back to article Aussie soldiers let rip on Facebook

Australia's armed forces still appear addicted to offensive social media activities, a new investigation has found. Over 1000 serving and former soldiers from the Royal Australian Regiment have been busted for partaking in an offensive closed Facebook site which features consistent comments and images denigrating women, …

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  1. Khaptain Silver badge
    Pint

    Cannon Fodder and Politics

    Expected to give their lifes for their country but scolded like little boys for behaving like one of the lads.

    Heres a beer to the Aussie soldiers - Dont let the Bastards get you down....

    1. Goat Jam
      Childcatcher

      Re: Cannon Fodder and Politics

      Careful Khaptain, the PC police will be along shortly to show their displeasure.

      Oh look, 3 downvotes already.

      1. Khaptain Silver badge

        Re: Re: Cannon Fodder and Politics

        To late Goat Jam, they have already begun.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Cannon Fodder and Politics

      What is it about being a professional soldier's training that makes them tell a rape victim to get over it and that she probably deserved it because she's a slut? Do you really want a trained killer going into a Muslim country with the idea that the only good Muslim is a dead one? This sort of behaviour is enough to get you fired yet in the army it's merely some sort of bonding exercise? One of the lads? Get a grip.

  2. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

    "The Bastards"? Who are they?

    1. Khaptain Silver badge

      The Bastards

      It is just a saying which is kind of similar in thought to "Keep a stiff upper lip, old chap". It's about remaining proud through difficult times.

      1. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

        Re: The Bastards

        Difficult times?

        Like being called to account for disgusting behaviour?

  3. Khaptain Silver badge
    Stop

    For the PC Brigade.

    Ok for anyone that either does not understand or appreciate intiail comment, lets get some facts straight.

    I have lived, worked, ate, cried and loved with Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindis, Arabs, Brits, French, Israelis, Amercians, South Africans, whites, blacks , indians and a multitude of other nations, creeds and colours. I have joked and laughed with all of them, sometimes I have been the butt of their jokes and sometimes they have been the subject of mine. But never have I ever seen the need to remain PC. You do not learn about other people by remaining PC, if such were the case I would never have discussed in any meaningfull manner politics, religion , sex, culture etc with the people that I have met.

    It's not the words, its about "Attitude".........

    Never have I met anyone so hypocritical or closeminded as the PC Brigade, one only needs to look behind the scenes in order to realise that they are not quite a clean as they would allow us to believe.

    The PC Brigade "dictates" what can and should be said and done, they alone create more pain and misunderstanding than they resolve...Life, love and everything that represents the good in men cannot be dictated.

    I challenge anyone to come and meet me, have a meal, a beer, go for a walk and discuss life for a while and then make a decision as to whether I deserve to be "downthumbed" or whether or not I am not PC.

    To many of the PC Brigade are jumping on a bandwagon which they do not fully understand and are happy to simply hang whilst they are in the limelight. Similar to the Victorians.......

    The PC Brigade are slowly and successfully managing to cover up the real issues that lie underneath many of todays problems. They are always happy to tell you what you cannot do but they never seem to supply any solutions to the true underlying problems.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: For the PC Brigade.

      "It's not the words, its about Attitude"

      Exactly, I couldn't agree more with that stament.

      What sort of attitude do you think is being displayed in that Facebook group? An abhorrent attitude, that's what. Hence the need for dishing out some discipline.

      1. Khaptain Silver badge

        Re: Re: For the PC Brigade.

        This was done in a "Private" space within Facebook.

        You guys must hunt these kind of things down. If ElReg hadn't anounced this no-one would have been the worse for wear.

    2. David Hicks
      FAIL

      Yup, the pc brigade

      Terrible lot, suppressing free speech. They have a lot to answer for. Just look at tech industry conferences! Imagine, the PC brigade shouted at those poor developers so much that they had to start admitting women! And stop using pornography in their presentations, sexist remarks and a myriad of other things! And they pushed out booth babes! Outrageous. The lengths they'll go to in the pointless endeavour to try and fight prejudice!

      And now they're getting all upset that our brave boys, only over there to help out the damn foreigners, are posting hateful, sexist remarks about the place!

      Seriously, why are you upset with people fighting prejudice?

      And if you can't discuss sex or politics with insulting and belittling entire classes of people based solely on their race or gender then it's you that has the problem mate.

  4. Khaptain Silver badge

    For the PC Brigade - Continuation

    It is becoming impossible to express ones opinions without harming the sensebility of someone somewhere on the planet. For fuck sake people grow up, the PC Brigade will never provide anything but superficial support.

    Am I unhappy about the situation,of course I am , conversation is becoming stifled, communication is becoming impossible. It appears as though the masses are adopting the PC mode of thinking without realising whether or not the impact they are having is positive or negative.

    If you are a meat eater and I am a vegetarian, I cannot agree or accept that you eat dead animals. That does not mean that I would not sit down at the same tabel and eat with you it just simply means that I do not agree with one aspect of your life.

    Because of my non acceptance of one of your choices in life The PC Brigade would be happy to brandish me a zealot of some kind or other when this is simply not the case. It is impossible to agree or accept everything and everyone, this then makes it impossible to be Politically Correct.

    The PC crowd need to sit down, think for "theselves for a while" and let people get on with their own lifes.

    As for the Aussie Soldiers, they have done nothing more than everyone single one of us has done at some point in our lifes, the subjects and the conditions are irrelevant.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: For the PC Brigade

      Whine whine whine whine whine whine.

      Summary:

      When I say/do anything, I am expressing myself. When anyone else says/does something I disagree with, I will call them vague names in a lame attempt to make myself feel better about it all.

      1. Khaptain Silver badge

        Re: Re: For the PC Brigade

        This is exactly the attitude that I was referring to above..

