CLARENCE DOWN UNDER

As wicked as the actions have been and indeed still are, it is hard not to feel sympathy for them.  No matter what the outcome of Operation Grange, they will always have the shadow of suspicion over them.  Even if DCI Nicola Wall makes a statement blaming a deceased predator and the Queen gives them a Royal Pardon, they will never be able to shake it off. 

For people with the full range of emotions, the idea of living like that would be horrendous, even without all the suspicion, they will never enjoy privacy and anonymity again.  While they were imprinting the face of Maddie into the conscience of the world, they were imprinting their faces too.  Doh!  For them there is quite literally, no hiding place.  Some might say that is punishment enough, Heck, I might even say it myself if they were not continuing to persecute Goncalo Amaral and others. 

I cannot understand why they continue to keep themselves and their family in the public eye.  They know how unpleasant it can be having the world's press focusing on your every move, yet they continue to invite this for themselves and vicariously for their children. Imagine how the twins must have felt to read their mother was in danger of being shot when she ran the Marathon. A ridiculous story taken from an, albeit distasteful conversation on FB, that referred to starting pistol with a little flag that said 'bang'.  Those kids could and should have been protected from that nonsense, but it was their parents who were selling it! 

The twins are at that self conscious age where their privacy is vital to them and it should be respected.  They don't want to be different from their peers in any way, so it must be excruciating for them to see the constant 'Madeleine' headlines. And the parents can't blame Goncalo Amaral for the newspaper billboards, they are the ones who want publicity whatever the cost.  Goncalo asked the Judge in Lisbon to hold the civil hearing in camera, the McCanns opposed this and newspapers ran with front pages proclaiming the twins were under threat of kidnap.  Not the kind of thing a kid wants to read at the newsagents on his/her way to school. 

The McCanns fear what their children may read on the internet, yet they employ a PR Agency and a professional spokesman skilled in the fine art of grabbing headlines.  Not to mention the £500k they paid to Bell Pottinger to keep them on the front pages for a year.  These are not the actions of caring parents. 

It seems from the recent performance of Clarence Down Under, preparations are underway for the 10 year anniversary.  It's a big one for sure, and one if played correctly, should really tug at the big hearts and wallets of the UK's billionaires.  Perhaps Kensington Roof Garden has already been booked and the stars are being lined up? It may even have been one of metrics and deliverables on the wider agenda? 

Australia might have got a mention too.  Whatever the outcome, they will be looking for a new start.  Their 'fame' has crossed over into the 'notoriety' range and they will need a place where they are much less well known.  Unfortunately, their campaign has been so successful, there can't be many places left.  Yet still they chase publicity.  Clarence, far from retired from the case, is seeking out new campaign opportunities.  Why a gig in Australia?  Who knows, the speaker circuit is probably very competitive and the Madeleine case is his USP, but the other side of the world is not exactly convenient for those repeat bookings.  

Whether the McCanns will ever seek privacy and anonymity is debateable.  All their actions since the night Madeleine disappeared, suggest the opposite.  At any time during the past 9 years, they could have chosen to get back to quiet unassuming lives for the sake of their remaining children. 

The ten year anniversary is undoubtedly a big event, and some might see the devotion of the McCanns to their 'search' for Madeleine, and their support of Missing People as admirable.  Perhaps awards are in the pipeline?  Others might see it as a show of bravado, 'ah, look at those poor parents, they will never give up', and hit the paypal button. The bravado of course lies in the planning of a major event, it's as if they are saying to SY, 'we don't give a flying one what you say, we are not going to let a Fund raising opportunity pass by'.  Even the discovery of blood and cadaver odour in their apartment and car, didn't stop them from going ahead with their 100 Day shindig. They really have got more front than Harrods. 

Maybe we will see a new 'Awareness Campaign' for Year 10, with another picture of a shop window dummy age progression picture, and some new sightings in Australia? Unfortunately, they can't really say Madeleine has been forgotten or her story has faded away, because they have successfully kept her in the news for 9 years.  Finding a new angle won't be easy, but it's not impossible.

   

DO I BELIEVE YOU OR MY LYING EYES

As many of my regular readers probably know, I am a great fan of the classic one liner.  I have millions of them stuck in my head, but one that stands out above all others was a killer line from Sue Ellen Ewing when she caught her cheating husband JR in bed with his secretary. In full drunken drama Queen mode she screamed 'who do I believe, you or my lying eyes'?

In the case of missing Madeleine, we have seen the 'lying eyes' scenario played out over and over - with Kate, Gerry, our Government and our mainstream media telling us we all need to go to Specsavers.  I think JR said something similar to Sue Ellen, but far more eloquently. Who can forget Kate telling Piers Morgan how they didn't make too much of the fleck in Madeleine's eye, or when Scotland Yard were digging up PDL, Martin Brunt fumbling to create a believable story about an abductor, a shovel and all the time in the world.

When you see what a nice respectable couple Kate and Gerry are, it is hard if not impossible, to believe that they are capable of parking on a yellow line, let alone do anything dishonest.  Nice couples don't do things like that do they? Criminals are usually scruffily dressed low lives who take drugs and live on benefits. They are not smart professionals with great expectations.

Both Gerry and Kate can slot into the 'establishment' in a way that Karen Matthews couldn't. They are PLU, (People Like Us), snobby in the Mrs Bucket sense,  the first generation of their families to go to university, their peers among the media recognised and empathised with them, they know how hard it is to have young kids and a career!  Karen Matthews didn't have a government spokesman, personal calls from the Prime Minister and a multi million pound Fund.  And I don't recall CEOP or Missing People rushing to her aid, strange really, because at Shannon's age, the internet actually was a threat.  The stark difference in the way in which the McCanns have been treated compared with others, will have to be a factor in any future Inquiry. 

But back to those PLU. Gerry and Kate have no problems whatsoever with self esteem, their self confidence puts them within the God Complex Zone.  It is common in some doctors and pretending it isn't, is just naïve.  Doctors are among the few left in society who are held in esteem for their profession.  We all address them with their full titles, and we have all witnessed the way in which hospital staff jump to attention when a doctor walks onto a ward.  The McCanns and their friends didn't expect their word to be questioned, especially by minions and those they consider below them on the evolutionary ladder (most of us) and Gerry and Kate loved Leveson because they were getting the respect they believe is rightfully theirs. 

