The mighty Coroner

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6559529.stm

'A coroner has called it "inexcusable" that US authorities failed to release evidence about the first UK casualties of the Iraq war. Andrew Walker was speaking at the reopening of an inquest into the fatal helicopter crash in March 2003. The servicemen died along with four US marines in Kuwait. Mr Walker said that despite "strenuous attempts by his office and the Ministry of Defence", the US had again said it would not provide any American witnesses to give evidence at his hearing.'

I'm a great fan of the historical institutions of my country. Coroners courts do a worthy and useful job. But the idea that during a war you could or should have an inquest for every soldier and airman who dies seems frankly absurd. It is only because of the very low-level intensity of the current operations in Iraq and Afghanistan that we can pretend that its possible. The logistics for doing a thorough inquest during a war like Vietnam or Korea, let alone the Second World War would have been stupefying.

If the intentions of the Coroner in this case were straightforward, and he was willing to get on with an inquest with the information available, the nonsensical nature of the overall plan to inquest a whole war might escape notice. But the hysterical and hectoring quality of his remarks, both during the present case, as with the Matty Hull inquest, reveal the real purpose of the inquests. They are a highly political attempt to embarrass the United States, for propaganda purposes.

The four men who died in the helicopters were on operations in a live, on-going war. Reasonable people will regret their deaths and understand why all the details of their last moments may not be known- in fact may never be known. Many widows and children of servicemen from 20th century wars Britain was involved in do not know the exact circumstances of their mens deaths- just another brutal fact of a brutal process. The Coroner, unless he is exceptionally ignorant or stupid, knows this. Therefore, all the very public bewailing of US supposed non-cooperation is simply a cudgel to beat the hated Americans with, and not part of any useful or rational process. As such, I see it as a despicable corruption of the public office of Coroner, and an abuse of the Inquest process.

Public service in Britain is breaking down, and every act of corruption and abuse adds to the decay.