Excellent news. Sgt Alexander Blackman has his sentence reduced.

It's my experience that many families have some kind of public service commitment running through them. It was evident when visiting foster carers, many of whom had adult children in the military, police, nursing, etc.
It's true that former service personnel are over represented in drug/alcohol prison communities. Some of that is due to ptsd and some to the vulnerability the young service personnel took with them when they signed up. No amount of "training" will prevent a proportion of people suffering the consequences of exposure to dreadful things. It's true in many types of employment, including medics, police, social work, teaching - most of us have a break point. Medics, police, social work, teaching often have support services/counselling provided by their employer. Service personnel don't work in an environment where that is considered the norm, it's more a case of 'get on with it'. That's what Sgt B did, he got on with it until it got on with him. No one is defending his actions. I can't find it in myself to criticise his supporters for 'celebrating' the change in his conviction from murder to manslaughter. Our armed services are ordinary people, expected to do extraordinary things on our behalf. To take a superior attitude by saying they are either seduced into joining up because at 16 they're too dimn to realise what they're doing misses the point and suggests they deserve all they get.

I've seen plenty of comments like the ones Penstemmon has seen. The victim has been completely dehumanised in some people's eyes.

No, I said 'what do they expect.... jollying round the globe?' The tours you so glibly quote were not what most of them (school-levers beguiled by recruiting sergeants on school career days) were enlisting for. The 'learning a trade with board and lodging and wages' was the selling point. Oh, and promotion of course.
If they had been properly prepared there would not be so many sleeping on the streets of my nearest town.
Of course I would not be volunteering... I'm 73 for God's sake, but I would certainly not have signed my life away at 16 to be told what to do 24/7 and be punished for expressing an opinion. DH did Nat. Service in 1947 in the RAF and was pressurised to sign on ... 2 years was quite enough to put him off a uniform for life.

Does no-one tell them they might see something nasty?
That's one of the most naive comments I have ever seen on GN!! LOL

Oh - who would you like to clean up after a possible nuclear disaster? Or build an emergency bridge for residents of a flooded town? Or man the fire engines when the fire service goes on strike?

Multi-taskers.

Are you volunteering?
I thought not.

No, I don't have any Marine connections at all that I can think of, um, er, no, definitely not.

However, I do know enough to know that they weren't wearing a 'uniform', would not be allowed to demonstrate if they were a serving member of the Forces and no, I don't think the pension was that great, glad it is better now although that seems to upset you somewhat.

I won't give you the Queen and Country bit although that means a lot to many people, obviously your post indicates that you do not feel the same, but the Forces does give a good training for many young, perhaps disaffected, young people and for that we should be thankful.
And, obviously, I have no time for the 'preening politicians' who sent them into wars of which we should have no part. And, again obviously, I am thankful that our Forces have not been needed to defend our homeland for over 70 years from a foreign foe. Perhaps you would prefer that?
Do you call a tour of the Gulf, the Falklands, Iraq, Sierra Leone, Yugoslavia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq (again), Afghanistan jollying around the globe? Perhaps you can volunteer to go with them next time on a jolly, sounds like fun.

I hope this doesn't sound rude as I am trying not to be as rude in my posts as your posts.

BK, I most certainly do not condone any bad behaviour by our armed forces, and I take exception to your comment. My DH was in the fleet airarm for a number of years and I can assure you that at no time was any bad behaviour tolerated towards anyone in the service, patrol duty ashore, or rest periods ashore.
I was as roses and Jalima pointed out just commenting that however well our troops behave, this will cut little ice with terrorist groups who have no respect for life or limb of any other human being. That is what I was pointing out.

I presume you have Marine connections Jalima...well each to his own, but don't you think the Rentamob lot were a disgrace to their uniform? Obviously not, as you posted 4 consequetive replies to my 1 post.
No serving soldier, sailor or airman is conscripted in the UK now. The choice is entirely their own. So what do they expect? 20 years of learning a trade whilst jollying around the globe? Does no-one tell them they might see something nasty? They are well paid, and even more well paid when they retire at the ripe old age of 40.... as friends of mine are doing.
Don't give me the Queen and Country bit.... like everyone else they are doing a job, and getting paid for it.

Succintly put rosesarered

Because niggly says the truth of it ( it wouldn't matter how good our behaviour is, the Taliban are always barbarians) doesn't mean that she or anyone else is condoning slippage of Geneva Conventions.

