ENGLISH PRINCE: SOLDIERS' TARGET PRACTICE: DEAR MPS

While I wait for an opportunity to listen to today's FMQs, I decided to get a few minor irritations off my chest. (Please note that when I refer to "dear MPs", I mean that they cost a lot, and not that they are in any way beloved.)

I note that Prince William, who is part of the England bid to host the World Cup, has said that he is English. "I love football, we English love football and it would be an honour for us to host the World Cup."

That’s cool with me. They are welcome to him. It was probably a little slip in his speech, but he has proved how he feels about his own identity.

I can’t help thinking that it is a sign of desperation that one of the world’s most iconic footballers joining the prime minister of England wasn’t felt enough to win the prize: they had to trot out an English Prince as well, and one who has just received massive publicity for announcing that he is going to do what millions of other people do every year, get married.

Still, I suppose you have to use what you can get. Perhaps the glittering of Williams’s metaphorical crown will make up for the cheesy PR prime minister, and the fact that there was, yet again, crowd trouble at an English football match last night.

***

I wonder if I was the only person to shake his head in wonderment this morning when I heard about the sentencing of an American soldier who, as part of a gang went on a drug induced rampage killing Afghan civilians for no apparent reason, except that they were there.

The soldier did the American equivalent of “turning Queen’s evidence” by telling about his mates, in order to get a reduced sentence for his part in the shootings. For sport (aren’t there any wild animals in Afghanistan for the huntin’ shootin’ fishin’ set?), these brave boys, heros maybe, went out and shot anyone that crossed their path.

It’s hard to believe but ex-Sgt Robert Stevens was a medic. I shouldn’t care to be treated by him. He says that he didn’t actually kill anyone himself, but would you believe him? Anyway, pour encourager les autres, he was given a 9 month jail sentence and busted down to private.

Not only did he go around with a gang that was killing human beings for sport, a filthy and despicable thing to do, he has also given terrorists every reason to hate, even more, the westerners who are in their country (at the invitation of the Afghan government of course, but we can all remember what they American government said, and didn’t want us to know, about the Afghan government, don’t we). This piece of filth will, more than WikiLeaks, have the blood of his comrades on his hands. So was that an appropriate sentence? And they want to execute the Wikileaks’ Assange for treason. Wow!

***

And surprise, surprise the Honourable (?**?!*!?**?) members are angry about their expenses and the body that administers them. (It appears they have stopped handing out money willy nilly for no other reason that the MOPs demand it.) The greedy, useless 650+ have claimed over £3 million in the last 3 months... sheesh... including Conservative Keith Simpson, who received £20,752 over the period - mostly for travel expenses to and from his constituency in Norfolk. Now correct me if I’m wrong, but Norfolk isn’t that far from London; certainly not as far as Scotland, so how was he travelling? We already know that they have been working a housing fiddle already, and apparently some are still charging first class rail fares.

Now they want to waste yet more of the time that WE pay for to debate the matter in the House on the subject. Now, we know that they think we are stupid and all have memories that hardly stretch from one episode of Emerdale to the next, but I really do think that they should be aware that we are hurting out here despite what the Noble Mr Young thinks; it’s cold and gas bills are soaring; we are paying back the excesses of a small number of stupid people... them included. So a wee piece of advice to them.

Shut up, get on with your bloody jobs at £66,000+ and keep your greedy, fat heads down, before the public turns, and you find them chopped off and lying at your feet.

Just a thought.

Oh and before they try to have me arrested for Treason, I mean that in a metaphorical sense. (Sorta.)