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Why the Guardian is going down the pan!

Pickman's model said:
According to the guardian sir John wilsey was goc northern ireland 1983-90. Er 1990-1993 as a quick trip to Wikipedia reveals - it caught my eye no one spent seven years in charge of the british army in the six counties, not even kitson Man suspected of being Stakeknife, Britain’s top spy in IRA, dies it doesn't fill you with confidence in yer man's new book
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The Telegraph has a pretty detailed summary of his commands in its obit:

Wilsey was appointed Chief of Staff, HQ Northern Ireland, before commanding 1st Infantry Brigade. He became Chief of Staff of UK Land Forces (UKLF) in 1988, GOC Northern Ireland in 1990, C-in-C UKLF in 1993 and C-in-C Land Command in 1995. In the latter two postings, he had overall command responsibility of all British troops deployed on operations around the world.
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General Sir John Wilsey, highly skilled Army officer whose flair for covert operations was amply demonstrated during the Troubles – obituary​

ByTelegraph Obituaries
21 October 2019 • 5:58pm

General Sir John Wilsey, who has died aged 80, had exceptional qualities which took him to within reach of the highest appointment in the Army.

In the course of a most distinguished career, he served in Northern Ireland as a company commander in the early 1970s when the terrorist campaign was close to its height, later in command of a battalion, then as headquarters chief of staff and, finally, as General Officer Commanding and Director Military Operations.

He had a “feel” for covert operations and understood the demands that these made on the soldiers involved. A briefing on an operation, however thorough, was never enough for him. He always wanted to know just how he could help.

He talked to the soldiers selected for these missions and, knowing exactly what they were going through, insisted on the most rigorous scrutiny of the planning to assess the chances of success and minimise the dangers involved. In return, he won the respect, trust and admiration of those with whom he served and got the very best out of them.

John Finlay Willasey Wilsey, the son of Major General J H O Wilsey, was born on February 18 1939 at Frimley, Surrey, and educated at Sherborne. While he was a cadet at RMA Sandhurst, he took part in the Daily Mail-sponsored London to Paris Air Race, flying a vintage De Havilland. He logged a time of two hours 39 minutes, then returned on a motorbike.

In 1959 he was commissioned into the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment and saw active service with the 1st Battalion (1 D&D) in Cyprus during the final phase of the Eoka campaign. Exercises in Libya followed and further regimental duties took him to Northern Ireland, British Guiana, West Germany and Malta.

Brother officers recall that Wilsey was often in a hurry. He was a fast driver, apparently without nerves but not, perhaps, fully aware of the effect that high speed and an original approach to navigation had on those intrepid enough to occupy the passenger seats.

He did not carry this rather happy-go-lucky attitude into things military. He had clear views to which he gave forthright expression, and highly developed powers of organisation; he took immense trouble over anything that he tackled.

Subordinates were given considerable scope, rewarded if they did a good job and loyally supported if things sometimes went wrong. His principles, however, were unshakeable. Those under his command had to stay focused and he did not hesitate to remove anyone who fell below his high standards.

But it was not all hard work, and outlets could occasionally be found for his natural exuberance. One evening, in Valletta at the invitation of the Royal Maltese Artillery, after a few drinks he commandeered his CO’s staff car and, goaded by his brother officers, hurtled around the streets making the tyres screech on every corner.

Spotting a large crane parked in front of the Law Courts, he stood on the brakes, jumped into the cab and started swinging the wrecking ball which dangled from a chain at the end of the huge extended arm. Only with some difficulty was he persuaded to desist before he knocked a chunk out of the marble facade.

After an appointment as ADC to GOC Southern Command, in 1968 he took leave of absence from instructing at Sandhurst to join Colonel John Blashford-Snell’s Blue Nile expedition. When the Colonel’s whitewater survey party was attacked by bandits, Wilsey mounted a rescue operation.

He equipped an assault boat and navigated upriver against uncharted rapids. One engine burnt out so he called for another by parachute, but this fell into a torrent. Despite this setback, he and two sappers and an Ethiopian naval officer managed to reach the beleaguered party with food, ammunition and a bottle of Scotch.

He then towed their battered inflatable craft downstream to safety. After attending the Army Staff College, he was posted to the MoD as the Assistant to the Chief of the Defence Staff for two years.

Command of a company of 1 D&D included an operational tour in North Belfast. On one occasion, he was caught up in a precarious situation in the Falls Road. The radios did not work and he had to get through to his CO.

As he went into a public telephone box, he came under fire and carried on a telephone conversation with the glass breaking around him. He was Mentioned in Despatches at the end of his tour.

From 1979 to 1982, he commanded 1 D&D in BAOR and then South Armagh where he earned another Mention in Despatches. The citation for the award of an OBE stated that he had presence, coolness, intelligence, a sense of humour, a flair for command and had proved to be an inspirational leader of the highest order.