Unlike 'normal' parents, they didn't fall to pieces when Madeleine disappeared (though they put on a good act), they were compos mentis enough to formulate a plan.  They didn't waste their time searching, they stayed in Apartment A and drew up a timeline that they would all stick with.  A timeline that proved they were not endangering their young children and they were not negligent.  When news of Madeleine's disappearance broke, it was accompanied by straight from the horse's mouth detail that would establish an abduction had taken place.  It's the breaking news we remember every time, and to this day people still believe the apartment was broken into and the poor response of the Portuguese police allowed the abductor to get away.   

Their plan included blaming the police - it began by stating they took an inordinate length to time to respond to the emergency call.  Omitting the fact that they themselves took an inordinate 40 minutes to make that emergency call - despite the fact that Kate knew 'Madeleine had been taken'.  The first policemen who arrived on the scene, Kate nicknamed Tweedledum and Tweedledum - her way of saying, they were thick country bumkins and first in line for the accusations she would make later.  'No-one's doing anything', Kate and Gerry screamed down the phone to their family, friends and handy contacts, we are alone they claimed, as Portugual launched the biggest missing person search in their entire history. 

Don't contact the press, the police advised the parents.  We got NO advice Gerry told Leveson. If you release details of Madeleine's coloboma, the abductor may do something to her eye, or murder her the police warned, but it was a good marketing ploy said Gerry.  Gerry took control, he's that kind of guy. 

To get an understanding of what Kate and Gerry are up to and to remind ourselves of the serious abnormalities in this couple's motives, it is good to go over the old interviews - I'm sure the police have, and I'm sure psychologists will, for years and years to come.  At the Leveson enquiry for example, we see Kate and Gerry at their confident best.  As the whole Enquiry was about finding ways in which to restrict press freedom, they were naturally treated as  traumatised victims and VIP guests.  Gerry is positively beaming as he gleefully puts forward his ideas to punish individual journalists. Unfortunately, before he could get into full Dr. Evil mode, Lord Leveson pointed out a couple of the principles of Free Speech.  It was a shame really, because the 'punishments' intrigued me, what did Gerry have in mind?  Thumbscrews?  Kneecapping?  It was a mere tiff however, because the look they share at 11.24 is pure love.  Kate probably wishes Gerry looked at her like that. 

The body language of Kate and Gerry always intrigues me.  I think if I had someone clinging on to me like that all the time, I would give them a good slap. I actually find their closeness a bit creepy, and, erm, suspicious, in that it is a good way to send unseen signals.  Gerry of course dominated most of the mike time at Leveson, answering the questions with a confident front, but a twitchy ear and quite possibly a few ants in his pants.  It was the Gerry show with Dr.McCann on peak misogynist form.  Would you like a little break Lord Leveson asked him, telling him how special he was and how he was willing to make an exception. 'No, I'm fine, carry on' says Gerry, thrilled with the 'Head's approval, then as an afterthought, he whispers to Kate 'how about you?'.   Ouch, that wasn't just thoughtless, it was disrespectful.  As too was the way in which he made a hasty exit, gathering his own possessions and kicking his chair out of the way without so much as a helping hand or word of comfort for his wife. 

Kate spends much of her book making excuses for him.  So he played tennis all day and left her to cope with the 3 toddlers on her own!  So what, that's just Gerry being Gerry, she tells us.  While the staff and holidaymakers of Warners and the all locals desperately search the surrounding areas for her daughter, Gerry had a nap!  He needed his sleep she said, she had seen her poor husband hysterical on the floor, his needs were her priority. 

Actually, his needs and her needs, seem to be leitmotif for her entire book.  She always speaks about her loss, the time she has not had Madeleine with her. Neither she, nor Gerry can bring themselves to speak about the future Madeleine might have had.  Perhaps it is emotional or even a sense of guilt? Or maybe it is a mental block, they know that future ended on 3rd May 2007 and to go beyond that is too big a lie.  They can't speak directly to Maddie either, every time they are offered the opportunity to speak into the camera in case Maddie is watching, they become very self aware and nervous. 

The interviews tell us so much about the many facets of Kate and Gerry that it is incredible that this case still drags on.  The Oprah interview is a prime example, and one I defy lie expert Sharon Leal to watch and again, state definitively that they are not lying.  If they had been hooked up to a lie detector, we would have been able to link the peaks in the polygraph to their shifty body language.   'If your happy and you know it' is a song, not a story.  And it's the last thing you would sing to children you were trying to get off to sleep.  Even Kate is aware of the faux pas she made with that one. 

At some point, Kate is going to face the fact that it will soon be every man (and woman) for themselves.  Gerry will only protect her so far, and if it fits in with his own protection.  The look on Gerry's face as Kate clutches onto his arm already says get this woman off me.  I have no doubt the families will return to their own clans when the chips are down, plans are no doubt afoot. Gerry is the kind of guy who plans his future and his wider agenda and he is somewhat lacking in the compassion department. If Kate is half the woman we think she is, and not still completely under his spell, she should be making plans of her own.  I wonder who will get custody of Clarence?  

MURDER, MISSING, MONEY, MILLIONS

My less than 20/20 vision can only pick out 'Missing and Exploited' on the t-shirt worn by this aged progressed image of Madeleine McCann.  But in any event, my poor eyesight seems to tally with what is going in my brain. 

Today is the day of the 'Ms' it seems.  A FOI request has revealed that Operation Grange is a murder squad and there is no room for doubt.  The irony of course being that the Portuguese and Goncalo Amaral didn't use the 'M' word, they used the 'A' for accident word and the far less serious charges that would have come with it.  Doh!   

The 'pro' McCanns on twitter are pointing out that a murder squad would also investigate a missing person who is at risk.  But due to the fact that Operation Grange were digging up PDL in search of a body less than 2 years ago, I'm not buying it.  Besides which, it would be pretty bad form for OG to take all the time in the world if Madeleine were alive and at risk of being murdered.  What will they say? 'sorry about the extra 3 years with the beast Madeleine, but we still had 200 files to read'.

