Tony Blair

Times coverage and video clips of Sky’s highlights of the six hours

Sign the Ban Blair-Baiting petition here. A recent sig comment: “… Tony Blair was the best PM since Atlee.He did his best to avoid war. He put the people of Britain first and the reaction from the media will deter future leaders from doing the same.

Comment at end

31st January, 2010

THE TALES OF A WANDERING BLAIR SUPPORTER ON ‘JAIL TONY DAY’

This follows on from the previous post reporting on my personal experiences at Friday’s Iraq Inquiry - also known as The Inquisition, aka The Trial of the Century, aka “He said WHAT?“

When I got back to the QEII centre at around 12:30pm, I met up with a friend and caught up with the morning’s events. “The boy dun good” etc. But of course.

The ranters outside were still ranting, and the British bobbies still being polite as ever. The anti-war coalition were megaphoning their repeated noises about Blair having got to the venue before them and about his being “afraid to face” them. Presumably he was worried that the hordes of armed and unarmed police would have been too few to stop such as the woman who naïvely hoped to arrest him, egged on no doubt by the irresponsible call of one George Monbiot.

When the young man in the picture above had finished painting his hands, put his mask back on and climbed back into his cage I had a question for him on his list of ‘LIES’, one of which was missing.

His list of “LIES”. Where was Number 2, and what did it say? Rather unconvincingly one of his colleagues proffered, to the agreeing laughter of those around, “IT’S ALL LIES”.

“IT’S ALL LIES”? To use an overused word, I think that is a lie.

‘It’s ALL Lies’ would have been number 1 or more likely number 6. I never found out what “LIE No. 2″ was, and I was interested really. No, really, I was. I mean it might have been another dreadful lie … like, say, promising to bring democracy to Iraq. So, in the end I had to tell these sorry individuals that they were the biggest liars of all. A pity, since half of them were only there for something to do on a Friday and of course to see and hear the indefatigable Gorgeous George.

TWO VIDEO CLIPS OF SECTIONS OF BLAIR’S AFTERNOON EVIDENCE

1. Tony Blair: Iraqi death toll not our fault

As I have mentioned here at this blog on many occasions – the KILLERS in Iraq are not the troops but the locals including imported Iranians and others.

In this section Mr Blair referred to the fact that WE built up the Iraqi security forces. Any balanced individual whose thinking processes had not been skewed beyond rationality would at least be proud of this.

WHOSE RESPONSIBILITY – REALLY?

Agreeing we have responsibility he said “… but here is the point – let’s be quite clear that these people were prepared to kill any number of completely innocent people… we should be prepared to take these people on.”

APPROACH TO PLANNING

He disagreed that there was a “cavalier attitude to planning here in the UK”, saying what we planned for is what we thought was going to happen.

Of course, this’ll be another stick with which to beat… etc.

As a politician it seems you’re supposed to KNOW exactly what is going to happen in any and every given situation. So apart from being presentable, coherent and able to withstand the slings and arrows, being able to foretell the future should, indeed must be on your CV and application form.

Case proven. He couldn’t read the future. String ‘im up. Next for the high-jump?

Chilcot (?): “Good morning, Mr Brown …”

2. Tony Blair: ‘I don’t regret removing Saddam Hussein’

Winding up his evidence at the end of six hours, he was asked about broad lessons and if he had regrets. You may notice that Tony Blair chose NOT to apologise or even refer overtly to the relatives of the fallen who were sitting just behind him. This has been interpreted by some as his failure to care. It is nothing of the sort. Many times he has said that the deaths of our troops is with him every day, “as it should be” and that he will bear responsibility for the rest of his life.

What more do the relatives of the dead from our volunteer army want? Blood? It looks like it to me. Those who are preventing the bereaved from getting on with their lives in the way they should, proud of their fallen soldier, are behind this search for political blood. Gorgeous George, whose words will linger on the internet far longer than will his indefatigability.

For Blair knew exactly what he was doing in refusing to turn, teary-eyed to the families behind him. Any suggestion that he “felt their pain” in that personal way would have been treated with derision, unless he had also sunk to his knees and begged their forgiveness through heaving sobs for his “crimes”. That was never going to happen. So any such gesture was out of the question.

There were other reasons for his failure to apologise in particular to the families whose eyes burnt into the back of his head for hours on endless hours, even though the chairman handed him that opportunity several times as proceedings closed.

Firstly, and simply, without genuine anguish pouring from his lips and mingling with his tears, he would not have been believed. No-one believes him anyway, so they tell us, so why bother?

Secondly, the press would have taken any contrition as an admission of his “wrongdoing” and “guilt” and made more baleful hay.

Thirdly, and perhaps he would not wish to express this himself, but could it be that he feels there has been too much made of the laying of “blame” for the deaths of soldiers? Perhaps he doesn’t feel like this at all. But some of us do.

The British stiff upper lip wobbled some decades ago. Tennyson’s “Theirs not to reason why, theirs but to do and die” served us well fighting the enemy for centuries, when much of the time we had no idea if the enemy was real or a political figment. Perhaps it’s time we returned to that way of approaching the honourable profession of voluntary military service to our country.

Tony Blair finished his evidence session at the Iraq inquiry by saying he had no regrets in removing Saddam Hussein.

SORRY FOR THE DIVISIONS THE WAR CAUSED

Responding to a question relating to the loss of soldiers’ lives since the conflict began, he told the inquiry: “In the end it was divisive and I am sorry about that. I tried my level best to bring people back together again.”

