<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><rss xmlns:atom='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' version='2.0'><channel><atom:id>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full</atom:id><lastBuildDate>Wed, 26 Jul 2006 22:15:54 +0000</lastBuildDate><title>Military Families Against the War Blog</title><description></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/index.html</link><managingEditor>Sarah Chapman</managingEditor><generator>Blogger</generator><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>15</openSearch:itemsPerPage><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/116350863647179368</guid><pubDate>Tue, 14 Nov 2006 12:50:36 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-11-14T12:50:36.493Z</atom:updated><title>(no subject)</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;FONT id=role_document  face=Arial color=#000000 size=2> &lt;DIV>At Saddam Hussein's recent trial, justice was seen to be done, for the  crimes he committed against his own people and crimes against humanity.&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>Is it not time the world turned it's attention to the two instigators, Bush  and Blair for their deceit and untruths, resulting in the unjust and illegal war  in Iraq.&amp;nbsp; They surely have committed similar crimes against humanity on a  vast scale, with 665.000 Iraqi civilians dead, 125 U.K. troops dead, including  my son, almost 3000 U.S. troops dead, and thousand upon thousand both physically  and emotionally injured and damaged.&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>The utter devastation and carnage is inconceivable, and&amp;nbsp; based on the  crazy ego's of these two men,' fighting terrorism,' whatever that is. In my  opinion they fitted the evidence to suit their own needs, and the lies and  deceit is constantly emerging.&amp;nbsp; I find it incredible that everyone knows of  the lies and manipulation of the truth, and no one has been able to do anything,  other than write about the situation.&amp;nbsp; I would ask 'Where is British  justice.'&amp;nbsp; Surely there must be a way to make these two warmongers  accountable for their actions, which would reinforce to future world  leaders,&amp;nbsp;liar's always get found out.&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>Both these men have claimed they discussed the situation of Iraq with their  respective Gods, before the invasion, and was advised accordingly.&amp;nbsp; I  occasionally work with people who hear voices, and they usually have serious  mental health problems. Perhaps a psychological assessments could be  compulsory?&amp;nbsp; I believe them both to be, either very deluded or very  dangerous individuals, who desperatly needs a reality check, as they seem out of  touch with reality.&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>Tony Blair indicates he is agreeable to speak with the U.S. about an  inquiry as to a way forward to help his mentor George W. Bush get the U.S.  soldiers out of Iraq, without losing face.&amp;nbsp; Again his allegiance seems  somewhat misplaced.&amp;nbsp; He should be now&amp;nbsp;concentrating on getting our own  troops home before any more loss of life, and have the courage to speak with the  families of fallen soldiers,&amp;nbsp;and answer their questions, before he  goes.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&amp;nbsp;In both the U.S. and the U.K. the overwhelming consensus is that the  troops should be brought home without delay, it would appear that even these war  mongers are coming around to the idea.&amp;nbsp; However, this could be seen by some  as to damage limitation, rather than the welfare of the troops.&amp;nbsp; Of course  there is always their legacies to consider, and at present both are lame ducks  who nobody takes any notice of anyway, as both seem incapable of telling the  truth.&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>I make no apology if this seems blog seems &amp;nbsp;judgmental, I am more than  willing to enter into a discussion with Tony Blair, if he takes exception or  disagrees with anything I have written.&amp;nbsp; Somehow, I don't think he will, as  he has not had the good manners to answer&amp;nbsp;the last letters sent to him,  requesting a meeting.&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>Pauline Hickey&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV>&lt;/FONT>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/11/no-subject.html</link><author>Pauline Hickey</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/115005592599923803</guid><pubDate>Sun, 11 Jun 2006 19:58:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-09-24T13:21:12.050Z</atom:updated><title>Letter to TB</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;p class="mobile-post">&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;">RE: Afghanistan&lt;/span>&lt;br />I wrote to you on May 29 regarding clause 8 of the Armed Forces Bill. At the end of the letter I asked why our troops were also deployed to Afghanistan, another situation which had nothing whatsoever to do with this country.&lt;br />&lt;br />At the end of my letter I asked how long it would be before the coffins started arriving from there too. Well this evening Mr Blair I got my answer. There are insuffucient words to describe my feelings. Yet another family destroyed by your policies.&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">I am the mother of a serving soldier, I am fiercely proud of our armed forces &amp; the job they do but my understanding has always been that they are here to serve &amp;amp; protect this country Mr Blair, not be sent half way around the world on missions impossible. What on earth are you thinking of? It beggars belief.