As Libya is about to fall, with *air strikes* against the people, all David Cameron can think about is his mates in the boardroom…
Mr Cameron flew on to Kuwait, where he will deliver a speech making a “liberal conservative” call for widespread political reform in the region.
Since democracy often goes hand-in-hand with open markets, more freedom in the Middle East could deliver commercial opportunities for Britain, the Prime Minister will argue on Tuesday.
All this death of Libyan citizens at the hands trying to overthrow their dictator of forty years is still not quite physically sickening to Cameron, it’s just “quite appalling”. Still much less of a crime than giving prisoners the vote, which did make him feel all weird. Physically.
So now we have another notch in the David Cameron Scale of Horrible Things. Killing civilians with aeroplanes is not quite as bad a criminals voting for other, bigger criminals.
Electronic Intifada…
Blair is close friends with Bernard Arnault, the chairman of the luxury goods conglomerate Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy Group (LVMH), and has refused to publicly disclose whether or not he accepted a paid post as adviser to Arnault, as reported in the media. LVMH has been implicated in benefiting from Israel’s occupation through its subsidiary, the cosmetics retail chain Sephora.
…
Blair’s friendship with Arnault, LVMH’s chairman, dates to his time as UK Prime Minister. Arnault is one of the richest men in France, with an estimated net worth of more than $27.5 billion. Blair’s three eldest children studied in France while he was prime minister, and often stayed at Arnault’s mansion in Paris. Indeed, the Daily Mail reported in February 2007 that Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament Norman Lamb warned Blair “It is very dangerous to take hospitality from very wealthy individuals who may be seeking to wield influence” (“Cheri’s pride graduate girl”). Blair’s friendship with Arnault continued after he stepped down as premier and accepted the position as Quartet envoy.
In January, the Daily Telegraph revealed that Blair was to be appointed as Arnault’s personal advisor. Although the announcement was repeated by Agence France Press, neither Blair nor LVMH have officially confirmed or denied the appointment. When asked for clarification in a written request from The Electronic Intifada, the office of Tony Blair remained silent. The lack of transparency on Blair’s position stands in stark contrast to his portfolio as Quartet envoy which tasks him with teaching Palestinians how to build up transparent government institutions.
There’s too much to just excerpt, so just go and read the whole thing and be reminded, if you need to be, why Tony Blair is a shister.
