Blair 'oversold' Iraq threat

[NNN0LHI]

http://politics.guardian.co.uk/iraq/story/0,12956,995928,00.html

Michael White and Richard Norton-Taylor
Friday July 11, 2003
The Guardian

A former head of Downing Street's in-house intelligence panel last night accused ministers of "overselling" the threat of global terrorism before the Iraq war by bombarding voters with repeated warnings of "imminent terrorist attacks on London" and Heathrow airport.

The charge - made by Sir Rodric Braithwaite, former head of the joint intelligence committee (JIC), on Channel 4 News - is separate from the row over two intelligence dossiers which has led to deadlock between No 10 and the BBC over its claims that they were "sexed up".

The 71-year-old former diplomat, who ran the JIC in 1992-3, said: "I think the overselling came not so much at that stage but in the spring when it looked as though the British people were not actually going to sign up to this project.

"And then the real overselling were the continual assessments of an imminent terrorist attack in London, advising housewives to lay in stocks of water and food, I mean all that stuff... tanks at Heathrow. I mean that, I call that overselling."

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[indictrichardperle]

1. That would be extremely evil

and irresponsible, to constantly scare and panic your own people, for selfish political gain.

Im sure glad that only happens on the other side of the pond

:eyes:

[NNN0LHI]

2. Only a terrorist would do that to the people who he has sworn to protect

[Maple]

3. I had no idea until now

how many delicate ways there were to avoid saying LIED!

[the masses against the classes]

4. people in power don't lie

they tell the masses things in the way that they will best understand...