&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">I would urge you to rethink your strategies before we are left with nobody  to defend us should the need arise.&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">Rona Lee&lt;/p>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/06/letter-to-tb.html</link><author>A Mother</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/115537849402606367</guid><pubDate>Sat, 12 Aug 2006 10:28:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-09-14T10:41:35.263Z</atom:updated><title>MY RESPONSE TO TONY BLAIR'S DEFENSIVE LETTER -  NO RESPONSE RECIEVED AS YET.</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;span id="role_document" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span id="role_document" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial;" >  &lt;div>4 June 2006&lt;/div> &lt;div>Prime Minister&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>I acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 31 May 2006.  I note your  comments regarding the efforts made to minimise risks on routine patrols and the  lengths that are gone to, to make our service men and women sufficiently well  equipped and protected.  Without wishing to repeat myself as to the  contents of my previous letter dated 1.03.06, would you please clarify for me as  to why my son's regiment were denied the basic provision of adequate boots and  armoured Land Rovers.  Prior to Christian's death, a request had been made  by my son's commanding officer for armoured Land Rovers as essential equipment,  the request was denied, the vehicles were subsequently given for use  by the Iraqi Police.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>I would like to quote to you statistics from the M.O.D. The revelations  list 2.581 Equipment Failure Reports (E.F.R's) in Iraq and Kuwait between 21  March and December 2005.  A further 90 incidents, involving equipment  including Challenger 2 Main Battle Tanks, Land Rovers, rifles and machine guns  are listed as 'serious equipment failures'. (S.E.F's)&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>Michael Moore, the Liberal Democrat defence spokesman advised 'There are  ongoing doubts about the quality of the equipment out troops are given, and this  is a time for  the government to reassure us that they are providing the  best'  He goes on to say 'At a time of huge concern about our troops being  sent into an incredibly hostile environment, it is deeply worrying that we  find we cannot always rely on the equipment that they have been given to protect  them'&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>Does this suggest a well equipped army to you?&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>I certainly know who's version I would believe, and it would not be yours  Mr Blair.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>The evening of my son's death (18.10.05), it has been extremely difficult  to ascertain exactly what happened, when he left his 'snatch' fibre glass  vehicle.  We know that a vehicle containing several Iraqi Police were watching  the patrol when the I.E.D. was detonated.  We have been refused a Board of  Inquiry, which is difficult to challenge as it involves the army looking into  it's own practices, and whether lessons can be learnt.  I have questioned  whether the army adheres to The Human Rights Act, as I feel it is not  acceptable practice to go searching for I.E.D's on foot with no equipment other  than a rifle.  We have been denied access to the soldiers who were with my  son on that night, and no inquest date has been set.  We actually learned  more about our son's death in an article in The Times newspaper several months  later, than from the M.O.D.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>Can you, as a parent understand the reality and distress caused of reading  details of your son's death in a newspaper article?&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>In your letter to me, you speak about not putting too much faith in media  reporting.  I find that with the Freedom of Information Act in place, there  is a lot more credibility to what is now written, and one can always check out  the facts for oneself.  You comment of some of my previous points in the  previous letter to you, been drawn on distorted accounts.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>*You say Maya Evans was not arrested for reading out the names the 97  fallen soldiers at the Cenotaph.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>It is my understanding that her actions could be seen by some, as breaching  132 of The Serious Organised Crime and Police Act. However, I ask you is this  what the act was intended for, for people not to be able to speak freely  without fear of prosecution.  Is this the form of democracy you intend  enforcing upon us, as well as in Iraq and Afghanistan?&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>*You comment about no one seeking to prevent publicity of the death of the  100th soldier in Iraq.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>During a television interview on 31 January 2006, on Sky News it was stated  clearly instruction had come from you 'not to hype up the significance of the  number'&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>*You state your wife Cherie Blair does not have a amoured car.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>If I recall, I believe I said she had a bullet proof vehicle.  Five  days following my son's death. there was an article in The Times, stating that  the Government had disclosed information following a freedom of information  request.  