Rule Act, and also featured Ulster Unionist leader Edward Carson, the spokesperson said.

The other was a reproduction of a WWI recruitment poster which happened to feature an image of Redmond, and was part of a special series of stamps to commemorate the centenary of WWI.

A spokesperson for Arts Minister Heather Humphreys - who has responsibility for the ‘Decade of Centenaries Commemorative Programme’ – did not specifically comment on Deputy Maloney’s remarks.

However, in response to questions from TheJournal.ie, the spokesperson did say:

The Minister will work to ensure that the events which shaped that tumultuous decade a century ago are each commemorated in a manner which is appropriate, respectful and inclusive.

Read: Gerry Adams lashes out at John Bruton for calling the 1916 Rising ‘a mistake’>

Irish Prison Service honoured with new commemorative stamps>

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    Mute i.Have.it.Me.
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    Dec 25th 2021, 3:03 PM

    To much effort in doing that

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    Mute Dublin - Overheard
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    Dec 25th 2021, 3:13 PM

    Prosecco and cadbury chocolates

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    Mute Marie O'Neill
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    Dec 25th 2021, 4:13 PM

    Pudding all the way!

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    Mute Patrick Corr
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    Dec 25th 2021, 3:28 PM

    Homemade strawberry Baileys cheesecake nom nom

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    Mute Robert Clifford
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    Dec 25th 2021, 4:20 PM

    Cheeseboard and a bottle of Lynch-Bages.

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    Mute Dave Johnston
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    Dec 25th 2021, 4:19 PM

    Black forest gateau always goes down well

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    Mute James Rock
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    Dec 25th 2021, 3:57 PM

    And don’t forget the custard

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    Mute Edmund Murphy
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    Dec 25th 2021, 4:51 PM

    My Mother makes a Tiramasu so alcohol enriched that would floor a small horse. She never serves it for Christmas though. We have a cake and a pudding that were fed brandy for 4 months then.

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    Mute Eamon Kelly
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    Dec 25th 2021, 6:48 PM

    Romantica

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    Mute Olive Tierney
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    Dec 25th 2021, 11:06 PM

    @Eamon Kelly: My favourite, but couldn’t get any this year in any of the stores

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    Mute Eamon Kelly
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    Dec 26th 2021, 8:30 PM

    @Olive Tierney: same as

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    Mute Anna Carr
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    Dec 25th 2021, 6:05 PM

    Sherry trifle with rum cos you’ve no sherry lol. Awesome :)

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    Mute
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    Dec 25th 2021, 9:15 PM

    Guinness

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    Mute Stephen Boland
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    Dec 25th 2021, 10:21 PM

    @: sing it from the mountain tops!

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    Mute Rob Jones
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    Dec 25th 2021, 7:29 PM

    Chocolate Fondant.

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    Mute Derek Moran
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    Dec 25th 2021, 6:08 PM

    Where the heck is Pecan Pie?

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    Mute Eoin Roche
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    Dec 25th 2021, 11:55 PM

    Pavlova by a distance? What fresh hell is this? The answer is pudding with fresh cream.

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    Mute Mary Fitzsimons
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    Dec 26th 2021, 12:38 AM

    Good icecreams and a nice torte?

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    Mute Vlad Eire
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    Dec 25th 2021, 9:27 PM

    Whiskey

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    Mute Elizabeth Doyle
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    Dec 27th 2021, 3:45 PM

    I’m in my eighties now and for 20 years I made the sherry trifle in a beautiful red cutglass bowl and matching vase for the holly,recipe passes down from my great grandmother.I loved making it but there is no one to enjoy it now,so I don’t bother.

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    Mute Maureen Laraway
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    Dec 27th 2021, 11:27 PM

    Quiet cake, as my Nanny used to call it. It’s a bready fruit cake. My Nanny used to say if we made any noise while the cake was baking all the fruit would fall to the bottom. There might be some truth to that but I think she used it to her advantage

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    Mute Maureen Laraway
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    Dec 27th 2021, 11:26 PM

    Quiet cake, as my Nanny used to call it. It’s a bready fruit cake. My Nanny used to say if we made any noise while the cake was baking all the fruit would fall to the bottom. There might be some truth to that but I think she used it to her advantage

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