A Purely Political Post... ...(enjoy the alliteration?)

For a quick semi-historical re-cap, read further:

9/11/2001 - U.S. WTC attacks.

9/12/2001 - Bush declares war on terror.

9/16/2001 - Britain declares war on terror.

3/18/2009 - Darrion finds out that this war has consumed much of the Parliament's focus for the past 8 years... ...wait, what?

Yes, you read correctly, America hasn't been the only country affected by her decisions (how surprising...). A couple of weeks ago, I had the unique opportunity to speak with a member of the British parliament, Graham Brady. When asked what the biggest issue was that British MP (members of parliament) concerned themselves with over the past 10-12 years, Brady (in office for 12 years) replied with "the Iraqi War."

Really? Amid an ever-growing financial crisis, Britain has had the "luxury" of adding the weight of another country on their shoulders. If this is the biggest issue that has come across the parliament's desk in the very early 21st century, then maintaining satisfactory foreign alliances must be a very high priority among these two superpowers.

Now, I don't mean to imply that this war is pointless, deprived of focus, or unbearably costly... ... ...okay, maybe I am, but in addition, I was simply shocked at how much thought Britain actually put into it. Tony Blair (then Prime Minister of Britain) even took the liberty of holding public debates and votes before taking his beloved country to war (though, as PM, he possessed the power to do so without consultation).

Perhaps American politics influences and affects eastern society more than what we know. For example, not only have I encountered many Brits talking among themselves about how President Obama will definitely change their world, but I have even experienced excitement about Obama in countries like Greece, who are farther away from America than Britain.

Thus, maybe it shouldn't come as a shock that issues like the war in Iraq dominate British discussion behind Parliament's walls. The only sad part is, you don't often see that same discussion occurring on the western end unless we've directly been affected. Look at how long it took the U.S. to stand up to German expansion in WWII. The war raged on for three years before we took a stance, which happened to be after the French were captured and after the deaths of millions of Jews.

However, just five days after the 9/11 attacks, Britain declared its allegiance.

There's food for thought...are our priorities in the right place? You be the judge.

Until next time,

Darrion