Once again the west is getting involved in a war in Mali under the pretext of heading off terrorism. I cannot help thinking that this policy will not work. The French soldiers are being held as liberators at present but if they remain for a long time they will start to become regarded as occupiers. This will feed resentment and further opposition in the local population.
Terrorists where ever they are and whoever they may be must be stopped. I believe that it is better to deploy most of our resources to track down the small number of terrorist leaders and then capture them and put them on trial. They should be imprisoned, if found guilty, rather than executed.
Justice will then be seen to be done. The communities, from which the terrorists draw their tacit support, will then see the protagonists for what they really are and withdraw their backing.
Troops which are used as invasion forces should be re-deployed to protect key installations and infrastructure directly.
In Mali, there might just be a case for using foreign troops to prevent a guerrilla army overrunning the country and imposing laws which do not have popular support. This army should remain no longer than is necessary and should withdraw when the threat is eliminated. They should not outstay their welcome.
Monday, 21 January 2013
Decadence and Snow
Once again our country ( UK) is brought to standstill by a few inches of snow. Last Friday twelve hours before a flake fell one of the London Region's train companies declared an emergency timetable. They cancelled a number of rush hour trains. This is sheer decadence.
There was a real emergency going on in Algeria and now doubt the Foreign and Defence Ministries would have appreciated all their staff getting to work on time.
The BBC was constantly giving us reports about the extreme weather. We are not having extreme weather: minus 1 Celcius and 4 inches of snow is not extreme weather. Why was the BBC not calling into account the railway companies who claim that they could not run the trains when there is a few inches of snow?
I have had the pleasure of working in Hamburg in the winter. The temperatures are much colder and the snow is deeper. They use the same electric three rail system as London. Their trains run on time in winter; why can't ours?
The residents of Prague, New York and Moscow must be laughing at us.
Today, 5,000 schools were closed because of 4 inches of snow. Once again the BBC did not question a Headmaster who said he had closed his school because a pupil might slip over and break an arm. Does this mean that he should cancel all football and rugby lesson for fear of a broken arm? What would he do if the snow fell for six weeks? This happened in 1962.
In 1962 our winter could just about manage to be called extreme; the snow and freezing temperatures lasted for weeks. All the schools remained open and the buses kept running we did not miss a day of school. We are a much richer country now and have much more resources. We could easily keep the schools open and the buses and trains running through a few inches of snow.
What we are lacking is the will, mental attitude and vitality to keep things going when there is a minor in convenience and such decadence could see us off.
It is a good job that the police, fire brigade and ambulance men and women do not have the same mental weakness.
When some climbers had a tragic accident in Scotland over the weekend many brave mountain rescuers faced the snow to help them. Perhaps some mountain rescuers could be seconded to run our schools and railways. They are brave enough to get the job done.
It is also a good job that the armed services do not refuse to rescue hostages or sailors in distress during a real emergency because of the prospect of bad weather. Where would we be then?
There was a real emergency going on in Algeria and now doubt the Foreign and Defence Ministries would have appreciated all their staff getting to work on time.
The BBC was constantly giving us reports about the extreme weather. We are not having extreme weather: minus 1 Celcius and 4 inches of snow is not extreme weather. Why was the BBC not calling into account the railway companies who claim that they could not run the trains when there is a few inches of snow?
I have had the pleasure of working in Hamburg in the winter. The temperatures are much colder and the snow is deeper. They use the same electric three rail system as London. Their trains run on time in winter; why can't ours?
The residents of Prague, New York and Moscow must be laughing at us.
Today, 5,000 schools were closed because of 4 inches of snow. Once again the BBC did not question a Headmaster who said he had closed his school because a pupil might slip over and break an arm. Does this mean that he should cancel all football and rugby lesson for fear of a broken arm? What would he do if the snow fell for six weeks? This happened in 1962.
In 1962 our winter could just about manage to be called extreme; the snow and freezing temperatures lasted for weeks. All the schools remained open and the buses kept running we did not miss a day of school. We are a much richer country now and have much more resources. We could easily keep the schools open and the buses and trains running through a few inches of snow.
What we are lacking is the will, mental attitude and vitality to keep things going when there is a minor in convenience and such decadence could see us off.
It is a good job that the police, fire brigade and ambulance men and women do not have the same mental weakness.
When some climbers had a tragic accident in Scotland over the weekend many brave mountain rescuers faced the snow to help them. Perhaps some mountain rescuers could be seconded to run our schools and railways. They are brave enough to get the job done.
It is also a good job that the armed services do not refuse to rescue hostages or sailors in distress during a real emergency because of the prospect of bad weather. Where would we be then?
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