Tony Blair and Neville Chamberlain have something in common. They both belong under the heading “Political mediocrities.” Chamberlain with his piece of paper and the famous statement “Peace in our Time”, was the ultimate in 20th century dissimulation. One which Tony probably cannot match, although he has probably achieved a good second place at the recent European summit meetings after which we were told that Tony achieved some valuable concessions. Like Chamberlain, he arrived back claiming that because of his negotiating, England has retained its dignity. We were told by the establishment political hacks that he has achieved wonderful things. But whose opinion does that represent and frankly, how do we know this statement is true?

The answer is simple, We don’t! Blair must be happy that the constitution has received the thumbs down from both the Dutch and the French because it certainly let him off the hook on that subject. The problem is that you never know when Blair is telling the truth, and to be quite honest I believe that Blair himself doesn’t know. I have my doubts that Blair would be picked up by a lie detector for many of his “statesman’s statements.” It’s a fact the only honest liars get picked up by the lie detector. Dishonest liars can fool the lie detector because their belief in their lies overrides the efficacy of a lie detector. Their lies are their truth!

Blair’s miracle negotiations with the recent European community meetings for the British rebate and agricultural grants are being hailed as political genius and great leadership. More Emperor’s clothes ? Is this Blair’s equivalent of Chamberlain’s piece of paper ! It isn’t that far behind but if he continues in the direction his hubristic ego seems to be taking, he might even surpass the Chamberlain fake. One has to make the logical observation that it is Britain’s turn to take up the reins of the presidency of the Union which means that the European leaders will be anxious not to upset him too much and will tread carefully whilst Blair presides. Apart from the deference shown to “the governor” people will always tread carefully when there are signs of doubtful neurotic wisdom. Luckily for our society, the Caligula factor of government no longer has any significance . Notwithstanding, for all the apparent democracy we are told we have, there is an awful lot of unilateral decisions being taken by European parliament and a president can obviously wield much influence when it comes to the final solution.

Tony Blair’s fakeries are genuine and now he is in power for a third term of office, I am afraid it has only just begun. Apart from the “top of the range” European job he will be given once he steps down as Prime Minister, he wants to go down in history as a Churchillian figure of war and a grand statesman remoulding the post war period of a war which he made possible without a mandate. Already the European constitution is almost a thing of the past although I imagine it will reappear within a few years. Lets hope that this time it will be properly debated and promulgate so that the voters and hopefully, even the politicians, will actually understand what it is all about. But let us leave the constitution alone for the time being and have a nostalgic look at Tony’s biggest fraud, the Iraqi War 2.

Weapons of mass destruction have finally taken a back seat and they hardly get a mention these days although there was excitement when the Iraqi Embassy was recently re-opened and they found some nasty looking weapons albeit only “Weapons of Minor Destruction.” Taking place of the old fantasy of the “Weapons of Mass Destruction” is the bi-lateral claim that the people of Iraq are all set for a 21st century democracy with a quality Government making everyone happy! The new prime minister discusses the future with Bush implying an east meets west political concordat which isn’t surprising considering the Americans more or less selected him. As for the phoenix style Iraqi rising from the West’s war ashes, we will see but whenever peace will finally reign, it will be too late for all the thousands of civilians and soldiers who have been killed and are still being killed since the war ended. And, let us not forget the destroyed infrastructure and the towns which were virtually extirpated and razed to the ground, deprived of such basics such as electricity and water. Towns where the surviving residents even now fear going out into the streets in case a stray bullet snuffs them out or gangsters kidnap their children for a ransom, or a trigger happy American chopper pilot helicopter destroys their house because someone moved inside it.

Before his re-election Bush told the world that the Americans would be out by July 05 but clearly this is another Blair / Bush fantasy. I wonder where that one went or was it just another example of the oldest legal and political trick in the world. Saying what you will be doing although you have no intention of complying with the promise knowing that people will put it out of their minds and eventually forget about it.

We have seen Tony Blair as Field Marshal, man of action image although his visit to the troops was nothing so impressive as Bush’s “ we've won” speech given in full fighter pilots uniform and delivered from the deck of an aircraft carrier no less . Blaire’s rallying the troops beside a mere tank also had a certain quality if you can give mediocre amateur dramatics that descriptive epithet. No one believes now that Tony Blair had the right to go to war and the Attorney General’s nod and a wink statement “ Yes its legal but ….” ) was simply a dissimulation as indeed were the several spurious enquiries by friendly, nepotistic style judges and eminent members of the establishment . June, 2005, records total post war deaths equal to the style of the old Hussein regime and reaches in excess of several thousand since Bush’s victory speech.

Every week the “peace in our time” death toll virtually matches the soldiers body bags during the actual war. Now the Americans fight alongside the new Iraqi forces spreading the blame but still the suicide bombs kill innocent victims. This weekend’s total was over thirty and the week before that it was over a hundred. That is an awfully large number considering its more than a year since the British and the Americans conquered the country and got rid of the enemy of the people giving Iraq a “full Monty” democracy. Recently a number of deaths were caused by a poor little dog with explosives strapped to its body and detonated by the Muslim freedom fighters ( insurgents to the West) hidden somewhere in the background. Grim indeed !

Many British, both ordinary public and politicians, have said that we should pull out but others say we cannot pull out because it would leave a dangerous even more destructive political vacuum. This argument wins even with the consent of such anti Iraq War 2 veterans as Charles Kennedy, but why? Well, a terrible vacuum would exist if there were no troops, but the Americans wouldn’t have to pull out. They instigated it the war for their own purposes so let them shoulder the burden both morally and financially. Blair has held Bush’s hand for long enough . Time to break away Tony however much you might like to squeeze Georgie boy’s hand. England has done its bit which it should never have done and we, the tax payer, have had enough. There are more important things to do than spend billions of pounds on wars and frankly, we, the general public, don’t believe you have the democratic right. A dictator’s right perhaps but not a democratic right. Blair should also remember that the more easily acquired bed companion , politically or otherwise ,the more easily a partner can dismiss him when it suits him. When it comes to the ruthless politics sustained by the hubristic qualities shown by both Blair and Bush, the tears of a discarded relationship will mean nothing. Bush used Blair and abused the English and no good will come of it.

Last weekend we had the RAF fighters going into battle alongside the American planes . But why ? Please, don’t tell us that it was to show the solidarity of the British and the Americans because such solidarity doesn’t exist for the hidden purpose of this war. What does exist is something called political imperialism and a globalisation concept of the balance of power in favour of America who needs the fuel and prefers to exhaust the stocks of every other nation before they use their own precious reserves.

War is a monstrous expression of power, and monstrous is indeed a word that aptly fits the situation. Both Bush and Blaire are holding the sword of victory high. Both wear hideous grins representing in their minds political and leadership sincerity. For God and Country ? Perhaps in their eyes because both belong to the 19th century world of retrospective religious and political bigotry and both are sufficiently out of balance with the inner truth to the point of megalomania. Thank god that such dangerous circumstances are controlled by a parliamentary system that can eventually monitor and apply checks and balances with the democratic vote. The right to vote and democratic elections which will eventually remove even the worst tyrant albeit clothed in a new suit of the finest spun material, so fine that only people of the highest excellence and quality can see its quality.

Copyright Dorian van Braam June 2005