Jules
- 10 May 2004 18:41
I felt a thread should be started on the role of Piers Morgan in the 'picture allegations' which are being bandied around the world.
Whether or not these pictures are real, I would like to see this man hauled across the coals!! I feel very strongly that the position he has taken has put the life of british soldiers and foreigners (especially those working in arab countries)in jeopardy.
As far as I am concerned, he is just a jumped up gossip columnist who is out to make as much money as possible with little regard to the actual consequences.
In my opinion, the british government were wrong to participate in this war, but it does not change the fact the Mr Morgan has been , and will be, a large contributer to further british, australian, new zealand, south african and other westerners deaths in arab countries, with his ill thought out publishing of these pictures.
I also feel that this will just fuel the terrorist cause.
If I had to describe Mr Morgan in 2 words, they would be 'dangerous' and 'greedy'..
EDIT....and now unemployed!!!!
washlander
- 11 May 2004 12:00
- 9 of 40
Responsible reporting? I think not. He was more interested in sensationalism. How can you take anybody with a name like Piers seriously. No doubt there are problems but please stick to the truth. My son was there when it first kicked off. All this does is further endanger the men and women still out there. All for what, to get one over the Sun?
Velocity
- 11 May 2004 12:18
- 10 of 40
Whats wrong with the name Piers? That's a bit discriminatory innit?
Anyway, tabloid journalism is all about sensationalism isn't it - and if you read any tabloid then surely you are party to it by default? I thought that was the whole point, and more importantly why it's such a powerful medium to tackle the govt on a wider front. In the short term yes greater danger to the troops, longer term less danger as the papers chip away at the credibility of the military offensive, slowly changing public opinion & eventually 'forcing' withdrawal.
washlander
- 11 May 2004 12:42
- 11 of 40
Yes it is and I am proud to be a discriminator- lol. You only have to look at the piers around Britain ie Blackpool to see they are a source of fun and not to be taken seriously.
Sequestor
- 11 May 2004 13:45
- 12 of 40
I don`t notice droves of hearts on sleeves loony lefties doing the following , because of this war and other wars in the far/middle-east, of course its over oil we need it , we depend on it , we love it- oh there go the farties;there they go all---
1. Leaving there cars behind because the oil is tainted with blood
2.Not going by diesel train ditto
3.not going by elec. train as the elec. is oil generated
4.not watching TV as the plastic is from oil
5. sitting by candlelight as the elec is oil powered
et.etc.etc.
etc.etc., they are always keen to moan when Western power is ratified, but never put their own Western perks to one side for long.
38
- 11 May 2004 14:19
- 13 of 40
Those photographs are a load of bull. There is no way on earth that they were taken anywhere near an operation. They are perfectly exposed, clearly focused, and well framed. The 'soldiers' are clean, no tat's, no tan, no muscle tone, no grime. It takes about 3.1 nanoseconds to draw that conclusion. Bad things have happened for sure, but nothing in comparison to what was happening under SH.
I'm no war apologist - without the sanction of the UN the war is illegal and should not have taken place. The longer it goes on in current form the more likely we are to see regime change at home and in the U.S.
Whatever the underlying political motive for the war, and whatever your views on those motives, I do hope that you see dead british soldiers and Iraqis as a bad thing. And that you can see the link between those photo's and further conflict. And that by extension publishing the photos was stupid.
Ho hum.
Yours, Ghengis Khan.
P.S. - Did you hear the one about George Bush and Tie Rack ?
PPS: We lived in a bi polar world for 50 years, and now we are being driven back by religeous extremists. I am very glad that I do not have to live in the States.
And another thing while my blood is up.... Did anyone see the free financial makoever article in the weekend FT - a couple with combined earnings power of 250,000, still claiming 16,000 a year child benefit. Doesn't it make you proud to live in the land of the free.
got that off my chest.
A bit.
Take deep breaths.
Fred1new
- 11 May 2004 14:47
- 14 of 40
Thanks Jules,
I am enjoying to-day. The majority of my shares are blue. (Thank anybodies god for me.) And I have place to rant and rave without be told "DAD!!!!!!)
Personally, I think it would be daft to turn ones back on technical advances or any of any advances, which are useful or may have useful returns.
But that is not the same as taking advantage oneself limitlessly at the disadvantage of those you are screwing, which seems to be the position you are advocating.
It seems the crude American policy of today, unfortunately followed by the British government is to treat the resources of other countries as their own.
The problem is that at the end of the day the have nots get p****d off with not having and start becoming awkward. This was one of the social remnants of the Thatcher period and perceived policy. This is what under lie the eventual political changes and the gaining of controls of extremists who go to war or use the methods they find appropriate ie, terrorism.
