The mother of the soldier who is being allowed to freak out on air.

[Ralph Masters]

The mother of the dead soldier who is being allowed to freak out on air.

Sure enough she's lost her son, it's very sad, but should she be allowed to grieve on air? It all seems a bit unusual, and counter productive, perhaps the media should leave her alone and come to terms with her loss in private, or is it in the public interest to hear her voice?

 

[Hocus Eye.]

No it is all just a part of the media plan to 'get Gordon Brown'. I feel a bit sorry for him but only a bit. The poor woman is being used though and that is not good.

 

[Ralph Masters]

I feel she's being exploited and no good can come of it, I really feel for her, but not because of Gordon's letter, more because she's dragging the memory of her poor son through mud.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Note the story being pushed by the Sun, a paper openly out to destroy Brown.

 

[Ralph Masters]

It's made it onto the BBC. It seems like standards have slipped,

 

[Wolveryeti]

Brown is a useless powermongering cunt. He deserves to be destroyed.

 

[Ralph Masters]

Brown is a useless powermongering cunt. He deserves to be destroyed.

so the Sun are justified in exploiting this poor woman

 

[T & P]

Brown is a useless powermongering cunt. He deserves to be destroyed.

He deserves to lose an election on his shortcomings. He does not deserve to be character-assassinated by an evil motherfucking cunt (Rupert Murdoch) a million times more sinister and harmful to this country than Brown could ever be.

 

[Louis MacNeice]

Brown is a useless powermongering cunt. He deserves to be destroyed.

Perhaps you view Jacqui Janes as collateral damage?

Louis MacNeice

 

[Corax]

He deserves to lose an election on his shortcomings. He does not deserve to be character-assassinated by an evil motherfucking cunt (Rupert Murdoch) a million times more sinister and harmful to this country than Brown could ever be.

Well put.

 

[Cobbles]

No it is all just a part of the media plan to 'get Gordon Brown'. I feel a bit sorry for him but only a bit. The poor woman is being used though and that is not good.

Used? - it's not like Gordo wasn't using the idea of handwriting letters as a cynical spinmeistered attempt to make it appear as though he actually has a personality.

Whatever PR genius came up with that concept? - it was guaranteed to fail - at the point where the flow of bodies overtook his availability to scrawl notes (using a thick felt tipped pen so he didn't have to put much on each small piece of Basildon Bond).

She's got every right to be aggrieved, especially when he deigned to phone up and pour out a load of platitudes - although the word "sorry" was used throughout the call, it was apparently always in the context of "I'm sorry that you felt that this was inappropriate" (e.g. not an apology) as opposed to "I'm sorry that my desire to appear like a Statesman isn't backed up by any understanding of funding the armed forces properly so I' was culpable in the death of your son and I'm deeply sorry" (an apology).

 

[newbie]

ordinary person challenges prime minister and immediately everyone says there's a media conspiracy. odd, imo.

I don't know whether she contacted the Sun or they contacted her, but they've found and published a strong story... that's what good journalism is about.

the key thing is this: there wouldn't be a story if brown was more capable at being pm. He shouldn't have spelt her name wrong, included more mistakes or used illegible writing, that's simple incompetance. Politics is largely about the power to persuade, and Broon does it so badly he lays himself open.

 

[stethoscope]

He deserves to lose an election on his shortcomings. He does not deserve to be character-assassinated by an evil motherfucking cunt (Rupert Murdoch) a million times more sinister and harmful to this country than Brown could ever be.

This

 

[butchersapron]

He deserves to lose an election on his shortcomings. He does not deserve to be character-assassinated by an evil motherfucking cunt (Rupert Murdoch) a million times more sinister and harmful to this country than Brown could ever be.

Absolute back-to-front nonsense.

 

[Wolveryeti]

It's hardly exploitation. She's a grown person, she knows what she's doing and what she wants - i.e. a platform to air her grievances.

What Murdoch's motives are is hardly relevant. Brown is a cancer on the Labour party and the sooner he is gone, the better, IMO.

 

[stethoscope]

It's hardly exploitation. She's a grown person, she knows what she's doing and what she wants - i.e. a platform to air her grievances.

But who really goes about recording such a private conversation, and then publishing transcripts of it in especially a paper like the Sun?

'Oh, it's the Prime Minister on the end of the phone, quick, get the tape recorder going'.

Seems pretty fucked up to me.

 

[butchersapron]

Yes, you should be respectful of honourable people like MPs.

 

[untethered]

But who really goes about recording such a private conversation, and then publishing transcripts of it in especially a paper like the Sun?

It makes me wonder whether she's being paid for this trash.

Obviously The Sun are.

 

[stethoscope]

It's the whole concept that if you're a grieving mother and angry/upset at your loss, the first thing you'd think of is - 'quick, get this conversation recorded?'. I would have thought the conversation would have been very sensitive and private for her too?

 

[rover07]

Its no coincidence this has all happened around Nov 11th. The Sun is just shit stirring.

If the Sun is that bothered about soldiers dying then they should campaign to get the troops out.

 

[jusali]

Sounds like the Mother is milking her sons death for everything she can get.

 

[Balbi]

The Sun are being as obvious as fuck since their abandoning of the Government after Conference.

But Brown doesn't help himself, and neither does the PLP - they all look as slow as fuck at the minute, the big lumbering Valuev to Cameron's (and even Clegg to a certain extent) Haye. They need one hell of a policy win or something soon, otherwise they could come 3rd at the next election.

I feel sorry for the crying lady on the television, but doubt that the motives for which she is being used for can console her any more than a badly spelled letter.

 

[butchersapron]

So, if you're a grieving mother, the first thing you'd think of is - 'quick, get this conversation recorded?'. I would have thought the conversation would have been very sensitive and private for her too?

So what - people do different things under periods of stress. If she wants to hurt the person she holds responsible for her sons death it makes sense to use what you have against him, use every opportunity. The fact that you wouldn't do it means nothing at all.

 

[Teaboy]

Used? - it's not like Gordo wasn't using the idea of handwriting letters as a cynical spinmeistered attempt to make it appear as though he actually has a personality.

What an odd post. Surely if he hadnt fucked the letter up most of us would have never of known he sent out had written notes?

 

[ymu]

Used? - it's not like Gordo wasn't using the idea of handwriting letters as a cynical spinmeistered attempt to make it appear as though he actually has a personality.

All prime ministers have done this for some time now. Not sure when it started, but it pre-dates nu-Labour by many many decades.

 

[Teaboy]

It makes me wonder whether she's being paid for this trash.

Obviously The Sun are.

I wondered the same.

 

[Ralph Masters]

The woman is saying if there were more helicopters her son wouldn't have bled to death,

 

[Balbi]

Sorry

The woman is saying if there were more helicopters her son wouldn't have bled to death,

 

[mattie]

The woman is saying if there were more helicopters her son wouldn't have bled to death,

Helicopters appear to be the answer to everything.

 

[Ralph Masters]

Why get angry about a piece of paper when your son has been killed? The woman should be getting counselling.