Whilst Prince Harry was throwing cocktails down his throat and pledging his everlasting love for his weepy girlfriend Chelsy Davy. Other people were making pledges of their own.
This from one of the Mahdi Armies, top commanders:-
"One of our aims is to capture Harry. We have people inside the British bases to inform us on when he will arrive," Abu Mujtaba, a Mahdi Army commander in the city of Basra, said. Mujtaba's militia is led by radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
"We have a special unit that would work to track him down, with informants inside the bases.
"Not only us, the Mahdi Army, will try to capture him, but every person who hates the British and the Americans will try to get him. All the mujahidin in Iraq, the al-Qaida, the Iranians all will try to get him."
Meanwhile at the farewell do for the third in line to the throne, one of Harry's chums was quoted as saying
"William told Harry how proud he was and gave him a big brotherly hug. It was a very emotional night."
Prince Harry, a second lieutenant in the Blues and Royals, is due to start a six-month tour of duty in Iraq next month - although our top brass are still debating what role he will play there. Are they stupid?
We know what roll he will play there. A magnet for every maniac in the country with a desire to be blown to bits in order to look presentable when they meet their dream girls in hell.
Now as an ex-serviceman, I know that many of them feel they are invulnerable and whilst their comrades might go West - they will be fine. And for a combat soldier that is a good way to think. You would go insane with fear otherwise.
But Prince Harry is not an ordinary combat soldier, he is a BIG PRIME TARGET and he will draw fire on his comrades.
Sorry Harry I admire your spirit but you should not go. Think of your comrades - even if they give you a White Feather you must stay and wait with the rest of us.
This is an illegal war that a British National Party would not have got involved in. Remember that on May 3rd.
Tags:
It feels like a lifetime ago that I helped write the software that made the rapier missiles sitting on top of the mountain ridges in the falklands do the job they were designed for in the hands of those holding the trigger.
ReplyDeleteOver a decade later I worked alongside a demobbed former marine who was out there at the time and had good reason to be grateful they worked. In the course of drinking the several beers he bought me to say thanks he passed on a few insights into what went on out there.
And I thanked god I was a civilian installer and not someone out there knowing there were guys intent on filling me with lead.
At the end of the day someone, somewhere, with military training and a cool head for cold logic and even colder numbers has to take a view as to whether sending Prince Harry's unit into the theatre of war is a good idea, and then use the same cold logic to decide whether he should go with them.
It is said Harry will be bitterly disappointed if he's not "leading his men", and I do not doubt it.
However, I would hope his officer training would given him at least some insight into the cold logic I refer to above.
I don't know if it would be a bad military decision to have him in the thick of it.
I do know this isn't about glory and it's not about courage. It's about working out whether or not every gun toting moslem will have their resolve to fight reinvigorated by the chance of getting HIS head on a pole at the gates of Sadr City.
Do I need to read Sun Tzu to form an opinion on that ? I don't think so. But again, I'm not a trained military commander.
However, I am perhaps experienced enough to understand that it's not HARRY'S fault every gun-carrying moslem will redouble their efforts to get his head on a spiked pole.
Doubtless some cheap journalist will jump up and down demanding that whole flocks of white chickens be plucked when the inevitable decision is taken to remove Harry from the front line.
Now if anone were to propose throwing such journalists into the White Tower and throwing away the key, they'd have MY vote on thursday.
regards JOG