Leave Prince Harry Alone

I'm not much bothered by the Royal family. They're there. It's fine. The tourists really seem to like them.

But leave Harry the fuck alone. The guy wants to do his tour. He should have been allowed to. It's not just his life that's put at greater risk when his deployment is known. It's everyone around him. And your story does not trump lives. LIVES you jumped up, arrogant little assholes.

In case you don't know what I am ranting on about it's the news that Prince Harry was deployed to Afghanistan 10 weeks ago and that the British agreed media blackout over that info. Please note: the media were told in advance of his actual deployment. Otherwise they couldn't have agreed to keep it quiet. It turns out that an Australian magazine reported it and an American website also. So now it's out and Harry may have to be pulled out. Way to go losers.

He trained to be a soldier, he wants to serve. He doesn't seem to think he's all that different from any other soldier. It's nice he thinks that way but he is different. Not necessarily better, just different. He is a member of the Royal family. That makes him different. As a soldier that makes him an even bigger target than other soldiers. Not nice but true. It also, apparently , makes him more important than those other soldiers in some peoples opinion. 'Cause I haven't seen too much on all the other soldiers deployed. All those other fucking brave men and women in Afghanistan and Iraq. Fuck what I think of the actual wars, I stand by our troops. Yeah it is actually possible to oppose war while supporting the troops involved. I want every last one of them home safe.

And back to my original rant. I seem to have wandered a little.

Some people think the media blackout in the UK was irresponsible and it's good that it has been broken. Explain that to me. Please, do. Irresponsible how ? In the possibly getting people killed kind of way ? No ? They would have released the information as soon as Harry was back. But the need for a scoop means that a great big frickin' target has been painted over him, and everyone in his vicinity. Anyone who doesn't think that those soldiers are now at greater risk of attack in an attempt to hit an heir to the throne . . . . . take your stupidity elsewhere. I don't actually have anything to say to you.

According to someone on the news that I didn't catch the name of knowing that Harry was out there would have been a moral boost for the troops who are also there. I got the impression from other sources that quite a few soldiers knew he was there. Like those serving alongside him. And perhaps they did get a moral boost from it, I don't know 'cause they didn't feel the need to shout about it. Wonder if that was anything to do with a possible increase in danger if the information was out there ? Hmmmmm.

Books, Books, Books,

I am currently waiting for the last instalments of a number of trilogies to hit the shelves. I would like some other books to fill in the time. Since I have overspent somewhat on books of late I can't buy any more right now. Poo.

On the upside I have over 500 books lining my book shelves so it's not like I'm low on potential re-reading material. It's always fun to slip back through the pages. If you lose the hunger to know the twists and turns of a new book, you gain the luxury of knowing where you are headed, seeing the path clearly and using that knowledge to enjoy the writing more. And sometimes you see things in a new way, discover new things. Oh the happiness.

So I am starting out with Sophie's World.

Too Much Of A Hangover To Write

So there.

I Found Your Camera

I think reuniting people with their photos is a nice idea.

Guantanamo Bay Pants

I am not actually referring to Guantanamo Bay being pants, it wouldn't be a strong enough sentiment, I am referring to Guantanamo Bay pants, knickers, lingerie.

Yup, such a thing actually exists. The world really has gone totally bonkers.

"The absurdity of this collaboration reflects the absurdity of Guantánamo Bay, in which people are held indefinitely without fair trials. The pants are no more absurd than that."

Supposedly. Well absurdity aside the guardian article didn't mention what benefit the pants would be to those held at Guantanamo. Are the profits going in to a fund to pay legal fees or to help those released re-establish their lives ? 'Cause I know the message, "Fair trial my arse", isn't going to be read by many people. Protest t shirts I can see but protest see through knickers ? Not so much.

Or is this a case of profiting from the misery, and stupidity, of others ?

She Cast A Spell On Me !!!

Apparently a woman in Saudi has been convicted of witchcraft and sentence to death. I wonder if they are going with burning at the stake ? Or would that be too inhumane ?

One of her accusers claims she made him impotent. Really ? Wow, do you think she could do something about all the other idiots fertility ? She was convicted on the basis of witness statements that she's a witch and a coerced confession. What, no dunking her in water ? Or seeing if she weighs more than a holy book ? Because those are both very logical means of determining if some one is a witch. Honest.

It seems that no attention was paid to the fact that she was held for 35 days, hospitalised at one point as the beatings she received were so sever, and recanted her confession in court as she had been forced to accept a confession document which she couldn't actually read. The need to have her fingerprint rather than signature might have been a clue to her illiteracy. They even broke their own rules of conduct. She was denied access to a lawyer initially then her legal representation was excluded from some court sessions. Witnesses were not cross examined. Defence ? What defence, she's a witch I tell you.

Without A Trace And CSI

My cup runneth over.

Gil Grissom and Jack Malone, on screen at the same time. I have an affection for thinking men. This can be accompanied by other traits that don't include generally being a git. Okay, Malone looses a little on the not being a git thing. Cheating on your wife is a very git thing to do. Hmmm, Maybe I like him alot less now that I think about it. Arse.

I love CSI and Without A Trace. The leads are only part of the attraction. I think both series are well written, interesting and entertaining on a brain including way. Both have well drawn characters, thought provoking plots and good formats. And no Shades of Justice. Or weekly Islamic terrorists. Or any of the other things I find annoying about some crime shows.

As you may have guessed, if you are interested in either show, I have just seen the two crossover shows, starting with a CSI episode followed by a Without A Trace episode. Happy me. They were good. Not the very best TV I've ever seen, but good. Very good as far as I'm concerned. I say there should be more. I accept that they can't be too often, I mean how often will crimes in Vegas and New York be related but the on screen chemistry between the actors and the characters was good.

I am not saying anything about the plot on the off chance that someone who reads this hasn't seen the episodes yet. 'Cause that would happen.