He said he felt responsibility for the decision, and stressed that it was a decision, not a plot or a conspiracy. But he said he felt NO regret for removing Saddam Hussein.

“I think that Saddam was a monster, I believe he threatened not just the region but the world… it was better to deal with this threat”.

Quote: ‘Tony Blair was heckled from the public gallery at the Iraq inquiry tonight as he wrapped up a dramatic day of testimony by declaring that he had no regrets about ousting Saddam Hussein.

Sitting behind him during six hours of testimony were relatives of some of the 179 soldiers killed in the Iraq conflict – although many complained that Mr Blair had not even acknowledged their presence.

This evening as he was wrapping up, one member of the audience shouted at him: “You’re a liar.” A second added: “And a murderer.”‘

In my humble opinion history will not see him as either of those.

RELATED

Saturday, 30th Jan – Radio 4′s “Today” radio podcast analyses any movements in Blair’s case at the Inquiry – Unimpressed Peter Hennessy of Queen Mary University, London says, “Blair is telling himself a “story” (2010 what if?). Hmmm… and Mr Hennessy isn’t? A constutional hardliner he said in 2004 that the Butler Inquiry would be a “whitewash” if it didn’t follow the intelligence trail (to Goldsmith and/or Number 10). So, still some proving to do, some constitutional wrongs to right? Just a thought.
Harry’s Place has some thoughts too on Henry Porter and other (il)liberal thinkers on the Left who want to disbar all the lawyers (or rather those who disagree with THEM over Iraq, such as Blair, Straw, Falconer and possibly Goldsmith.)
Friday, 29th Jan – R4′s “Today” radio podcast: Former Blair cabinet minister David Blunkett speaking on Iraq and the legacy of Tony Blair, on the morning of the day that Blair gave his evidence
Sky News coverage – videos and links
Papers round-up – dissecting Blair’s evidence
New York Times report
Reg Keys, a bereaved father, for whose loss one can feel nothing but sympathy writes here. His account of watching Mr Blair’s evidence in the upstairs room, as I was seated downstairs, is very moving and completely understandable in its intensity. That does not make his approach to Tony Blair right. I do hope that one day these bereaved families will be able to move on and live the rest of their lives without bitterness and recrimination. Bitterness detroys the embittered.

Tags:arrest George Monbiot, BBC, david blunkett, George Galloway, Henry Porter, Hutton Inquiry, Iraq inquiry, jack straw, Lord Falconer, lord goldsmith, Peter Hennessy, Reg Keys, Saddam Hussein, Tony Blair, video, whitewash, who is killing them
Posted in 1. Tony Blair, British Prime Minister, Brown (Gordon Brown & his Labour Government, from June 2007), Iraq, Iraq inquiry, Major Political Issues, Britain & World | 7 Comments »

I was a witness (more or less) to the TRIAL of Tony Blair, aka the Iraq Inquiry

January 30, 2010

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Sign the Ban Blair-Baiting petition here. “He’s not a war criminal. He’s not evil. He didn’t lie. He didn’t sell out Britain or commit treason. He wasn’t Bush’s poodle. He hasn’t got blood on his hands. The anti-war nutters must not be allowed to damage Blair’s reputation further. He was a great PM, a great statesman and a great leader.”

Ban Blair-Baiting

Comment at end

30th January, 2010

ON A GREY DAY IN LONDON THE POLITICAL SUPERSTAR SHONE

Unfortunately I didn’t get a ticket for the actual inquisition, interrogation, court witness hearing room, but in the Additional Viewing Facility downstairs, interestingly, if not co-incidentally named the Churchill Auditorium.

I received a ticket to the 2:00pm session. We were all provided with a personally named and numbered sticker in order to permit us to watch the proceedings on a large screen. The 700 seats allocated were not all taken. Many with tickets had obviously decided not to attend unless they could actually see the man in the flesh. I had even considered that course of (in)action myself. In the end I’m glad I went. I heard various estimates of the turn-out being between 450 and 550. My guess is the upper end of that.

Not a séance or boredom allowing him to nod off momentarily. But I didn't want to take too many pictures in case the shaking head tic tic ladies in front disapproved. (Tony Blair on-screen during the afternoon session of the Iraq Inquiry, 29th January, 2010.) If you use this picture, please link back to here. It's my camera, after all!

CIVILISED BEHAVIOUR FROM THE LIBERAL TENDENCY

The audience in this particular session were quiet, mostly middle-class, middle-aged and well-behaved. A little like a Liberal Democrat debate where policies are hammered out earnestly after much forensic detail in the full expectation that they will never have to be implemented. I heard from someone who attended the morning session that in that earlier session in the Additional Viewing room one man stood up in disgust and loudly proclaimed that he couldn’t listen to “any more of this”. It seems he was told by others around to behave or go, so he exited. Civilised behaviour requiring actual listening was clearly expecting too much.

THE SHAKING-HEAD TIC

Nothing like this happened, within my view in any case, at the afternoon session. But in front of me sat two grey-haired ladies of the shaking-head tendency. I think there may have been a younger version of the same variety a few seats from me. From the ladies in front each head-shake was accompanied by a sigh, an exchange of knowing, raised eyebrow glances, rolling eyes and a ‘tch-tch’, one in American English. WOW! They’ll come any distance to watch a good lynching of a western politician. I spotted no foot-of-the-gallows knitting, though.

‘CHEERS’ SAID THE SOBER PANEL

Even before the screen went live, we all knew it was about to start by the familiar clinking of glasses and some burbling, gurgling noises. No, the panel were not toasting the sudden croaking of their prize suspect witness before their eyes, thus conveniently robbing them of the need to find him “guilty/not guilty as charged/not charged.” They were pouring the customary glasses of water.

