THE mystery of Madeleine McCann’s disappearance is turning into a parody.
Who knew that when Simon Jenkins wrote “It was as if a missing child were this year’s Make Poverty History campaign”, his words would give the grief mongers an idea?
As Sky News reports, green and yellow wristbands symbolising the plight of missing Madeleine McCann have gone on sale.
The yellow ribbons (has anyone seen anyone wearing the ribbons we are all wearing?) are old hat. To show you really care you need the official wristband.
The bracelet costs £1. And, as reported, all proceeds will go towards the campaign fund set up by Madeleine’s family to help continue the search for the little girl.
That’s good. Useful even. The money will surely help the McCanns dedicate their time to the search for their missing daughter.
But why not just give money via the fighting fund? Or by wearing the wristband do you share in the public spectacle, show how much you care and, crucially, how much more you care more than non-wristband wearers…
Posted: 25th, May 2007 | In: Twitterings Comments (52) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
Comments
- June on Why The Royal Mail Rejected Benny Hill
- Karen on The Ten Craziest Reasons Why Nidal Malik Hasan Did It
- Karen on The Ten Craziest Reasons Why Nidal Malik Hasan Did It
- Pam on Interview With Survior Of James Arthur Ray’s Sedona Sweat Lodge
- To christ on The Ten Craziest Reasons Why Nidal Malik Hasan Did It
September 11th, 2007 at 11:31 pm
the question now is..how would people feel if the proceeds of the fund go to Madeleine’s parents to defend themselves against the charges ( which is possibly still fair enough - i guess most people want to help madeleine’s living relatives) and then it turns out it was Madeleine’s parents who are responsible. just say it was an accident - i’m curious as to how people would feel. would they feel cheated?
July 18th, 2007 at 8:06 pm
I am personally and directly involved with the Find Madeleine campaign and must say this to all of you………please
if you have nothing positive to say then save your energy for the time when you will need both it, and the support from others, if you happen to face a terrible ordeal. The loss of Madeleine and the high public profile of her reminds everyone to keep a watch out for all children in the world aswell as Madeleine and hold close our own children.
Buy a wristband, wear a T shirt or don’t, but remember…….if you have to blame someone then let that be the person(s) who took Madeleine.
June 22nd, 2007 at 9:15 pm
I think that the over publicity of Madeleine’s case has hopefully raised awareness of all missing children.
Gina, you disgust me far more than the people you are complaining about who have simply expressed their opinion. Lines like “See you. Wouldn’t want to be you. Or your kids.” just show how incredibly stupid and immature you are. You sound like a bloody 5 year old in a playground fight! It’s laughable. I agree on the whole with what you have said but you have sunk so low.
Anyway, I do agree with those who have quite rightfully asked what makes Madeleine different to other missing children? If a black, working class disabled kid of the same age went missing in the same circumstances I think we all know that the media would have treated it very differently. Those who have pointed this out (only to be called “cynical” and “heartless”) are making a valid point and we are by no means critising the McCanns for this, but instead the media.
And before someone spults out a load of emotive rubbish, I have bought a Madeleine wristband and wear it as a reminder and a symbol of hope for her safe return. I just wonder how the media would have portrayed the dissapearance of other children and I think that if some of you truely cared about people, you would be sickened by the fact that if a black, working class disabled child went missing the parents would be portrayed a lot differently. And I will repeat, that is purely the fault of the media and not of the McCanns (because some of you seem to think those of us who raise this issue are automatically horrible people who don’t care about Madeleine or her family).
Anyway, I hope that Madeleine and all missing children are found. I know a girl only a few years older than Madeleine who went missing, absolutely no media coverage. But then again she was an orphan so no one could really stretch to any empathy…. ALL missing children are important and I wear my Madeleine wristband to think of her but also of all other missing people in the world.
And a little disclaimer: I don’t want to offend anyone with anything I say because it appears that some people on here are hyper-sensitive to anything slightly controversial, so no offence to anyone
June 21st, 2007 at 6:06 pm
Cassie, you are a stupid idiot if you think that we don’t care for others as well, because we do, its just that madeline’s the one that we’re praying for atm, so bog off and leave us alone.
Now if you agree that we should support madeline then tell cassie how stupid she’s being!!!!!!
June 21st, 2007 at 6:03 pm
I suggest you stop being so obsessed with Madeline.
Think of the others for once!
June 21st, 2007 at 6:01 pm
I think that you should just think about all the children in the world that had been kidnapped, and ask yorself why you are making such a fuss over one child when you’re not over all the others?
I’m not praying for Madeline until everyone else starts praying for all children.
I’m not saying that i dont care for madeline, i do, but i want everyone else in the world to start praying for the others as well not just one little girl, its mean and pathetic not to think of the others.
I’m sorry.
