I am curiously distressed. Here is an article noting the first UK female military death on active duty for God knows how long. The response further down complains about it's manner of reporting and goes right over the top in its criticism.
Why distressed? Americans will be astonished at the low British count even considering the modest British component in Iraq. In Oz we have just lost our first, a man, - who seems to have died accidentally. We got our knickers in a twist because of a coffin cock-up. It is always distressing when soldiers are killed. I am sure Sgt. Beene, who faces this possibilty daily, would agree. But also for the treatment by the press and the knee-jerk reaction of some MRAs.
I can see the point of the man-forgotten, woman-song and dance aspect. But this is a notable first and therefore got some prominence. The vitriol in the response is distressing. If MRAs are to be taken seriously, we must rise above some things and make arguements much more cogent - and not disrepect those whose lives are lost doing their duty.
Distressed? Maybe it was because I still have some identification. I was an Air Trafficker in the RAF in a previous life. I was even at Shawbury for a while. I had some pretty good girl-controllers working for me.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2171443,00.html'She was one of the RAF's finest: courageous, upbeat and unselfish'
BY MICHAEL EVANS, DEFENCE EDITORCommander pays tribute to first British woman soldier to die in combat in Iraq
THE first British woman to be killed in the line of duty in Iraq was named yesterday as a 32-year-old flight lieutenant who died when a rocket-propelled grenade hit her helicopter in Iraq at the weekend.
Flight Lieutenant Sarah Mulvihill, who joined the RAF in 1997, would normally have been deskbound, helping to plan missions, providing support for helicopter crews and co-ordinating flights.
But she was in the helicopter to brief Wing Commander John Coxen, 46, who was newly arrived in Basra to take over as commander of the Joint Helicopter Command. Wing Commander Coxen was also killed.
Military sources thought that the helicopter may have been landing on one of the helipads in central Basra when it was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.
Flight Lieutenant Mulvihill is the first servicewoman to die from hostile fire in any British military operation since the 1980s. when an undercover agent is believed to have died in Northern Ireland.
The killing of Flight Lieutenant Mulvihill and the four others on board the Lynx helicopter brought the total number of British fatalities in Iraq to 109.
Her husband, Lee, a sergeant in the RAF and an air traffic controller based at the air traffic control centre at West Drayton, said: "Sarah was my best friend and my most beloved wife. Her loss has greatly affected and impacted on more people than anyone can comprehend."
Her parents, Terry and Sue Poole, who live in Herne Bay, said they did not wish to speak in public about their "devastating" loss. They were on holiday in Spain when the news broke. They flew back and went to stay with their son, Jason, who lives in Dover, according to neighbours.
One neighbour said: "Sarah was in the cadets when she was younger and this was all she ever wanted to do."
The Ministry of Defence said that the fatal flight was a "familiarisation" trip to help the wing commander to understand the layout of the Basra area.
Flight Lieutenant Mulvihill was the ideal officer to give him the guided tour. She had served as a flight operations officer in Basra for three months and knew the risks, the dangers, the lessons and the tactics learnt by the helicopter pilots when flying low over the city.
It was her second tour of duty in Iraq in three years.
The other three killed when the Lynx Mark 7 was shot down were identified yesterday as the pilot, Lieutenant- Commander Darren Chapman, 40, commanding officer of 847 Naval Air Squadron; the co- pilot, Captain David Dobson, 27, a member of the Army Air Corps who was attached to 847 Squadron and Marine Paul Collins, 21, an air door gunner.
Friends of Flight Lieutenant Mulvihill, who knew her as Sarah-Jayne, described her as "sociable, bubbly and always the life and soul of the party".
She was born in Canterbury and joined the RAF as an airwoman in May 1997 but was quickly spotted as a potential officer. She was selected for initial officer training in October 2001 and was commissioned into the air traffic control branch. Two years later she was posted to RAF Shawbury, in Shropshire, where she was trained as a flight operations officer, the role she was fulfilling in Basra.
http://fredxblog.blogspot.com/2006/05/male-soldiers-not-worthy-for-public.htmlMale Soldiers Not Worthy For Public Sympathy Commander pays tribute to first British woman soldier to die in combat in Iraq
The above article outlines a British soldier that was killed in Iraq.
Now, her death, as all deaths in wartime, is a tragic loss.
However, what gets me is that out of the 100+ British men that have died in Iraq, none of them are given quite the same considerations as the 1 British female that died.
(SP. Yes they have. Many have had glowing tributes)And get this:
"Flight Lieutenant Sarah Mulvihill, who joined the RAF in 1997, would normally have been deskbound, helping to plan missions, providing support for helicopter crews and co-ordinating flights. But she was in the helicopter to brief Wing Commander John Coxen, 46, who was newly arrived in Basra to take over as commander of the Joint Helicopter Command. Wing Commander Coxen was also killed."
See how the male soldier is marginalized by the piece, occurring as a mere footnote at the end of the section.
(SP. I didn't see it as a footnote nor marginalisation.)Also, it seems that the female solider was not meant to be in any danger, no, she was meant to be deskbound.
Deskbound!
Whilst all the men are required to face possible death at every turn, women are most certainly not.
(SP. No. Not all soldiers are front-line, 'facing death at every turn'. Many are in just the same job as this woman, and others in jobs even further removed from action)And yet, when the British, and indeed, the hundreds of US male soldiers die in Iraq, it is seen as yet another statistic; a mere '50 here' or '30 there' soldiers being blown up or shot at.
(SP. he says mere 100s od US soldiers, when it is now over 2000. He talks it down himself)Yet when it's a woman, we never hear such flippant remarks.
Also, look at the subordination of the men that were killed:
"The other three killed when the Lynx Mark 7 was shot down were identified yesterday as the pilot, Lieutenant- Commander Darren Chapman, 40, commanding officer of 847 Naval Air Squadron; the co- pilot, Captain David Dobson, 27, a member of the Army Air Corps who was attached to 847 Squadron and Marine Paul Collins, 21, an air door gunner."
Yes it seems the article had to mention these men as a matter of formality, as though they should be noted but by no means elaborated on.
Men, it seems, are just not worthy of attention.
Another line follows:
"Flight Lieutenant Mulvihill is the first servicewoman to die from hostile fire in any British military operation since the 1980s, when an undercover agent is believed to have died in Northern Ireland."
The above makes out that this 1 female death is outrageous, and that no woman should ever die in wartime conflict.
(SP. It doesn't state it as an outrage at all)What is most outrageous to me is that so few women compared to men have died in such circumstances.
And it is not just this article, there are many others, constantly referring to men as mere numbers and statistics, distancing the reader from them significantly, yet women are to be perceived as individuals and more newsworthy, inviting the reader to view them as precious and more important than men.
Even in the televised news reports, there are a number of condolences and a whole host of people shaking their heads about how tragic that a woman has died.
Yet when was such consideration ever given to men?
It seems that society think it is normal and to be expected when men die.
And that is most unsettling.
In short: any loss is unwanted and terrible, but when the feminist led media subordinate a man's life as insignificant or less important compared to a woman's, that just makes me furious.
And it should make you too!
POSTED BY FREDXBLOG AT 9:52 AM