September 06, 2003

ADOPTING DR KELLY

Mark Steyn on Kelly and the peacemongers:

As we now know, Dr Kelly was in favour of the war. Not only that, but his most significant point of disagreement with the Government is that it was (officially) opposed to regime change, while he thought it absolutely necessary. In that respect at least, he was more hawkish than Blair, Jack Straw and Colin Powell. He had more faith in the existence of WMD than half the cabinet on either side of the Atlantic. Yet a man who believed there was no option other than war has been enthusiastically adopted by the anti-war crowd as an emblem of their cause.

Since everyone seems to use Dr Kelly, alive or dead, for whatever line they want to peddle, let me belatedly join in. He is an emblem of the anti-war movement - or, to be more precise, of its utter vacuity and incoherence. If anyone stands naked, it's these fellows. Dr Kelly is just a convenient cudgel with which to beat Blair: in that sense, he sums up the sour oppositionism of the anti-war movement.

It’ll be news to many that Kelly supported regime change. This information isn’t widespread, certainly in Australia.

Posted by Tim Blair at September 6, 2003 05:47 PM
Comments

Not news to me ... I must have read it somewhere in the much-maligned Australian media.

Posted by: Dan at September 6, 2003 at 06:52 PM

I hope, at the end of the day, the UK will become so fed up with the BBC that it will no longer receive public monies. Time for the BBC to grow up and compete just like everyone else. Earn their keep.

Posted by: Chris Josephson at September 6, 2003 at 09:32 PM

Dan,
I haven't read it anywhere in Australia - not doubting you but it hasn't been as widely reported as the "Blair is an evil lying bastard" line. Interestingly enough the professional objective ABC has been the most obviously silent on the subject of the BBC's guilt.

Posted by: Jim at September 6, 2003 at 09:47 PM

It's not just Australia: I haven't seen anything about Kelly's pro-war views here in Canada, either.

Posted by: Damian P. at September 6, 2003 at 11:34 PM

As a sure sign of how daft he really is, I saw that John Pilger tried to use the late Dr Kelly as a posthumous 'supporter' of Pilger's beliefs, which is pretty interesting... it proves Steyn's point I think.

Posted by: wilbur at September 7, 2003 at 01:39 AM

May I also take this opportunity to remind you that Dr. Kelly said,

"Smoke Marlboro. They're delicious!"

"Use Everready batteries! I do!"

and

"Enjoy a cold, crisp, refreshing Budweiser beer!"

Posted by: Posthumus Kelly Marketing, Ltd. at September 7, 2003 at 02:26 AM

hahahaha -- PKM Ltd.

I think Kelly's private diaries are also about to be discovered:

"Claire Short is a hot babe....I can't stop having sex fantasies about her!"

"I had a little fling with Andrew Gilligan, but I regret it now. He's a lying cheating bastard, and lousy in bed besides."

Posted by: dc309 at September 7, 2003 at 03:36 AM

For PKM and dc309, your daily perusal of the Guardian has missed one or two articles, ie the column by Dr Kelly, perchance ....

Cheers

Posted by: J.M. Heinrichs at September 7, 2003 at 12:22 PM

Sad to see the pro-war camp pin-up boy Tony Blair is too shy to front at the opening of the UN General Assembly next month. Perhaps he doesn't want to be seen in public now the Yanks are begging for UN help in Iraq.

Tony's shyness extends to turning down a public investiture of the Congressional Medal of Honour when he addressed Congress back in July. Tony's approval rating was slumping then and its even lower now so rejecting the medal was smart politics. The Brits have had a gutful of the Yanks. Time to forget the 'special relationship'.

BTW, what's happened to John Howard's CMOH? If its good enough for Tone, why doesn't Little Johnny get one? Stiffed again by the septics. On the other hand maybe the little liar would probably rather not have the publicity.

Posted by: ralph at September 7, 2003 at 10:08 PM


first read of the fact that kelly believed hussein needed to be removed in the age, the herald-sun, and the oz last week.

don't think there was a conspiracy there play-pals.

whether various interpretations of what kelly did or didn't support are much better covered by PKM above.

Posted by: chico o'farrill at September 8, 2003 at 01:34 AM

I really don't know if we're "begging." One could say all we're asking for is ID like Bosnia and East Timor.

The fact that frankenreich shot it down out of the box says a lot. And Russia and China didn't.

Little matter about the NorKs, you know.

Posted by: Sandy P. at September 8, 2003 at 12:54 PM