A Cabinet Office spokesman confirmed Mrs Blair had use of a  bullet proof Vauxhall Omega that is estimated to be costing the British  taxpayers more that £50.000 per year.  She also has the use of a Ford  Galaxy people carrier as backup.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>Is this report not accurate Mr Blair?&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>You do not mention anything about my request to meet with you to discuss  your reasons and decision to invade Iraq, and the war I believe to have been  illegal.  I am realistic enough to understand your reluctance to agree to  such a discussion, as several other families have been making the same request  for up to 3 years with no response from you. I have therefore taken the  opportunity to write an open letter to you and the general public, on The  Military Families Against the War site, with the questions I feel need to be  asked.  I am sure history will indeed reveal the truth as to the deceit,  deliberate omissions and liberal considerations given to the facts during the  period you decided to invade Iraq. I would have however thought your conscience  as a practising Christian, would have been troubling you considerable.   &lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>I would finally like to comment briefly on the present situation in Iraq,  which is verging on civil war.  With around 1000 Iraqi civilians dying each  month and more British troops losing their lives and many injuries, both  physical and emotional, I would question what we are still doing there?  We  are not able to resolve the situation, and the troops should be pulled out   immediately, and let the people of Iraq decide their own future.  It is my  understanding that Britain has been recently asked to leave Iraq by the leader  it helped to install.  The British public are now of the opinion the troops  should come home.  &lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>Do you listen to anyone other than George Bush?&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>I await your response with interest&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>Pauline Hickey&lt;/div>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/08/my-response-to-tony-blairs-defensive.html</link><author>Pauline Hickey</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/115525002972342103</guid><pubDate>Thu, 10 Aug 2006 22:43:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-08-10T22:47:09.736Z</atom:updated><title>From Tony Blair to Pauline Hickey 31/5/06</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.mfaw.org.uk/images/blair-hickey-all.jpg">&lt;img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px;" src="http://www.mfaw.org.uk/images/blair-hickey-all.jpg" alt="" border="0" />&lt;/a>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/08/from-tony-blair-to-pauline-hickey.html</link><author>AC</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/114944739226529830</guid><pubDate>Sun, 04 Jun 2006 18:56:32 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-07-31T07:57:23.340Z</atom:updated><title> I am the mother of a serving soldier, both myself...</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;DIV>&lt;FONT face=Arial size=2>&lt;FONT size=2> &lt;P>I am the mother of a serving soldier, both myself and my husband are  extremely proud of our son, his chosen career and also the British Forces as a  whole. What I am ASHAMED of is our government and mainly thePM Mr Blair. They  allowed us to go into this "war" on the back of a bunch of trumped up lies,  everyone now knows they were lies. So know we are there "to help build a  democracy". Well while Mr Blair and the rest play at that!!. What has happened  to OUR DEMOCRACY in any poll done recently the British people want our troops  out now 2/3rds in favour. But no Blair will not lose face or go against buddy  Bush, he would rather lose a few soldiers here and there. He SUNS himself our  SONS die !!!!. How can we expect the Iraqi people to understand democracy when  our government doesn't understand it. So far I have been lucky my son returned  safe and sound from his tour of Iraq, he would willingly go back, he is a good  soldier he will do what his commanders order him to. But Blair is ruining what  most British people are proud of, our Army is admired and respected around the  world, but they are being overstretched and they are illegally invading another  country. How will people respect us after this fiasco? . The cost is about 2.8  million a week, what difference that money could make to schools, hospitals and  pensions. Our defence budget has been cut from 34.6 billion in 1999/2000 to 31  billion in 2004/2005, yet we are stretched further than ever with Iraq and now  Afganistan!!!!. It is our forces that will suffer and more will leave because of  this we are 29,000 troops less now than when labour came to power. Mr Blair  these are human beings not TOY SOLDIERS for you to play your own private war  with, that is why they are leaving in their hundreds, they will DEFEND us and  our country but will not be used by an egotistical lunatic. SHAME on you and  this government bring the troops home now, admit we are making things worse for  the normal people of Iraq, their New PM Mr Maliki has asked for us to be OUT of  16 of the 18 provinces (that will mean all British held places). BUT Mr Blair  has said "The Iraqis will not be remotely ready...????..Mr Blair you cannot run  your OWN country, please let the man run HIS OWN.....