We have of course known for years that OG is a 'murder squad', but most have been reluctant to point it out, going with the 'she's alive' myth created by the ever efficient McMann Media Monsters Monitors.  The FOI revelation confirms it, but of course, it doesn't give any clues as to who their suspects are.  Some still think it will fall on a 'patsy', a mysterious bogeyman who fits the full profile of all our childhood fears.  He will be ugly, smelly, spotty, godless, murky is a given and caste out Quasimodo style by the rest of society.  Once he is found and hung, we can all sleep safely in our beds. 

Or, they might just have been looking at all the evidence that has kept we McCann junkies hooked for this last 9 years. And their suspect list may spread far and wide.  Those of us who have a good idea of what is going on, know that this is the country pile in the house of cards stakes, and some VIPs are occupying penthouse suites. 

But I am still on the money trail.  In my obsession to discover what it is that makes people truly evil, I study  the behaviour of known murderers and psychopaths and via the amazing World Wide Web, I have no end of resources.  In the case of genuinely grieving parents, part of them dies when they receive the worst news possible. They can't think, they can't plan, they can barely get through the day. Anyone who has ever suffered from depression will know that grief totally immobilizes you, even getting washed and dressed is a major task.  When I lost my beloved father I stayed in my bedroom for a week watching Seinfeld and Father Ted back to back.  It was only the intervention of my best friend that forced me to have my say in the funeral arrangements, 'or I would regret it forever more', that got me out of my 'pit' - temporarily at least. 

With genuinely grieving parents, we can feel their pain, it reaches us on a level that we can all recognise and understand, we grieve with them and for them because we empathise.  With mothers like Coral Jones and Sara Payne we want to comfort them, try to ease their pain, but know that we never can.  They are not buoyed by the public's response, they don't even want the public in their lives, they just want their babies.  Money cannot ease their agony, nothing can.  Aged progressed pictures of their loved ones would rip them apart.  They don't talk about new normalities or their own pain, they talk about the lives their children lost. 




Even without all the circumstantial evidence, the statements that don't match, no signs of a break in, and the 11 alerts of the blood and cadaver dogs, the behaviour of Kate and Gerry McCann has been bizarre, by anyone's standards. In the summer of 2007 when there was a strong possibility Madeleine may have been in the hands of monsters, her mother and father were planning a huge Corporation and an annual Madeleine Day for the whole world. At a time when most fathers would be non functioning, Gerry's grinning face was popping up on the Whitehouse lawn, all over Europe and at press conferences in Edinburgh that he wasn't invited to.  Why are you here asked the interviewer, why indeed. 

Gerry and Kate's success arose out of their perceived 'bravery'.  They didn't sit back and feel sorry for themselves, they took control of the helm.  Their little girl was missing (in a foreign land) and they were going to get her back.  It's the standard fodder of 'tru movies', cherubic child, attractive parents up against a 'brutal' non WASP regime.  We are indoctrinated to root for the heroes, the civilised, clean living, church going professionals and their desperate search for their little Blonde girl stolen from her bed in a foreign land.  I swear the plot comes from DW Griffiths!

I doubt Team McCann knew just how effective their campaign would be.  They had grandiose ideas (don't we all?), but they never seemed to sober up the next day and besides which, the grandiose ideas were coming to fruition beyond their wildest dreams.  Integral to their plan was the belief that Madeleine was still alive. That is what they have been selling us this past 9 years and what they are selling us still.  If she were dead there would be no reason for the Fund to continue and they are not popular enough to go straight to the 'support the family' second objective.  Madeleine is an innocent little girl, Gerry keeps telling us, as if to remind donors, to forget all the questions surrounding himself and his wife, and 'give' to the innocent victim. 

But let's get to the crux - Gerry and Kate have asked us since May 2007 to donate to the 'Search' for Madeleine.  And it must be donate, because where are we being asked to search?  Should we scour all the fields and hedgerows, no matter where we live, or should we treat every blonde (or Asian) girl of 13 as a potential Maddie and demand they give their DNA to the local police?  These age progression pictures are a virtual stalker's charter. Plastering the faces of innocent children all over the tabloids and accusing their parents of kidnap is perfectly acceptable if you are searching for Maddie. 

I would really like someone from the Madeleine camp to explain to me exactly what 'searching' in this case means, because at the moment it is kind of fuzzy.  Do they honestly believe that someone is going to 'find' Maddie based on the image of a shop window dummy?  Have we entered the twilight zone? Until I receive an informed response, I will have to assume that 'search' means fundraise. Though what the funds are actually for, remains unclear.  Deliberate plan or runaway train, the McCanns were receiving millions in donations.  Everyone wanted to help and their help was converted into hard cash.  I would imagine that the Madeleine Fund has probably been the largest 'private' Charity ever to have existed - people responded, and the McCanns collected, as if there had been a global disaster. The people who kindly donated saw their money frittered away on mortgage payments, £50k per month dodgy detectives and 5* travel for the McCann entourage. 

But let's get back to that fundraising. When Gerry and Kate put their heart and soul into something there is no doubt they can move mountains.  For Gerry all his childhood dreams came true, he even went head to head with Paxman (bad move), he was hobnobbing with the elite, heck he was the elite!  Braveheart and Father of the Nation, Scotland's finest, aw shucks.  

Any business minded person will tell you that launching a company while you are riding the crest of a wave is a jolly good idea.  Good Quality yellow wristbands could have become the must have accessory for fashion conscious teenagers and concerned citizens all over the globe.  The online shop was launched in record time, not only with 'must have' wristbands, but Maddie badges, trinkets, t-shirts and car stickers.  

Not unnaturally, the Portuguese police thought this was a very suspicious way for the parents of a missing child to behave.  Kate even wore a cute 'Maddie' badge on her belt when she went along for a police interview.  Kate has never shown that innate grief of a mother yearning for her lost child.  It simply isn't there, not even in her book Madeleine.  There is nothing within the book to connect the reader to the child, or even the mother.  It is a Stepford life for those capable of unshakeable belief.    

But let's stick with the fundraising.  The McCanns and their helpers, turned a tragedy into a 'get rich quick' opportunity.  They quickly became accustomed to the private jets, the paparazzi and the grovelling flunkies, they were getting the treatment they were entitled to.  They have a very strong sense of entitlement.