And then HE arrived. Mr Blair made his entrance after several seconds of unknowable expectation and a searching sideways glance by the chairman – was he there? had he done a runner? He made his entrance, in his own time, aware as ever of impressions. HE was not awaiting the judges panel. He looked smart as always in a dark blue suit and a dark red tie. He was serious, as was to be expected, possibly slightly apprehensive, as too would be expected. But I did not notice the shaking hands referred to by some reporting on the morning session. He was the lucid and eloquent Blair we all came to love/hate (delete as necessary) and seemed ready to take it all in his capable stride.

There are several video clips online of sections of his entire day’s evidence sessions. All six hours of video and transcript are here at The Iraq Inquiry website. Don’t take my word for it, or the press’s choice clips. Go there and see for yourself.

[Aside: Can you imagine Saddam Hussein being expected to answer questions like this? Ahmadinejad, Putin or Russia's present president? Mugabe? The Chinese leadership? Me neither. Although I do not agree with this fifth Inquiry in principle, because it will never satisfy the unsatisfiable, we should be proud that we have questioned our former Prime Minister in public like this and will even do so with the present prime minister before many weeks have passed. I'm quite keen on having the Conservative Party answer questions too, and the anti-Iraq war Liberal Democrats. Oh - and the press.]

THE ‘CIVIL RIGHTS ROBBER’ ANSWERS FOR HIS DECISIONS

Yesterday was about the top man in Britain at the time of the Iraq decisions answering questions for a whole day. I repeat – for that in this open, western democracy we should be extremely proud. It looks like Tony Blair did not quite manage, as has been suggested by civil righters, to wrap us all mute in a police state after all. (Tch…tch… knowing head shake, rolling eyes… another ‘failure’.)

Former Prime Minister Tony Blair Friday Jan. 29, 2010 testifying to Britain's Iraq Inquiry. Blair said that Saddam Hussein didn't become a bigger threat after Sept. 11, but said his perception of the risk posed by terrorists acquiring weapons of mass destruction was dramatically changed by the attacks. (AP Photo/APTN) (AP)

Picture above from the Washington Post

When I first arrived at Westminster it was raining lightly. A helicopter flew past Big Ben and hovered in various spots. This is only a few hundred yards/metres from the Queen Elizabeth II Centre. It seems they were monitoring the millions, thousands … er hundred or two protestors who were bellowing to themselves “Tony Blair, go to Jail”. I know they were addressing one another because several policemen I asked said they weren’t listening. Those poor servants of peace and “Stop the War” demos were the only ones around in any number who were forced to hear.

‘Listening’… well, that’s another matter.

Big Ben, 8:34am, 29th January 2010, as I arrived at the Iraq Inquiry for Tony Blair's evidence. For a moment I wondered if he was in the helicopter. But, no. It turned out he'd been at the venue already for more than an hour. You have to be up early ...

‘B.LIAR’ YELPED THE B***** LIARS

So, through the light London drizzle I wandered across to the Queen Elizabeth II conference centre, which is opposite Westminster Cathedral and a few hundred yards from the Palace of Westminster – The Houses of Parliament. The yellow-jacketed police were the first into my view. Then I heard the mega-phoned voices. Not until virtually standing opposite did I spot the Ban the Bombers, gathered to the left of the venue. My guess is at most two hundred, perhaps even half of that. Their banners and placards spread their presence in a distorted way, which is appropriate, given their distorted message.

NO LYNCHING OPPORTUNITY HERE – NOTHING TO SEE – MOVE ON

The barrier around the green stopped anyone without a ticket for the relevant session from entering the entire area immediately in front of the venue. So the Blair jailers were forced to set up their stalls on the pavement in front or to one side of the venue, set aside for them. The police were evidently not expecting thousands. The police were right. I passed several armed policemen but they seemed to be chatting about other things, football, snooker or tennis perhaps, rather than about anything as challenging as preventing the hanging of a politician from a nearby tree.

The green in front of the centre on which they originally wanted to perform had been banned to these dwindling numbers of the righteous. Easy to see why. The press were there in numbers, many under canopies to do their interviews. The Stop The War warriors had complained as though there was no real reason for their refused permission apart from protecting Tony Blair from their unwelcome screaming and yelling. As so often before, they got it wrong. That was simply the only place near the venue capable of serving the presence of the world’s press.

INDEFATIGABILITY SILENCED?

As I stood in the queue to enter for the afternoon session I am sure I heard a voice I’d have preferred not to hear – ‘Gorgeous George’. But oddly enough, and I don’t why, he had only spoken a dozen words before the speaker went silent. What!!? I worried myself sick for all of two seconds. Had someone shot him? Or arrested him in the name of peace and right and honesty and integrity an’ all that? I still haven’t worked out why George Galloway stopped talking. It’s never been known before.

Just had it confirmed over at Rentoul’s that I was right about Gorgeous George. He was there. And here’s the proof.

Indefatigability himself, Gorgeous George speaks to the millions, sorry, thousands, oh, I mean dozens... gathered outside the 'gallows' in Westminster. Tony Blair is inside, pleading for his life. Er, not.

I didn’t hang around the venue while the morning session was on, preferring to watch TV coverage in a local hostelry than to watch the Stop Gang stopping nothing, not even the traffic.

