JWHoward states that the withdrawal of 1500 British troops from the Middle East is a sign of progress.
JWHoward states that the withdrawal of all 1400 Australian troops from the Middle East will embolden the enemy.
Has JWHoward wedged himself into a corner with these contradictory statements ?
Defence minister Brendon Nelson also stated that peace is anattainable in the Middle East.
Why risk our troops in another unwinnable Vietnam ?

I don’t think the British withdrawal is Spin, it has been planed for a long time, and the South of Iraq, even where Australian forces are is quite stable other than the criminal element playing up.

You see, the British are ready to deploy 6 thousand men to Afghanistan; as Australia is about to deploy another 400hundred.

Baghdad is the Insurgent nightmare in Iraqi; most other places are quite stable as they can be in such a region.
In fact today the Commanding Officer of Australian forces in Iraq was calling for an increase in defense number contribution to help provide security for civil engineers whilst rebuilding Utilities.

None of them are making sense. Australia is looking foolish blindly following the US to the bitter end. Britain is doing its own thing as Blair has to be seen to be reserved about it, otherwise his own party will oust him as their leader.
Brendan Nelson is really telling a bigger whopper of a lie saying that this will lead in piece. This is a war that cannot lead to peace. The people within the region have to deal with this themselves. They don't listen to the west anyway.

Let the spin begin? as if it were something new? The Spin has been going forever, but has reached its finest form during the Howard years.

I was fascinated to discover something in an international student site "Students for an Orwellian Society". These brave writers have listed hundreds of wonderful "spin terms", but only one name has been included as worthy of tribute. Yes, it is John Howard, Australian PM. He is awarded honourable mention for his achievement in publicising the term "ILLEGALS" to describe asylum seekers.

I did like Mr Downer's explanation of the British calling back 2,000 or is it 3,000? (or will it soon be all?) British troops from Iraq. Downer explained that this was not a "WITHDRAWAL" of troops. Oh no! It is, he said only a "REDUCTION IN TROOP NUMBERS"
I have been so fascinated with the escalation of spin going on, that I now am embarking on a campaign of "SPIN-BUSTING". I hope others will join in, in the spirit and example of Don Watson’s “Death Sentence” and Weasel Words”
Christina Macpherson www.antinuclearaustralia.com

The spin is classic politics. Blair is shuffling the cards around and trying to distance himself from the growing Iraq catastrophe. He claims this is not a withdrawal but a 'redeployment' to Afghanistan of 1400 troops and as Blair says "this can be reversed." There are several reasons why Blair is doing a 'strategic draw back.' Namely, Afghanistan is seen as a winnable war. As well, Bush is going to escalate the wars amidst the lies and spin collapsing being seen through by millions - with oil seen as paramount. Moreover, the spoils of war have not gone the way of expectations for the British ruling class. There is no honour amongst thieves when it comes to a cut of the loot and certain giant oil fields and oil exploration concessions.
But by far, the larger reason is the US preparations to assault and invade Iran. There has virtually been daily discussions about using nuclear weapons - "all options are on the table." Britain has a lot of trade deals and exports to Europe. An invasion of Iran and the grab for oilfields will shut out Europe, Dutch Shell, French Total, French Elf and all the others that presently have a hand in the greasy pie. Then there is always the fear that the working class might enter the fray and the question of workers power raised.