The Fund was born out of people wanting to help, Gerry told us, in other words the idea did not come from them. It was a bit like his epiphany, the Good Lord (no less) sent him a sign. The chosen one then embarked on a mission to sell wristbands, the like of which has never been seen before.  Flick your wristband and we will all become as one.  Cue group hug.  Just for a bit of trivia, dictators, tyrants and authoritarians love wristbands, badges, stripes or yellow star emblems on sleeves, it enables them to spot instantly who is the friend or foe.  I first encountered this human quirk as a small child trying to sneak a bit of extra time in the swimming pool.  I was betrayed by the colour of my wristband, for the 'reds' the time was up :(

Whilst Aunty Phil sent chainmail letters to large corporations (gaw'd 'elp 'em), the troops on the ground pointed out the good quality of the rubber and the modesty of the price to the general public whilst Clarence shouted roll up, roll up, every personal detail of my clients' lives is negotiable.  Form a queue.

I doubt we will ever know how much money was received by the Madeleine Fund, it never had a top limit, or a goal.  How much was ever going to be enough?  £1million, £2million, £20million?  All for one child and one family. In any event they received the kind of money that would rebuild a small village struck by disaster, or provide much needed medicines and relief in crisis hit areas around the globe.  The kind people who donated, wanted something good to come out of Maddie's tragedy, I doubt they wanted a miscarriage of justice.  Perhaps those misguided billionaire philanthropists can make amends by providing humanitarian relief for the refugees?  Many of whom will be small children, torn from the safety of their homes and thrust into the care of a very uncaring society.   

          

THE MILLION POUND BABY - MADELEINE'S FUND

I wish I had the writing talents of Mr. Charles Dickens, who was able to highlight the injustice he saw all around him through the tragic, fictional lives of his memorable characters.  One poignant scene that forever stuck in my mind was the death of little Jo, the roadsweeper in Bleak House.  The rich ladies and gentry stepped over him to go into church as he lay dying in the gutter. While they praised themselves for their compassion and philanthropy, they were completely oblivious to the children dying in the streets outside. It changed my views on 'Charity' forever more. 

Within days of Madeleine going missing, her parents set up a Fund, not  a Charity, but a fighting fund that would somehow return a live child to her bereft parents.  Any detective, or fan of CSI knows that outside the golden hour, the chances of finding a kidnap victim alive is remote to impossible, but that has never deterred Madeleine's parents.   Neither did the scent of blood and cadaver picked up by specialist dogs from the UK.

As bereft as they were, they were going to turn their disaster into a (financial) triumph.  Within days of their 'loss', they were being wined and dined by Clement Freud and Ray Wyre and taking calls from the Prime Minister. They may even have convinced themselves they were doing if for Maddie, but the memorial they were creating was for Maddie alone, it would never assist any other child.  The money amassed by the Madeleine Fund would only be passed on if Madeleine AND her abductor were found.  The emphasis on the 'and' is the McCanns, not mine.  However, as there is no abductor, the question of sharing the donations becomes moot.   

The parents of Madeleine didn't mourn her loss because they had to sell the belief that she was alive and everything they have done since the moment they discovered her missing, has been focused on that 'hope'.  Within days they had set up a 'Fund' to get Madeleine back and their 'bravery' was seen as in inspiration to us all. They didn't wallow in the guilt of leaving their babies so that one was now missing, they put out collection buckets and became the spokesman and spokeswoman for border control and pissed off libel claimants. 

The response to the Madeleine Fund was phenomenal, it may even have taken Team McCann by surprise, for  a short while there he probably felt as if he ruled the world. The deference given to him by politicians, celebrities and senior (British) police officers confirmed it.  Whatever Gerry wanted, Gerry got, though an annual Madeleine Day for the whole world, may have been a Dr. Evil dream too far.  I wonder if the Browns, Elton and the Beckhams still take his calls?  

In the early days, it was said that the Missing Madeleine website received 500million hits plus.  Everybody wanted to assist the distraught parents in any way they could, and the best way they could assist was to donate cash.  The cashometer on the Madeleine website didn't last long, they axed it when it hit £1m or was it £2m? But in any event, it was becoming embarrassing.  Who knows how much the McCanns received in donations, not only did the cashometer disappear, but so too did the transparency in the financial reports filed with Companies House.  My estimate would be that they received around £4m or £5m, they had many big donors, multi millionaires offering to finance their 'Search' and their battles with the sardine munching Portuguese police and I'm sure they had the persuasive powers to keep their regular donors hooked. This has always been  long term project for Gerry, as demonstrated by his infamous whiteboard and wider agenda. 

The first financial reports filed with Companies House was probably the nearest inkling we would ever get as to how the donated millions were spent. The backlash against the fact that only 13% of the Fund's income went on the 'Search' put an end to any transparency from thereon. Most of it appeared to go on PR, marketing, lawyers and bizarrely £37k on a website!  

The McCanns then appeared to be spending vast amounts on private detectives, according to Clarence they hired the 'big boys', the crème de la crème of Europe's private detective agencies with figures such as £50k per month being paid by way of retainer being bandied around.  As we now know, most of the 'big boys' hired by the parents are now in prison for money laundering and fraud and the usually litigious McCanns have shrugged off their losses.

We should of course be appalled that Gerry and Kate have let so many millions fritter through their hands.  The cash so generously donated by kind people who cared desperately for the plight of the child, had little to do with getting the said child back.  When Kate and Gerry were made arguidos in September 2007, the directors of the Fund gave a public statement that it would not be used for legal expenses, that is it would not be used to defend Kate and Gerry against criminal charges. 

The exact wording of that statement could keep many highly paid lawyers fully occupied for the next 20 years.  The Fund clearly has, among it's objectives, 'support Madeleine's family'.  That sentence alone is open to a thousand interpretations as the 5* lawyers who drew it up are fully aware. 



However, before embarking on a Jarndyce .v. Jarndyce legal trial of epic proportions, we should maybe ask, is it morally right to use public donations to defend yourself in civil and criminal proceedings?  Ie. Use that cash to clean up your image and pay lawyers to watch your critics 24/7?  Is it morally right to use that cash to wreck the lives of others?Is it morally right to raise money to find a 'non' missing child? Is it morally right for a national Charity that is supposed to assist thousands, to focus on one non missing child?  Do they not have other children on their books who are genuinely missing and who have a good chance of being found alive? 

