As anyone who knows me knows, I hate The Sun. It is a singularly foul mouthed rag masquerading as a newspaper. Now that I've declared my position let us begin...
Grief. It's an awful emotion. When one is struck by the loss of someone very close to you, as most of us have been, the vast amount of conflicting emotions can overwealm you. There is often anger mixed up with grief, usually at yourself and perhaps some missed opportunity for a final goodbye, which can manifest itself in ugly and unpleasant ways.
There is no doubting the grief of the mother of Guardsman Jamie Janes, who sadly lost his life in the conflict in Afghanistan. And it is somewhat unsurpising that something as seemingly insignificant as bad handwriting might, thanks to her grief, arouse her anger at a Prime Minister who presides over the very conflict that killed her son. This is all clear enough, and somewhat understandable. Despite my feeling she was being unreasonable, I find it hard to blame a grieving parent for almost any action they made in the months following the death of their child.
The Sun however has no such excuse. I'm no friend of The Sun, but I'm also no friend of Gordon Brown. But surely even those of us who dislike the Prime Minister cannot fail to be slightly forgiving towards him should he make a mistake/a mess whilst taking the time to write a personal message to the family of one our armed forces fallen? I find it rather disgusting that the Sun would choose to exploit this woman's grief and the death of a soldier to score cheap political points.
But then again... this is The Sun... what else should one expect?
This blogger works for nothing but the joy of writing but always appreciates things bought from his wishlist
1 comment:
I agree 100%. Well said. And the Sun was initially the most enthusiastic newspaper for sending the troops to Afghanistan. But it doesn't have to live with the consequences. It just blows in the wind.
Two positives -
Many people, not just his supporters, feel sorry for Gordon Brown over this.
I understand that there is dissention amongst Sun editors over their stance.
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