http://www.cross-currents.com/archives/2014/04/23/and-now-for-something-completely-different/
Was anyone else bothered with this boys complete lack of respect for something that a lot of people take very seriously also did it cross his charidie centric mind that the gaurd might suffer as a result of his antics
Perhaps even more troubling is the fact that menkin finds this immature harassment amusing
Was anyone else bothered with this boys complete lack of respect for something that a lot of people take very seriously also did it cross his charidie centric mind that the gaurd might suffer as a result of his antics
Perhaps even more troubling is the fact that menkin finds this immature harassment amusing
Actually to be fair this is a common activity. The guards are under strict orders not to react to anything, just to stand there and look serious. People try their shtick out on them all the time.
ReplyDeleteI got through about half way of the video and had to stop it . This wasn't what I call humour. It is true that tourists do try and get the guards to react, but I'm not convinced an Orthodox Jew should be doing so, I mean would he do this to the Marines guarding the white house?
ReplyDeleteThe other thing I didn't like was the hysterical reaction by the author to a few points being made to him , but especially the factual errors which he responded with.
i.e. -
"The duties of the family guard in England are entirely ceremonial. He is protecting nothing, deterring nothing, it is entirely pomp and circumstance. Let’s be honest — the guard looks pretty ridiculous. And the job of human hood ornament for the royal family isn’t all that interesting if the tourists just take photos. [Ever see anything like this in Israel, where the IDF is protecting against real dangers? You won't find them at 10 Downing St. either, of course.]"
The problem is that the soldiers on 'ceremonial duty' are the same professional soldiers of the British army who go out and fight. It could be Buckingham palace one week, Afghanistan or Iraq or the Falklands the next; however he must surely have heard of the murder of a British solider in London last year, so this seems to be a bit insensitive? With terrorism this could happen outside of Buckingham Palace. So YES there are, like the IDF, protecting against real dangers and real conflicts. Downing Street is the seat of the Prime Minister, not the head of state, hence why it is guarded by the civilian police. I could go on and on, but let's just say if elements of the Israeli Haredi movement have no respect for their own IDF, in particular their refusal to join it, then exactly why would they show any respect for a friendly foreign nation's defence forces ?