THE MASTER’S VOICE

The staff at the pub off Smith Square were very kind and specially for me found the controls for their little-used TV set. I probably irritated many late morning drinkers as they had to listen to politics in the background. Still, by the time I had to leave quite a few of them were tuning in to The Master’s performance, with him or not politically. He still has not lost that ability to gently command attention, again, with him or not. A rare quality in a politician and something we allowed ourselves to lose so carelessly, not so long ago.

RELATED

Go here to Julie’s to read significant items from Tony Blair’s morning session evidence. You will read none of the bias, opining or cherry-picking we get from our blessed press. Only direct quotes from Mr Blair and the panel. Links there too to the Iraq Inquiry website and the full transcript.

At the Iranian state-sponsored PRESS TV (a George Galloway employer) this bastion of freedom, justice and democracy has its own take on the Inquiry hearing of Tony Blair. I expect they are thinking of doing the same thing with Ahmadinejad and the Supreme Leader.

Read more in the next post on Tony Blair’s afternoon session which I attended, with more pictures of the external goings-on.

Tags:Additional Viewing Facility, Churchill Auditorium, George Galloway, Iraq inquiry, pictures of Tony Blair at Iraq Inquiry, Sir John Chilcot, Stop the War warriors, Tony Blair, Trial of Tony Blair, witness
Posted in 1. Tony Blair, BBC, Broadcast Outlets & Press, Iraq, Iraq inquiry, Law - British Domestic & International, Major Political Issues, Britain & World | 12 Comments »

Tony Blair at Iraq Inquiry – ONE report with NO opining

January 30, 2010

Sign the Ban Blair-Baiting petition here. A recent sig comment: “… The level and wickedness of getting at Tony Blair in the press tells us what a good man he really is.”

Comment at end

30th January, 2010

AS A MATTER OF FACT …

Since I was in attendance, I will soon be doing my own report on yesterday in court, aka Blair in the dock, otherwise known as The Iraq Inquiry. But amongst all the opining I found this mention of the Inquiry – simply headlined - ” Tony Blair speaks to the Iraq Inquiry”.

You might find it useful if you want to know ALL the facts before reading the opinions of those who ‘know’.

It points directly to the video of the most recent, the afternoon session of the Inquiry at their website. From there you can view the earlier morning seesion and read the transcription of both sessions.

Note – no commentary. Just facts.

Tags:evidence, Iraq inquiry, picture of Blair, Tony Blair, Tony Blair Office website
Posted in 1. Tony Blair, BBC, Broadcast Outlets & Press, Iraq, Iraq inquiry, Law - British Domestic & International, Major Political Issues, Britain & World | 1 Comment »

Iraq Inquiry Special, New Statesman: Press Release – Ban Blair-Baiting petition

January 27, 2010

Visit New Statesman website

Sign the Ban Blair-Baiting petition here. A recent sig comment: “… The level and wickedness of getting at Tony Blair in the press tells us what a good man he really is.”

UPDATE – Help get the petition to 500 by the end of today – Thursday, 28th. Now 429 480. See here.

UPDATE 2 – Thank you. We did it. Now over 500. But please, keep them coming!

Comment at end

27th January, 2010

Iraq Inquiry Special: Press Release

Ban Blair-Baiting petition

Full page advert for the BAN BLAIR-BAITING petition in

The New Statesman’s Iraq Inquiry special

PRESS RELEASE

BAN BLAIR-BAITING

FULL PAGE ADVERT FOR THE BAN BLAIR-BAITING PETITION TO APPEAR IN THE NEW STATESMAN’S IRAQ INQUIRY SPECIAL (OUT TOMORROW)

This week’s issue is to carry the above opposite the leader. Its content will probably be diametrically opposed to much of the coverage in the rest of the issue, which will no doubt take the form of the kind of Blair-baiting that the petition is about.

The title BAN BLAIR-BAITING is explained in the online petition as follows:

Bear-baiting, whereby a tethered bear was attacked by a pack of dogs, was outlawed in this country in 1835. It is now time to stop BLAIR-baiting, i.e. attacks on our former Prime Minister by the dogs of anti-war. Less metaphorically it can be defined as the constant incitement of hatred against Tony Blair for taking us to war in Iraq

WHO IS SIGNING THE PETITION?

The petition, calling for fair treatment of Tony Blair and fair reporting of the Iraq inquiry, is attracting signatures from people all over the world (including Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran and Saudi Arabia) who are appalled by the abuse that is being directed at our former Prime Minister and who are sick and tired of those who have found him guilty of various crimes and misdemeanours before the non-judicial inquiry has considered all the evidence, far less reached any conclusions.

Here’s a typical comment from Birmingham “I believe that Tony Blair has been taunted and terrorized enough over the Iraq war. I want to see it end.” And from Bulgaria, “Mr Blair you are a true leader, you have stepped forth when all others have stepped back.”

A list of other comments of this sort can be found in John Rentoul’s post “We few, we happy few”. And John Rentoul carries this New Statesman information here at his site.

In that piece Mr Rentoul says this about the petition “Fortunately, there are now 323 of us [since then the number is fast approaching 400] that have signed the petition to Ban Blair Baiting, a brave venture, which was always about quality rather than numbers.”

Prominent signatories include Lord George Foulkes, John Rentoul, chief political commentator at the Independent on Sunday, Oliver Kamm, leader writer and columnist at the Times, Stephen Pollard, editor of the Jewish Chronicle, Tom Harris MP, Paul Trippett and John Burton from Tony Blair’s former Sedgefield constituency and Jessica Asato, acting Director of the Labour pressure group, Progress. Nick Cohen has also expressed his support.

