Stranded human shields buses seek fare home (ROTFLOL!!!)

reuters ^ | 3-5-03

[Jimmyclyde]

Stranded human shields buses seek fare home

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Two red double decker buses and a white London taxi that ferried anti-war activists to Baghdad to serve as "human shields" are stranded in Beirut with their owner short the 3,400 pounds it costs to ship them home. The buses and taxi, dusty after a six-week overland journey that began at London's Tower Bridge, were plastered with signs saying "No to a war on Iraq" and "No to war, Yes to peace".

"The buses have to be shipped back. It's just not practical to drive them...I am not even really sure how much money I've got, but I'm sure it's not enough," said owner Joe Letts, adding that he would fly to London on Thursday to try to raise cash.

"I thought I would let people know it's a problem," he added, sitting in a makeshift kitchen on his bus in central Beirut.

Letts said he left London with 45 human shields of 10-12 nationalities, and picked up a dozen or so more in Turkey before arriving in Baghdad, where he spent a week sleeping in a power station hoping to prevent a possible U.S.-led attack.

"We were taken to see some of the installations that the Iraqis thought were suitable for protection," he said, adding that he had feared a bombing campaign could start at any time.

"We painted a huge sign on the roof saying human shields, so when any planes bombed the target, they'd see they were killing us -- Englishmen and Finns and Turks".

Some 50 other Swedish anti-war human shield activists who had travelled to Iraq began to leave on Monday, saying they had wanted to protect hospitals and schools but had been forced out to refineries, power plants and water works.

Letts said about 200 human shields, including many who travelled on his bus, remained in Baghdad when he left. But he said that although he stayed on as a shield for a week, he had no intention of staying in Baghdad for the duration of a war.

"I own these buses and they are my livelihood and my family's livelihood. And all along I was there really to take the people down and then come back," he said.

When he left London, he thought he had enough money to pay to ship the buses home, but ended up spending his personal finances to help pay for the trip.

"I had promised my wife I would get the buses home," he said. "If I don't get them home, we're absolutely stuck."

[Jimmyclyde]

Some 50 other Swedish anti-war human shield activists who had travelled to Iraq began to leave on Monday, saying they had wanted to protect hospitals and schools but had been forced out to refineries, power plants and water works.

This says it all.

Where did they think they were going?

[JoJo Gunn]

I swear, if those morons keep it up, I'm gonna die from laughing so much.

[doug from upland]

The idiots have been memorialized in song -- LODI

[blam]

Idiots. How were they gonna get home without any money anyway?

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

buses

[Mrs.Liberty]

But he said that although he stayed on as a shield for a week, he had no intention of staying in Baghdad for the duration of a war. "I own these buses and they are my livelihood and my family's livelihood. And all along I was there really to take the people down and then come back," he said

Yes, they sound really committed to the anti-war effort as long as they are not too inconvienced.

[swheats]

I think in a weird sort of way they thought they would be able to either stop the bombing or die a martyr's death. I guess the prozac ran out too soon.

[EggsAckley]

"I own these buses and they are my livelihood and my family's livelihood. And all along I was there really to take the people down and then come back," he said.

LOL!!!

[formercalifornian]

"We painted a huge sign on the roof saying human shields"

Makes target practice easy.

[motherof 3]

This is a soap opera where I tune in and see what nutty thing the "shields" are up to today. It should have been a reality TV show.

[PhilDragoo]

HUMAN SHIELD=JUST SHOOT ME

[dfwgator]

"I'm a Human Shield, Get Me Out of Here"

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Mon Feb 10, 4:22 AM ET

[45Auto]

So now, Mr. Letts is going to leave his buses in Beirut and fly to London to beg for money to drive them back to England. This guy is as dumb as a bag of rocks. Beirut....probably the most anarchic city in the world (even more than Amsterdam) ruled by....nobody, and more or less controlled by the Syrian army and a loose bunch of local militia groups who probably don't make any money at all, except for what they can steal or bully out of the local economy, such as it is....how long do you think these buses will stay intact? About ten minutes after he gets on the plane, these vehicles will have been stripped. Liberalism is a mental disorder.

[FreedomPoster]

And I was so counting on seeing some Darwinism in action. Life can be such a disappointment at times. < sigh>

[annyokie]

Oh, those whacky Human Shields! Let's hope they decide to go ride the buses in Haifa.

[glock rocks]

"I own these buses and they are my livelihood and my family's livelihood. And all along I was there really to take the people down and then come back," he said.

i am laughing out loud !!!

you silly twit !!!

i'll just bet it sucks to be you !!!

O M G... somebody stop me... i can't breathe.

oh hoh hoh hoh hoh..... oh, Good Lord !

BWAHAHAHAHAAA

[veronica]

...Help a poor human shield get home to his Mum, would you please, kind sir??

[GLDNGUN]

I don't know how these people wipe their own butt. You simply can't make up how uttterly idiotic these loons are. No one would believe you. There's enough comedic material here for a whole year of late-night monolouges and a couple of movies. How about THE HUMAN PANTY SHIELDS EXCELLENT ADVENTURE and FROM BAGHDAD TO BEIRUT: RIDING THE BULLSEYE BUS

So now here they sit in Beirut. Wouldn't it be ironic if they got boarded and blown to bits by a Palestinian suicide bomber who thought it was a Jewish tour bus? I hate to sound harsh, but wouldn't that be fitting? They'd be saving the lives of innocent Israelis, and giving their lives for a legitimate cause.