Tony Blair: from New Labour hero to political embarrassment
Friend of the Murdoch’s, adviser to authoritarian regimes and associate of the super-rich – the former prime minister’s reputation is on a downward spiral. And each new revelation manages to be more jaw-dropping than the last
In Tony Blair’s uneven but occasionally startling autobiography, A Journey, published in 2010, there is a chapter that makes particularly interesting reading now. It covers his final, slightly besieged years as prime minister, from mid-2005 to mid-2007. “In this time,” writes Blair, “I was trying to wear … a kind of psychological armour which the arrows simply bounced off, and to achieve a kind of weightlessness that allowed me, somehow, to float above the demonic rabble tearing at my limbs. There was courage in [this behaviour] and I look back at it now with pride,” he concludes. “I was … not unafraid exactly, but near to being reckless about my own political safety.”
Out of his mind, I’d say, given the gist of that extract from his autobiography. Probably the acid flashbacks…
I was never comfortable with the grinning, over confident and, frankly, annoyingly uncaring former prime minister; even when he was brought to power in 1997 he seemed to be someone who, to me anyway, appeared more eager to grab voters from the other parties rather than satisfy his own supporters. Look at the people he associated with throughout his reign – Murdoch was just an ideal example. In fact at the moment I am reading former BBC reporter John Simpsons memoirs of the first Gulf War (1990-91) which contains a history of Saddam Hussein; so much seems so similar between the two leaders – not the assassinations, obviously, but the way people suddenly found out they were no longer in favour despite having just received Blair’s best wishes and apparent support mere hours before.
Now he is the big fives representative in the Middle East, meant to try and keep the peace and solve the areas problems but seeming happier to hold audiences in Israel that bring him about $2.5m a session without doing a thing for the embattled peoples there.
The text above is a small part of an article which gives a good taster for how others felt about him. How do you feel about him – when he was in power and now. Yes, I know which side of the coin you all vote for (the very right hand side, yes?;o) but don’t hold back.
By: snafu - 4th March 2014 at 19:48
Will be remembered for the best Prime Minister that should have been.
No, that would be me – but I was never that interested in starting at the bottom and kissing donkey.
By: trumper - 4th March 2014 at 18:09
I sometimes wonder how or if at all different the UK would be had John Smith not had the misfortune to die so young thereby opening the door wide for the Blair/Brown axis of evil or ineptitude perhaps.
Will be remembered for the best Prime Minister that should have been.
By: Lincoln 7 - 4th March 2014 at 16:21
When he refers to the “demonic rabble”who is he referring too?
His wife, obviously.
Jim.
Lincoln .7
By: charliehunt - 4th March 2014 at 15:33
I sometimes wonder how or if at all different the UK would be had John Smith not had the misfortune to die so young thereby opening the door wide for the Blair/Brown axis of evil or ineptitude perhaps.
By: John Green - 4th March 2014 at 14:27
Well, obviously Ed Balls for starter.
By: wl745 - 4th March 2014 at 11:59
When he refers to the “demonic rabble”who is he referring too?
By: AlanR - 4th March 2014 at 11:45
It always amazed me how “Teflon Tone”, got away with so much. He was one of the untouchables.
By: snafu - 4th March 2014 at 11:17
Hi Snafu,
Yes having a few problems…
Congrats – you managed two that time. That is a 100% improvement so if you can keep it up you’ll soon be back in the land of those able to pause in their missives, rather than bleat the whole lot out without stopping.
By: snafu - 4th March 2014 at 11:12
Snafu,
I can’t believe that you’re hanging your Great Leader out to dry. There’s hope for you yet.
Sorry to disappoint you but, in the words of that still alive though obviously down on his luck butter salesman… I am an anarchist. ;o)
Never met a politician whose wonderful ideas couldn’t be improved on by standing him/her up against a wall with a row of armed troops lined up ready to fire their rifles. Perfect.
To me Blair was Bliar, whose word was not to be trusted, who if he proposed one thing then the chances were that it was better for everybody concerned to do the opposite, who needed to be arrested for war-crimes at the time and still does.
It’s been a long time since one leader took Britons into so many wars in such a short time – a lovely epitaph for his gravestone, I suppose, one record he must be proud of.
He brought competition and rivalry into the NHS where it has no business to be, and his new followers from the right were encouraged to set themselves up in opposition to state run monopolies and rake off millions when a simple management rotation might have sufficed. The socialist ideal of a redistribution of wealth did take place, but in reverse – not for those who needed it.
By: 1batfastard - 3rd March 2014 at 18:12
Hi Snafu,
Yes having a few problems apart from getting the name game rules wrong and completely embarrassing myself, I spilt mug of hot tea over the keyboard and apart from the problem you mentioned I only have a sticking V although getting better with every press.:highly_amused:
Geoff.
By: John Green - 3rd March 2014 at 18:00
Snafu,
I can’t believe that you’re hanging your Great Leader out to dry. There’s hope for you yet.
By: snafu - 3rd March 2014 at 17:23
Hi All,
Hey, Batman Geoff,
Your comma key appears to only work once a post…;o)
By: snafu - 3rd March 2014 at 17:20
It wasn’t just the soft right that he enticed. Others found him to be a man they could work with and he was happy to accommodate them by not bringing socialism into his politics.
Strange that the Tories jumped into bed with the Libs when, of the big three, they were the left wing of British main stream politics over the last decade and a half…
By: 1batfastard - 3rd March 2014 at 17:17
Hi All,
I am sorry I voted this pillock in and soon regretted it, the trouble is there was at the time no viable opposition and I always thought Labour was for the working man but like Charlie has said he made them a more viable party than the rubbish that we had been put through before. To be honest as I have aged I have come to realise that no matter who you vote for they are all the same full of hope and false promises but I will give it one last go and vote Ukip in the next one as we have had all the other party’s in various forms and have let this country down.
The only decent thing I will say is the Tory’s like them or loath them always seemed to look after the military but this has not been done by Cameron and yes I am bias being ex-military we need a strong military but just not a wasteful one we need to weed out the beurocrat’s that have never done a days work in their life, these positions should be filled by ex-military who know what kit we need when we need it not spending billions on junk like we have done for the past god knows how many years.(Sorry off track) Tony blare was only ever interested in furthering his own wealth he has made millions from his private investments at the expense of this country.
Geoff.
By: charliehunt - 3rd March 2014 at 16:33
I never liked the man as an individual even before 1997 and was surprised so many on the soft right jumped ship. But he made Labour electable and went on to win them a further two elections.You cannot gainsay that achievement. So politically astute and successful but in reality a weak chameleon who ended up failing to control or sack his colleague who did the most harm to the country economically over the 10 years.
But try telling that to the people who pay thousands to hear him lecture all over the world and those who pay six figure sums for his advice.
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March 3, 2014 at 4:06 pm