Being a Kiwi saved me, says Wiig (Slice of Life DownUnder NZ)

NZPA ^ | 31 August 2006 | NZPA

[Gator101]

There's a lot of comfort-of-home second guessing going on in this thread. I think he was smart. He saw an "in" and tried to exploit it to help save his and his colleague's life. What did some here expect him to do? -- spit in the kidnapper's face and say "I may not be an American but I love America and I hope you die".

[GeorgefromGeorgia]

I remember when I lived in Saudi Arabia in the 80s and Canadian friends would ask me if I wanted one of the small Canadian flag pins that they wore on their collars (in case they were on a hijacked airplane with terrorists). I said Hell NO, that would be the equivalent of disowning my country.
I remember when an Italian was executed by terrorists in Iraq. He said something like "this is the way an Italian dies." There was no sucking up to the B-------. That is the way to die, if you are going to die.

[DogBarkTree]

Perhaps youre right I suppose. Let me rephrase - Kiwis cant be counted on in a jam. Every Kiwi Ive ever met and Ive met a quite few had very negative views of the US. At least we know your neighbor to your west is a friend that can be counted on when the going gets tough

[Mase]

Kiwis suck

I'd venture a guess that you don't travel much.

[DieHard the Hunter]

> What did some here expect him to do?

If he had to embarass himself like this, I wouldn't expect him to crow about it on TV afterward.

[BaBaStooey]

[drierice]

So you and others know you're not the only one, I agree with your assessment... Wiig tried to break through the ignorance of their captors to secure a release for he AND Centanni. What's the point of blaming either one of them? I'm just glad their ordeal is over.

[zeaal]

Good grief, wonder how many American correspondents will want to work with this New Zealander in the future?

[Wristpin]

This is wrongheaded and reflexive.

The guy was actually smart and helped convinced the Pali's that they didn't need to execute Centanni. They googled up Centanni's name and had him placed at the scene of Uday and Kusay Hussien's termination and actually believed he was a US Gov't agent.

They were going to kill him and he talked them out of it. He also protected his friend by not letting him know about the pending execution so he wouldn't lose his composure.

[rogernz]

i apologise for my fellow country men...
not all of us kiwis are cowards like that guy.
in that situation i would say to the islamo-fascist
'hey infidel, i am a citizen of western civilisation so screw you!'

[DogBarkTree]

Never got past OZ. Spent 3 months there. No Interest in going to Kiwi land. They really have a bug up their @$$ when it comes to the US.

[DieHard the Hunter]

> Kiwis cant be counted on in a jam. Every Kiwi Ive ever met and Ive met a quite few had very negative views of the US.

Sweeping generalization. Please allow me to introduce myself, via my "About" page. I'm not unique by any means.

[Verginius Rufus]

I had wondered what ethnic background the name Wiig was. Since he's from New Zealand, it must be Maori. (Actually, I just looked at the Ellis Island website and most of the immigrants with the name Wiig were from Norway...there was one from Denmark.)

I guess I'll have to cross off New Zealand from the list of countries to consider for political asylum if Hillary wins the 2008 election.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

Where is that quoted or even hinted in the article?

[JFC]

Wiig.......... is employed by FoxNews an American Media outlet. I would think he would have some loyality. But when pleading for your life, you might say anything.

The less said, the better. This did something to Steve, he seems a lot more open now than ever before.

[GretchenM]

"They were accusing both of us of being Americans and I stood up and said, 'Dude, I'm not American, I'm a New Zealander,' " Wiig told TV1's Close Up.

So ... how did the hated American, Centanni, get out alive?

[Miss Marple]

This man wasn't a coward. This article leaves some things out. It was VERY important that he make the captors understand he was from New Zealand. Once they realized that they were mistaken about his nationality, it made it easier for him to convince them that they were mistaken about Centani being a spy. He kept his information to himself until they were released so as not to add to Centani's stress.

I see nothing wrong with what he said or did, and you should feel proud of a fellow contryman who did his best to protect a friend.

[DogBarkTree]

your tagline tells me all I need to know. Thnx anyway.

[rogernz]

if you want to see what america will look like if hillary wins then come to NZ!! its the first femi-nazi run government in the world.

[GretchenM]

Why would he admit to this behavior publicly?

He's still in shock?