Marine Has Murder Conviction Reduced

[mikey4444]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39278929

I seem to recall that this case has raised a few hackles here on AB....this is the latest news.

[trt]

## Isn't he the Marine that shot dead an insurgent in cold blood and then admitted it on camera? ##

I thought the insurgent was badly injured with no hope, so he shot him to put him out of his misery?

Well done him, and at least he didn't film it to show on You-tube, like the Isi Scum.

[naomi24]

AOG, unless you're going to tell us what you did in the war there's little point in banging on about it on thread after thread. For all we know the only action you saw could have been a stint at spud bashing!

[murraymints]

trt..he thought the insurgent already dead..

whatever AOG did or did not do in the war has no relevance on this thread..or anywhere come to that it is his business !!

[Sqad]

During WW2 I was initially in the 5th St Pauls scouts and then transferred to the 33rd Boroughbury Sea Scouts in Peterborough.
Active action involved a local girl in the school pavilion.
However:
Son 1.......Royal Marine saw active service in Northern Ireland.
Son 2...Flew Tornadoes in the Iraq war.
Son 4. SAS saw active service behind enemy lines in Iraq War.

Son 3....waste of space.

All 3 sons have said that if there was any chance that the wounded insurgant MIGHT have been armed and in a theatre of war, then killing the man may well have been acceptable.

[naomi24]

murraymints, in that case instead of telling us his experiences would make our hair curl, he should keep it his business.

[anneasquith]

" he shot a man who would have shot him" really.??? He said the soldier was dead !!!!!!

[naomi24]

^In that case he couldn't have murdered him

[trt]

## He said the soldier was dead !!!!!! ##

He couldn't be dead, because he would have had to service the 30 Virgin Maidens up above.

[andy-hughes]

This has been one of the more emotive subjects when originally debated in AB, and it brought out the usual views from the usual protagonists.

I believe that, as the civilised side in the conflict, it is beholden on us to put rules of conduct in place, and to ensure that we adhere to them - to do otherwise reduces us to the morally bankrupt extremists that we rightly oppose.

Adhering to those rules of conduct has seen Mr Blackman tried, convicted and sentenced for his behaviour, which is appropriate.

I do understand the pressures and situation he was in from the detached point of view the majority of us enjoy, never having been in the situation, but that in itself cannot excuse illegal behaviour - anyone who behaves illegally, from a speeding fine to murder, can find mitigating circumstances, and if all are taken, then the concept of law dissolves instantly.

Each case is judged on its circumstance, and if, as on this occasion, the law has re-visited its decision and come to a different conclusion, than that is what it is.

I don't believe for one moment it exonerates Mr Blackman, or is a cause for celebration for any but his immediate family, and we shall wait to see what the law decides is the way forward.

[anotheoldgit]

naomi24

/// AOG, unless you're going to tell us what you did in the war there's little point in banging on about it on thread after thread. For all we know the only action you saw could have been a stint at spud
bashing! ///

Blimey naomi that is a bit harsh, are you in a particular bad mood today, and so have chosen me to have a go at?

As already said what I did during the war has nothing to do with this thread, or even anyone else, I was simply asked the question and gave my answer.

And I do not bang on about the war, thread after thread as you so incorrectly and rudely pointed out. But that will not prevent me from stating the true living facts regarding WW2, when others who never experienced those times, bring the matter up.

And yes for your knowledge I along with my fellow servicemen, would not shy away at some stage from carrying out a little 'spud bashing' if the need so arose.

You should try it sometime it beats all your prepared microwave dinners, some that have never seen a spud.

[Peter Pedant]

// Footnote: War is war, and if you are sent to fight for your Country, your Country should fight for you!//

so machine gunning the stalag III escapers was OK was it ?
and putting the survivors ( not many ) into Mauthausen concentration camp was OK too ?
or do you believe on the battlefield and in war there are rules to be followed ?
such as not shooting surrendered prisoners
if you think that is OK then you have to rewrite the history of the wormhoudt massacre

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wormhoudt_massacre

or Malmedy ( US so they clearly dont matter - and by the same regiment (adolfhitlerliebstandarte ss)

anyway I am glad manslaughter has been substituted

( judge did have that option at trial but didnt exercise it - as in offering it to the jury. )

[Peter Pedant]

// Blimey nay that is a bit harsh, are you in a particular bad mood today, and so have chosen me to have a go at? // AOG -> N24

yeah we call her mad dog mavis in my household !

being an adder - you were too young to do anything interesting in the war innit AOG

say you were 20 in 1945 so you would be born in 1925
75+17 is 92..(I can add see?) ..and you said a few months ago that you were quite a bit younger than that.....[mid eighties]


oh god AOG do you remember the fifties and sixties and all the old men reliving the battles ? POWs such as my dad were looked on as 'not able to contribute' as all he old battle were refought with varying results. Awful lot of poncing around then.
( I was aged five sitting under the table listening to it all )

[andy-hughes]

Peter Pedant - //so machine gunning the stalag III escapers was OK was it ?
and putting the survivors ( not many ) into Mauthausen concentration camp was OK too ? //

That's the 'So' Rule in action - I thought you were brighter than that.

[andy-hughes]

divebuddy - //Having "rules" in place to ensure that civilisation continues despite war, really ought to include rules about soldiers getting a fair trial. //

I would like to be associated with the remarks of the last speaker.

[ChillDoubt]

Ah, I see the usual do-gooders have had their two pennorth worth:

//to do otherwise reduces us to the morally bankrupt extremists that we rightly oppose.//

Not sure we've plumbed those depths yet. When we start beheading aid workers and filming it for gratification or using children as suicide bombers we'll be on par.....

Good result, correct decision but as Forsyth says we needed tackle the idiots who brought about such a pathetic case in the first place.

[naomi24]

aog, I’m not in a bad mood – just fed up reading veiled and unsubstantiated claims from a self-proclaimed hero of old.

andy-hughes to PeterPedant, //That's the 'So' Rule in action - I thought you were brighter than that.//

Considering the ‘so’ rule is nothing more than a figment of your imagination, that's a ludicrous comment. I’ll ignore PeterPedant’s rudeness on the grounds that I expect no more from him.

ChillDoubt, //When we start beheading aid workers and filming it for gratification or using children as suicide bombers we'll be on par.....//

I agree with you.

[hereIam]

Should be released forthwith in my opinion ...

[ChillDoubt]

//I do understand the pressures and situation he was in from the detached point of view the majority of us enjoy,//

Unless you've been teeth arms in a combat zone I doubt you'd have the foggiest.....

[andy-hughes]

ChillDoubt - //Ah, I see the usual do-gooders have had their two pennorth worth:

//to do otherwise reduces us to the morally bankrupt extremists that we rightly oppose.//

If that view makes me a 'do-gooder', then I can live with that.

// Not sure we've plumbed those depths yet. When we start beheading aid workers and filming it for gratification or using children as suicide bombers we'll be on par..... //

No argument there - but where do you think moral bankruptcy starts?

Do you imagine that jihadists wake up one morning and decide to go and chop the heads off a few innocent civilians?

I suggest it is more insidious than that - it starts with random acts of cruelty and escalates from there as morality vacates the soul and simple bloodlust moves in.

And maybe one of the points along the way is shooting dying soldiers ...