The only stone worth turning... left unturned.

The scene is set... Lisbon Court steps, February 2010.  

Kate and Gerry McCann face the press pack and questioning from several journalists.  One journalist in particular asks probably one of the most important questions since the case was shelved, his words are in italics.

~ You ask the Portuguese people to come forward , what do you have to say if they ask you why are you not reopening the case?

GM - We'd be delighted if the case was reopened, we have no problem with that.

~ A reconstruction - if you volunteered to do a reconstruction, wouldn't that open the case?

GM - We want to create information that will lead us to helping find Madeleine.

~ That will help Madeleine.

GM - Well, if it does, then, you know, we will participate.

~You're in Lisbon today - you could take that step today, ask for the case to be reopened.

GM - Look, we're going round in circles.  We'd be more than happy for the case to be reopened.

November 2010 - the McCanns are in Lisbon once again, not for Madeleine but to meet their lawyers and PR representatives.  Recent reports stated that the Portuguese police were happy to work with the parents.  Legal sources in Portugal advised that they should use this meeting as an opportunity to instruct said lawyers to draft letters to both the Judiciary Police and the Attorney General to request the reopening of the investigation.  This is not something new, it is the McCanns' legal right and has been since the case was shelved.  Over the years they have not taken up this right for some strange reason and instead choose to mislead the public by insisting that they need monetary donations to fund their own search.

It appears that yet again that they have chosen not to request the reopening of the case and would rather have a review of the information already gathered.  A review instead of an ongoing official investigation. What will a review tell us?  It will tell us that the McCanns and their friends should complete the requested reconstruction and all unanswered questions should be answered.  

They are persisting with their stunt of a review petition, delaying the search for Madeleine even further by declaring that they will wait until the petition has 100,000 signatures before acting upon it.  And in the meantime they will publicly ask for more money to fund an unnecessary private search.

The McCanns say that they will leave no stone unturned.  But by their own strange actions and words, it is quite evident that they are themselves hampering the search for Madeleine.

**

McCanns speak to press outside Lisbon Court, February 2010

** Thanks to SMC for the fab photo

The Malice of Keir Simmons...

I had thought about taking the mantle and writing something about Keir Simmons, but really... is he worth the bother?

Keir Simmons' views on the McCanns are so outdated they have almost fossilised, his comments about the 'poor parents' are something I would have expected to hear from yesteryear when sympathy for them had reached its peak.

The realisation that missing Madeleine's case is perhaps not what it seemed, is dawning on the public.

The public know that the McCanns allowed the investigation to be shelved and they know that the McCanns and their friends refused to aid the investigation.  They also know that throughout the past three and a half years, the McCanns have failed to use their legal right to reopen the investigation.  The final cherry on the cake is the spending of millions of pounds of other people's money, yet they're still asking for more.  I am sure Keir Simmons is no fool, and also knows this.

Despite not taking the proverbial carrot from Simmons on Twitter...

These people say they are ‘truth seekers’. They are not. What they write is just nasty, obsessive and vicious. They are not journalists, not even campaigners, they represent the worst of the human psyche electronically unleashed.

Understandably a lot of people did respond to this unnecessary baiting because this is a nasty, obsessive and vicious thing to say.  A lot of good people have followed the case and want nothing but justice for Madeleine.  Genuine people who see nothing but biased reporting and a British media who have forgotten about the one and only victim in this case - Madeleine McCann.  Poor Madeleine - remember?  People who are bizarrely condemned for one thing - not supporting the parents.  

Simmons' dated views come as no surprise as he is probably touting for the next McCann interview, however for him to use his stance and platform as UK Editor with ITV is an utter disgrace and he should be ashamed of himself.  Especially as he is most probably directing his comments at his own viewing public and that of ITV in general.

His whining, hypocritical final paragraph says it all...

I worry that by allowing them to communicate with me, by effectively engaging with them, I am encouraging them. Perhaps it’s time for me in my own small way to say ‘stop’, I’d like to know what you think. Please send me your views on Twitter (ironically) or Facebook.

Oh poor me, poor me, pour me another.  Stop playing the martyr and take a piece of your own advice... 'stop' and use your BLOCK button.  That's what it's there for, you won't be missed.  Unfortunately for you, you've shot yourself in the foot and will no longer be taken seriously as an unbiased 'investigative' journalist.  And certainly won't be trusted again by the many decent people who only want the truth.

Anyway, let's do what the British media should be doing and contemplate what Kate and Gerry McCann will do when they attend their lawyers in Lisbon tomorrow. Will they, as advised, take up their legal right to have the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance REOPENED and instruct their lawyers to write to the PJ and Attorney General?  Or won't they?

