Discovering “our values” at THIS stage is more a recognition that THEY have been getting it and Blair wrong – only they will NOT say so. Lily livered …

OUR VALUES?

What has Blair been saying for years? This terrorism is “an attack on OUR VALUES”. Or was that GB?PM (YOUR man, the other day)?

It was BOTH, of course. So since GB/PM said it most recently, and HE’S the flavour of the month, the Indie now can add value to it by repeating it.

VALUE? From the Indie? Don’t make me laugh …

That self-righteous, opinionated rag still makes me sick.

I should be tempted to be all kind and understanding and use phrases such as “better late than never” or “conversion on the road to Damascus”. But the idea of using that moderate language towards what is meant to be a responsible newspaper is HUGELY IRRITATING! Just can’t do it. THEY almost single-handedly trashed Blair as a liar, war mongerer and worst of all a war criminal! About OUR MAN whose interventionist approach has been highly acclaimed and, whenever HE was the leading force, highly successful – Kosovo, Sierra Leone, Northern Ireland.

BLAIR – AHEAD OF THE PACK

Now, as far as Iraq is concerned, where it is clear he did NOT have full and sole control of the policy, but knew he had to trust the Americans – rather than being thanked for being ahead of the pack and willing to lay down his career for his country and world peace – that bloody paper vilified him.

INDIE ARTICLE EXCERPT:

“Ten years ago, Tony Blair came to power with a belief that his government would be able to cut a political deal with Republicans and Loyalists in Northern Ireland; protracted negotiations resulted in the Good Friday agreement, and the laying down of guns and bombs. That option does not exist with Islamic extremists, who want not just the withdrawl of British troops from Iraq but a whole raft of things – segregation of the sexes, sharia law, an end to secular culture – which we cannot negotiate away in the name of security. In recent days, watching people go about their business good-naturedly in London despite the threat of terrorist attacks, I have a sense that the public understands this. We have to stand up for our values, and that means that this time we are in for the long haul.”

” … IN IT FOR THE LONG HAUL” – who said that? TB/PM AND GB/PM. So that’s all right again then?

Blair has moved on and is already ahead of them all now. If anyone can see through the mess that is the Middle East, he can. But unless he gets it right, the Indie will be at his throat again.

In journalism, you can spout forth – it’s all opinion anyway – only words, right or wrong. In daily life we can make mistakes – at work and in relationships. But if you are in politics, you are presumed superhuman. Make a mistake or misjudgement and you are toast.

THE INDIE deserves to be collectively strung up!

http://comment.independent.co.uk/columnists_m_z/joan_smith/article2733217.ece