US Military kicks Londoners in teeth

[William of Walworth]

well if they don't feel so safe here, maybe it'd be best all round if they cleared off out of the country completely ...

 

[Loki]

It's odd they haven't pulled out of Iraq too... they've lost roughly 1750 military personnel there.

 

[oisleep]

yeah john reid said it was only because the us army chiefs didn't want anyone getting in the way of the post-attack clean up operation, which was clearly stretched to all four corners of the M25 that day

(i know circles don't have corners though)

 

[William of Walworth]

A US Serviceman attacked Brian Haw?

I remember reading this about six months ago (I think on here IIRC) he was attacked by a london based USmarine.

This is completely new on me too. Can someone dredge up a link please?

I'm amazed no publicity was given about it on Urban at the time. Or was it??

 

[William of Walworth]

pfff, I agree with the advise, the US military should stay the fuck away from London, they ain't welcome roun these parts.

Another person thinks he can speak for millions of people.

Are you familiar with the term "Not in my name" ?

Welcome the American servicemen on our soils do you, and Bush and Blair's political closeness over Iraq do you, Mr Patriot?

Amazing how some of the people with the most robust, most Eurosceptic, most Patriotic, most PRO BRITISH!!! views suuddenly become spineless when it comes to American world hegemony. Even (or especially) when it involves hegemony over us!

British independence should mean independence from the US as well, you know.

 

[X-77]

He's a tiny inoffensive man, Brian Haw, who believes passionately in free speech. Glad to see the ideals of freedom and democracy upheld by representatives of the US on the streets of London

there are millions of Americans who wouldn't want the US military to be seen as 'representatives of the US' anyway though, to be fair. Btw it's news to me about Brian too; I knew he had been attacked but not the identity of the attacker - although it's not like the media would have shouted this info from the rooftops anyway.

As opposed to british army rapists and child killers??

that's just outrageous, our soldiers are noble and respectful and NEVER EVER rape or kill children Don't you watch the news - it's those yanks who are the real bad guys!

 

[gawkrodger]

it's probably already been said, but good! Maybe they'll fuck of out of the rest of the country as well!

edit: Yes, it has been said. Repeatedly!

 

[chieftain]

I thought thisa order to keep out of the M25 region was given imediatly after the bombs on Thursday? Surely its the outcome of the first review of this order whenever that is that will or will not cause any concern?

 

[X-77]

We are a different kind of people I guess.

Americans on the whole are molly-coddled chickenshit crying to their lawyers over a hot coffee, and we are generally used to bombs and just get on with it.

wow, no stereotypes here are there?? Jesus, do you want to fit just a few more tired old media images of Americans in that sentence??

as for the 'we are a different kind of people' - give me a break

 

[Cloo]

It's odd they haven't pulled out of Iraq too... they've lost roughly 1750 military personnel there.

Yes, funny that. It is a tad dangerous out there.

 

[X-77]

A caller on LBC just rang in to say her daughter is in the RAF and they have been told to also steer clear of London but hey, let's not let this little bit of news stop us from all the yank-bashing, eh?

 

[William of Walworth]

A caller on LBC just rang in to say her daughter is in the RAF and they have been told to also steer clear of London but hey, let's not let this little bit of news stop us from all the yank-bashing, eh?

Well personally I don't think there's enough of it!!!

Not really, but I do think there's a serious point behind this thread. Thee's a difference between criticising Bush/criticising American foreign policy/criticising this latest decision to keep their servicemen outside the M25, and 'Yank bashing'

Fact that the RAF, etc. may have made the same decision doesn't affect the point ...

there are millions of Americans who wouldn't want the US military to be seen as 'representatives of the US' anyway though, to be fair.

I completely agree with you there, but I stand by my previous points.

 

[jæd]

wow, no stereotypes here are there?? Jesus, do you want to fit just a few more tired old media images of Americans in that sentence??

as for the 'we are a different kind of people' - give me a break

Whining about this yourself doesn't make it look like you have much of an point...

Hang out with Americans for a while and then hang out with other nationalities. Americans can be a bunch of babies sometimes, and lot more than others. There is a reason for this stereotype...

 

[Roadkill]

Well, according to some US newspapers 'Londonistan' is a hotbed of jihadi nutcases who represent an increasing threat to the United States and the rest of the free world, and maybe it's not a good idea to let British citizens into the US without visas and background checks.

Maybe they've only pulled their troops out in preparation for destroying a few terrorist training camps. In Mile End and Finsbury park.

FFS, talk about overreactions.

 

[X-77]

Whining about this yourself doesn't make it look like you have much of an point...

Hang out with Americans for a while and then hang out with other nationalities. Americans can be a bunch of babies sometimes, and lot more than others. There is a reason for this stereotype...

er, I have hung out with many many Americans. And for you to say hang out with this nationality or that nationality makes you sound pretty suss to be honest. I don't subscribe to the theory that people are the way they are because of their nationality

 

[X-77]

Not really, but I do think there's a serious point behind this thread. Thee's a difference between criticising Bush/criticising American foreign policy/criticising this latest decision to keep their servicemen outside the M25, and 'Yank bashing'

but that's just it - I was talking about the specific yank bashing on this thread. NOT the bashing of the military or the government, which there can never be too much of. I do realise there is a difference y'know.

