The other point on that is that the Portuguese press are all over this case and would presumably have been briefed in their own language, no confusion over “clues” and “clothes”, it would have been picked up on immediately had the PJ said that clothes had been found.

I dont think that the blood specks are anymore Madeleine’s than mine, and sadly, the Mccanns will be in limbo hell forever.

I suppose I just assume that the reports of what he said (”clues”) have been correct. I wonder why it has been reported that way? Would he not have corrected incorrect interpretations? What are the Portuguese papers saying he said?

This may simply be a question of poor English (NOT a criticism!) rather than a deliberate misreporting by all the media. I’m quite sure that if they thought he had meant “clothing”, the media here would have had a field day. The mere mention of clothing would certainly not implicate the McCanns in the crime (though it would certainly be devastating for them), so even if our media are trying to protect the McCanns’ reputation at all costs (a theory I certainly do not accept), there would be no reason for them not to leap on the mention of Madeleine’s clothing being found, or clothing which might be hers. It would certainly be news and no paper would want to fail to report it.

The clothing of the missing Swiss child was found but I don’t really think that this is likely to be what was being referred to in the interview. However, I DO think this matter could well be of significance in the Madeleine case, if the information we have been given about this line of enquiry is reliable. The thought of the media providing us with any reliable information about anything is somewhat ludicrous, I know.

The “ing” is odd, though, I agree.

The McCanns have been through a dreadful week. The people I have heard discussing the matter seem to take the view that it is simply disgraceful that they have had to bear the slurs as well as the tragedy of losing their child.

Daily Mirror:
Police said his extaordinary announcement was based on the discovery of blood inside the McCann’s appartment at Praia da LUZ.
Friends of Kate and Gerry, both 39, said detectives will be left looking foolish if tests show the blood does not belong to Madeleine, four. One said: “If it turns out that way, then Portugese police are going to look like the Keystone Cops.”

Again I cant possibly believe the police spokesman was referring to the blood. The only other answer is that he was making a mischeivous statement in assuming possible death without evidence in order to get ‘people’ talking who they may have under surveillance (e-mail, phone tap etc). Or it could be ‘clothing’ he said after all…..

I suppose its one way to proceed for the McCann’s and their friends. Create enormous amounts of sympathy. Get the media to declare you virtual saints. Declare the police incompetent. The more this goes on the more I’m convinced that even if the McCann’s and friends ARE hiding a sinister secret (as I believe they are but hope I’m wrong) then any excuse possible will be promoted to question any implicating evidence.

One or two people on these boards are already coming up with excuses as to why an unknown abductor would kill the child, clan traces of blood and then abduct them. How ridiculous can it get in an attempt to keep the McCann’s out of the equation.

Of course the above scenario is very hypothetical at this stage but you can see where this will be going if god forbid, the McCanns are implicated in ANY way.

I’m not sure what the reason for it is, it may just be that his English is weak overall. The whole sentence is: “In the past few days, it gets been happen some developments, and some clos-ing in the… had been found, that could point in the possible death of the little child.”

I think it might be possible he said ‘clos-ing’ but actually meant that to mean ‘clues’. Just a thought? But then again, the words ‘in the…’ sound maybe as though he was going to say where these ‘clothings’ had been found but then thought better of it.

So you have a vaild point in my opinion - but you may also need a holiday! I do!

Dogstar you write of paedophilia: “It is yet another unfortunate expression of human sexuality, however unpalatable and unacceptable that might be to the great majority of adults” - what about the kids and babies who are violated? They dont know big words like unpalatable and unacceptable. But “it hurts” would go some way to summing things up. A society should be judged on how well it treats the vulnerable - kids, elderly etc. And for the most part, those without a legal voice ie: loads of money is largely ignored. People who violate those who have absolutely no way of defending themselves should be hunted, but as you say, celebrity is the new God and war, famine will be ignored.

You know, adults get shot, stabbed, murdered, chopped-up and stolen all the time, every day, everywhere. But only when a child is involved do otherwise normal people suddenly become completely regressive, ditching all notions of common sense and justice - they act on some primal, highly contageous instinct to ‘take it out’ on the nearest, most likely suspect. In this modern age, more perhaps than ever before, there seems to be an unspoken license, both on the part of police and government, to act like a complete fools whenever paedophilia enters the equation (imagined or not).

But it’s pointless to ever look to the tabloids or even the broadsheets for any sensible discussion around the subject. It will not happen until there is a seismic shift in social, political and legal thinking. And I think that day is very, very far away. The McCann girl’s tragedy is, in the end, what it always was - before it was hijacked by the tabloids, that is - a sad tale of a child’s disappearance in a small Portugese holiday town. It happens all the time, everywhere. It always has. We have very short memories in this modern age. History seems to have taught us nothing. The most important questions - war, poverty, child-abuse - are left unattended, the elephants in the room, while we watch 24-hour reality TV and worship at the altar of celebrity.