What's with the bandwagon mentality...

[Lord Percy]

with the support for all these Marines who are being done for murder?

Why is everybody getting all high and mighty against the government for it?

Two things:

1. Just because they're Royal Marines, it doesn't automatically make them heroes. They really might just have done something rather awful, such as murder, while they were at work. A bit like those Yank marines pissed on some dead ones. Some dicks do bad things, regardless of what country they're from.

2. When it says they were arrested by MPs, it doesn't mean they were arrested by Members of Parliament, it means they were arrested by Military Police. So why now is everybody getting SO anti-government about the whole thing?! Seems like an MoD matter to me, and I certainly have at least a reasonable amount of faith in military decision making.

[Benno]

All I know is that the person they 'murdered' was an enemy combatant (Taliban fighter). Only found that out today as I haven't bothered looking into this particular piece of news beyond noticing its presence on the BBC home page.

Until now, though, I thought the general attitude was against the marines...? People support them? Good stuff! War is chaotic.
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I'm autistic. That means I'm smarter than you.

[Hetzer]

They made the mistake of being caught. A few thousand others haven't been so stupid.

Those responsible for the war won't, of course, face charges for the deaths of thousands of innocent civillians.
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"There's the horizon! Ride hard, ride fast and cut down all who stand in your way!"

[colin1]

It's selective reporting. A dumb TA soldier shot a farmer digging his field and gave the excuse that he thought the farmer was planting IEDs. Not so much publicity on that one.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2080901/Territorial-Army-solider-faces-murder-charge-shooting-suspected-Taliban-bomber.html
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colin1 is officially faster than god

[Benno]

[Lord Percy]

I read that the guy they killed was a combatant but he was injured, and they decided to kill him instead of providing medical assistance. So I guess it's fair to say that this kind of murder happens all the time, but these guys were caught after doing it, and, well, one of the conventions of war, as set out literally 1000 so years ago by a certain Thomas Aquinas (religious bloke), is that you should never do more harm/damage than is required. The Marines probably also get trained in this sort of moral stuff too, so as to make sure the British military don't become trigger happy cowboys as soon as they're given a gun, so what they did wrong is basically a sign that they weren't fit to be serving under the United Kingdom.

[Flatbadger]

At least it's a Royal Marines bandwagon. They're very good.

I suppose it takes our credulous minds off the bigger picture, all the drone strike deaths, the babies being born inside out due to all the DU used over there - and the authorities can pose like they've got a moral bone in their bodies.

This is the first I've heard of it, as I turned off the shitbox for good back in 2005 but that will probably be about right.
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If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
You're in ISIS

[colin1]

[Trasler]

The laws on combat is hazy. It's digression is between the reviewing body. If a 'enemy' has shot your mate in the leg, and then puts down his rifle. You CANNOT shoot him.

This won't go near the Houses of Parliament. It'll be brought forward by the Secretary of State for Defense in a cabinet meeting which will decide the Governments policy/statement about it, but will be judged by the Special Prosecution Authority.

What you've got to remember is how were they caught? I mean, if it's so bad, one of their buddies in the Platoon/Section/Company ratted them out, then clearly it was worse then you'd think. Military Police rarely go out on patrol and so i doubt they were around when it occurred.
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[Flatbadger]

[Lord Percy]

[Nick 50]

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