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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Alighieri who wrote (174103)	8/18/2003 4:16:45 PM
From: tejek	Respond to of 1574685

Well, I suppose that any method of alternate transportation would be of some help, but to move the millions who travel through NYC daily...it is difficult to fathom that boats would be little more than a drop in the bucket. Just the Staten Island Ferry alone carries 65k people per day. That's a lot. If NYC had just 10 lines going, ferry service would well be on its way to carrying a million passengers per day. baycrossings.com ted

To: Alighieri who wrote (174103)	8/19/2003 3:54:55 AM
From: tejek	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1574685

<font color=green> Blimey, ole chap, its not looking good for Bush's poodle, I dare say! The Brits seem keen on crucifying him for good! <font color=black> ted ****************************************************** BLAIR'S TOP MAN SAID SADDAM WAS NOT IMMINENT DANGER Aug 19 2003 By Oonagh Blackman, Deputy Political Editor and Harry Arnold TONY Blair's senior adviser delivered a damning assessment of an initial draft of the Iraq weapons dossier, it was disclosed yesterday. The confidential email from Jonathan Powell to Joint Intelligence Committee chairman Sir John Scarlett was flashed on to computer screens at the Hutton inquiry yesterday. <font color=red>Timed at 19.45 on September 17 2002, it read: "We need to make it clear in launching the document that we don't claim that we have evidence that he (Saddam Hussein) is an imminent threat.<font color=black> PM's MAN: Jonathan Powell "The dossier is good and convincing for those who are prepared to be convinced. "The document does nothing to demonstrate a threat, let alone an imminent threat from Saddam. "In other words it shows he has the means, but it doesn't demonstrate he has the motive to attack his neighbours, let alone the West." <font color=red>A week later, the final version of the dossier was published - "hardened" and containing the claim that Saddam had the capacity to launch weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes. The disclosure of Powell's email - copied to spin chief Alastair Campbell - bolsters BBC journalist Andrew Gilligan's claims that the document was "sexed up" before publication.<font color=black> Mr Powell, the PM's Chief of Staff, was making a rare public appearance in the second week of the inquiry into the death of weapons expert Dr David Kelly - Gilligan's source. Mr Campbell will give evidence today. The controversial 45-minute claim was not in an early September 5 draft, but was added on September 10 or 11 after fresh information came in. Another email disclosed yesterday - dated September 5 and from Mr Campbell's office to Mr Powell - spoke of a "substantial rewrite" being planned for the dossier. It said: "Structure as per TB's discussion. Agreement that there has to be real intelligence material in their presentation." Mr Powell painted a picture of the top tier of Mr Blair's Government constantly locked in meetings over the battle between the BBC and Mr Campbell - whom Gilligan accused of being behind the "sexing up". Two weeks before Ministry of Defence scientist Dr Kelly's apparent suicide last month, Mr Blair was being bombarded by faxes and phone calls, even while at his country retreat Chequers. Lord Hutton asked why such senior No.10 officials were so involved in an MoD matter. Mr Powell replied: "We thought it was an important issue to be discussed." On one occasion on July 8, Mr Powell, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, Mr Campbell, the MoD's top civil servant Sir Kevin Tebbit and Mr Blair's two spokesmen all took part in the drafting of a press release to say an official had come forward to admit talking to the BBC. It was a day before Dr Kelly, 59, was named in public. Mr Blair and his aides, the inquiry heard, discussed making Dr Kelly go before the Commons' Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC) for a public grilling, rather than a private quiz by the Intelligence and Security Committee. There was alarm in Downing Street over what he might reveal about his doubts over Iraq's weapons. Mr Powell said: "Kevin Tebbit said that while Dr Kelly supported the war and was certain that Saddam Hussein had WMD he might say more uncomfortable things about specific items on which he had views. "The Prime Minister wanted to know what Dr Kelly thought about WMD and what he would say. "The Prime Minister made it clear the MoD should continue its internal process and that Dr Kelly should be re-interviewed." There was also a risk, said Mr Powell, of being accused of withholding information from the FAC before it produced its report on the "sexing up" claims. Lord Hutton asked Mr Powell if any thought was given to protecting Dr Kelly. Mr Powell said: "I think from the very beginning it was the view of most of us, probably all of us...that in the end this was going to become public." Mr Powell said Dr Kelly was not involved in the intelligence part of the dossier, adding: "He could not have known whether the 45-minute claim had been added by Downing Street." Counsel to the inquiry James Dingemans QC asked: "But he could have known when the 45-minute claim had been added to the dossier." Mr Powell said: "I did not know he had that kind of knowledge but it did still not put him in the position..." Shadow Foreign Secretary Michael Ancram called Mr Powell's admission of "no threat" an "extraordinary statement". He hoped Alastair Campbell would be able to give some "answers" tomorrow.