The facts: Madeleine McCann is alive and well or a long time deceased.

[AnneGuedes]

This is one of the themes of John Ford's Searchers, one of the most beautiful films ever made.

[John]

This is one of the themes of John Ford's Searchers, one of the most beautiful films ever made.

Abductions are still seen as a way of life in many primitive societies and third world countries even today so lets not pretend that the world is one big harmonious playground.  We should not judge other civilisations by our own limited standards.

[AnneGuedes]

Abductions are still seen as a way of life in many primitive societies and third world countries even today so lets not pretend that the world is one big harmonious playground.  We should not judge other civilisations by our own limited standards.

Way of life or mythology ?
Ritual abductions exist nowdays in Chechen society, no primitive society
http://www.fnj-midi-pyrenees.fr/article-l-enlevement-de-jeunes-femmes-une-tradition-tchetchene-80070026.html

[John]

I have removed a number of posts which have strayed from the thread theme.  Please try and keep posts relevant.

PS John Fords film The Searchers has everything to do with child abduction whereas sexual exploitation of 12 year old boys in an ancient Greek society is somewhat remote.

[Lace]

Oh my.

I can't understand how a woman who stole a baby could keep in contact with the child when it has been taken back to its real parents.

This woman must have been mentally ill to steal a child,  and needs help surely.

If Madeleine is found,  even if she has become to love the parents she is with,  in my opinion, she should'nt have contact with them,  they will be arrested anyway and sent to prison for a very long time.

It will mean Madeleine will obviously be traumatised and will need counseling and will no doubt never get over it, but for her to have contact with people who would snatch another persons child is wrong.

[Matthew Wyse]

I can't understand how a woman who stole a baby could keep in contact with the child when it has been taken back to its real parents.

This woman must have been mentally ill to steal a child,  and needs help surely.

If Madeleine is found,  even if she has become to love the parents she is with,  in my opinion, she should'nt have contact with them,  they will be arrested anyway and sent to prison for a very long time.

It will mean Madeleine will obviously be traumatised and will need counseling and will no doubt never get over it, but for her to have contact with people who would snatch another persons child is wrong.

I was going to respond to your post by saying that the people who have Madeleine at the moment (assuming she is still alive) may not be the same individuals who abducted her.  But then again is there really anyone in the EU or north Africa who hasn't heard of Madeleine McCann??   For my part I find it very hard to believe that she is with anyone.   

[John]

I was going to respond to your post by saying that the people who have Madeleine at the moment (assuming she is still alive) may not be the same individuals who abducted her.  But then again is there really anyone in the EU or north Africa who hasn't heard of Madeleine McCann??   For my part I find it very hard to believe that she is with anyone.

Madeleine's image is so well known that I find it hard to believe that she could live any sort of normal existence within any modern-day westernised community.  This does not fare well though with the hope that she is still alive but positively discriminates against it.  SY's comments to the effect that they think that she is still alive appear therefore to be based more on semantics than on logic.

As someone posted a while back, the complete absence of any credible sightings or evidence of any sort that she is still alive is not promising.

[faithlilly]

Madeleine's image is so well known that I find it hard to believe that she could live any sort of normal existence within any modern-day westernised community.  This does not fare well though with the hope that she is still alive but positively discriminates against it.  SY's comments to the effect that they think that she is still alive appear therefore to be based more on semantics than on logic.

As someone posted a while back, the complete absence of any credible sightings or evidence of any sort that she is still alive is not promising.

I wonder how many cases DCI Redwood or his team has dealt with where a child was abducted from their home and was found alive 6 years later ? Not one I'll guess which makes me wonder why, with all his and his team's experience he is insisting it's a very real possibility. It simply does not make sense.

[John]

I wonder how many cases DCI Redwood or his team have dealt with where a child was abducted from their home and was found alive 6 years later ? Not one I'll guess which makes me wonder why, with all his and his team's experience he is insisting it's a very real possibility. It simply does not make sense.

And it makes even less sense since the incident took place in Portugal and not in London and given that a extensive investigation has already been carried out.

It is interesting to note that Kerry Needham is now calling for other such cases to be given the same attention and resources.  Looks like the Yard have opened up a huge can of works this time.

[Benice]

I wonder how many cases DCI Redwood or his team has dealt with where a child was abducted from their home and was found alive 6 years later ? Not one I'll guess which makes me wonder why, with all his and his team's experience he is insisting it's a very real possibility. It simply does not make sense.

And yet you are asking for the same treatment to be given to Ben Needham who has been missing for many years longer than Madeleine and whose mother still thinks he may be alive.     That doesn't make any sense to me.

[Carana]

I wonder how many cases DCI Redwood or his team has dealt with where a child was abducted from their home and was found alive 6 years later ? Not one I'll guess which makes me wonder why, with all his and his team's experience he is insisting it's a very real possibility. It simply does not make sense.

We're constantly told that there are very few abductions in Portugal. So what experience would the PT team have had?

Do you not find it possible that the Met team had access to specialist databases?

[Carana]

I was going to respond to your post by saying that the people who have Madeleine at the moment (assuming she is still alive) may not be the same individuals who abducted her.  But then again is there really anyone in the EU or north Africa who hasn't heard of Madeleine McCann??   For my part I find it very hard to believe that she is with anyone.

Maybe, maybe not. Even though I find the age-progressed image to be what she may look like - that still relates to a child growing up in a normal home.

If she is alive, she may even be taken out on walks, but could be presented as the daughter of an OH. Cf Amanda Berry's daughter.

[faithlilly]

And yet you are asking for the same treatment to be given to Ben Needham who has been missing for many years longer than Madeleine and whose mother still thinks he may be alive.     That doesn't make any sense to me.

Whether alive or dead Ben's mother still needs to find out what happened to him and if the resources are available to do this for the McCanns the same resources should be available to Kerry.

[Carana]

Whether alive or dead Ben's mother still needs to find out what happened to him and if the resources are available to do this for the McCanns the same resources should be available to Kerry.

Of course, and I hope that Kerry does find out what happened.

That is what Missing People are trying to promote.

[Benice]

Whether alive or dead Ben's mother still needs to find out what happened to him and if the resources are available to do this for the McCanns the same resources should be available to Kerry.

I'm not disputing that - in fact I agree, but that's not what you said. 

You don't appear to have any faith (no pun intended) in the review because of what you perceive as SY's 'inexperience' in these cases, and yet you are encouraging the public to demand exactly the same review for Ben by exactly the same people - who you have no faith in.   That makes no sense to me.