April 24, 2004
BEARS OF WAR
Peaceniks are alarmed by sinister mil-bears:
A project to provide children in Iraq with teddy bears has been criticised by peace campaigners, as the toys are made from military uniforms.
Volunteers at the US RAF Lakenheath base in Suffolk have been producing the soft toys from old and torn uniforms which were found in an attic.
These camo-clad Halliteddies will traumatise Iraqi toddlers, claim the peaceful:
Annie Wimbush, of Suffolk 4 Peace, said the material being used was inappropriate.
"The camouflage material, the uniform material that's being used could in fact trigger trauma symptoms in a child as well as relieve them," she said.
Reports that RAF volunteers were planning to ship depleted-uranium Lego blocks are yet to be confirmed.
Posted by Tim Blair at April 24, 2004 03:57 PMWell, I guess that puts paid to the "Alfred B. Nobel Lincoln Log Project" I was thinking of starting up...
Foiled again!
She don't have children, do she? Here I thought that sort of stupidity came about because of long term alcohol abuse.
The kids won't even know, for cryin' out loud. And if they did know they wouldn't care.
Cluesticks, we need more cluesticks.
Posted by: Alan Kellogg at April 24, 2004 at 04:56 PMDammit though - hit the link - that's one ugly bear...
Posted by: Will at April 24, 2004 at 05:29 PMDoesn't Annie Wimbush have a house to clean or some dishes to wash, something to do to prevent her from making asinine comments?
Posted by: Helen at April 24, 2004 at 06:28 PMMaybe the peaces (rhymes with feces) would like these better:
Posted by: Fred Boness at April 24, 2004 at 06:35 PMI hope those plush alien face huggers were made out of earth-friendly soy-based substitute, Fred.
Posted by: TimT at April 24, 2004 at 06:48 PMthe kids themselves are all wearing camo-fashions, for chrissakes
perhaps we should change the old bumper sticker:
when all else fails, hug your marine
oh, and I notice, further down the story, the fabric is also used to make blankets for the homeless
whaddya gonna do with them, Annie So-Fucked-4-Peace Wimbush?
huh?
Posted by: ilibcc at April 24, 2004 at 07:13 PMI am thinking of sending HIV+ blood soaked Teddies with REAL semtex sticks strapped to their tiny chests to Hamas children for an authentic Islamofacist treat.
Can you imagine the excitement of our little brain washed friends.
Posted by: Dog at April 24, 2004 at 10:26 PMI am very sure that this is done with the best of intentions but the result is just so G*dd*mn ugly I would not in a million years present one of those things to my own children, that being said, I cant realy see 'm triggering a traume though.
Posted by: Camera. at April 24, 2004 at 10:41 PMWhat is the matter with you people? Where the hell are your priorities?
On the one hand, all that the project is accomplishing is giving some stuffed toys to children who have little, if anything. How can that compare with an opportunity for a pampered woman to display her moral rectitude?
Posted by: Alex Bensky at April 24, 2004 at 11:25 PMProtester entertains kidnappers with circus tricks
What can be said?
Posted by: Andjam at April 24, 2004 at 11:43 PMThe dolls will cause trauma? What kind of parent would buy such a thing? We should follow the example of this Palestinian parent who's trying to trigger some real trauma.
Posted by: BC at April 24, 2004 at 11:44 PMAndjam, did any of the circus tricks involve balloons, darts, and no hands used ?
See what human tenderness gets you when you're dealing with leftists? Dependants using their personal time to take old fabric and making toys from it (instead of throwing it out)... and they hate them for it!
They aren't the prettiest toys ever made, but the hatred of these narcissist is so complete, so pervasive that dealing with them is hopeless.
They are so utterly corrodied in their hearts that I'm really quite sure that these are people who cannot be loved and shouldn't poison the souls of innocent children.
All they EVER seem to do is try to transfer their personal problems onto the innocent. It isn't about politics at all - it's about a psychological pathology.
Posted by: Joe at April 25, 2004 at 12:32 AMKeep us posted on the Lego thing. I'd love to find out that there really is such a thing as a Hell Brick.
Posted by: Paul Zrimsek at April 25, 2004 at 12:59 AMThose toys may look ugly to some people, but I'll bet some child who doesn't have a toy at all would love it. And they wouldn't traumatized at all.
Now, that peacenik, that's traumatized.
Posted by: JeffS at April 25, 2004 at 01:10 AMFor everybody's information, for kids under the age of five the stuffed critter's appearance don't matter. It could look like a Reticulan Parasite with acne and the typical two-year old will treat it like a long lost friend. Which is pretty much as he treats anything he gets attached to. Which is to say, rather shabby.
The appearance doesn't matter. What matters is that the kid have something he can hold on to when times are rough. It's like tasmanian devils and cuddling. Without regular cuddling the typical tazzie is a miserable creature.
So do worry about the bears' appearance, they kids'll love 'em. To death and beyond, but they'll love 'em.
Posted by: Alan Kellogg at April 25, 2004 at 02:12 AMThe Russians in Afghanistan dropped the kids exploding teddy bears. Odd the peaces never complained about that.
Posted by: Sue at April 25, 2004 at 02:56 AMAndjam---Go here to read some juicy details about the balloon-animal woman. Scroll up for more. The author thinks the kidnapping was a fake.
Jo Wilding (one of the clowns) is a sometime-columnist for the Guardian, and was arrested for throwing fruit at Tony Blair. The other one, Jenny Gaiawyn (she changed it from Wilding to Celtic for "Earth friend"), was arrested for blockading a British naval base.
They're telling the BBC that US troops are shooting little old ladies and babies and fluffy kittens. I don't see how the SMH missed that detail. Must be their "pro-invasion" stance.
Posted by: Angie Schultz at April 25, 2004 at 03:11 AMJeffS - I agree with you completely. It really sickens me - I mean it really weighs heavily on my heart when people are using VERY simple good intentions and the feelings of children to their end.
Isn't this an example of beating swords into ploughshares? Taking military uniforms and using them for kid's toys?
Isn't this better than throwing them in the landfill? Come on! Think green!
In re: Circus Girl:
"To be honest they had begun to realise we were not scary people after we started singing songs and talking to them."
I can picture it...
No, Mustapha-honey, first you cross your arms over your chest, then spread them out, then hug yourself, and THEN raise them over your head.
And Ibram-silly, we pronounce it "Koom Ba Yah" not "Car Bomb All."
Okay, all together again...KoomBa..."
And then this:
"They took us because we were foreigners acting strangely in the middle of their war.
Probably the most intelligent words she's ever uttered.
Was anyone else confused by the "US RAF" airbase reference? I mean, if it is a joint USAF / RAF airbase, or a USAF airbase used by the RAF, or an RAF airbase used by the US, or an RAF airbase in the US, or ... well, shouldn't that be made clear? A US RAF airbase? Leave the country for a few years and they turn monarchist on you!
Posted by: tom beta 2 at April 26, 2004 at 12:46 AM"Annie Wimbush, of Suffolk 4 Peace, said the material being used was inappropriate."
Wimbush Lied! Iraqi Kids cried!
"The camouflage material, the uniform material that's being used could in fact trigger trauma symptoms in a child as well as relieve them,"
Wimbush needs a lesson in trauma. A few boots to the pinanda would be a good start, then one to the quiff (fun until somebody loses a boot).