What's this about Prince Harry?

[Feliks]

There was an article over on CNN that Britain's Prince Harry is going off to combat in Iraq, and now some have taken to calling him a "bullet magnet".

Now, from my outsider American perspective I'm unsure on what description fits best; Is he the Medieval second-son sent off on the Crusade in hopes of fame and glory (in this case media attention), or is he a selfless idealist who wants to patronize the common cause by sharing in the horrors of war?


And when can we expect the Bush twins in enlist?

[LoZz]

prince harry is in the army, he is an enlisted soilder, his unit is off to iraq and he didnt want to be left behind because of who he is, so he is going to fight with the lads.

he is the 3rd in line to the throne after his father charlies who was in the navy and his older brother william who is also in the army. this isnt the first time this has happened, one of the royals was a helicopter pilot in the falklands

the concern is that militans may target him because of who he is if they can work out which base he is in, this will put the lives of soilders he is with and himself at risk

[Cassy]

It's the idea of heir and spare. Practically all the royals are in the armed forces, but the risk of sending a future King into battle is too great. So the second son usually does a bit of dirty work to keep up appearances. Charles did not go to war, whereas Andrew saw actions in the Fawklands.

Thing is though Harry will in fact be tucked away nice and safely at British HQ. Besides, it would be irresponsible to give him actual commanding responsibilities that his rank would typically perform. His unit is being sent to a dangerous area patrolling the Iraq-Iran border. The British have wanted to withdraw from there for ages and hand it over to the Iraqis, and only stay at the insistance of the Americans.

[Feliks]

So what does the British public think of these royal antics? I know that if here in the U.S. one of our celebrities was doing that type of thing they would almost instantly be called out as just doing it for attention.

[LoZz]

So what does the British public think of these royal antics? I know that if here in the U.S. one of our celebrities was doing that type of thing they would almost instantly be called out as just doing it for attention.

i say good on him!, thats what real leaders are ment to do, i respect him more then i do any politician like tony blair who declares war, dont see his eldest son over their fighting

Some people say it is right that the royals should serve if they wish to be commanders and enjoy their unmerited lifestyles, others say it is recklessly endangering proffessional soldiers. I'm inclined to believe the latter.

harry is a proffessional soldier as well, he went threw all the tuff trainning as they did, thats why he wants to go with his unit, because of the harsh conditions, their united as a unit

[Mikelus Trento]

So what does the British public think of these royal antics? I know that if here in the U.S. one of our celebrities was doing that type of thing they would almost instantly be called out as just doing it for attention.

Do you know who Patrick Tillman is?

[Feliks]

Do you know who Patrick Tillman is?

The football player who was killed over there? Yeah, I've heard of him (although it took Wikipedia to refresh my memory). I think the reason why people respect him is because he had a very promising and profitable career in front of him but he gave it up to serve. I think the reaction would be different if the person left under different circumstances.

[Cassy]

Some people say it is right that the royals should serve if they wish to be commanders and enjoy their unmerited lifestyles, others say it is recklessly endangering proffessional soldiers. I'm inclined to believe the latter.

[Cassy]

Maybe so, but he did jump to his rank on the basis of his title alone. He is not rank and file.

[LoZz]

Maybe so, but he did jump to his rank on the basis of his title alone. He is not rank and file.

no he went to sandhurst, he went to uni, got a degree and then qualified as an officer, at sandhurst, the same as every officer has to do, they didnt give it to him, he earnt it.

you cant be promoted to an officer in the uk army, my tutor at college was in the army for a good 20/30 years, the highest rank an enlisted man "rank and file" can get to is a colour sergant (i think) you have to go to sandhurst in order to become an officer. which he did.

every officer went the same way harry did, college, sandhurst and then their he is a Second Lieutenant

[Feliks]

no he went to sandhurst, he went to uni, got a degree and then qualified as an officer, at sandhurst, the same as every officer has to do, they didnt give it to him, he earnt it.

you cant be promoted to an officer in the uk army, my tutor at college was an in the army for a good 20/30 years, the highest rank an enlisted man "rank and file" can get to is a colour sergant (i think) you have to go to sandhurst in order to become an officer. which he did.