&lt;/FONT>&lt;FONT  face="Times New Roman">&lt;FONT size=3> &lt;/FONT>&lt;/P>&lt;/FONT>&lt;FONT size=2> &lt;P>A mother of a serving soldier&lt;/P>&lt;/FONT>&lt;/FONT>&lt;/DIV>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/06/i-am-mother-of-serving-soldier-both.html</link><author>A Mother</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/115337858087748344</guid><pubDate>Thu, 20 Jul 2006 06:56:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-07-20T14:41:09.436Z</atom:updated><title>Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Manchester</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;span id="role_document" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial;font-size:100%;"  > &lt;div>   &lt;span id="rolx_document" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial;" >&lt;span id="rolx_document" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Arial;" > &lt;div>I was saddened to hear another British soldier had been killed in  Basra over the weekend.  The media coverage was minimal, to say the  least.  I would like to send my condolences to Corporal John Johnston  Cosby's family, and my thoughts are with you... &lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>I have just seen the recordings of Bush and Blair's exchange of grunts (it  is hard to describe as conversation, as between them they are unable to string a  sentence together) This truly illustrates for everyone to see, how Blair is  in awe and eager to please Bush, and hangs on to every his every  word.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div> It was also very interesting to watch the clip, as both  were initially unaware of being recorded, and their guards were down. This is  the real Tony Blair and George Bush relationship, organ grinder and monkey,  springs to my mind... How dare Blair suggest putting a boundary force in  place between the warring factions, It beggars belief that these two men,  who have caused untold crimes against humanity suggest endangering more lives,  whilst they sit and watch from the comfort of their armchairs.&lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div> Have these two men not done enough damage to the world already, by  creating carnage and devastation in Iraq and Afghanistan, with thousand  upon thousand of lost lives?  If the situation in the middle east is to be  resolved, these two war mongers need to be kept well away. Their ego trips'  fighting terrorism' or 'regime change' depending on who's version is to be  believed, has cost the world dearly, and people who have lost loved one's lives  will never be the same again.  &lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div> &lt;/div> &lt;div>The forthcoming demo in Manchester on September 23rd, will give the  British public the opportunity to say enough is enough, the troops in Iraq  and Afghanistan should be brought home without delay and further loss of  lives. &lt;/div>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/div>&lt;/span>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/07/iraq-afghanistan-lebanon-and.html</link><author>Pauline Hickey</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/115290380426779005</guid><pubDate>Fri, 14 Jul 2006 19:01:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-07-14T19:03:57.996Z</atom:updated><title>Message to the Troops in Iraq From Rose Gentle</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;embed style="width:400px; height:326px;" id="VideoPlayback" align="middle" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=-1723651214872609257" quality="best" bgcolor="#ffffff" scale="noScale" salign="TL"  FlashVars="playerMode=embedded"> &lt;/embed>&lt;br />&lt;br />This is a message to the troops serving in Iraq from Rose Gentle, who lost her son Gordon in Basra, July 2004.&lt;br />In it she talks of her campaign for better equipment for the protection of troops and for British forces to be withdrawn from Iraq.&lt;br />Rose makes an appeal for serving soldiers and their families to sign our Troops Out petition and to get in contact with her directly via her mobile number:07951 767 530 or email: rose@mfaw.org.uk&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/07/message-to-troops-in-iraq-from-rose.html</link><author>AC</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/115187406441618728</guid><pubDate>Sun, 02 Jul 2006 21:01:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-07-03T16:05:22.230Z</atom:updated><title>Afghanistan too</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">Yet another letter to TB&lt;br />&lt;br />In the space of a week 4 more British soldiers are dead serving in countries where we have no genuine reason to be. Even more lives left devastated.&lt;br />Where is your conscience? Indeed, do you even have one?&lt;br />&lt;br />I have been lobbying for the withdrawal of our troops from Iraq, an occupation based on lies &amp; deceit, I am now including Afghanistan. Are you aware of the military history of Afghanistan? I mentioned in a previous e-mail, that country has never been beaten, what makes you believe you can succeed where others have failed, &amp;amp; not just in recent history either?&lt;br />&lt;br />I am almost of retirement age Mr Blair, have never in my life felt the need to stand up &amp; speak out, however the sheer arrogance you display in attempting to justify the murder, yes murder, of members of our armed forces has totally&lt;br />changed my way of thinking. My hope is that one day, should I live long enough, I shall see you impeached.&lt;br />&lt;br />Everyone makes mistakes, not everyone causes deaths through their mistakes, yours have caused misery &amp;amp; despair beyond belief.&lt;br />&lt;br />Yet again, I ask you. Bring our troops home.