This should be an easy one for the Christians out there, but probably easier for the humanists.  How many children have died of starvation since Madeleine went missing.  How many kids who were missing before, are missing still?  How many of the millions the McCanns accumulated have been given to the families of other missing kids? Or even, in creating a dignified memorial to their 'missing daughter'?  Maybe a school in her name in a third world country, or a new gym for the school she didn't attend? So much good could have been done with the millions raised in her name, and I am sure that is what the generous donors intended.     

This whole 'Madeleine' is alive myth is like watching a badly botched combo of Tangled and Weekend at Bernies.  With those still believing in the 'Tangled' (little princess imprisoned in a tower) version, trapped in the Freudian toddler stage of their development, where they all lived happily ever after. I sincerely hope the officers of Scotland Yard are not among them.

The tragedy of little Madeleine's disappearance (I dare not say death) is that no good has come from it.  The lessons that could have been learned (never leave small children on their own) were suppressed and even made light of.  'We ALL do it' said dozy sofa queens, thus giving the green light to naïve young parents to nip out to the pub whenever they liked.  All those doctors can't be wrong eh? We were all made to fear prowlers and bogeymen rather than sofas being used as climbing frames, sharp corners, poisonous substances, concrete staircases, choking, falling, fire.....  or any number of other clear and present dangers to toddlers who are left on their own.

But this is about the Fund.  Bizarrely it continues much as it always has.  It still has donate buttons, but I doubt it sells many holiday packs or t-shirts these days and Kate tells us the kids still fundraise at school.  And getting the kids to fundraise is a new low in my eyes.  The Fund, not being a Charity, doesn't appear to be accountable to anyone.  Basically it is saying 'we want your donations but we don't want to tell you what we are doing with them'.  There are no named employees, and the mysterious 'Webmaster' who runs the Madeleine Facebook page is as anonymous as he/she ever was.  Why the need for the 'Webmaster' to hide his/her identity?  Why have Kate and Gerry kept such a distance from their fans and supporters.  Even A-listers have the good manners to interact directly with their fans without the need for spokesmen.

Frustratingly for them, the McCanns have not been able to use their fund raising skills for themselves this past 4+ years.  Though they were brazen enough to conduct their own private investigation alongside the official PJ investigation, they have not dared pull any similar stunts with Operation Grange.  And this time around it is unlikely that the public would fund them.

The Fund appears at the moment to be untouchable, but as we have no idea what Operation Grange are up to, we may yet see an 'Al Capone' outcome, the feds got the gangster via his unpaid taxes.  This Million Pound baby has kept media moguls, spin doctors, for sale 'experts' and an army of sleazy lawyers gainfully employed this past 9 years, Who profited by Madeleine's disappearance?  It's going to be a pretty long list that will probably begin and end with money.  Personally, I would like to see them all lined up JB Priestly style** and made aware of their own contributions to this tragedy. 

Sadly, despite all the millions raised in the name of the child there is no memorial to Madeleine's short tragic life.  All those strangers touched by the plight of this tiny girl wanted to ensure that this never happened again.  Just as the readers of Charles Dickens lobbied their politicians to clean up the streets and treat orphans humanely, the followers of the Madeleine case don't ever want to see another child treated so appallingly.  So much good could have been done in this tragic child's name and no doubt the donors thought it would be.  Instead her image and her memory have been tarnished by links to everything that is bad in this world. 

On the right is  picture of Isbell Peatfield who died in the 2004 tsunami aged 5 with her mum.  Her devastated parents Kim and Tristan started a fund in her name and returned 6 weeks later to distribute the cash.  They have since built playgrounds in Sri Lanka and added a children's ward to the local hospital.  Their little girl will never be forgotten because her parents' created a legacy in her name. In these parents we saw a 'hundred virtues rise, in shapes of mercy, charity and love.' 

As the Madeleine case seems to be drawing to a close, the McCanns have stated that their search (fundraising) for Madeleine will continue.  Clearly Operation Grange have failed to give them the result they wanted.  That 'innocent' certificate to hang on the wall.  Worse still, OG stated Madeleine may have been dead when she was taken from the apartment. That's not really something you can go back on, nor something they can sue the Met for. Nor could they put a tent over the bleddy great big diggers in PDL as the libel trial went on in Lisbon.  Was the Judge wearing ear muffs and blinkers? Who knows what the feck is going on over there, but that situation alone takes surreal off the chart. In any event, the 'likely' death of Madeleine won't help their fundraising one bit.

No matter how this case ends I think it is safe to say the fundraising will begin again in earnest.  Perhaps with the disgruntled libel claimants claiming they have been victims of the lawless press and political machinations.  They have had a lot of lawyers watching a lot of social media for a lot of years.  Not to mention of course, the trolls hired to provoke and then document everything said by the McCann critics for naming and shaming purposes and use in a possible trial.  Lucky them, all the crazy shit from Bennett could tie a Court room up for years. 

It should be noted that any 'new' private Search for Madeleine will be the same as the last ones.  That is, the investigators will be looking for someone to blame and more lives to wreck.  More mugshots for the front of tabloids and more accusations against single men, hermits and eccentrics.  It doesn't matter who gets hurt in the McCanns 'search for their daughter', they will never stop.  They need to clear their names in order to get the Fund back up and running as it did in its heyday and they need someone to blame.   

Lets hope, in time, the name of little Madeleine McCann can be used for good, that lessons can be learned and that wrongs can be put right.  Small children should never be left alone under any circumstances, not because a bogeyman might steal them from their beds, but because an accident is almost inevitable.

*  Many thanks Pamalam and I urge anyone who wants to explore explore the 'Fund' further to visit Pam's site.
http://www.gerrymccannsblogs.co.uk/FUND_COMMITTEE.htm 

Please also see the excellent analysis of the Fund by Enid O'Dowd at the same link. 

** An Inspector Calls
  

JONBENET RAMSEY AND MADELEINE MCCANN - it's a class thing

 

UDATE  04.03.16 

I see the rabid McCann 'pros' are equally rabid in their support of the parents of Jonbenet Ramsey.  BB1, in full pillar of the community righteous mode claims I am accusing cancer victimS of killing their children, making it plural for extra impact.  She is completely ignoring the fact that Steve Thomas and the other officers were completely vindicated by the revelation that the Grand Jury voted to indict the Ramseys. 

