Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has said at least one intelligent thing in his life - he's told Tony Blair to "go right to hell."
Spot on.
On Wednesday. Blair said this:
I say with the greatest respect to the President of Venezuela that when he forms an alliance with Cuba, I would prefer to see Cuba a proper functioning democracy...The most important thing is that countries in south America and north America realise that they have much in common, much to gain from each other and much to gain from each other particularly through the principles of democracy.
This lecture comes from the head of a government that has considered abolishing next year's local elections and which has proposed a bill which would make parliamentary scrutiny of legislation redundant. (See Tim, Owen, Unity and Bishop Hill among others.)
Which raises the questions. Is Blair a complete hypocrite? Or a moron? Does he think we wouldn't notice his bare-faced hypocrisy? Or does he just not give a damn about consistency or democracy or the opinion of decent people?
The bill only gives the Crown the power to alter statutory instruments so far as I can see, which are already constrained by legislation. Pleasing, in that it would allow the construction of a nice myth, as it would be for this to be an enabling law, it's not. On the other hand, Blair's condemnation of Chavez is a bit rich. I bet more than 40% odd of the proportion of his electorate that bothered to vote voted for his Government.
Posted by: Robert Jubb | February 10, 2006 at 05:58 PM
Power corruptsss, yours Gollum. [cc Sssauron]
PSSS Absssolute power, heh heh heh...
PPSSS Massster isss not a moron.
Posted by: Backword Dave | February 10, 2006 at 11:15 PM
He's just the same empty-headed preachy little shit that we elected in '97.
Posted by: dearieme | February 11, 2006 at 12:43 AM
Perhaps if all Britain's allies were proper functioning democracies then maybe he would have room to talk, but they're not, so he doesn't.
Posted by: Quinn | February 11, 2006 at 12:49 PM
Blair was quite wrong to say he "would prefer to see Cuba a fully functioning democracy" -- what a ridiculous thing to even think, let alone say. As for suggesting that countries in south and north America have common interests - well! this just confirms, once and for all, and not that it needed any further confirmation, the opinion I've always had of him.
Posted by: Dander | February 16, 2006 at 04:35 PM
He doesn't care about the people and certainly not their opinions.
He just tells his friend Ms Wade (editor of the Sun) what he'd like the prolitariat to think.
Posted by: Paul Scargill | February 20, 2006 at 01:38 PM