June 12th, 2007 at 1:08 pm
If everyone is soooooo sick of hearing about this then why do they spent their time reading and leaving messages on these sites eh ?
Good Luck in your search for Maddie. Its the last time I will visit this site as most of the comments are sickening to read. I just wanted to read any comments to my last post on the 31st May.
Oh and by the way loads of people were talking about the picture I was carrying for 26miles….so surely thats a good thing.
June 2nd, 2007 at 2:53 pm
Personally I think the McCanns are directly involved in her disappearance. Maybe they’ve sold her to some extreme Catholic religious sect. Its not unknown. Very fishy in my opinion.
June 2nd, 2007 at 9:40 am
I wonder if the McCanns would have left a briefcase full of £50 notes in an unlocked, unsupervised room. What do you think?
June 2nd, 2007 at 9:15 am
kath Says:
“May 25th, 2007 at 1:13 pm
I have empathy for lots of people around the world. which is why i have directs debits set up for various charities overseas.
I also have empathy for Madeleine maybe more so, but not because she is photogenic with middle class parents. But because sleeping upstairs is MY daughter a little girl very similar to Madeleine who will be 4 on Monday, and I thank God she is here and we will be spending it together”
Just read your post, dear me you are THE SUN’s dream arent you…I bet you thank God and pray every day for all the lost, white precious angels worldwide dont you. Remember! if a child is so precious you dont walk several 100 yards down the road and leave 3 of the most precious things in your life on their own with the door unlocked etc…. Something very odd about the whole thing, and you lot are pretty odd not blaming the parents. I notice the tabloids have already hinted that the McCanns like a bit of ’swinging’ so even they’re tired of the story.
June 2nd, 2007 at 8:43 am
I find the whole Madeleine case toe curling. Its Diana-esque, mawkish and I am sick to death of women anchors clutching clipboards to their bosom asking us all to ‘emote’ together and share our grief. I’m not grieving, its bugger all to do with me, that’s the parents job. If it was a 4 stone black kid with a harelip it would be tough luck neglectful parents find your own hideous child.
And as for wristbands…that makes me want to projectile vomit, along with all this ‘what if it was your poor precious special child’ bull. If it was my special, lovely precious angel I wouldnt have left it alone in the first bloody place!
Its simple the parents are 100% to blame, it is their fault, they should now shut up, stop doing the McCann World Tour 2007, get back to work and spend some time with their remaining children.
June 1st, 2007 at 8:38 pm
The idea of a wristband is repulsive.
May 31st, 2007 at 8:07 pm
I cannot believe some of the comments that have been made. These sites are turning into a slanging match half the time.
I am a mother of an 8 yr old boy. Are the people who have written some of these nasty comments actually parents themselves. As parents we all make mistakes. Why are people dwelling on why this thing has happened. As Kate and Gerry have said in their interview on Sky, they will feel guilty forever for leaving the kids. Please please will people stop getting on to them. For pitys sake, they have had one of the most important things to them, snatched away without warning. Let them be, they have had enough negative comments and deserve whatever assistance and support they can get.
The wristbands are a good idea, as I agree, if one person sees it somewhere, wherever, it may be the one person who has seen someone next door with Madeleine and it will prompt them or jog their memory.
If I lost my son, I would do whatever it took to get him back, with as much help as possible from whoever offered it.
Will all the negative comments please stop. Its upsetting reading them.
I am walking a marathon in a weeks time and will be wearing a t-shirt with Madeleines picture on it…just to keep her face in peoples memory. Shame on anyone who thinks that that is wrong.
May 31st, 2007 at 3:06 pm
I am a parent of two beautiful children. (Now 14 and 10) I love them dearly and would do anything in my power to keep them safe. (Sounds like most loving parents doesn’t it?)
I think I look after them well, but after analyzing our lives after what has happened to the McCann family, it is easy to see how we have all taken chances with our children.
For several years my children have left our home (in a very, quiet cul-de-sac off a quiet cul-de-sac) to play at their friend’s houses further up the road. Several hours later I have then rung the friend’s parents just to check they really are there and thankfully evey time they had been! But they could have been snatched and out the country before I had rung up about them! With hindsight, they now have to call me when they get there!
Another example is our friends, who regularly holiday on campsites where all the children congregate at different play areas away from their parents and are gone for hours. What a fantastic opportunity for an abductor! These friends were openly condemning Madeleine’s parents for their neglect. I believe that if we all think hard enough, we have all taken chances when, under different circumstances, our children too could have been abducted.
Kate and Gerry McCann don’t strike me as being neglectful parents, just normal loving people, who were targeted and unlucky.
I wish them all the best in their campaign and fully support what they are doing to facilitate the safe return of their daughter Madeleine
May 29th, 2007 at 3:31 pm
Dicky Greenleaf are you some kind of retard? Does the name of the site not tell you something?!
