[Clogeroo]

$1:

That's what I thought too, Commonwealth members were just former colonies. Do we really want to be part of something that anyone can get in to?

Mozambique was the exception they were a French colony but we let them join at their neighbours request to encourage them to become a democracy. Israel or the Palestinian Mandate was under British rule. Lots of countries that have had ties could join though such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Egypt, Burma, Sudan, Kuwait, Yemen, and Oman.

Rwanda was a former Belgian colony after the Great War and took it from Germany. But English is an official language there. Perhaps if Rwanda was part of the Commonwealth before their major genocide happened more would have been done to help them. I'm not sure if they will be made members though.

[Clogeroo]

As for countries I would consider letting in why not Qatar? They are one of the most progressive countries in the region and have opened up quite a bit now.

[camerontech]

but what ties to they have to the british? The only reason they want in is because of the assistance and alliance that comes with it. Can't blame them but it just sounds weird that you can apply even though you have no historical ties with the brits. I understand israel, or afghanistan but it seems wierd that countries "apply" for membership

[GreatBriton]

24 December 2006

DAD'S ARMY

EXCLUSIVE

*Squaddies in action at 55

*Men too fit to get the axe

*Army recruits will be able to sign on for 36 years rather than the current 22

By Nigel Nelson, Political Editor


Dad's Army is a classic BBC comedy series of the 1970s about Britain's Home Guard of World War II. Some of these Home Guards were old - you had to be between the ages of 17 and 65 - and they were formed in 1940. They consisted of ordinary civilians who were given some military training and who would try and defend their town or village if the Germans ever managed to invade. This way we would have put up a fight if the Germans invaded - something that certain other countries in Europe failed to do.
************************************************** ************************************************** ********



SQUADDIES as old as 55 will soon be in action in Britain's new Dad's Army.

Recruits joining as teenagers will be able to serve 36 years rather than the currant deal of having to retire in their early 40s after 22 years.

And this old guard will be expected to go into combat alongside troops young enough to be their sons if needed.

The rules about possible length of service for non-officers will change from January 2008.

A youngster will sign on for up to 24 years with the option of another 12. The grey brigade will usually have desk jobs.

But an MoD source said: "Everyone in the Army is a soldier first and foremost so they have to be able to fight.

"And there's no such thing as a frontline any more."

The Army's 15,000 officers are already allowed to stay until their mid-50s and the 96,500 NCOs and privates will now get the same chance.

The source explained: "Under the 22-year rule we are losing some really talented people who could very well serve on."

Older people are generally healthier and fitter than they were in the Second World War.

Men in their 50s were restricted then to serving in the Home Guard - immortalised in Dad's Army, the TV comedy classic starring Arthur Lowe as Captain Mainwaring .

Army musicians and general staff have signed up to the new deal and infantry regiments are expected to follow suit.

Defence minister Paul Drayson confirmed: "Selected soldiers will be able to serve a long career up to a normal retirement age of 55."


[email protected]
************************************************** *************

Voice Of The People

DAD'S ARMY PLAN IS FAR FROM A JOKE


24 December 2006


Allowing soldiers to serve longer - 36 years instead of 22 - gives Britain more available army manpower if it needs it than it had previously




THE idea of entrusting Britain's defences to a Dad's Army of old soldiers may at first sight seem a joke.

But only to those who have too much of a sense of the ridiculous and not enough common sense.

Fixing the upper limit of service at 22 years no longer adds up in a 21st Century world where there are Star Wars instead of trench wars and we face ever more sophisticated threats.

To combat them this nation needs a force of highly-trained fighting men and women up to speed with the latest technology, hardware and weaponry.

And to throw them out when they reach 40 is a needless waste of talent, experience and money spent on giving them those skills.

Which is why MoD brasshats are absolutely right to extend the retirement age to 55 for selected soldiers who still have plenty to offer their country.

Medical advances and improved nutrition mean we can all look forward to longer and healthier lives. And we are now fitter at 50 than we have ever been.

So the rank-and-file army no longer needs to be the sole preserve of young striplings who have only just learned to shave.

But even the Dad's Army of ageing squaddies must be soldiers first and bandsmen or bureaucrats second. So they will also be expected to serve as front-line combat troops.

