A Dorset resident has described attacks on RNLI volunteers as 'obscene'.
I WAS horrified to read the stories of RNLI volunteers being vilified for going to the aid of persons in the Channel.
I consider the unpaid, brave and selfless members of our lifeboats to be amongst the best examples of true “British” values.
These men and women, regardless of personal danger, undertake to save and protect the lives of those in peril on the seas, regardless of creed or nationality.
Their dedication and bravery, far beyond anything I would undertake, should be a shining example to every person in our land.
For them to be attacked for saving people, in order to make a political point, is frankly obscene.
Worse still, the individuals undertaking these attacks are, I believe, to be cowards.
They have the right to express their views in a country whose basic, democratic freedoms they enjoy.
They can express their views on the rights or wrongs of “immigrants”, without fear of being persecuted for those views.
Political rights, however, come with associated duties and responsibilities on those who possess them.
I suggest one such duty is to be open and honest about who is expressing any given view.
To this end, refusing to be identified by covering your face with a balaclava is, I suggest, fundamentally contravening those duties.
The heroic actions of RNLI crews saving lives at sea should never be subverted for political gain, especially by “patriots” who are themselves not brave enough to identify themselves for public scrutiny.
I absolutely support the right of every single citizen in our country to express their views but, in order to make these points, those citizens must be open and honest about their intents and identities.
They must also take responsibility for their actions.
I believe the RNLI deserve the absolute support of every single person in this country and that their actions are a superb example of all that is the “best of Britain”.
If I need to decry selfless, brave citizens of our country to be a patriot, then I declare myself to be no such patriot.
JOHN THORNE
Broadmayne
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