I wait with anticipation, as I'm sure you all do...

I BEG... TO DIFFER.

I hate that feeling of helplessness... when you feel like you're a lone voice struggling under a tide of disbelief and absurdness.  As all around, the madding crowd give airtime and column inches to one of the most bizarre press releases yet in the history of this off the wall case.

This week we've been treated to the well planned press conference in quaint Quorn with wispy, atmospheric photo shots taken in some obscure, leafy grounds.  The details of this press conference and its accompanying choice shots were (in true McCann fashion) delayed and embargoed for release.

Details of this latest appeal included a request for a review of the case because they 'STILL dont have ALL the information', the request that the public sign their online petition for a review and the customary appeal for more money.

There are a few things that niggle me about this latest appeal - one is the statement 'we STILL don't have ALL the information". Why should they? They're not part of the Portuguese or British authorities responsible for the case.  This case is not closed... and even without the 'suspect' tag, they're simply members of the public - there's no way they should have access to ALL the information.  It does make one wonder how Mr McCann knows there's still information there that he wants, and makes one wonder just what it is...

The other niggle I have is the latest news on the fund - the fund which is the McCanns own COMPANY, registered at Companies House and of which has their questionable presence as directors, counting the coins and deciding how they're spent - along with other directorial family and friends.  Anyway, why is the balance of the account such a mystery?  An acurate balance is never readily available, always a round pound.  It's easy enough to do, we all know how much we have in our accounts most of the time, why can't we get a precise figure from them.  If you were laden with such an important bank account as the Madeleine Fund, to aid the search for your beloved missing daughter surely you would be checking that amount on a daily basis.

We've been told how much money is spent on various bits and bobs, from t-shirts to prayer cards, rubber bands to 24hr telephone lines.  But please would someone get to the nitty gritty and tell us how much was spent on those lawyers and how much those mortgage payments were.  The 'transparent' accounts are as clear as mud, and I would really like to know how much Dave Edgar spends on the search. Mr McCann stated in the Channel 4 interview that Mr Edgar was accountable for that side of things.  Is Mr Edgar even aware of this?

We have a figure of £300,000 being bandied around.  The fund will be empty by next Spring and they need more money.  There is forward planning, but they seem to always know in advance that Madeleine won't be found by a certain time. Amongst many, the one year anniversary event springs to mind... the event that was being planned just 4 weeks after Madeleine vanished.  Can we safely say that Madeleine won't be found by next Spring then?  How bloody awful!

The impromptu reappearance of the begging bowl also has strange timing.  The bowl is back only a short time after we online nutters discovered that the banning of Dr Amaral's book, Maddie - the Truth of the Lie had been overturned, was to be deposited back on the shelves and that the McCanns had to pay all court costs.  I say we online nutters, because no news of the unbanning was particularly reported in the media.  In some cynical quarters that could be construed as deliberate timing... they lose the appeal, have to pay court costs then decide to make an appeal for more money? Even though they have over a quarter of £1m in the bank.  According to Channel 4, the book is soon to be on the shelves in the UK.

What are they doing about this depleting money?  Are they doing what most of us would do - making savings and cost cutting here and there?  Doing the local Sunday car boot?  Selling their belongings on eBay?  Has Mr McCann got his own standing order or direct debit from his monthly wage at Glenfield direct into the fund account?  Or what about his other wage with Spire Healthcare at the private Spire Leicester Hospital?  Have any family members remortgaged or sold their houses, like Philomena McCann stated they would way back in the day?  Or is the Madeleine Fund providing support, including financial assistance, to Madeleine's family and allowing them all to stay in their own homes?  Are they doing any of these things to preserve the account, or do they just want everybody else's money? Questions, questions.  Another trend... never answered.

That takes us onto the petition for the review of the investigation.  It's been said before that a review won't help Madeleine, it's simply a paper-pushing exercise. Madeleine is missing NOW, today and needs the official investigation into her disappearance to be OPEN and currently investigating all leads.  I don't understand why the McCanns aren't screaming this from the rooftops and demanding the reopening.  Instead they want a review.  How can you review something that's incomplete?