We are confident that the Old Guard or Scots Greys who go into battle will be more than capable of sticking it to our enemies.


And they won't like it up 'em.


people.co.uk

[ridenrain]

Joining the commonwealth also extends less restrictive immigration standards and I'd think the UK should look at this very carefully.

[Elvis]

ridenrain ridenrain:

Joining the commonwealth also extends less restrictive immigration standards and I'd think the UK should look at this very carefully.

No shit

[ShepherdsDog]

Wonder when the Yanks will apply for re-admission into the family. Israel, was founded out of the old British Mandate, though much smaller in scale than originally planned by the British. Makes sense. As for the others, Britain doesn't need anymore Fifth Columnists moving there, they already have enough domestic jihadis.

[GunPlumber]

RUEZ RUEZ:

Arctic_Menace Arctic_Menace:

I was unaware that one could simply join the Commonwealth. I was under the impression that one had to be under British rule for an extended period of time...

That's what I thought too, Commonwealth members were just former colonies. Do we really want to be part of something that anyone can get in to?

You mean like the NORTH ATLANTIC Treaty Organization, which admits members who aren't anywhere the North Atlantic (can you say Turkey,... I knew you could) and makes war against nations which have not threatened any of it's members?

Or perhaps the United Nations is a better example. After all, it was formed to promote peace and cooperation to avoid future wars, while at the same time it created a security council dominated by some of the most belligerent and war-loving nations on this planet.

[Arctic_Menace]

$1:

You mean like the NORTH ATLANTIC Treaty Organization, which admits members who aren't anywhere the North Atlantic (can you say Turkey,... I knew you could) and makes war against nations which have not threatened any of it's members?

Or perhaps the United Nations is a better example. After all, it was formed to promote peace and cooperation to avoid future wars, while at the same time it created a security council dominated by some of the most belligerent and war-loving nations on this planet.

I know, our world is so messed up...

[GreatBriton]

Tyrant's rifle is in SAS hands

January 01, 2007


SAS troops have mounted Saddam’s famous hunting rifle at their HQ in Hereford.

The display of the war trophy — which Saddam fired repeatedly during his final military parade — reveals the extent of the grudge the unit holds against the tyrant.

They have never forgiven him for the killing of four SAS heroes in the first Gulf War, and the torture of four more.

It is thought troopers stole the gun from US forces who found it at the end of the Iraq War. An ex-SAS man said: “It’s there to remind us what we achieved.”

[GreatBriton]

By Cristina Odone

02/01/2007




America had the world's sympathies after 11th September 2001. But not now.



'We are all American now." NOT, as they say. Since Europe's heartfelt response to the events of September 11, the Bush Administration has squandered our goodwill. Bungles in Iraq and gas-guzzling habits at home are bad enough. We have also witnessed George Bush's casual attitude to extradition: when he showed not the slightest concern over the fate of the NatWest Three (the London businessmen who were extradited to the US on charges relating to a transaction with Enron Corporation in 2000 when they were working for the City of London firm) , or the political pressure his intractable position put on Tony Blair, or the rage of their Middle England supporters, Bush dealt a body blow to the Special Relationship.

Once again thumbing its nose at old allies, America now demands a licence to snoop on Britons and other Europeans. Buy your plane ticket over the internet, and you risk having Uncle Sam examine your other credit-card purchases; he can also read all the messages you sent and received on the email address you used. Oh, and know whether you ordered a vegetarian or kosher airline meal. You can almost hear the catchy new advertising jingle: Fly to America, and leave your civil rights behind.

Crossing the Atlantic is already an ordeal. I speak as someone who regularly flies to Washington DC, where my father has been seriously ill. My repeated entries, with my toddler (now a dab hand at seat-belt fastening, ear decompressing and joining the dots in the booklet in the children's freebie bag), have grown ever more exhausting and humiliating.

