Talk:Tony Blair

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This is the talk page for discussing improvements to the Tony Blair page.


NPOV?[edit]

I detect a preoccupation with Blair's stance on Saddam Hussein's possession of WMD's. Nor do I think all of those quotes merit being on Wikiquote. A few, for sure, but not so many as to produce the predilection now noticeable. -- Benn M 10:42, 5 Jun 2005 (UTC)

It's quite easy in fact to detect POV here, by looking at the "Possibly one of the quickest broken promises" comment - such editorializing certainly doesn't belong in wikiquote, and also not in wikipedia due to NPOV. However, other than such editorializing that shouldn't be included in wikiquote in any case, I don't think that NPOV applies to wikiquote in general. You can claim that having too many quotes on the same subject is boring, or that there's a problem with proportions that makes the page look ugly (though in general a better solution would be to add more quotes on other topics, instead of deleting quotes), or that there're quotes that shouldn't be included because they're not important or not interesting. But NPOV, in wikipedia's sense, just means to include all notable POVs, without taking a stand on them, and it doesn't apply to wikiquote because we don't take a stand on anything anyway. Sams 11:59, 5 Jun 2005 (UTC)
Completely agreed. In fact, that's most of my argument in favor of categorizing people entries into Category:People by nationality (although the word "nationality" is loaded, and is not my preference for the name of a category). Indeed, I would put here, on record, a challenge to bring in more quotes on different subjects, to balance the WMD-related quotes. -- Benn M 07:56, 6 Jun 2005 (UTC)
Would anyone mind if I remove the npov notice? I do not feel it is valid. Of course, more quotes from Blair, on any subjects, are welcome here. ~ MosheZadka (Talk) 20:03, 25 Jun 2005 (UTC)
Sure, I'll remove it... Thanks to Benn M who cleaned up the article. Sams 28 June 2005 22:34 (UTC)

Terrorism quote[edit]

What about this quote? :

"This mass terrorism is the new evil in our world today. It is perpetrated by fanatics who are utterly indifferent to the sanctity of human life... [We] will not rest until this evil is driven from our world."

Source: http://web.mit.edu/cms/reconstructions/definitions/evil.html --213.84.30.137 12:33, 19 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Blair said this at a very brief speech at the Trades Union Congress in Brighton on September 11, 2001, a matter of hours after the first of the terrorist attacks of that day. I'll add a longer quote and cite. Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 13:52, 18 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks. --213.84.30.137 12:33, 19 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Englishman?[edit]

Surely a man born in Scotland is Scottish? Talskiddy

Removed[edit]

The alleged quote "I never make predictions. I never have and I never will" has been circulating and attaching to almost every front-line political figure in recent years. It was certainly around long before Tony Blair ever became Prime Minister, and I don't think there's any reason to think he originated it. I've also done a search of Hansard from 1985 (and indeed other years) and can find no speech on Central America from Tony Blair. The Blair of 1985 was a very young frontbench MP who confined himself to speaking on Home office, economic and employment subjects. Unless someone can point to the debate - which should not be difficult if the quote is genuine - I think it should stay out for the moment. Fys. “Ta fys aym”. 23:09, 30 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

WMD and immorality[edit]

I recall a quote where Blair said in parliment (probably in PMQs) that if no WMDs existed then the Iraq war would be immoral. Can anyone locate it in Hansard? --Michael C Price 11:50, 14 December 2009 (UTC)[reply]

"Lead me"[edit]

This quotation is fictional and not supported by the NYT article to which reference is made.

Unsourced[edit]

  • Well, Margaret Thatcher is perhaps the politician I have the greatest admiration for. I am reading her memoirs at the moment.
    • Said to have been Blair's answer when asked which politician he most admired, from an interview published in the Sunday Mirror in September 1996.
  • Having our own ambassador making these statements about Karimov is acutely embarrassing. It's bad for British business interests, it's bad for the stability in the region. I mean, he sends back these dossiers full of stories of what Karimov's security forces have supposed to have done, he sends them to the foreign office or whatever, he sends them directly to us, I mean does he think I'm going to read it, does he imagine that I'm interested in this stuff?
    • Allegedly said by Blair during a conversation with Jack Straw in the House of Commons, supposedly overheard by a Labour backbencher. Blair is referring to the repressive Uzbek dictator Islam Karimov. Britain's then ambassador was at the time publicly denouncing Karimov's regime for human rights abuses and sending dossiers to Downing Street detailing Karimov's torture and murder of political dissidents and opponents.
  • Whatever the dangers of the action we take, the dangers of inaction are far, far greater.
    • [Speech to the Labour Party Conference, October 2, 2001]

Unsourced Quotes about[edit]

  • Yeah, Blair, what are you doin'?
    • George W. Bush, During the G8 Meeting
    • Frequently misheard as 'Yo, Blair'.

Removed this KnowbuddyXIII (talk) 00:37, 2 January 2020 (UTC)[reply]