The attitude of many Americans and British is still of patronising arrogance to the Arabs, and other less organise societies.
Very much like the Master to Slave or landowner to servant of old.
The oil or other resources belong to the country of its origins until sold on the free market to other purchase or countries and should be marketed for the proportional advantage of that country.
I personally hope that Iraq develops a democratic secular government, but I fear as a result of the intervention, what will be developed are religious thiefdoms, privately funded and supported by American gangsters, milking the resources with little or no respect for the people of that country or individual freedom within that country. This is partially what is provoking the present conflicts. The only problem is that the more ignorant or lesser mortals will not benefit from the actions and are at the moment are suffering. (I think they are being misled or utilised by their leaders. (The same applies to many Americans and British, although there seems to be more enlightment.)
I think the UN should call for a withdrawal of the Coalition Forces within a 2 year period and the removal all American and British Bases from Iraq and other Middle East Countries. That this should be done under the authority of the UN but as a deterrent for future insurgencies of this type at the expense of the countries initially taking part in the Coalitions action.
newby1066
- 11 May 2004 14:52
- 15 of 40
P. Morgan and his "weapon of media deception" ain't the problem ... in my opinion, we should see EVERYTHING, unsanitised, bloody and as gory as hell ... blood, brains and balls!
What Morgan and his "peers" dish up is far worse than Jules could ever imagine. We're being fed a veneer of reality, a superficiality, that, were banks, traders, the market, to dish up, there would be an outcry so huge, it would bring the country to a stand still.
A photo (whether a re-enactment or the real deal) is just that - only a photo - it's a poor reflection of the real EVENT ... before, during and after.
What we need people like Jules to do (sorry Jules) is to inform oneself - think about the EVENT, not it's recorded documentary merit, or whether it should be published in a paper or not. Break free of the herd (Soham springs to mind and the appalling vilification of that poor woman - perhaps we should shoot her in the back of the head and satisfy the herd's lust for retribution). Folks really seem incapable of rational thought of late - we've regressed back to SALEM!
If we want to put a bullet in the back of her head ... ok, so be it, say so ... but don't be duplicitous about it ... simply put ... be nice or be 'orrid ... but don't be self-righteous, all dressed up as moral superiority.
We're outraged that a paper wants to show some piccies of abuse ... someone being pissed on ... hold on ... what about all the dead women and children? Who is watching Afghanistan? Kosovo? Serbia? Remember Kenya - where British troops were directly responsible for the genocide and torture of 10's of thousands of men, women and children, some of whose heads were bashed-in under boot in front of the mothers to coerce infomation out of them? Where's the outcry - there weren't any cameras to document this event? But this doesn't negate the EVENT itself. Unfortnately, Morgan wasn't there either, or we'd being paying compensation and reparations right about now.
Who allows this - a complacent, uninformed, silent lazy majority who abrogate their responsiblity to a handful of wannabe "messiahs" / sociopaths - Bushy Bliar, the Straw village idiot, and one man and his dog, et al.
The minute a soldier puts on a uniform, by definition, he's the walking dead. And we decide "democratically" whether we're going to use him/her as a killing resource. U cannot have it both ways ... as an ex-soldier, I always understood this when I wrote my "last letter" to be posted, were I to fall in the course of my "duty" to country! A country that won all it's battles, but lost the war - viva Mandela, and rightly so!
And yes, I've witnessed atrocities that will make one's toes curl ... but so few "serve" today ... their battlefield is the markets. So few have an insight into what it's like to wear the uniform and how fast things go awry. WE're all suffering from "future shock" ... 3 steps removed from reality.
My view is that ANY soldier guilty of an atrocity should be court-martialled and shot at the stake and buried head first. And any politician that is complicit in the "spirit" of the offence ... ditto ... remember the policy of "SHOCK and AWE"? Now describe the "corporate culture" behind this statement and the shared vision that engenders. Write the story. There's no surprise ending.
These politico-wimps have no honour or sense of responsibility ... but will prosecute soldiers at a whim. The worst that happens to the leadership and these sociopathic MP's is they resign, unscathed and take up a post in some blue-chip company Board - protected by the market.
Jules wants to shoot the messenger ... I say ... leave Morgan alone .. he ain't the problem - we are - let's kick those bully boys in parliament out and take back our civil power. And yes, it will be hard to manage ourselves once again, opposed to being managed. But, what are U (plural, ablative tense) afraid of? Reality? No apoligies for the rant ... awaken within!
38
- 11 May 2004 14:57
- 16 of 40
Why would you bury them head first ?
