Posted 10:05 PM by Blah blah

Blair's Speech Changed My Mind! Now I'm Pro-War

Wow! On C-SPAN, I just watched the British debate in the House of Commons before they finally approved the use of force in Iraq on March 18.

Tony Blair shook my brain and heart with his explosive speech. He is one of the most eloquent and articulate speakers I've ever seen. Politicians in the U.S. don't compare. Bravo! He gave a BRILLIANT performance. In his most dramatic moments, Blair reminded me of Winston Churchill.

Because of his speech, and from other things that have happened, I have now changed my mind about this war. Now I SUPPORT the war in Iraq.

Yes, that shows the power of one great speech. The clumsy, inarticulate Bush administration should have just broadcast Blair's speech nationally and let Blair do all the talking. It just doubles my already great admiration for him. I feel "shock and awe" of Prime Minister Blair. Really. Will explain in detail how my thinking has evolved, later.

In the meantime, please watch Blair's speech! Anti-war people, it will cause you to rethink your assumptions, and pro-war people, it will deepen some of your convictions with juicy details. But make no mistake. Blair does NOT think the same way as Bush. Which is one reason I support Blair's reasons for war over Bush's.

What the British papers later said about his speech, including papers like The Independent that had strongly opposed him: 'Blair played his cards brilliantly.' (The Guardian)

Watch Tony Blair's Speech. (RealPlayer. Fast foward to about 4 minutes into the recording to find the start of his speech.) You may also read his speech, but watching him speak and field an array of questions from fellow MPs is much better!

Thanks to Eric and Raven for linking this post. I will explain in detail what changed my mind. I will post excerpts from the speech which most influenced me. I strongly urge you to go to C-SPAN.org and find a way to WATCH the speech (in streaming video on RealPlayer). What I love about the British House of Commons is that Members of Parliament may interrupt a speaker with QUESTIONS during his speech. Blair was interrupted several times with questions, which he answered very well. Some of these questions were key doubts of mine. The text of his speech does not include the questions and answers. I loved how Blair dealt with key doubts head-on. He talked about the world fear of the U.S. being an arrogant bully. He gave his vision, different from Bush's, for what to focus on after Iraq. And he showed great respect for the views of the other side, unlike Bush.

See the articles I linked here for more on Blair's vision for the future and why it's better than Bush's or Chirac's.