Arkroyal,
As a British citizen with immense pride in our military SAR capability I am compelled to distance myself from your 'imperialistic' comments.
In the UK & Eire we have a SAR force with a heritage that has proven itself to be a world-leader.
Throughout the history of SAR this has been because to those involved have used their flexibility, ingenuity & determination to get the job done despite a lack of equipment or political backing.
As Dr Micheal Woods succinctly noted "Geography & politics have no meaning to those in distress".
In their recent audit by Price Waterhouse Cooper the Irish Coastguard statistics "compared favourable with comparable countries" & their performance was described as "excellent".
Assisting those is distress requires a team-effort right from the operator who takes the emergency call.
The focus must be on getting the job done & not on building kudo's.
You don't get any extra points for breaking records on a SAR mission.
Peace-time SAR has been borne out of humanity & part of that is the ideology that we will help anyone, at anytime, even those whose predicament is due to their own negligence.
In times of crisis we occasionally have to seek the help of those with resources that are complementary to our own.
Recognising when a task requires additional assistance to be accomplished safely & efficiently is an integral part of mission planning.
I believe in letting the politicians do the politics, leaving us to do what really matters..............
