Carter, Bush and the Catamite

Former President Jimmy Carter is in the UK and his trip has reconfirmed something my appraisal of him. He was an awful president but he’s a decent man unlike the current occupier of the White House is an awful president and an indecent man.

My only quandary about King George is deciding whether the vast amount of evil he does comes out of stupidity or malevolency or perhaps a unique combination of the two. Tony Blair, on the other hand, cannot excuse his actions on account of being dim-witted. Blair knew what he was doing and consciously choose evil. And this brings up back to Mr. Carter and his scathing comments about the nature of Blair.

Carter said Blair's support of Bush and his ill-conceived, counterproductive, invasion of Iraq as “abominable, loyal, blind and apparently subservient.” Carter said that Blair’s obedience to Bush as been “a major tragedy for the world” because without it the US may have thought twice before blundering into a war without victory possible. “"One of the defences of the Bush administration... has been, okay, we must be more correct in our actions than the world thinks because Great Britain is backing us....”

There is much truth to the suggestion that a reluctant England might have held back the dogs of war. Instead Blair was acting as Bush’s political catamite. His unquestionable subservience served what I suspect was his real purpose: war was a justification for his creation of a British police state -- although in reality it only heavily policies the innocent. It is so busy reigning in the liberties of the average Brit it has little time for actual criminals.

Blair left office despised even within his own party. But every catamite is due his reward. Now it is being leaked that King George may reward his faithful servant with appointment as the president of the World Bank. Bush’s previous appointment stepped down in the midst of a major scandal. Scandal with Bush appointees? No!

The reality is that Bush wants to reward toothless Tony for always following closely at his heels and “sitting” or “begging” when master asked. In addition Bush knows that if there is one man in the Western world more despised than Blair it is King George himself. If Blair retires into obscurity hiding from the well-earned contempt of his fellow citizens it would bode ill for the dullard from Texas. If Blair can hold some overpaid, entirely unnecessary office it serves as Bush’s reminder to the world this is how he expects to be treated when he’s finally ridden out of Washington -- unfortunately not on a rail.

The reality is that Bush and Blair are war criminals and deserve to be treated as such. Neither deserves comfort in their retirement though I do believe each is worthy of a cell of their own making in Guantanamo. The one thing that might persuade me to support appointing Tony to this cushy position is if the World Bank moves its offices to Baghdad.