Yesterday afternoon Tony had to stand before his party faithfull, and once again make his case for war with Hussein. And indeed, for the first time, the Prime Minister said he wanted a regeme change in Iraq, and that ridding the world of Saddam would be 'an act of humanity'. However, he reluctantly conceeded that for his part, he would allow the weapons inspectors more time, but warned that while every step should be taken to avoid war, if peaceable means proved unsuccessfull, we should not fall to the delusion the problem can be safely ignored..
Tony is these days, between the proverbial rock and the hard place.. he is justifiably throwing all the country's resources behind the American determination to wipe Hussein and his ilk off the face of the planet, but the tide of popular antagonism towards the stance has him totally off balance..
Today, as though guiltily slinking back to their party roles, those Ministers who marched with the mob yesterday are singing the assurance they have in Tony's sincerity.. They're falling short of toeing the line and backing his war plans, but they wholeheartedly believe he believes he's right..
Politics is a harsh game.. One can be sure Tony knows exactly who was marching yesterday, demographically speaking, and he knows his credibility rides with George on this one..
Meanwhile, in spite of American pleas of not turning this into a 'street fight'.. NATO is still split on the issue of sending military support to Turkey. Now, it would seem an odd stance for France, Germany, Belgium to take, denying a fellow NATO member the support they have the right to ask for, in fact it is a very odd stance. It could spell the end of NATO as it exists today, and a leaning towards the EU being the representative of it's member countries in defining issues of defence.. it also would spell an end to the organization that has been the bedrock of the alliance between the US and Europe..
These are disturbing times..
Again.. keep an eye on the Euro.. one could have made a fortune in futures..