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Original poster

Soldier beheaded in Woolwich and it took police 20 mins

161 replies

bkgirl · 22/05/2013 19:35

Why am I not surprised? 20 minutes, what chance do we have with this pathetic response. As for the barracks...why couldn't someone come out with a gun and at least prevent these guys from attacking anyone else. Who was guarding the army base - do they have guns? Dreadful.

OP posts:
Corygal · 22/05/2013 20:06

BBC online said it was decapitation.

MikeLitoris · 22/05/2013 20:06

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by Mumsnet for breaking our Talk Guidelines. Replies may also be deleted.

MrsBertMacklin · 22/05/2013 20:11

Nice to see all the armchair experts already out in force on this. I suggest people like the OP keep their ill-informed opinions to themselves on this matter until the facts are better established.

Pagwatch · 22/05/2013 20:11

I agree with NiceTabard.

Deeply thick post.

jamtoast12 · 22/05/2013 20:12

I've just read bbc online too and didnt see that. Said attacked but no mention on any site of decapitation?

Lorialet · 22/05/2013 20:17

One of the original witnesses on Twitter (@BOYADEE ) said decapitation.

donnie · 22/05/2013 20:20

Dumb and dumber. OP.....if you are truly concerned by police response times then write to the Prime Minister and ask him to justify the huge funding cuts his govt has made to the police force. Otherwise show some fucking respect for an innocent man who has been murdered by crazed nutters.

clam · 22/05/2013 20:24

Loathe as I am to dignify much of what the OP has said, "those guys" didn't attack anyone else, so how would soldiers from the barracks rushing out with guns have altered anything? Other than possibly mowing down a few innocent passers-by?

LynetteScavo · 22/05/2013 20:27

Stupid OP.

I know very little about most things, and even I can see it's stupid.

MNHQ
OliviaMMumsnet · 22/05/2013 20:29

Today's event are being discussed without bun throwing thus far on this thread
Thanks
MNHQ

olivertheoctopus · 22/05/2013 20:29

Dear god. Off to the Daily Mail comments section you go. It'll be all those nasty foreigners coming over here and taking our jobs that kept the police busy eh....

crypes · 22/05/2013 20:29

" show some fucking respect". Is that an oxymoron ?

mymatemax · 22/05/2013 20:34

police were there very quickly, armed response took 20 mins.

My thouhts are with the poor man & his family. The sick evil scumbags are beyond words

Pagwatch · 22/05/2013 20:34

No it isn't.
Respect for those involved. Not respect for dimwits on the Internet.

HeySoulSister · 22/05/2013 20:35

ahhh so op got it wrong?

anothershittynickname · 22/05/2013 20:39

Thankyou januarymadness

There really are no other words!! It would seem MNHQ don't agree with you ;-)

donnie · 22/05/2013 20:41

No, not an oxymoron. It is an adjective followed by an abstract noun. Perhaps you needed a little help with that? If you would like examples of oxymorons I could provide some.

Original poster
bkgirl · 22/05/2013 21:34

So it is acceptable that a poor soldier can walk either in to or out of a barracks and be subject to a prolonged, sustained attack and no one in an army barracks is capable of coming out and assisting? Plus it takes 20 minutes for police to turn up - this is London, not Ben fecking Nevis. It IS too long. Yes, they do have guns in an army barrack and yes the dissident republicans are also active and have executed soldiers before outside Antrim barracks. It is that simple, army barracks should be guarded by armed soldiers - not private security guards. It's crazy they would not have authorisation not to fire in this circumstance. For goodness sake, what if they had driven up with a bomb? Would the MOD police ask them nicely to move along or wait maybe 20 mins for the police to arrive.

I am NOT drumming up hate, unfortunately I have experience of terrorists and the fear they caused in Northern Ireland. I grew up beside an army base. I cannot believe Woolwich barracks was so unprotected. It's just so naive. I hope this increased protection around bases extends to all bases, not just a few in London.

Poor bloke, I am so sorry for his family.

OP posts:
Original poster
bkgirl · 22/05/2013 21:35

20 mins for armed police - fecking help for the poor guy is not on.

OP posts:
Original poster
bkgirl · 22/05/2013 21:42

Oliver, no it's not some racist rant - I believe that most people are decent and extremists of any sort hurt society. It's about being disgusted that for 20 minutes this went on before action was taken to stop it. I have lost friends to terrorism, I just think a barracks deserves proper protection.

OP posts:
scaevola · 22/05/2013 21:45

It's got fuck all to do with how the barracks are guarded, because it happened on the street.

And given the perimeter wall, I doubt anyone in there would have even seeing take place.

And did you see the Ch4 News, here it was said incident was first treated as gang related? Are they meant to come piling out for everything within a certain distance of the barracks whilst identity of victim isn't known? And of course once the bad guys knew soldiers would act like that, then those soldiers responding would become the targets after a staged incident. Which is why security round bases in days of IRA wasn't quite as pp described it.

jcscot · 22/05/2013 21:47

The barracks do have proper protection. However, those guarding them (who are not private companies BTW but either MPGS or MoD Police) do not, as I understand it, have jurisdiction or authority to act outside of the barracks.

The individual who was murdered was on the road near the barracks and therefore under the jurisdiction of the Met. Those on guard duty would not have been able to leave their posts and leave the barracks undefended.

Original poster
bkgirl · 22/05/2013 21:54

I know exactly what security was like around bases in Northern Ireland and frankly it SHOULD be known what is going on over a perimeter wall outside any base. Anything less is pisspoor and unfair to those within. No I don't expect unarmed soldiers to pile out of the barracks but I cannot believe they were incapable of taking any action. Also who is to say who else these extremists could have attacked? 20 minutes, nope sorry - I don't think this poor soldiers family will find that acceptable.

OP posts:
NiceTabard · 22/05/2013 21:54
  1. You think that the people in the barracks knew what was happening. Yo are guessing.
  2. You think that there should be armed police available to attend (any and all?) situations in the UK in less than 20 mins. That would involve having armed police liberally deployed on the majority of streets at all times. The vast majority of people in the UK would not want that. And it would be a disproportionate and extremely expensive reaction to a very very rare crime, and a reaction that would fundamentally change the entire feel of our country.
Original poster
bkgirl · 22/05/2013 21:57

Thank you jcscot for a reasonable explanation of the response from the barracks. Sorry, just very upset about it. Seen the after effects of a bomb which killed many including soldiers, the sounds still haunt me. Every minute is a lifetime in this situation.

OP posts: