As we look upon the situation in Iraq and the fears of mothers, wives or girl friends for their loved ones whether military or civilian serving there in a collapsing, imploding state where anarchy rules, they are bogged down in a mess caused by politicians, who are safe and sound in this country or the U.S.A.; we must ask ourselves why did we get ourselves in this situation? The politics of the Middle East is not a place for the simplistic solutions, the Hollywood film myth of a lone cowboy riding into town wearing his white hat, a symbol of goodness, the colour white since the Middle Ages is the colour of religious fervour and the crusades, this is symbolism which will offend Arab opinion who have long memories of the death and distraction caused to their ancestors; who by force of his personality and his side arm provided by Samuel Colt will kill the bad guys wearing black hats, therefore evil and on killing them moves on after taming the town. This is the myth that Americans have absorbed from their education and literary tradition of J. Fenimore Cooper and his book 'The Last of the Mohicans ". The idea that an outsider can come in solve societies problems and move on into the wilderness when civilisation makes too many demands on him. I therefore understand why the United States of America believes that it can sort out other people and countries. The average American is ignorant of any situation outwith the U.S.A. but I cannot understand why Tony Blair, our Prime Minister, has brought us to war, alienated the United Nations and the Arab World just to be a buddy with George W. Bush, President of the U.S.A.. it looks like we will not even be rewarded by the Americans for our help, they seem to reward countries with favourable trade agreements when they reluctantly support them not countries that slavishly follow America's global view.

                   Perhaps the British Government and Tony Blair in particular remembers the days of Empire when Britain sent a gunboat to sort out the natives, he should remember that from the nineteen twenties to the nineteen fifties Britain send troops to Iraq to protect oil interests and only the ruinous expense and opposition of the Iraqis caused our withdraw, we don't want to end up fighting America's war by proxy. It might be that Tony Blair has become the remaining super power friend so that he can punch above his weight, like the toady to the school bully who gets protection from him by running errands no matter how odious they are as long as he does not beat him up and protects him from the bigger boys. The Tory Party does not seem to provide any opposition to bring the Prime Minister to account, the only party that seems to want to impeach Tony Blair is the Scottish National Party, they are looking through old statutes to find how to do this.

                     My only hope is that the Iraqis will vote in a government that is acceptable to the majority of their population and our troops will come home without more deaths, a forlorn hope.

       

 

           Yours truly

                           Ian 'Lurch" Durie.