Welcome to MY world

I watched the rugby this morning. The 5:30 am start was needed to erase the memory of our 'team' yesterday. I say 'team' but that is the least applicable description for them. I saw two matches this morning and the team work there was so clearly visible. The teams from South Africa, Australia and from New Zealand contained a range of skin pigmentation and my mind went back to Capetown in 1956. Our troopship sailed in on Christmas Eve; we were the first troopship to go round the Cape since the war time convoys. The dockside was awash with the good burgers who hoovered up the soldiers and whisked them away. I was ship's policeman so it was duty for me. I commented on the hospitality to a local police officer who informed me it was not all it seemed. Apartheid was still in force and the greeting crowd would only have taken those who matched their ethnicity. Integration seemed to have worked well for the three teams and I thought about the problems we have with mixing immigrants with home-born. It seems that there is racism in Australia as well as New Zealand and South Africa.When I looked further I found that all three countries had formal rules regarding who was allowed into the country
I wonder if our chaotic immigration 'controls' would benefit from such formal procedures.
OK - light relief now. I said I would seek out some blogs that might be included in mine. I suspect that poetry does not get casually Googled by those seeking to pass idle time. I have an interest in words and hunt about in poetry. So, http://newpoetries.blogspot.com/" try this. Last bit to tidy up. The title of the blog? Translates as "The cause of fear is ignorance"

I have been reading about the fall of Singapore. When I lived in Malaya I had heard much from old Colonial types about the Japanese occupation and I was interested in getting some of the truth out of the urban myths. The early chapters deal with the decisions that were taken with regards to the defence of the main harbour. Immediately, I was struck with the impression that I was reading a far more modern history.
The powers that be had convinced themselves that any attack would come from a sea-borne enemy. The hinterland of the Malayan jungle was deemed to be too difficult for Asian troops. These were assessed by our military experts as of low grade - even described as afraid of the dark. This showed total disregard for the performance of the Japanese army in recent confrontations. The Japanese had shown themselves capable of coordinating land, sea and air attacks. All this was ignored. Military HQ in Singapore decided to install very large artillery pieces to cover the sea approaches. Second thoughts were for a naval fleet to extend the reach of the defence. There was deemed to be no spare capability of RN vessels but Their Lordships were reassuring that they could deploy a few ships from the Indian fleet 'if any threat developed'. The nascent RAF took on board the idea of reach and made a case for air power where torpedo carrying aircraft would be a good defence.
Thus began inter-service rivalry. There were no facilities for a naval presence and no suitable airfields. Bibs and bobs of budgets were dug up and a start was made on docks and landing grounds. Then it was decided that there was a need for a chain of airfields from India to Singapore. More debate and chewing of military mustaches. The whole fiasco was set against a decision that there would be no attacks within a 10 year timescale. The whole exercise was a rehearsal for the recently undertaken Strategic Defence Review such as was undergone recently.

I have been wandering out in the outer space of the Internet looking for interesting stuff that has been overlooked. No No - not that. I used to keep statistics on this effort and was surprised at just how many hits were recorded. Sometimes, very respectable. Whilst many came, few were moved enough to comment or do anything to spread the word. Had I not looked at my meter, I would have thought that it was just time and energy wasting. However, as I only do it for my own amusement I am not concerned. There must be many two-finger pokers who agonise over their blog; content, style or illustration.
Way way back, I used to have a sort of supplement to my work - I called it The Guest Blog. Each of my efforts would have one blog chosen by me and reproduced in its entirety. That drew comments where the main oeuvre did not. I propose to reintroduce this idea but with just a link and to draw attention to two or three each time I do something. Criteria for selection is very open - it has to impress me for some reason is what it might boil down to.
I will wander off into the 'net milky way and tee a few up. So - watch this space.

I have been following the Dykes Farm story. Sad life I know but some 12 years ago we had a smaller version just the other side of my fence when I lived in Kent. A jolly band of travellers had bought a cherry orchard. Agricultural land. After a while they moved in a couple of caravans on the pretext that these were for casual labourers working in the orchard. They then developed a barn and moved in more 'labourers'. Members of their extended family of course. Then came electricity. No mains sewerage of course.
The whole thing grew and grew. It seemed the local council were powerless to act; what was being done apparently followed a path used by genuine agriculturists. I was not too bothered - what was going on was mainly out of sight and I had made it plain to the capo di travellers that petrol was cheap and matches also. I left before the saga came to any proper denouement. I am not going to detail the Farm dispute but it does seem to follow the pattern of Grandma's Steps I saw in Kent. It does seem that the wanderers were stiffed by the local council who sold them the land, allowed some development and then barred it in half the site. Put that down to a failure of the lucky white heather.
Another facet of my sad life is an addiction to Twitter. It does seem to attract publicity of all sorts of special interest groups. I am told that Facebook has much more of the same. Sufferers of xxx illness seek special recognition and easement of something or other. They have agendas. At the same time, those suffering from yyy afflictions are rowing the same boat. The whole range of the alphabet has someone or other pressing their case. I have not attempted to compile a spreadsheet of the assorted demands but it must follow that what is done for the xxx'rs will conflict with the expectations of the bbb'rs. Whilst I have a number of areas where I would like to claim an exception from the ordinary Joe. Alas, I cannot find an umbrella group. I stand at risk that those who do gain recognition and special treatment could well impinge on what I do now or would wish to do. Drowned in a sea of special cases. The demands are not always understandable to the man in the street anyway. The homosexual rights campaigners gained civil marriage rights. Now they say the procedures are too hole in the corner (no pun intended) and demand the full panoply of a straight wedding, I cannot understand why. Their lifestyle is not ours. What extra do they get - we all know of Elton John's relationship to his wheel-barrow pushing friend.
To me, this is all part of the mongrelisation of our country. I was around and knew the Dunkirk Spirit. We had a common purpose, worked together, we suffered together (mostly) and we triumphed together. Our economic state now could do with some of that Spirit. However, there is no Kabul Spirit, Karachi Spirit. What we do have is groups demanding sharia law, the killing of animals by sawing holes in their necks and for female mutilation and forced marriage of minors. The Cricket Test of spiritual nationality does not cover these. I was brought up to offer my seat on public transport to the disabled and to those pregnant. I saw no sign that this was observed the last time I was on a train. Doubtless, there are groups pressing for legislation on this - it should not be needed and is not likely to lead to any real change if introduced.
Were I to start a Twitter campaign, it would be Give Me Back My Country. Possibly need to add Dude at the end of that. There will be those who mention rickets, TB, inadequate housing but I would seek to go back to 1930s UK. With hindsight, all those problems would be solved - it would be in the Manifesto so was bound to happen (pause for ironic laughter). A hankering to get back to those values may be the secret of popularity of Downton or Upstairs Downstairs.
I don't see it happen. But allow old men to dream whilst they dribble.

