In Training

Why Prince Harry Makes Me Feel Sick

No, not me, I love the kid.  I think he's been growing up, has more growing up to do, but generally I love him.  Not everybody does. 

What starts out semi-sweet :

How much easier it would have been had Prince Harry become a doctor, not a soldier. True, he would have needed rather better A-levels and a rather different sense of vocation. But it would have caused fewer problems all round if he'd decided to spend his life listening to a heart-beat at the end of a stethoscope instead of looking down the barrel of a gun.
None of us knows exactly what Harry was up to near the front line in Afghanistan. Whatever it was, I'm prepared to believe that he was showing considerable guts. As a desk-bound academic, it's not my place to question a soldier's bravery.

But I will anyway. Hey I said semi.  Then it begins its turn :

All the same, saving lives might have been a much more acceptable 21st-century image for a Prince than taking them.
To be fair to the young man, it was not exactly his fault that he was transformed overnight from Nazi impersonator and late-night clubber to hero of the nation, battling the Taliban in defence of the free world. And Harry was certainly generous and gracious enough, on his return, to share the credit and point to the heroism of the men he had left behind.
But there was something about all those semi-staged interviews, saturating our news broadcasts, that made me feel distinctly sick.

Wha.... ? Distinctly sick?
Wait for it... wait for it :

....
this is the catchphrase of that sort of simplistic, thuggish, tit-for-tat politics that got us into the murderous mess of Iraq and Afghanistan in the first place. And it's not exactly a very Christian sentiment, either - as I hope his grandmother might have pointed out to him.
....
The rest of us can be as ambivalent as we like. Ambivalence is a luxury you don't have, Harry (though you have plenty of other luxuries to make up for it).
So you'd better just get on with it. And if it's the Press that's bothering you back home, then maybe cutting down on those late-night visits to Boujis might help a bit.

Yowza. It's like she's talking to him... but he didn't ever say anything to her to begin with.  What does she mean "get on with it"?  When was he not?  That's one crazy lady.

And then she's off :

But worst of all, for my taste, has been the way the pictures of the smiling young Prince, confident in command of his "Spartan vehicle", happy and proud to be serving Queen and country, have been turned into an advertising campaign for one of the most foolish of all recent British military ventures.
....
No, I'm not trying to suggest that the Taliban is an admirable group. In fact, I can imagine little or nothing that is worse than living under a Taliban regime. But the Afghan war is wasting the lives of far too many young British soldiers for almost no effect at all.
....
All those pictures of the beaming Harry, tanned and tousle-headed (don't soldiers have to have a short back and sides any more?), have given this folly a spurious legitimacy, even glamour.
But there is more to this dangerous story of the dashing young Prince fighting on the front line than at first meets the eye. Easy as it might be to blame the blanket media coverage or Harry's minders, there is also a lesson of history to be learned.

I don't even know where to start.  The Taliban is evil, but we're not making any progress so we should just stop. Even though they're evil.  But you know, que sera, sera. 

The big finish :

The truth is that a Prince on the front line can do little right.
He's damned if he's no good, damned if he's too dashing, damned if he stays and damned if he comes home.
Just think how politically awkward it would have been if Harry had pulled off some real heroics.
Imagine he had single-handedly pulled to safety six of his desperately injured crew from the burning wreckage of a Chinook helicopter, before tracking down Osama Bin Laden to a secret hideout in Helmand and leading him into captivity. The papers would have loved it - "Di's boy comes good and saves the planet".
But what would his brother and father have made of it? Charles would have faced more calls for the crown to skip a generation. William would have wondered whether his token six-month service on an aircraft carrier safely in the South Atlantic could ever match junior's heroics.
And what on earth would the Army have done with him next? They could hardly have given him a desk job.

How politically awkward of Prince Harry to serve in his country's armed services.  What was he thinking.
Just look at the brilliant logic:
Harry might save lives - British lives - Allied lives, but then he would have to continue to save lives, promote freedom, do good... which is exactly what he wants to do and where he wants to be anyway.  Oh the horror!!  Make it stop, make it all stop!
Nope, no desk job.  Good on ya, Harry.   