May 29th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
WOW! What has our world come to? I felt extremely uneasy having read the above comments about little Madeline’s abduction. We need to pray for this family regardless of what we think about what actually happen or WHY it happened. If there were not “child snatchers” in our world we would not even be discussing this situation. I am a parent who lost a child through death and it makes you question all things known to us! You have to know that EVERY parent who has lost a child is tormented every second of every day. Where is our compassion? Madeline (all missing children) needs our ferverent prayers. The power of prayer is severly under rated in situations like this one. Obviously everyone has strong feeling about this topic. How about we come together for all missing/lost children? Keep hope alive for the unfound children of our world. We owe it to god’s precious gifts to us.
May 28th, 2007 at 4:50 am
I have just read that Madeleine’s parents are being lined up for the next series of Celebrity Big Brother- can this posisbly have a shred of truth in it?!?
See for yourselves: http://www.thespoof.com/news/spoof.cfm?headline=s1i19191
May 27th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
I hope Madeleine is found, just like everyone else around the world, but unlike some people, I feel bad for the McCanns. Everyone has made a mistake or two, including loving, responsible parents. I make mistakes all the time when it comes to my children and I love them more than anything. Everyone I know, has made a mistake when it comes to their children. The Mccanns made a mistake, which just so happens to be a whopper of a mistake, but only because of the individual that stole madeleine. They could have been asleep in the next room and the same thing could have happened. Otherwise, they would be just as responsible as you and I. Afterall, a mistake is only a mistake if there is a bad outcome.
The McCanns are very brave to go thru what they are going thru because I would want to die if it happened to me. On top of their missing daughter, their every move is being recorded to the media and broadcast world wide, which is just sick.
If the media spent this much time on every missing child case, then the demented individuals that abduct children, would have to think twice before they did it.
May 26th, 2007 at 8:50 pm
I’ve listened to the McCanns being interviewed and despite the headlines about them ‘feeling guilty’, it’s the sort of guilt you get when you take your eye off the ball for a second and something goes wrong. They don’t acknowledge that they were in any way neglectful. In fact the father likened leaving 3 toddlers on their own in a separate holiday apartment to dining at home in the garden. What planet is he on? I was hopping mad afterwards. I don’t have a shred of pity for them. I hope this little girl comes through - and then I hope they throw the book at them.
May 26th, 2007 at 1:34 pm
Gina, I agree with you. I am appalled by some of the comments on here by people who claim to be ‘loving’ and ‘responsible’ parents. Yet they spill their vitriol out like there’s no tomorrow.
How about a bit of compassion? They made a mistake yes, but all the other parents did the same thing and many others on the resort.
responsible parent (as you call yourself), I can see that it will make YOU feel better if the McCanns suffer.
To revel in the suffering of others is a nasty trait. If you pass that attitude onto your children you should be ashamed.
May 26th, 2007 at 1:03 am
Go to http://www.chron.com and do a search for Escobedo to answer the questions, “Would poor minority parents be treated differently/arested in this situation?” and “Would their other child(ren) be promptly removed from their care?”
Sure it’s the US, but I’ll wager the end result would be the same in the UK.
May 26th, 2007 at 1:00 am
In the interview I just watched, the impression I got was that they did feel a BIT guilty in the first week, but now they realize from the thousands of emails they have received that “everyone does it” and at worst “they were naive.” Not neglectful, not selfish, not short-sighted, or stupid or so damned careless and thoughtless that I want to shake them and all like them……..but merely NAIVE.
Just as I suspected and in their own words, They “have rationalized” their abandonement of their children that night. Who could have IMAGINED such a thing would happen, they ask? I’ll tell you who. All the parents out there who yelled WTF when they first heard this story, because while we are not perfect parents, we know that only a clueless idiot would leave three children age 3 and under alone for hours under those conditions. Because we are the ones who use the common sense God gave us and say to ourselves, “I can’t leave them alone. Who knows WHAT could happen while I’m gone?”
That two 38 year old doctors can still act like 13 year olds and pull out the “But everyone was doing it” line disgusts me. Even now, knowing what they have lost, they still just think it was naive and that they share no responsibility. Depending on the jurisdiction, it’s called child neglect, injury by omission, child endangerment, etc. There is a reason there are laws against it. To protect children from parents who refuse to act like parents.
May 26th, 2007 at 12:42 am
Such wicked greed for misery as you display appals me “Responsible Parent” You obviously haven’t seen enough of their unhappiness to get your rocks off. And as for Edwina’s silly weird fantasy about the McCanns, it says so much more about you. It is of course a well known self-justifying aspect of the paedophile psyche to imagine they “love” the children much more than the parents who don’t deserve them.
See you. Wouldn’t want to be you. Or your kids.