Last week's Sunday Telegraph made much of a story that our troops were being encouraged to report improper conduct by our soldiers whilst engaged in the action against Iraq. Adverts had been placed in magazines likely to be read by troops and these added that the information could be given anonymously if the informant so wished. Information gained would go to a specialist team.

The Secretary of State has set up the Iraq Historic Allegations Team ("IHAT") to investigate the allegations with a view to the identification and punishment of anyone responsible for wrongdoing. He has also set up a separate Iraq Historic Allegations Panel ("IHAP") to ensure proper and effective handling of information concerning cases subject to investigation by IHAT and to consider the results of IHAT's investigations, any criminal or disciplinary proceedings brought, and any other judicial decisions concerning the cases, with a view to identifying any wider issues which should be brought to the attention of the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State has not ruled out the possibility that a public inquiry into systemic issues may be required, in the light of IHAT's investigations and the outcome of the existing public inquiries, nor that there may be prosecutions in the light of those outcomes, but he says that it is premature to set up such a public inquiry now while these other inquiries and investigations are going on.

These IHAT inquiries had a checkered history almost as soon as the team was instituted. The PIL has a history of going back in history and then lodging demands for an investigation.
The main investigation into the sort of incident alleged has now reported it's findings. Pretty grim reading. Mention is made of a conspiracy of silence; this was first commented upon following the court martial of a number of soldiers charged with the assault upon an Iraqi civilian.

By the end of the trial, all charges against the remaining defendants were dropped due to a lack of evidence, including a charge of manslaughter against Cpl Payne.
Mr Justice Stuart McKinnon criticised the soldiers for failing to properly answer questions and accused them of putting up a "wall of silence".

So, rather a long preamble to what is my reason for this edition. In 1970 I was sent to Northern Ireland as a Warrant Officer of the Army Investigation Branch. There was a very small detachment of investigators but I was on the strength of the Provost Marshall NI as an assistant. One of the first things I was asked to look at was the way the Army dealt with internal security incidents where troops had opened fire and killed or wounded a civilian. There were also a number of serious allegations regarding the way that our forces had acted during house searches or arrests. Prior to my arrival, these had not been investigated by the resident team. If the incident or the claims were considered to be serious or widespread, a group of investigators would come from the mainland and deal with them. This was often many weeks after the incident and the claims had already made their way into local history as fact. They were then trooped out every time allegations were made as to Army conduct.
I very soon realised that any contemporaneous routine investigation would not suffice. The normal line of questioning of witnesses building up to the interview of a possible offender was tortuous. Scene of crime techniques were not possible whilst areas were still disturbed and forensic facilities in the province were limited. This meant that the findings were so delayed that Urban Myth prevailed.
When our forces respond to an incident they are required to make a immediate radio report to their HQ. This was known as a Contact Report and was very short and rudimentary. I felt there was scope here for the service investigators to assist. We would attend as soon as a contact report was made. If possible, we would go to the scene of the incident and record written statements from the military personnel, These would not follow what were then known as Judges Rules where evidence was taken with a view to presentation at any trial. I presented the idea to senior RUC personnel, The Coroner and HQ NI and a protocol was established. Copies of the statements taken would be passed to the relevant RUC commander for their consideration. If they considered that legal action should be instituted against military personnel that individual would be re-interviewed in full accord with the Rules, A neat device but quite legal. I left Ulster in mid-1972 and the protocol was working as designed. It also survived without criticism in the Lord Saville inquiry into events on Bloody Sunday.
I have no direct knowledge of the procedures used in Iraq. There is a strong suggestion that the Ulster protocol was not followed. It is only my assumption that this may well have led up to the situation which created IHAT. There is a similar unit in NI but that looks at all deaths and not just those involving HM Forces.
There may be other IHAT work that results in a public inquiry. Mr Shiner has other arrows in his quiver. The latest report says it finds no evidence of institutional brutality, Well, it was only looking at one incident so a pattern would be hard to find, The numbers of soldiers who piled into Baha and his fellow detainees was pretty impressive though. There is some history that the Baha inquiry may have missed.
Whilst it may be unsettling to seek to further the IHAT work by way of anonymous reports it is little different to the procedures of Crime Line and another forces police organisation Getting the true details is an essential duty. Think of the concept of one bad apple. I prefer the idea of a bad barrel that turns good apples bad. The voices of human rights groups are very loud and we risk losing the approval of our actions if these are furthered by dubious means.