Recess Monkey would like to send his congratulations to Norman Kember, Jim Loney and Harmeet Sooden, rescued yesterday by the SAS. I’m really pleased for you and your families that this ordeal is over.
None of the three rescued hostages has yet made a statement indicating they would have preferred to be saved through a number of years of sanctions and negotiations rather than military action.
recessmonkey@gmail.com
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No… But since if the invasion of Iraq hadn’t happened they wouldn’t have been kidnapped in the first place, it’s not much of an argument…
JonnYossarian said this on March 24th, 2006 at 11:39 pm
It’s not an argument, it’s merely an observation
Recess Monkey said this on March 24th, 2006 at 11:46 pm
Excuse me? Is Norman Kember an Iraqi citizen or was he there by choice? Under his own free will - as it were - is contrast to the Iraqi people prior to the war
El Presidente said this on March 24th, 2006 at 11:53 pm
I’m more of a reader than a responder, but I have to say Kember et al really do drive me insane. I just think the time and resources used to rescue them could’ve been better used had they not foolishly gone to Iraq in the first place.
Every civil servant that goes there has to go through survival training and is subject to severe restrictions on their movement. Evey NGO operates out of Oman. But a 76 year old and his chums thought they knew better have wasted valuable time and resources, not to mention risked the lives of army personnel, all because their blind ideology outweighed basic common sense.
Finally lost his cool said this on March 25th, 2006 at 12:00 am
Understatement of the decade award to Mrs Kember (via the Independent): “I thought when he wanted to go to Iraq he was a bit silly…..”
Hughes Views said this on March 25th, 2006 at 1:21 am
I think she said it on the Today Programme too…
Recess Monkey said this on March 25th, 2006 at 1:24 am
Could the SAS please return them to their kidnappers for ultimate disposal as they wish?
I see that the co-chairman of the Christian Peacemaker Teams, one Doug Prichard, is already blaming the rescuers:-
“…We believe the illegal occupation of Iraq by multinational forces is the root cause of the insecurity which led to this kidnapping and so much pain and suffering in Iraq today. The occupation must end….”
David said this on March 25th, 2006 at 1:29 am
‘Understatement of the decade award to Mrs Kember (via the Independent): “I thought when he wanted to go to Iraq he was a bit silly…..”‘
I love statements like that, they’re so adorably English. An elderly aunt of mine once said, without any sense of irony, “Pol Pot? Wasn’t he that nasty man?”
JonnYossarian said this on March 25th, 2006 at 1:38 am
Or as Mrs Kember might have said: “He’s not the messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!”
Alex K said this on March 25th, 2006 at 4:22 am
They’ve been too busy having baths, full English breakfasts, and catching the first flight out of there. Note well that Norman Kember caught a commercial, rather than a military flight.
A said this on March 25th, 2006 at 5:01 am
One hopes the rescuers will be sending the bill to Kember et al.
Also, can anyone actually explain what a ‘peace campaigner’ actually does?? (besides get kidnapped of course…)
Steve said this on March 25th, 2006 at 6:01 am
Yep, he took the risk of going to Iraq, he’s 74 years old, and yet we spent a few million quid rescuing him.
That money could have done into the NHS, into education, into policing, but no, Norman Kember, thorugh his own stupidity, has wasted my tax payer’s money.
Bravo.
A Visitor 2 said this on March 25th, 2006 at 6:31 am
and what, pray, does a “peace campaigner” actually do in Iraq? what was Kember doing everyday in Iraq before he was swiped?
J said this on March 27th, 2006 at 4:23 am
“Yep, he took the risk of going to Iraq, he’s 74 years old, and yet we spent a few million quid rescuing him.”
So it would have been okay had he been 20?
Aconite said this on March 29th, 2006 at 3:47 am
Would it be possible for Blair et al to issue a decree (fatwa, if you will) that bars UK non-essential civilians from entering Iraq? An exception could be made for those working for Halliburton, KBR, etc.
From the little that I know about peace campaigners, they try to preach peace..and that usually involves some mention of God (the Christian one, usually), hence the hostility by Muslim extremists toward these poor souls.
JavaScript Monkey said this on March 30th, 2006 at 2:05 am