Friday, August 01, 2003
The Loss Of A Royal Friend
Another Bush Iraqi war victim is ready to fall. Prime Minister Tony Blair himself.
One of the saddest outcomes of Bush's war in Iraq, is that it may finish off one of America's staunches allies, the Prime Minister of Britain before Saddam Hussein.
Mr. Blair had tried very hard to rein in Bush's almost maniacal passion for invading Iraq. Tony tried to get Bush to work through the UN Security Counsel before the war. He lost that argument, After the war started, Tony Blair worked hard at getting Bush to involve the UN in rebuilding Iraq. Blair lost that argument too. It can be said that Bush has helped push Tony, towards the exit door at 10 Downing Street. Some would say Tony started his decent, after he chose to befriend George Bush.
Sorry Tony. we love you for sticking with us, but we can't protect you in your own back yard. We can give you standing ovations, a Congressional Gold Medal, money, equipment, anything, but its not going to help you at home.
Unlike the United States, the majority of the British press has been very suspicious of this war from the start and they have not been shy about saying so in their dailys.
Many liken, the Iraq war as the most important "defining moment" in British history since the Suez War of 1956. That may seem like an exaggeration, but the outcomes may prove this out.
Former foreign minister Robin Cook, who resigned from his cabinet position as leader of the House of Commons in protest at the war, has said the government clearly sent troops into battle on the basis "of a mistake" and that it had committed a "monumental blunder."
The failure to find weapons of mass destruction is of particular significance in Britain. The idea of going to war was very unpopular among the public as shown by the anti-war demonstrations by around 1.5 million people in London on February 15, the biggest demonstration in Britain's history.
There are daily cartoons in the papers, portraying him as being untrustworthy and as Bush's lap dog. This is extremely serious, if Blair continues to lose the trust of many in his own party, and among the public, no one will believe anything he and his government tells them.
Blair faces a growing chorus of attacks from Labour members of parliament and from former members of the government who resigned over Iraq. A number of junior ministers joined Robin Cook in resigning before the war, and on 12 May Clare Short, the former secretary of state for International Development, resigned. She has launched a series of allegations against Blair, including that he secretly agreed with Bush at their meeting at Camp David last September to go to war, something Blair has strongly denied.
His credibility has also been recently damaged by allegations, that the intelligence on the weapons of mass destruction were "sexed up" to reflect an exaggerated threat in order to get public support for the war. These allegations came from the BBC, who had quoted a high ranking government source.
The British government initiated a "witch hunt" to ferret out the source. Recently, a highly regarded British nuclear weapons scientist, David Kelly was accused of leaking the information to the BBC before a very public interrogation by the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.
An hour afterwards, this public humiliated scientist committed suicide.
After the Kelly death, the BBC subsequently revealed that Mr. Kelly was indeed the source mentioned in the BBC articles.
The news of Kelly's death reached Blair as he was flying to Tokyo.
At a press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, a visibly shattered Blair answered questions. One British reporter asked him if Kelly's death was on his conscience, Blair called on politicians and the media to await the outcome of a judicial inquiry he has ordered before drawing conclusions. He also said "I think in the meantime we should show respect and restraint, and let me express once again my deep sorrow for the tragedy that has come about." Finally, one British reporter shouted out: "Have you got blood on your hands, Prime Minister? Are you going to resign over this?" At which time, Blair reportedly froze. He was said to have stood silently at the lectern for what must have seemed like the longest few seconds of his political career. Koizumi called a merciful end to the press conference.
The death of Mr Kelly, who turns out to have been a quiet and very dedicated scientist, has shaken Prime Minister Tony Blair. He has pleaded for restraint while facing tough questions about "blood on his hands" .
Mr Kelly's death, may have been the most serious and final blow to Tony Blair.
Staggering under the biggest political crisis of his premiership, the pressure on Blair increased again, when a respected member of his own Labour party, former cabinet minister Glenda Jackson, recently called for his resignation.
The biggest blow of all may have come from the grieving family of David Kelly, They made clear that Blair and his government should consider the role they played in making his life "intolerable."
An independent investigation is being headed up by Lord Hutton, a very experienced, and a very well respected High Court judge.
Meanwhile, the controversy over the war on Iraq intensifies with the passing of each dead American and or British soldier, particularly with the failure so far of the coalition forces to find weapons of mass destruction.
David Kelly's death has indeed shaken the Prime Minister. His country derides his relationship with Bush, According to the latest polls, he has very little credibility, and his own party is asking for his resignation.
I feel sorry for Tony. He was just the guy who tried to intervene between Bush's fanaticism with Iraq and our European allies reluctance to agree with Bush's shaky evidence for war; and just like in a bar fight; its the poor bastard that tries to break the fight up that gets seriously hurt.
I do not believe the Prime Minister will not survive this latest incident. I may be wrong. I often am, but regardless. Its a sad day for Britain. The leader of this great country may have meant well, but he picked the wrong person to defend in this fight.
God bless the Queen and her people.