 

[frogwoman]

Yeah I'm also sick of all the needless yank-bashing. Every time a major event happens somebody always has to find someone to bitch about. We should be trying to make a better world and stop all the hate

Just heard that the stuff used in these terrorist explosions was of the type used by the military. I heard people say that it could be an "inside job" by the security services or MI5 on the day of the attacks, but for what purpose? It's an unlikely scenario, but how else would the terrorists have got hold of this stuff, unless they had infiltrated the British army

 

[Roadkill]

Just heard that the stuff used in these terrorist explosions was of the type used by the military. I heard people say that it could be an "inside job" by the security services or MI5 on the day of the attacks, but for what purpose? It's an unlikely scenario, but how else would the terrorists have got hold of this stuff, unless they had infiltrated the British army

They were saying on the news last night that it was probably a commercially available explosive such as TNT or dynamite.

If you want ideas about how it could have been MI5 or Special Branch who carried out the bombings, just go and look in World P&P. There are any amount of evidence-free, baseless, speculative theories about who might have done it there... Most of them are simply based on the assumption that the government must have authorised it, and the reason there's no evidence is that they hid it very well. It's akin to saying, 'I know there's a troll under Tower Bridge. I know this because it hides itself so well you can't see it. Prove me wrong.'

Tbh I do think that some poeple have jumped slightly hastily to conclusions about Thursday. We don't know who did it. Islamist radicals look by far the most likely candidates, but that's not certain yet. Not that that makes the inevitable conspiracy theories any more interesting.

 

[frogwoman]

Yeah, I'm not saying those people are right, RK. I can't stand conspiracy theories. I'm just wondering how they got hold of military grade explosives.

And I agree about the Islamic terrorist thing. It's pretty certain to be them, but not 100% certain. The question is, if it wasn't them, then who the fuck was it?

 

[KeyboardJockey]

Yeah, I'm not saying those people are right, RK. I can't stand conspiracy theories. I'm just wondering how they got hold of military grade explosives.

And I agree about the Islamic terrorist thing. It's pretty certain to be them, but not 100% certain. The question is, if it wasn't them, then who the fuck was it?

Probably leaked from some of the odious regimes that the UK sells such items to -- like Saudi Arabia for instance.

 

[jæd]

er, I have hung out with many many Americans. And for you to say hang out with this nationality or that nationality makes you sound pretty suss to be honest. I don't subscribe to the theory that people are the way they are because of their nationality

Well hang out with more than Americans... Hang out with different nationalities and different cultures and you will slowly see simularities between the people in them. Yes, there will be individuals but groups of people act the same (in general).

 

[X-77]

I've gone through this thread again and realise that it's only a couple of posters who have gone down the tedious yank-bashing route so apologies for exaggerating

 

[frogwoman]

that sounds a bit racist to me, mate

 

[pk]

wow, no stereotypes here are there?? Jesus, do you want to fit just a few more tired old media images of Americans in that sentence??

as for the 'we are a different kind of people' - give me a break

Ahh relax, I'm just trolling.



Most Yanks are OK by me, it's the 52 percent or whatever who voted for Bush I despise...

 

[Jangla]

Probably leaked from some of the odious regimes that the UK sells such items to -- like Saudi Arabia for instance.

If it came from that far afield (perhaps more unlikley as the number of borders it would have to cross, but you never know) it could have easily been from one the weapons dumps that were raided in Iraq. Wasn't it something silly like 14 tonnes that went missing?

 

[kyser_soze]

Has it not occured to ANYONE that the reason military personell are being told to stay away from London is that they represent an immediate target and could lead to the deaths of cilvilians in any attacks targeted at them? That this is an effort to reduce the possibility of another attack and thus more collatoral damage and deaths?

No, I didn't think so.

 

[mauvais]

Has it not occured to ANYONE that the reason military personell are being told to stay away from London is that they represent an immediate target and could lead to the deaths of cilvilians in any attacks targeted at them? That this is an effort to reduce the possibility of another attack and thus more collatoral damage and deaths?

No, I didn't think so.

Attacked by who? Who would attack a US soldier, presumably in civvies, on a street in London, when - as someone points out on another thread - they could easily blow up a pub full of squaddies? This makes no sense to me.

 

[frogwoman]

Well, who would bomb three trains and a bus?

 

[X-77]

Ahh relax, I'm just trolling.



Most Yanks are OK by me, it's the 52 percent or whatever who voted for Bush I despise...

fair dos

what really gets to me is trying to paint Americans as these complete ignorant divs when we as a country aren't exactly much more enlightened imo. The other thing is where people try to make out that the US army are so bloody awful but UK military aren't as bad etc when the plain fact is they're both fighting on behalf of their imperialist masters, hence they both do god-awful things and to think otherwise is either naiveity/buying into media propaganda/wishful thinking.

 

[mauvais]

Well, who would bomb three trains and a bus?

Err, perhaps it would be the same sort of people that did it in Israel/Madrid/anywhere else, I suppose. A off-duty soldier somewhere within the M25 is not a terrorist target, and their presence does not pose any danger to civilians unless it is through their own actions. " "