Not All Soldiers Are Stupid (But Most Are)

It pisses me off how all the media are talking about Blair's "legacy" as if he is already dead and buried. He isn't even leaving office for another month! There are still many, many years ahead for this vainglorious, immoral little prick, and every day of every month of every year he will walk the planet knowing that millions of ordinary, decent citizens around the globe want him arrested and imprisoned for War Crimes.

Like Bush, Cheney, Howard and others, there will be places Blair cannot go for fear of arrest, even within Europe. The truth will out. Even the soldiers know what's going on now:

When you join the Army, you swear allegiance to Her Majesty the Queen and, by extension, the Prime Minister. We commit ourselves, with unquestioning loyalty, to the State. This is founded on trust in our political masters, and the belief that they are honourable people who will not lie to us, will resource us correctly and deploy us with sound judgement, after thorough strategic planning. This bond is unique, set in stone regardless of party politics. Today, this bond is broken. Catastrophes in Iraq and Afghanistan and years of resource-starvation have taken their toll; this is Blair's legacy.

Late last year, the head of the Army, General Sir Richard Dannat, publicly called for our withdrawal from Iraq. Other senior officers voiced concern. Such public statements, unthinkable before Blair, are a glimpse of the military's anger and frustration.

Of those officers I sat with in the mess four years ago, many, like me, have left the Army. Those who remain have no trust in the Government. One told me: "We won't be fooled again."

So what are these people doing still serving in the Army? Waiting for more deployment orders? Or planning a coup?