h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

One of the first things I was told when I started work on h2g2 was absolutely NOT to get anyone's name wrong as it really pisses people off. And there's no excuse cos it's on each post. Gordon Brown must have had it written down for him, otherwise how would he know who is is writing about. Who wrote it for him, and did they get it wrong?

Well, Gordon Brown does have handwriting that's not very good, but why does he need to write in a felt-tip? Is he 13? It would look better in proper pen, and really, no, I don't think there's any excuse to get the name wrong in such circumstances, speaking it or writing it.

Poor handwriting I don't think we can throw that at him. It shows he took the time to write it, just sad he couldn't take the time to think about what he was writing.

Beatrice.

The woman is a joke. I have nothing but contempt for her regardless of the tragedy she has suffered. To exploit her sons death in such a shameless manner is a disgrace, and one that she will regret in years to come.

I have my own personal opinions about the mother. I am keeping them to myself on the grounds that she has lost a child and grief can affect people in many different ways. We have no idea what is going on in her life or why she's reacted the way she has. I feel sorry for gb, he has no way to come back on this short of bad-mouthing her which he is obviously making every attempt not to do. I would have called her various things by now if it were me, probably inappropriately, but it wouldn't be entirely unjustified.

The politics of this and any war and how the war is managed are a seperate subject. Unfortunately emotional attacks like this do nothing to further a cause better served by other means.

I'm pretty sure there must be more important things happening, right now, and in the past few days world-wide, things which are, whatever way one might choose to look at them, more important than a hand written letter, and a big pile of fuss kicked up by a forth rate newspaper and a for whatever reason very emotionally charged mother.
Whatever the pros and cons of the minuti regarding this letter, really for the amount of coverage its managed to gather up does seem utterly disproportinate to the actual thing itself..
Someone made a cock-up. what with the way such things then turn into something entirely else once they're in the media circus, I guess we'll never really* know who cocked this up; Was he given incorrect information? Did he just screw up and make a genuine mistake? It doesn't matter too much either way really does it?- Someones name has been gotten wrong in a letter, maybe also in a public speech .. That really is it isn't it, or did I entirely miss something? I think the PM has made some far bigger cock ups in the past... Yet this one can be blown utterly out of context and proportion very easily by a newspaper who... well err ya know anyone who chooses to really make their judgements on what the Sun says...
It is a bit more concerneing how a political system which seems to be mostly driven by the media and how it can come accross in it, can't even figure out some basic editorial aspects of their public and private communications... Either this passed through the hands of a lot* of people with no one noticing the cock-up, or it didn't... in the latter case err I'd have thought it oughta be passing through a few hands to check such a communication before it got released to the recipiant... I dunno... you just can't get the quality of administive staff these days

I also feel sorry for Gordon Brown as this wasn't his war. Let's face it if him and Obama had been in charge in 2001 we may not have gone into Afghanistan in the first place.

Course Gordon didn't do much to stop Tony Blair, so I guess he isn't entirely blameless.

Also he's the one person at the moment who could just pull the plug on the entire thing, at least as far as our armed forces go with their envolvment on an entirely futile war...

Although from what I've heard the army don't actually think it's a good idea to pull out. They just want the government to back them with equipment.

A full withdrawal could leave Afghanistan in a worse state than it was when we came in. I don't know the full ins and outs but as far as I can tell Gordon Brown is stuck between a rock and a hard place with this one. This is why war should always be the last resort and not the first as Bush and Blair seemed to think.

Our remaining there won't do anything much in the short or medium or long term to alter things, so yes it'll probably then end up in a worse state when we do pull out than it was before; That will happen at whatever stage we pull out...

Just to inject some more facts into this: Mrs Janes had already received letters from Bob Ainsworth, the Armed Forces minister; an unspecified member of the royal family; and her son's commanding officer. None of these appears to have enraged her, only the PM's letter.

RF

That's true. I guess it's a case of pull out or get the rest of Europe to pull their weight, which I can't see happening. It was and is a damn stupid war.

But then, aren't they all?

Of course, if The Sun had got his name wrong, or accused him of being a pederast or something, the apology would be in 8pt at the bottom of page 17.

Between this and Fox News I can't imagine how much more invidious Murdoch's presence in politics could be. Did he write off hundreds of millions of third world debt? No.

Firstly, I can't stand Gordon Brown as a politician in general...however, he is totally blind in one eye and only has 30%-50% vision in the other eye. He uses a felt tip pen because that's what he can see.

Hindsight would say they should have had someone checking his writing...but who would be the first person to suggest that should happen? Oh, there they are walking down the road with their P45.

Also, the mother said she was surprised and shocked about Brown calling her and she didn't expect it...even though she seems to have had the equipment to make a clear recording of the conversation.

I have nothing to say about the Sun.

The issues about equipment and helicopters has been going since the at least the first Gulf war...having to buy your own equipment is a joke...

I'm not sure whether this will affect Brown or Labour overall...one might assume people will see through the whole thing and see it's Rupert Murdoch carry on his campaign against the Labour party.

>> None of these appears to have enraged her, only the PM's letter.

I confess, if Blair wrote to me expressing sincere condolences at the death of .... etc... I would use the page to wipe my arse and take care te eat something spectacularly unpleasant first. So it's possible her response is personal and she blames Brown specifically in some way.

The news item I read mentioned her reaction to the inquest - I wonder if the other letters preceded it and this one came after it? Complete speculation on my part of course. But there is a difference between learning that someone you loved could have lived but died, and learning that everything possible was done and their death was avoidable.

I feel desperately sorry for her with that extra burden to bear.

Recording the phonecall smells to me of the sewers of Fleet St.

... and learning that everything possible was done and their death was UNavoidable....

UNavodable

Preingview!

*cough* certain amount of irony there, Mrs Zen!



Being horribly cynical here (and I feel rather bad about it but hey...it'll get some discussion going) but the mother's/chap's family seems to have been a 'militarily-involved' family for sometime...i.e. it was a career people in the family had gone into for a while...why would you join a 'company' that you know has not given it's employees the correct personal protective equipment and back up if something goes wrong for decades? Yes, the mother complains about lack of equipment and helicopters...but didn't they know that before he joined the forces?

If it's simply because that's what the family has always done...it's a 'good' career (if you don't get killed)...then go into a different industry...if it's because, due to education and general local social 'exclusion' and job chances...then it multiplies the issues around the son's death.

>I wonder if the other letters preceded it and this one came after it? < Mrs Zen

I wonder if the Sun were just far less interested in the other letters.

Mrs. Zen, I drew a different conclusion from you about why the other letters didn't enrage her, but the PM's did: that, possibly, they spelled her and her son's names correctly, and didn't look like they'd been dashed off in 30 seconds.

But I'm only speculating here.

RF

Gordon Brown's letter, from today's paper:

"It is with the greatest of sadness that I write to offer you and your family my personal condolences on the death of your son, Jamie. i know from colleagues that Jamie was a brave, selfless and wholly professional soldier who was held in the highest esteem and regard by all who worked with him. I know that words can offer little comfort at a time of grief..."


Seems like a kind gesture to me.

Good of you to correct Gordon's spelling for him, kzwg. If only someone had before he sent the original.

RF

Brown has what, 30% sight in one eye. Is it not inevitable mistakes happen. That said does anyone expect the Sun to behave in any other way?