CONDOLEEZZA RICE COMES TO LIVERPOOL
The United States 66th Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, is visiting the British portside city of Liverpool today where she is expected to get a less than warm welcome.
On Thursday the local newspaper, the Liverpool Echo, called her coming “The most unwelcome visit to Liverpool since Oswald Mosley came here in the 1930s.” Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley was a British politician principally known as the founder of the British Union of Fascists.
Dr Rice is first visiting Blackburn to repay a visit British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw made to her home town in Alabama in 2005. She will then attend a gala concert at the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Hall to celebrate the city’s status as European Capital of Culture 2008.
This is the first visit to the region by anyone from President Bush’s administration which is, to say the least, very unpopular throughout not just in Liverpool but the whole of Great Britain. A website at condiwatch.co.uk was set up as soon as Dr Rice’s visit was announced.
Dr Rice is of course no stranger to seeing, and ignoring, demonstrators. But if she was under the impression that the British public share support for President Bush in the same way as our beleaguered Prime Minister, Tony Blair, she will certainly be disappointed.
Several groups have already planned many peaceful demonstrations opposing not only the war in Iraq, but many of America’s foreign policies. A planned visit the Masjide Al Hidayah mosque in Blackburn was said to have been cancelled due to safety concerns, though later it emerged that the mosque simply withdrew their invitation to the US Secretary of State under pressure from the local community. The Muslim Council of Britain, the largest lobby group for the UK’s 1.6 million Muslims, said the cancellation was not surprising given hostility towards US foreign policy.
Such is the extent of bad feeling toward Rice, a representative of American politics, that the security surrounding the most protected woman in the world is being stepped up. City workers have even been ordered to make sure paving slabs are secure so as they will not be able to be thrown at the US Secretary of State!
Wrote the following comment on Mar 31, 2006 at 4:34 am
Of course the mosque is a safety concern. They don’t agree with the US.
Wrote the following comment on Mar 31, 2006 at 4:41 am
Actually, Dr. Rice is a very effective Secretary of State who unfortunately works for an ass.
Wrote the following comment on Mar 31, 2006 at 12:55 am
One must question what was expected [of her visit]. If she thought there would be cheers of “We ♥ Bush” then she is sadly mistaken, and at times I do wonder how much they know about the country they are going to visit. Intelligence means nothing if you’re on the wrong team, right?
Wrote the following comment on Mar 31, 2006 at 5:38 am
LOL….to above comment! This is the first ugly pic I have seen of her! Other than that I am keeping my mouth shut today….you can breathe now Simon :)
Wrote the following comment on Mar 31, 2006 at 7:58 am
iT’S JUST A “THANK YOU” VISIT FOR YOUR EXPORT OF NEWCASTLE’S BROWN ALE.
Wrote the following comment on Mar 31, 2006 at 7:59 am
BTW – my friends and I wish to say a hearty “thank you very, very much!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 3, 2006 at 1:24 am
Wookit, you misunderstood. It wasn’t the Mosque that was a saftey concern, they cancelled their invitation. Also, if I may say this, don’t you think that statement was a bit sweeping? That rather sounds like “all muslims are terrorists.” I’m quite sure that’snot what you meant, but it sounded that way :-)
As for Rice being very effective, that makes little difference to the masses here. Most people didn’t know who she is, just like you lot would probably not know who Jack Straw was. But she was here as part of the Bush brigade and the feeling is that she has lied about stuff almost as much as Bush has.I saw some of the news coverage of the protests. She didn’t get a warm welcome at all. I hope that image stays with her next time she considered “the people of Great Britain” allies in this war for oil.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 3, 2006 at 3:33 am
Oh, duh! Sorry Wookit. :-)
Wrote the following comment on Apr 3, 2006 at 3:18 am
Simon.. I was being sarcastic.The US said it was a safty concern after the mosque withdrew it’s invitation is what I thought you were saying, which seems to be what the US seems to do lately with anyone who doesn’t agree or takes issue with them/us.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 3, 2006 at 3:40 am
It’s ok ;)