"Go Home British Soldiers, Go Home"

It seems like there has been more and more anti-soldier behavior occuring in Britain these days.  I have even more examples I could post.  With a husband in the Royal Marines, it's all personal (even though it should be personal to everyone).  The phone call from my husband last night made it all the more personal.

Royal had gone out on the town with three Marine buddies last night for a dinner and a drink.  These are good guys, I know one personally and respect the other two because of all Royal has told me.  Inviting Royal was especially sweet because they know he is alone and lonely there without me.  Had a nice time, a good meal at Wetherspoons.  They caught the last train out.  One 'got his head down' (slept) one had to make a phone call, and the last and Royal were enjoying conversation.  At least trying to.

There was a group of three teenagers who quickly caught on to the fact that Royal and his friends were 1. English and 2. Soldiers.  Their accents and the direction they were heading pretty much gave it away. These three decided to begin singing, literally at the top of their lungs

Go home British soldiers, go home
You ain't got no fucking home of your own

I'm not sure if they sang any more of it, that is just the part I was told.  Probably just repeated that over and over again. Many will recognize this as a song used in Ireland beginning in the late 1960s and on.  It's in support of the IRA and is anti-British government and obviously, British troops. 

Royal, again with self-control I do not have, leaned over and asked them politely to keep it down.  They said why?  He said because you're very loud and my mate's on the phone.  They said with who?  He said none of your business.  So they toned it down a bit.  There were another group of them further down who had also picked up singing.  Not so much a problem though, as they were not close. 

When the train came to the guys stop, they stood at the door and began cursing at the Marines, flipping the bird, and other rude gestures.  They also whispered to the other group of lads and pointing at Royal.  They got off the train and continued their swearing and bird-flipping.  Tapping on the windows and yelling. 
Royal got up out of his seat, went to the door, opened it and said (not so politely this time) that if they wanted to talk to come back on the train.  And he'd punch their lights out, all three of them.  Now, none of y'all have seen Royal, but he's a big guy with muscle.  Lots of 'em.  And the man is quick. 
The kids ran away.  Quick.

As soon as the train started again the second group of lads began the singing and thought it would be wise to stare menacingly at the Marines.  So they stared back.  The singing quieted down. 
At the next stop the guys went to get off and it was the same ol routine.  Right at the windows, yelling at the Marines.  This time when Royal got up, so did another Marine.  The language used was not intended for ladies.  Basically it was "if this wasn't the last train I would deal with you and it wouldn't be pretty". 
The kids ran away.  Royal sat back down, the kids came back.  They ignored them and the train pulled away. 

As if that wasn't enough, there's this.  A man came up to Royal on the train and said,
"Why didn't you just leave it alone?  Be the bigger man.  You're no better than they are.  Why didn't you leave them alone and let them get on? "

I have no clue what the kids were thinking.  I can't say if they were anti-war, like so many of the other disgusting anti-troop attackers. 
But they knew Royal was a soldier and they treated him like dirt.  Partly because he's English, partly because he's a Marine and partly because they can get away with anything they want to in Britain today.  Society, as proved by the man who approached Royal on the train after, will not stand up and take care of itself. 
They won't protect themselves and they certainly won't protect their soldiers.  It's too bad because they need more like Royal.  But he's leaving partly for those very reasons.  It breaks my heart. 

I went into a public-'ouse to get a pint o' beer, The publican 'e up an' sez, "We serve no red-coats here." The girls be'ind the bar they laughed an' giggled fit to die, I outs into the street again an' to myself sez I: O it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, go away"; But it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play, The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play, O it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play.

I went into a theatre as sober as could be, They gave a drunk civilian room, but 'adn't none for me; They sent me to the gallery or round the music-'alls, But when it comes to fightin', Lord! they'll shove me in the stalls! For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, wait outside"; But it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide, The troopship's on the tide, my boys, the troopship's on the tide, O it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide.

Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap; An' hustlin' drunken soldiers when they're goin' large a bit Is five times better business than paradin' in full kit. Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, 'ow's yer soul?" But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll, The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll, O it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll.

We aren't no thin red 'eroes, nor we aren't no blackguards too, But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you; An' if sometimes our conduck isn't all your fancy paints, Why, single men in barricks don't grow into plaster saints; While it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, fall be'ind", But it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind, There's trouble in the wind, my boys, there's trouble in the wind, O it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind.

