BS: Man in the street

Subject: Man in the street
From: kendall
Date: 05 Sep 02 - 06:59 PM

I just saw on the NBC news a reporter talking with people about England backing the USA against Iraq. What made it more interesting was, it was in Aldershot, Morticia's home town. The pub they showed was one of the places she and Gomez took me for a "bit of a piss up."

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: kendall
Date: 05 Sep 02 - 07:29 PM

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Amos
Date: 05 Sep 02 - 07:41 PM

Wel what did they have to say there?

A

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: kendall
Date: 05 Sep 02 - 09:23 PM

One soldier said "hell no", another said , "yes I'll fight for my county", and a civilian woman said "We should stand with America all the way."

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Bobert
Date: 05 Sep 02 - 10:10 PM

Yeah, poor ol' Tony Blair. Bush called him and told him to start beating the drum or else he'd find his butt off the White House Christmas card list. Talk about some strong armed tactics....

Bobert

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Ebbie
Date: 06 Sep 02 - 12:57 AM

Did you see that photo of Blair with his thumbs hooked into his pants? Quick Draw McGraw, he is. Purdy soon he'll be talkin' about gettin' ol' Osama dead er alive...

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: smallpiper
Date: 06 Sep 02 - 06:06 AM

Would you prefer it if we had the iron witch instead of Blair? We wouldn't still be talking about it, no Iraq would be a smoking pile of ash by now. and exactly how would that be a good thing?

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: GUEST,Davetnova
Date: 06 Sep 02 - 07:31 AM

Ebbie I would like to know if that was John Prescott's jacket he was wearing in that picture. It appeared to be for somebody with twice the shoulder width.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: kendall
Date: 06 Sep 02 - 07:37 AM

Maybe Bush scared the s**t out of him.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: katlaughing
Date: 06 Sep 02 - 10:35 AM

I saw it, too, Kendall. I knew I knew a Mucatter in Aldreshot, but couldn't remember who, at the moment. Thanks!

I wouldn't prefer the iron witch, but I would prefer Blair showing some backbone and not fill in the shrub's dance card.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Willie-O
Date: 06 Sep 02 - 10:49 AM

Interesting that there seem to be Brits who apparently want to be Americans, just as there are such Canadians.

Are there lots of British people flying American flags from their cars and houses? A peculiar phenomenon which is still happening here in Canada, as if our own flag isn't patriotic enough on its own...

Iraq? don't go there. What happened to Scott Ritter (Saddam's toughest foe American/UN weapons inspector, a practicing Republican) anyway, since he denounced the whole new-invasion idea last month? Did Bush give him something to shut him up? Sorry, off topic.

Willie-O

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: kendall
Date: 06 Sep 02 - 09:52 PM

We fly Canadian flags as signs of welcome. Why shouldn't you fly our flag as a sign of support? Or, at least, sympathy.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: GUEST,Geordie
Date: 10 Sep 02 - 02:29 PM

This issue of what flag to fly is a bit dicey..I like to Canadian flags in Canada, British Flags in Britain, American Flags in America. We should not fly flags which indicate a support we perhaps do not feel...as for sympathy..many American flags were flown last September, as tey should have been.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: GUEST,Peter from Essex
Date: 10 Sep 02 - 04:22 PM

For the sake of those without a knowledge of English geography it should be mentioned that Aldershot is a major garison town. Not quite the place to find the typical "man in the street"

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: smallpiper
Date: 11 Sep 02 - 04:39 AM

Too true the man in the street in Aldershot will either be an undercover SAS man, an army occifer or a retired army occifer. It is where we brits train all our army occifers. So typical views there I think!

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: ard mhacha
Date: 11 Sep 02 - 05:28 AM

Aldershit now that`s what I call Yankee Democracy, why didn`t NBC go to any town in Ireland and the two B`s would get their answer. I cannot believe that this man doing a good impersonation of a Chimp even came close to being elected President, his oul Da and the rest of the US secret service fiddled him in. Ard Mhacha.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Mr Happy
Date: 11 Sep 02 - 06:37 AM

i saw a 'man in the street'poll yesterday on granada tv[nw uk]on the iraq thing. majority of those asked were dead against it.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Teribus
Date: 11 Sep 02 - 09:45 AM

As Kendall says in his third posting, those interviewed were two soldiers and one civilian woman. Guest Peter in Essex points out that Aldershot is a town where you are more than likely to meet army personnel off duty, not your typical man in the street. Maybe that is why NBC went there, maybe they wanted to guage the mood and get the opinions of those who would be most affected by any decision to strike at Iraq - they would be the ones to find themselves at the sharp end.

