Friends close, enemies closer
OK, well, on the one hand, who cares that former UN weapons inspector Richard Butler has been appointed as Queen Elizabeth's new representative in the southern Australian state of Tasmania? But on the other hand, it's a nice lesson in neutralizing political opponents with a smile. The job has the prestige of a plum diplomatic posting, but it also takes Butler off the screen as a vocal, knowledgeable critic of Tony Blair's support for the US invasion of Iraq, since Butler will have to stay out of political debates in his new role. It also happens that Butler supports Australia's growing republican movement, so now the Aussies don't have to worry about him in the capacity either.
