Commitment?

This squalid government, made up of lying, thieving, cockwaffling Fabian scum, continues to sink lower.  Not one word they utter is true.  They smile while lying; it's their own form of Taqqiyah. With the help of a weak Opposition and the LibDems they have destroyed this country's institutions and called it 'progress'.   The country has been changed  beyond recognition in the name of 'modernisation'.  Yes, they have a 'commitment', but it isn't to this country or our country's Armed Forces.  Suddenly, being voted out of office (or as they like to call it, power) at the GE, is too good for them - it's too fair, too 'British'.

Major NATO training exercises cancelled.

In what must rank as one of the most fatuous responses ever, Bill Rammell, AF Minister, said:  “Given our current commitments we must ensure that  activity is focused on preparing our Forces for the challenges they will  face. Any suggestion that Service personnel are not ready to respond to the  unexpected is nonsense, as was seen in the fast and effective response to  the flooding in the North of England last month.” 

It's tough when people are concerned with hanging on to jobs and homes (more businesses have gone to the wall in this recession than did in the 90s) but more of us need to spare a moment to see the bigger picture and the destination.  EuroGendFor is looming.  Does anyone remember the saying:  You can't see the wood for the trees?
Cross-posted

Commitment?

Armed Forces Compensation.....A Scandal

In another example of scandalous government policy it has transpired that a young Marine is fighting to have his compensation increased as a result of injury he received in Afghanistan.

Marine Ben McBean, of 40 Commando Royal Marines, lost an arm and a leg in a landmine explosion while on routine patrol in Helmand Province in February last year.

He also suffered multiple shrapnel wounds and burns that have scarred his body.

The Ministry of Defence had offered the 22-year-old compensation for only eight of his injuries - and for six of those he was awarded the minimum tariff.

He was initially awarded £161,500, but this was raised to £281,150 after a public outcry.

Now lets put this into perspective shall we.

£281,151.00 for that level of injury.
And that after the public got involved.
6 of the injuries he received got him MINIMUM payout..........MINIMUM.
Legal experts believe a civilian court would have awarded him more than £1m if he suffered the same injuries.

Recent civil cases brought against the MoD have resulted in much bigger payouts including £2m for an Iraqi teenager paralysed by a British bullet and £484,000 for an RAF typist who suffered repetitive strain injury. Nearly twice what Ben received........TWICE.

Marine McBean's lawyer is expected to argue that the MoD only looked at his injuries individually and did not take into account the disabling affect of the sum total, nor the potential for deterioration over time.

The Royal British Legion is representing Marine McBean at his appeal at a tribunal at Plymouth Magistrates' Court.

It said there is a need for MoD payouts to be "interpreted in a spirit of gratitude and generosity, not with an anxious eye to the Treasury".

The charity's director general Chris Simpkins said: "It is terribly sad that this brave young Royal Marine should feel dissatisfied with his compensation for injuries incurred in selfless service to his country.

"We're going to do our best for Marine McBean, but we need to be realistic - the appeal tribunal's decision will be limited by the Armed Forces' Compensation Scheme and we believe this scheme is unfair."

Under the MoD's existing compensation scheme, lump sum payments for the most serious injuries are capped at £570,000, although the scheme is being reviewed.

I am stunned by this story...............I can not get my head around his award and the award to the typist.

Brown.......Ainsworth.......how the hell do you actually sleep at night......HOW?


Ben initially came to the fore as he was returned to the UK on the same flight as Prince Harry.

Cross posted from myself

Armed Forces Compensation.....A Scandal

Afghanistan: roll call of British deaths since 2001

Further to GOT's Troops tribute post, here is a roll call of the British service personnel who have died since the start of operations in Afghanistan in 2001.



2002

APRIL

:: Private Darren George. The Royal Anglian Regiment.

AUGUST

:: Sergeant Robert Busuttil, 30. The Royal Logistic Corps.

:: Corporal John Gregory, 30. The Royal Logistic Corps.


2004

JANUARY

:: Private Jonathan Kitulagoda, 23, from Plymouth, Devon. The Rifle Volunteers.