&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/07/afghanistan-too.html</link><author>A Mother</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/115027676067940719</guid><pubDate>Wed, 14 Jun 2006 09:19:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-06-14T16:51:30.233Z</atom:updated><title>Letter to Tony Blair</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;div class="Section1">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>13&lt;sup>th&lt;/sup> June 2006 &lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">Rt Hon Tony Blair&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">House of Commons&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style="font-size:130%;">&lt;st1:city st="on">&lt;st1:place st="on">&lt;span style="font-family:Bookman Old Style;">&lt;span style="">London&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/st1:place>&lt;/st1:city>&lt;/span>&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">SW1A 0AA&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;">Dear Mr Blair&lt;/span>&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">My son is a professional soldier who is extremely proud of his regiment, never talks about his work and never complains.  When he took his oath of allegiance to the Queen it was to serve his country not to serve you or George Bush in the current &lt;st1:country-region st="on">&lt;st1:place st="on">Iraq&lt;/st1:place>&lt;/st1:country-region> war.  I believe this war to be illegal, immoral and unjust.&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style="font-size:130%;">&lt;b>&lt;span style="font-family:Bookman Old Style;">&lt;span style="">Illegal&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/b>&lt;/span>&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style=""> &lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">because you entered our country into this fiasco on supposition and have &lt;u>never&lt;/u> produced any evidence.&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style="font-size:130%;">&lt;b>&lt;span style="font-family:Bookman Old Style;">&lt;span style="">Immoral &lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/b>&lt;/span>&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">due to the many thousands of lives that have been lost and people injured.&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style="font-size:130%;">&lt;b>&lt;span style="font-family:Bookman Old Style;">&lt;span style="">Unjust &lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/b>&lt;/span>&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">for those of our service personnel who have been consistently let down and the Iraqi people who are now much worse off than before the occupation.&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">You stated that God had told you to take us into this war.  Well, I also am a Christian but I do not believe my God is the same as yours!  To promote peace on one hand and invade and cause chaos and mayhem on the other is not in any of the teachings I have been taught.&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">Apart from those in the media who have been opposed to this war and have reported the truth there appears to be a ‘blackout’ when it comes to news coverage, whether on the television or in the newspapers.  The little that has been reported has been biased towards Government ‘spin’ and has not told the whole truth.  For the past 3 years I heard practically nothing about what was happening in &lt;st1:country-region st="on">&lt;st1:place st="on">Iraq&lt;/st1:place>&lt;/st1:country-region> until my son informed me he was going and I delved further.  Why is it that living in a democracy I am not able to see/hear the truth of your actions?  This same democracy that you keep telling us you are trying to instil into a country that many of its people know nothing of!&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">Where have the billions of pounds come from to fund this war?  Why have you and George Bush spent so much money on removing a dictator with no recompense?  No country invades another just to rid it of a dictator.  The oil and uranium in &lt;st1:country-region st="on">Iraq&lt;/st1:country-region> belongs to its people – not to &lt;st1:country-region st="on">&lt;st1:place st="on">UK&lt;/st1:place>&lt;/st1:country-region> and US companies.  Its skilled workers should be employed to rebuild their country – not stand by and watch foreign contractors make a vast amount of money out of their misery!&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">I work in my local hospital and the Trust which covers 3 sites has announced job losses of 720 and the possible closure of my department.  Whilst spending billions of pounds of tax payers money on this illegal war services such as the NHS and schools are suffering.  When will this stop?&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">I believe the British forces are the best in the world and am extremely proud of them, as I am of my son.  They are often working in temperatures which rise above 50°C and in dangerous situations.  I feel you have betrayed their trust by forcing them into a situation which was denounced by the United Nations.  As a member of the UN is &lt;st1:country-region st="on">&lt;st1:place st="on">Britain&lt;/st1:place>&lt;/st1:country-region> not supposed to act in agreement with their decisions, therefore, keeping the peace in this troubled world?  You obviously thought better and ignored their advice.  Consequently, many thousands of lives have been lost and many innocent and hardworking forces personnel have died needlessly.  