You talk o' better food for us, an' schools, an' fires, an' all: We'll wait for extry rations if you treat us rational. Don't mess about the cook-room slops, but prove it to our face The Widow's Uniform is not the soldier-man's disgrace. For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!" But it's "Saviour of 'is country" when the guns begin to shoot; An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please; An' Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool -- you bet that Tommy sees!

Rudyard Kipling's Tommy.


Update : Thank you Ace & Mudville, and the readers

More on Faslane

I realized today what lucky timing this post on the Faslane peace camp was the other day.  Found that the Faslane protests were also a topic of discussion on Rum Ration, the Royal Navy / Royal Marine forum and gossip site. 

Protests and Faslane 
Some of the more fiesty comments below:

If someone stands in the middle of a busy road, surely normally they would be sectioned and treated as suicidal. The same sort of reasoning to those who have to have pipes cut from their arms by the fire brigade. As this was an illegal demonstration, surely they should be sent the bill for their actions? Maybe the SNP will pick up the bill from Party funds? Normal Scots should pay the price in disruption due to these activists. If they want to make a statement then please do it legally, and with an aim of minimising disruption to normal people, people who have no links to the Navy, or Trident.
Add to that the fact that this sort of action simply does not work, even when we had record protests in recent years against the War in Iraq and the Fox Hunting ban the Government still carried on business as usual.
I'm all for freedom of speech, and freedom of protest, but protests need to be planned to minimise disruption and increase safety of those involved.
--potential_officer

nothings changed then, one climbed up a mast in 84 when i was on the fire station. I offered our hoses to wet the bloke to make him come down but it was refused - bastards.
--chockhead819

The protests in the late60s/early 70s were much more fun - you could throw them in the loch if they got too stroppy. No fun around these days, too PC and ooman rights. 
--lsadirty

When are the MDPS / MDGS going to use the guns they are issued with and start some gene pool cleansing ???
Failing that get a few HETs fully loaded to head down the road full speed and see how fast they wanna remain say in the road.
--ukdaytona

apparently they are superglueing themselves to the road....let em...then set the dogs on em.
--northern_part_timer

The BBC has an article - Arrests as Faslane protest ends - reporting that 171 people were arrested at a final rally for the Faslane 365 year-long protest. 
Sadly, almost none of these will receive any sort of punishment.  The Faslane 365 site claims that out of 961 arrests, only 51 were prosecuted.   I don't know how everyone in that area puts up with them.  Really don't.

On the happy flip side, maybe now the kids will be allowed to get to school on time. 

The Faslane Peace Camp

The Faslane peace camp (and, more recently the Faslane 365 crowd) has been a blight on the landscape of Helensburgh, Scotland comparable to the San Francisco parks from the 1960s - and just about as clean - since 1982.  More importantly than that though, is what a horrible effect it has on the surrounding community and how they frankly just don't give a damn about anybody but themselves.

Most recently the protesters have been so incredibly difficult - things like keeping school kids from reaching school on time most days, but also their very stressful and super important exam days - that many in the surrounding area have started a group and protested against the protesters.  Good on them.  As my father said to me today about liberal protesters in general, "The bigger the issue and the less they can do about it, the more they whine, cry, scream and protest."  I would also add 'and do more to hurt those that have nothing to do with it, and not get anything done in the process.'

Now that you know how I feel about that (!) here are some photographs of the peace camp that I have managed to aquire:

It's plaid! All kinds of style.  More below!

Vicar said what?

Unbelievable.  Or maybe not. 
Apparently this vicar said that a community funded memorial for Royal Marine Commando Mathew Ford that was killed in Afghanistan would not be allowed because it's not 'our war'.

'Our war' is the continually surrounded by quotes phrase.  Our war.  Our war. If this was a one off I wouldn't be that upset.  I'd just think this one guy was a self absorbed idiot.  But yeah, so not the first time I've heard this type of thing from the Catholic church.

