British Army has "mosques" in firing line!

Just as the General Election hots up and gets into first gear we hear of another idiocy from the high command of the British Army. A Muslim group has demanded an apology from the Army after it emerged that replica mosques were being used on a North Yorkshire firing range. In response, a spokesman said, "We have no intention of offending religious sensibilities."

But I think this beggars belief. Did it not occur to some bigwig to think first? Maybe a question like "If we build replica mosques on a firing range and get squaddies to take aim at them, will that be a good idea?". Something along those lines. Maybe it was never discussed. Or if it was, some Corporal Colonel Square boomed out and those with doubts were silenced immediately.

When it comes to election time, idiots and their idiocies are never difficult to find. It just makes me wonder if the part of the human race that occupies the British Isles will ever learn. I've long thought the wrong people get to the top.

One simple question would have been to ask whether it would look good if the Saudi army had done a similar thing with churches. An Army spokesman went on, "Providing the best training facilities for our armed forces ahead of deployment to operational theatres is a priority for us. Facilities at Bellerby have been upgraded in response to operational feedback from Afghanistan as it is crucial that our armed forces train at ranges that replicate the environment they will be deployed to." Sounds good, but those cardboard cutout mosques hardly replicate the environment. And in any event, such an enterprise just creates more problems, as this one has done.

Lord Foulkes last man to talk about loyalty

Lord Foulkes has always been a scheming plotting Labour Man. Loyal only to Gordon Brown, keen on devolved government except for the English, and generally a man who puts party before country.

Now he has the cheek to suggest that military commanders' comments about resources "threaten to undermine our effort in Afghanistan and give succour to the enemy". He suggested to peers that General Dannatt and Sir Jock Stirrup should be reminded of the "importance of loyalty particularly when we are engaged in a very difficult war where victory is essential for the future safety of this country".

Bollocks, Foulkes! This war is not about safety of this country. If it were, then Pakistan would be picked apart to find the Al Quaeda terrorists along with Somalia and the client states of the Arabian peninsula. We can't even put a stop to the drugs trade which keeps Afghanistan going.

Victory may be essential but it is damned difficult to achieve when vacuous politicians keep the commanders from having the right and proper equipment to do the job properly.

Gordon Brown in army helicopter fantasy!

Gordon Brown's wonderland excursion on Wednesday at PMQs was a fantasy of the first order. Now the Chief of the Defence Staff, Sir Jock Stirrup, has said the deployment of more helicopters to Afghanistan would save soldiers' lives. Brown wittered on about the exact opposite. Now he is backtracking like a boy in front of the headmaster found out for telling fibs!

David Cameron said the government must listen to military commanders. "The prime minister has been telling us all week that they have got enough helicopters and actually now we know they don't," he said. What on earth are we to make of it all?

Someone keen to keep his weasel words up to scratch is Lord Mandelson. This interview from the BBC shows why he is such a wily character.