The cutbacks within the MOD have cost the lives of young men and women and still the necessary safety equipment has not been supplied. &lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">You keep reiterating you are prepared to leave the troops in &lt;st1:country-region st="on">&lt;st1:place st="on">Iraq&lt;/st1:place>&lt;/st1:country-region> until there is stability there.  The Iraqi people and even their own Prime Minister want our troops out.  I urge you to withdraw our troops immediately with a deadline for their total removal.&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">You will never be remembered as a peacemaker Mr Blair, you have too much blood on your hands!  To think that I even voted for the person who has sent my son into an illegal war makes me angry and appalled.&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">Yours sincerely&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">&lt;o:p> &lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">Lynda Holmes&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;p class="MsoNormal">&lt;span style=";font-family:Bookman Old Style;font-size:130%;"  >&lt;span style="">A proud MFAW mom&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/span>&lt;/span>&lt;/p>  &lt;/div>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/06/letter-to-tony-blair.html</link><author>Lynda Holmes</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/114946777398351114</guid><pubDate>Mon, 05 Jun 2006 00:36:13 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-06-05T00:36:14.040Z</atom:updated><title>What 10 Downing street THINKS!!!</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;DIV>&lt;FONT face=Arial size=2>I note with appalling interest the comments from No  10 about the article from Mums have had enough!!&amp;nbsp; &lt;/FONT>&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV>&lt;FONT face=Arial size=2>"They respect the right of individuals to express  their views, but the GOVERNMENT believes what's IMPORTANT IS THE WISHES of the  IRAQI PEOPLE,&amp;nbsp; Can somebody please tell&amp;nbsp;me &amp;nbsp;which country does  Blair and his Cronies think they&amp;nbsp;are running Britain or Iraq....... this  government and Blair should think what is IMPORTANT is the WISHES of the BRITISH  PEOPLE who he is supposed to be SERVING, not the Iraqi people, who incidentally  also WISHES he would MIND HIS OWN BUSINESS and like their PM has said "leave  Iraq".&lt;/FONT>&lt;/DIV>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/06/what-10-downing-street-thinks.html</link><author>A Mother</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/114888739838979492</guid><pubDate>Mon, 29 May 2006 07:23:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-05-29T10:22:45.750Z</atom:updated><title>Clause 8 &amp; more</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;p class="mobile-post">Copy of letter sent to No 10&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">I cannot believe that ministers are voting to hand out life sentences to deserters. No, I do not condone desertion, there are however already measures in place to deal with that, but a life sentence? Do you really think that our servicemen &amp; women should placed in the same category as murderers, rapists, paedophiles &amp;amp; the like? These people enlisted to protect their country &amp; you would treat them thus?&lt;br />Has it not occured to any of you that many of the people are probably suffering from some kind of mental breakdown, caused by YOUR decision to send them into conflicts where we have no right to be? i.e. Iraq &amp;amp; Afghanistan. Come down off that cloud Mr Blair &amp; start looking more closely at the reasons why desertion levels are escalating.&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">Will the recruitment centres be advising potential personnel that this could happen to them? I very much doubt it.&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">Iraq should never have happened, you know that, practically the whole world knows that, yet you still persist with 'we shall stay until the job's done'. Well, I don't see YOU out there doing 'the job'. Maybe you should spend a month out there living as they do &amp;amp; on occasions having to sleep under their beds wearing a flak jacket &amp; helmet, maybe you would have second thoughts, &amp;amp; now I read that some of the tours are to be extended because of the lack of transport. How fair is that to those people &amp; their families?&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">Have you no idea of the anguish you have caused so many people, 111 British dead, thousands of Americans &amp;amp; even more innocent Iraqis, not to mention the injured &amp; those that have committed suicide (I suppose you are aware of the latter?) For what?&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">Maybe you would care to tell me why our people are in Afghanistan too? We don't belong there, the terrain alone will beat us (look at history), how long before the coffins starting arriving from there too?&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">Get off that ego trip Mr Blair, face facts &amp;amp; get out now.&lt;/p>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/05/clause-8-more.html</link><author>A Mother</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/114803186455160274</guid><pubDate>Fri, 19 May 2006 09:42:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-05-20T22:41:43.560Z</atom:updated><title>An Open Letter to Tony Blair</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;">Prime Minister&lt;/span>&lt;br />&lt;br />You will probably not remember me, I wrote to you several months ago requesting a meeting to discuss your reasons for invading Iraq. Since then I have heard nothing so I presume you are not willing to meet with me to explain your decision to invade Iraq in a war I believe to be illegal. I do have a personal interest in that my son paid the ultimate price.