AIMS OF THE PETITION

Starting a debate

Firstly, the petition is intended to start a debate about how Tony Blair is being treated with regard to this inquiry and how its proceedings are being reported in the media. John Rentoul has already picked up on this in his “Iraq Inquiry Coverage Rebuttal Service”. And another leading European-based blogger, Erik Svane (an ex-pat American with a large American following) has just signed and posted this piece on the petition, headed “Tony Blair supported the United States: now it’s time to support Tony Blair”

We understand that, as our former Prime Minister, Mr Blair is considered by some to have much to answer for over Iraq. And thus we appreciate that this inquiry has its place. What we cannot accept, however, is the attempt by those who have made up their minds in advance, to turn the inquiry into an Iran-type show trial. (note the demonstration planned for Tony Blair’s appearance on Friday and George Monbiot’s latest scurrilous piece at the Guardian headed “ Wanted: Tony Blair for war crimes. Arrest him and claim your reward”)

Countering the expected anti-Blair bias

Another aim of the petition and the related website, JUSTICE FOR TONY BLAIR is to form the basis of a campaign to counter the anti-Blair activity that will undoubtedly be taking place over the period of the inquiry.

Our concern is that media coverage of this activity and media competition to lay a killer blow on Mr Blair when evidence is taken at the inquiry will taint any outcome in his favour and even make it unacceptable as was the case with previous inquiries. Another concern, prompted by Sir John Chilcot’s recent efforts to reassure the public that the inquiry will not be a whitewash, is that the inquiry will turn into a BLACKwash i.e. an OVER-critical verdict on the UK’s part in the war in order to demonstrate that it is NOT a whitewash.

In sum, the simple message of the petition is that Blair-baiting should play no part in the Iraq inquiry. And it opens up a much wider and hugely important issue about the role of the media in matters of this sort.

LINKS

Click back here often and refresh this page to watch the numbers rise in the box below. We would like to get to 500 before Mr Blair gives his evidence at the Iraq Inquiry on Friday. If you believe in “innocent until proven guilty”, please help us to reach that goal.

Click for the petition: http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-blair-baiting.html

Website: http://justicefortonyblair.blogspot.com/

Spokesman: John Rentoul

E-mail: J.Rentoul@independent.co.uk

A comprehensive article about the petition can be found at The Progressive

As has Harry’s Place here

And here at Julie’s think tank

Earlier posts on Ban Blair-Baiting at this site, including signature comments from around the world in support of Tony Blair, and against the lambasting he has received from the British press:

Tags:alastair campbell, ban blair baiting petition, harry's place, Iraq Inquiry Special, John Rentoul, keep tony blair for pm, new statesman, Press Release, Tony Blair
Posted in 1. Tony Blair, BBC, Broadcast Outlets & Press, British Politics, British Prime Minister, Iraq, Iraq inquiry, Keep Tony Blair, Legacy of Tony Blair, Press - Truth & Lies | 5 Comments »

Iraq Inquiry – Read Comments & Sign the Ban Blair-Baiting petition

January 27, 2010

http://no-pasaran.blogspot.com/2010/01/tony-blair-supported-united-states-now.html

Sign the Ban Blair-Baiting petition here. A recent sig comment: “… The level and wickedness of getting at Tony Blair in the press tells us what a good man he really is.”

PLEASE NOTE: Check towards the end for the most recent comments. You will note where argued, intelligent debate lies over Tony Blair & Iraq.

Comment at end

27th January, 2010

Online petition – Ban Blair-Baiting

See list of signatures — Go to sign petition page

SAMPLES OF RECENT COMMENTS OF SIGNATORIES AT THE BAN BLAIR-BAITING PETITION

322, Metro Manila, Philippines – Let us follow the rule of law: the person is INNOCENT otherwise proven guilty.

323, Longdon Green, Rugeley, UK - Blair was the best PM this country has had!

329, Oberstenfeld, Germany – An honourable man who did what he believed to be right thing. His detractors seem mainly to be people who a) couldn’t swallow his supporting George Bush, b) don’t like it that he was found correct in his argument with the BBC or c) cannot bear the idea that it is they who have supported the wrong cause.

330, Arlington, TX, USA – After the idiot we have elected in America thanks to the media bias do you really want the same in the UK? I would think not, don’t let the media turn leadership into a popularity contest. Leadership isn’t about popularity it’s about making the sometimes difficult and sometimes unpopular decisions to benefit the nation.

334, Paris, France – What is most galling is that it is taken as a given that 1) Blair (and Bush) lied and/or made (unforgivable) mistakes and that 2) Blair’s and Bush’s (alleged) lies and/or (alleged) mistakes before the conflict led to a war with a country as innocent, as peaceful, and as nonthreatening as Luxembourg.

Go here to read articles such as “Was Tony Blair really the Yanks’ poodle?” and “Did Bush and Blair Lie About WMD?

335 – Iraq HAD WMD’s (just ask the Kurds). Everyone knows it. Saddam was in violation of dozens of UN resolutions. Everyone knows it. The Iraq government has uncovered significant information linking Saddam to AQ. Sane people know this. Leave Tony Blair alone! He didn’t commit a crime & you’re making yourselves look like fools.

340 – Are all the members of the Labour Party also going on the dock for supporting PM Blair? It seems only fair that any slur that is attached to him should be attached to them as well. Or perhaps just grown up and realize that democracies aren’t perfect but infintely better than anything else.

