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  1. #1
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Injured UK soldier sleeps in car after hotel refusal

    Times Online
    Sept 5, 2008

    A hotel that refused an injured soldier a room, forcing him to spend the night in his car, was backed into issuing a grovelling apology yesterday after receiving a barrage of abusive phone calls.

    The Metro Hotel, in Woking, Surrey, called the police as its phone lines were flooded with angry and threatening calls from the public.

    The attack on the switchboards came after it emerged that Corporal Tomos Stringer, 24, had been told that it was company policy not to accept members of the Armed Forces.

    A soldier since the age of 16 and veteran of multiple tours in Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan, Corporal Stringer had travelled to Surrey to help with funeral preparations for a friend killed in action.

    The corporal, who was not in uniform, presented his warrant card when asked by the hotel for proof of identity. After being refused a room, he had to bed down in his car, with his wrist, broken during a convoy ambush, encased in plaster.

    Corporal Stringer’s MP, Hywel Williams, Derek Twigg, the Defence Minister, and Bob Ainsworth, the Armed Forces Minister, have all written to the hotel. After a resolute silence, the hotel, owned by a company called American Amusements, finally issued a statement: “The Metro Hotel, Woking, sincerely regrets any upset caused towards Corporal Stringer and his family . . . The hotel management has always had an open-door policy to all its visitors and guests, including members of the military and Armed Forces.” The receptionist had made a mistake, it added.

    Corporal Stringer, of 13 Air Assault Support Regiment, The Royal Logistic Corps, has returned to Afghanistan. His mother, Gaynor Stringer, from Criccieth, North Wales, told The Times: “I’m very, very angry. It’s discrimination. They would never get away with it if it was against someone of ethnic origin.”

    She added: “In America, they treat soldiers as heroes. We went to Disney World with Tomos and the whole family was moved to the front of the lines. Everybody was clapping and cheering. Here, soldiers can’t even get a bed for the night.”

    Soldier forced to sleep in car after hotel refuses him a room - Times Online

    ***

    Absolutely shameful. Is this how you treat soldiers working for their country?

  2. #2
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    melvbot's Avatar
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    Yes its shameful


  3. #3
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    Bugs's Avatar
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    It would be interesting to hear the logic behing the hotel policy. What would dirve them to have a policy to refuse lodging to those in the armed forces in the first place?

    In the US there are several hotel chains that offer discounted rates to those in the service - simply present your military ID and they give you the discounted rate. I always checked around when traveling to see if I could take advantage of this type of discount to get a better room rate as compared to any of the hotel promotions that might be running in the area.
    "Religion is an insult to human dignity. With or without it, you'd have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, it takes religion" - Steven Weinberg

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat
    “In America, they treat soldiers as heroes. We went to Disney World with Tomos and the whole family was moved to the front of the lines. Everybody was clapping and cheering. Here, soldiers can’t even get a bed for the night.”

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat
    Absolutely shameful. Is this how you treat soldiers working for their country?
    Have you a name or categorization for this developing breed of posts, tp?

  6. #6
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    I had things like this happen all the time, while i was serving. A lot of people round that area cant stand squaddies. They dont want them in their towns, bars or hotels, and they certainly dont want you chatting up the ladies. I cat say im overly surprised about this story. There would almost always be some sort of trouble when ever we went out round this area. Sometimes our fault, sometimes theirs.
    I aint superstitious, but I know when somethings wrong
    I`ve been dragging my heels with a bitch called hope
    Let the undercurrent drag me along.

  7. #7
    Thailand Expat jandajoy's Avatar
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    I think there's more to this than meets the eye.
    Was he pissed?
    Was he abusive?

    There's no logic to a hotel "banning" Armd Forces personnel with out reason.

  8. #8
    Thailand Expat jandajoy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by astasinim
    Sometimes our fault, sometimes theirs.
    Well said. A fair point.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by jandajoy View Post

    There's no logic to a hotel "banning" Armd Forces personnel with out reason.
    Probably because the ones they had in the past trashed the place, or like you said, he was gobbing off.

  10. #10
    Thailand Expat jandajoy's Avatar
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    The latter seems likely.

  11. #11
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    I bet its not the worst thing thats happened to him. Being refused a hotel and having to sleep in a car, walk in the park.

  12. #12
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bugs View Post
    In the US there are several hotel chains that offer discounted rates to those in the service - simply present your military ID and they give you the discounted rate. I always checked around when traveling to see if I could take advantage of this type of discount to get a better room rate as compared to any of the hotel promotions that might be running in the area.
    Sometimes the government discount is a sham. Often, they'll offer you the government rate, which is usually more than their normal rate. The hotel knows what the per diem and allotment for hotels in the area is and charges you the max -- assuming that any government employee is automatically being reimbursed. I've made reservations many times under the hotel's government discount only to find out they had identical rooms available for a cheaper rate. Best to always ask for the cheapest rooms and work up from that starting point. Especially if you're paying.