I remember the first Christmas after we began seeing each other, Royal called me fuming mad after attending midnight mass with his mother - Royal is not Catholic, but his mother was raised that way and attends occasionally and especially at Christmas.  Like any mother, she likes her family to attend with her.
He said all was fine until one part where the priest made a big deal out of praying for all the immigrants trying to get into Britain... but not for the soldiers fighting for their country.  When he asked his mom about it, she said the Catholic church didn't support war (not that she doesn't, she completely adores and supports her son!). 

Well, guess in this instance it's not just that they don't support war, it's also that they don't support soldiers or the loved ones they leave behind.

Lance Corporal Mathew Ford's story and the BBC article speaking of the heroic rescue to get him back.  God bless them all.

There are no words for these NIMBYs

NIMBY being the word used in the article, meaning Not In My Back Yard.
It's just so infuriating.

neighbors' war with wounded soldiers families

-- "It is often the first port of call for servicemen and women returning home after being wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Soldiers who may have lost limbs or suffered severe trauma spend months rebuilding their lives at Headley Court military rehabilitation centre. But when an Armed Forces charity decided to buy a £ 1.7million six-bedroom house nearby so visiting relatives would have somewhere to stay, the well-heeled neighbours in Ashtead, Surrey, launched their own offensive.
....
They have flooded the council with almost 100 letters of protest, raising every conceivable objection to the new property being used to house families visiting soldiers.
They claimed 'additional noise' and 'huge amount of additional traffic' would ruin the peace of the private lane and warned that the value of their multi-million-pound properties would plummet.
The families 'would not be welcome', they said, and their arrival could 'destroy the character' of the area.
One resident even objected on security grounds, claiming the house could become a terrorist target, while another suggested wheelchairs would present a fire hazard."

None of the residents would comment in the article, and I can't say I'm surprised.  To put it much too nicely, that lot needs to freakin' grow some eyes, some brains and a whole helluva a lot of backbone.

You can read about, or learn about supporting the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA, the charity involved) right here.

England teachers now allowed to search for knives

Back in the old days, the teachers had to call the police to search the kids.  The regs are that there must be at least two teachers/staff members at each search, they must be the same gender as the student and they must do it in a way that keeps the rest of the students and faculty safe.

Okay, so here's a funny part:

-- "It is the kind of thing we expect to hear in the US but it is a major concern that it now applies to our own schools."

-- "This side of the Atlantic we’ve sat comfortably for years and watched the violence grow in the US, falsely believing it wouldn’t catch on here. But just as the latest Nike trainers or hip hop star in the US sooner or later becomes hot property in the UK, the violence was bound to come to our shores eventually. The US is the trend setter for youth culture in the UK whether we like it or not.  We shouldn’t have ignored the warning signs from US society, but that’s just what we’ve done. That is not to say that the US is responsible for the current environment in Britain. It is just that the combination of factors that got the US into the position it finds itself today with regard to violence in schools, was bound to come to Britain and when it did, we should have been ready to ensure the end result was not the same."

I was going to bold some important parts but let's face it, it's all bullsh*t. 

It's so easy to blame someone else isn't it.  It always strikes me as odd the way some people (not just the British, though I hear that ALL the time here) use America to make themselves feel better.  No matter that Scotland, for example, has an enormously high crime rate, higher than much of the U.S. if not all (as this article indicates).  I guess they don't really take into account that we've only been around about 230 years - or they do, but then their arguments are fueled by jealousy - but you'd think we invented violence, invented war, invented killing and torture. 
Yeah well, we learned from the best didn't we?  The difference is we have a heart and a soul.  But that doesn't fit in to the rest of the world's master plan.  Very sad. 

That's that, now on to the knives.  Obviously from past posts I've made my position on firearms and knives very clear.  I'm proud of that. 
But I'm not for school age kids bringing bowie knives or machetes to the playground (though there were several times when I made excellent use of my swiss army knife, which was indeed pink as shown).  I'm not for messed up in the head naive tryin' to be big kids kids tearing each other apart.

I am for a teacher protecting their students and themselves. Even so far as to allow them to carry items to use for their protection.  Like, just off the top of my head, a Para .45ACP Warthog, or even pepper spray. 
Not gonna happen on this side of the ocean, but there you go.   

Man eats dog as protest

Yeah I don't really... get it.

