Iraq War: Tony Blair sticks with his master

I see that the venerable Times of London is now making its articles available again online.  I guess they realized that subscription-only is a very limiting proposition in the current media environment.

Since the Times is a Rupert Murdoch property, along with Fox News, this may be a mixed blessing.  During the American Civil War, the paper was pro-Confederate.  So there's something weirdly appropriate in Murdoch owning it now.

But, even though it leans conservative and pro-Iraq War editorially, it ain't Fox News.  Columnist Simon Jenkins gives Tony "the Poodle" Blair a verbal spanking (although he doesn't call him "the Poodle," a reference to his amazing subservience to Bush ): Don't say sorry if you aren't 10/15/04.

It is to the credit of democracies that they require politicians to justify attacking other states and killing thousands of non-combatant civilians. Mr Blair could have told the truth. He could have pleaded that he was secretly wedded to George Bush and his Middle East plan. He might have longed for the weapons inspectors to finish their work and the United Nations to come on board, but he was trapped. He had no alternative but to exaggerate and spin the intelligence for public consumption as he had to stay legal. He was always riding a tiger, Mr Bush’s war of grudge, glory and messianism. He had no option. Sorry was neither here nor there. ...

I wouldn't have worded it this way.  But he also makes a good point in his concluding paragraphs:

Those who have opposed this war from the start must tread with humility. Nobody likes being mugged by reality, least of all those now realising that they were conned who cannot switch excuses with the facility of the Prime Minister. The temptation on both sides is to dumb down the argument. A sure sign of the pro-war lobby on the run is its appeal to that old standby, Hitler, and to calling their opponents “pro-Saddam” or “friends of al-Qaeda”. The anti-war lobby in return calls the coalition “terrorism’s best friend” and “bin Laden's recruiting sergeant”. Mr Blair let his guard drop on Wednesday when he accused Charles Kennedy of being content to leave “Saddam and his sons” in power. That is precisely what he himself promised to do if only Saddam would lay down his weapons of mass destruction 18 months ago.

The past is history's business. The present is ours. We should get out of Iraq now not because of any past mistakes but because we do no good by staying. We and the Pentagon have failed completely to build a new Iraq. We have lost control of it and are merely killing people to protect our own troops. But we will never leave if we abuse language to excuse our presence, the language of freedom, security, nation building and democracy. We are fighting a squalid war of occupation to vindicate a mendacity. Nobody has the guts to say sorry and mean it. But someone might just look at the facts on the ground — and know it is right to get out. (my emphasis)