Sources Cited:
Sandro Contenta
Peter Beaumont,
Antony Barnett
Gaby Hinsliff
BBC
The Observer
One of the saddest outcomes of Bush's war in Iraq, is that it may finish off one of America's staunches allies, the Prime Minister of Britain before Saddam Hussein.
Mr. Blair had tried very hard to rein in Bush's almost maniacal passion for invading Iraq. Tony tried to get Bush to work through the UN Security Counsel before the war. He lost that argument, After the war started, Tony Blair worked hard at getting Bush to involve the UN in rebuilding Iraq. Blair lost that argument too. It can be said that Bush has helped push Tony, towards the exit door at 10 Downing Street. Some would say Tony started his decent, after he chose to befriend George Bush.
Sorry Tony. we love you for sticking with us, but we can't protect you in your own back yard. We can give you standing ovations, a Congressional Gold Medal, money, equipment, anything, but its not going to help you at home.
Unlike the United States, the majority of the British press has been very suspicious of this war from the start and they have not been shy about saying so in their dailys.
Many liken, the Iraq war as the most important "defining moment" in British history since the Suez War of 1956. That may seem like an exaggeration, but the outcomes may prove this out.
Former foreign minister Robin Cook, who resigned from his cabinet position as leader of the House of Commons in protest at the war, has said the government clearly sent troops into battle on the basis "of a mistake" and that it had committed a "monumental blunder."
The failure to find weapons of mass destruction is of particular significance in Britain. The idea of going to war was very unpopular among the public as shown by the anti-war demonstrations by around 1.5 million people in London on February 15, the biggest demonstration in Britain's history.
There are daily cartoons in the papers, portraying him as being untrustworthy and as Bush's lap dog. This is extremely serious, if Blair continues to lose the trust of many in his own party, and among the public, no one will believe anything he and his government tells them.
Blair faces a growing chorus of attacks from Labour members of parliament and from former members of the government who resigned over Iraq. A number of junior ministers joined Robin Cook in resigning before the war, and on 12 May Clare Short, the former secretary of state for International Development, resigned. She has launched a series of allegations against Blair, including that he secretly agreed with Bush at their meeting at Camp David last September to go to war, something Blair has strongly denied.
His credibility has also been recently damaged by allegations, that the intelligence on the weapons of mass destruction were "sexed up" to reflect an exaggerated threat in order to get public support for the war. These allegations came from the BBC, who had quoted a high ranking government source.
The British government initiated a "witch hunt" to ferret out the source. Recently, a highly regarded British nuclear weapons scientist, David Kelly was accused of leaking the information to the BBC before a very public interrogation by the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.
An hour afterwards, this public humiliated scientist committed suicide.
After the Kelly death, the BBC subsequently revealed that Mr. Kelly was indeed the source mentioned in the BBC articles.
The news of Kelly's death reached Blair as he was flying to Tokyo.
At a press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, a visibly shattered Blair answered questions. One British reporter asked him if Kelly's death was on his conscience, Blair called on politicians and the media to await the outcome of a judicial inquiry he has ordered before drawing conclusions. He also said "I think in the meantime we should show respect and restraint, and let me express once again my deep sorrow for the tragedy that has come about." Finally, one British reporter shouted out: "Have you got blood on your hands, Prime Minister? Are you going to resign over this?" At which time, Blair reportedly froze. He was said to have stood silently at the lectern for what must have seemed like the longest few seconds of his political career. Koizumi called a merciful end to the press conference.
The death of Mr Kelly, who turns out to have been a quiet and very dedicated scientist, has shaken Prime Minister Tony Blair. He has pleaded for restraint while facing tough questions about "blood on his hands" .
Mr Kelly's death, may have been the most serious and final blow to Tony Blair.
Staggering under the biggest political crisis of his premiership, the pressure on Blair increased again, when a respected member of his own Labour party, former cabinet minister Glenda Jackson, recently called for his resignation.
The biggest blow of all may have come from the grieving family of David Kelly, They made clear that Blair and his government should consider the role they played in making his life "intolerable."
An independent investigation is being headed up by Lord Hutton, a very experienced, and a very well respected High Court judge.
Meanwhile, the controversy over the war on Iraq intensifies with the passing of each dead American and or British soldier, particularly with the failure so far of the coalition forces to find weapons of mass destruction.
David Kelly's death has indeed shaken the Prime Minister. His country derides his relationship with Bush, According to the latest polls, he has very little credibility, and his own party is asking for his resignation.
I feel sorry for Tony. He was just the guy who tried to intervene between Bush's fanaticism with Iraq and our European allies reluctance to agree with Bush's shaky evidence for war; and just like in a bar fight; its the poor bastard that tries to break the fight up that gets seriously hurt.
I do not believe the Prime Minister will not survive this latest incident. I may be wrong. I often am, but regardless. Its a sad day for Britain. The leader of this great country may have meant well, but he picked the wrong person to defend in this fight.
God bless the Queen and her people.
Sources Cited:
Sandro Contenta
Peter Beaumont,
Antony Barnett
Gaby Hinsliff
BBC
The Observer
# posted by Thomas @ 11:38 PM 
