Iraq war inquiry will be a whitewash...

[max_tranmere]

Apparently Gordon The Ego is going to announce an inquiry this afternoon. Somehow I don't think its findings will reach as far as concluding that Tony Blair, Alistair Campbell, and Geoff Hoon are war criminals and should spend the rest of their lives in prison, do you? There is no way that will be the outcome. Tony Blair is too busy earning millions of pounds off of the connections he made in Whitehall to be bothered with going to prison. Remember how Alistair Campbell sexed up the dossier, changing words like 'possibly' to 'probably', and 'Saddam might have...' to 'Saddam is likely to have...' and things like that, thus purposely giving a false impression about Saddam's likelihood to wage war? It was Geoff Hoon who came up with, and spread, the '45 minutes' claim, telling everyone that Saddam could launch WMD's at Western Europe in just three-quarters of an hour. All this was a lie too. What is the point of this inquiry? Its like what the former Labour PM Jim Callaghan said in 1983 after the 'inquiry', commissioned by Margaret Thatcher, into the Falklands War. Callaghan said 'there is a distinct smell of white paint...' This one into the Iraq War will be a whitewash aswell.

[randyandy]

Max

I know your latest thing is the great conspiracy of "people earning millions of pounds off of the connections they made in Whitehall" but can you prove any of it?

I ask coz I am a bit skint at the mo and if such evidence existed I'd like to make a few quid selling it.

[dynatech]

Andy... Private Eye is only ?1.50 a fortnight, you could start there....

[Jonone]

As Stalin is alleged to have said 'One death is a tragedy, a million a statistic'. Unfortunately that's the way people tend to think.

[max_tranmere]

Andy, every senior minister of the last few decades has made big cash through the contacts they made in Whitehall. Many of Thacher's lot privatised something, then left Government and got a directorship at a company created as a result of that privatisation. Whether it was Norman Tebbit who became a director of the telephone company Mercury, which existed thanks to the Tory privatisation of the telephones, Stephen Norris (the man who personally privatised British Rail) becoming a director of three large companies created by that privatisation - the list goes on. All former ministers are re-employed heading up these things, on huge salaries, because of the doors they can open once onboard. And as for the last few ex-PM's, it is a fact that Thatcher, Major, and Blair have all earned millions, and continue to do so. If that is not a case of trading off the back of having been PM I dont know what is. Unless you think most people leave a job sometime around the age of 50 or 60 and become multi-millionaires over the subsequent years. Most people don't.

[randyandy]

Max as I said if you've actual proof that it's been done not assumption, bearing mind the public speaking can for some unknow reason generate huge sums, I'll listen.

While your rummaging about can you do me a favour please?

Can you have a look at Green Dave's entitlement.

As far as I am aware he lived in London before becoming an MP and as such his entitlement to housing in his constituency was far less than the mansion he bought the interest of which is still being paid for by the taxpayer.

Rumour is that the rules he is enforcing on his own MP's would result in him being kicked out.

[max_tranmere]

I saw the mother of one of our deceased soldiers on the news today who said that she wants the thing done in public. I agree. It should be open for all to see.

[one eyed jack]

This is just one of those things that is being set up to appease the public by justifying what we all clearly know were wrong reasons to interfere with another countries business.

Im convinced it was all about the oil and would prefer someone get up and say it and get it over with.

Everything else is all bull shit about the WMD. Korea have these things and you odnt see us invading them for fear of starting WW3 butyeah Im putting it in a nice little package and Im sure its a lot more complicated than that.