But worse, in her defence of the cancer victim (singular) Patsy, she is also completely disregarding the fate of the murder victim, the 6 year old Jonbenet, a little girl who's short life was horrifically ended by the cancer victim.  She prefers to believe the myth of the intruder in the Jonbenet case, just as she prefers the myth of the abductor in the case of Madeleine.  Because in her world, nice successful people like the Ramseys and the McCanns should be above suspicion.  And the only reason people suspect them is because they are jealous of their success. 

Unfortunately, that primitive, Amish mentality permeates every level of society and includes celebrity television presenters, newspaper columnists, supposed criminologists and even high ranking police chiefs.  They simply cannot get past the fact that people who do not fit the 'usual suspect' criteria are capable of committing heinous crimes.  They prefer to believe in the bogeyman, because, heck, that's what they were taught when they were 5, and it kinda works. 

We have to accept that people like BB1 are incapable of thinking outside the box, because they form part of the masses soothed by the gospel like words of those in authority and those they look up to for care and guidance.  They accept that those 'above them' on the evolutionary scale know what's best for them and they are happy to pass responsibility for their lives onto someone else.  There is no point in trying to get through to these people, they have a mental block the size of China's Wall and you could chip away until Doomsday without making a dent.

Others however, face the very real danger of looking like absolute eejits, those high ranking policemen who aligned themselves so closely to the former suspects, those expert criminologists who said the parents couldn't have done it, and who have put forward their own detailed theories on how Madeleine disappeared and the lying expert who said they were 100% truthful.  And what of those major charities?  Where is the morality in using a non missing child to front their campaigns, when real missing children could really use their help.    

As has been said many times, if the McCanns had been unemployed Council house dwellers, this crime would have been solved 8+ years ago, because no-one would have protested at the parents coming under scrutiny and huge questions would have been asked as to why they needed a multimillion pound fund. 

This dominant ideology that the well educated and the well heeled are incapable of law breaking, protected the Ramseys and protects the McCanns.  Whilst it is mostly harmless in dimwits like BB1, it is petrifying in those responsible for upholding and administering justice.  What I admire mostly in Goncalo Amaral and the PJ, is the level to which they are educated - far higher it would appear than the 'you're nicked' old thieftaker mentality of their UK counterparts.  Goncalo Amaral for example, has an indepth knowledge of human behaviour, ably demonstrated in his book The Truth of the Lie and the dignified way in which he has faced his accusers. 

What we may be seeing, at the moment, is the saving of lots of beacon red faces. A lot of people are going to look very silly, and a lot of people are going to look far more than silly, they are going to look downright corrupt.  The huge errors made in Whitehall may eventually result in a secretary or a filing clerk getting their marching orders.  The lawyers can simply say, that's what they do, morality has no place in litigation fees.  The police agencies and the secret services however, should be squirming.  Especially all those who rushed out to PDL to assist the British citizens who were being interrogated by the Portuguese police.  Those particular red faces should glow for miles, because they included seasoned, high ranking coppers who were hoodwinked by a group of doctors who considered them, their intellectual inferiors.  And if someone lies to you, and you believe them, that's exactly what they think.  

I think we are all still here 9 years on, because those blinded by their own little Englander, middle class prejudices are too embarrassed to admit they got it so wrong.  The Portuguese police were far from the untrained, third world fascist thugs the UK media portrayed them as.  The McCanns were not being brutalised by vicious, uniformed interrogators, they were, quite rightly, being asked perfectly reasonable questions about their daughter's disappearance.  The worse Kate could say about the Portuguese police, was that they were shabbily dressed (understandable, they were sleeping in the office), they were smoking and they didn't offer herself and her husband light refreshments.  

We can debate the differences between UK and Portuguese culture ad infinitum, but in my opinion it was the 'little Englander' approach that fucked it all up. The UK tabloids carried sensational front pages of tired and hungry officers from the PJ taking lunch breaks with wine.  Shock, horror, how dare they, Maddie is still missing, the headlines screamed, completely disregarding the fact that those officers were working 24/7 to find the missing English child, and many didn't go to their own homes for days.  

The Portuguese police, like the British police, is made up of Officers who are parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts etc.  That is human beings who empathise with the plight of a vulnerable child.  They, more than any of us, want to discover what happened to the victim.  For the majority of them, it is why they joined the police in the first place.  They want to 'protect'.  Those who accuse the Portuguese police are not taking into account, that the PJ and their families actually lived in the danger zone.  Why on earth would they leave a child predator on the loose?

But this is a 'class' rant.  The world I think is mostly bemused by the old British class system, in fact they have created class systems of their own, loosely based on the ideals of the Domesday book - though the US I believe, still claims to be a meritocracy.  But in favour of the US, they are not afraid to challenge wrong doers at or near the top of their own hierarchy.  There are no taboos, their fearless reporters will ask the great and the good outright, 'did you do it'. 

The UK less so.  Probably because it still hangs onto those outdated libel laws that make London the capital for get rich quick chancers and vexatious litigants.  The McCanns of course are pushing for stricter libel laws, and if I'm reading them correctly, prison for those journalists who dare to say anything nasty about them.  They have placed themselves at the top of the Mail readers and outraged middle classes pile, by turning themselves into eternal victims of irresponsible free speech.  The libel laws that exist in this country have protected the suspects in the case of missing Madeleine McCann for almost 9 years, if ever a case were needed to illustrate how harmful these restrictive UK laws have been, then it is this one. 



_________________________________________________


The tragic case of Jonbenet Ramsey has far more in common with the disappearance of Madeleine McCann than the heartbreaking case of little April Jones.  In the mother of April Jones, we saw real pain and we empathised.  We understood her agony because she couldn't hide it, that is, she reacted as we knew we would if it happened to us.  

The mothers of Jonbenet and Madeleine however, are entirely different.  They both seem devoid of that gut wrenching 'I would lay down my life for my child' maternal instinct that grips the rest of us when our newborn is first placed in our arms.  The fact that both their daughters disappeared in highly suspicious circumstances, (Jonbenet was discovered dead soon after) and their ferocious self preservation instincts link them further.

Both married Alpha males - sound hunter gatherers who would provide the lifestyle they desired.  But it's not all about the women, Gerry has much in common with John Ramsey - when being interviewed they both take 'control' - theirs' is the voice of authority, they take the higher ground by patronising those they consider beneath (almost everyone, maybe not Paxman).  When it is a female presenter, I suspect they have to fight back the paternal urge to pat them on the heads. Both struggle to be likeable, it's not in their nature.  

