You do wonder - by Richard... Saturday, July 10, 2010

You do wonder - by Richard... Saturday, July 10, 2010

"We have this old adage," says Captain Anthony Harris: "70% skills and drills, 20% equipment, 10% luck". He goes on to say, "Unfortunately that's quite a large percentage for luck. You can overplay blame. We just happened to take the patrol on that path on that day." 

This is after the man has been blown up in Helmand while riding in the commander's seat in a Jackal – as recorded by The Guardian. But the point is that it isn't an "old adage" – it is the sort of crap they are taught in soldier school by people who should know better. 

What is more, even some officers seem to believe what they are told, without complaint – this one still believing it after the trauma of amputation. Yet that's why they get blown up in the first place, and keep getting blown up. 

Compare and contrast with this - Lt-Col Roly Walker's experience of getting blown up. He is riding in a Mastiff and survives uninjured. "I always thought it was a case of 'when' not 'if' we drove over an IED," he says afterwards, even though his team has taken an off-road evasive route. 

No doubt, he also has "this old adage": "If you want to live, drive in a Mastiff." The problem is that, even after the event, after they have been blown up, people are not putting two and two together. You do wonder what it takes to get the message through.

More to the point, you wonder why newspapers, instead of doing soft-focus, human interest stories, don't point out that so many of these deaths and injuries are entirely unnecessary, brought about by enhanced stupidity, bolstered by misleading training and blind faith.

Even stupid people deserve better than they are getting.

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Thanks for the traffic - by Richard... Friday, July 09, 2010

Little Moonbat has linked to the blog. As is customary, one tries to return the favour – although I am not sure he necessarily wants traffic from rabid, right-wing, foaming-at-the mouth, head-banging, swivel-eyed, loonie zealots.

Still, you take what you can get, I spose - he must need the hits.

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Here we go again - by Richard...

We sort of did it yesterday, and I was rather touched by the e-mails from readers who mistook the title – taken from the famous, if rather ribald rugby song – as a statement of fact. Anyhow,The Daily Mail has returned to the story today, with a long comment piece by Harry Phibbs. 

This is sterling stuff as he rails against "Our masters in the European Union", who are apparently fed up with our insolence and ingratitude. They are fining us £150 million for failing to display the EU flag with sufficient regularity, prominence and enthusiasm, he writes, all under the title: "The more flags the EU run up their flag poles, the fewer salutes they get."

However, The Daily Telegraph also picks up the story (pictured), reporting: "Several schemes that received European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) money were also penalised for failing to use the EU flag on letterheads."

So far so good, except for one minor detail. The EU, this paper says, "completely denied the report." So, here we go again, with shades of the egg story. And in this case, both newspapers can't be right. The story is either true or it isn't ... or what?

I spose we ought to leave it to the professionals. I have a serious blog to write here, and when they've sorted it out, I might return to it. 

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The noose tightens - by Richard...

Been a little bit busy yesterday – with results to be seen on Sunday. In the meantime, as one of our forum members rightly insists, Ambrose is a must read. 

Comment: "Armageddon imagined" thread