Update: At last, a bit of sense on the subject:
It is all so very typical of modern Britain, or at least a section of the modern British media and its absence of any sense of perspective. There’s a dislike of anything which smacks of complexity and a refusal to understand that people make mistakes.
And heavens, one can never imagine a News of the World reader using such a term as that employed by the Prince. Pass the sick-bag, please.
See also the BBC PM blog although other parts of the BBC can’t seem to avoid the hysteria – have a listen to the clip on this page
So, here’s the big front page news story in the UK. What could it be? Peace in the middle east? The economy? A breakthrough in the fight against cancer? No, it’s this:
Prince Harry has apologised for using offensive language to describe a Pakistani member of his army platoon.
The News of the World has published a video diary in which the prince calls one of his then Sandhurst colleagues a “Paki” in his commentary.
St James’s Palace said he had used the term three years ago as a nickname about a friend and without any malice.
It gets worse – there’s a video on that page; it warns “Guidance – this video contains strong language”.
Oooh, what could it be? The F word? Or perhaps the C word? No, it’s the word “paki”.
But tellingly, the bloke involved didn’t even mind, and his friends say
“He wasn’t offended – he may even have invented this nickname for himself”
The BBC Have Your Say page sums the actual mood of the nation up nicely:
Now I’m no huge Royalist, but FFS, this non-story today and more whipped-up hysteria about a man not hitting a dog a few weeks back really makes me wonder if Big Brother isn’t enough of an opiate for the masses this time round:
The RSPCA has been investigating claims the The Earl of Wessex, Prince Edward, may have struck a Labrador with a walking stick on the Queen’s Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
But it now says there is not enough evidence to support the allegation.
The investigation followed public complaints when pictures showing the prince holding a stick over a black Labrador were published in December.
Buckingham Palace said the prince had waved his stick to break up a fight between his two dogs over a dead pheasant.
In a statement, the animal charity said: “The RSPCA has closed its investigation as there was insufficient evidence to support the allegation that Prince Edward beat his dog.”
But it’s not just the press – a group called Republic are masturbating themselves into a frenzy
“Harry’s comments are a disgrace and may seriously harm our armed forces.
“Harry Wales has not only demonstrated how he is unfit to be a possible future Head of State, he has shown he isn’t even fit to be a leader of men and women in the armed forces.”
Now, has anyone got any REAL news?
Links: http://princeharryapology.blogspot.com/
More twattage: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7826701.stm