But the similarities between the Ramseys and the McCanns, don't stop there.  Kate, like Patsy, was approaching her 40th birthday and also frazzled.  Patsy was preparing for a flight the next morning that she didn't want to go on.  Kate was struggling to cope with 3 toddlers and a macho husband who appeared to do little of his share.  He distanced himself from his family on the bus journey, and swore in front of all the mothers and kids as he growled that he wasn't there to enjoy himself.  It wasn't exactly an auspicious start to the holiday. 

The strange behaviour of the Ramseys set off alarm bells with the first officers on the scene.  Ditto, the McCanns.  This strange behaviour included inviting over all their friends, relatives, the pastor etc, while they waited for the arrival of a full police task force.  Like Apartment 5A, the crimescene was not sealed off, trashed some might say, but in any event key evidence was lost or tampered with.   

The Ramseys, like the McCanns, immediately called lawyers and set in motion a campaign to establish their innocence, they had wealth and connections, and they used them.  They also stopped co-operating with the police and set up their own investigations that always concluded Jonbenet was murdered by an intruder.  30 years on, no-one has ever been charged.

The Jonbenet case like Madeleine case, had hundreds, if not thousands of armchair detectives and conspiracy theorists working their socks off to find answers that would incriminate their enemies and people they don't like, and a section of the moral majority who believe that deviant sex lies at the heart of all society's ills.  Child pornography and paedophile rings forming the basis of their whacky claims. Happily, they have a very limited audience, most who are still here are appalled at the injustice shown to these children and the murky cover ups behind them. 

I have long believed that Patsy Ramsey murdered her daughter.  There is no doubt in my mind that she wrote the 'ransom note' found at the scene.  When the police arrived, she was still wearing the same clothes and makeup - she hadn't been to bed.  How do I know this?  Because Jonbenet, like Madeleine had an 'Avenger' too.  Steve Thomas was the Boulder police detective who never gave up on the victim, just as Goncalo Amaral has never given up on Madeleine.  He too fell out with his superiors, wrote a book and was sued by the parents. 

Steve Thomas was 'Guided by a police axiom that "murders are usually what they seem"'* he reaches a conclusion that is based on logic, understanding of the circumstances and evidence and one that is devoid of paedophile rings, child pornography, swingers or prowlers.  It is remarkable in its' simplicity, it explains in terms that could not be plainer, the most likely series of events that led to Jonebenet's death and the discovery of her body in the basement. 

For those who study human behaviour and the fine art of lying, I urge you to watch this video I have only just discovered on Youtube.  It is a recording of the evidence given to the Grand Jury in 1999, that led to their decision to indict the Ramseys.  A decision that was overturned by the District Attorney Alex Hunter because he felt there wasn't enough evidence to get a conviction. If they had prosecuted and lost, they would not get the opportunity again.  As it transpired, the Ramseys were never prosecuted.

In October 2013, Steve Thomas, Jonbenet's Avenger, was vindicated as details of the 1999's Grand Jury's findings were released (see link below).  This short 33 minute documentary is a little gem for those of us looking at the Madeleine case from a psychological perspective, the interviews with the Ramseys are very intensive, they give much away!  Patsy is wearing a small crucifix at her throat, and robes she may have pinched from passing Archbishop. John Ramsey is the angry Patriarch defending his wife and family, not even bothering to disguise the contempt he has for those who question him.  A chilling trait shared by you know who. 

I don't know what has become of Steve Thomas, but I hope that life is treating him well.  Like Goncalo Amaral, he never forgot the victim of the crime he was investigating and he wouldn't kowtow to the intruder myth that was being sold by the massive Ramsey publicity machine.  He would not be gagged, just as Goncalo will not be gagged. 

I am glad that nearly 30 years later Steve Thomas was finally vindicated, but I am sad for little Jonbenet and even for all those who had to live with the cover up for the rest of their lives.  And I am sad that wealth and power enables some people to get away with the most heinous of crimes and indeed, profit from them.  They would prefer to smother and silence the good policemen and women who speak out, rather than disrupt the paradigm. 

The officers working for Operation Grange already have their futures mapped out for them on that whiteboard.  This case could make or break careers and it is highly unlikely that 30 lemmings existed amongst Scotland Yard's finest, officers willing to sacrifice their futures to protect two, not very likeable, doctors from the midlands.  Operation Grange are dealing with extremely litigious former suspects, and who may still have someone in the thick of it with the ability to pull strings.  The officer in charge of the original investigation is desperately trying to hang on to his few remaining possessions before they are seized by the grieving parents.  

It is my feeling that Operation Grange face the same predicament as that faced by Alex Hunter.  Perhaps they do not feel confident that they have enough evidence to get a conviction, and given the huge legal resources the McCanns have at their fingertips (as did the Ramseys), do they dare try?  Team McCann have had 9 years and the 'best' legal minds available to prepare their Defence, all they have to do is create a reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury, and they walk.  

But I am not making excuses for Operation Grange because I am hoarse from shouting 'Behind You!'.  In the words of Steve Thomas 'murders are usually what they seem', so what is the hold up? 

  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yl5Ll3sLFs8  Killer revealed 'Who killed Jonbenet Ramsey

* http://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/10/us/jonbenet-s-mother-was-killer-detective-says.html

Steve Thomas :   http://www.amazon.co.uk/JonBenet-Inside-Ramsey-Murder-Investigation/dp/1250054796

NINE YEARS AND WE CAN'T SOLVE IT EITHER

 It is almost 9 years since little Madeleine McCann vanished while on holiday with her family in the Algarve. It has been the subject of 3 police investigations (for the PJ this is second time around), and has had the full time attention of 30 homicide officers from Scotland Yard for 4 years.  

But still nothing.  Despite the fact that little Madeleine could not have made herself disappear, there have been no arrests, no charges brought against anyone, not even those whose neglect led to her disappearance.  Bizarrely, one of the primary carer's of Madeleine has even been given an award by a leading British Charity - for services to children presumably.  

Nobody wants to add to the grief of the family of a missing child, but in a case where the mother has refused to answer police questions and wishes misery and fear on the detective who was searching for her child, is an Award really appropriate?  And presumably, with thousands of missing people on their books, why does this Charity continue to publicise the one child that is most likely to be dead?  The blood and cadaver dogs alerted to exactly what they are trained to alert to - somebody died in Apartment 5A and Madeleine has not been seen for almost 9 years.  