2005

OCTOBER

:: Lance Corporal Steven Sherwood, 23, from Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire. 1st Battalion The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Light Infantry.


2006

MARCH

:: Corporal Mark Cridge, 25. 7 Signal Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Peter Craddock. 1st Battalion The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment.

JUNE

:: Captain Jim Philippson, 29, from St Albans, Hertfordshire. 7 Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery.

:: Captain David Patten, 38. The Parachute Regiment.

:: Sergeant Paul Bartlett, 35. The Royal Marines.

JULY

:: Corporal Peter Thorpe, 27, from Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. The Royal Signals.

:: Lance Corporal Jabron Hashmi, 24, from Birmingham. The Intelligence Corps.

:: Private Damien Jackson, 19, from South Shields, Tyne and Wear. 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

AUGUST

:: Captain Alex Eida, 29, from Hooley, Surrey. 7 Parachute Regiment The Royal Horse Artillery .

:: 2nd Lieutenant Ralph Johnson, 24, from Windsor. The Household Cavalry Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Ross Nicholls, 27, from Edinburgh. The Blues and Royals.

:: Private Andrew Cutts, 19, from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The Royal Logistic Corps.

:: Private Leigh Reeves, 25, from Leicester. The Royal Logistic Corps.

:: Lance Corporal Sean Tansey, 26, from Newcastle. The Life Guards.

:: Corporal Bryan Budd, 29, from Ripon, North Yorkshire. 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Jonathan Hetherington, 22, from Salisbury, Wiltshire. 14 Signal Regiment.

SEPTEMBER

:: Ranger Anare Draiva, 27, from Fiji. 1 Royal Irish Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Paul Muirhead, 29, from Bearley, Warwickshire. 1st Battalion Royal Irish Regiment.

:: Flight Lieutenant Steven Johnson, 38, from Collingham, Notts. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Flight Lieutenant Leigh Mitchelmore, 28, from Bournemouth, Hants. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Flight Lieutenant Gareth Nicholas, 40, from Redruth, Cornwall. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Flight Lieutenant Allan Squires, 39, from Clatterbridge, Merseyside. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Flight Lieutenant Steven Swarbrick, 28, from Liverpool. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Flight Sergeant Gary Andrews, 48, from Tankerton, Kent. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Flight Sergeant Stephen Beattie, 42, from Dundee. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Flight Sergeant Gerard Bell, 48, from Ely, Cambs. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Flight Sergeant Adrian Davies, 49, from Amersham, Bucks. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Sergeant Benjamin Knight, 25, from Bridgwater, Somerset. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Sergeant John Langton, 29, from Liverpool. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Sergeant Gary Quilliam, 42, from Manchester. 120 Squadron RAF.

:: Lance Corporal Oliver Dicketts, 27, from Wadhurst, East Sussex. 1st Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Joseph Windall, 22, from Hazlemere, Bucks. Royal Marines.

:: Private Craig O'Donnell, 24, from Clydebank, Dunbartonshire. The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

:: Corporal Mark Wright, 27, from Edinburgh. 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Luke McCulloch, 21. 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment.

OCTOBER

:: Marine Gary Wright, 22, from Glasgow. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

DECEMBER

:: Marine Jonathan Wigley, 21, from Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Marine Richard Watson, 23, from Caterham, Surrey. 42 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Lance Bombardier James Dwyer, 22, from South Africa. 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery.


2007

JANUARY

:: Marine Thomas Curry, 21, from east London. 42 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Lance Corporal Mathew Ford, 30, from Immingham, Lincolnshire. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

FEBRUARY

:: Marine Jonathan Holland, 23, from Chorley, Lancashire. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Marine Scott Summers, 23, from Crawley, West Sussex. 42 Commando Royal Marines.

MARCH

:: Lance Bombardier Ross Clark, 25, from South Africa. 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery.

:: Lance Bombardier Liam McLaughlin, 21, from Lancashire. 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery.

