In Loving Memory of Terry Jones.

Not that he's dead or anything. I have long been a fan of Terry Jones, though admittedly for his work with Monty Python. Like many of Python alums, I have noticed his name in many of my favorite movies as well (Labyrinth, Erik the Viking). I was not aware, however, that he had taken to writing politically oriented editorials. Some of these have even been collected and published as Terry Jones's War on the War on Terror (2005), ISBN 1-56025-653-2. I just ran across an article he authored in response to the Iranian treatment of British military prisoners. Or, perhaps more accurately, in response to the media's response to their treatment.

I share the outrage expressed in the British press over the treatment of our naval personnel accused by Iran of illegally entering their waters. It is a disgrace. We would never dream of treating captives like this - allowing them to smoke cigarettes, for example, even though it has been proven that smoking kills. And as for compelling poor servicewoman Faye Turney to wear a black headscarf, and then allowing the picture to be posted around the world - have the Iranians no concept of civilised behaviour? For God's sake, what's wrong with putting a bag over her head? That's what we do with the Muslims we capture: we put bags over their heads, so it's hard to breathe. Then it's perfectly acceptable to take photographs of them and circulate them to the press because the captives can't be recognised and humiliated in the way these unfortunate British service people are.

You can find the full article here.