I think the case of missing Madeleine McCann has perfectly illustrated the contempt the mainstream media seems to have for the general public.  No matter how ludicrous a story, someone says 'yeh, they'll buy that', and the printers are set in motion.  The newspaper industry is collapsing because the public have woken up to the fact that their daily papers have been lying to them.  Anyone studying a media course will be fascinated at the simplicity of Team McCanns's original masterplan (campaign), and appalled at how easy it was for a small group of manipulative people to pull the wool over so many eyes.  

Heaven knows what Operation Grange have been up to this past 4+ years, they have had enough time to establish how many stars there are in the universe and quite possibly the meaning of life, but they still appear to be no nearer to discovering the truth behind little Madeleine's disappearance.  It seems as if they have gone to great endeavours to make the obviously fabricated story real.  Even revealing such snippets as a smelly man prowling the Algarve and climbing into the beds of small, blonde haired British girls.  Presumably, this is because leaving small kids on their own and going out for a meal is something unique to the British.  Forsooth!    

The snippets over the years have been enough to keep the forums and the conspiraceloons buzzing, and they were right, I fully understand the mentality behind the media silence and the sensitivity of the situation.  That's why I want no truck with Petitions, investigations by self appointed vigilantes, or any interference with the due legal process.  I believe there are officers in Operation Grange who are of the same ilk as Goncalo Amaral, that is, they are acting on behalf of the victim, little Madeleine.  

What I object to is the hurt that is being inflicted on real people as this facade continues.  In my opinion it was obscene to put Coral Jones, bless her heart, through the ordeal of sharing a stage with Kate McCann, especially now that so much IS known about Madeleine's disappearance.  Whilst every compassion should have been shown to Mrs McCann, and still should be, these awards are wrong on every level.  Has Kate McCann ever used her experience to warn other parents about the dangers of leaving small children alone?  Or is the subject taboo in case the more obvious danger of accident might come up?

But it is not just people like Coral who are being forced to admire the Emperor's new clothes, it is all those families of genuinely missing kids, and genuinely missing people who would give anything for a fraction of the publicity that has been given to Kate and Gerry McCann.  Madeleine is probably the best known missing child in the world.  Her picture has been distributed on every continent. Everyone who has ever been to Portugal has been interviewed.  How many more tabloid headlines can they get out of Madeleine?  Where will it end? Can the people of PDL now sleep safe in their beds, knowing there isn't a prowler or a gang of paedophiles on the loose?  Don't they deserve an answer? All those who's names have been dragged through the mud to prop up the abduction story?

Should generous donors continue giving to the Madeleine Fund, in the hope she will be found alive one day?  Has the Home Secretary got value for the £10m+ of taxpayer's money she has spent on this case?  She doesn't look like the kind of woman who would tolerate a fluffy answer to me.  She sort of reminds me of my old (always angry) maths teacher. 

We were told in a blaze of publicity that the Home Secretary gave Operation Grange its' remit.  I expect it will be the heads of those who drew up the actual remit that will roll, rather than that of Mrs May herself it this ends with no answers.  But of course that will only be in the event that any heads are required.  Who knows, there may yet be commendations and awards, if their remit was to keep what they are doing secret, then they have somehow managed it.  I don't think any of us have a clue what they are up to.  I have an inkling, but I will save it for my Agatha Christie version. 

Operation Grange began with the kind of front pages the McCanns would pay half a million for, it was full of hope with an aged progressed image of Madeleine and a statement from DCI Redwood that they were looking for a live child.  It was like another Clarence the 'big boys have arrived' headline, with detectives from the civilised world arriving shipshape and Bristol fashion to sort out the mess.  No scruffy clothes and fags hanging out their gobs, or vino with lunch for this lot.  With pristine suits, sensible haircuts and cheese sarnie at their desks, they were going to go over everything the PJ had done before them, picking up on their errors and telling them where they had gone wrong. 

Yet 4+ years on, these smartly dressed party poopers, seem to know less than the Portuguese police did in 3 weeks!   I can see why Operation Grange are probably having a great deal of difficulty in finding an exit strategy.  They will at some point have to say whether Mr and Mrs McCann were involved in the disappearance of their daughter.  There is no way out of it.  And once they do the floodgates will open.  It may be that there is a long line of dominoes balancing precariously, because when the first ones go down, the rest will follow. 

This case has done the reputation of Scotland Yard no good whatsoever.  It has led to even more accusations of corruption and the covering up of heinous crimes on behalf of VIPs.  I am far from naïve, but I still believe most people are inherently good, and that homicide detectives never forget the victim.  Time will tell of course, but in the meanwhile, crimes are still being committed in this poor child's name and real people are suffering as a result of those ongoing crimes.

It has been 9 years and no-one has been arrested or charged for making this little girl disappear.  In 2011, the UK stepped in (why?) virtually assuring the public, that 'our' police could do better, and heaven knows they have had more than enough resources, but still there is no result.  As I say I do not want to do anything that will interfere with the investigation (I am totally opposed to Bennett's Petition), but I do question the morality of allowing crimes that cause direct harm to others (such as the McCanns demands for damages from Goncala Amaral) to continue.  The Madeleine Fund and the McCanns 'Search' are highly suspicious, yet gullible people are still being encouraged to donate. 

 

Among the many things that bug me with this case, is the total lack of respect that the country of birth (my heart belongs in the fields of Ireland and the hills of Scotland) can be so appallingly patronising to the Portuguese.  I am offended on their behalf, not only am I offended, I am now embarrassed on England's behalf.  This case has brought out the inherent racism that exists within the British Establishment.  They accepted without question the word of two white British suspects over the word of the  foreign police.  And they opened up Operation Grange with the memorable words that neither the parents or any of their friends are suspects.  In other words the investigation began with all the Brits ruled out!

Yet, for all the posturing and all the thousands and thousands of files that Operation Grange have gone through with a fine-tooth comb, they still appear to know zilch.  It's like they said to the PJ, 'we will take your embarrassment and multiply it by a 1,000'.  Because it appears, they too have been outwitted, outplayed, or out politicised.  I can't see any awards being handed out for 'no, we can't solve it either' and I wouldn't want to see the wrath of Mrs. May.