        If these soldiers express themselves in this way rather than telling them they should not do it, it would be far more productive to understand the underlying reasons for this kind of behaviour.

        Maybe they are just behaving in a manner in which they were unknowingly taught by their peers/families or even the "media" in one of its many forms.

        In fact their "problems" lie not within themselves but within contemporary Society itself. We are all to blame.

        ** I will call them vague names in a lame attempt to make myself feel better about it all.

        School must have been a difficult place you then .........

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Those who police others must hold themselves to the highest standards. These guys made the brave decision to join the defence force but now they have let down themselves, the defence force, their own country, and the contries they police (e.g. Afghanistan).

    1. Khaptain Silver badge

      ** These guys made the brave decision to join the defence force but now they have let down themselves, **

      What kind of twisted soul is capable of allowing another man to die for him and then complaining when that same main utters some childish remarks.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    How is this any different to the rest of Australian society?

    Racist - tick

    Sexist - tick

    Compared to the fact that soldiers are required to kill people for a living, I'd say that these "sins" are quite modest. Inexcusable, but not really in the same league as Blair, Bush and Howard.

    1. Khaptain Silver badge

      Re: How is this any different to the rest of Australian society?

      Are you for real ?

      The soldiers commited a "sin" ansd how are you any different with that last statement ?.

  7. frank ly
    Happy

    @Khaptain

    What would be interesting would be for you to find yourself alone among a group of aggressive and violent homosexual men with attitudes matching those displayed by these Australian soldiers.

    I'm sure it would be a learning experience for you. You might even learn the meaning of the word 'empathy'.

  8. Stephen 10

    I've heard they do far worse.

    On occasion they've been known to shoot, stab and blow people up. How that gets past health & safety is a mystery to me.

    Army not very PC shock! Coming next, what bears do in the woods...

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Closed

    "...busted for partaking in an offensive closed Facebook site..."

    OK, so it was a closed site. That means that nobody else could see it, until someone who was offended decided that as many other people as possible should be offended, too. I guess that's like peeping through the keyhole at someone masturbating, thinking "that's disgusting", and posting a video of it so everyone else can be disgusted too.

    Personally, I see nothing wrong with people either masturbating, or sharing offensive opinions, in private. Provided they make reasonable efforts to ensure it stays private - which it appears they did.

  10. This post has been deleted by its author

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    You think that is bad?!

    Wait until you hear what is said in your average UK schoolground!!!

  12. Tim Roberts 1

    defence forces

    Kapitan, I agree with much of what you say. PC is stifling intelligent conversation and sensible, rational debate.

    On this topic I wonder how PC's expect these soldiers to behave. They are put into situations where they are trained to hate/distrust - after all how can you kill someone if you do not hate or distrust him, and then they are expected to behave like normal rational people afterwards.

    How many of the PC crowd have been shot at/ attacked/ threatened. I have, and I can tell you it is a deeply disturbing experience that quickly brings out the "worst" in you because you are put into a situation of "me or him". If you have not been there then frankly you have no effing idea.

    As for sexist comments - well without tying to excuse or justify them, If you tell men - read soldiers here- that they are bigger/stronger/better than anyone else (the forces do this by the way) , then that is exactly how they will behave.

    my 2c worth - PC's you can keep the change.

  13. Winkypop Silver badge
    FAIL

    We ask that you shoot them

    But please don't hate them.

    ???

    1. David Hicks
      Devil

      Err, yes.

      We ask that you shoot a specific subset of armed, militant lunatics. Not hate the whole population of the country we are allegedly in to HELP.

      Two different "them"s in there. If the soldiers can't tell the difference then they probably shouldn't be there. (Arguably they shouldn't be there anyway).

    2. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

      Re: We ask that you shoot them

      Women?

  14. silent_count

    I believe that I'm (mis-)quoting Terry Pratchett, "The thing about those who preach tolerance is that the first thing they expect you to tolerate is their own lack of tolerance". I think that neatly sums up the hypocrisy of the PC brigade.

    Down-vote me to hell if you will but, if you really believe that these soldiers should practice tolerance towards others, then why are you unwilling to practice tolerance towards them and their views?

    1. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge
      WTF?

      "if you really believe that these soldiers should practice tolerance towards others, then why are you unwilling to practice tolerance towards them and their views?"

      Intolerance should be tolerated?

    2. AdamWill

      sophistry

      Because that's not what tolerance *means*. This really should be obvious. If your argument is correct then tolerance becomes completely meaningless: as the other responder says, essentially you're saying anyone who believes in tolerance should tolerate intolerance, which is simply self-contradictory.

      1. Michael Dunn
        Happy

        Re: sophistry

        Surely, one who believes in tolerance is defining a way of thinking for him/herself, not prescribing a way of life for others! That would be _intolerant_, so yes, a tolerant person could accept intolerance in others' behaviour - not necessarily like it, though.

  15. silent_count

    "Intolerance should be tolerated?"

    Isn't that exactly what "tolerance" means?

    @AdamWill: "essentially you're saying anyone who believes in tolerance should tolerate intolerance, which is simply self-contradictory."

    Saying that, "I am willing to be permissive of your views even if you're not willing to be permissive of mine"... is not self-contradictory.

    Meaningless is the PC definition of "tolerance" which seems to be, "I have 'tolerance' but only for those who agree with my views". If that's a fair definition, then everyone is 'tolerant'.

  16. ideapete
    Pint

    PC polite OZ types in uniform: DUH

    Polite PC members of the OZ army - totally ludicrous.

    I say sir, with that towel on your head, would you mind terribly not sticking bombs on our stuff its terribly noisy and distracting.

    Here's to you guys - there on us next time we meet

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