:: Marine Benjamin Reddy, 22, from Ascot, Berkshire. 42 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Warrant Officer Class 2 Michael Smith, 39, from Liverpool. 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery.

APRIL

:: Private Chris Gray, 19, from Leicester. 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment.

MAY

:: Guardsman Simon Davison, 22, from Newcastle upon Tyne. 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards.

:: Lance Corporal George Davey, 23, from Beccles, Suffolk. 1st Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment.

:: Guardsman Daniel Probyn, 22, from Tipton, West Midlands. 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards.

:: Corporal Darren Bonner, 31, from Gorleston, Norfolk. 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment.

:: Corporal Mike Gilyeat, 28. Royal Military Police.

JUNE

:: Lance Corporal Paul Sandford, 23, from Hucknall, Nottinghamshire. 1st Battalion The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters.

:: Guardsman Neil Downes, 20, from Manchester. 1st Battalion The Grenadier Guards.

:: Drummer Thomas Wright, 26, from Ripley, Derbyshire. 1st Battalion The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters.

:: Captain Sean Dolan, 40, from the West Midlands. 1st Battalion The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters.

JULY

:: Sergeant Dave Wilkinson, 33, from Ashford, Kent. 19 Regiment Royal Artillery.

:: Guardsman Daryl Hickey, 27, from Birmingham. 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards.

:: Lance Corporal Alex Hawkins, 22, from East Dereham, Norfolk. 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment.

:: Guardsman David Atherton, 25, from Manchester. 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards.

:: Sergeant Barry Keen, 34, from Gateshead. 14 Signals Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Michael Jones, 26 from Newbald, East Yorkshire. Royal Marines.

AUGUST

:: Private Tony Rawson, 27, from Dagenham, Essex. 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian.

:: Captain David Hicks, 26, from Wokingham, Berkshire. 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment

:: Private Aaron McClure, 19, from Ipswich, Suffolk. 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment.

:: Private Robert Foster, 19, from Harlow, Essex. 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment.

:: Private John Thrumble, 21, from Chelmsford, Essex. 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment.

:: Senior Aircraftman Christopher Bridge, 20, from Sheffield. 51 Squadron RAF Regiment.

SEPTEMBER

:: Private Damian Wright, 23, from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment.

:: Private Ben Ford, 18, from Chesterfield, Derbyshire. 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment.

:: Sergeant Craig Brelsford, 25, from Nottingham. 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment.

:: Private Johan Botha, 25, from Pretoria in South Africa. 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Ivano Violino, 29, from Salford. 36 Engineer Regiment.

:: Colour Sergeant Phillip Newman, 36, from Coventry. 4th Battalion The Mercian Regiment

:: Private Brian Tunnicliffe, 33, from Ilkeston, Derbyshire. 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment.

OCTOBER

:: Major Alexis Roberts, 32, from Kent. 1st Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles.

NOVEMBER

:: Lance Corporal Jake Alderton, 22, from Bexley, Kent. 36 Engineer Regiment.

:: Captain John McDermid, 43, from Glasgow. Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

DECEMBER

:: Trooper Jack Sadler, 21, from Exeter, Devon. The Honourable Artillery Company.

:: Sergeant Lee Johnson, 33, from Stockton-on-Tees, Cleveland. 2nd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment.

2008

JANUARY

:: Corporal Darryl Gardiner, 25, from Salisbury, Wiltshire. Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.

FEBRUARY

:: Corporal Damian Lawrence, 25, from Whitby, North Yorkshire. 2nd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment.

:: Corporal Damian Mulvihill, 32, from Plymouth. 40 Commando Royal Marines.

MARCH

:: Lieutenant John Thornton, 22, from Ferndown, Dorset. 40 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Marine David Marsh, 23, from Sheffield. 40 Commando Royal Marines.

APRIL

:: Senior Aircraftman Graham Livingstone, 23, from Glasgow. The Royal Air Force Regiment.

:: Senior Aircraftman Gary Thompson, 51, from Nottingham. Royal Auxiliary Air Force Regiment.