    I've never been refused a room because I was a serviceman.

    If the guy was gobbing off, they should refuse him -- not the entire defense ministry.
    If a black guy or a woman came in gobbing off would they refuse blacks or women? At their peril. Great recruiting tool, stories like this. Makes kids proud to serve their country.

  13. #13
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    Have I got this right? A Veteran of multiple fierce battles, a woman and currently nursing a debilitating injuriy which occurred at the hands of godless bastards -- denied a bed and meal?

    Not since our Lord and Savior, in-vitro of course, was denied the same while riding shot-gun with mother Mary have I heard of such appalling and sinister behavior.

    Get the Home Secretary on the line.

    Hat tip to Sir Texpat for his eagle eye in dangerous times.

  14. #14
    Thailand Expat jandajoy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by pai nai ma
    Have I got this right?
    Er no, you haven't. It's a bloke.

  15. #15
    I don't know barbaro's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Texpat View Post
    She added: “In America, they treat soldiers as heroes.
    Over-generalization.

    Some of the soldier have been treated very well, but it seems many have not. If you look at the medical care, benefits denied, and some other issues.

    Even getting kevlar and needed items when deployed.

  16. #16
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    It serves as a nice companion piece to the UK soldiers forced to change out of their uniforms on the freezing tarmac beside the airplane before entering the airport terminal.

    https://teakdoor.com/issues/23627-how...ts-troops.html

  17. #17
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    (erm, sorry. delete woman. put,) "a man of unique British maleness"...

  18. #18
    Thailand Expat jandajoy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by pai nai ma
    "a man of unique British maleness"...
    What's unique about it?
    Are you having a Kinaski afternoon?

  19. #19
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Corporal Tomos' mother
    She added: “In America, they treat soldiers as heroes. We went to Disney World with Tomos and the whole family was moved to the front of the lines. Everybody was clapping and cheering. Here, soldiers can’t even get a bed for the night.”
    I think she's got it wrong. Disney doesn't do any of that. She's thinking of Sea World where the serviceman and all family members get in free with VIP status and access to the Anhaeuser Bush beer tent and burgers and a BJ. Nice touch that one. I've been to both Orlando and San Diego. And I had no problems getting a hotel room.

  20. #20
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    Maybe the Manchester City Hospital can give a 10-15% discount on the serviceman's next broken bottle stitching or nose realignment for the boys.

  21. #21
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    [quote=Texpat;747027]Times Online
    Sept 5, 2008
    The corporal, who was not in uniform, presented his warrant card when asked by the hotel for proof of identity. quote]



    Soldiers don't carry warrent cards but police do. Soldiers have ID cards

  22. #22
    Thailand Expat jandajoy's Avatar
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    ^ Very true. Also;

    1. what time of day was it?
    2. Was he sober?
    3. Did he behave appropriately?

    I'd love to know what his C.O. has to say to him about it.

    If the guy was in the right, fair go. If not (which I suspect) tough shit and I pity the poor hotel staff who've been dragged into a media sensationalising scam to sell papers.

  23. #23
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    This story is nothing compared to the one I could tell you with myself and Special Branch in '76 when flying to N Ireland from Glasgow airport. Just take it from me that service personnel are treated like shit in the UK.

  24. #24
    Thailand Expat Texpat's Avatar
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    If the guy was a drunken lout, the hotel staff wouldn't have admitted to callers that its their policy not to accept servicemen.

    They would have said, "We didn't accept this patron because he was drunk and disruptive." Or something along those lines.

    It's simply unbelievable.

  25. #25
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    It's my part of the world.
    Woking is a main rail junction between London and the South Coast, as well as a very afluent sub-urban town.
    About 8 miles from Woking is Aldershot, home of the British Army and the trains to and from there run through Woking. Up until about 4-5 years ago Aldershot was the barrack town for the Parachute Regiment, until they were moved closer to the army prison at Chelmsford, Essex to cut transport costs every Monday morning.

    The Para's ruled the bars in Aldershot and the surrounding areas, and were banned from the pubs and hotels in most towns in the surrounding areas, Camberley, Guilford and Woking. Their antics and violent wrecking sprees were notorious.
    The police couldn't contain them nor the bouncers or publicans, so an entry ban was imposed on pubs, clubs and hotels.
    Growing up in Aldershot as a local makes them tough I can tell you.

    Things changed when they got moved out and after some initial violence as new regiments moved in and carved up the town, things have quietened down and Aldershot is not such a no-go area, but the area still has the memories.

    This I believe is the reason the squaddie was refused, it's a hangover from that period.
    Times have changed, but still many pubs in Camberley and Guilford refuse entry to squaddies.
    Last edited by ItsRobsLife; 06-09-2008 at 12:57 AM.

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