John Smeaton - a Hero for our times from Planck's Constant

At a time when it's so easy to say, "it's not my problem" or ignore cries for help, it is inspiring to read stories like this:

BBC News,
Baggage handler becomes web hero
An airport worker who tackled the suspected Glasgow Airport bombers has become an overnight Internet phenomenon thanks to a tribute website.
John Smeaton told the BBC how he had raced to help a police officer restrain the suspects after they crashed a burning Jeep into the terminal.

Just two days after the attack, a website has been set up in honour of baggage handler Mr Smeaton's heroism.

The site urged visitors to 'pledge a pint' to Mr Smeaton as a reward.

In an interview with the BBC immediately after Saturday's attack, Mr Smeaton, from Erskine, Renfrewshire, described how he had seen the two terror suspects getting out of the burning vehicle and attacking a lone policeman who attempted to subdue them.

The interview, which was broadcast around the world, saw Mr Smeaton describe how his first thought on being confronted by the two desperate suspects in a burning car as he smoked a cigarette during his break was: "What's the score? I've got to get this sorted."

He said: "I thought 'that's not right' and ran over to assist. All that was going through my mind was I've got to help the policeman, I'm not letting these guys get away with this."

The website, Johnsmeaton.com is trying to raise enough money to buy John Smeaton 1000 pints, and includes links to clips of the interviews he conducted with the world's media, including the BBC, two of which are available below.

From the site: "Here's to John. This man shows us that the law-abiding, honest, brave citizen is still very much with us."

You may need a Glaswegian translator to read some of the comments left at the site, but I say, "Hoots, Aye, this be Glasgow and ifn ye be a numpty wee terror-tinny, we'll set aboot ye, so let's be thumpn awa' at thee buggers." Or whatever that means.

See the YouTube video - John Smeaton - Come to Glasgow and we'll set about you.

Interestingly, the BBC, as usual, removes anything critical of Islam from its reporting:

Hilton Global Initiative ,
Website of the Year So Far
Incidentally, on Saturday I saw the live BBC interview with Smeaton in which he explained how the terrorist had been screaming "Allah! Allah!" as he attacked the police officer while engulfed in flames. 20 minutes later the BBC reran the entire interview, with one observation removed. Guess which one?

Other Bloggers:

Right Truth,
UK terror was completely justified, as attacks in the US will be justified
According to "a prominent UK Islamist leader" who just happens to have connections to terrorist organizations, the attacks in Scotland and London were "completely justified." Why? Because of "the continued British and American occupation of Muslim land in Iraq and Afghanistan, support for criminal Israel, and draconian measures taken against Muslims in the UK," blah blah blah. Why is this man, Anjem Choundary still breathing, still free, still inciting terror? Using the excuse of 'occupied Muslim land' for every vile form of terror is really getting old.

My previous posts:

1 Jul 2007,
Not Enough Hysteria over Car Bombs
More useful idiots pointing out that the recent car bomb attempts in London and Glasgow Airport couldn't harm anyone and so we should simply ignore them, treat the news the same as "Farmer Brown's sheep wanders onto highway causing fender bender."

30 Jun 2007,
The Brits are not negotiating with bombers
In my previous post I wrote that New UK PM Brown is an Idiot for vowing that under him the UK's foreign policy will recognize that defeating terrorism "involves more than military force." Here is a useful idiot who announced to the world that Blair's policy in Iraq was wrong and that he would take a more conciliatory approach. How did the local terrorists greet Brown's new policy?

And it seems Brown is still acting like an idiot:

Woman Honor Thyself,
John Smeaton for Prime Minister!
Oooh another truckload of pathetic pandering from Gordon Brown in the ole UK, who has banned ministers from using the word "Muzlim” in connection with the terrorism crisis…

The Prime Minister has also instructed his team – – that the phrase "war on terror” is to be dropped.

I suppose the man yelling "Allah! Allah!” was actually a member of the little known zionist movement: "Jews for Mohammed” and any link to Islam proper should not be entertained.

And this from the forum Exup1000:

Ex Marks the Spot,
If this had happened in a US airport, compared to Glasgow
America: "Oh my God! There was a man on fire, he was running about, I just ran for my life. I thought I was gonna die, he got so close to me"
Glasgow "C*nt wis running aboot on fire, so a ran up n gave him a good boot, then decked him"

America: " I just wanna get home, away from here. I just wanna get home, I thought I was gonna die"
Glasgow: " here shug, am no leaving here till am oan a f*ckin' plane!"

America: " there was pandemonium, people were running in all directions, we didn't know what was happening thought I was gonna die"
Glasgow: "F*ck this fir a kerry oan, moan we'll get a pint in"

America: "We thought he was gonna blow us all up he had a gas canister, and was trying to get into his trunk, I thought we were gonna die, I just ran for my life"
Glasgow: "a swaggered by the motor that wis on fire, and the dafty couldnae even open his boot, he wis in fire annaw so a ran up n gave him a good boot to the baws"

America: "there was this huge explosion, it sounded like war, I thought I was gonna die"
Glasgow: "There wis a bang, yi know when yi throw BO basher intae a fire it wis like that"

America: "I'm too traumatized even to speak, I thought I was gonna die"
Glasgow "here mate, gies 2 minutes till a phone ma auld dear, if am gonna be oan the telly a want her tae tape it"