That manly prime minister

Libs still like to use the word "unilateral" when describing our actions in Iraq and the war on terror. They conveniently forget the coallition of 30+ countries we went into Iraq with.

Let's not also forget our staunchest ally, Great Britain. And let's give thanks that the current English prime minister is a Churchill, not a Chamberlin. Tony Blair, despite his differences with the Bush administration on other issues and despite public opinion in his own country, has the intellectual honesty and the courage to continue to stand up for his strong convictions regarding the war on terror and how to fight it. In short, Blair is "manly." (Libs beware!) He's set to give a series of three speeches on this topic.

Some excerpts on what we can look forward to:

"The only way to win is to recognize this phenomenon is a global ideology; to see all areas in which it operates as linked and to defeat it by values and ideas set in opposition to those of the terrorists," the speech will say.

Blair will contrast his approach with one he calls the "doctrine of benign activity," a doctrine he says sees setbacks in Iraq and Afghanistan as a reason why Saddam Hussein and the Taliban should have been left in place.

"The terrorists know that if they are to succeed either in Iraq or Afghanistan or indeed Lebanon or anywhere else wanting to go the democratic route, then the choice of a modern future for the Arab or Muslim world is dealt a potentially mortal blow," Blair will say.

"Likewise if they fail and those countries become democracies and make progress, then not merely is that a blow against their whole value system but it is the most effective message against their wretched propaganda about America, the West and the rest of the world."