mentioning the Unmentionable

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Mar 04, 2006

Oh boy, is Tony Blair in trouble. The British prime minister told a TV interviewer that God would be the ultimate judge of the decision to go to war in Iraq.

Notice that he did not say that God told him to go to war. He did not claim that God supported the war. He said that God would judge the war. Anyone who believes in God-- or even grasps the general concept of belief in God-- should understand. But...

"It is a bizarre and shocking revelation that the prime minister claims to have been guided by the supernatural in this matter, especially given the particular religious sensitivities in the Middle East," said Evan Harris, a Liberal Democrat member of parliament from the Oxford area, who is an honorary associate of the National Secular Society.

Down, boy! Blair didn't claim to be "guided" by God. But it's too late for reasoning; our honorary secularist has mounted his rhetorical charger, and he's off at breakneck speed:

"We don't want Bush or Khomeini-type fundamentalism in our politics," he added.

If you read the story you notice that the prime minister seemed distinctly uncomfortable with the discussion about God. But such distinctions are naturally lost on someone who can't notice a difference between Bush and Khomeini. The fact is that Blair mentioned God. That's all we need to know.