348 – I believe it naive to think that Sadaam wasn’t playing with weapons of mass destruction on several levels.Ridicule or a derisive attitude will not alter that.That region of the world is rife with devious and despotic rulers just waiting for the opportunity to gain the upper hand.
It is unseemly for the world press to ride roughshod over sensibilities .Blair baiting should not be condoned but rather should be condemned

353, Miami, FL, USA – Tony Blair acted in good faith on a preponderance of evidence against one of the most malevolent tyrannies of the last half of the 20th Century. British forces (and Americans) removed that vicious dictatorship which had killed over a million Iraqis and (by its OWN estimates) allowed 500,000 Iraqis to die for anti-sanctions propaganda EVEN THOUGH THE SADDAM DICTATORSHIP COULD HAVE OBTAINED SUPPLIES FOR THEM UNDER THE UNITED NATIONS’ OIL-FOR-FOOD PROGRAM.

Tony Blair did the right HUMANE thing!

354, Nurnberg & Newark, Bavaria Germany - Leave the man alone.

356, Israel – I agree with the position of this petition.

365, USA – We know that Saddam had, at the very least, chemical weapons which he had used against the Kurds. He was also trying to develop nuclear weapons. Give Blair and Bush a break: they acted on the intelligence they had which said that the WMD’s were there.

369, USA – i bELEIVE THAT tONY bLAIR IS A GOOD PERSON WROTE TO HIM wE SHOULD RESPECT HIM i AM BEHIND HIM ALL THE WAY

371 – i agree the petition.
BAROUCH HACHEM

374 – May God bless Tony Blair and all who fought and served to bring freedom and relief to Iraq.

375, Warcs, UK – This hearing should provide access to the truth, if that is to be achieved then judgement must be held until the evidence has been heard and properly considered. It is not the place for a public show trial.

377, Geneva, Stitzerland – The extreme leftwing loonies are acting as the useful idiots of the islamists who abuse our laws in order to impose their islamo-fascist islamic rule.

Shame on the traitors who collaborate with the enemies of Liberty.

382, California, USA – Go after the bad guys, not the good guys. The ones that are terrorizing the world and killing inocent people with their IEDs, car bombs, suicide bombers, hijacking aircraft and other modes of transportation.

383, USA – Tony Blair is a man of integrity and guts. It is so sad to see what is happening to him in the United Kingdom. We still support him here in the United States. Tony, move over here!

384, Ohio USA – I like the guy. I think he really cares and has gotten an unfair rap.

386 – No doubt Saddam had them and disposed of them prior to inspections. We gave him plenty of time!

387, Carrouges, Orne, France – A fair hearing is essential; one without media influence ; the media should report the news not make it.

391, France – We can not to have him in France at the post of Sarkozy. But we would like cause he made what nobody else did.

394 – I think it’s shocking how Tony Blair is being treated.

401, Halifax, West Yorkshire, UK -If we had bribed the French more than Saddam did would that have made it all legal?
Lesson: Never rely on the UN to make moral decisions as many of the members are wholly immoral.

402, Spain – Viva Tony. He ‘s done a lot for England and the World too.

28th January, 2010 – Signatures and comments below

412 – Tony Blair done good – period!

420 – Lets instead report on Iraq’s newfound democracy.

417, UK – Blair was genuine in his belief that Saddam had weapons of mass distruction he is being made a scapegoat by the tory press who remember supported the war!

439, Glasgow, Scotland – TB has brought more care and openness to government decision making than any other British Prime Minister that I have lived under. His continued presence on the world stage is so very important in achieving Peace in Palestine.

British people of all political persuasions need to help and support his efforts there rather than allow distractions in Trial by Newspaper, internet blogs and other media. These are as unacceptable as Kangaroo Courts, Witch Finder Trials and The Spanish Inquisition.

446 – Good stuff , it’s great that someone is standing up for Blair!

449, UK – I’ve just heard George Monbiot on the radio, and found myself in such strong disagreement with his argument that I felt I had to sign this petition.

453, London, UK – I would indeed like to become more involved in countering the disgraceful way the British press has been intentionally misleading the public. I’m also a great admirer of Mr.Blair and a supporter of the action he took against Baathism and Jihadism, and support the democratic efforts of the Iraqi and Kurdish people to remake their country in their own image.

463 – The inexplicable hate and vituperation against TB has clouded the logic of otherwise intelligent people. I would ask them to stick to the evidence and the facts and not try to rewrite history. Just because the Government did something you disagree with, it doesn’t mean they have to be liars and criminals.

467, Odense, Denmark – I want justice for Mr. Tony Blair and no mingling from the media and other interested parties.

470, Caerphilly, Wales – “Yes ! In my name !!

472, Basingstoke, Hampshire, UK- Tony Blair was, in my opinion, the best Prime Minister this country has seen. As the page says, innocent untill proven guilty but what, really, could he have done. He needed to maintain the relationship with the US.

475, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, UK – Tony Blair did the right thing based on the evidence available. As a nation we should be prepared to stand up for ourselves and what is right. Saddam thumbed his nose at a string of UN resolutions and murdered hundreds of thousands. He was a world menace and it is better off without him. The Iraq war opponents want to give up in the face of evil. This is frightening.

476 – Sick of people dissing Tony Blair….Saddam Hussan HAD WMDs in the past and toyed giving the impressions he still had them…..I fully Back Tony Blairs actions.

477, UK – the media will totally ignore this as they have their own agenda , in particular Guardian & Observer.

483, Virginia, USA – Free people are required to push back against those attempting to dominate us. That is part of the unavoidable cost of remaining free.

488, Minnesota, USA – Inocent until proven guilty . Hands off Tony Blair .

493, Florida, USA – Tony Blair is a stauncy ally of these United States much like Margaret Thacher was, so I stand with him at this time.