:: Trooper Robert Pearson, 22, from Grimsby, Lincolnshire. The Queen's Royal Lancers.

MAY

:: Trooper Ratu Babakobau, 29, from Fiji. The Household Cavalry Regiment.

:: Soldier James Thompson, 27, from Whitley Bay, North Tyneside.

:: Marine Dale Gostick, 22, from Oxford. 3 Troop Armoured Support Company Royal Marines.

JUNE

:: Private Nathan Cuthbertson, 19, from Sunderland. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Private Daniel Gamble, 22, from Uckfield, East Sussex. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Private Charles David Murray, 19, from Carlisle. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal James Bateman, 29, from Colchester, Essex. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Private Jeff Doherty, 20, from Southam, Warwickshire. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Corporal Sarah Bryant, 26, from Cumbria. The Intelligence Corps.

:: Corporal Sean Robert Reeve, 28. The Royal Signals.

:: Lance Corporal Richard Larkin, 39.

:: Paul Stout, 31.

:: Sergeant Major Michael Williams, 40, from Cardiff. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Private Joe Whittaker, 20, from Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. 4th Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Warrant Officer Dan Shirley, 32, from Leicester. 13 Air Assault Support Regiment Royal Logistic Corps.

:: Lance Corporal James Johnson, 31, from Chatham, Kent. 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

JULY

:: Corporal Jason Barnes, 25, from Exeter, Devon. Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.

:: Lance Corporal Kenneth Michael Rowe, 24, from Newcastle. Royal Army Veterinary Corps.

:: Sergeant Jonathan Mathews, 35, from Edinburgh. The Highlanders, 4th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

:: Private Peter Cowton, 25, from Basingstoke, Hants. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

AUGUST

:: Signaller Wayne Bland, 21, from Leeds. 16 Signal Regiment.

:: Corporal Barry Dempsey, 29, from Ayrshire. The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland.

SEPTEMBER

:: Ranger Justin James Cupples, 29, from County Cavan, Ireland. 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment.

:: Warrant Officer Class 2 Gary O'Donnell, 40, from Edinburgh. The Royal Logistic Corps.

:: Private Jason Lee Rawstron, 23, from Clayton-Le-Moors, Lancashire. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Nicky Mason, 26, from Aveley, Essex. 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment.

OCTOBER

:: Trooper James Munday, 21, from Birmingham. D Squadron, The Household Cavalry.

NOVEMBER

:: Yubraj Rai, 28, from Khotang district, eastern Nepal. 2nd Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles.

:: Marine Robert McKibben, 32, from Westport in Co Mayo. The UK Landing Force Command Support Group.

:: Marine Neil Dunstan, 32, from Bournemouth. The UK Landing Force Command Support Group.

:: Colour Sergeant Krishnabahadur Dura, 36, from Lamjung district, western Nepal. 2nd Battalion the Royal Gurkha Rifles.

:: Marine Alexander Lucas, 24, from Edinburgh. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Marine Tony Evans, 20, from Sunderland. 42 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Marine Georgie Sparks, 19, from Epping, Essex. 42 Commando Royal Marines.

DECEMBER

:: Lance Corporal Steven 'Jamie' Fellows, 26, from High Wycombe. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Sergeant John Manuel, 38, from Gateshead. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Corporal Marc Birch, 26, from Kingsthorpe, Northamptonshire. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Marine Damian Davies, 27, from Telford. Landing Force Support Party, Commando Logistic Regiment.

:: Lieutenant Aaron Lewis, 26, from Rochford, Essex. 29 Commando Royal Artillery.

:: Rifleman Stuart Nash, 21, from Sydney, Australia. 1st Battalion The Rifles.

:: Corporal Robert Christopher Deering, 33, from Solihull, West Midlands. Commando Logistic Regiment Royal Marines.

:: Lance Corporal Ben Whatley, 20, from Tittleshall, Norfolk. 42 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Corporal Liam Elms, 26, from Wigan. 45 Commando Royal Marines.


2009

JANUARY

:: Serjeant Christopher John Reed, 25, from Plymouth. 6th Battalion The Rifles.

