
Mr McBean, MRSA And Canada Honours Its Dead At Rush Hour
“HARRY HERO GETS MRSA,” says the Sun’s front page, so adding some perspective to the War on Terror and meaning to Royal Marine Ben McBean.
Mr McBean is Prince Harry’s hero because Harry says he is a hero. McBean lost an arm and a leg in Afghanistan when a Taliban mine exploded.
McBean was taken to Selly Oak NHS hospital, where he was given the best treatment and a dose of MRSA, as is alleged.
To the Sun this is “SICKENING”. The NHS denies Mr McBean contracted MRSA in their care, and deep in the article the paper notes that he is in possession of ‘colonised’ MRSA and his wounds are not infected.
But who needs facts when the story fits in neatly with the Sun’s Help For Heroes campaign to salute our servicemen.
We need to honour and reward our armed forces. But do we do enough?
The pictures are of Canada saluting its War On Terror dead on a typically busy Canadian road and of Britain saluting its fallen in a traffic jam.
Says the Mail in “Pictures that should shame us all reveal the shabby way Britain treats its fallen heroes”:
Coffins carrying the Canadian soldiers’ bodies are driven 107 miles from the airbase at Trenton, Ontario, to a coroner’s office in Toronto; in Britain the trip is 50 miles from RAF Lyneham, Wiltshire, to the morgue at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital.
In Canada the road is cleared and a police escort of several squad cars ensures a smooth passage as onlookers pay tribute and police and fire officers salute.
But in Britain most of the journey is spent ignored and stuck in traffic – because Thames Valley Police refuse to provide an escort as they “focus on community safety rather than ceremonial roles.”
Of course, the picure is of Canada in rush hour. And in Canada only the dead can hear you scream. But that is besides the point…
Posted: 15th, April 2008 | In: Prince Harry, Royal Family, Tabloids, War On Terror Comments (3) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments





August 14th, 2008 at 11:21 pm
It is such a shame that we forget about these people who have literally laid down their lives for our sake. Who said human nature wasn’t selfish?
April 16th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
last year I visited the Canadian war memorial at Vimy in northern France and was extremely impressed by the care, respect and investment that Canada had made in honouring their war dead.
the problem is that here we don’t like to acknowledge the horror of what is going on and choose to brush it under the carpet whenever possible to avoid embarrassment.
the Daily Mirror has for months now been running a campaign to get medals for the war wounded and dead - it is shameful that the hierarchy sat on their fat posteriors in the MOD are not forced by the government to pull their fingers out and do something about it - it is, after all, a very very small gesture in comparison with the sacrifice made.
April 15th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
As an ex patient of Selly Oak Hospital, I think McBean is lucky to be alive.