There is the milk-bottle test (Mummy holds her nose as she glugs Baby's milk to prove it's not toxic or explosive); the shoe removal (embarrassing exposure of hole in sock); the frisking (passenger behind you cracks lewd jokes); the thumb-printing ("Again!" barks the immigration officer. "Your thumb is too sweaty to be legible!"); the inquisition (often in heavily accented English); and then, just as you think you're clearing Customs, the random baggage search (bras, knickers and a medley of Baby Gap left in a jumble to rearrange). All this plus jet lag, queues and delays: feeling unwelcome, and not a little intimidated, you want to sue the Statue of Liberty for misrepresentation.

Concerns about national security are valid, and universal. But Fortress America would have rather more credibility if it weren't for the 1,125-mile border with Mexico, through which thousands of immigrants slip every day. Any criminal or would-be terrorist can cross into the States in this way; while Britons wishing to visit America have to undergo ever more sinister inspections.

The Land of the Free. NOT.

telegraph.co.uk

[MissT]

Creepy, that. Being a vegetarian probably gets you on a security threat blacklist as a subversive greenie, who's against the American Way. God knows what they do if you order Halal.

[ShepherdsDog]

MissT MissT:

Creepy, that. Being a vegetarian probably gets you on a security threat blacklist as a subversive greenie, who's against the American Way. God knows what they do if you order Halal.

Just order kosher.

[kaetz]

ShepherdsDog ShepherdsDog:

MissT MissT:

Creepy, that. Being a vegetarian probably gets you on a security threat blacklist as a subversive greenie, who's against the American Way. God knows what they do if you order Halal.

Just order kosher.

[GreatBriton]

The first ever woman Beefeater will start work at the Tower of London later this year.....

The Times

January 03, 2007


After 500 years, a woman joins ranks of Beefeaters

David Sanderson


A lot of training is involved in becoming a Tower of London Beefeater



A woman has been appointed to the ranks of the Tower of London’s Yeoman Warders for the first time in their 500-year history.

The unnamed woman, who will take up her post this summer, was selected ahead of five men as one of the Tower’s tourist guides.

Historic Royal Palaces confirmed last night that it was in the process of appointing the female Yeoman Warder, adding that she had been the best candidate for the job. “It’s very exciting.

It’s great for the body of general Warders and it will be great for the Tower and its visitors,” said a spokeswoman for the charity.


The Beefeaters, or to give their full name, “Yeoman Warders of Her Majesty’s Royal Palace and Fortress the Tower of London, and Members of the Sovereign’s Body Guard of the Yeoman Guard Extraordinary”, date back to 1485. They were formed by Henry VII after his victory at the Battle of Bosworth and originally guarded prisoners and the Crown Jewels.


There have been Beefeaters at the Tower of London for over 500 years


The origin of the name Beefeater is unknown. According to Historic Royal Palaces, the most likely derivation is from the daily ration of meat they received for their duties. Records from the 19th century show that the Yeoman Guards received a daily ration of 24lb (11kg) of beef, 18lb mutton and 16lb of veal.

The Yeoman Warders, who number 38, were one of the last bastions of male-only employment. They must all be former senior NCOs from the Army, RAF or Royal Marines and have served for a minimum of 22 years. Once employed as a Beefeater, they are given a grace-and-favour apartment at the Tower.

Although known for their scarlet and gold ceremonial garb, the Yeoman Warders wear an informal blue uniform while guiding visitors around the Tower.

The spokeswoman for Historic Royal Palaces said last night that the charity would reveal the name of its new employee by the end of the month: “The Tower of London is in the process of appointing its first female Yeoman Warder. The successful candidate is currently serving in HM Forces and will join her new colleagues in the Yeoman Body at the Tower of London in summer 2007.

“Historic Royal Palaces is committed to encouraging diversity.”



On guard

The post of Yeoman Warder could be bought for 250 guineas until the Duke of Wellington ended the practice in the 1826

The Duke also abolished a minimum height requirement of 5ft 9in


A typical day starts at 6am. Tasks include posing for photographs with tourists and reciting the history of the Tower

One important duty is to check on the ravens. Charles II decreed that there must always be six at the Tower. The current ravens are called Hardey, Thor, Odin, Gwyllum, Cedric, Hugine and Munin. Acoording to legend, if the ravens ever left the Tower of London then disaster could befall England



Source: Tower of London; Times Database



timesonline.co.uk