:: Royal Marine Travis Mackin, 22, from Plymouth. UK Landing Force Command Support Group, operating as part of 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Captain Tom Sawyer, 26, from Hertfordshire. 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery.

:: Corporal Danny Winter, 28, from Stockport. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Acting Corporal Richard Robinson, 21, from Saltash, Cornwall. 1st Battalion The Rifles.

:: Corporal Daniel Nield, 31, from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. 1st Battalion The Rifles.

FEBRUARY

:: Marine Darren Smith, 28, from Fleetwood, Lancashire. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

:: Lance Corporal Stephen Kingscott, 22, from Plymouth. 1st Battalion The Rifles.

:: Acting Lance Corporal Paul Upton, 31, from Looe, Cornwall. 1st Battalion The Rifles.

:: Corporal Tom Gaden, 24, from Taunton, Somerset. 1st Battalion The Rifles.

:: Rifleman Jamie Gunn, 21, from Monmouth. 1st Battalion The Rifles.

:: Marine Michael Laski, 21, from Liverpool. 45 Commando Royal Marines.

MARCH

:: Lance Corporal Christopher Harkett, 22, from Pontardawe in Swansea. 2nd Battalion, Royal Welsh Regiment.

:: Corporal Graeme Stiff, 24, from Grimsby. Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards.

:: Corporal Dean John, 25, from Port Talbot. Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards.

APRIL

:: Lance Sergeant Tobie Fasfous, 29, from Bridgend, South Wales. 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.

MAY

:: Corporal Sean Binnie, 22, born in Dublin. The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

:: Rifleman Adrian Sheldon, 25, from Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Nottingham. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Sergeant Ben Ross, 34, from Bangor, Wales. 173 Provost Company, 3rd Regiment, Royal Military Police.

:: Corporal Kumar Pun, 31, from the Parbat district of Western Nepal. 1st Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles.

:: Lieutenant Mark Evison, 26, from Dulwich, south-east London. 1st Battalion The Welsh Guards.

:: Marine Jason Mackie, 21, from Oxfordshire. Royal Marine Armoured Support Group.

:: Fusilier Petero ''Pat'' Suesue, 28, from Fiji. 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

:: Sapper Jordan Rossi, 22 from West Yorkshire. 25 Field Squadron, 38 Engineer Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Martin Richards, 24, from Betws-y-Coed, North Wales. Armoured Support Group Royal Marines.

:: Lance Corporal Kieron Hill, 20, of Nottingham. 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment (Worcesters and Foresters).

:: Lance Corporal Nigel Moffett, 28, from Belfast. The Light Dragoons.

:: Corporal Stephen Bolger. The Parachute Regiment.

JUNE

:: Rifleman Cyrus Thatcher, 19, from Reading. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Private Robert McLaren, 20, from the Isle of Mull. The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

:: Lieutenant Paul Mervis, 27, from London. 2nd Battalion the Rifles.

:: Major Sean Birchall, 33, from Guildford, Surrey. 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.


JULY

:: Lieutenant Colonel Rupert Thorneloe, 39, from Kirtlington, near Oxford. 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.

:: Trooper Joshua Hammond, 18, from Plymouth. 2nd Royal Tank Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal David Dennis, 29, from Llanelli, South Wales. The Light Dragoons.

:: Private Robert Laws, 18, from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire. 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Dane Elson, 22, from Zimbabwe. 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.

:: Captain Ben Babington-Browne, 27, from Maidstone, Kent. 22 Engineer Regiment, Royal Engineers.

:: Trooper Christopher Whiteside, 20, from Blackpool. The Light Dragoons.

:: Rifleman Daniel Hume, 22, from Maidenhead, Berkshire. 4th Battalion The Rifles.

:: Private John Brackpool, 27, from Crawley, West Sussex. Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment attached to 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.

:: Corporal Lee Scott, 26, from King's Lynn, Norfolk. The 2nd Royal Tank Regiment.