No more Battle Field Commissions?

[LoZz]

No more Battle Field Commissions?

no, not unless in times of need, for example another WW2 situation when officers where being called faster then they could be trained

Fair enough, I did not know that.

its an odd system i know, when i asked my tutor he said the reason for it was that a military leader cant get to "buddy buddy" with his men as he has to make tuff leadership calls such as sending them to their death. if you promote a man from a unit to the rank of officer, he would of had to have been in the army for a while and would of devloped a "friendship" with the guys he now has to command, which may effect his leadership desicion and not make him an effective leader (its harder to send your friends to die then people you dont know)

this is why officers do not eat with the soilders and have their own mess hall, to stop them becomming friends.

Given that Harry is not even Charles own son I find his claims to be third in line for the thrown to be a bit dubious to say the least. At least this way we get some use out of him.

you didnt read nostradamus by any chance did you?

[Freddie]

you didnt read nostradamus by any chance did you?

Can you please indulge me further on this point; I’ve had a hard day although I do who Nostradamus is.

[VALIS]

no he went to sandhurst, he went to uni, got a degree and then qualified as an officer, at sandhurst, the same as every officer has to do, they didnt give it to him, he earnt it.

you cant be promoted to an officer in the uk army, my tutor at college was in the army for a good 20/30 years, the highest rank an enlisted man "rank and file" can get to is a colour sergant (i think) you have to go to sandhurst in order to become an officer. which he did.

every officer went the same way harry did, college, sandhurst and then their he is a Second Lieutenant

Dear LoZz
Kind Regards

That is not exactly true you can join sandhurst straight out of high-school if you have a minimum of 140 higher UCAS points.
Although 90% of officers do have a degree.
In a way ferre.......Cassandra is right about prince harry cutting into sandhurst.He did not actually go to university or college.
He did go to 'Eton college' while it is called a 'college' it is essentially a high-school (a posh one at that)
He only took geography where he got a D and art where he got a B (with considerable controversy)
He barely just barely scrapped the grade to get into sandhurst. (160 UCAS points)
Not many cadets get accepted with that low a score.I'm sure his birth title helped him along.
Anyway,all this talk is pointless as he's now in and apparently a good officer.
I wish him and his unit luck in his deployment to Iraq.


Yours Thankfully
MM

[Cassy]

Fair enough, I did not know that.

[Freddie]

Given that Harry is not even Charles own son I find his claims to be third in line for the thrown to be a bit dubious to say the least. At least this way we get some use out of him.

[MaximiIian]

i say good on him!, thats what real leaders are ment to do, i respect him more then i do any politician like tony blair who declares war, dont see his eldest son over their fighting.

I concur. The mark of a good leader is that he leads by example, taking the same risks his men take.

Given that Harry is not even Charles own son

May I direct to: Wiki.

Wasn't he heir to the German throne

French Imperial. Other side of the Rhine. Napoleon Eugene, a.k.a the "little eagle".

[jankren]

If Harry was kidnapped, the Brits would surely agree to the insurgent's demand to flee Iraq. Well or maybe that is what they really want?

[Feliks]

If Harry was kidnapped, the Brits would surely agree to the insurgent's demand to flee Iraq. Well or maybe that is what they really want?

I don't know about that, can you manage all the perceived weakness that would cause? I don't care if it's the king, prime minister, president, whatever that's kidnapped, the moment you start giving in to their demands is the moment you've lost.

And besides, the Royal family, while not actually in charge of the country, is still part of a leadership who will not negotiate with terrorists to save their citizens from confinement. It would be the hight of hypocrisy if they were to compromise on those convictions the moment their consequences hit closer to home.

[Cassy]

A tad Machiavallian perhaps.