Whither, Blair?

Tony Blair is having serious issues right now. For those unaware, Blair is in the midst of a bribery scandal where, allegedly, Labour sold peerages to raise funds. If Blair is implicated, he is due to be questioned for a third time, his government will fall. This brings to mind a few thoughts/questions:

1. Blair has been unwavering in his support for a war against radical Islam. Here is a quote by him on the matter:

But the key point is that it is the threat that is the issue.

The characterisation of the threat is where the difference lies. Here is where I feel so passionately that we are in mortal danger of mistaking the nature of the new world in which we live.

Everything about our world is changing: its economy, its technology, its culture, its way of living.

If the 20th century scripted our conventional way of thinking, the 21st century is unconventional in almost every respect.

This is true also of our security.

The threat we face is not conventional. It is a challenge of a different nature from anything the world has faced before. It is to the world's security, what globalisation is to the world's economy.

It was defined not by Iraq but by September 11th. September 11th did not create the threat Saddam posed.

But it altered crucially the balance of risk as to whether to deal with it or simply carry on, however imperfectly, trying to contain it.

Let me attempt an explanation of how my own thinking, as a political leader, has evolved during these past few years.

Already, before September 11th the world's view of the justification of military action had been changing.

The only clear case in international relations for armed intervention had been self-defence, response to aggression.

Blair has been a disaster for Britain domestically, as his insistence on unregulated immigration, unmitigated multiculturalism, unenforced assimilation, all while expanding the state as a primary 'caregiver' to the masses, has weakened her socially and culturally. Yet, he has lead when needed in the diplomatic arena, and will be missed.

2. Who can/will step up and be the reasoned voice of a proactive policy with regards to radical Islam and it's proclivity for international terror? Calling, Giuliani....

3. Finally, this is a perfect example of positive diplomacy at work. Meaning, Blair was a good friend to the Clinton administration, and subsequently, to the Bush administration. The reason...well, there are a few. One that stands out, however, is the common understanding that an increasingly trans-nationalism emanating from continental Europe, and its propensity to coddle tyrants and terrorists, is at odds with the self-interest of the West and civilized society. Blair realizes that, though major differences are found in the way Britain and the U.S. govern, there has to be, and can be, common ground when facing a threat.

also, see this to understand why this is so important.