:: Corporal Jonathan Horne, 28, from Walsall, West Midlands. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Rifleman William Aldridge, 18, from Bromyard, Herefordshire. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Rifleman James Backhouse, 18, from Castleford, Yorkshire. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Rifleman Joseph Murphy, 18, from Castle Bromwich, West Midlands. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Rifleman Daniel Simpson, 20, from Croydon, south London. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Rifleman Aminiasi Toge, 26, from Suva, Fiji. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Corporal Joseph Etchells, 22, from Mossley, Greater Manchester. 2nd Battalion the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

:: Captain Daniel Shepherd, 28, from Lincoln. The Royal Logistic Corps.

:: Guardsman Christopher King, 20, from West Buckland, Devon. 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards.

:: Bombardier Craig Hopson, 24, from Castleford, West Yorkshire. 40th Regiment Royal Artillery (The Lowland Gunners).

:: Warrant Officer Class 2 Sean Upton, 35, from Nottinghamshire. 5th Regiment Royal Artillery.

:: Trooper Phillip Lawrence, 22, from Birkenhead. The Light Dragoons.


AUGUST

:: Craftsman Anthony Lombardi, 21, from Scunthorpe. Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers

:: Corporal Kevin Mulligan, 26. The Parachute Regiment.

:: Lance Corporal Dale Hopkins, 23. The Parachute Regiment.

:: Private Kyle Adams, 21. The Parachute Regiment.

:: Private Jason Williams, 23, from Worcester. 2nd Battalion The Mercian Regiment.

:: Captain Mark Hale. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Rifleman Daniel Wild, 19, from Hartlepool. 2nd Battalion The Rifles.

:: Lance Bombardier Matthew Hatton, 23, from Haxby, North Yorkshire. 40th Regiment Royal Artillery.

:: An unnamed British soldier from The 2nd Battalion The Royal Welsh Regiment.

:: An unnamed British soldier from 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

:: An unnamed British soldier from 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

:: An unnamed British soldier from 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

:: An unnamed British soldier from 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.



Tragic

Afghanistan: roll call of British deaths since 2001

Bob Ainsworth vs Heinrich Himmler

I've posted a longer article on my own blog, not wanting to bore you all with the details, but my jaw dropped at the resemblance:

Bob Ainsworth, hapless Secretary of State for Defence, 2009:

Heinrich Himmler, hapless Commander of Army Group Vistula, 1945:

Uncanny isn't it? The moustache, the glasses, the pursed lips!

Is this good enough for Private Eye Lookalikes?? I think so!*

*gits didn't send me a tenner for the one they published a few years ago...

Bob Ainsworth vs Heinrich Himmler

Richards Sets The Tone

I don't think General Sir David Richards, who becomes Chief of General Staff on 28th August, has made a promising start:

“I believe that the UK will be committed to Afghanistan in some manner — development, governance, security sector reform — for the next 30 to 40 years. “We need now to focus on the expansion of the Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police. Just as in Iraq, it is our route out militarily, but the Afghan people and our opponents need to know that this does not mean our abandoning the region. We made this mistake once. Our opponents are banking on us doing it again, and we must prove them wrong,”

"Of the Taleban, he said: “We can and are outfighting them.”

Maybe I'm being a little unfair but in this self-penned article, it sounds like he's gone native. What's more, a thirty or forty-year commitment, whether in troops, money or expertise, isn't one the British people want but I bet the oil pipeline & mineral exploration companies do.

Click to enlarge

UPDATE: With thanks to one of Sub Rosa's commenters for pointing up this article which shows the American administration are trying to learn from parallels with Vietnam, in particular bogus elections and the standing of President Karzai.

Richards Sets The Tone

Rogue Gunner Says It All

Cato is right. It's a shameful disgrace.

If you haven't already visited Rogue Gunner's blog, here's the link to the blog and the full article:

"On a day when the bodies of four UK servicemen are flown back home after making the ultimate sacrifice in Afghanistan the MOD are in the Court of Appeal. Why may you ask are they costing the British tax payer tens of thousands in legal bills? To make the lives of our young injured servicemen some who have horrific injuries better? No, they are once again making our Heroes fight another battle for adequate compensation that must last them for the rest of their lives.
...
Sometimes your longest War begins when you hand your uniform in and rejoin civvie street."