Wouldn't you expect a petition of such importance to be hosted on the Number 10 petition site, the official government site.  After all, this petition is to be presented to the government.  Bizarrely enough it's not hosted on the official site, but on a basic one whose default settings are set to accept multiple signings from any name, email or IP address.  A comment on the petition states that duplicate names will be removed when the petition closes.  Does this also apply to duplicate IP addresses? Giving the benefit of the doubt, as the Number 10 site doesn't accept non-British signatories, perhaps the McCanns chose this site to appeal to a wider audience. However, wouldn't the rapid count still have been achieved with the 'support' the McCanns claim to have from their fellow Brits.  Or perhaps it would still have been achieved anyway...

I came across another petition whilst I was visiting one of the many forums.  This petition is calling for the reopening of the case instead of a review and I have it on good authority that it's default settings have now been changed to accept unique IP addresses only.  It's plodding away as we speak at just over 200 signatures, which is a small voice gaining momentum and supporting the reopening of the case.

One comment (which has now been removed) was of the opinion that the petition had been set up by the 'enemies of the McCanns' and 'not to waste your time signing' with a link to the McCanns' petition... what a bizarre and slightly unnerving thing to say.  An individual supporting the McCanns yet encouraging people NOT to support the reopening of the case.  There is something quite dark and sinister about that side of things which at the moment cannot be explained.

In the interests of fairness, I'll provide links to both petitions - sign whichever you prefer.

Petition to REOPEN the investigation into Madeleine's disappearance

Petition to REVIEW the case files in the Madeleine's investigation

I'll leave you with this one thought... just how can you review something which is incomplete?

JUST STOP!! THE McCANN CHARADE - REOPEN OR REVIEW?

The McCanns seem to be going to a lot of trouble in order to avoid the simple request of reopening their missing daughter's case.

After the embargo on yesterday's press conference and idyllic posed photos, today we've seen a concerted effort from the McCanns to have the case not reopened, but reviewed.  In stark contrast of the British media's failure to report the overturning of the ban on Goncalo Amaral's book, we have been literally bombarded with the McCann spin of review and the customary begging bowl being shoved in our faces.

Review or Reopen?

A review will not help Madeleine - this is simply a paper pushing exercise which is utterly pointless and the status quo will continue.  Madeleine will still be missing, the McCanns will continue to thrust that begging bowl for what they seem to think is their entitlement to other people's money.  No one will be actively investigating why Madeleine is missing, what happened to her and where she is.

Reopening the case will ignite the search for Madeleine by the proper people. Instead of the Team of Four supping tea in darkest Leicestershire and attempting to cover the planet, Madeleine will have a huge taskforce and endless resources on her side in the shape of the Portuguese and British authorities and other interconnected bodies.

Reopening the case is easy - the McCanns and their friends simply have to agree to attend the reconstruction requested by the police, the one which they initially failed to turn up for.  It would also be helpful if the mother would answer the questions she failed to answer in the first place.  All 48 of them and she needs to answer these questions today.

The father stood on the steps of a Lisbon court, when he was hit with an off the wall surprise question.  Will you be requesting that the case be reopened?...  He said yes. Another lie?

"...NO police force has proactively been doing anything to help us find Madeleine."

"There's no law enforcement that's been pro-actively doing anything for 18 months."

"No police force is actively doing anything for Madeleine and we think that's completely unacceptable,"

It beggars belief that the parents have such gall and can actually make the above comments with a straight face.  The fact that there is no police force actively or pro-actively searching is their own fault - they allowed the case to be shelved in the first place and have it within their power to have it reopened.

We all know that the reopening of the investigation is the best thing for Madeleine.  It's what she deserves and something which would receive the backing of everyone, except the guilty party of course.  Shame her parents don't seem to agree.

A McCann Ditty...

There was a sleepy village

By the name of Praia de Luz

Which came alive one May 4th

With hoards of global news.

They came from all around the world

To hear the strangest case

A missing child called Madeleine

With a sweet, angelic face

Soon we’d be bombarded

With bizarre to just not right!

With many tales of happenings

That cold and fateful night

How could it be so difficult

To get their stories straight

The truth should just flow freely

No twists or turns of fate

It seemed they were all lying

Inconsistencies galore

From broken, jemmied shutters

Open windows, unlocked doors

Much secrecy abounded

Intrigue, donated pounds

Her parents were made suspects

After noses from the hounds

Found whiffs of a dead body

In the car and in their flat

On the mother’s clothing 

And on poor Cuddlecat

Now almost 4 years later

With many ups and downs

Pacts and lies and counterspin

The child is still not found

The truth is always easy

It flows straight from the heart

And whomsoever knows the truth

We implore you to impart

Despite our grave suspicions

We share one hope and thought

For little Maddie to be found

And justice to be brought.

~oOo~

by

The Potting Shedder

October 2010