Rough Men Stand Ready to Do Violence …

… so that people like actor Rupert Everett can denigrate them using the luxury of the freedom that they and their predecessors have given us.

I somehow missed the original piece in the Sunday Telegraph, and it’s only Everett’s weasily “apology” that drew my attention to the ridiculous remarks.

According to Everett soldiers are

“… always whining about the dangers of being killed. Oh my God, they are such wimps now!

“… The whole point of being in the Army is going to war and getting yourself blown up. That and p—ing on prisoners.”

On the suggestion that soldiers are motivated by a sense of duty:

“No, you do it because you are a nasty, jammy —t and you want to p— on everyone. That’s what drew you to the Army and that’s what they pay you for. They pay you to tie up prisoners and attach electrodes to their nipples and testicles and p— on them.”

Whatever the “apology”, he has clearly revealed that he is of the sort of base opinion that comes from too long spent inside the liberal left bubble, where the contempt for those who give the orders is extended to those who carry them out. Of course, some will compare that to the “Nuremburg defence” – which would be about right, if you are the sort who compares Blair and Bush (neither of whom, I would admit, are without sin) to Hitler and genuinely believes it.

Next thing you know, he’ll be coming out with some uber-luvvie claptrap about how tough is the life of a thespian.

Oh, here it is …

So he was never curious about testing his courage on the battlefield? “You can do that on stage.” Without bullets? “Oh, but there are! Critics can kill.” Hardly the same. “It is the same! Exactly the same!”

The greatest irony, though, was in one sentence earlier in the interview, when Everett says:

“Now what do you get in the Army? Bad helmets and Basra. Your guns don’t work and everyone hates you when you come back.”

And where do you think that contempt for the armed forces comes from? Could it be the sort of idiots who think it’s fair game to attack the rough men under whose protection we sleep peaceably in our beds?

Honour The Covenant

To the Hilton for the Royal British Legion fringe event, entitled “Honour the Covenant”. Sometimes a fringe event is rated according simply to the speakers featured, or the quality of the food and drink.

However with the Legion’s event, I did feel uncomfortable taking advantage fo the free drink or food, thinking that any spare funds should go towards the care of those who have earned it the hardest way. So, with just a mere orange juice in hand (there will be a larger than usual donation from the Reddin household next month), I joined the audience to hear about the disgraceful situation that results in, as Bernard Jenkin summarised excellently, those who have been prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for the nation having to fight the state for their care.

In most other areas I would be arguing for a shift to the private sector, to reduce the burden on the taxpayer and bring about a smaller state, yadda, yadda, yadda. Yet one central role of the state must remain the defence of the realm – and that must include the care of those who are responsible in the most tangible way for that defence. Not a penny should be spared for those who were ready to stake their lives for this country and our freedom.

It was not inappropriate that we were in the same room which had hosted, two nights before, a reception by the Free Society protesting the infringement of our freedoms in the seemingly minor yet symbolic fields of smoking and drinking. Now we were hearing about those who have risked everything to win and preserve those freedoms and more.

The MOD Finds A Pot Of Gold

At the risk of stepping on Croydonian’s territory, I must recount a little story that is unfolding in the deep south of that borough.

Kenley Aerodrome is owned in part by the Corporation of London, as part of Kenley Common, though it is leased by the MoD. Other parts of the aerodrome are owned freehold by the MoD. Now, the Ministry wanted to erect a safety fence around the aerodrome, for which they needed planning permission from Croydon Council, which the Corporation was opposing, as it detracted from the open nature of the area (safety could be ensured by flags, signs, etc, say the Corporation).

Now given the considerable chance that permission could be refused, you would think the Ministry would hold off any significant expenditure until planning permission had been granted. But no, fencing at a cost of £115,000 had already been purchased by the time permission was refused.

To quote one member of the West Wickham and Coulsdon Commons Consultative Committee, on which I sit, “they can’t afford proper equipment for our troops, but they can waste £115,000 on fencing that they aren’t allowed to erect”, or to quote another “perhaps someone should talk to the Audit Commission”.

So, since the MoD clearly has money to burn, why are servicemen in Iraq and Afghanistan only getting a £140 rebate on council tax? I’m not suggesting looking a gift horse in the mouth, and I don’t suppose anyone is going to turn the money down, but judging by the discussions on ARRSE right now most would rather have seen that money go on decent equipment as well. But then I guess a minister posing with lots of shiny new military gear wouldn’t go down too well among the rabidly anti-war Indie/Grauniad hordes would it?

Michael Yon

Michael Yon is an American writer and photographer who has been embedded with a number of different coalition units in Iraq over the last few years. His accounts are engaging and enlightening – and the comments can make equally interesting reads, especially as recently he has been with our boys (and girl) from the Queen’s Royal Lancers. He brings the angle of being able to compare our forces with his own country’s and ours haven’t proved wanting.

His dispatch is in four parts: I II III IV

He is currently back with US forces in Operation Arrowhead Ripper – giving far more informative coverage than the publicly-funded BBC back in Baghdad seem to manage.

One wonders why our own BBC cannot give such a good inside account of our troops’ work, especially when they seem so ready to do similar (and more) for our enemies.

Regardless of your views of the Iraqi and Afghan situations, and granting that every organisation will have the few bad apples, our service personnel nevertheless deserve nothing but respect and whatever moral and other support we can give them.

UPDATE

By coincidence, James Cleverly has picked up on some excellent recent coverage of the Afghan campaign in the Telegraph. Go read, and take in the comments too.