World I am pissed off…
I don’t know how many of you are following the world events at present, but working on a UK ship, it is being shoved down my throat with reckless abandon.
What… I hear you all say. I am talking about the 15 British troops that were kidnapped in IRAN over the last few weeks. Well, people, this story has taken a very disturbing turn. This turn in events is the reason for my rant here today. Now I am not going to go in depth about the circumstances surrounding the event. But here is the short version.
A Rubber duckie type boat carrying a fifteen man (including one woman) team went onboard a ship to search it. Iran says these Brits where in Iranian waters at the time. As far as the Iranians are concerned this is a breech of international law, they snatched the 15 people and then subsequently released them. Well there was also a bit of TV time (and a lot of talking sh@t by the politicians)where the Iranians got the woman to say they had breeched the territorial limit blah blah blah.
Anyway the essence of the situation is that the UK troops (woman included) were kidnapped (some may say justifiedly so but it does not matter). One thing they were not…. was prisoners of war. The UK is not at war with Iran, so that is why.
Where am I going and why should I be pissed off? Well let me tell you. I heard today that the Female British soldier has sold her story about her time in captivity to the press. For £80 000 worth.
… (So I hear you ask - SO???? good for her!) Nah!!!
What makes this something different is that:
1) The government allowed her to speak
2) She was not physically harmed ( I hear it already, world, … the mental side is much worse. Oh Bollocks!! Have you ever, purposely had your thumbnail removed without any pain medication) Anyway, pain fades, but hey £80000 will go a long way in fixing that. This woman wasn’t raped, beaten up, isolated for weeks on end or starved. In fact by all accounts they were treated quite well given the circumstances. I have actually seen photo’s of the captives playing table tennis and chess. How f%#king hard was it? (yes, you can all say that I am heartless)
Now here comes my beef… What about the countless thousands of men that have died, suffered torture or just been forced to kill some other person (now remember that most of our active military are young men, normally between the age of 18 and 25, who don’t want to kill anyone, they’re just in the wrong place at the right time), but because there is always a very strict silence policy after these events their stories never get told. Don’t you think each one of those people who have physically been harmed, or pyschologically scarred for life, protecting their country deserve the same treatment. Where is the £80000 per person gratuity for each of them. Are the lives of a hundred men worth far less than one woman (who happened to be captured in Hi Def full colour and beamed into our lounge)
To the soldier in question I have this to say:
Being a soldier means that you understand the risks involved in your choice of profession, it means being able to stand by those choices and to do the job allocated to you when all hell is raining down upon you. Crying foul after you have signed that piece of paper that states that the government may send you into harms way is a mute point. You signed up, now suck it up Princess cos the sh&t isn’t gonna fly.
I don’t know you, but I know that when I was in the navy, we stuck together. If it was a PT run, we carried the lard ass of the group across to finish as a team. I am sure that your regiment was the same. What makes you so special to deserve this treatment?
How can the British Government justify this course of action? My opinion is that the government are using this woman for propaganda purposes, so that when oil becomes a little more pricey, and defense contractors, who make such large campaign contributions, start feeling the pinch, then there is a justifiable reason for invading Iran. (Hey… You F£$%#ers started this by capturing our troops)
Why, when never before in history has the government ever allowed active troops to talk about their experiences with the press, should they allow this woman to do so now??
I find the whole incident totally shameful. It is disrespectful to those who have died before in protection of any land (not just the UK). The statement sent out from this is…
"If you are a woman in captivity, do your nails maybe get a trim,possibly some highlights cos when you get home you will be minted. "
My final thought. To all those troops away from home. Whilst I understand the separation from loved ones side of your equation, the bravery it takes to stand on a wall and say I will protect you tonight, is something I can’t fathom.
Keep it up guys you are appreciated.
To the government that let this happen: Shame on you, you should be bloody ashamed of yourselves.
Pete
Durban Time
