Boris Johnson, Tory MP writing for the UK Telegraph OK, so it’s war on Iraq: now please tell us why

“Yes, it’s war, war, war; and yet politicians and public have never seemed foggier about how or exactly why we are going to achieve our ends. One day, we are told the proposed war is justified by Saddam’s role in September 11, a shady Prague meeting between one of his Ba’ath party members and Mohammed Atta, the lead hijacker. The next day, we are told that may be a load of bunk.

One day, we’re told the war requires an American army of 250,00 men. The next day, it’s going to be an aerial blitz, which will hardly require any ground forces. One day, Tony Blair assures the Commons he will provide a dossier explaining why military action is necessary against Saddam. Yesterday, John Prescott was evasive not only about the whereabouts of this dossier, but about whether Parliament would be consulted at all.

No wonder the polls show that the public is leery. People of goodwill, people who want Saddam gone, are scratching their heads and wondering whether they can really support this war at all.”

It’s not often I agree with the Telegraph, but this is spot-on. I’d love to see a democratic government in Iraq, and Saddam Hussein on trial in The Hague, but I don’t see this as a likely outcome of what currently looks more like a family feud.

By the way, “peaceblogger” seems to be one of these mysterious “memes”. I made the obvious riff on “warblogger” to describe Jason Soon, he picked it up and now it’s in Slate. My first thought was that this had been around for ages, and I was just guilty of unconscious plagiarism. But a Google search reveals only 9 instances, nearly all in the last month or two.