The Will Rhodes Portmanteau

I have to giggle when I read some things - if I didn’t I would most certainly go mental! Mental as in crazy! Mental as in completely off my forest living rocker. I think now that you have the picture. Me, in a corner rocking back and forth mumbling the Star Spangled banner ate my dad. That sort of thing.

But then I do realise that what I have just read is, in fact, serious! This is what I am blogging about:

Young people must be given a true picture of Army life, not a “marketised version”, the National Union of Teachers conference heard.

Hey, when I was in school it was pretty obvious - even for a dullard such as I, that if you join the army you may get shot at! Kinda goes with the territory. As kids we used to play a game, you know, outside with our friends - and it was an army game - one side was the Germans and the other was the British, some even wanted to be those pesky Americans, but still…

Those were days when kids played outside, unlike the sanitised PC world of today. Oh - but we must mention those other forms of entertainment that kid have, Wii, PSP, and Playstation 3 - imagine if those game had terrible war games on them - what would teachers say then!?

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) denies actively recruiting in schools but says it does visit to raise awareness when invited in by head teachers.

Good on the head teachers for bringing an opportunity to the kids, other than Tour of Duty 97, the wrath of the cyber-glorbes from the black moon of Ketha.

Paul McGarr, a teacher from east London, said only when recruiting materials gave a true picture of war would he welcome them into his school.

That’s right, Paul - give the kids picture books of dead soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan - that will put them off for life! Or it could turn them into kids who have nightmares for the rest of their natural born…but he is a teacher so he knows best. And further:

These would have to say: “Join the Army and we will send you to carry out the imperialist occupation of other people’s countries,” Mr McGarr said.

“Join the Army and we will send you to bomb, shoot and possibly torture fellow human beings in other countries.

“Join the Army and we will send you probably poorly equipped into situations where people will try to shoot or kill you because you are occupying other people’s countries.

“Join the Army, and if you survive and come home, possibly injured or mentally damaged, you and your family will be shabbily treated.”

I wonder if he was bullied in school, because if you put that kind of stuff to kids - they will be scarred for life even if the DON’T go into the army.

Personally I would like some of the people I know to comment on this - it would be interesting to see what they have to say.

Go Mr S!