May 25th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
They apologized??? Of course, that makes everything okay then. They said sorry so of course they should not be held accountable now! They deserve to feel guilty for the rest of their lives. Like I said in my first comment I would bet that she would never have left her pocketbook full of money out for anybody to grab! Why then do parents not take the same care and consideration with something as precious and irreplaceable as their own flesh and blood? That is what I will never understand! My heart breaks for this poor sweet innocent child every second of everyday. And yes if I had made such an irresponsible decision and something as horrific as this had happened you bet there would be self-immolation. I would never be able to look in the mirror again because the only thing that would disgust me wouldn’t be tabloids as you say but would be me, myself!
I’m not spiteful!! I’m just dumbfounded and disgusted at the lack of responsibility and effort people put into being parents.
Come home safe Maddy!!!!
May 25th, 2007 at 11:01 pm
The McCanns say they are certain that Madeleine is still alive and is safe. They say they will never give up, nor will they come home, until they get her back. They will tour Europe. They will do everything in their power to keep the case in the media headlines, ensuring that everyone becomes aware of their missing daughter, and also ensuring that a massive amount of money is raised for the fund they have set up.
I’ve worked it out!!!!!
They know that their daughter is alive and is being looked after, because they have contact with her kidnappers.
The kidnappers are not paedophiles, they are criminals whose sole motive is money. They are looking after Madeleine, and have promised the McCanns that they will return her safely, provided their conditions for her release are complied with.
The purpose of the fund is of course to raise the required amount of ransom money.
As soon as the fund reaches the amount demanded by the kidnappers, the McCanns will get their daughter back in exchange for the cash.
They have agreed with the kidnappers that they will not involve the police, or do or say anything that would put the kidnappers, and therefore, Madeleine, in jeopardy.
The McCanns have also promised that after they get their daughter back they will not inform on the kidnappers, and will never divulge the real truth of what happened. Anyway, to do so would put themselves and their family at risk. These are, after all, ruthless criminals. All the McCanns want is their daughter back. A story to explain Madeleine’s sudden re-appearance has already been worked out.
All’s well that ends well. The family are ecstatically re-united, the world rejoices, the media take the credit for their unstinting efforts to help find “Our Maddie”, and the kidnappers are laughing all the way to the bank.
I should have been a tabloid journalist!
Crazy? Well it’s no crazier than some of the scenarios being promulgated by the mass media.
May 25th, 2007 at 9:06 pm
When I started feeling guilty about my own distress over a pretty, middle-class child when so many children all over the world are suffering, I went to the Amnesty International website and wrote letters for abducted children forced to be child soldiers in the Congo and Uganda. And I will continue to do so. Of course, I should have been doing so all along. Maybe the media attention on one child will help people channel their feelings of frustration and helplessness into channels that may help other children.
May 25th, 2007 at 8:05 pm
Yes, I agree with Joanne :
“Please stop being so cynical, obtuse and encouraging people to be unsupportive”
We should all stick together and support Maddie’s come back safe.
If you are not aware of it already that you better learn this:
every single thought or action has a reward, and if you don’t stop and change your mental way you will simply ROT in HELL.
My thoughts and prayers are for Madeline the innocent child and victim.
JANAKI
May 25th, 2007 at 7:55 pm
my thoughts and prayers are for madeline the innocent victim in all of this
May 25th, 2007 at 5:27 pm
To the “Blame the Parents” crusaders. they’ve apologised and said they are likely to spend the rest of their lives feeling guilty
http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,91210-1267560,00.html
Let’s see how long it takes you to come up with something in what they said to be spiteful about.
They even said they are aware of your views. Trust that’s enough for you or do you require further self-immolation on their part?
Get a life the lot of you, you disgust me more than the sickliest tabloid story and that is saying something. Yuk.
May 25th, 2007 at 5:13 pm
The effort to keep the story on the front pages or at least in the news could be seen in a different light maybe if it were true that no child has ever been found alive after an abduction but that is not the case. In the past few years there have been quite a few children found after being missing for a number of years and the way in which Madeleine just possibly appears to have been “selected” does give reason to “hope” she is being kept. the BBC has been responsible and decidedly non-mawkish in its coverage but I bet it is not reaching anything like the same number of people on this issue. You might loathe the Sun et al but they command huge readerships who require a certain amount of drama to stay interested and also affect the tourist trade - ie revenue bucks - of countries who might not have any other reason to be interested in this or any other foreign child. You might not like it but it’s Madeleine’s best hope. Bring on the baubles, bangles and beads quite frankly. If you’re bored, cynical or just plain resentful of the McCanns, do a crossword or read a book. Your irritation is of less importance than this kid.
May 25th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Can you please tell me where to purchase the Madeline McCann bracelet?
I live in the U.S and would like to know if I can purchase one here in the States.
Thank you
Michele Reynolds