The Butler Report
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- vespa
Britain's worst intelligence failure, and Lord Butler says no one is to blame. Editorial analysis by Robin Cook:
http://argument.independent.co.u…
Robert Fisk reporting from Baghdad after yesterday's suicide bombing:
"We acted in good faith. Invading Iraq was the right thing to do. And over and over again, in London yesterday, officials and ministers referred to the Iraqi war in the past tense. About the only thing Iraqis could have agreed with was Lord Butler's remark about the search for Saddam's weapons, that "Iraq is a very big place and there is lots of sand..."
The al-Yarmouk hospital, needless to say, was the one place not to quote Tony Blair's assertion that although terrorists were killing Iraqis today, "people were being killed in Iraq, thousands of them, under Saddam".
Forgetting that up to 11,000 Iraqis appear to have been killed since our invasion, it seems that it's better to be killed post-Saddam than pre-Saddam. So that's all right then."
- dstlb0
If only he'd written my school reports.
- Bluejam0
Butler Report
+
Congressional Report
x
(intelligence failure)
=
ball in joe public's court.We can wax lyrical on all the mistakes by blair, bush..etc but at the end of the day it's a load of hot air without any action.
- vespa0
heh
hey how long have you been Contrabland? brilliant domain name
- dstlb0
Bought it a few months ago, still trying to come up with a site design I like :(
and thanks, couldn't believe nobody got there first :)
- ********0
As in any job, the senior staff should be responsible for those under them. It's the PM's job to take responsibility for this...
- soda0
it's just all bad.
It's more of a whitewash than the last one.
How come when journalists make mistakes they have to resign or are fired?
no one has to take responsibility for this for what reason exactly?
They acted with good intention?
They believed the intelligence and we are some how supposed to think that they are really surprised it was wrong? Blair was acting like it all supported his claims and the worlds a better place now. What a load of shit and what a complete arsehole.
Fucking evil bastards, the lot of them. How do they sleep at night?
- DutchBoy0
I like how NewZealand is at war with Israel now (diplomacy-wise).. I hope more countries will punish Israel soon.
- Bluejam0
"I hope more countries will punish Israel soon. "
Fifteen judges that represent the 'world' voted on whether the 'wall' was illegal/abuse of human rights..etc. Last friday fourteen of them said yes and the wall should come down. Can just picture Sharon pulling a Dr.Evil face and saying 'oh, i'm scared'...
...guess which judge voted no and what country he represented?
f®©kin' old white men.
- DutchBoy0
no need to guess, Bluejam..
tis sad tho..
- DutchBoy0
"A BBC correspondent in Jerusalem, David Chazan, says Israeli officials give the impression of regarding as a relatively unimportant country. Sources close to the government say the Israeli reaction might have been different if a larger and more influential country had been involved."
You hear that, New-Zealand folks?
- lowimpakt0
interesting link dutchy.
re. report. This highlight the benefits of bureaucracy and diminished responsibility. Although we can do little against claims of good faith the glaring contradictions between the post-report spin and the actions of Blair et al in terms of their treatment of the 'intelligence' are explicit. It is a good example of prescribed deflection although it does contain much criticism (although covered in diplomatic lingo).
On a wider note, The potential political fall-out of proper investigation and correct procedure may be too damaging on a number of levels. e.g. What would the situation be with Iraq in its current state of instability and the leaders of the US and UK are forced to resign breaches of international law, breaches of national law, improper conduct etc etc etc.
I would prefer to see the democratic flow run its course and let the people decide under the proper conditions i.e general elections. Like they did in Spain.
- vespa0
i'm not sure how israel is linked to the butler report, unless it's a broad comment on how governments can flout international law and get away with it (if they have the support of the us)
- DutchBoy0
yeah, sorry i hijacked your thread, but i did not feel like flooding NT with political threads.
the thing is, it is indeed related, exactly in the way you stated it, vespa!