[Media-watch] Brzezinski - one more letter...

[Darren Smith {Psych}]

To: jeremy.paxman at bbc.co.uk
Cc: Newsnight at bbc.co.uk

Subject: Brzezinski's "very serious accusation" 
Sent: 13/03/2003 18:26 
Importance: Normal

Dear Mr. Paxman / Newsnight, 

Last night Mr. Brzezinski alleged something incredible, that the 
conditions for disarmament set by the UK are "clearly designed to 
humiliate and to provoke a negative reaction ... essentially to 
legitimate action." 

This suggests the UK has no intention of avoiding war, but every 
intention of securing a second UN resolution, which, as Seumas Milne 
writes in today's Guardian, is "now mainly being fought for to save 
Tony Blair's political skin." 

This kind of argument might typically be dismissed as one of "the 
more extreme anti-war views," to quote Richard Sambrook. But 
clearly, Mr. Brzezinski can hardly be considered as your typical 
anti-war campaigner. 

You replied, quite correctly, that his allegation was "very 
serious." You continued, "You're saying the British Government 
really does not wish to see any kind of meaningful second 
resolution. It wishes simply to proceed immediately to war," which 
quite closely articulates the sceptical opinion of countless 
thousands of people opposed to war. 

I urge the NewsNight team to investigate this kind of anti-war 
argument. For example, you could examine one of the myths central to 
understanding Brzezinski's interpretation, that Iraq was, according 
to ex-weapons inspector Scott Ritter, "fundamentally disarmed" of 
WMD by the end of 1998. That would suggest the issue of WMD is 
largely a charade to legitimise war. 

As you told Mr. Brzezinski, this is a "very serious accusation." And 
surely, very serious accusations deserve careful, sober and thorough 
investigation. 

Regards,

Darren Smith