I'm not sure what you want the troops to do nigglynellie - I can't get rid of the impression that you would not complain if many more acted like Blackman, because the enemy show no regard for human life. But if we accept this, then we are as much in the slime of human degredation as they are. There have been horrendous acts of butchery in many conflicts around the world - WW2, Vietnam, Ruanda, The Balkans - but throughout these civilised countries and their armies have attempted to keep certain standards. It is so easy to start the slide down to sub-humanity

Not sure that any murderous terrorist organisation would be swayed towards humanity and mercy however well highly trained troops behaved towards them. Probably the complete opposite!

Ah - well he knew he'd broken it and obviously someone else in the unit considered it needed investigation or else we would never heard of it - so the Geneva Convention is still being upheld by our troops.

A red herring.

I think the point the poster was trying to make was that if we appear to be condoning acts against the Geneva Convention - which Blackman did say on record he was doing - then apologists in other military situations may argue that the Geneva Convention is not now adhered to. Don't attack me, I'm just saying where I think it's come from.

Although I don't think such as the taliban or IS have ever heard of Geneva Conventions, but we have and it is instilled in our Forces that is why this trial and punishment will be remembered.

Pen surely it is clear that most posters are agreeing with you not arguing?

That is why we agree with the verdict of the appeal court which does not exonerate him from what was an unlawful killing.

As far as I can tell, the Geneva Convention still stands, I don't know where the information that it is now redundant came from.
Sgt Blackman acknowledged that he broke that, has been tried, found guilty subsequently of manslaughter and punished.
Surely it would not be abandoned now?

Can I make it clear that I do not support any brutality: torture/rape/mutilation etc of anyone in war or otherwise. Taliban fighters /marines if they behave in a brutal way are BOTH wrong.
You cannot have double standards. If you do not want our injured soldiers killed by enemy soldiers then British soldiers must not do so either. Taliban are also sons/husbands/brother etc. and may well have been brutalised by their commanders/experiences to behave as they do. We do not know..but we do know that Marine Sgt Blackman had gone through British military training.

I echo that Jalima! and, yes, it was a deeply unpleasant comment from w.m.n.

Well, you can put what you call a 'Rambo' style (stupid analogy) Marine between my granddaughters and a terrorist any day.

Does anyone support what the Americans did in Vietnam? Thank goodness we did not get dragged into that and abhorrent that we got dragged into Iraq and Afghanistan by preening politicians.

Traditionally, beleagured nations have welcomed liberation by British troops which is more than can be said for troops of other nations.

I don't know why the Geneva Convention is now redundant - is that official? I hadn't heard.

That is a vile thing to say about veteran Marines willsmadnan

He has an extremely capable wife who I am sure would be able to support them both and no dependent family.

I didn't raise the matter of the Vietnam War, I was in fact replying to another posters observations. I think we all know in these days of social media exactly how barbarous terrorist groups are the world over. The Taliban are no exception.

I raised Vietnam not Niggly Trisher, Niggly replied to my post on the Vietnam atrocities

niggly if you want to raise the matter of the war in Vietnam, whilst it was happening we were fed a barricade of information about the Vietcong and their inhumane actions, it wasn't until after the war and some very careful investigative action that the true extent of the American atrocities came to light. We are now fed news of the Taliban atrocities do you never wonder what else happened?
The crowds outside the court room cheered and punched the air in celebration. If that is not an accolade what is it?
The marine actually said he was ignoring the Geneva Convention, for many people his words will be taken as the attitude of the whole of the armed forces and the actions and statements made will only serve to reinforce this opinion.

Coming late to the discussion my disquiet over the whole episode is the flagrant and admitted disregard of the Geneva Convention. What did he think it was there for..... to be ignored when he chose? One wonders why it is actually in law when soldiers of Blackman's ilk think like this.
I would also say the photograph of Blackman which appeared in the media portraying him in full 'Marine' Rambo mode did him no favours at all. Presumably this was released by his wife? A bad move on her part I would say, but then having been an army wife for many years that is presumably how she saw him.
The Rent- a- Marine mob outside the court, complete with green berets (overweight wanna-be John Waynes) just compounded the whole tawdry affair.
I just hope the Blackmans do not sell their story, and I hope he does not recieve any pension entitlement post his breaking of the Geneva Convention.