That's from a man who's been in the thick of war and knows what it's like. He also knows what it's like to be on civvie street with PTSD and no support. We ask so much of our Armed Forces; is it too much for us to demand our government treats them better? So many charities are springing up in an effort to fill the void left by government. Here's a link to Help for Heroes.

Rogue Gunner Says It All

Where To Start?

Late to bed and late to rise makes a blogger dull-witted not wise. In fact I was thinking about declaring myself a Jedi and taking the day off to celebrate R2D2's birthday (it's my yuman right innit?)

However, we have the all-too-believable story in the press this morning about the plan to smear Gen Sir Richard Dannatt once he leaves post in August. Here's the article. His 'shopping list' is unlikely to endear him further to Brown and the MoD. One minister said: “Once he’s gone, we can have a go at him. He can write his book and talk all he wants, but he’ll be fair game then.”

The reason this is so readily believable is because smearing is the proven tactic of the Labour Party: smear, lies, deflection and spin is all they know and that's why they're such a bunch of no-hopers and losers. The only way they could win an election is by increasing the postal vote in some northern cities; lowering the voting age to 16; allowing online voting or text voting (perhaps they can bring Ant & Dec or Richard & Judy in as consultants and ennoble them for their work?)

While the government attempts to deflect criticism of its lacklustre Defence funding & policies another British soldier has died this morning. As yet unnamed but from 2nd Btn The Rifles, he was on foot patrol near Gereshk.

Parliament prorogues next Tuesday, 21st and won't sit again until October 12th - that's about ten/eleven weeks - which means that MPs this year will have only sat for 128 days. Thanks to the govt's way of doing business, many debates have been guillotined and rushed; some nodded through without adequate scrutiny. The Parliamentary Standards Bill currently being rushed through before next Tuesday on Brown's orders is a good example. Already the govt has had to back-track and water down some aspects of the Bill, the consequence will be ill-thought out legislation and a piecemeal attack on the Constitution (whether written or not, it's still our Constitution). And, of course, those MPs who have already announced their resignations and those expecting be be kicked out at the GE can hardly be expected to give the Bill their full attention. Perhaps they're the ones being reported as 'surly' and 'resentful'?

Oh, well, that's enough for the moment from a bear of very little brain - though more accurately, I feel like this:


By the way, there's a radio discussion at the moment considering the difference between the mourning at Lt Col Thorneloe's funeral yesterday and the grief displayed at Wootton Bassett. What no-one has yet mentioned is that (a) these two events were not comparable: one was military and one was public, and (b) the 'keening and wailing' I saw came from youngsters still in school uniform who obviously had close ties to at least one of the 18yr-olds killed. I don't think it's a good move to criticise the ways grief shows itself.

Where To Start?

Asinine Alibi Brown

Lots of coffee-table books, once the revolution is over, to David Forward

Asinine Alibi Brown

Combating Extremism At Home

Where does this belief that being tough on Muslim extremists foments further extremism come from? It's like saying to a career-burglar, okay, we'll go easy on you; here's a shedload of money for you so don't do it again. The burglar will simply go and buy a better jemmy or lock-picker.

Close down the mosques that preach hatred and radicalisation. Hunt the b*ggers down and if they're UK nationals, lock them up - for a long time. Stop throwing money at these organisations and pleading with them not to hurt us. Treason is treason and we're close to a state of unacknowledged civil war. Get Tough!

It doesn't wash to say that we're in Afghanistan to prevent terrorism in the UK; we must begin here, at home. This spineless government has more blood on its hands than we'll ever know and it's far too profligate with the lives of others.

Combating Extremism At Home

Ainsworth...the thinking man's idiot

Ainsworth gets royally stuffed by Paxo. Would you seriously believe that this oaf is a Minister of the Crown? He's be more at home with the Cloggies.




Hat tip to Plato

Ainsworth...the thinking man's idiot