Wilsey was appointed Chief of Staff, HQ Northern Ireland, before commanding 1st Infantry Brigade. He became Chief of Staff of UK Land Forces (UKLF) in 1988, GOC Northern Ireland in 1990, C-in-C UKLF in 1993 and C-in-C Land Command in 1995. In the latter two postings, he had overall command responsibility of all British troops deployed on operations around the world.

In April 1994, Serb armour attacked Gorazde, a Bosnian Muslim enclave close to Sector Sarajevo, which was the French sector, and designated a “safe area”. They set part of the town ablaze and, after they were forced to withdraw, it was essential to get a UN battalion into the area to sort out the chaos.

President Mitterrand refused to allow a French battalion to deploy there and Lieutenant-General (later General) Sir Michael Rose, commander of the UN Protection Force (Unprofor), asked Wilsey if he would allow a British battalion to move out of its operational area and into Gorazde. As a result, a battalion of the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment deployed there, the situation was stabilised and lives were undoubtedly saved.

Wilsey was advanced to CBE in 1985, knighted (KCB) in 1991 and advanced to GCB in 1996, the year that he retired from the Army.

He took up a large number of voluntary appointments, including chairman of the Western Provident Association, vice chairman of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, commissioner at the Royal Hospital, Chelsea, governor of both Sherborne boys’ and girls’ schools, president of the Wiltshire Army Cadet Force and chairman of Salisbury Cathedral Council. In 1966 he was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Wiltshire.

In 2007 the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment was merged into The Rifles. Wilsey, a traditionalist, deplored what he felt must lead to a loss of identity. He was a stalwart supporter of the Regimental Association and always ready to help veterans who had fallen on hard times.

On his retirement, he bought a small farm and bred alpacas which gave him much enjoyment and provided a lot of fun for the family. He wrote a biography of his friend, “H” Jones VC, and published The Ulster Tales, a tribute to those who served in Northern Ireland from 1969 to 2000.

As a younger man, Wilsey enjoyed sailing and fishing and was a fine skier. Six years ago he was diagnosed with a disabling neurological disease. His wife, Lizzie, was the greatest support to him throughout their marriage and during this very difficult period. He bore the illness uncomplainingly and battled against it with characteristic fortitude.
General Sir John Wilsey married, in 1975, Elizabeth (Lizzie) Nottingham, who survives him with their son and daughter.
General Sir John Wilsey, born February 18 1939, died September 25 2019
 
The article might have been more useful if written from an entry level pricepoint. Ikeahacks website for example which is around my budget.

But then how does the journo promote their mates?
 
xenon said:
Yeah I wouldn't have said consparaloon was why I can't stand the bloke. It has always been more cos he's an attention seeking, screeching drama school brat tosser who thinks being able to use a dictionary makes him funny.
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A third rate Leonard Sachs.
 
AnnO'Neemus said:
Tim Dowling has had the 'mundane aspects of life' covered from a male perspective for the Guardian for years now.
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More ubiquitous than Chiles, incredibly unfunny and he's been churning it out for decades. I used to have a colleague with the same name for whom I felt incredibly sorry.

He moved to Japan, probably to escape being associated.
 
I remember Tim Dowling from his fictional transcripts of a chatroom, which was a thinly disguised rendering of the Guardian boards of the time. Theu were sometimes very funny indeed. Sometimes they weren't. Such is life.

I have never seen Adrian Chiles being in any way amusing or interesting, but I seem to see or hear him all the time.
 
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Larry O'Hara said:
I could ask why (see my post about him on previous page) but then I notice you can’t spell the idiot’s name. So guess that puts you in his target audience: therefore go right ahead….
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Every time I convince myself that you are probably not a prick, you post something to prove that you are.

As to Monbiot at least he writes stuff, which is what I expect journalists to do. It's years since you produced an edition of that magazine about which boast and are so proud of.
 
tim said:
Every time I convince myself that you are probably not a prick, you post something to prove that you are.

As to Monbiot at least he writes stuff, which is what I expect journalists to do. It's years since you produced an edition of that magazine about which boast and are so proud of.
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No doubt you are a prick: and abuse from trash like you is water off a duck’s back. Carry on, you sad bellend
 
Larry O'Hara said:
No doubt you are a prick: and abuse from trash like you is water off a duck’s back. Carry on, you sad bellend
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At least I don't abuse folk without a reason. There's no excuse for your rudeness to Ming. Last time I upset you it was for critiquing your misogyny.

Anyway, are you ever going to publish anything again?
 
TopCat said:
Really? Well getting irritable reading the Guardian will no longer be part of my life. A good thing I think.
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Yes, but it's only in North America so you'd have to emigrate and even then you'd still be allowed 125 articles a month to froth over before the ban was enforced.
 
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