They (crazy and crazier, see article) ate a cooked dog - a corgi, Her Majesty's favorite breed of pup - that died of natural causes to protest the Queen's hubby killing a fox somehow.
It doesn't connect for me.
I mean I kinda get what they're trying to do, but I'm not affected in any way.  Not mad about anything except the fact that some insane 'artist' ate a doggie on the radio.  And even then, I'm not mad that he ate a dog specifically, just that he did it as some sad ploy.

From the bbc entertainment section:
"To me it was, as an art piece, exhilarating," he said after the show.

Apparently he's done this before with a swan. 
All I'm hearing is he's crazy. 
And that should be the headline.

*UPDATE 31/5/07: After reading this again today, I think it seems like I'm somewhat heartless in regard to the dog and I don't like that.  I love dogs, I would be devastated if anything happened to my pup.  I just wanted the main focus to be on the crazy "artist" in question.  Who I believe is crazy in case anyone missed that.  I would think there would be better ways to protest than what he did, he just made me annoyed by his behavior, no one else's.

I seem to be a magnet

for strange or hurtful - mostly arrogant and ignorant - comments regarding my current status as an American living in Britain. 
See earlier post.

And then this comment left by 'dumb yanks' (no email or link) on this old post about pubs staying open later:

-- "yet another thick as sh*t yank that is not welcome in scotland. please sod off back to your poxy country. Must say i loved seeing the towers burn..some well overdue payback for all the misewry [sic] that the yanks have inflicted on the world.
you are a truly ugly individual and the world would be a better place without cretins like you."

I'm honestly at a loss to know where the hell it came from (both the person and the comment... couldn't resist.).  It doesn't bother me as 'dumb yanks' is obviously a sick person who would rather use name-calling and cowardice than actual intelligent and well thought out arguments or polite conversation.

Further proof of misguidedness

One of the earlier posts I did about Britain, once in Britain was on an anti-war, anti-nuke protest I inadvertently walked into in Glasgow. 
As I was checking the BBC news site this evening, I found this article: US consulate targeted by vandals.  The bulk of which I've posted below (bold items mine).

-- "Graffiti which included the phrases "out of Iraq" and "no war" were written on the door and front steps of the building which sits in Regent Terrace.
....
It is the latest in a series of similar attacks on the US consulate building.
The politically motivated protesters also smashed a window which belonged to Sally and Derek Le Bert-Francis, who live in the neighbouring property.
According to the IndyMedia Scotland website, the attacks were carried out by an "anti-war coalition".
A posting, which was sent at 0228 BST, said the consulate had been targeted to "remind the people of this country that four years ago this week the US occupying forces fired on Iraqi protesters in Falluja, killing 17 and wounding 70 more"."

Look, if you want free speech that's fine.  I'm all for that.  But what kind of cowardly person trashes a building in the middle of the night?  To make a "political" statement?
Oh.  Right.  A cowardly person.  Lily-livered, streak of yellow down the back, all that.

I have yet to meet and speak with someone who is anti-war, anti-military or anti-American, which is good because then I'd have to open my big mouth.  And then Royal would have to fly all the way home to save me... hey that's not a bad idea  ;o)  Just kidding. 

This story is just another example of misguided people misplacing their agression. 

Better article (with a photo) from the Scotsman

-- "The owners, Sally and Derek Le Bert-Francis, had the reinforced glass installed after a previous attack, which left shattered glass all over their dining room floor.
Their house used to be part of the consulate and, although it has been a private residence for more than a decade, it has been repeatedly targeted by anti-war protestors.
Mrs Le Bert-Francis, 50, who runs a holiday accommodation agency, said the consulate had now offered to install triple-sheet protection glass on their windows to protect against future attacks. And she said she wasn't sure what such protests hoped to accomplish - especially when they missed their intended target.
"This is about the fourth time this has happened," she said. "It has happened so often that the consulate now just pay for it. The first I heard about it was at about 7.20 when my son woke me up and gave me a note from the consulate asking me to ring them.

"Protest is fine, but this is just vandalism. I doubt it is even much of an inconvenience for the consulate." 

The scariest part of that article, and this situation is... the comments following.  I would say be in for a shock, but really, it's not that shocking anymore.