3rd September - a day in history

September 3rd 1939 was a momentous day in the history of Great Britain. It was a day on which the Nation announced that it would no longer accept the actions of a tyrant. A dictator who suborned his own people and led them astray with false promises and actions that had festered in his diseased mind over a long period of time.
September 3rd 2009 was such a day. A Junior minister in the Department of Defence resigned and gave his reasons for this step. Eric Joyce, a former major, included these points in his letter of resignation:

I do not think the public will accept for much longer that our losses can be justified by simply referring to the risk of greater terrorism on our streets. Nor do I think we can continue with the present level of uncertainty about the future of our deployment in Afghanistan.

I do not think the British people will support the physical risk to our servicemen and women unless they can be given confidence that Afghanistan’s government has been properly elected and has a clear intent to deal with the corruption there which has continued unabated in recent years.

This declaration should lead on to the removal from a position of power another latter-day tyrant. A dictatorial bully who led us astray with false Budgets promising health, education and wealth. His unelected access to power followed a long period where he had been brooding at what he would do the day he got the foreman's job. We know the attitude of those who get the foreman's job at last.
Now he is to make a speech to the Nation - those who care to listen anyway - reaffirming his dedication to the supposed cause in Afghanistan. Well, of course he has to act as if he were delivering the Mark Anthony eulogy. He cannot now confess that he supported the other power-crazed imbecile who got us into this mess and also did not make any effort to withdraw when Blair went off to pastures new and far far richer ground. He surely cannot be so badly informed as to think that the only base for AQ is Afghanistan and the Taliban R & R leave camp that is Pakistan. All they need is an Islamic country that will ignore their presence or make them welcome in the name of the grand Umma.

Once domiciled in their New Jerusalem they can attack whomsoever they please. They have the funds to travel. The wide range of countries used by the 9/11 plotters illustrated that their sort of terrorism can be located world-wide. Our own 7/7 experience showed that they can even deploy on our streets. So - that should destroy the claim that fighting them in a place far away will stop them killing us in our homes That other tyrant tried that anyway and it did not work for him. This country is capable of looking after itself. I suppose he has the alternative of claiming we are there for some other reason. I cannot see they have any greater claim to the truth than his Sharia el Magi vs Tottenham Court Road claim.

Joyce did the gentlemanly thing and let 'arry Aintsworth know in advance that he was going. 'arry's boys primed him as to what he should say when the day came. He described Joyce as a junior member of his department and claimed that the picture he painted was not recognised by the majority of his department. I do not doubt that is true but he made his ripost with that arrogance and bluster worthy of Fred Kite. He never gave a moment's thought to the possibility that he and his supporters were wrong. He should replace his office junior with a little boy of the same substance as the lad who pointed out the truth regarding the Emperor's clothing.

Fred Kite? Just a snippet to relieve the sombre note