494, UK – Give Tony Blair a FAIR hearing tomorrow.
Don’t swallow the lies of the biased British media!!
In a democracy everyone is INNOCENT until proved guilty (applies to TB,too!!!)

495, Cardiff, UK – The treatment of Tony Blair is worse than an inquisition. The hatred online for him and throughout much of the press is horrendous. Whatever happened to British fair play? This man was the democratically elected LEADER of this country, not a dictator. I am proud of him and ashamed of many of my fellow Brits.

501, Liverpool, UK – I have been deeply saddened and also incensed by the “pitchfork and lighted torches” mentality of the press over this. I am dismayed that this great lie they are building may become indisputable fact over the coming years. We we must somehow prevent this re-writing of history and ensure the truth is heard. Tony Blair was a great PM and deserves better than this!

Tags:ban blair baiting petition, comments, Iraq inquiry, sign petition Tony Blair, signatures at petition, Tony Blair, Tony Blair evidence
Posted in 1. Tony Blair, BBC, Broadcast Outlets & Press, Iraq, Iraq inquiry, Keep Tony Blair, Major Political Issues, Britain & World, The Independent - Daily Mail - Guardian - British "feral" Press | 3 Comments »

Iraq Inquiry, Blair: MET STOPS C4′s Good Guys, The Stop The Warriors

January 26, 2010

Sign the Ban Blair-baiting petition here. A recent sig comment: “… The level and wickedness of getting at Tony Blair in the press tells us what a good man he really is.”

Comment at end

26th January, 2010

C4′S ‘GOOD GUYS’ (aka STOP THE WARRIORS) CANNOT PEDDLE THEIR LIES ON QEII GREEN ON FRIDAY FOR MR BLAIR … oh, and me

Jon Snow at Channel 4 News will be SO-O-O-O upset.

Why C4′s “good guys”? Look at the reports to the right here at the C4 News source. Jon Snow, their anchorman, makes BBC journalists sound fair and balanced.

Mr Snow’s heroes, the Stop the War coalition, have been banned from parading their tired old misinformation when Mr Blair appears at the Iraq Inquiry venue in London.

About time too!

Sadly, not permanently. But still, I’d like to thank the MET Police.

[Complain online to London's Metropolitan Police here if anything else is bothering you these days. For instance the disregard of "innocent until proven guilty" by these 'troof' hunting peace 'n' lovers.]

Mr Blair would never have noticed this crowd, as he is unlikely to enter the venue through the front entrance. But I would have had to put up with them.

Thanks goodness they will not now be permitted to bellow their lies and wave their placards in my face on Friday when I tag along to see and hear what Mr Blair has to say about the Iraq war decisions.

HEY – NEWS FOR C4 – WE’RE OUTTA THERE

It’s all such a CRAZY idea anyway. Our great former PM hasn’t been prime minister for two and a half years AND as it happens, we are already out of Iraq.

Wonder why Mr Snow hasn’t told them? Souls.

Some of us, you loathsome crowd of Know-It-Alls would rather be informed than inform, particularly in loud ignorance, as is the wont of the multi-agenda’d Stop The War gang.

Hmmm, Mr Snow?

Blair protesters pull out of police talks

Updated on 26 January 2010

By Dan Wright, Channel 4 News

The Stop the War coalition have expressed their frustration with the Metropolitan Police and told Channel 4 News they have pulled out of discussions with them about demonstrations coinciding with Tony Blair’s appearance at the Iraq Inquiry on Friday.

The anti-war group had been in talks with police to arrange their protest outside the Queen Elizabeth II centre, where the former Prime Minister will be giving evidence.

But the group pulled out of talks and called for a “mass mobilisation of anti-war protesters” after the Metropolitan Police told them they would not be able to hold their demonstration on a green space outside the centre, where they had held all previous action.

Earlier the Metropolitan Police told Channel 4 News they were having a “very constructive dialogue” with protest organisers and were “trying to ensure they are as near as they want to be”.

But the spot in question is on the property of the Queen Elizabeth II Centre, a government-owned building, and the Stop the War coalition have alleged that the QE2 decided not to allow them to protest there, adding “the government have effectively banned us from protesting”.

The Metropolitan Police have denied press reports they were preparing to use so-called “kettling” tactics against the protesters, saying they had a number of tactics at their disposal.

The event had been seen as the first major test of public order policing since the “Adapting to Protest” review by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) published last November.

The review was triggered by criticism of the policing of the G20 protest last year, where there were a number of complaints, and the newspaper vendor Ian Tomlinson died.

Original plans for Friday’s protest included a “naming of the dead ceremony” and musical performances throughout the morning.

Source

Excerpt: “Anti-war campaigners planning to protest when Tony Blair appears before the Iraq inquiry on Friday said today they had been barred from going near the building where he is giving evidence. Up to 1,000 protesters are expected to rally outside the Queen Elizabeth II Centre, in Westminster.”

Tags:C4, channel 4, Iraq inquiry, Jon Snow, Met Police, Queen Elizabeth II centre, Stop the War coalition stopped, Tony Blair
Posted in 1. Tony Blair, BBC, Broadcast Outlets & Press, Iraq, Iraq inquiry, Press - Truth & Lies | Leave a Comment »

Svane – “TONY BLAIR SUPPORTED THE USA; NOW IT IS TIME TO SUPPORT TONY BLAIR”

January 26, 2010

[no pasarán - meaning: They shall not pass through]

Sign the Ban Blair-baiting petition here. A recent sig comment: “… The level and wickedness of getting at Tony Blair in the press tells us what a good man he really is.”

