Anglo American Assessments ...

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Since the sudden and sad demise of the uncrowned supersonic Queen of the Atlantic, Concord - the distance between the UK and US has, relatively speaking, doubled.

And, since the BushBlair blood-brother's double act first took to the international stage, two once seemingly inseparable sets of citizens' and their special relationship, seem to have suffered somewhat similarly.

But while both nations' governing politicians are perfectly happy to publicly pat each other's backs, their carefully fabricated falsehoods so interminably trotted out as truths, could hardly be more misleading. The majority of ordinary British people were, from the outset, strongly against the illegal invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq.

More than two million men, women and children bore witness to the fact when they marched in solidarity through the streets of their capital city. Hundreds of thousands of others did likewise in different British cities -- just as many millions more did -- globally.

But their peaceful protestations went unheard; their wishes were ignored. The sickening and self serving interests of their respective rulers [and in turn, their own corporate kings] came first. It was oil-money and military industrial complex-money which mattered most -- so crony conglomorate cartels' profits took precedence over people -- yet again.

With the complicit connivance of a handful of like minded, top level looters - such as Australia's immoral midget of a little Hitler, John Howard - the nightmare of all normal human beings, began. After the diabolical dress rehearsal in Afghanistan, the stage was set for the shameful big- show. The play would go on. Act one, scene one - the bombing of Baghdad.

Ever since, things have rapidly gone down hill. To hell in a handbasket, to coin a phrase.

So it was with some considerable interest that today I began reading one particularly noteworthy person's point of view; Harold Evans, one time editor of The [London] Times. Here's his assessment of Anglo American relationships both past and present. I have to say though, that Mr Evans is much more diplomatic than This Old Brit could ever hope [or want] to be.

I had many encounters on my American journey where subtly different cultural conventions - we're famously divided by a common language - masked the great good feelings Americans had for Britain.

As Robert Benchley once noted they liked to call England the mother country even when they were from Transylvania. But now it seems the warm good feelings are not reciprocated as much as they used to be.

This from a man who, having spent some considerable time living and working stateside, understands America[ns] much better than most none-Americans do.

Indeed, I have it on good authority that the special relationship between Britain and America is on life support. Pollsters at the reputable Pew Research centre in Washington told us this June that for the first time only a bare majority of their British cousins approve of the United States.

I've no doubt myself that much of the international animosity for America arises from resentment of a president whose original idea of diplomacy was to shake hands with himself.

Evans' extremely articulate [as always] assessment of the prevailing Anglo American 'position' is well worth reading in it's entirety. Indeed, This Old Brit recommends it - rather strongly.

Here's your final teaser for today.

America did not regress as I feared it would in the 50s. It renewed the promise of the American dream to its minorities, and a measure of well-being to millions through successive traumas, through the ill-judged war in Vietnam, through the Watergate corruptions, through the civil rights struggles and I think it will find its way again I think through all the travails of terrorism.

My guess is that America and Britain will come to speak a common language again.

Let us hope with all our hearts that Harold turns out to be right. Because, in terms of regular Brits' trans-Atlantic tensions -- you can take it from This Old Brit that time is tight -- for both Bush and Blair.

Hit the link to the entire article -- complete with numerous BBC readers' follow up comments.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4734949.stm