Tuesday, September 21, 2004

Tony Blair rebrands War in Iraq to 'New War in Iraq'

A couple of choice quotes from TB on the 19th September ...
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"We are succeeding in Iraq. We are succeeding against the forces of evil."
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and
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"Whatever the disagreements about the first conflict in Iraq to remove Saddam, in this conflict now taking place in Iraq, this is the crucible in which the future of this global terrorism will be determined."
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Excuse me, 'the first conflict in Iraq'? Where did that come from. Last month British troops expended (i.e. fired at someone) 100,000 rounds of ammunition. Given that the British force is comparatively small and British soldiers are not known for 'busting caps' indiscriminately, God knows what the Americans 'expended' over the same period. The news from Iraq suggests that a) occupying troops are succeeding only in keeping arms manufacturers in profit and b) there is no clear distinction between TB's 'first Iraq conflict' and what is going on today. And, pardon me Tony, isn’t it your fault that Iraq is now 'the crucible in which the future of global terrorism will be determined'.

What is different is that Tony is now desperately trying to rebrand the war in the same way that he and his chums renamed Labour to New Labour. Tony's comments on Sunday are probably the prelude to an extensive rebranding exercise. Didn't like 'Old Iraq Conflict'? Try 'New Iraq Conflict' instead. You might like the difference. For God's sake this isn't a tin of beans we're talking about here.

This isn’t the first time a national leader has attempted to popularise an unpopular war by rebranding it. Lincoln did the same with his Emancipation Proclamation and Gettysburg Address during the American Civil War, when that started to go badly. If anyone believes that the American Civil War was about Black Rights just consider how Blacks were treated for the 100 years after it was won. Come to think of it, it wasn't even a Civil War. Civil Wars involve 'brother fighting brother'. In contrast, the American Civil War involved one country 'The North' invading, occupying and destroying the infrastructure of another country 'The South' which is why many Southerners still prefer the term 'War of Northern Aggression'. Maybe Tony thinks he's in good company with Lincoln. Careful there Tony, Lincoln got shot.

Personally I think TB's a liar and fantasist with bloodstained hands. Would someone please, please overthrow or incapacitate him in some way before he does any more harm.

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