&lt;br />&lt;br />The truth is out there for all to see, I have found what I believe to be extremely good evidence on the internet. Take a look at David Morrison's website, and books by Phillippe Sands and Mark Danner which are great sources of information. The growing evidence against you Mr. Blair is freely available in the form of minutes of meetings, memoranda and direct quotes you have made. I am surprised you are not facing serious charges as everyone seems to be very aware of the allegations made against you and you have not responded - perhaps you hope they will disappear.&lt;br />&lt;br />I personally feel you have a moral duty as a renowned committed christian who would presumably have a conscience, and want to meet the families of fallen soldiers to explain your stance. Many thousands of Iraqi civilians and 111 coalition troops have lost their lives during the occupation of Iraq. This is as well as the undisclosed physically injured (not even counted by the MOD, unless life threatening) and now increasingly emerging cases of post traumatic stress.&lt;br />&lt;br />I would like to ask you:&lt;br />&lt;br />* On 14 March 2002, Sir David Manning, your Foreign Policy Adviser wrote you a memo, in which he advised you that he had told Condoleeza Rice (who was then President Bush's National Security Adviser) that 'you would not budge in your support for regime change' in Iraq. Like President Bush you were committed to 'regime change'. Is that not true?&lt;br />If not, you would surely have corrected Sir David Manning's statement, or dismissed him if he was not relaying your wishes or intentions.&lt;br />&lt;br />During the following 10 months, you said repeatedly that your policy objective was the disarmament of Iraq of it's 'weapons of mass destruction'. For example, on 25 February 2003, you told the House of Commons that Saddam Hussein could stay in power, if Iraq disarmed in accordance with the Security Councils resolutions:&lt;br />&lt;br />   'I detest his regime -  I hope most people do, but even now, he could save it by     complying with the UN's demand. Even now, we are prepared to go the extra     step to achieve disarmament peacefully'.&lt;br />&lt;br />This statement was untrue, as you has already agreed with President Bush to invade Iraq and overthrow the regime, come what may. This is testified to by memos  by David Manning and Christopher Meyer from March 2002, these documents have been in the public domain since September 2004.&lt;br />&lt;br />During a meeting to discuss Iraq on 23 July 2002, you said:&lt;br />&lt;br />   '--- it would make a big difference politically and legally if Saddam refused to     allow the UN inspectors. If the political context were right, people would     support regime change'.&lt;br />&lt;br />You must have been hoping Saddam Hussein would not allow weapons inspectors into Iraq again. Since the disarmament of Iraq by non-military means required UN inspectors to be on the ground in Iraq, I would suggest this would not suit your purpose of regime change.&lt;br />&lt;br />This was irrespective of what Hans Blix found, or whether the UN Security Council did adopt a further resolution. President Bush is on record telling you, Mr. Blair that if there was no other UN resolution, military action would follow anyway. The date pencilled in was 10 March for the bombing to begin. You told Mr.Bush you were solidly with the President and ready to do what it took to disarm Saddam.&lt;br />&lt;br />'Weapons of Mass Destruction'&lt;br />Saddam Hussein's son in law Hussein Kamal, told UN inspectors in August 1995 that all Iraq's weapons and weapons related material had been destroyed in 1991(which has since been confirmed by the Iraq Survey Group) On 18 March 2003, you told the House of Commons about other disclosures by Hussein Kamal, but not this crucial one.&lt;br />Why not?&lt;br />During the same speech, you gave a list of weapons and weapon related material that UN inspectors deemed unaccounted for  when they withdrew from Iraq in 1998. You failed to enlighten the House of Commons the fact that being unaccounted for didn't mean they still were in existence. Why not?&lt;br />&lt;br />You also failed to tell the House of Commons that UNMOVIC's  opinion that of any Sarin, VX or botulinum toxin would no longer be effective as warfare agents, even if they had been in existence. I would suggest you again failed to relay this vital information to the House of Commons. (I would suggest looking at the UNMOVIC document, Unresolved Disarmament Issues)&lt;br />&lt;br />The Intelligence Services told you before the invasion of Iraq, that it was their opinion, that the threat from al Qaida and associated groups would be heightened by military action against Iraq. Again why did you not tell Parliament about this Mr. Blair? The subsequent London bombings have confirmed this, and more totally unnecessary deaths.&lt;br />&lt;br />Do you feel responsible for this also?&lt;br />&lt;br />* I would also question, why you misled us about what M. Jacques Chirac had indicated and his feelings about the invasion of Iraq. Documentation would confirm he wanted a further period of inspection to continue before considering force against Iraq.&lt;br />&lt;br />Prime Minister, it appears to me you had your own agenda for the invasion of Iraq. Since then you have continued to mislead and deny any misdemeanors, I am sure history will indeed reveal the truth, but it would have at least shown you possessed compassion if you agreed to meet with the families who have lost loved ones in Iraq.