What issue will be the undoing of Tony Blair?

Iain Murray: "Europe Adds Headache to Blair's Post-Election Hangover"

I like Tony Blair. He's young, bright, earnest and articulate in ways many of us hoped the younger "new guard" within the Clinton administration would be. I also feel oddly indebted to him: his support of the United States in our efforts to dismantle terrorism and prevent another September 11th is not to be dismissed as political opportunism. He's paid a price for his standing fast with the United States, and as an American I want somehow to reward that loyalty. But I'll be damned if he doesn't make me crazy - not sometimes, but most of the time.

I could talk about the appalling lack of foresight towards the rising immigration problem, and Britain's partiality towards Muslims. His patently silly belief in the value of the EU and it's revolting Socialist Manifesto/Constitution defies explanation. Same goes for the degree to which Britons are taxed: just because the exchange rate is skewed towards the dynamic Pound Sterling does not mean that Britons have more money than they could possibly spend at home. Housing prices are on the verge of collapse: they question is "when" not "if" Britons will find themselves owing more to the lending society than their home is actually worth. Each of these issues was put to the public on 5 May, and the public has made their choice.

None of these points bother me nearly as much as his continued devotion to pseudoscience. In making the defining issue of his G8 Chairmanship the legitimization of further ratification of "The Kyoto Protocol", Blair has decided that he wants to be the Euro Al Gore. It boggles my brain.

Enough, however, of my rant: read Iain Murray's piece about how Blair's Euro-Kyoto affectations may in fact be his undoing, not his partnership with George Bush. He's says it far more aptly than I.

Kyoto and it's undoing of the EU

Iain Murray: "Europe Adds Headache to Blair's Post-Election Hangover"

I like Tony Blair. He's young, bright, earnest and articulate in ways many of us hoped the younger "new guard" within the Clinton administration would be. I also feel oddly indebted to him: his support of the United States in our efforts to dismantle terrorism and prevent another September 11th is not to be dismissed as political opportunism. He's paid a price for his standing fast with the United States, and as an American I want somehow to reward that loyalty. But I'll be damned if he doesn't make me crazy - not sometimes, but most of the time.

I could talk about the appalling lack of foresight towards the rising immigration problem, and Britain's partiality towards Muslims. Same goes for the degree to which Britons are taxed: just because the exchange rate is skewed towards the dynamic Pound Sterling does not mean that Britons have more money than they could possibly spend at home. His niaive belief in the value of the EU and it's revolting Socialist Manifesto/Constitution defies explanation. Housing prices are on the verge of collapse: they question is "when" not "if" Britons will find themselves owing more to the lending society than their home is actually worth. Each of these issues was put to the public on 5 May, and the public has made their choice.

None of these points bother me nearly as much as his continued devotion to pseudoscience. In making the defining issue of his G8 Chairmanship the legitimization of further ratification of "The Kyoto Protocol", Blair has decided that he wants to be the Euro Al Gore. It boggles my brain.

Enough, however, of my rant: read Iain Murray's piece about how Blair's Euro-Kyoto affectations may in fact be his undoing, not his partnership with George Bush. He's says it far more aptly than I.

"Dave Matthews Apologizes" for $100, Alex ...

Correct Response: "What was the tour bus dump onto a Chicago River architectural boat cruise!"

Snarky 'Daily Double' Response: "What is his band's music!"

Terry Armour: Band is Sorry for the Mess

Dave Matthews finally comes clean.

In his first public comments since his tour bus driver dumped 800 pounds of raw sewage onto a sightseeing boat on the Chicago River last August, Matthews apologized to fans and to the city during an interview on WXRT-FM 93.1 Tuesday.

"We're just so embarrassed and we're truly, truly sorry about what happened in Chicago," Matthews told WXRT's Bobby Skafish. "We will keep doing things to try to help keep that river clean . . . we want to do our best to turn this thing around."

Last week, the eco-friendly band agreed to pay $200,000 and to keep a log of when and where its tour buses empty their septic tanks to settle a suit. The settlement followed last month's guilty plea by bus driver Stefan Wohl to charges of reckless conduct and discharging contaminants to cause water pollution.