Yesterday I read about how Prince Harry will not be deploying to Iraq, and I really felt bad for the guy. He's trained and prepared with his unit, and now he has to watch his unit leave without him. Any true soldier would find that heartbreaking.

But today I heard that other British families are ticked off about the revelation, saying that Harry is no more indespensible than their sons are.

I too have come to this conclusion, that my husband's life is no more valuable than anyone else's in the military. If I believe this war needs to be fought, I cannot in good faith keep my husband from the battlefield. If he doesn't go, someone else will be sent in his place; just because that person doesn't share my bed doesn't mean he doesn't share a bed with someone else whose heart breaks to see him go.

That said, I think the Prince Harry situation is an entirely different issue altogether. To my understanding, no one is saying that Prince Harry's life is more valuable than any other soldier's. What they are saying is that Prince Harry puts his unit in danger. Apparently they've determined there's a $678,000 bounty on Harry's head. He's so high profile that he endangers the soldiers around him, a fact which is not lost on jokesters who've bought the I'm Harry t-shirt. If my husband could somehow put his soldiers' lives in jeopardy, then and only then would I say he shouldn't deploy.

Harry appears ready to sacrifice for his country. But right now the biggest sacrifice he can make is to stand aside and let his unit deploy without him. The Brits should try to understand this.

MORE TO GROK:

Tammi has thoughts on Harry too.

Posted by: Sarah at 11:09 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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1 My daughter got the best lesson I think is available from this immediately - if the media had shut the hell up from the start and let the boy deploy like he wants to and has been fighting to do, there wouldn't be an issue because no one would really know he was there. I wasn't enthralled with Harry's wearing of the Nazi costume to a party, and he seems to play very, very hard. But all that aside, the real problem in this case seems to be with a media that has no understanding of propriety. Harry's Uncle deployed to the Falkan Islands, so it's not as if there's no precedent for royalty serving in a war zone. Harry's got a lot of dharma to fulfill. I'm sure there's something that he can do, and I certainly hope they find it and that the media keeps its trap shut when Harry does it. That's a tremendously incoherent comment, I know. Sorry - I've been sick this week.

Posted by: airforcewife at May 18, 2007 10:48 AM (0dU3f)

2 Here's my uninformed thoughts on Harry: the Army is good for turning wayward young men around. Lots of guys who join were into bad ideas, but the Army helps them shape up and focus. I had several students in Germany who had been to jail before the Army, and they had learned their lesson and were trying to make something of themselves. And they had nowhere near the pressure that Harry has! I hope the Army's been good for making Harry grow up, and I hope they can find a good job for him.

Posted by: Sarah at May 18, 2007 05:28 PM (vrR+j)

3 Good call. I think the class warfare types will try to turn this into an issue (which it will only be if the media cooperate...ergo..."Some say Harry exercises privilege". In someways this is the "I'm a PC and I'm a Mac" commercial with Harry being the PC. Being the behemoth, there are WAY many more idiozealots writing code to put a virus on Harry the PC than Hobarth the Mac. Hence the six digit price on his head. I wouldn't want to sharing that foxhole.

Posted by: Tim at May 18, 2007 06:55 PM (E9coD)

4 Despite the 'fact' that Prince Harry isn't now going to Iraq, we're betting he does feature in both that arena and Afghanistan, but without the media hullabaloo. He's no fool and neither are the military officers and soldiers alike, all know full well the consequences and implications of any 'no-show' in circumstances he's trained for and relishes. It's worth noting that the 'I'm Harry' T-shirts (www.imharry.com) are more in demand now than before. So maybe the message that we're ALL Harry now has achieved proper cult status among the armed forces everywhere. Thats what I call bravery, defiance and the best humour in the world. Keep doing your bit as decoys and keep the enemy confused! We're proud of you. Algy

Posted by: Algy Johns at May 29, 2007 03:05 AM (3Iar2)

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