Comment at end

26th January, 2010

“TONY BLAIR SUPPORTED THE USA; NOW IT IS TIME TO SUPPORT TONY BLAIR”

Erik Svane at his blog – No Pasaran – says - “Tony Blair Supported the United States; Now It Is Time to Support Tony Blair”

Thank you for this post, Erik. As Blair Supporters in Britain, where Mr Blair is under relentless attack by the mainstream press (see previous post) we DO appreciate your work, and would like to thank you for the ensuing signatures at the Ban Blair-Baiting petition.

Watch the Iraq Inquiry live here. Today, Sir Michael Wood Legal Adviser, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, 2001 – 2006 - the Foreign Office’s most senior legal adviser said that he believed that the Iraq invasion was against international law. David Brummell, Legal Secretary to the Law Officers, 2001 – 2004 also provided his evidence this morning.

Elizabeth Wilmshurst, Deputy Legal Adviser, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, 2001 – 2003, who resigned over the invasion decision on grounds of “legality” will give her evidence this afternoon, as will Margaret Beckett, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, May 2006 – June 2007.

Tomorrow, Rt Hon Lord Goldsmith QC, the Attorney General, June 2001 to June 2007 will give his evidence for the entire day.

Thursday they all have a day off, in preparation, presumably for this -

On Friday Tony Blair himself will give his testimony under necessary high security. The security costs should be sent to all the Blair haters in the press and in the Stop-The -War campaign, whose incitement against Mr Blair, based on ignorance, brainwashing and bone-headed bias, is costing far more than it would if the Haters REALLY believed in “innocent until proven guilty”.

And, as Sir John Chilcot continually reminds us – “This is not a trial.”

Timetable of those giving evidence here.

posted by Erik @ 20:57

Tony Blair gave his support to the United States of America…

Now it is time to give our support to Tony Blair!

…And to sign the petition…

Justice for Tony Blair demands that

It is now time to stop BLAIR-baiting, i.e. attacks on our former Prime Minister by the dogs of anti-war. Less metaphorically it can be defined as the constant incitement of hatred against Tony Blair for taking us to war in Iraq.

This year’s Blair-baiting season will reach its peak when the Iraq war inquiry starts to call witnesses. Parts of the media, the anti-Iraq war lobby and some families of soldiers killed in the war are already calling for this to be a TRIAL of Tony Blair with a view to gathering as much evidence as possible to send him to The Hague for “war crimes”. Except that unlike a normal trial, Tony Blair has been presumed guilty in advance.

What is most galling about the hysterical calls calling for Blair‘s (and Bush’s) head(s) is that it is taken as a given that 1) Blair (and Bush) lied and/or made (unforgivable) mistakes and that 2) Blair‘s and Bush’s (alleged) lies and/or (alleged) mistakes before the conflict led to a war with a country as innocent, as peaceful, and as nonthreatening (both domestically and internationally) as the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

The issue of weapons of mass destruction is laughed off offhand, with snorts and scorn, as if Luxembourg (or a country like it) had been the country accused of harboring ABCs. Note: the reason people — all people, not just Bush and Blair, and in nations both within and without the Coalition of the Willing — believed Saddam Hussein had weapons was that he had harbored them and that, indeed, he had used them. Saddam used chemical weapons on Iranian troops, he used them on Kurdish civilians, and he tried building nuclear weapons.

It is my fervent hope that when the trial begins, Blair won’t just sit there, but that he will turn the tables on his castigators (the self-described humanitarians and human rights activists) and hammer this theme home. With quotes from all the varying actors stating their firm conviction that Iraq and/or Saddam needed to be confronted.

Read some choice quotes of Tony Blair…
Is there any truth to Tony Blair being the Yanks’ poodle?
Did Bush and Blair Lie About WMD?
So Long As We Are Hunting for Liars in the Iraq Controversy…

The following excerpt comes from a post (So Long As We Are Hunting for Liars in the Iraq Controversy) written about Bush and his American castigators, but it can easily adapted for Tony or for any like-minded ally in the Coalition of the Willing):

In the following sentence, [we can couple "the Democrats" with "the Europeans" as well as Britain's anti-Blairites, all of which fall] under what Norman Podhoretz calls “all those who in their desperation to delegitimize the larger policy being tested in Iraq … have consistently used distortion, misrepresentation and selective perception to vilify as immoral a bold and noble enterprise”: … so long as we are hunting for liars in this area, let me suggest that we begin with the Democrats now proclaiming that they were duped, and that we then broaden out to all those who in their desperation to delegitimize the larger policy being tested in Iraq–the policy of making the Middle East safe for America by making it safe for democracy–have consistently used distortion, misrepresentation and selective perception to vilify as immoral a bold and noble enterprise and to brand as an ignominious defeat what is proving itself more and more every day to be a victory of American arms and a vindication of American ideals. [As well as British ones — natch!]

RELATED

Tags:Adviser, David Brummell, Deputy Legal Adviser, Elizabeth Wilmshurst, Erik Svane, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Foreign Office, Iraq inquiry, Legal Secretary to the Law Officers, Margaret Beckett, no pasarán, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Sir John Chilcot, Sir Michael Wood, time to support Tony Blair, Tony Blair
Posted in 1. Tony Blair, BBC, Broadcast Outlets & Press, Iraq, Iraq inquiry, Major Political Issues, Britain & World, President George Bush, Press - Truth & Lies, United States of America | Leave a Comment »

Arrest George Monbiot for his ‘Bounty’/Incitement to Murder Tony Blair

January 26, 2010