Blair - £4m + to the Royal British Legion

[masterwig]

Bloke can't win.

He was duped into the war by the Americans. I honestly think he acted with the courage of his convictions and believed it was the right thing to do. History looks like it may prove him wrong in that but I think he made a genuine mistake.

The money will go to a good cause so people kicking up a fuss about it need to give their head a wobble. Blair didn't have to donate a penny.

 

[m7mcfc]

Yep , don't be misled by this .....

Blair will stand to make a whole lot more than £4 million from his booksales , and he knows that only too well ......

people shouldn't be taken in by the guilty conscience and false smile of a man who was basically in Americas pockets , and has no doubt taken great delight in Gordon Browns demise ..... it was Blair who lied his way into the Iraq situation , a war that we can never win , just like he lied to the ordinary Labour voter about other issues .......

Blair looks after himself , nobody else.

It wouldn't surprise me if this is just a ploy to win a few peoples peoples hearts into the idea of Blair having another pop at the Labour leadership in the future ..... god knows what the dead servicemens relatives will think of this , why didn't he give it to another organisation , maybe a charity?

I shouldn't think his 'gift' will make all that much difference anyway ...... my local British Legion has just been forced to close for 'financial reasons' .... and i'll bet i don't see it opening again for the needy old folks of Cheadle Hulme!

Lower Broughton Legion shutting as well same thing local OAP's will have nowhere now. Also about Blair I understand he can claim a lot back through taxes. Indian giver springs to mind.

 

[ricey420]

The Iraq Body Count, Iraqi Health Ministry, Associated Press, and Iraq Family Health Survey (conducted by the WHO, using a similar methodology to the other surveys but with a larger sample size), came to the conclusion of between 100,000-151,000 (upper range: 223,000). Those are the ones I'd trust. The 1,000,000 is often quoted but can't be sustained. Then you extrapolate to 2010 based on the levels of violence in 2007 but violence levels have fallen substantially since then. The figures I have most respect for is the Iraq Body Count because they try to count every single death. They don't extrapolate based on survey samplings. It is certain that this methodology will result in a underestimation but their margins of error must surely be far more credible than an extrapolation based on a relatively small sampling.

Iraqi Health Ministry I wouldn't trust as the government won't criticise the US. AP = Supplies corporate media. WHO = Also afraid to step on the toes of the US.

As for the Iraq Body Count...that's fair enough.

I choose to believe the Lancet study though. They've seen the death certificates. And I also trust one of the world's leading journals over an ad-hoc investigative body.

Not discrediting the IBC by any means, I just think the Lancet stands up a bit better. But each to their own.