Sequestor
- 11 May 2004 15:02
- 17 of 40
to leave somewhere to park his bike
Velocity
- 11 May 2004 15:23
- 18 of 40
Good ole Piers, you gotta love him :-))
Sequestor
- 12 May 2004 13:13
- 19 of 40
too awful to even discuss now, the Tower awaits
Fred1new
- 12 May 2004 13:19
- 20 of 40
With this messenger I am not unhappy how one deals with him. But don't forget the message or that until now the content was not "known" or mentioned by this goverment!!
mojo47
- 12 May 2004 15:56
- 21 of 40
I wonder if Piers had a son or relation out their, not that they wanted to be or agreed with what was going on. but were sent by the government. If he had I feel sure he would have given a bit more thought to printing them photo's It dosent matter if they are fake or true, we all know about backlash, May God look after any of out lads, that get caught. To me P M and his crappy paper wants, well I cant think of anything bad enough to do with them. I will not be getting his paper ever again, (not that I ever bought it ) mojo
Jules
- 12 May 2004 22:15
- 22 of 40
mojo
The truth is in what you have said. People like PM are responsible for backlash. God help the family of the American who was beheaded!
newby1066
- 13 May 2004 02:00
- 23 of 40
It's such an intolerable situation ... it's kinda true what Osama d***head had to say, when he defined terrorism ... terrorism is a balance of terror ... U bomb us, we bomb U, ad infinitum ... U abuse detainees, we behead (innocent, brave) young americans .
Interestlingly, though understandable, the media hasn't fully quoted these hooded criminals ... here's a piece of the translation of the video not reported on:
"As for you, mothers and wives of American soldiers, we tell you that we offered the American administration to exchange this prisoner for some prisoners in Abu Ghraib, but they refused. We tell you that the honour of Muslim men and women in Abu Ghraib and other (prisons) are more noble than blood and lives. And you will only get shroud after shroud and coffin after coffin slaughtered in this manner.
Crisis diplomacy seems dead and buried ... were it my son ... I'd have emptied all the prisons! Tough call! Yet, having said that ... this brave young lad died on Friday ... and the americans released 15 Abu Grahib prisoners on sunday ... kept quiet all week, until Wednesday. Is this a deal that went wrong? Remember the other american who "escaped" last week from these captives? Interestingly, again, a few days later the americans withdraw from Faluja ... another deal?
May this brave young man's parents find peace! And may these hooded criminals also find themselves buried head first!
Sequestor
- 13 May 2004 08:24
- 24 of 40
T was talkong to a son of a relative who fought in Iraq, and he said that they were often hampered by , literally hundreds of media people , desperate for the sight of blood, how come these carnage prostitutes are allowed in a war zone?
deadfred
- 13 May 2004 10:01
- 25 of 40
i hope someone gets legal advise
like this murder of the innocent american it has been associated with pic taken then blown out over the world of abuse in prisons in iraq
the press have to take some stick for this murder
abusing the prisoners was well out of order and thoses ppl will pay(belive me)
but what is the real abuse cutting someones head of or slicing it of bit by bit with a knife
did not see any brits or yanks doing this did we hmmmmmmmm
how can you be nice to an ememy who would rather cut your head of for humiliating him
sarcasim would stop dead in the west if we adopted there rules imho of course
i belive in freedom of speech(western culture not eastern or middle east)
but i also belive in the right of duty to ones country and putting the lives of our service ppl in more danger by publishing dubious pictures(imho) was very silly indeed(imho)
if as in the americans beheading the murder is put down to these pictures then as i said in the begining (imho) ppl should be made to pay and i hope ppl look at the legal system to make them pay for there fool hardiness of putting our boys in even more danger just to make money (imho)
mojo47
- 14 May 2004 07:22
- 26 of 40
I cant understand how or why the media wont be allowed to show photo's or give any news of Maxine Carr. (Against the national interest so we are told ) Not that I care if they put her on the next rocket to Mars And yet they were allowed by our government to print papers for days with them photo's of abuse that were totaly false, shouldnt someone be jailed for fraud or something. and when things go wrong in a company the first head to go should be the BOSS. Important earthshattering news like that should be checked out and double checked out and a lot of thought put into it befor it is printed . So Ops sorry we got it wrong isnt any excuse. It didnt work for Carr when she said I didnt know, Their is something I am am not getting here, or is our mr P Morgan going to get a way with the lot of it after taking all the extra money he made from the papers, well he will just take a good long holiday some place nice and warm, and come back refreshed
38
- 14 May 2004 08:41
- 27 of 40
Nice little piece on Radio 4 this morning suggesting that Morgan may be held responsible and that Fidelity, who like the old corporate governance thing, may just push for his resignation. (Have resisted the bad taste pun)
Jules
- 14 May 2004 19:39
- 28 of 40
The jumped up little gossip queen resigned... fabulous. Can we now try him for manslaughter, and then all those other twats that started this war?????????