I think you will find the main tenet of my original argument has more to do with concern over security issues than economic issues. It is yourself and Re-heat that are heavily playing the economic argument. And nor am I questioning the validity of having local translators for use by troops on the ground. That many of them are locals who happen to speak English doing the job for money rather than the fact that they love Auntie Liz and everything UK Plc stands for rather than being professionally qualified translators and interpretors is another matter entirely (our 'terp in the Balkans was one such example of this).
However, if you cannot see that Iraq is not conventional warfare, that we are fighting a counter-insurgency operation where the enemy doesn't make themselves readily apparent then you are missing the whole point of my argument.
If you can 100% guarantee that the people you want to bring into the UK have played no part in the deaths of or attacks on UK or coalition forces and that neither they nor any member of their extended families who will inveitably follow in tow have links to these militias, then crack on. However, you can't. And I for one am not prepared to put the safety and security of the average man in the British street at risk to salve the consciences of a few liberals who object to this whole (ghastly and ill advised) intervention. And I am not prepared to apologise for standing up and stating that I believe the security of the UK and its people must come before the security of locals in Basrah.
But as this whole argument rumbles on, I do find myself increasingly wondering why now? This phenomenon is not new, it has been going on quite openly and blatently since late 2003 / early 2004. And it has probably happened in every conflict we have fought in where we have engaged LECs to work for us. So why the sudden cries of outrage now? It will still be happening in 2008, 2009 and 2010. When we are not there, they will find some petty reason or personal, familial or tribal slight to kill each other over. Do you propose to continue to allow people being killed in inter-ethnic fighting the right to come to the UK just because you feel it is our moral duty to allow them to do so? Where do you draw the line? I would be interested to know, because this will set a precedent and a dangerous one that will see extremists arriving on the streets of Britain amongst their numbers.
If however, you are desperate to pull these people out of Iraq, why does the UK not pay for them to be re-settled elsewhere - not necessarily the UK - but out of harms way?
On a final note, I had a good look at the Blog you linked to. There was an interesting statement running along the top:
" Liberty, if it means anything is the right to tell people what they don't want to hear".
A very noble sentiment and one that goes to the heart of freedom of speach. Unless of course, you live in Britain in 2007, where if you dare to disagree with the prevailing wooly liberal theories and ideals, you are shouted down and vilified with a near totalitarian zeal as an outrageous lunatic fringe element. An interesting divergence of ideals and reality don't you think?
Last edited by Melchett01; 25th Jul 2007 at 13:22.