By George!!

'R.E.S.P.E.C.T, find out what it means to me.  R.E.S.P.E.C.T, take out T.C.P.......'

So, what does it mean, Mr George Galloway?  The party of former Labour MP - and Saddam Hussain's main drinking buddy - is launching its manifesto for the General Election campaign today.  It is set to field 26 candidates across England and Wales on the primary ticket of maximising the vote against the 'illegal war in Iraq.'  This party is soooo influential I couldn't find one Internet news site giving its manifesto launch any coverage.  Thus, I have resorted to its unbelievably drab site to gain an insight into which policies the motley band of unreformed socialists are articulating strongly.

Well, first of all, we have the customary tirade against the war in Iraq.  I don't think many people who articulate this entirely bogus line of argument are fully aware of what their beliefs mean in the strict context of international law.  If, they honestly think that removing Saddam was illegal, then they must also - by extension - be advocating his re-establishment as the leader of the country he brutalised for three generations.  It does politics no good to take the Liberal Democrat position of opposing the war in Iraq, extolling the opinions of 'illegality', but being wholeheartedly glad Saddam is no longer in power.  The two positions are, in fact, mutually exclusive.

So what other goodies do RESPECT offer to the beleaguered voters of this sceptered isle?  It obviously advocates strengthened roles for trade unions in the workplace.  That is enough to set alarm bells ringing for a start.  British trade unions hardly have an exemplary record of a measured approach to resolving disputes in large organisations.  Other party targets are nothing more than an amorphous collection of aspirational utopianistic fundamentals, lacking the essentials of how they would be achieved in the real world.  If George Galloway and his small coterie of apostles imagine they could be elected on this platform, they are the only people who do.

Comments

[Peter]

There's a good expose of Galloway and his party by Nick Cohen in yesterday's Observer. Basically, Respect is the old SWP which has cynically taken on a pro-muslim tinge. Cohen links Galloway to Oswald Mosley - well worth a read:
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,6903,1461621,00.html

[joc]

Peter,

Excellent article - thanks

[FOOTIE]

Last I read of this prat was his visit to Bangladesh (recently named the most corrupt country in the world). With Saddam gone, could Bangladesh's 'indefatigable' leaders be the ass-licker's next sponsors?

[Don]

I just stumbled across this site and have to admit I am very relieved. I spent the last six decades as a great admirer of the British people. (stiff upper lip and all that) Being an amateur military historian nhas only increased my admiration. Lately however I have been exposed to a number of y'all that have left me somewhat disillusioned. I mainly encountered these folks while visiting Iraqi blogs like Iraq The Model. The depth of their hatred for America in general and President Bush in particular is unbelievable. To find this site with common sense approachs to today's problems is refreshing.

[Michael]

"It does politics no good to take the Liberal Democrat position of opposing the war in Iraq, extolling the opinions of 'illegality', but being wholeheartedly glad Saddam is no longer in power. The two positions are, in fact, mutually exclusive."

I don't think they are mutally exclusive. I wouldn't condone a gang to beat up and killed a murderer or a pedophile (illegal activity) but I would be relieved that there was one less on the streets.

Overall I believe it comes down to legal processes. You say Andrew that you are a follower of the law (except when beating up teenagers who scratch your car) then these things should be taken down the legal route. If that doesnt work due to a gap or oversight in the legal process then it needs to be amended and tried again, and agin if necessary.

I absolutely do not hate the US or its people (soon to be my people since I married a US citizen and am legally going through the immigration process, building a life in the US etc) but isnt it kind of hypocritical that Bush keeps going on about "the cradle of life" while ignoring the genocide in the Sudan?

I totally agree that his European counterparts have been extremely spineless and ineffective in relation to this as well but I dont here them extolling their huge virtues and morals for life on an everyday basis while ignoring the genocide.

Michael I both disagree and agree with your positions. I most certainly do hear Europe going on and on about their virtues. Have they not claimed the high ground morally in regards to the war in Iraq? To decry Bush's hypocrisy in reference to Sudan is hypocrisy itself. He has been continually lambasted for doing something about the atrocities in Iraq and now the same people are asking why doesn't he do something about the atrocities in Sudan. Where is the U.N. and Europe? Why has the U.N. stated there is no genocide in the Sudan? If the U.N. was to make a decisive move to straighten out the mess in Sudan, Who do you think would end up supplying the majority of the resources? It is nothing more than political gamesmanship to tie any action to the International Court.

[Andrew McCann]

Michael

I have great respect for the law. What I despise is the absence of law designed to protect innocent citizens. It is in that light that my actions against adolescent vandals should be seen.

Your analogy about paedophiles doesn't stand up because I was talking about the question of 'illegality' in the strict context of international law.