Robert McCartney’s trenchant and lucid expositions have been one of the few means by which the people of Northern Ireland, Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland have been able to appreciate the true nature of contemporary politics. His principled stand against terrorism by both extremes in Northern Ireland has been lauded by including Conor Cruise O’Brien, Lady Thatcher, John Major and Bertie Ahearn, the Irish Prime Minister. These essays on political liberty and the future of Ireland have never before been published in a single volume. Several dealing with the IRA have never been published before.