&lt;br />&lt;br />&lt;span style="font-weight: bold;">Pauline Hickey&lt;/span>&lt;br />&lt;br />Mother of Sgt, Christian Hickey 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards died 18/10/05 in this unjust war.&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/05/open-letter-to-tony-blair.html</link><author>Pauline Hickey</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/114790679899987752</guid><pubDate>Wed, 17 May 2006 22:59:59 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-05-17T22:59:59.050Z</atom:updated><title>Sign the PETITION.. send letters</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;DIV>&lt;FONT face=Arial size=2>&lt;FONT size=2> &lt;P>COPY OF LETTER SENT TO TELEGRAPH,will alter and send to all nationals.&lt;/P> &lt;P>Please read this, please do something about it, Why are the media sitting on  the fence over Iraq????. There are people who are out there dying, Why because  Blair is a dictator who will not yield to the will of the people, every poll  done lately shows 2 to 1 in favour of bringing the troops home, Every journalist  knows we are there illegally yet not ONE newspaper is willing to defend our  troops (what happened to tie a yellow ribbon etc). Now our troops face life  imprisonment if they cannot face the trauma of returning to Iraq or going to  Iraq, some of these are just 18 yrs old, ok they joined up, but did YOU really  know what you were doing at 18. Please help I have written to you as the  Telegraph is my paper. This is important, it doesn't involve Mr prescott's  nether regions, it does not involve celebrity???? who cares!!. This involves  real human beings, decent human beings, ones we all shout " are the best in the  world". They have been deserted by YOU the media you pop a bit in when a few of  them die, but then it's back to drivel. Please do something great start a  mission to "BRING OUR TROOPS HOME" I promise you YOUR country will back you, get  posters to put in windows, get car bumper stickers going (like in theUSA), get  polls running. Make a crusade. &lt;/P> &lt;P>yours sincerely &lt;/P> &lt;P>A MOTHER&lt;/P>&lt;/FONT>&lt;FONT size=2> &lt;P>please check out &lt;/FONT>&lt;A href="http://www.mfaw.org.uk/">&lt;U>&lt;FONT  color=#0000ff size=2>www.mfaw.org.uk&lt;/U>&lt;/FONT>&lt;/A>&lt;FONT size=2>&amp;nbsp;  &lt;/FONT>&lt;/P> &lt;P>&lt;FONT size=2>also bumper stickers like on &lt;A  href="http://www.mfso.org">www.mfso.org&lt;/A> &lt;/P> &lt;P>also there is another site Families of UK Forces in Iraq, but you would have  to ask to view site.&lt;/FONT>&lt;FONT face="Times New Roman">&lt;FONT size=3>  &lt;/FONT>&lt;/P>&lt;/FONT>&lt;FONT size=2> &lt;P>The stories you read on these sites are but a few, I can bring many  more..&lt;/P>&lt;/FONT>&lt;/FONT>&lt;/DIV>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/05/sign-petition-send-letters.html</link><author>A Mother</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/114780404796840508</guid><pubDate>Tue, 16 May 2006 18:27:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-05-16T18:53:09.950Z</atom:updated><title>Re: Politicos and Journalists - S(cum)alt of the Earth</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;div style='background-color:'>&lt;BR> &lt;P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt">&lt;FONT size=3>&lt;FONT face="Times New Roman">Well said.&lt;SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">&amp;nbsp; &lt;/SPAN>I wouldn't mind suggesting they spend a week with any of the families of soldiers out there. See how hard we have to work also.&lt;SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">&amp;nbsp; &lt;/SPAN>Most of the time it's hard enough just trying to raise a smile!!!&lt;?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />&lt;o:p>&lt;/o:p>&lt;/FONT>&lt;/FONT>&lt;/P>&lt;BR>&lt;BR> &lt;DIV> &lt;DIV class=RTE>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV class=RTE>&lt;A href="http://groups.msn.com/FamiliesofUKForcesinIraq">&lt;/A>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV class=RTE>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV> &lt;DIV class=RTE>&lt;A href="http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/index.html">&lt;/A>&amp;nbsp;&lt;/DIV>&lt;/DIV>&lt;/div>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/05/re-politicos-and-journalists-scumalt.html</link><author>A Partner</author></item><item><guid isPermaLink='false'>http://www.blogger.com/feeds/27436006/posts/full/114779075172932688</guid><pubDate>Tue, 16 May 2006 14:45:00 +0000</pubDate><atom:updated>2006-05-16T15:33:35.850Z</atom:updated><title>Politicos and Journalists - S(cum)alt of the Earth?</title><description>&lt;div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">&lt;p class="mobile-post">Ref Comments from 'esteemed journo' B O Neill and our latest Def Sec.  If you pair could at the very least take the time to spend some 'hard time' where it matters rather than pontificating from your ivory towers you would understand the depth of feeling in this country against Tony's war!&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">How come we have to suffer a constant stream of drivel from politicians who have not spent five minutes in uniform and keep telling us how good we have it and 'what a good job we do'?  Oh, and by the way, I have never served the country where I have been fighting, only the country I have been fighting for!&lt;/p>&lt;p class="mobile-post">In Iraq the journos constantly 'larged it' when we were struggling to get from one day to the next.  How can you fight a war from the Kuwait Hilton lads?&lt;/p>&lt;/div></description><link>http://www.mfaw.org.uk/hickey/2006/05/politicos-and-journalists-scumalt-of.html</link><author>A Veteran</author></item></channel></rss>