Smallpiper - SAS not based in Aldershot, British Army Officers are trained at Sandhurst not Aldershot. As to why you would think that their opinions (One; "Hell No", one; "I'll fight for my country" and one "We should stand with America all the way") are of little worth, probably stems from some kind of inverted snobbery on your part. I would have thought the opinion of any professional soldier, regardless what rank, with regard to this topic would be a bit more informed and reasoned than "your typical man in the street". Note what TB said at the TUC Congress in Blackpool regarding the UN, I repeat what I've said in another thread associated with the "impending" attack on Iraq - Without the active support of Saudi Arabia and Turkey, no attack can take place. In all the interviews and articles I've read that is the opinion of most of the senior military in the US, including "Stromin' Norman" - his buddy in the last ons Colin Powell certainly takes that view reading between the lines.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: RichM
Date: 11 Sep 02 - 09:09 PM

My father, a Canadian soldier, was stationed in Aldershot during WW2. Since September 11 last year my mother hung both Canadian and American flags from her apartment balcony.
She died last month. Now I am flying both her flags from my front balcony.
Why? because I am Canadian I fly the Canadian flag. As a gesture of support and solidarity I fly the American flag beside it. How long will I do it? I don't know. All I know is I'd rather have The US as next door neighbor rather than Russia, China, or Iraq.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: kendall
Date: 11 Sep 02 - 09:17 PM

That's nice to hear, Rich. Does that mean you have forgiven us for the invasion of Canada during the war of 1812?

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Amos
Date: 12 Sep 02 - 01:14 AM

Kendall: That's supposed to be top secret!...!!! Oh!! You said 1812? Oh, never mind. Heh! I thought you said 2012. Never mind. Quite right! 1812. Terrible that, eh?

A

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: smallpiper
Date: 12 Sep 02 - 04:27 AM

So I got my Geography wrong Teribus - like it matters! as for inverted snobbery - I think not. Having served in Her Majesty's armed forces (sea going branch) I know how well informed yer average squaddie is, where as you seem to think that they know everything.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Teribus
Date: 12 Sep 02 - 05:43 AM

Hi smallpiper - from your posting above we obviously worked for the same firm at one time, therefore as a former naval person, you unlike most typical men in the street, will know what the requirements are for carrier operations.

A strike against Iraq with the expressed goal of removing Saddam Hussein from power will require men on the ground. If you are going to send men ashore, they will require air support both strategic and tactical (again as an ex-serviceman you will know the finer differences in those terms, and their requirements, where your typical man in the street may not).

If the land based airfields used during Desert Storm are not available then certainly the tactical air support must be carrier based. Without the agreement and support of Saudi Arabia and Turkey, the options for where those troops can enter Iraq is basically limited to that country's coastline, again as someone with experience of naval operations you will be more conversant with what is required to carry-out an amphibious operation than the typical man in the street.

You will know that to carry-out this operation, we are talking about a large number of very large ships. If you were "in" during the days of the Beira Patrol, you will know how many ships it took for the Royal Navy to keep just two Frigates on the patrol line - your typical man in the street will not. Going back to the proposed operation and the ships that would be required for it. You will know from your own time in the navy that large ships need lots of sea room, you will also appreciate that that is one thing you do not have in the confined waters of the Arabian Gulf.

You will also have a greater understanding of the logistical problems that have to be tackled to supply those men, ships and aircraft, you will also understand that those logistical problems are magnified by the distance at which those resources must operate from a well equipped, secure base. Your typical man in the street may not.

In your posting above you say, quote, "So I got my Geography wrong Teribus - like it matters! ". One phrase you would no doubt have heard during the period you spent in the forces would have been "Attention to detail". You have obviously forgotten it - Of course it matters to be factual and accurate - and that applies to anything and everything in life!

You also come out with, quote, "I know how well informed yer average squaddie is, where as you seem to think that they know everything. " If you chose to spend your time in Navy as a mushroom - more fool you. Go back and read my posting - I did not state that they knew everything, what I did say was that I thought that, quote, "...the opinion of any professional soldier, regardless what rank, with regard to this topic would be a bit more informed and reasoned than "your typical man in the street". " - bit of a difference isn't there? Frankly, I credit those currently serving in our armed forces with as much, if not more "common dog" than you seem to do - especially in the light of their recent service (Falklands, Gulf War and Afghanistan) - don't try to tell me they that they don't know when they are being fed a load of bull.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: smallpiper
Date: 12 Sep 02 - 05:55 AM

Teribus - I really didn't think that you'd rise to the bait - Got you! :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: gnu
Date: 12 Sep 02 - 06:01 AM

Kendall !!!???... "... you have forgiven us for the invasion of Canada during the war of 1812?"

You know very well we never got the chance to forgive you because you didn't stay for tea. Of course, we are still waiting to be forgiven for sacking and burning the White House. Say, why don't we get together for tea and forgive each other... but we're keeping the White House tea service.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: Teribus
Date: 12 Sep 02 - 07:21 AM

Hi smallpiper - to quote my favourite version of Julius Caesers last words - TEE HEE BRUTUS - I consider myself well and truly had!!!

Cheers.

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: diesel
Date: 12 Sep 02 - 08:19 AM

I wonder, if Kendall and Gnu are going to have a tea party, would they have it in Boston ??

Diesel - who thinks it wrong to attack Iraq - unless the Govt's of UK/US know something they are afraid to tell us ?? - and it's unfortunate that it's exactly that which the public need to know in advance of giving freely of their support

Subject: RE: BS: Man in the street
From: smallpiper
Date: 12 Sep 02 - 11:44 AM

Teribus I've no doubt that you will get your revenge Cheers