Prince Harry 'to be sent to Iraq' - BBC report

[TheBaldyMan]

I hate to burst the bubble of all the keen royal fans but it has been announced this evening.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6383747.stm">Prince Harry 'to go to Iraq' @22:32 GMT/UTC

I know some of you may have a rather quaint idea of the power and constitutional position of Prince Harry but there is a long tradition of Royals serving in the Armed services, even in armed theatres of war. This includes QE2, Princes Phillip & Andrew and that stretches way back.

I know the Bush twins won't serve just because olive drab makes their ass look fat and there's random dope testing but that doesn't mean that everybody ignores the sense of Patrician duty. John Kerry, JFK even GHW Bush served, it is not impossible.

The two princes Harry & William will not be serving in an active hostile theatre at the same time, both are of the opinion that it is their duty to lead the men they serve with. This may sound old-fashioned but that is how it is.

I hope they and all the soldiers they serve with come back in one piece.

edited for spelling.

[louis-t]

1. I admire their courage.

I also think they won't be there very long. Blair will draw down the troops to the point where it will not be necessary for them to be there.

[TheBaldyMan]

2. Blair has announced that a brigade strength task force will be in Iraq 'for the duration'

as a show of solidarity with his bestest buddy ever - George W Bush.

Not much of a consolation to the young soldiers who will be wounded or maimed, or to the families who lose sons and daughters to feed Bush and Blair's vanity.

The Walter Reed story in the Washington post is the real legacy these butchers are leaving behind.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

3. they should send Blair instead

[rpannier]

4. One issue that has been talked about on International News is

That Prince Harry would be a valuable target and he might be a bigger danger to his unit because of his notoriety.

[TheBaldyMan]

5. yes but he will be a armoured recon troop commander

not the safest job in the world, especially in a war zone.

The problem is the war not the royals.

There are a few theatres that he would have to serve in as a matter of course. Ulster, Kosovo, Bosnia, Afghanistan as well as Iraq. The dice have fallen this way, he's an Army officer so he goes where he's posted. The deployment will be for a few months then he will be posted elsewhere.

There seems to be a preconclusion that the British Army couldn't possibly deploy a VIP to a combat theatre but if you remember the Second World War there were a great many politicians as well as their nearest and dearest that joined up in combat arms.

The list is long and honourable. FDR's own son died serving in WWII.

Don't judge the rest of the world by the same standard that applies to the Bush family and their cronies.

[rpannier]

8. I have no problem with his wanting to serve along with his unit

I find that honorable.
I do think it's a valid question. "Does he make his unit a morelikely target for different groups?"

Whether or not he does will be answered in the next few months.

on note: History is filled with the relatives of kings, presidents, prime ministers and Kings themselves fighting in wars (this is true around the world). Many of them were excellent fighters and leaders. I would assume that Harry must be rather competant given the fact that there doesn't appear to be any strong opposition to his deployment.
If he was an utter buffoon, I doubt they'd let him go.

[TheBaldyMan]

9. The British are under daily attack anyway

not that it gets much publicity. Basra is way outside the green zone so journalists don't pick up on that. In fact a similar UK Lt. Armoured unit decided to get out of their base and hide in the boondocks because they were being hit so often.

In Iraq coming under attack is commonplace - usually by IED, tactics of the occupying forces and the guerillas have evolved over the last 3-4 years and will continue to evolve.

The guerillas found out the hard way not to go toe-to-toe with a conventional modern army. If a guerilla force did decide to attack they'd get cut to pieces.

More like more of the same, mortar and rocket attacks, IED ambushes along with suicide car/truck bombers. :cry: It's a god-awful situation for everyone in Iraq, especially civilians.

At the risk of sounding hard-hearted, as army personnel, Harry will be better protected than most people in country.

[CentralEuropeanDude]

6. Let's hope there isn't a iraqi version of "Gavrilo Princip"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gavrilo_Princip

[NashVegas]

7. Ya Know, I'm Not So Sure This is All About Sacrifice

A Blues and Royals source said Harry, who has long expressed his determination to see front-line action, was "over the moon" at the deployment.

Last year, the prince said: "There's no way I'm going to put myself through Sandhurst and then sit on my arse back home while my boys are out fighting for their country."